Light Period Brown Blood: Reasons, Treatments and More!

There are a number of reasons why you might have the light period brown blood thing going on. We’ll give you the #1 reason for why you might have these two things together.

And then, some more thoughts on why you may have a lighter period, or brownish blood on their own.

Before we get started, please keep in mind that you should see your doctor if you notice any changes to your menstrual cycle. Something not quite right? Make an appointment with your doctor to find out if you have a type of menstrual disorder.

Light Period Brown Blood: The Top Reason

The number one reason why you might happen is that your period is flowing slowly, for whatever reason. When you begin menstruation, the uterus sheds the lining. Of course, it can happen at different speeds depending on a variety of factors.

Brown blood is most likely to happen at the beginning, or end of your period and not in the middle. At this point, it’s usually a bright red color.

Brown blood is a sign that it’s become oxidized. By “oxidized,” we mean exposed to air. It’s similar to rusting metal. Normally, it’d be bright red if were flowing quickly, not dark brown as in this case.

Should the fluid be moving faster? Is this something to worry about? Probably not. Brown blood at the beginning or end of a period is sometimes nothing to worry about.

However, it sometimes is, particularly if accompanied by changes to your cycle. See your doctor to be sure.

Some Reasons Why you May Have a Lighter Period

There are a number of reasons why you might have a lighter period than normal. Some of them have an easy explanation such as starting birth control, of approaching menopause, but others require some medical attention. It’s not always a good thing to have, particularly if you’re trying to get pregnant.

Some of these reasons why you may have a very light period include:

Birth Control

If you have a very heavy period, if your cycles are very irregular, or you have some terrible menstrual cramps, your doctor may prescribe birth control to help regulate your hormones. Of course, you may also take it because you want to prevent pregnancy!

In this case, you may begin to have a lighter period, especially if it was very heavy before beginning with it.

In addition, some forms may cause your period blood to be brown. So, the answer to the question, “Why is my period brown and light?” may just be that you have started taking a new form of birth control.

Menopause/Perimenopause

One of the things that happens during perimenopause or menopause is that hormone levels begin to fluctuate. This causes the menstrual cycle to change in various ways including length, and a long amount of time between periods. Another possibility is a lighter period.

How it changes depends on individual woman. However, you will eventually begin to miss periods, and then cease them altogether.

Stress

Stress, over a prolonged period of time can do all sorts of things to our cycles. One possibility is that your body begins to produce less reproductive hormones, which may result in a lighter period, or no period at all.

Think about it this way: your body is in survival mode, trying to make it through the next stressful situation, and the one after that. The correct functioning of your reproductive system isn’t really the most important thing.

Hormonal Imbalances

Estrogen and Progesterone work closely together to regulate things. If there are out of whack, your periods will be too. They can especially effect the uterine lining, causing it to be thicker than normal (heavier periods with lots of blood loss) or thinner than normal (lighter periods).

Excessive Dieting and/or Heavy Exercise

Both of these things may cause your body to focus energy on the vital life processes, and not on the reproductive system. This can result in a lighter period, or no period at all.

When periods stop, it’s not a good thing for various reasons. Please make an appointment with your family physician for help with this.

What Does a Light Period Mean?

Do you want to find out more about what a lighter than normal period means, with or without brown blood? Then you’ll need to check out this short video for all the details you need to know:

Brown Period Blood: Some Reasons Why

When your menstrual blood is different colors than you’d expect, it’s natural to feel alarmed. After all, it’s sometimes scary to see things coming out of our vagina that aren’t normal.

However, there are a few different reasons why you may have some brown discharge, or brown blood during your period. They include:

Old Menstrual Fluid

The #1 reason why your period blood might be brown is because it’s older menstrual blood that is leaving your body. It can be fluid that wasn’t shed during the last menstrual cycle. Or, it might be that your cycle is happening slower than normal this month for some reason and the blood leaving your body has been exposed to air and has oxidized.

