Heavy menstrual flow may be quite uncomfortable for most ladies, as it requires more frequent changing of personal hygiene products and means there’s a risk of staining...Heavy menstrual flow doesn’t usually mean that something is wrong, as each woman is unique and so is her menstrual cycle. In general, women lose different amounts of blood, and what is too much for one may be normal for another.

Heavy menstrual flow usually means that you need personal hygiene products marked "super" (size 4) and change them every 3-4 hours. With heavy bleeding, you lose >72.5 mL (2.5 oz) of blood per month.

Keep in mind that menstrual flow is usually more substantial during the first two days of menstruation, and then it gradually decreases in intensity.  

Possible health condition:

You should know that there’s a particular condition associated with abnormal blood loss (more than 80 ml (2.7 oz) or prolonged menstruation (over seven days). It’s called menorrhagia and can occur due to different reasons such as lowered progesterone levels, blood clotting problems and many others.

If you have recently noticed that your menstrual flow has become more burdensome, use our symptom checklist to see if your flow is abnormal:

• Your period comes more often than usual and lasts longer than seven days

• Your No 4 (‘super’) pads or tampons are soaking through every hour for several hours in a row, so you use double sanitary protection

• You need to wake up in the middle of the night to change pads

• There are blood clots more significant than usual

• You are restricted in your daily activities because of the heavy flow and cramps

• You are tired, short of breath, or have fatigue (signs of anemia)

If you observe most or all of these symptoms, you most likely have menorrhagia and should see your ob-gyn to find out what causes it.

The World Health Organization: 18 million women think that their menstrual bleeding is abnormally heavy, but reports show that only 10% of them have severe blood loss that causes anemia and can be clinically defined as menorrhagia.

Teens usually have menorrhagia due to anovulation in the first year after their first menstrual period (menarche). After that, their period flow is no longer excessive.

In older women, menorrhagia may occur due to some reasons that should be determined by your doctor. The good news is that today there are many effective treatments for menorrhagia.

If you dread your period because of heavy bleeding, talk with your doctor.

Keep tracking your cycle with the MIA app to get to know more about how it functions and to quickly detect any deviations from the norm.

Sources:

What is menorrhagia? medscape.com

Menorrhagia (heavy menstrual bleeding), mayoclinic.org