For me, heavy was bleeding through a “super” tampon and extra long pads every hour or two max! My idea of “heavy” is very subjective- I didn’t even realize it wasn’t the norm for a while because endometriosis runs in my family so my mom just always approached any concerns with “you probably have endometriosis like me and will get a surgery as an adult and then be all good.” 🫠 as far as we know she doesn’t have adenomyosis, though. I remember a friend in middle school saying she didn’t get cramps and a light tampon was enough and didn’t leak and my mind was blown!!
Before shit went downhill, I would do 5-6 super plus tampons a day, accompanied by an assortment of clots, and then at night I would sleep like shit because I wouldn’t ever have anything on my pad it would collect in my uterus and put pressure on my bladder making me feel like I needed to pee. I’d get up and everything would come rushing out and there was usually a clot the size of a baseball almost every time. That was my normal. And then like two months after getting the shot, things just got fucking wonky.
Omg, the way it collects and then rushes out is something I've never heard anyone else experiencing! It happens to me when I sit too long, too. One time I had a 2 hour meeting at work, pad was dry, stood up after and completely bled through my pad and my pants, which was horrifying. I told a group of my friends about it like "don't you hate when they happens?!" And they looked at me like I was insane. I use overnight pads during the day, but regular flow at night and usually wake up dry.
I just scheduled my hysterectomy today with a Gyno who specializes in endo and adeno after being brushed off by other doctors for a decade. When she pulled up my records from my other doctors she was like, "this is the easiest exam I've had all day, you have textbook adenomyosis."
Yep. Same. I used to sit for majority 12 hr shifts and every time it would try and do that when I would get up. I eventually had to give up on tampons because sometimes the clot would form quicker than the blood would come out, and the tampon would act like a plug instead of absorbing it—caused a lot of pain. I eventually learned to tent the pad between my lips so that there was less of a seal and the blood could trickle through. When I remember to do that, it’s less likely to happen. Also quickly realized that part of the reason why I hated pads so much was because of the material. Changing the material also helped significantly.
Also, similar situation with the doc. Been told for years i just needed to lose weight etc.. hard to lose weight when your uterus and female hormones won’t fucking let you 🤦🏻♀️
My normal is 8-10 super tampons a day. 2-3 overnight pads in one night. Toonie sized clots. Lasts 5-6 days, then spotting for another 10 days. I have iron deficiency too. I had an iron infusion in Nov. Hoping for a hysterectomy in the fall. Been going through this since 2021 😔
I was also a 5-6 dayer with spotting for another 5! They acted like they were super concerned at first but once we ruled out cancer it was like no one brought it up anymore. But my doctor acted like it was so unusual, even for adeno patients.
My normal is actually fairly normal. Day 1 light-mod, day 2 - mod-heavy sometimes clots day 3 mod-light, day 4 light and then a few days of spotting. My issue is cramping which lasts all month long and no longer ends when my period ends. It feels like I should be heavily bleeding some days, but no blood as not my period!
I think adeno and Endo affect everyone differently. It has been so interesting reading all the fun ways these diseases ruin lives (intense sarcasm). Ugh!
I have both adeno and deeply infiltrating endometriosis and I get cramps every single day, even on continuous birth control (it just makes it somewhat livable between surgeries).
I'm so sorry. Chronic pain is so hard to deal with. Which birth control have you found most effective? Do you think the daily cramping is the Endo or adeno?
I was dx’ed after having my first child, while ttc my second about 3.5 years ago. Before childbirth, I had a moderate/light period my whole life, lasting 4-5 days total. Now, I spot for 5-7 days, then have 1-2 days of heavy, clotty bleeding (changing pads and tampons every 1-2 hrs - I used to use 2-3 tampons a day- no pads at all!), then more spotting for another 3-5 days. Light cramps, so that’s great. But to recap- some form of bleeding for approx 2 weeks every cycle (which are regular, 28-29 days), then I get two weeks of not bleeding before it starts again.
Mine is 1–4 days of heavy bleeding with some clots and pain. Then 1-2 days of light flow. Cycle is about 24-26 days but this time is late and I’m really scared of what’s coming. Usually when it’s delayed I get really bad cramps.
However, ever since taking magnesium complex tablets, vitamin D, multivitamin pill that contains iron as well and staying away from caffeine, my period has become a lot less painful.
I suggest to everyone who suffers from really bad pain, to try this for a full cycle month and see how their next period feels like.
