Sexual wellbeing
Missed or Absent Periods Checker
A private checker for periods that are missing or have stopped. It walks the same order a clinician does — rule out pregnancy first, then sort the pattern into primary or secondary amenorrhea and weigh the common causes, from stress and weight to thyroid, PCOS, and the menopause transition. You'll see which bucket you're in and when it's worth a clinician's look. It's a guide, not a diagnosis, and nothing you enter leaves your device.
The first step is always to rule out pregnancy — it's the most common reason periods stop. This checker helps you think through the rest; it's a guide, not a diagnosis.
Amenorrhea cause checker
Step one, always
Rule out pregnancy before anything else.
Pregnancy is the most common reason periods stop. If there's been any sex that could lead to pregnancy since your last period, take a home test first — it's the single most useful step and it changes what everything below means. When to take a pregnancy test →
This sorts your answers into a pattern and points at common causes — it's a guide, not a diagnosis, a pregnancy test, or a blood test. Only a clinician can find the reason your periods are absent. If pregnancy is possible, test first.
How it works
Pregnancy first, then primary vs secondary
Clinicians approach a missing period in a set order, and this checker follows it. The first step is always a pregnancy test — pregnancy is the most common reason periods stop, so it's ruled out before anything else is considered, even when it seems unlikely.
Once pregnancy is off the table, the pattern is sorted into two types. Primary amenorrhea is when periods have never started by about age 15 — that's its own reason for an evaluation. Secondary amenorrhea is when someone who has had periods before stops getting them; the threshold for a formal look is three months without a period. Missing just one or two often settles on its own, so short gaps are usually watched rather than worked up straight away.
From there, a clinician weighs the common causes — breastfeeding, hormonal contraception (including the months after coming off it), low body weight or heavy exercise or stress (which can switch periods off), PCOS, thyroid or prolactin problems, and the menopause transition in midlife. This tool asks about those factors and shows which ones your answers line up with, but it can't tell them apart — that takes a clinician's history, exam, and usually blood tests. The honest output is which bucket you're in and whether it's worth a visit.
The two types
Primary and secondary amenorrhea
The two words clinicians use for absent periods — what each means, and when each is worth an evaluation.
| Type | What it means | When to have it checked |
|---|---|---|
| Primary amenorrhea | Periods have never started by about age 15 | Worth an evaluation — see a clinician |
| Secondary amenorrhea | Periods started before but have now stopped for 3 months or longer | Worth an evaluation once pregnancy is ruled out |
Common causes
What can make periods stop
Some causes are entirely normal, some are easily treated, and some deserve a closer look. These are the ones this checker asks about, drawn from ACOG, ASRM, and MedlinePlus guidance.
| Cause | What it involves |
|---|---|
| Pregnancy | The most common reason periods stop — rule it out first with a test |
| Breastfeeding | Periods often pause while breastfeeding and return later |
| Hormonal contraception | Can lighten or stop periods — including for a few months after stopping |
| Low weight, heavy exercise, or stress | Can switch periods off (functional hypothalamic amenorrhea) |
| PCOS | Polycystic ovary syndrome is a common cause of irregular or absent periods |
| Thyroid or prolactin problems | Both can stop periods and are checked with a simple blood test |
| Perimenopause & menopause | Periods naturally space out and stop in midlife |
Many of these overlap and can't be told apart without tests. A clinician sorts them out — this checker only shows which ones your answers line up with.
What a work-up looks like
How a clinician finds the cause
If it's worth a visit, here's what a clinician (often a gynecologist, sometimes with a hormone specialist) does next.
Rule out pregnancy
A pregnancy test comes first, every time — it's the most common cause and it changes everything that follows.
Your history
Periods, weight, exercise, stress, medications, contraception, and family history — plus how long things have been going on.
Blood tests
Thyroid and prolactin (both stop periods and are very treatable), plus hormones like FSH — and androgens if PCOS is a question.
Sometimes imaging
A pelvic ultrasound or other scan, especially for primary amenorrhea, to look at how the reproductive organs are formed.
When it's urgent
A few things need care now
Seek urgent care
If pregnancy is possible and you have severe or one-sided pain low in your tummy, shoulder-tip pain, dizziness or fainting, or unusual vaginal bleeding, that can be a sign of an ectopic pregnancy, which needs care right away. And a new, severe headache with vision changes — like losing your side vision — needs prompt evaluation too. Severe pelvic pain that comes on suddenly or stays on one side warrants urgent care whether or not pregnancy is possible — a twisted or ruptured ovarian cyst (ovarian torsion) can cause it and needs prompt attention. Go to urgent care or an emergency room now, or call your local emergency number. Don't wait it out.
A missing period on its own is not an emergency — it's something to look into, not to panic about. This section is only for the specific warning signs above, which point to problems that need attention right away rather than a routine appointment.
Next steps
Related checks and care
When to take a pregnancy test
Step one for any missed period — when a home test is accurate and how to read an early result.
PCOS symptom checker
If irregular periods come with extra hair growth or acne, this weighs the PCOS pattern in more detail.
Perimenopause stage quiz
If periods spacing out at midlife might be the menopause transition, this reads your cycle pattern for it.
