How I got my period back naturally after losing it for 10 years | HA Recovery Advice, Tips and Q&A

In this podcast episode, Sarah Liz King shares her personal experience with hypothalamic amenorrhea (HA) and how she recovered from it. She discusses the causes of HA, which include under eating, over-exercising, and stress, and shares five things that helped her recover from the condition. She also emphasises the importance of self-care, patience, and seeking personalised advice for recovery.
Sarah also answers questions from her audience related to weight gain and overshoot weight gain during the recovery process. Overall, Sarah's personal experience and advice provide valuable insights for anyone struggling with hypothalamic amenorrhea or other related conditions.
Here are some key moments you won't want to miss:
Overview of Hypothalamic Amenorrhea [00:01:06]
Sarah Liz King explains what hypothalamic amenorrhea is, its causes, and how common it is.
Sarah's Story [00:04:22]
Sarah shares her personal experience with hypothalamic amenorrhea, including how she lost her period for 10 years and her struggle with an eating disorder.
Diagnosis and Misdiagnosis [00:09:06]
Sarah discusses her experience with doctors and their misdiagnosis of her condition, including being told she had PCOS.
The Discovery of Hypothalamic Amenorrhea [00:11:10]
Sarah shares her experience of discovering that she had hypothalamic amenorrhea (HA) after attending a talk by author Kate Callahan. She talks about how she had been searching for a diagnosis for 10 years and how reading Kate's book helped her understand the condition.
Five Things Sarah Did to Get Her Period Back [00:14:15]
Sarah shares the five main things she did to recover from HA and get her period back. She talks about the importance of eating more, adjusting her exercise, proactive stress management, sleep, and patience.
Adjusting Exercise Down Significantly [00:18:02]
Sarah talks about how she had to adjust her exercise down significantly due to a back and pelvis injury she sustained in a car crash. She shares how she went from training intensely to walking and rehab, and how this was a blessing in disguise for her period recovery journey.
Finding Calm [00:19:58]
Sarah talks about how she coped with chronic pain by finding activities that helped her feel calm and at peace, such as driving to the beach, listening to a podcast, meditating, or doing breathing exercises.
Gaining Weight [00:20:53]
Sarah discusses how she had to gain weight during her recovery process, which was uncomfortable and required her to change her clothes multiple times. She explains how body fat plays a role in our hormones and how it's important to accept that our bodies will change.
Patience and Consistency [00:25:37]
Sarah emphasizes the importance of patience and consistency in the recovery process, as it took her several months to get her period back. She also mentions the importance of personalized advice and sustainable changes.
Self-Care Activities [00:29:18]
Sarah Liz King talks about her self-care activities, including getting fresh air, taking rest days, exploring new hobbies, and spending time with friends.
Digestive Discomfort and Accepting Weight Gain [00:30:18]
Sarah Liz King discusses how she handled digestive discomfort during her recovery and how she accepted weight gain after a long time of trying to control it.
Factors in Recovery and Helpful Practitioners [00:36:32]
Sarah Liz King talks about the factors in her recovery, including exercise, diet, and stress, and the practitioners who were most helpful, including a dietitian and a psychologist.
Overshoot Weight Gain [00:37:30]
Discussion of overshoot weight gain, redistribution of weight, and set point weight.
Best and Worst Things During and After Recovery [00:38:52]
The best thing was the return of libido, while the worst was the physical discomfort of weight gain. After recovery, the best thing was the reversal of osteopenia, and there was no worst thing.
Conclusion [00:40:30]
Wrap-up of the episode and a call to action for listeners to share the podcast on Instagram.
For more information, resources, and to connect with me, visit my website at www.sarahlizking.com. You can also follow me on Instagram and TikTok @sarahlizking.
❤️ Join my newsletter list for weekly motivation and inspiration and you'll also receive a FREE copy of my eBook "Body Confidence (for life!) guide" sarahlizking.c...
❤️ Ready to get your period back? Join my online program Healing HA to help you recover your period while improving your relationship with food, exercise and your body. Find out details and sign up here: sarahlizking.c...
❤️ Take the next steps towards full recovery by checking out our signature coaching program, Recover and Thrive sarahlizking.c...
❤️ If you enjoyed this episode please give it a thumbs up and share any comments or questions you have.

