[Mhiz Rebecca]

Any menstrual period longer than eight days or one
that involves bleeding through more than two pads
in an hour for four hours in a row is considered
heavy.
As a woman, you can determine a change in your
menstrual flow by asking yourself if there’s
a change in your bleeding—if it’s heavier than your
normal flow. If that is the case, and you notice
tiredness, light-headedness, fatigue and heat
palpitations, you should see a doctor as soon as
possible.
While it may be possible that your condition has to
do with nothing, it may also mean there are some
serious underlying issues. Here is a list of 5
medical conditions that may be responsible for
your heavy flow that you should give serious
attention.
Hormonal Imbalances
An alteration in the levels of one of several
hormones in the body can cause you to have heavy
menstrual bleeding. The oestrogen hormone helps
to build up the lining of the uterus while
progesterone counteracts the effect by stabilising
the uterus linings. An imbalance or alteration in the
level of the two hormones can result in excessive
bleeding and in serious cases, uterine cancer.
Treatment measures usually involve hormone-
replacing or hormone-stimulating drugs which can
be very effective in treatment.
Uterine Fibroids
Uterine Fibroids are non-cancerous tumours that
are benign and are usually formed in the muscle
wall of the uterus. As much as 70 percent of all
women will experience one or more type of uterine
Fibroids before they attain the age of 50. One
common symptom of fibroids is heavy menstrual
bleeding and lower-belly pain, cramps and spot
bleeding between periods are symptoms.
Treatments may range from doing virtually nothing
to using drugs and having it removed which is all
dependent on the location of the fibroids.
Hyperplasia In The Endometrium
Endometrial Hyperplasia is an overgrowth of the
lining of the uterus or the endometrium.
Hyperplasia can increase the risk of endometrial
cancer in women. Hormonal imbalances, especially
an increase in oestrogen is responsible for
endometrial hyperplasia. Excess oestrogen without
sufficient progesterone can result in hyperplasia
which mostly occurs after menopause in women
because the body stops the production of
progesterone when ovulation ceases. Treatment
usually entails usage of drugs to correct shortage
of hormones.
Polyps
Uterine Polyps are grape-like growths that originate
from the lining of the uterus. Polyps are harmless a
lot of the time but they can cause miscarriage and
infertility. A common symptom of uterine Polyps are
heavy menstrual bleeding associated with irregular
periods or bleeding between periods.
A doctor may choose to prescribe drugs to treat
hormonal imbalances that cause the formation of
polyps or remove them completely.
Various Bleeding Disorders
Any medical condition that affects the formation of
clots or how the blood should normally flow in the
veins of the body can result in heavy menstrual
bleeding. There are an array of bleeding disorders
responsible for heavy menstrual flow but the most
common one is von Willebrand disease (VWD),
which affects a large percentage of women. Von
Willebrand disease is a hereditary condition where
the sufferers are lacking a specific type of blood
clotting protein. This makes it easy for sufferers to
bruise easily and also suffer from nosebleeds.
Lastly, a number of medical conditions including
endometriosis, infections of the pelvis, Cancer, liver
or kidney disease and thyroid disease can cause
unusually heavy bleeding. More so, pregnancy can
also cause heavy bleeding in some women of
reproductive age. While it is almost impossible to
diagnose a lot of these conditions on your own
based on symptoms alone, it is best to see a
doctor if you are experiencing unusually heavy
period.