Dizziness before period: Am I Pregnant? Causes, Treatment

Question: What causes dizziness before period? Is dizziness before period a sign of pregnancy?

Toward the end of your menstrual cycle, there are a lot of annoying changes that you may experience. While some of these changes are mild and may not affect your physical and emotional well being, it is possible that some women will have severe period symptoms.

Common symptoms that happen prior to menstruation are belly cramps, back pain, throwing up, increased yearning for sugary food, body weakness, nausea, confusion, and mood swing.

These symptoms differ from woman to woman, and if you are unlucky, you may encounter dizziness before your period starts.

Dizziness is the feeling of lightheadedness, turning, spinning or a perceived feeling of your surroundings spinning around you. If your period is yet to begin and you feel dizzy, it’s normal you will be worried.

First of all, dizziness may happen to some women before period. This is often due to hormone fluctuation, and the effect of prostaglandins and other chemicals in the brain and blood vessels. Hormone fluctuations are responsible for the premenstrual syndrome (PMS) that affects many women. Cleveland Clinic

Having said that, dizziness before period may sometimes be due to more serious health issues. Your brain acts on information from your eyes, sensory nerves, and inner ear to determine your balance. If there is an abnormality, infection, or inflammation of your inner ear, it may cause you to feel unstable and dizzy. Mayo Clinic

Other serious causes of dizziness are low blood sugar, low blood pressure, vertigo, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, iron deficiency anemia, migraine, side effects of medications you’re taking and dehydration. Mayo Clinic

Another concern for women, especially those who are trying to conceive fast, is the possibility of being pregnant. If you’ve never experienced being dizzy, you may think a dizzy spell before period may be an early pregnancy sign.

The truth is, in early pregnancy, it is possible for you to feel fatigued, sick, weak and dizzy. However, dizziness on its own is an unreliable way to tell if you are pregnant or not. Medical News Today

During pregnancy, dizziness can happen, and it is partly due to widening (vasodilation) of your blood vessels and changes in blood pressure. Because of weak and expanded blood vessels, blood flow to the brain can briefly drop, causing dizziness. Medical News Today

However, these changes usually occur in the first trimester and can continue into the second trimester of pregnancy, and if you are yet to see your period, being dizzy alone is a very unreliable way to tell. It is best to take a pregnancy test at the right time.

This article explains causes of dizziness before period, and why your dizzy spell/episode may sometimes be due to something more serious.

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What causes dizziness before period?

Like already mentioned, most women experience PMS symptoms before their period. If you only feel dizzy for a short while and it settles on its own, it is possibly nothing serious. However, persistent dizziness for hours or days, or dizziness with other worrying symptoms, may signify a serious problem.

Here are common reasons why you feel dizzy before your period:

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1. Your menstrual period is about to start

If you feel a cyclical pattern of dizziness before the start of your period, then likely, your new episode is because your period is near.

Dizziness happens before period due to effects of your hormones – estrogen, progesterone, and prostaglandins. These hormones naturally rise and fall across your cycle and may affect blood vessels, brain chemicals and fluid balance, which can trigger dizziness in some women. Cleveland Clinic

Usually, within few days to your next menstruation, your body builds up the level of prostaglandins. This lipid compound causes the contraction of your uterus with pain (menstrual cramps).

In some women, especially women with severe menstrual cramps, prostaglandins levels are highly elevated. High levels of prostaglandins can affect your GIT (gastrointestinal system) causing frequent passage of watery stool. They may also indirectly affect blood vessels and the nervous system and make you feel lightheaded or unwell. NCBI

If you always feel dizzy, talk to your doctor to determine the underlying cause and to rule out other medical problems.

How to tell my dizziness could be period-related?

PMS dizziness often happens in a cyclical pattern. That is, at a particular time in the month, you will feel like fainting, dizzy or body weakness, and it improves after your period starts.

Some women will experience lightheadedness two weeks before their next menses (around ovulation or in the luteal phase). Others may experience dizziness just a couple of days to their period. Keeping a simple symptom diary (calendar or app) can help you see if it always happens at the same time in your cycle.

Red flags that your dizziness may NOT just be PMS include:

• Dizziness that is getting worse instead of better

• Dizziness with chest pain, shortness of breath, severe headache, or vision changes

• Fainting or near-fainting

• New dizziness in pregnancy or postpartum with heavy bleeding or severe pain

If you notice any of these, you should see a doctor or go to the emergency room.

