I feel like I'm slowly bleeding to death while pretending it's not happening, should I "advocate" for myself with the doctors? How?

[questionzzz]

TMI and long. Please help. Nothing like this has happened to me before.

background: 45 yrs F, 2 DC, generally healthy. No former complications with childbirth, reproductive system, periods etc.

So, over the past few years I have generally had regular, fairly light periods, lasting 3 days at most. A bit of cramping and heavier flow on the 2nd day, nothing an ibuprofen couldn't take care of.
Right on the dot 5 days after my 45th bday, I start a mild spotting (last Sunday, to be precise) just less than 2 weeks after my last period. I have a bit of a panic, wonder what going on, make an appt to see family dr but that's not until 20th Sept, continuing to bleed, so on Tuesday I go to walk-in clinic and see dr who examines me, takes swabs and writes up bloodwork, also gives me a pep talk about how it's probably just "life changes".
Call back from dr following day (last Wed) saying the bloodwork returned all normal, even for peri menopause my hormones don't indicate that, so just a fluke. They'll call me if anything irregular
in the swabs, but not otherwise.
No phone call so far, thankfully.
meanwhile the blood flow is getting heavier and showing no sign of stopping.
It's been ten days now I'm bleeding, with some clots, feeling a bit weak and woozy sometimes, but otherwise no pain, no cramps or anything.
Sex last night ended up looking like a murder scene. (dr said I could have sex)
What should I do? Just wait it out? Seeing my family dr on 20 Sept. Should I just wait till then? I feel at this point I'm slowly bleeding to death but not sure what to do?

[Drogosnextwife]

I'm presuming the doctors did a pregnancy test?

[InSpaceNooneCanHearYouScream]

If the bleeding is similar to period heaviness it would take a very long time to bleed to death! So stop panicking. But you don't need to wait till the 20th- just ring your gp first thing tomorrow and say you need a same day appt due to excessive bleeding.

[questionzzz]

yeah she said she did but no chance of me being pregnant as i had my tubes tied when I was 33.

[questionzzz]

I mean very little chance- I've done my google research. :)

[FlaviaAlbia]

I'm your place I'd be heading to A&E saying you've been bleeding heavily for 10 days and you feel weak and lightheaded.

How frequently are you having to change pads?

[questionzzz]

@InSpaceNooneCanHearYouScream it's similar to much heavier periods I've experienced in youth, nothing like the periods I've been having over the past few years.

[questionzzz]

I've been changing pads over the past 5 days when it got noticeably heavier about 3-4 times a day? So maybe not that heavy compared to the norm? I don't know?

[Pollywollydolly]

If you are feeling light headed take yourself to a and e.

[Notverygrownup]

I had this at about your age - I'm a few years on now. I hung on for 4 weeks of heavy bleeding and ended up in A and E being put on a drip and diagnosed as anaemic. I was given 3 types of tablets and it stopped a day or two later. (They also scanned for anything suspicious but it turned out to be just the start of the menopause.) The trigger that got me sent to hospital was me phoning the out of hours doctor as I had started to feel lightheaded - I had a banging sensation in my head too. I had just expected them to prescribe some strong iron tablets! He panicked and said that I must call 999 and go in an ambulance. I didn't, dh drove me in.

My GP said if it ever happened again I was to go to the GP after 10 days, no longer.

HTH. Drink loads of fluids whilst you are going through this.

[VforVienetta]

Do you have a temperature, even slightly?

[TheAlternativeTentacle]

I had this - it was the start of the menopause.

I stood up once, looked down and there were two huge puddles of blood on the floor and getting bigger and bigger and...

they wouldn't do anything - 7 years it took.

Don't let them fob you off.

[Jimmers]

To be honest changing pads 3-4 times a day is not excessively heavy. That said, your GP should be referring to you to gynaecology clinic to get checked out, as it’s a change in what’s normal for you.
Reassuring that bloods came back normal.

[questionzzz]

I have mild anaemia anyway, it always shows up in any bloodwork.
I don't know if the wooziness is enough to go to emergency. maybe I'll call the hotline and talk to them.
I thought maybe the bleedings isn't excessive by what I hear other women go through, I just meant its a lot for me.

[PookieDo]

You haven’t had an ultra sound so they haven’t ruled out fibroids. I bleed like this because I have them

I take some medication which is supposed to help (doesn’t) and already had one operation to get rid of them and need another

Go back to GP

[questionzzz]

I, calling now. thank you all.

[yearinyearout]

Sounds like the perimenopause starting. I went from having very regular, average periods to suddenly skipping one month and horrendous flooding the next. I'm about to have a Mirena coil fitted. I would speak to the doctors again tomorrow as ten days is pretty excessive I think.

[PookieDo]

Pad wise, an emergency is when you are soaking a pad every hour. in that kind or emergency it is like a tap, every movement sets off more blood. As a measure of blood I use at least 2 packs (of each) Tena plus pads, and tena lady bladder pants on a period, so about 40-50 pads/pants in 8 or 9 days and as they are so absorbent I can change them less. What pads are you using?

I can’t judge if it’s an emergency myself, you know how you feel. I am anaemic and feel rank when I am having a period because it’s exhausting

[InSpaceNooneCanHearYouScream]

Bloody hell, pookie that's a LOT of bleeding! Poor you

[PookieDo]

Don’t, I am resigned to it now. I get actual nappy rash too! 😭

[InvisibleWomenMustBeRead]

Oh no @PookieDo - can nothing be done about that?

Op, I'd call & ask for an emergency GP appt tomorrow given the light headedness. Hope you're ok.

[questionzzz]

Definitely not soakin a pad every hour- just as I said, it's more than what I'm used to. And I'm getting the gushing with every movement which is also weird for me.

I'm using maxi pads.
I'm waiting for a call back.
I had a late breakfast and skipped lunch and snacked so thinking maybe the lightheadedness is just hunger.

[questionzzz]

I thought about fibroids but I thought since I'm not in any pain or cramping can't be that?

[73Sunglasslover]

Yours actually sounds fairly light to me so you won't bleed to death as I'm still alive after 35 years of much heavier periods - most of which lasted about 10 days! But a change can be significant so perhaps it's worth re-visiting your GP to discuss?

[PookieDo]

No don’t be fooled by the fibroid evil ones, they really only cause you problems if they get very large. I didn’t know I had them either! It needs to be ruled out

I had the first set lasered out but they have grown back, bigger than before and I only know I have them because they seem to bleed so much, which is confirmed on an US scan. I look a bit pregnant now, one is 7cm x 6cm and the others are all 5ish cm. I don’t always get that much pain, but I feel a pressure and dragging

[PookieDo]

I don’t know if this is true but I think a nurse said to me that the womb cannot contract properly if it’s bulky therefore you do not always get the pain and you get more bleeding as the contracting isn’t doing it’s job. Might be all a load of rubbish!