What To Use For Heavy Periods

How To Treat Menorrhagia:

• Treatment for menorrhagia depends on the type of bleeding disorder. Amicar®, Cyklokapron®, desmopressin, or even platelet transfusion may be used.
• Stimate® nasal spray, if effective, may be used on the first day of the period.
• Birth control pills or hormones can be used to control the periods. They also raise the clotting factor levels in some women with bleeding disorders.

Some women with menorrhagia are treated with hormones. They receive a combination of estrogen and progesterone. This causes thinning of the lining of the uterus so that there is less lining to shed during the monthly period. The longer you take the hormonal medication, the lighter and shorter your period becomes.

There are several forms of hormone medicine. You and your health care provider can decide which will work the best for you. Hormones can be taken in a daily pill or as an injection that is given every three months. Your health care provider can put a device in your uterus. This intrauterine device releases a hormone that helps control the bleeding. It can be left in place for up to five years.

Removal of the uterus will stop menstrual bleeding completely, but it is a drastic step. Make sure you have discussed all other treatment options with your doctor.

Give Menstrual Cup A Chance

We all know why sanitary pads and tampons are not safe for our reproductive health. Why not consider using a menstrual cup like the Anigan Eva Cup instead? Using the best menstrual cup for a heavy flow is the perfect solution.

Here are two convincing reasons to switch from your regular pad to menstrual cup:

• Some long time cup users claim that using the best cups are actually helpful in easing their menstrual cramps. They used to suffer from severe cramps and heavy periods and based on their experiences after using cups, they stopped having cramps and the period flow lighter than before.
• Most menstrual cups are meant to be used for heavier periods. They have greater capacity than sanitary napkins and tampons.

What Are The Treatment Options For Heavy Periods

There are various treatment options available for women who have very heavy periods, including medication, hormonal contraceptives and surgery. Knowing about the advantages and disadvantages of each can help make it easier to choose an appropriate treatment.

If very heavy periods become too much of a problem, treatment can help you to cope better. Different types of medication can reduce the bleeding and related problems. If one medication doesn’t work, it is usually possible to try out other kinds.

Hormonal contraceptives like birth control pills or intrauterine devices affect the menstrual cycle and lessen the amount of bleeding. Any fibroids or polyps that are found to be the cause can be surgically removed. If the effects of heavy periods are particularly bad, other procedures can be considered.

The choice of treatment and best time for treatment will depend on whether a woman is planning to become pregnant. The most effective treatments all limit a woman’s ability to get pregnant either temporarily, like the pill, or permanently, like the surgical removal of the womb .

But as long as the heavy periods arent causing anemia, they dont necessarily need to be treated. Some women learn ways to prepare as well as possible for heavier days. But its a good idea to see a doctor and try to find out what the cause is.

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How To Stop Heavy Periods

Now the good question would be to know what home remedies and supportive tools are appropriate for you. Well, it depends on the cause of your heavy periods. Lets just run down some of them for you to lighten heavy periods quickly and effectively and easier to manage. However, you need to be cautioned if you are expecting a pregnancy. Make sure you choose remedies that do not interfere with your fertility.

Heavy Period: Top 33 Tips To Deal With Your Menorrhagia

Women empowerment starts with your body and femininity. Modern women are now encouraging other women to bleed freely and deal with menstruation lightly.

Your menstruation can be quite discomforting, especially if you are one of the women who suffer from PMS and heavy period. However, with enough knowledge, it can be easily handled and dealt with.

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Why Do I Have Heavy Bleeding During My Periods

Occasional heavy menstrual bleeding may just be a part of your normal cycle. As the lining of your uterus sheds, it may simply release more material at the beginning of your period. Heavy bleeding days might require changing a pad or tampon more often or sleeping with extra protection, but these shouldnt be too frequent. If you experience consistent heavy bleeding, there could be something else going on, and that warrants a conversation with your doctor.

Natural Treatments For The Heavy Periods Of Perimenopause

Perimenopausal heavy periods are more serious than the temporary heavy periods of the teenage years. Without treatment, perimenopausal periods can become heavier and heavier as menopause approaches.