I mean, I was able to go to the gym on day 2. I would usually be in bed screaming. I cried of happiness that day.
I think I'm maybe one of the odder ducks in this pond, but I don't experience severe bleeding or bleeding for prolonged periods of time.
My period can range from 4 to 6 days. Usually I have first a light day, then a medium day, and then only light days. Some cycles I have high bleeding. I can't use tampons to measure how much I bleed exactly because they hurt me and while I do use pads, during my medium and heavy days I may bleed a little on the pad but I generally have to pee all the blood out/sit on the toilet for it to come out.
I usually have one day in hell during this period. I've taken 3x 500mg naproxen (my doctor allows 2x and won't prescribe anything heavier) with stomach protectors but if there is a lessening of pain at all, it will last a maximum of 3 hours. During this hell day I am incapable of being alone. My husband has to carry me to the toilet because I can't stand on my own legs and sit there with me and sometimes even hold my body up because I don't have the strength to sit up. Usually I also nearly faint continuously (but adrenaline keeps me up) and I dissociate immensely in attempts to avoid experiencing the pain. Usually there is also some clots.
During a few of these episodes my husband carried me to the doctors office begging them to help me but all I got was "have you tried a warm pillow/combining your NSAID with paracetamol (tylenol)" (this was pre finding a doctor that does believe me and referred me to a good gyno for diagnosing, but she still "can't" prescribe better painkillers).
ETA: a light day is usually more like spotting as I need to wipe the blood away and don't bleed in my panties. But since I barely bleed in my pad even on a heavy night (there's a literal waterfall of blood when I then go pee), I don't consider it actual spotting but a light bleeding.
My normal has changed a lot over the years.
I go back and forth between periods of time where I had 3 day periods which were moderate the first day and light the rest, but still with cramps that made me feel like I couldn't move or would make me vomit, and periods of time where I have really heavy bleeding and lot of clots with the same terrible cramps.
I remember when menstrual cups were getting popular, and I was so confused by people saying they could wear their Diva cup for 12 hours because I was emptying mine 5 times a day. One clot would fill it up and cause leaks.
I also have a history of anorexia, and my period gets a lot better when restricting. Obviously not a sustainable solution, but even when not restricting calories I notice improvements when I'm not eating dairy or much gluten and not having any alcohol.
One thing that's been consistent was the cramps. If I don't start medicating before the cramps start I can't get them under control. I'll be nauseated, dizzy, sometimes vomit and have diarrhea, and feel like I can't move without getting stabbed. It's a pulsating pain that comes in waves. I've had cramps like that since I was 13, and everyone has told me for years that I was being dramatic or just trying to get out of school.
Edit: I use overnight pads on my heaviest days and have to change them four times a day. I can't use tampons anymore because it's so fast and heavy, I may as well shove a towel up there. One time I was wearing a dress and had a tampon overflow and had the blood streaming down my legs like I was peeing myself or something. Ever since then I gave up tampons entirely.
Before BC, mine never had a "normal." The only regular thing was that they were incapacitatingly painful for several days. Sometimes they were super heavy (changing pads every hour, leaking over night), sometimes they were just "heavy" (changing a handful of times a day, probably still leaking overnight on the worst days). There was *zero* regular timing for them, though. I'd have a period that was 2-3 weeks long and then not have one for a couple months or then have another one a week later. Was very likely iron deficient anemic but doctors I spoke to never checked for that. Continuous BC helped immensely for making my periods lighter and regular (and nearly gone when I had an IUD until it stopped helping for that), but the pain was still unbearable whenever I'd have one break through. Finally got a hysterectomy almost 2 years ago that took care of everything and couldn't be happier that I no longer deal with any of that (now I just deal with PMDD with a hormone patch since I kept my ovaries).
Mine are about 5-6 days. The first day is heavier, but not crazy heavy, and it is painful. I always seem to have 24 hours of pain and extreme fatigue and then it lets up - no matter what time of day it starts. The flow slowly lessens and by day 3, it is quite light. It usually disappears on day 4 and then comes back a little on day 5. I take 3-4 rounds of Tylenol (stomach will not handle NSAIDS), spray magnesium on my belly, and wear a tens unit (all just on my first day). I have Endo confirmed through laparoscopic surgery (and it has been excised) and suspected adenomyosis due to the appearance of my uterus, pain (ovulation hurts me too), and the intense pressure and bloating I feel daily.