[@applesauceandhoney2407]

this was helpful. What I find really hard is that all you youtubers talking about Ha all are really slim. Like oh no I gained 20 pounds but you are slim still and all lost that weight much harder for those that are bigger

[@sarahlizking]

That is so valid to say and I wholeheartedly agree that my thin privilege can make this less relatable. I'll try to diversify the guests I have on to bring more voices to a variety of experiences of HA.

[@martina_fit_yyc]

Thank you so much for this podcast! I am currently going through exactly what you are describing and listen to you and your journey is very helpful ❤

[@sarahlizking]

You are not alone and help is always available

[@ashleyt4140]

I love this and resonate with a lot of your story 💗

[@sarahlizking]

So glad you resonate! What parts hit home for you the most?

[@Martarini]

I'm 22yo I do heavy lifting 5 days a week plus cardio for 3 years now. The last year I became obsessed with wanting to be skinny, but I also dont want to lose my muscle. So I have been eating almost 0 cabrs everyday, I was eating mostly just protein, and not even fats because I thought if I eat fats I will become fat. So I was mostly eating protein shakes, lean meats and some salads and all in a deficit about 1200cals/day which considering how much I exercise is like starving myself. 3 months later (Sept 2023) my 'period' started coming every 2 weeks, but actually I dont think Ive had a real period since then becasue its just barely spotting. Its so difficult for me to transition to exercising less and accept eating carbs again, I will also try eating high healthy fats. Thank you so much for this video, I think I have my answer

[@jellybean555s]

How long did you wait before losing the extra weight? I've gained 10lbs so far but still no period. Worried it will be HARD to lose it back if I gain more!! I know this thinking is not helpful for recovery but that stress from extra weight and having to lose it in the future is extremely stressful.

[@KS-df1cp]

Hello Sarah, Thank you for this detail podcast. I cannot believe how many of us have the same issue. I have been suffering from this condition since 2017 and no success yet! Tried HRT, keeping Thyroid on track nothing worked. These days I am eating well. Initially I went on high protein , greens, and 40g fats each day. diet but I recently discovered that if you eat high protein diet, then your body needs energy to break that down which in HA is a no no. Now I am working on high carb, moderate protein and at least 70g fats a day diet. Will surely post if this works but I know it will. Lots of love!! My question to you is, once your period came back, what was the routine you follow after that? Did you change your diet and exercise or that became a new normal. Thank you for your help. :)

[@MariamElsayed]

Did you get it?

[@devinasamantha]

Hi Sarah, thank you for the sharing, really helpful. I was having a normal menstural cycle, but suddenly i missed my period for 2 months+ right now. I did a urin test, and it came back with my Keton level positive 3, which is the result of long period of starvation. (i did OMAD, with a small portion food intake, and i always ignore whenever i felt hungry). I am actually not thin. I am 170cm with current weight 72kg. Doctors actually told me to lose weight in order to get a balance hormonal level. Yet i feel like, if i'm eating less than what i'm eating right now, i might as well be not eating at all. I watched ur vid, and ur basically saying to do a cal surplus. Is it okay to do that for a person that is not underweight? I am actually in the 'overweight' bar. Doctors told me to reach 63kg, which is i hv to drop 9kg. Please help, i am so confused, whether i hv to gain weight or lose weight!

[@briannaoconnell9901]

Also, what do you feel about not really scaling back on exercise as long as calories are proportionally increased? I recently started weight training and don't want to stop because l've seen great benefits to a physical injury l'd had in the past. I've also been gaining weight through muscle, which has been a tough but rewarding process considering my disordered past. I do cardio with it, which l suppose l could scale back on, but it's only 30 minutes low intensity, which is a great destressor for me and obviously has other physical benefits.

[@אופקאלון-כ1ה]

I have a question, i got my period after over 3 years now and i wonder if i can lose some of the weight i gained during recovery? I'm a bit chubby now and i want to go from 58.5kg to 52kg+- (im 164cm). I tend to over eat to maintain this weight as im scared to lose my period again...