Natural treatments for perimenopausal heavy periods include all of the above treatments:

• Ibuprofen
• Iron

Plus the following:

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How Can I Find The Right Solution For Me

Different women experience their periods differently, and the amount of menstrual blood they lose can vary naturally from month to month. But the amount of stress caused by heavy periods can only be determined by the woman herself: Whereas some women who have heavy periods may not think its a big problem, others already feel very uncomfortable with less heavy periods.

Its important to first have a doctor look for possible causes of the heavy periods. In most cases you can then take your time to decide whether to start treatment and consider which of the treatment options is right for you. If you’re not sure, it may be a good idea to get a second medical opinion especially if a hysterectomy has been recommended. Our decision aid may help here. It briefly summarizes the main pros and cons of the different treatments.

How Do The Options Compare

Compared to the various other medications and hormonal treatments, hormonal IUDs are the most effective at reducing bleeding and the related problems. The effect of hormonal IUDs is comparable to that of surgery to remove the lining of the womb. There was no real difference between the two treatments in the studies.

Hysterectomies have the greatest benefits of the various surgical procedures: The less invasive procedures that involve removing or destroying the endometrium don’t reduce the problems associated with heavy periods as completely as a hysterectomy does. Those procedures may also have to be repeated if the lining grows back. But serious side effects and complications are much less common after endometrial ablation or resection than after hysterectomy.

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Is There Anyway I Can Make My Heavy Periods Lighter

Many people suffer in silence with heavy periods for all their life. There are many medical options that need to be prescribed by a doctor who can look at the pros and cons specific to your case. These include hormone-releasing IUDs as well as oral contraceptives which use a combination or single progesterone hormone to reduce or lighten your periods.

Other options may be short-term use of anti-bleeding medication such as tranexamic acid. It might take a few tries to find what works for you but there are solutions available for people with periods who have found their quality of life compromised by their heavy bleeding.

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Written by Dr Alice Byram Bsc Med & Surg UMA MA Hons MML Cantab

Dr Alice Byram was born in England to a French-British family. Following on from a degree in Spanish from the University of Cambridge, she went to Spain to study medicine. On her return to the UK, she worked in Emergency Medicine for several years before recently returning to Barcelona.

1Yang H, Zhou B, Prinz M, Siegel D. Proteomic analysis of menstrual blood. Mol Cell Proteomics. 2012 11:10241035. doi:10.1074/mcp.M112.018390

Natural Treatments For The Heavy Periods Of Teenagers

Heavy periods are a temporary thing for teenagers. They happen because:

• estrogen receptors are quite sensitive for the first few years of periods
• cycles are often still anovulatory, so there is no progesterone being made to lighten the period.

As estrogen receptors become less sensitive and girls start to ovulate, periods should lighten.

Here are some simple ways to reduce heavy menstrual flow in teenagers:

• Conventional anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen block prostaglandins and reduce menstrual flow by half. I learned this simple treatment from Canadian endocrinologist Jerilynn Prior. The recommended dose is 200mg every 6 hours during the first day or two of the period. Ibuprofen is not a natural treatment as such, but in my view, it is a very sensible and practical solution. Two days of ibuprofen per month is a better strategy than the pill.
• Turmeric also works to reduce bleeding. Take it every day throughout the month.
• Avoid cows milk products to reduce inflammation and lighten periods. Dairy-free really works for some girls, but it might take two to three months to see the full benefit. A2 milk is usually ok. Read What dairy does to periods.
• Supplement iron. Heavy periods cause iron deficiency and iron deficiency worsen heavy periods. Use a good quality, gentle chelated iron . The dose is 15-50 mg and is best taken after the evening meal.

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Definition And Brief Discussion Of The Etiology Of Hmb

A normal menstrual cycle is defined in terms of frequency of 24 to 38 days with a duration of flow between 4.5 and 8 days and a volume of monthly blood loss between 5 and 80 mL per cycle. The term menorrhagia has been discarded and replaced by heavy menstrual bleeding by the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics classification because of a lack of both specificity and standardization. HMB is defined as menstrual blood loss of more than 80 mL per cycle or clinically excessive menstrual blood loss that interferes with a womans physical, social, emotional, and/or material quality of life., AUB is a broader term that includes abnormal bleeding during a menstrual cycle or abnormal bleeding outside a regular menstrual cycle .

