When Do I Need Treatment?
Print PageContact a doctor if you soak a pad every hour for 8 hours. A regular menstrual pad or tampon holds around 5 milliliters (mL) of blood. To calculate the approximate amount of blood you have lost if you wear regular pads or tampons, multiply the number you used by the number of days you have been bleeding. For example:
10 regular pads X 5 days = 50 mL of blood lost
(A heavy period)
An overnight pad or super tampon holds around 10 mL of blood. To calculate the approximate amount of blood you have lost if you wear extra-absorbent pads or tampons, multiply the number you used by the number of days you have been bleeding. For example:
20 extra-absorbent pads X 10 days = 200 mL (Menorrhagia)
In the first example, you do not require treatment for a heavy period. In the second example, you require treatment for menorrhagia to prevent iron deficiency anemia.
Call a doctor if your period is very heavy for three or more cycles, or if you spot between periods. If you have only proliferative endometrium or a mixture of proliferative and secretory, then you will bleed for a very long time, perhaps weeks or months in a row.