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What Causes Heavy Menstrual Bleeding And Weakness?
Question: Dear Doctor - This is for my wife who is 35 years old (working women) and healthy . Her periods are regular and post pregnancy (we have a 4 year old son) does last for 3-4 days . This time round the period has been for a week . She has weakness and giddiness due to the same (which I guess is routine) . Is this normal ?
Also ours was an arranged marriage and the first thing which my wife shared with me was that she has mood swings during her periods . What I did not know was the severity of the same . She has extreme mood swings during her periods , which causes lot of grief in the relationship . I read about PMDD and felt that it matches exactly with her behavior and what she experiences . I was wondering , is there a way to manage these extreme bad mood swings ? Trust me its really BAD and affects the relationship...
She is not on any contraceptive pills...
Please do advice on both the points :
1) Extended period & weakness (she does take multivitamins)
2) PMDD
Sincerely,
Also ours was an arranged marriage and the first thing which my wife shared with me was that she has mood swings during her periods . What I did not know was the severity of the same . She has extreme mood swings during her periods , which causes lot of grief in the relationship . I read about PMDD and felt that it matches exactly with her behavior and what she experiences . I was wondering , is there a way to manage these extreme bad mood swings ? Trust me its really BAD and affects the relationship...
She is not on any contraceptive pills...
Please do advice on both the points :
1) Extended period & weakness (she does take multivitamins)
2) PMDD
Sincerely,
Brief Answer:
Details below.
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for trusting us with your health concern.
An extended period and heavy bleeding will cause a feeling of weakness due to the blood loss. If this has happened for the first time then there is no need to worry. She can start taking oral iron supplements, a multivitamin supplement and folic acid. Oral iron supplements are prescription drugs and you would need to see a physician for the same. At the same time, she can take Tablet Centrum 1 tablet in the morning 1 hour before/after food. She can also take tablet folic acid 5 mg once a day to take care of any folate deficiency.
The following foods are rich in iron and would prove useful for her:
a. Beans
b. Legumes
c. Grains
d. Meats
e. Jaggery
f. Green leafy vegetables like spinach
For PMDD the best treatment is taking birth control pills for few months. These pills ease the transition of the body to its natural state to begin a more normal function. When the body starts to adapt to the natural state of menstruation, it balances a woman’s physical and emotional stresses.
She can also get her baseline progesterone levels tested to find out if she has an overt luteal phase progesterone deficiency. This can help determine whether the prescription progesterone intake is a good alternative to birth control and antidepressant pills. This will also help to reduce her excessive bleeding.
She can consult a gynecologist and get the proper medicines prescribed for relief.
Please feel free to discuss further. I will be glad to answer the follow up queries that you have.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Rakhi Tayal.
For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Rakhi-Tayal
Details below.
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for trusting us with your health concern.
An extended period and heavy bleeding will cause a feeling of weakness due to the blood loss. If this has happened for the first time then there is no need to worry. She can start taking oral iron supplements, a multivitamin supplement and folic acid. Oral iron supplements are prescription drugs and you would need to see a physician for the same. At the same time, she can take Tablet Centrum 1 tablet in the morning 1 hour before/after food. She can also take tablet folic acid 5 mg once a day to take care of any folate deficiency.
The following foods are rich in iron and would prove useful for her:
a. Beans
b. Legumes
c. Grains
d. Meats
e. Jaggery
f. Green leafy vegetables like spinach
For PMDD the best treatment is taking birth control pills for few months. These pills ease the transition of the body to its natural state to begin a more normal function. When the body starts to adapt to the natural state of menstruation, it balances a woman’s physical and emotional stresses.
She can also get her baseline progesterone levels tested to find out if she has an overt luteal phase progesterone deficiency. This can help determine whether the prescription progesterone intake is a good alternative to birth control and antidepressant pills. This will also help to reduce her excessive bleeding.
She can consult a gynecologist and get the proper medicines prescribed for relief.
Please feel free to discuss further. I will be glad to answer the follow up queries that you have.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Rakhi Tayal.
For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Rakhi-Tayal
Note: For further guidance on mental health, Click here.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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