Heavy Period Problems

Most women will experience heavy periods at some time in their lives. Heavy periods, medically known as menorrhagia, cause problems if they happen every month and interfere with your job or social life.

Problems of a Heavy Period

• Every woman's menstrual cycle is different and changes throughout her life as well. Normal cycles can be from 21 to 35 days apart, with bleeding lasting for 4 to 5 days. You will normally lose about three tablespoons of blood each period.

  The defining factor in menorrhagia is losing more than five and a half tablespoons of blood per period and/or your period lasting more than a week. You will notice that you soak through one or more tampons or pads every hour for several hours at a time. You also find you need to have a backup method of protection to prevent leaks. You can't sleep through the night without changing your pad. Your period will last longer than seven days. You may see a lot of large blood clots. You are tired, fatigued or short of breath during your period. You are anemic. Your period sometimes prohibits you from work or social life. Other problems are severe cramps, headaches and nausea.

Hormonal Problems

• The female hormones estrogen and progesterone need to be in the correct balance to have a normal period. Sometimes young women starting their menstrual cycles or older women who are towards the end of menstruation will have hormonal imbalances that cause heavy periods. Illness or medication could also cause an hormonal imbalance.

  Another hormonal imbalance is anovulation, or the dysfunction of the ovaries in telling your body to stop menstruating. Your doctor will need to prescribe hormones to balance this out.

  Another cause of heavy bleeding during menstruation could be that you have fibroids or polyps in your uterus that are interfering with your cycle. Fibroids are noncancerous (sometimes quite large) growths that attach to the uterine wall. Polyps are small, noncancerous growths on the uterine wall. Both of these growths are caused by hormonal imbalance.

IUD Problems

• Another reason for heavy periods is an IUD, or intrauterine device, to prevent pregnancy. Call your doctor to see if you need to have it removed.

Other Causes

• Very rarely, a bleeding disorder that slows down or stops blood clotting could be the cause of a heavy period. An infection of the cervix could also cause excessive bleeding. On very rare occasion uterine cancer could be the cause as well.

Treatments

• Treatment of your condition will depend on your age, health, lifestyle and severity of your condition. After ruling out infections, cancer or blood clotting problems, your doctor will suggest a drug therapy that will balance out your hormones, such as taking the birth control pill. You may also be given an iron supplement to help with anemia. If you have an IUD, it may be removed and you will have to try another form of birth control. Surgical procedures that can be done include hysterectomy or removal of the uterus; endometrial ablation to take care of growths on the uterine wall; or D&C--dilation and curettage--to smooth out the uterine wall.