For fun I decided to measure how much blood I was losing a month

[PearDropKid]

Yes - the long nights simply fly by in this house!

In all seriousness, my periods are very heavy now. To be somewhat expected as I'm just 50 and they've been heavy for a couple of years now - really ramped up over the past 6 months though.

A scan shows nothing untoward. It's perimenopausal.

But I'm losing 170 mls at least over the 6 days of my period. It's becoming very difficult to cope with - flooding and clots aren't conducive to socialising and working

So my question is .. what can I do to stop this or slow down the flow? Anything I can take or do? My GP isn't seeing anybody right now unless 'urgent on the day.' And I'm clearly not an emergency

Any tips? I have modi bodi pants but they can't contain over what they say they will

How?

How did I measure the blood loss do you mean?

you can ask the doctor for transanzemic acid tablets. not sure if that’s how you spell it. miracle pills. i had the same as you. then i got a mirena coil. another miracle! changed my life

To avoid people focussing too much on the 'how' , it wasn't very scientific! I used water in a mooncup initially to see how many mls that held so I could then add up how much blood I was ripping away. I also measured it from the modi bodi pants - they hold 50ml before they spill over.

So I used a two prong approach and I was conservative.. it's more than 170 mls I'm losing

*tipping not ripping.

@Fleetheart any side effects from them? Do you take them daily? And thanks - sounds like what I need

www.nhs.uk/medicines/tranexamic-acid/

I'd phone a DEMAND an emergency consultation and DEMAND a referral -that amount of blood loss is worrying. Usually its about 20ml over 2-7 days.
Tell them HOW much you are losing and tell them this is an emergency. It is.

you just take it when you have your period. no side effects as far as i recall. Mirena is good as you stop having periods after a while; a bit of spotting for a while, a few
months , but after that nothing. which i found great!

@IAAP

I'd phone a DEMAND an emergency consultation and DEMAND a referral -that amount of blood loss is worrying. Usually its about 20ml over 2-7 days. Tell them HOW much you are losing and tell them this is an emergency. It is.

Really?! I'm not menopausal but I fill a moon cup 2 or 3 times on my heaviest days, which is what, 50-75ml a day? If I use night pads (reusable) which are giant, I change those three times. But they hold a LOT My periods are 7-8 days

I took tranxemic acid.No side effects but you have to remember to take it 3 times a day from the very beginning of your period.Worked for a year then they stopped working so well so I had a mirena coil fitted which has almost stopped my periods.

If you have been medically checked and there are no other issues other than those that can occur with age then tranexamic acid will help. I have heavy periods due to a health condition and take it for three days each month on the heavy days. Before, it would have been impossible for me to leave the house and I was getting anaemic; it has made a huge difference to me. Good luck, I hope that you can get it sorted.

You change a night pad three times a night?Do tell your GP this.Have you had your Iron checked?

@IAAP Is it though? I'm not sure. My periods last only 5 or 6 days as they always have but Jesus Christ - the first three days are insane! I spend a lot of time leaping up off my dream sofa when I feel myself starting to flood.

I cramp, I flood, it then settles for a few hours and then we go again. On day 4 the flow starts to recede.

I'm a little tired and wrung out for the week but then I pick up again. I take iron now to try and counteract the iron loss - blood tests three months ago showed a very slight deficiency

There's no danger of me just bleeding out every last drop in my body though so I've not pushed the doctors yet - I rang all last week but wasn't allowed to make an appointment

I'll call Monday and this time I'll say I need an appointment ASAP

Having said that this is probably where I was before I started taking TA.If I came on when out I'd have to go home and change everything and night time was a mess.

It's not straightforward to know how much blood you lose
www.healthline.com/health/how-much-blood-do-you-lose-on-your-period

Ibuprofen reduces my flow and obviously can just get over the counter

I have to change at night maybe twice - sometimes I get away with once. This lasts for 3 nights

My issue seems to be these flooding episodes - several a day at least.

A lot of what ends up in your mooncup is tissue, not blood - looks like clots or stringy, fibrous stuff. So it's likely less than you think.

However - you should definitely see your GP if you're worried, maybe they can prescribe something to help

@PearDropKid I use these and can highly recommend them
They cope well with flooding/sneezing etc and I have never ever leaked with them which is a miracle

https://www.honouryourflow.co.uk/extremely-heavy-flow-66-c.asp

Tranexamic acid is cheap and safe, your doctor should have no problem dishing it out for simple peri-menopausal flooding. It can give you headaches though.

I literally used to flood so suddenly and quickly that i soaked a chair at work once! and had to have a (bath) towel on my bed at night. i didn’t know what was happening; didn’t realise this was a perimenopausal symptom! i was so happy that it was so easily sorted as Id lived with it for around 6 months

@QuentinBunbury yes you're right - it won't be the blood loss like if you slashed your finger and bled.

It's very red though and the clots don't come until about day 3 - so I know the blood flow is fast

I'd recommend a Mirena coil. My periods became very heavy during perimenopause, unbearably and miserably so. On the advice of my GP I got a Mirena and it stopped them immediately and completely. The bonus is that if needed it can be used as the progesterone part of HRT.

I had a mirena coil fitted towards the menopause as the flooding like you was so difficult to deal with.