When to Consult Your Doctor About Heavy Menstrual Bleeding

Heavy periods can cause you to repeatedly excuse yourself to go to the bathroom and change your pad or tampon. A heavy period can also stain your clothes. There’s no doubt that heavy menstrual bleeding is an inconvenience, but it can be a sign of an underlying condition that needs treatment. 

You can trust primary care physician Kelly DiStefano, MD, with your women’s health needs at Montclair Concierge Medicine in Verona, New Jersey. If you lose a substantial amount of blood during your periods, she can provide advanced testing to find out why. 

But what’s the difference between a normal period and a heavy one? In this article, we’ll cover the signs of a heavy period and tell you what it might mean. 

How to tell if your menstrual bleeding is heavy

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a typical period lasts for 4-5 days and produces about 2-3 tablespoons of blood. 

Most of us don’t measure our blood loss and, therefore, don’t know exactly how much we bleed. Fortunately, there are some common indications of when menstrual blood loss is heavy. 

You should consult our team about heavy menstrual bleeding if you:

• Bleed for more than seven consecutive days
• Must change your pad or tampon every hour
• Need double protection to control your bleeding (e.g. a pad and a tampon at the same time)
• Pass blood clots larger than a quarter
• Feel fatigued because of how much blood you lose
• Bleed between periods

Too much blood loss during your period can lead to anemia, which means you’ve lost too many oxygenated red blood cells. This can cause headaches and fatigue. 

Talk to our team if you have any of these signs and symptoms, as you may have an underlying condition that’s treatable with women’s health care. 

What heavy periods can mean

Heavy menstrual bleeding can tell you that something is wrong with your sexual, reproductive,  or hormonal health. When you visit Montclair Concierge Medicine with heavy menstrual bleeding, Dr. DiStefano investigates possibilities such as:

Hormone imbalances

The hormones estrogen and progesterone are responsible for regulating your menstrual cycle. Conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and thyroid disease can cause hormone imbalances that disrupt the menstrual cycle, leading to heavy periods. 

Noncancerous growths in the uterus

Noncancerous growths like uterine polyps and fibroids are a common cause of heavy menstrual bleeding. They might require treatment. 

Infections

Some sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and other infections can cause heavy periods.

What comes next? 

After investigating your heavy menstrual bleeding and making a diagnosis, Dr. DiStefano can recommend treatment to lighten your periods. 

She may recommend hormonal contraceptives to regulate your hormones, iron supplements to help with anemia, or surgical procedures like dilation and curettage (D&C) to remove some of the uterine lining. 

If you have heavy periods, don’t ignore them. Call Montclair Concierge Medicine or schedule an appointment online today.