You’ve been seriously bloated, moody and tired. You’ve got monster cramps, and your face is as pimply as a 17-year-old boy’s. In other words, you’re suffering from all of the classic signs of your monthly flow – but your period is totally MIA.

First: Don’t freak. It turns out, there are tons of reasons you’ve got those tell-tale period symptoms, but no period.

“Hormonal changes related to ovulation can affect some of the same pathways in your brain that might be affected by other medical conditions, causing mood swings that feel similar to your period but aren’t related to ovulation or menses,” says Dr Chailee Moss, an obstetrician and gynaecologist at Johns Hopkins Medicine. What’s more, some physical abnormalities in your uterus and ovaries can also cause cramping that feels like PMS, she adds.

While skipping a period every now and then is usually nothing to worry about, if you have a fever, significant nausea or vomiting, or pain that you can’t control with simple OTC medications or that doesn’t improve within a week, check in with your doctor right away.

Otherwise, it’s time to see your doctor if you skip more than three cycles in a row, suggests Chicago-based obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Jessica Shepherd – here’s what might be going on down there.

1. Anovulation

Every once in a while, your body goes through all of the hormonal changes associated with PMS, but if you didn’t actually release an egg that month, you won’t actually get your period. Known as anovulation, it’s more common than one might think. “Ten to 18% of all regular cycles are anovulatory,” Dr Shepherd adds. In case you’re wondering, yes, that stat can make getting pregnant tricky!

Read more: 6 times your period blood looks different — and what it means about your health

2. Pregnancy

If you’ve had unprotected sex in the last month, were a bit lax about taking your pill, or rely on the pullout method for birth control, it’s worth taking a pregnancy test. Many of the symptoms of early pregnancy, including breast tenderness, mood swings, fatigue and cramping, are the same ones that you were already experiencing month to month before and during your period.

Think there’s a chance you could be pregnant? Take an at-home pregnancy test on the day that you expect your period. If it comes back negative, wait three to four days and try again. “One to two days can make a difference in a positive pregnancy test,” says Dr Moss.

3. Thyroid conditions

Your thyroid, a small butterfly-shaped gland in your neck, regulates many of your body’s functions, including your metabolism and menstrual cycles. If your thyroid gets out of whack, your cycles can become irregular, says Dr Shepherd. The result: You may you go a long stretch without having your period while still experiencing period-like symptoms, says Dr Moss.

Because your thyroid regulates your brain function, mood swings that you thought were PMS may be related to your neurologic function, she explains. And spotting or cramping may occur because the lining of your uterus has built up but hasn’t shed because you’re not ovulating.

Be sure to check in with your doctor if you’re experiencing other symptoms of a thyroid condition, including sudden unexplained weight loss or gain, shaking, heart palpitations or significant fatigue.

Read more: 5 alternatives to pads and tampons you should think about trying

4. Hormonal birth control

One very common side effect of hormonal IUDs is skipped periods. That’s because one of the ways the device prevents pregnancy is by thinning out the endometrial lining so there’s nothing to shed come that time of the month.

And, while they don’t typically nix your flow altogether, birth control pills can result in super-light flows or spotting. So you might feel period symptoms like breast tenderness even without a heavy, full-blown period, says Dr Shepherd.

5. Stress

Stress is a surprisingly common reason for missing your period. “Stress increases your cortisol levels, which affects your hormone balance,” says Dr Shepherd – including the hormones that regulate your ovaries and uterine lining.

Exams, the death of a family member and divorce are all big-time stress-inducing events that can cause periods to go awry. But these life-changing biggies aren’t the only reasons you might be feeling the effects of stress.

“Some people don’t realise they’re so stressed, but once they talk about it they realise they are going through something,” says Dr Shepherd. If you think stress is messing with your periods, talk to your doctor; therapy, exercise, yoga and meditation can all help get your stress under control and your periods back on track.

Read more: 5 period symptoms that might signal a serious health problem

6. PCOS

Frequent skipped periods can be caused by polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). “PCOS is a condition in which a patient has an excess of androgens, which are chemicals in the body that affect ovary function, hair growth, weight gain and sensitivity to insulin,” says Dr Moss.

