I-Mensies Forum v.0.9.3.110705

My period seems really heavy.  I will leak through a super tampon in, like, 2 hours.  I don't think I have Menorrhagia because the lengths of my periods are fairly normal and I'm not in pain or anything.  It's just horrible to have this heavy of a flow.  What's the best way to regulate my flow?

Don't drink any alcohol. I'm not implying that you drink a lot, but if you like to have a glass of wine or beer - stop. This usually helps. If you have irregular cycle, it might be the explanation (but not a fix ) of this issue. 

Originally posted by NYCKYC:

Don't drink any alcohol. I'm not implying that you drink a lot, but if you like to have a glass of wine or beer - stop. This usually helps. If you have irregular cycle, it might be the explanation (but not a fix ) of this issue. 

Nice advice :). But let us understand more about you.
Are you a teenager? If yes, do not worry too much about it, but still go to see your ObGyn. Here is a possible reason: during teenage years estrogen levels tend to be higher and progesterone levels to be lower. Progesterone is made by the ovaries after ovulation. However, even though you may be having regular periods, it doesn’t mean you are ovulating! The lining of the uterus, or endometrium, sheds during a period. Estrogen’s job is to makes the endometrium thicker (and more likely to shed) and progesterone makes it thinner. Therefore it is likely that heavy flow is caused by too much estrogen and too little progesterone. And even one super tampon could mean menorrhagia. Officially, flow of more than 80 ml (or better say 16 soaked sanitary products) per menstrual period is considered menorrhagia. Most women bleeding this heavily will have a low blood count (anemia) or evidence of iron deficiency. In practice only about a third of women have anemia, so the definition of heavy flow can be adjusted to be more like nine to 12 soaked regular-sized sanitary products in a period. 

Emily,

Here is what you can do right now:

1. Keep a record 
   Make a careful record (for ex. in iMensies Calender) of your flow for a cycle or two. (Note—if flow is so heavy you start to feel faint or dizzy when you stand up, that is a reason to make an emergency doctor appointment.)
2. Take ibuprofen 
   Whenever flow is heavy, start taking ibuprofen, the over-the-counter anti-prostaglandin, in a dose of one 200mg tablet every 4-6 hours while you are awake. This therapy decreases flow by 25-30% and will also help with menstrual cycle-like cramps .
3. Treat blood loss with extra fluid and salt Any time you feel dizzy or your heart pounds when you get up from lying down it is evidence that the amount of blood volume in your system is too low. To help that, drink more and increase the salty fluids you drink such as tomato or other vegetable juices or salty broths (like bouillon). You will likely need at least four to six cups (1-1.5 litre) of extra liquid that day.
4. Take iron to replace what is lost with heavy bleeding If your doctor’s appointment is delayed or you realize that you have had heavy flow for a number of cycles, start taking one over-the-counter tablet of iron (like 35 mg of ferrous gluconate) a day. You can also increase the iron you get from foods—red meat, liver, egg yolks, deep green vegetables and dried fruits like raisins and prunes are good sources of iron. Your doctor will likely measure your blood count and a test called “ferritin” which tells the amount of iron you have stored in your bone marrow. If your ferritin is low, or if you ever have had a low blood count, continue iron daily for one full year to bring iron stores to normal.

Laura,
How could Emily possibly figure out how much she is bleeding??  

Originally posted by NYCKYC:

Laura,How could Emily possibly figure out how much she is bleeding??  

The easiest way, knowing that one soaked, normal-sized sanitary product holds about a teaspoon of blood (= 5 ml), is to record the number you soak each day of your flow. To accurately record the number of soaked sanitary products each day you need to recall the number you changed that were half full (let’s say three tampons and one pad) and multiply that (four X 0.5 = two) to give the number of fully soaked ones. A “maxi” or “super” tampon or pad holds about two teaspoons or 10ml of blood—therefore record each larger soaked sanitary product as a “2.” In addition, record your best judgment about the amount of flow in iMensies Calendar (or using old-fashion paper, where a “1” is spotting, “2” means normal flow, “3” is slightly heavy and “4” is very heavy with flooding and/or clots). If the number of soaked sanitary products totals 16 or more or if you are recording “4”s too frequently you have very heavy flow.

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