condition-guides

Menorrhagia (Heavy Periods): Causes, Diagnosis, and What to Track

Menorrhagia means clinically heavy periods. It affects up to 1 in 3 people who menstruate at some point. Here is how it is defined, what causes it, and what cycle tracking reveals.

Heavy periods are one of the most undertreated gynecological conditions. Period severity is often normalized as "just how it is," and heavy bleeding is difficult to measure objectively, which makes the experience easy to dismiss. The clinical reality is that menorrhagia has identifiable causes in the majority of cases, and those causes are treatable. "It's just your heavy flow" is not a complete evaluation. How to Define and Measure Heavy Bleeding Clinical definition: Blood loss exceeding 80mL per cycle, or bleeding lasting more than 7 days with functional impairment (missing work, restricting activities). The measurement problem: Most people can't measure 80mL directly. Here are practical proxies: Volume indicators suggesting menorrhagia: Soaking a full size pad or regular tampon completely in under an hour for 2 or more consecutive hours Filling a 30mL menstrual cup more than twice in a day on your heaviest days Passing clots larger than a quarter (25mm), indicating blood pooling faster than it can clot normally Needing to double up (pad + tampon simultaneously) Bleeding through clothing or bedding Waking in the night to change protection on multiple nights A menstrual cup is the