PCOS can result in anovulatory cycles and irregular spotting. It commonly causes cysts to grow on the ovaries, which, if they rupture or cause the ovary to twist, can cause pelvic pain that feels a lot like period cramps.

Up to 20% of women worldwide are affected by PCOS, and it’s more common among women who are overweight or have a mom or sister with by the condition, Dr Moss says. If you think you might be suffering from PCOS, check in with your doctor. While there is no cure, birth control and other medications can help keep symptoms under wraps and get your periods back on track.

7. Uterine polyps

You might associate polyps with your colon, but the same small benign tumors can grow in your uterus. “It’s an overgrowth of lining of the uterus,” says Dr Moss. Polyps in your uterus can cause cramping and period-like discomfort, even when you’re not on your period.

Because polyps can make it harder to get pregnant, and because there is a small risk they may develop into uterine cancer down the line, your doctor will likely want to remove them, most often with a relatively simple procedure known as a hysteroscopy. During a hysteroscopy, a doctor inserts a long tube up through the vagina and into the uterus. The doctor is able to use the scope to both see and cut out the polyps.

Read more: 11 signs your PMS is actually premenstrual dysphoric disorder

8. Ovarian cysts

Every month, your ovaries make several cysts in preparation for ovulation, but only one cyst releases an egg. Although the others usually dissipate on their own by the time you get your period, sometimes one cyst (or more) sticks around.

Cysts can also occur if you have an anovulatory cycle (such as with PCOS). Ovarian cysts often cause no symptoms at all, although they can sometimes trigger period-like pain when you’re not on your period. So if you’re experiencing irregular cramping, talk with your doctor.

“Cysts in and of themselves aren’t usually a problem,” says Dr Moss. “But if they get particularly large, they can cause the ovary to twist, which is painful and requires an emergency procedure to save your ovary.”

9. Gynaecological infections

Some sexually transmitted infections like gonorrhoea and chlamydia can result in a condition known as pelvic inflammatory disease, which can cause significant discomfort that feels like period cramping when you’re not expecting your period. UTIs can also cause period-similar pelvic pain, says Dr Moss.

Whatever your down-there infection, a round of antibiotics should help clear it up. So keep an eye out for red-flag symptoms including fever, significant nausea or vomiting, or pain that doesn’t go away with OTC pain relievers.

Read more: The surprising reason you’re getting side pains once a month

10. Mittelschmerz

If you’ve got PMS-like cramping, bloating, and breast tenderness but no period, one reason may be that it’s not quite time for your period yet – but it’s coming.

German for “middle pain”, mittelschmerz happens about half-way through your menstrual cycle – around day 14 or the time they ovulate, says Dr Nicole Scott, an obstetrician and gynaecologist at IU Health. It’s a totally normal experience – affecting about 20% of women – and it doesn’t mean anything is wrong, she says. Since it’s just your ovaries doing their thing, there’s not much you can do to prevent it and the symptoms should go away within a day or two but if it’s extremely painful or comes with any sign of infection, call your doctor, she adds.

11. Exercising too much

Hitting the gym on the regular is one of the best things you can do to help deal with PMS, but working out too hard or too often can actually mess up your cycle and in some cases make you miss your period all together, Dr Scott says.

All the physical stress, especially if you lose a lot of body fat, can make your period go AWOL and cause abnormal fluctuations in your hormone levels. These fluctuations can cause moodiness, irregular spotting, acne and other PMS-like symptoms. If you miss your period for three cycles or more in a row, talk to your doctor.

12. Ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer is relatively rare, affecting only about 22 000 women a year in the US, but it’s one of the deadliest cancers for women, killing about 14 000 women a year. A big part of this is because it often shows no, or very subtle, symptoms, Dr Scott says.

Missing your period isn’t the most common symptom of ovarian cancer – those are abdominal bloating, urinary problems, weight loss and pain – but it is a possible symptom, according to the American Cancer Society. So if you’ve missed your period for three months or more or you have other concerning symptoms, call your doctor immediately.

