How To Stop Heavy Prolonged Periods

Treatment Of Heavy And/or Prolonged Menstrual Bleeding Without Organic Cause

• Study Details

Information from the National Library of Medicine

When Do You Call Your Healthcare Provider If You Suspect Heavy Period Bleeding

You should call your provider if you’re experiencing the symptoms of heavy menstrual bleeding or anemia, or if your period bleeding has become abnormal. Tracking your periods using a calendar or app can help you identify if your periods are heavier and longer-lasting than usual. Share these notes with your provider.

You should also schedule an appointment if you notice that you’re having to double-up on menstrual products or if you’re skipping activities you enjoy because of heavy bleeding.

Can heavy menstrual bleeding be life-threatening?

Heavy periods arent usually life-threatening, but they can be if you lose too much blood. Bleeding through two or more tampons or pads each hour for two hours in a row is a sign that you should see your provider or seek emergency care immediately.

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Just because heavy periods are common doesn’t mean that you have to learn to live with the discomfort they cause. If managing your blood flow is getting in the way of your emotional and physical well-being, speak with your provider. They can provide a care path that will provide relief.

Tips How To Stop Heavy Menstrual Bleeding Flow

• 5. Sacred Fig

Women go through menstruation every month. Some can live peacefully with it where as others may not maintain their usual activities because of it. Beside typical symptoms of their periods like moodiness, irritability, breast tenderness, many women have experienced uncomfortable heavy menstrual bleeding during their periods. This problem can affect them badly. Actually, young adolescents who have begun menstruating and old women who are approaching their menopause usually have the tendency to be more susceptible to heavy menstrual bleeding. It has been proven that over 20 percent of women over the age of 40 have faced excessive periods bleeding. Thus, this problem has become one of the common concerned issues that women focus on nowadays .

Many women who have heavy menstrual bleeding are looking for effective remedies. However, many victims of heavy period bleeding adopted methods without knowing which is really good and safe for them. Therefore, not all of them achieve a fruitful result and the problems become more serious. Do not go too far, you may get confused. As a matter of fact, you can become a doctor by yourself to ease symptoms associated with heavy menstrual bleeding flow. If you want proper effective natural remedies that you can try at home, read our article of 64 Best Tips On How To Stop Heavy Menstrual Bleeding Flow. For more information about other natural home remedies, take a look at TrueRemedies.com!

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Iron Deficiency And Anaemia

If you have heavy periods each month, one of the key things to watch out for is iron deficiency. One of the most common causes of iron deficiency is prolonged or heavy periods. This can leave you feeling tired and lacking energy. In some cases, this can even lead to anaemia.

Ask your doctor or nurse if you need a blood test to check your ferritin and full blood count. If your results indicate your iron is low, you may need to also take iron supplements.

Why Do I Have Period For 2 Weeks

A normal period is between 2 days and a week. If your period lasts more than a week, then its abnormal. Also, if you continue to see your periods for two weeks, then it is prolonged. Inform your doctor. Common causes of prolonged bleeding depend on your age. A uterine fibroid is common in young women while endometrial hyperplasia and cancer are common in older women.

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What Are The Treatment Options For Heavy Bleeding

Your doctor may prescribe some of the following treatments for heavy bleeding.

Medication: Medications are first-line recommended treatments for heavy bleeding.

Surgery

• Uterine artery embolization : If excessive menstrual bleeding is due to small noncancerous growths called fibroids, then UAE may be done. It is a minimally invasive procedure that can be performed through a small tube inserted into the groin. Through this tube, small plastic beads are injected into the arteries supplying blood to the fibroid. This blocks the arteries and causes the fibroid to shrink over the subsequent six months.
• Myomectomy: Sometimes, the fibroids can be removed using a surgical procedure known as a myomectomy. However, the operation is not suitable for every type of fibroid.
• Endometrial ablation: The womb lining is destroyed.
• Hysterectomy: This is the surgical removal of the womb, which may sometimes also involve the removal of the neck of the womb, fallopian tubes and ovaries.

What Can I Do Myself

If heavy periods become such a problem that they interfere with your everyday life, then you can try taking things a little easier on those days. Some women find that relaxation techniques or yoga help them feel more relaxed and reduce stress. Getting a lot of exercise can also help.

Women with heavy periods are often advised to change their diet: For instance, certain fatty acids, vitamins or fibers are claimed to help. But making changes to your diet hasnt been proven to reduce heavy menstrual bleeding or the related problems. This is also true for sports, homeopathic products and .

Foods that are rich in iron can help to prevent anemia. Examples include meat, legumes, green leafy vegetables and wholegrain bread.

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Frequently Asked Questionsexpand All

• How common is heavy menstrual bleeding?

  Heavy menstrual bleeding is very common. About one third of women seek treatment for it. Heavy menstrual bleeding is not normal. It can disrupt your life and may be a sign of a more serious health problem. If you are worried that your menstrual bleeding is too heavy, tell your obstetriciangynecologist .

• When is menstrual bleeding considered heavy?

  Any of the following can be a sign of heavy menstrual bleeding:

• Bleeding that lasts more than 7 days.

• Bleeding that soaks through one or more tampons or pads every hour for several hours in a row.

• Needing to wear more than one pad at a time to control menstrual flow.

• Needing to change pads or tampons during the night.

• Menstrual flow with blood clots that are as big as a quarter or larger.