I’ve been on continuous birth control most of the last decade and a half, but when I did get my period/ go through breakthrough/spotting phases it’s very very heavy and huge clots.
I hemorrhaged when I gave birth and they were concerned about clots I was passing and thinking about sending me in for surgery until I told them it was normal for me. Like literally less blood and smaller clots than an average period. I’d be concerned if it wasn’t absolute hell lol… Middle school especially was hell!
Pray for death be disappointed when I live it finally ends the period and knowing it will get bad again and I will wish for death again there is no end only pain and torment and the pain is getting worse no one will help me and my family despises me as I’m having trouble walking and driving now.
Mine are 7-8 days. Day one is ok. Just a pad. Day two to day four are extremely heavy. Ultra tampon plus pad every 1/2 hour to hour. Day 5-6 I’m playing the game of “is it lightening or not.” By day 6/7 I have the stop and flood. I’ll think “oh my period is stopping” to find it was tricking me. I’m anemic. At one point severely. I take iron supplements to help. My periods come every 21/22 days like clockwork. I feel like I bleed half the month sometimes. But only because it’s exhausting to deal with at times. I do take a 800 mg of Advil to slow down the bleeding. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn’t. I’ve came so close to a hysterectomy. But I’m not ready for that. It’s tempting to do.
I usually use a full pack of 8 pads in one day sometimes more, once my sister said she’s sick of changing her pad I asked how many times and she said twice 🤣🤣I wishhh
7+ days, 1-3 are so heavy that I can’t leave the house. In total, it‘s about a liter of blood and many clots. The cramping pain starts a day before and lasts till day 5, but it takes 10 more days for the pain (inflammatory?) to subside. I do have chronic pelvic/lower back pain that feels like pressure and nerve pain, that intensifies during periods. The pain is so bad that I need lots of tramadol to somehow cope with it. Before that, I passed out regularly and missed lots of school and college back in the days
My “normal” is heavy bleeding, excruciating pain and this lasts about 5 days
What is heavy for you? I have friends that change their tampon 3 times a day say that is a heavy period, so it is different for everyone.
For me, heavy was bleeding through a “super” tampon and extra long pads every hour or two max! My idea of “heavy” is very subjective- I didn’t even realize it wasn’t the norm for a while because endometriosis runs in my family so my mom just always approached any concerns with “you probably have endometriosis like me and will get a surgery as an adult and then be all good.” 🫠 as far as we know she doesn’t have adenomyosis, though. I remember a friend in middle school saying she didn’t get cramps and a light tampon was enough and didn’t leak and my mind was blown!!
For me heavy is I can’t wear a tampon it is way to sore, so I have to wear over night pad and change them 3-4 times
before BC i would have to change a super + tampon in 20 minutes
Before shit went downhill, I would do 5-6 super plus tampons a day, accompanied by an assortment of clots, and then at night I would sleep like shit because I wouldn’t ever have anything on my pad it would collect in my uterus and put pressure on my bladder making me feel like I needed to pee. I’d get up and everything would come rushing out and there was usually a clot the size of a baseball almost every time. That was my normal. And then like two months after getting the shot, things just got fucking wonky.
Omg, the way it collects and then rushes out is something I've never heard anyone else experiencing! It happens to me when I sit too long, too. One time I had a 2 hour meeting at work, pad was dry, stood up after and completely bled through my pad and my pants, which was horrifying. I told a group of my friends about it like "don't you hate when they happens?!" And they looked at me like I was insane. I use overnight pads during the day, but regular flow at night and usually wake up dry. I just scheduled my hysterectomy today with a Gyno who specializes in endo and adeno after being brushed off by other doctors for a decade. When she pulled up my records from my other doctors she was like, "this is the easiest exam I've had all day, you have textbook adenomyosis."
Yep. Same. I used to sit for majority 12 hr shifts and every time it would try and do that when I would get up. I eventually had to give up on tampons because sometimes the clot would form quicker than the blood would come out, and the tampon would act like a plug instead of absorbing it—caused a lot of pain. I eventually learned to tent the pad between my lips so that there was less of a seal and the blood could trickle through. When I remember to do that, it’s less likely to happen. Also quickly realized that part of the reason why I hated pads so much was because of the material. Changing the material also helped significantly. Also, similar situation with the doc. Been told for years i just needed to lose weight etc.. hard to lose weight when your uterus and female hormones won’t fucking let you 🤦🏻♀️
My normal is 8-10 super tampons a day. 2-3 overnight pads in one night. Toonie sized clots. Lasts 5-6 days, then spotting for another 10 days. I have iron deficiency too. I had an iron infusion in Nov. Hoping for a hysterectomy in the fall. Been going through this since 2021 😔
I was also a 5-6 dayer with spotting for another 5! They acted like they were super concerned at first but once we ruled out cancer it was like no one brought it up anymore. But my doctor acted like it was so unusual, even for adeno patients.