Cycle regularity check
See whether your cycle length and timing fall in the typical range — useful context once periods return.
Sources
Where this comes from
The definitions of primary and secondary amenorrhea, the rule-out-pregnancy-first order, and the list of common causes follow the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), and MedlinePlus patient guidance. The three-month evaluation threshold for secondary amenorrhea follows ACOG and ASRM specifically — MedlinePlus applies a six-month threshold for those with regular cycles, so we use the more conservative three-month figure. We don't diagnose or assign a probability — we sort answers into a pattern, point out which common causes they line up with, and are explicit that finding the reason is a clinician's job.
Medically Reviewed & Fact-Checked · Updated
Reviewed by EasySTD Editorial Team
Compiled and checked by EasySTD's editorial team against CDC and public-health sources. This is educational information, not a substitute for advice from a licensed clinician. Our editorial guidelines →
4 Sources
Data & references
- ACOG: Amenorrhea — Absence of Periods (FAQ)https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/amenorrhea-absence-of-periods
- ASRM: Current evaluation of amenorrhea (committee opinion)https://www.asrm.org/practice-guidance/practice-committee-documents/current-evaluation-of-amenorrhea/
- MedlinePlus (U.S. National Library of Medicine): Absent menstrual periods — secondaryhttps://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001219.htm
- MedlinePlus (U.S. National Library of Medicine): Absent menstrual periods — primaryhttps://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001218.htm
EasySTD is an information and comparison directory, not a healthcare provider. This tool is general information based on published patient guidance: it is not medical advice, a diagnosis, a pregnancy test, or a blood test, and it does not create a doctor-patient relationship. Only a clinician can find the reason for absent or missed periods. If pregnancy is possible, take a test first; and severe one-sided pain with faintness, or a severe headache with vision changes, needs urgent in-person care.
Good to Know
Missed & absent periods: frequently asked questions
What amenorrhea is, why pregnancy comes first, how long is too long, why a checker can't diagnose the cause, what a work-up involves, and how private this is.
What is amenorrhea, and what's the difference between primary and secondary?
Amenorrhea just means the absence of menstrual periods. Clinicians split it in two. Primary amenorrhea is when periods have never started by about age 15. Secondary amenorrhea is when someone who has had periods before stops getting them for three months or longer. The distinction matters because the likely causes are different: primary amenorrhea is more often about how the reproductive system developed or set up, while secondary amenorrhea is usually about something changing along the way — most commonly pregnancy, but also breastfeeding, contraception, weight or stress, thyroid or hormone issues, PCOS, or the menopause transition. Either type is worth an evaluation to understand the reason.
Why does a pregnancy test come first?
Because pregnancy is the single most common reason periods stop, and no other explanation should be assumed until it's ruled out. That's true even if you think it's unlikely — if there's been any sex that could lead to pregnancy since your last period, a home test is the fastest, cheapest way to settle it, and the result changes what everything else means. It also matters for safety: in the rare case of an ectopic pregnancy, knowing early is important. So whatever else might be going on, step one is a test. If it's negative and your period still hasn't come and it was very early, repeating it in about a week can be worth it.
How long is too long to go without a period?
The threshold clinicians commonly use for secondary amenorrhea is three months. Missing one period, or having a cycle run late, is very common and often settles on its own — stress, illness, travel, weight change, or coming off hormonal contraception can all do it. But once three months have passed with no period (in someone who isn't pregnant, breastfeeding, or through menopause), ACOG's guidance is to be evaluated, regardless of the cause. You don't have to wait the full three months if something is worrying you sooner — and if periods have never started by age 15, that's its own reason to check.
Can this checker tell me why my periods stopped?
No — and it's built not to. It sorts your answers into a pattern (primary or secondary amenorrhea, missed-a-few versus absent for months) and points out which common causes your factors line up with, but it can't diagnose the reason. Many of the causes — thyroid or prolactin problems, PCOS, low-energy hypothalamic amenorrhea, ovarian issues — can only be told apart with a clinician's history, an exam, and usually blood tests. So the honest output here is which bucket you're in and whether it's worth a visit, never a specific diagnosis. A gynecologist is a good place to start, and a hormone specialist (endocrinologist) is sometimes involved.
What does an amenorrhea work-up involve?
Usually a conversation, an exam, and some blood tests. A clinician will ask about your periods, weight, exercise, stress, medications, contraception, and family history, and — after a pregnancy test — check hormone levels. Common blood tests look at thyroid function and prolactin (both can stop periods and are very treatable), along with hormones like FSH and, if relevant, androgens for PCOS. Sometimes a pelvic ultrasound or other imaging is added, especially for primary amenorrhea, to look at how the reproductive organs are formed. The exact work-up is tailored to your age and your story, and finding the cause usually points straight to what helps.
Is what I enter private?
Yes. This checker runs entirely in your browser. Your answers are read on your own device and are never sent to a server, saved, or shared — close the tab and they're gone. It's general educational information based on ACOG, ASRM, and MedlinePlus patient guidance; it can't diagnose you, isn't a pregnancy test or a blood test, and doesn't replace a conversation with a clinician.
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