Birth Control

Certain types, especially Nexplanon (the bar) can cause brown period blood. Brown blood, even at the beginning of your period is normal in this case.

It can also cause your period to be lighter as well, so this is a certainly a possible explanation for the lighter period brown blood thing.

Pregnancy

If you’re pregnant, and begin to have brown bleeding, something might be wrong. It is possible that you’re having a miscarriage.

Please get immediate medical attention.

It is normal to sometimes have brown discharge after getting an abortion.

PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome)

PCOS can cause brown discharge during your period. Some other symptoms include irregular cycles, heavy periods with blood clots, a lot of pain, abnormal hair growth, obesity, acne, etc.

Menopause

During menopause, or the years leading up to it (perimenopause), just about anything can happen with regards to your periods, including brown discharge.

Infection or Inflammatory Condition

Some things like yeast infections, or STIs can cause brown discharge. Please see your doctor for a proper diagnosis.

Cervical, Uterine, or Endometrial Cancer

Although rare, it does happen. One of the symptoms of these conditions is brown discharge. Early detection is key, so seek help if there are any changes to your cycle.

Fibroids or Polyps

These are (usually) non-cancerous growths in the uterine tissue. They can cause blood clots, pain, as well as unusual bleeding.

Foreign Object in the Vagina

If you leave something in your vagina for long enough, it’ll start to smell and some darker colored discharge may occur. For example, a piece of tampon or a condom. Typically, while you can often get it out yourself, you should check with your doctor to make sure everything is okay and there is no sign of infection.

Sexually Transmitted Infection

Sometimes an STI can cause brown discharge which may resemble period blood. Be sure to use condoms, especially with new, or multiple partners and also get STI checks done if you’re sexually active.

Other Reasons

Besides the ones we’ve mentioned, there are also other reasons why this might occur. Some of them include a miscarriage, or lochia (bleeding after childbirth).

Why is My Period Blood Brown?

If you have a brown, light period there are a number of reasons why this might happen. Check out this video to find out what some of them are for a light period brown blood.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ONPDcQtDHE

I’m Spotting Brown Blood in the Middle of My Cycle

If you have some brown spotting between periods around ovulation, here are a few possible reasons:

• It’s most common among younger (just started their period), and older women (approaching menopause). Hormones may not be well regulated in these groups of women.
• You’ve just started birth control, or switched to a new one.

Although there are some not so serious reasons why you may be spotting, it is often a cause for concern. It’s recommended that you see your doctor to rule out anything serious.

Brown Discharge After Period

It’s not so uncommon to have some brown discharge after finishing your period. This usually happens because the blood leaving is now quite old, and maybe your period was just a bit slower this month than normal for some reason.

Of course, there are lots of others reasons why you may have some brown discharge after menstruating.

Learn more about this here: Brown Discharge After a Period. 

Brown Discharge Before a Period

Brown discharge before you start your period is also not an uncommon thing. The most common reason for it include the following:

• Pregnancy: You may have some brown discharge at around the time you’d expect to get your period, instead of your regular flow. It’s caused by the fertilized egg burrowing into the lining of the uterus.
• Perimenopause: All kinds of things can happen to your menstrual cycle when you’re approaching menopause, including some brown discharge before period. This is because of fluctuating progesterone and estrogen.
• Period just Starting: When your period is just beginning, it may take a day or two to kick into gear. This could result in what seems like brown discharge.
• Reaction to a Pap Test, or vigorous sex: This can sometimes irritate the cervix and cause some bleeding at irregular times.

Lighter Period with Brown Blood: Have your Say!

Have you had the light period, brown blood thing going on? Or, does it look more pink than red?  Leave a comment below and share your experience with us. We’d love to hear from.

Also be sure to give this content a share on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest. It’ll help other people, like yourself who may be wondering what’s up with their very light brown period.

Reference: Healthline

Please note that we’re offering this content for informational purposes only and it’s not intended to be medical advice. For the best care and advice specific to your situation, consult with a medical professional about these kinds of issues.