^{This article was originally published on www.womenshealthmag.com}

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Hugs. Everyone knows they feel good, but new research shows they really can take the edge off of interpersonal conflicts.

Assessing more than 400 adults, scientists found that getting a hug on the day of a conflict was linked to smaller drops in positive emotions and a smaller rise in negative ones. The feel-good effects also appeared to linger into the following day.

Support to both women and men

“This finding is consistent with multiple emerging lines of evidence demonstrating the ability of touch behaviors within close relationships to reduce perceptions of threat and increase feelings of security and well-being,” said study author Michael Murphy. He’s a postdoctoral research associate in psychology at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

The study was published in the journal PLOS ONE.

“While this research is still in its preliminary stages, our study suggests that consensual hugs might be a simple yet effective way to provide support to both women and men enduring relationship conflict,” Murphy added.

While most prior research has focused on the role of touch in romantic relationships, Murphy and his team concentrated on consensual – not sexual – hugging. More than 400 women and men were interviewed each night for 14 consecutive days about their conflicts, hugs received, and positive and negative feelings.

The researchers found no difference in the stress-reducing effects of hugs in women and men. Also, no difference was noted between those who were married or in a committed relationship and those who were not.

Other beneficial effects

But several important questions remain, Murphy said, including whether a hug’s timing matters in relation to conflicts.

“Does who provides the hug matter? Does it matter if hugs are offered in direct response to conflict or independent of conflict?” he asked, noting that he’s undertaking new research to examine that.

A 2015 Carnegie Mellon study found that those who were hugged more had a lower risk of catching colds after being exposed to the virus, Murphy noted.

And other physically beneficial effects of hugs have been documented, said Harris Stratyner, a clinical associate professor of psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City.

The quality of genuineness

Hugging can increase natural levels of oxytocin, a feel-good chemical that helps mothers and babies bond, said Stratyner, who wasn’t involved with the study.

It’s amazing to see what hugs can do, so I wasn’t surprised by the study’s findings in the least,” said Stratyner. “We have always known that hugs can soothe. A hug transcends anger and anguish and loss.

“Hugs are transformational,” he added, “and like music, they’re universal.”

Murphy and Stratyner agreed that people can likely tell the difference between a heartfelt hug and a more perfunctory one.

“They have to have the quality of genuineness,” Stratyner noted. “It can’t be a hug that’s a standoffish kind of thing.”

If you think your nightly glass of vino is doing good things for your health, think again.

A new study suggests that folks who like to tip back a drink or two every day are more likely to die prematurely.

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“At any given age, if you drink daily – even just one or two drinks – you have a 20% increased risk of death compared to someone who drinks the same amount two to three times a week,” said study author Dr Sarah Hartz.

She’s an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

“We should no longer say that it’s healthy to drink. It’s a vice that’s not great for us,” she added.

Increased risk of cancer

Hartz noted that how significant a 20% increased risk of death is depends on your age. She explained that since very few people die in their 20s, a 20% increased risk of premature death is less significant at that age than it would be for someone in their 70s.

The study was published online in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.

Although the study did find an association, it did not prove that light drinking caused early death risk to rise.

But how might alcohol boost that risk?

Hartz said most of the increased risk of early death comes from an increased risk of cancer. She said that people often underestimate how much drinking can increase the risk of some cancers, such as breast cancer. And drinking more than four times a week can also increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.

New data

But what of all the studies that have suggested a health benefit from moderate drinking?

Hartz said that there have been several studies this year that have concluded that drinking generally isn’t good for health. And the populations in these studies and the latest one are larger than in previous ones. More importantly, she noted, the newer studies have been able to parse out the lowest levels of drinking.

“We have access to data we haven’t had access to before,” Hartz explained.

The study included information from more than 400 000 people. More than 340 000 (aged 18 to 85) had participated in a national health survey. Another group of nearly 94 000 were between the ages of 40 and 60 and had been treated as outpatients at Veterans Health Administration clinics.

