What is a heavy period (menorrhagia)?

Bottom lineA heavy period (menorrhagia) means losing enough blood to disrupt daily life, shown by soaking a pad or tampon every 1 to 2 hours, needing double or overnight protection, passing clots larger than 2.5 cm, bleeding over 7 days, or anemia symptoms; causes include hormones, fibroids, adenomyosis, PCOS/PMOS, and thyroid issues, and it is common and treatable.

A heavy period (menorrhagia) means losing more blood than usual, enough to disrupt your daily life. It's common, affects about 1 in 3 women at some point, and is treatable.

Signs of a heavy period

• Soaking through a pad or tampon every 1 to 2 hours
• Needing double protection (pad plus tampon)
• Changing protection overnight
• Passing large clots (bigger than about 2.5 cm)
• Bleeding longer than 7 days
• Signs of anemia: fatigue, breathlessness, pale skin

Common causes

• Hormonal imbalance (including around perimenopause)
• Fibroids or polyps
• Adenomyosis or endometriosis
• PCOS/PMOS or thyroid problems
• Bleeding disorders or some medications and IUDs (copper)

When to see a doctor

See a clinician if bleeding is heavy enough to affect your life, you're passing large clots, or you have anemia symptoms. Effective treatments range from hormonal options to treating the underlying cause.

Track flow and clots in Femora, and learn the difference between normal and concerning period pain.

Femora's flow logging gives your clinician concrete data instead of guesswork.