[@briannaoconnell9901]

You mentioned during the period recovery process that you had to basically force yourself to eat when you didn't want to. After your period came back, did you continue doing that for a bit, or did you go back to maintenance? I really increased the amount of calories l was eating and did get my period back after years without one. I then went back to eating the amount of food that my body felt it wanted, which was less than l had been eating. Now it's been almost 2 months without a period again. Does this mean that l need to continue eating more despite my fullness cues?

[@sarita2412]

Does this type of amenorrhea cause your hormones to tank? My amenorrhea happened after the death of my momma 2 years ago. I was due for a cycle 4 days after she passed and it never came. It was an extremely traumatizing day for me after 5 years being her caregiver. The doctors just keep brushing me off. I was 32 years old.

[@emilytran212]

I am also experiencing something similar: amenorrhea due to grief 5-6 months ago. We got this! 😊

[@melissaswartz2987]

Please please please post more of your podcast episodes on this page 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

[@sarahlizking]

More are coming! All the backlog of my other podcasts can be found on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you search for Holistic Health Radio

[@melissaswartz2987]

@@sarahlizking yayyyyy I can’t wait for more episodes 🥳 🎉 I resonate so much with your story- I haven’t had a period for 8 years now 😭🙈

[@sarahlizking]

@@melissaswartz2987 it's so much more common than people think! And I'm glad people are talking about it way more than they used to.

[@joannagrygierczyk429]

Wow! Your story completely matches mine!

[@sarahlizking]

Oh my gosh really?! How are you going with your journey so far?

[@joannagrygierczyk429]

@@sarahlizking Yes, your journey about Uni and the stress - that was my trigger for feeling like i wasnt good enough and saw a physio who put me on a Type A blood type diet but i cut our carbs and it spiralled into restriction and excessive exercise.I went to an outpatient and got back my periods but the door reopened when i moved out of home and met my husband and gained weight and triggered back into rigidity with exercise and clean eating (living in Bondi made it feel normal!). So its been 7 years and Im now seeing a dietician to help me increase food and quit the gym to avoid temptation. So hoping my periods come soon, but it is hard to still eat and not try to restrict.

[@ioannadrs]

I have been told that osteopenia cannot be totally reversed, only to get better at some point! I am very happy for you! Ps sorry for mentioning it, I don't want this to be a trigger for the other girls... I don't know how many pounds you gained through your recovery, however, even though we cannot see your whole body in the video, you seem thin (and really beautiful!).

[@sarahlizking]

Everyone's response to treatment for osteopenia and osteoporosis is different, however, for a large majority of the clients I work with we see a significant improvement that occurs over several years. There are lots of components at play and I need to do an episode just on what I did to reverse my osteopenia, how long it took etc

[@ioannadrs]

@@sarahlizking That would be extremely helpful, thank you in advance!

[@Nakimbugwe-rg6cg]

I have missed my period for 6years now since I had my baby girl, its a lot of years I just can't take it anymore

[@sarahlizking]

It's completely possible to recover it. Don't lose hope!

[@jasminreyes1207]

Is HA the same as PCOS?

[@sarahlizking]

Nope they are very different! I have a 3 part podcast series on this if you go back to episode 65 of Holistic Health Radio on Spotify or Apple iTunes

[@tinocaroline1061]

I have taken 9 years with out my period.so disturbing

[@K.lee_CRAFTS]

Hi what do I do

[@AlethaNyemah1975-kk5dr]

I need a baby, l have had 3 kid,but bowl have any menstruation for 10 yrs now,,am 45 yrs of age.😢😢😢

[@Martarini]

But is it necessary to stuff yourself so much and gain so much weight? Shouldn't we just eat a normal amount of food ensuring the proper nutrients instead of under eating which is kind of what caused it?

[@sarahlizking]

If you've under fuelled yourself for quite some time you might have created a significant energy debt. The activation energy to restart your period may be MORE than what is necessary to sustain it ongoing. Therefore a higher intake of energy might be necessary for a period of time.

[@annelewis7435]

Were you ever vegan bc the doctors promote these diets scared me to think meat causes disease

[@sarahlizking]

no I eat meat and animal products. I get low iron very easily so a vegan diet doesn't suit me.

[@hollygrace6814]

vegan causes an immense amount more issues than being omnivore. Immense amount.