“The lowest risk group was people who drank one or two drinks just two to three times weekly,” she said.

Still, not everyone is convinced that this study is the last word on alcohol and health.

More personalised medicine

According to Dr Guy Mintz, director of cardiovascular health and lipidology at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, New York, “The jury is still out with regard to frequency and quantity of alcohol use.”

Mintz said, “This is an interesting study. One to two drinks four days a week seemed to protect against cardiovascular disease, but drinking every day eliminated those benefits.”

He pointed out that “one of the study’s conclusions was that, as medicine becomes more personalised, some patients with a history of cardiovascular disease may benefit from drinking two or three days a week, but those with a higher risk of cancer may not benefit.”

Mintz tells his patients to drink anything but beer because it has a lot of calories and salt, and can contribute to obesity and high triglycerides (an unhealthy type of blood fat). “I would stress alcohol consumption in moderation, both in frequency and quantity,” he said.

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A study suggests they don’t work, but health experts say there’s no reason to change official advice.

Mowing your lawn can be a dangerous job, resulting in severe injury or even the loss of a limb.

A new review of 5 000 lawn mower injuries between 2006 and 2013 found that 85% of the injuries were to men. Moreover, children up to age four were six times more likely to have a foot or toe or lower extremity injury and nearly two times more likely to have an amputation than those aged 15 and older.

A serious public health concern

Older teens and adults were more than eight times more likely to have an injury to a hand or arm.

“Despite consumer education programmes and warning labels, lawn mower injuries in the United States remain a serious public health concern,” said senior study author Dr Deborah Schwengel, an assistant professor of anaesthesiology and critical care medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore.

Young children are more likely to get injured by running into the yard while a family member is using a mower or getting their foot trapped in the mower while sitting in the lap of someone running the mower, the researchers noted.

Most teens and adults are hurt when they stick their hands in the mower to clear debris, Schwengel’s team found.

The researchers weren’t able to tell which types of mowers were the most dangerous.

Better prevention policies needed

For the study, researchers used data from the US Nationwide Emergency Department Sample, the largest emergency department database in the country.

Most of the injuries were cuts 47%, fractures 22% and amputations 22%. Most were to the wrist or hand 65% and foot or toe 20%.

Thirty-eight percent of the injuries occurred in the South. Most injuries (66%) occurred on weekdays. Most (82%) happened between April and September. “Understanding what types of injuries occur in certain groups should help engineers design safer lawn mowers and policymakers create more appropriate prevention policies,” Schwengel said in a Hopkins news release.

A better lawn mower design that could prevent injury, for example, would be one that automatically stops the mower when human flesh is detected near the blades, the researchers said.

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The findings suggest interventions to stop type-2 diabetes should begin earlier in life, experts say.

UCLA researchers have discovered a common process in the development of late-stage, small cell cancers of the prostate and lung. These shared molecular mechanisms could lead to the development of drugs to treat not just prostate and lung cancers, but small cell cancers of almost any organ.

New research suggests that protecting the Amazon rainforest from deforestation may just be shifting the damage to a less renowned neighbor. The unintended consequences are profound.

A devastating wall of water gushed down the Bhotekoshi/Sunkoshi River in Nepal on July 5, 2016. It came from a lake that had been dammed by a glacial moraine but the dam broke and discharged more than 100,000 tons of water all at once. An international team of GFZ and Nepali scientists was able to record the sudden outburst with seismometers deployed the year before in the wake of the catastrophic Ghorka earthquake in April 2015. In a study to be published in Science, the authors argue that such major flood events have a greater impact on erosion rates than the annual monsoon rainfalls. The reason is that the water masses mobilize large boulders and coarse sediment which usually protect the riverbed. During monsoon seasons, only finer sediment and pebbles are transported downstream — not enough to trigger landslides and massive erosion. “Erosion rates may be strongly influenced by non-climatological drivers such as earthquakes and the climatic factors that affect the size and distribution of glacial lakes,” the authors write in their paper.

Waste disposal firm has not been able to incinerate body parts and other waste collected from hospitals.