Is it normal to change your pad every hour

The most common causes of heavy periods include:. Just like there are many causes of menorrhagia, there are many treatment options available. Menorrhagia can usually be managed with medication and lifestyle changes. It is also called menses or a period. During menstruation, the lining of the uterus the womb is shed along with some blood. Most women with bleeding disorders have very heavy periods that last longer than normal.

The medical name for this is menorrhagia. Women who have been diagnosed with a bleeding disorder often dread their monthly periods because of a large amount of bleeding that can occur during this time. The bleeding can also last longer than a week and interfere with activities of daily living. It can be embarrassing, annoying, and inconvenient to be bleeding heavily for several days.

Many women fear they will leak through their clothing while in public and choose to stay home for the first day or two of their cycle.

This means missing days of work or school which can create problems with employers or teachers. Fortunately, there are products available to help control the bleeding and avoid soiling clothing. It is hard to measure. Women in a family with a bleeding disorder may think their periods are normal because they bleed just like their mothers and grandmothers did.

Your doctor may give you a chart to mark how many tampons or pads you use each day of your period. A normal period lasts less than eight days. Some women with menorrhagia are treated with hormones. They receive a combination of estrogen and progesterone.

Changing your pad every 3 or 4 hours more if your period is heavy is good hygiene and helps prevent bad odors. This is especially true if you'll be playing sports or rushing around from class to class. Changing pads often also helps prevent accidental leaks. Heavy bleeding menorrhagia is one of the most common problems women report to their doctors.

It affects more than 10 million American women each year. This means that about one out of every five women has it. Bleeding Disorders in Women. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Minus Related Pages. Causes Possible causes fall into the following three areas: Uterine-related problems Growths or tumors of the uterus that are not cancer; these can be called uterine fibroids or polyps. Cancer of the uterus or cervix. Certain types of birth control—for example, an intrauterine device IUD.

Problems related to pregnancy, such as a miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy, can cause abnormal bleeding. A miscarriage is when an unborn baby also called a fetus dies in the uterus. An ectopic pregnancy is when a baby starts to grow outside the womb uterus , which is not safe. Hormone-related problems Other illnesses or disorders Bleeding-related disorders, such as von Willebrand disease VWD or platelet function disorder.