Can Abnormal Uterine Bleeding Be Prevented Or Avoided

If your abnormal uterine bleeding is caused by hormonal changes, you will not be able to prevent it. But if your hormonal changes are caused by being overweight, losing weight could help. Your weight affects your hormone production. Maintaining a healthy weight can help prevent abnormal uterine bleeding.

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How Is Heavy Menstrual Bleeding Diagnosed

Your healthcare provider will ask a series of questions about your medical history and menstrual cycle to diagnose heavy menstrual bleeding.

Your provider may ask about:

• Your age when you got your first period.
• The number of days your period lasts.
• The number of days your period is heavy.
• Family members with a history of heavy menstrual bleeding.
• Your pregnancy history and current birth control methods.
• Current medications you’re taking, including over-the-counter ones.

Come prepared to talk about your quality of life, too. Your provider needs to know if you’ve been doubling up on menstrual products, avoiding activities or placing restrictions on your life in any way because of heavy periods.

How Is Menorrhagia Diagnosed

Your healthcare provider will ask you about your medical history and about your periods. You will also have a physical exam including a pelvic exam. You may be asked to keep track of your periods and how many pads or tampons you use for a few months if you havent already done so.

• Blood tests. These check for anemia and test how fast your blood clots.
• Pap test. For this test, cells are collected from the cervix and examined. Its used to check for cancerous changes, infection, or inflammation.
• Ultrasound. Using sound waves and a computer, your healthcare provider can check for fibroids or other problems inside the uterus.
• Biopsy. Examining a tissue sample from the uterine lining can help your healthcare provider find cancer or other abnormal tissue.

Other tests include:

• Hysteroscopy. Using a viewing instrument inserted through the vagina, your healthcare provider can see the cervix and the inside of the uterus.
• Dilation and curettage .This procedure involves scraping and then examining the uterine cavity.

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How Can Hormones Help

Painkillers like ibuprofen and diclofenac both of which are non-steroidal are often used for the relief of menstrual pain and cramps, and also for heavy periods. In addition to relieving the pain, they may also help to lower the amount of blood lost. Acetylsalicylic acid is not suitable for heavy periods because it has an anti-clotting effect so it can increase the amount of blood lost during menstruation.

The most common side effects of NSAIDs are stomach problems, nausea, vomiting, headaches and drowsiness. The women who took NSAIDs for heavy periods in studies didn’t experience many more side effects than women who took a placebo for comparison.

Another medication that can help in the treatment of heavy periods is tranexamic acid. It affects blood clotting and reduces the tendency to bleed. Studies have shown it to be more effective than NSAIDs. Tranexamic acid may cause headaches, tiredness and muscle cramps. But these side effects are not more common than with NSAIDs.

There is no good-quality research on whether herbal products can relieve heavy periods.

If excessive loss of blood is causing extreme tiredness, iron deficiency anemia is probably the reason. It is normally treated by taking iron tablets. Iron supplements may have side effects such as stomach ache and constipation, and can cause your stool to turn black.

When Is A Heavy Period Too Heavy

It is difficult to measure blood loss accurately. Some medical definitions of blood loss during a period are:

• A normal period is a blood loss between 30 and 40 ml per month. Bleeding can last up to eight days but bleeding for five days is average.
• A heavy period is a blood loss of 80 ml or more. This is about half a teacupful or more. However, it is difficult to measure the amount of blood that you lose during a period.
• For practical purposes, a period is probably heavy if it causes one or more of the following:
• Flooding through to clothes or bedding.
• You need frequent changes of sanitary towels or tampons.
• You need double sanitary protection .
• Soaking of bedclothes.
• You pass large blood clots.
• Restriction to your normal lifestyle because of heavy bleeding.
• Menorrhagia means heavy periods that recur each month. Also, that the blood loss interferes with your quality of life. For example, if it stops you doing normal activities such as going out, working or shopping. Menorrhagia can occur alone or in combination with other symptoms.

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What Causes Heavy Periods

Knowing the cause of your heavy periods is the first step to acquiring a solution. Heavy periods could also be painful. So, what causes heavy periods? There are quite a number of possible causes of heavy menstrual bleeding. Look closely at the following:

• Fibroids enlargements of muscle in the wall of the womb
• Endometrial polyps benign outgrowths of the lining of the womb
• Diabetes as it progresses, diabetes can cause long, irregular menstrual cycles, and heavy periods. Better understand and know how to manage diabetes.
• Perimenopause During this transition before menopause, you may experience hormonal changes and unusually heavy bleeding during your period. Menobalance Cream is one of the best natural remedies of perimenopause.
• Childbirth recovery After you have a baby, heavy periods are common and could be a permanent thing.
• Adenomyosis a condition where the uterus muscle is encroached by endometrial tissue, causing thickening of the uterine wall and increased pain and bleeding.
• Stopping contraceptive pills it may appear that your menstrual periods have become heavier when they are really just going back to what is normal for you.

These major and obvious symptoms can help you tell if youre having menorrhagia or heavy periods. They include :

How Long Are Normal Perimenopause Periods

Ordinarily, your menstrual cycle occurs every 21 to 35 days and lasts from 2 to 7 days. However, perimenopause periods can last much longer. Some months, the ovaries might not produce sufficient levels of estrogen and progesterone, preventing menstruation altogether. Other months, the imbalance might cause the uterine lining to become overly thick, which means it will take longer to be shed by your body to shed.

Excessive bleeding and long periods are fairly common during perimenopause. Many women experience an increased flow and extended perimenopause periods before entering menopause.

If youve had periods that are several days longer or more frequent or heavier than usual, its a good idea to see your doctor.

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