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2. Vertigo

If you are experiencing spinning-type dizziness all the time, it’s possible you have vertigo. Vertigo is feeling unbalanced with your environment spinning around you. You may also feel like you’re turning and this is triggered by head movement or sitting upright. Mayo Clinic

There are different reasons you will feel this way, though benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is one of the commonest causes, especially in adults. In BPPV, small crystals in the inner ear move out of position. Vertigo is usually triggered by sudden changes in head position – for example, turning over in bed, looking up, or sitting up quickly. It’s not only from head injury, though head trauma can sometimes trigger it. Mayo Clinic

Other causes of vertigo are vestibular nerve infections (vestibular neuritis), accumulation of fluid in your inner ear (Meniere’s disease) and migraine. Mayo Clinic Health System

If you feel dizziness is intense, associated with vomiting, difficulty walking, weakness, severe headache or lasting hours, you need to see your doctor for a quick examination. Sudden severe vertigo can sometimes be a sign of stroke, especially if you also have trouble speaking, facial droop or weakness on one side.

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3. Low blood sugar levels

Low blood sugar levels can affect your balance and may make you feel weak and dizzy before your period. Physiologically, your body needs you to eat for sugar supply. After eating, sugar is utilized for production of energy. An enzyme produced by the pancreas, insulin, helps drive sugar into your body cells.

Before period, food craving is a typical experience for women. Taking sugary drinks elevate your blood sugar levels and sets off a corresponding increase in insulin.

Because of insulin rise, sugar is quickly utilized with a sudden fall of your blood sugar. In some people this “sugar crash” can cause you to feel shaky, sweaty, weak or dizzy. This is more likely if you skip meals, have long gaps between eating, or have conditions like diabetes or prediabetes.

If you suspect low blood sugar:

• Eat regular balanced meals with protein and fibre

• Avoid taking only sugary snacks or drinks on an empty stomach

• Talk to your doctor if you have diabetes, are on insulin or tablets, or if your symptoms are frequent

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4. Low blood pressure

Having a low blood pressure can cause low blood flow (hypoperfusion) to your brain cells. If your brain cells do not get an optimal supply of oxygen and blood, you will have dizziness or a faint feeling.

In some women, taking some medications such as antihypertensive pills or diuretics may unexpectedly lower your blood pressure. If this happens, you may also feel dizzy too. Dehydration (for example from vomiting, diarrhoea, very heavy periods, or not drinking enough water) can also lower blood pressure. Mayo Clinic

If you notice:

• Dizziness on standing up

• Blurred vision, weakness or near-fainting

• Very low blood pressure readings

you should see your doctor to review your medications and check for anemia, dehydration or heart problems.

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5. Iron Deficiency Anemia

Iron deficiency anemia is relatively common, particularly in women with heavy periods. Heavy menstrual bleeding and pregnancy are very common causes of iron deficiency anemia. ACOG

Iron deficiency means your body store of iron is low, resulting in anemia. Anemia means you have lower than normal red blood cells number or hemoglobin.

What causes iron deficiency anemia?

If you are not taking food rich in iron, you are likely to have iron deficiency. Another reason for iron deficiency anemia is uterine fibroid and other causes of heavy periods. Women with uterine fibroid may experience considerable loss of blood every cycle. Over time, this can cause iron deficiency and dizziness.

Symptoms of iron deficiency anemia are pale conjunctiva, body weakness, lightheadedness, dizziness, headaches, fast heartbeat, and in severe cases, difficulty in breathing. nhs.uk

To prevent or treat iron deficiency, taking food rich in iron is a way to start, but many women with iron deficiency also need iron supplements prescribed by a doctor. Iron-rich foods are liver, lentils, dark chocolates, canned sardines, leafy green vegetables and red meat. nhs.uk

If you have heavy menstrual bleeding with tiredness, shortness of breath or dizziness, you should see your doctor. You may need a blood test for anemia and iron levels and treatment for the cause of heavy periods (for example, fibroids, hormonal problems or bleeding disorders). ACOG

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Is nausea and dizziness before period a sign of pregnancy?

If you are experiencing nausea and dizziness before your period, it’s possible you are pregnant. However, it is highly unreliable to use dizziness alone as a pregnancy sign.

The truth is, pregnancy before a missed period is difficult to detect without a test. In some women, they may experience early signs – breast changes (enlarged sore boobs), waist pain, nausea, fatigue, avoiding meals, food cravings, vomiting, implantation spotting, frequent urination, and mood changes. Many of these can also be PMS symptoms, so they overlap and can be confusing. ACOG

If you feel dizzy with these symptoms, there is a chance that you could be pregnant, especially if:

• You had unprotected sex in your fertile window

• Your period is late or missed

• You are also feeling breast tenderness, tiredness, or more frequent urination

How and when to test

The only practical way to know at home is to take a pregnancy test. For most home urine tests, the result is more accurate from the day your period is due or after you miss your period. Testing too early can give a false negative result, even if you are pregnant.

If your test is negative but:

• Your period still does not come, or

• You have severe abdominal pain, shoulder pain, heavy vaginal bleeding, or you feel like fainting

you should see a doctor urgently to rule out ectopic pregnancy or miscarriage. CDC