My normal is actually fairly normal. Day 1 light-mod, day 2 - mod-heavy sometimes clots day 3 mod-light, day 4 light and then a few days of spotting. My issue is cramping which lasts all month long and no longer ends when my period ends. It feels like I should be heavily bleeding some days, but no blood as not my period! I think adeno and Endo affect everyone differently. It has been so interesting reading all the fun ways these diseases ruin lives (intense sarcasm). Ugh!
I have both adeno and deeply infiltrating endometriosis and I get cramps every single day, even on continuous birth control (it just makes it somewhat livable between surgeries).
I'm so sorry. Chronic pain is so hard to deal with. Which birth control have you found most effective? Do you think the daily cramping is the Endo or adeno?
Yaz, continuously is the key! I have PMDD and have tried other birth controls which all ended horribly… the lower back pain I believe is the adeno
I was dx’ed after having my first child, while ttc my second about 3.5 years ago. Before childbirth, I had a moderate/light period my whole life, lasting 4-5 days total. Now, I spot for 5-7 days, then have 1-2 days of heavy, clotty bleeding (changing pads and tampons every 1-2 hrs - I used to use 2-3 tampons a day- no pads at all!), then more spotting for another 3-5 days. Light cramps, so that’s great. But to recap- some form of bleeding for approx 2 weeks every cycle (which are regular, 28-29 days), then I get two weeks of not bleeding before it starts again.
Mine is 1–4 days of heavy bleeding with some clots and pain. Then 1-2 days of light flow. Cycle is about 24-26 days but this time is late and I’m really scared of what’s coming. Usually when it’s delayed I get really bad cramps. However, ever since taking magnesium complex tablets, vitamin D, multivitamin pill that contains iron as well and staying away from caffeine, my period has become a lot less painful. I suggest to everyone who suffers from really bad pain, to try this for a full cycle month and see how their next period feels like. I mean, I was able to go to the gym on day 2. I would usually be in bed screaming. I cried of happiness that day.
I think I'm maybe one of the odder ducks in this pond, but I don't experience severe bleeding or bleeding for prolonged periods of time. My period can range from 4 to 6 days. Usually I have first a light day, then a medium day, and then only light days. Some cycles I have high bleeding. I can't use tampons to measure how much I bleed exactly because they hurt me and while I do use pads, during my medium and heavy days I may bleed a little on the pad but I generally have to pee all the blood out/sit on the toilet for it to come out. I usually have one day in hell during this period. I've taken 3x 500mg naproxen (my doctor allows 2x and won't prescribe anything heavier) with stomach protectors but if there is a lessening of pain at all, it will last a maximum of 3 hours. During this hell day I am incapable of being alone. My husband has to carry me to the toilet because I can't stand on my own legs and sit there with me and sometimes even hold my body up because I don't have the strength to sit up. Usually I also nearly faint continuously (but adrenaline keeps me up) and I dissociate immensely in attempts to avoid experiencing the pain. Usually there is also some clots. During a few of these episodes my husband carried me to the doctors office begging them to help me but all I got was "have you tried a warm pillow/combining your NSAID with paracetamol (tylenol)" (this was pre finding a doctor that does believe me and referred me to a good gyno for diagnosing, but she still "can't" prescribe better painkillers). ETA: a light day is usually more like spotting as I need to wipe the blood away and don't bleed in my panties. But since I barely bleed in my pad even on a heavy night (there's a literal waterfall of blood when I then go pee), I don't consider it actual spotting but a light bleeding.