The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics has classified the causes of AUB into 9 categories. Abnormalities of the uterus that cause AUB include polyps, adenomyosis, leiomyoma, and malignancy or hyperplasia. Other causes include coagulopathy, ovulatory dysfunction, endometrial dysfunction, iatrogenic etiologies, and those not yet classified. Anticoagulant therapyassociated AUB falls into the nonstructural coagulopathy category, which also includes other hemostatic disorders, such as von Willebrand disease, platelet function disorders, coagulation factor deficiencies, or defects of fibrinogen.

Reasons To Remove Mirena

I need a new one

Mirena can remain in the uterus for up to 7 years to prevent pregnancy. If you are also using Mirena to treat heavy periods, you will need a new one after 5 years. If you choose to continue using Mirena, youll make an appointment with your healthcare professional to remove Mirena and place a new one. Your new IUD can be placed immediately after the removal of the old one.

I want to get pregnant

If you are removing Mirena because you want to get pregnant, you can start trying as soon as Mirena is removed. Your healthcare professional can remove Mirena at any time. You may become pregnant as soon as Mirena is removed. About 8 out of 10 women who want to become pregnant will become pregnant sometime in the first year after Mirena is removed.

I no longer want to use Mirena

Mirena is intended for use up to 7 years, but you can stop using Mirena at any time by asking your healthcare professional to remove it. You could become pregnant as soon as Mirena is removed, so you should use another method of birth control if you do not want to become pregnant. Talk to your healthcare professional about the best birth control methods for you, because your new method may need to be started 7 days before Mirena is removed to prevent pregnancy.

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How Do You Know If You Have Heavy Periods

First things first how do you know if you have a heavy period? Normal period blood loss is considered 30-80 mL, approximately 1-6 tablespoons. But what does that really mean?

Here are the most common signs that your period is truly heavy:

• Your period lasts longer than 7 days.
• You need to use more than 6 pads or tampons per day, not fully soaked, or youre soaking through more than two pads or tampons in a day.
• You typically need to change your pads or tampons after only 1 or 2 hours.
• Youre regularly soaking through your clothes on your period, or youre having to double up on pads so you dont.
• You have to change your tampon or pad during the night.
• Youre passing blood clots the size of a quarter or larger with your period blood.
• Youre having to plan your activities around your period.

If you consistently have a heavy period, you may also find yourself feeling weak, tired and sluggish during the day, which can be a sign of iron deficiency anemia due to a consistently heavy period.

Balance Your Sugar Intake

Some researchers say that eating chocolates is good to ease PMS because they release endorphins. Its important to balance blood sugar to control PMS food cravings and migraines.

Imbalance in your sugar level may lead to high estrogen levels. Heavy bleeding is an indication that there is a high level of estrogen produced. Avoid heavy menstrual flow by balancing your sugar intake.

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What Causes Heavy Periods And Abnormal Bleeding

In girls, pregnancy and dysfunctional uterine bleeding are likely to cause abnormal bleeding.

As the age increases, you should also think about IUCD , fibroids, endometriosis, adenomyosis, pelvic infection, polyps, hypothyroidism.

In perimenopausal women, consider endometrial carcinoma. General bleeding problems such as von Willebrand’s disease may be the cause as well.

It is an abnormal thing if you have to use 2 or more pads within two 2 hours.

Heavy bleeding can also be related to the following issues:

Dysfunctional uterine bleeding . This is a heavy and/or irregular bleeding in the absence of recognizable pelvic pathology. It is associated with anovulatory menstrual cycles. Anovulation is a medical term for the situation when the ovaries do not release an oocyte during a menstrual cycle. Therefore, ovulation does not take place.

Complications in pregnancy. Heavy periods can be due to a miscarriage and it can also be as a result of an abnormal location of the placenta .