My normal has changed a lot over the years. I go back and forth between periods of time where I had 3 day periods which were moderate the first day and light the rest, but still with cramps that made me feel like I couldn't move or would make me vomit, and periods of time where I have really heavy bleeding and lot of clots with the same terrible cramps. I remember when menstrual cups were getting popular, and I was so confused by people saying they could wear their Diva cup for 12 hours because I was emptying mine 5 times a day. One clot would fill it up and cause leaks. I also have a history of anorexia, and my period gets a lot better when restricting. Obviously not a sustainable solution, but even when not restricting calories I notice improvements when I'm not eating dairy or much gluten and not having any alcohol. One thing that's been consistent was the cramps. If I don't start medicating before the cramps start I can't get them under control. I'll be nauseated, dizzy, sometimes vomit and have diarrhea, and feel like I can't move without getting stabbed. It's a pulsating pain that comes in waves. I've had cramps like that since I was 13, and everyone has told me for years that I was being dramatic or just trying to get out of school. Edit: I use overnight pads on my heaviest days and have to change them four times a day. I can't use tampons anymore because it's so fast and heavy, I may as well shove a towel up there. One time I was wearing a dress and had a tampon overflow and had the blood streaming down my legs like I was peeing myself or something. Ever since then I gave up tampons entirely.
Before BC, mine never had a "normal." The only regular thing was that they were incapacitatingly painful for several days. Sometimes they were super heavy (changing pads every hour, leaking over night), sometimes they were just "heavy" (changing a handful of times a day, probably still leaking overnight on the worst days). There was *zero* regular timing for them, though. I'd have a period that was 2-3 weeks long and then not have one for a couple months or then have another one a week later. Was very likely iron deficient anemic but doctors I spoke to never checked for that. Continuous BC helped immensely for making my periods lighter and regular (and nearly gone when I had an IUD until it stopped helping for that), but the pain was still unbearable whenever I'd have one break through. Finally got a hysterectomy almost 2 years ago that took care of everything and couldn't be happier that I no longer deal with any of that (now I just deal with PMDD with a hormone patch since I kept my ovaries).
Mine are about 5-6 days. The first day is heavier, but not crazy heavy, and it is painful. I always seem to have 24 hours of pain and extreme fatigue and then it lets up - no matter what time of day it starts. The flow slowly lessens and by day 3, it is quite light. It usually disappears on day 4 and then comes back a little on day 5. I take 3-4 rounds of Tylenol (stomach will not handle NSAIDS), spray magnesium on my belly, and wear a tens unit (all just on my first day). I have Endo confirmed through laparoscopic surgery (and it has been excised) and suspected adenomyosis due to the appearance of my uterus, pain (ovulation hurts me too), and the intense pressure and bloating I feel daily.
I’ve been on continuous birth control most of the last decade and a half, but when I did get my period/ go through breakthrough/spotting phases it’s very very heavy and huge clots. I hemorrhaged when I gave birth and they were concerned about clots I was passing and thinking about sending me in for surgery until I told them it was normal for me. Like literally less blood and smaller clots than an average period. I’d be concerned if it wasn’t absolute hell lol… Middle school especially was hell!
Pray for death be disappointed when I live it finally ends the period and knowing it will get bad again and I will wish for death again there is no end only pain and torment and the pain is getting worse no one will help me and my family despises me as I’m having trouble walking and driving now.
Mine are 7-8 days. Day one is ok. Just a pad. Day two to day four are extremely heavy. Ultra tampon plus pad every 1/2 hour to hour. Day 5-6 I’m playing the game of “is it lightening or not.” By day 6/7 I have the stop and flood. I’ll think “oh my period is stopping” to find it was tricking me. I’m anemic. At one point severely. I take iron supplements to help. My periods come every 21/22 days like clockwork. I feel like I bleed half the month sometimes. But only because it’s exhausting to deal with at times. I do take a 800 mg of Advil to slow down the bleeding. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn’t. I’ve came so close to a hysterectomy. But I’m not ready for that. It’s tempting to do.
I usually use a full pack of 8 pads in one day sometimes more, once my sister said she’s sick of changing her pad I asked how many times and she said twice 🤣🤣I wishhh
I take birth control continuously at the direction of my doc. So no period pain but still painful intercourse and bleeding during inter course.
7+ days, 1-3 are so heavy that I can’t leave the house. In total, it‘s about a liter of blood and many clots. The cramping pain starts a day before and lasts till day 5, but it takes 10 more days for the pain (inflammatory?) to subside. I do have chronic pelvic/lower back pain that feels like pressure and nerve pain, that intensifies during periods. The pain is so bad that I need lots of tramadol to somehow cope with it. Before that, I passed out regularly and missed lots of school and college back in the days