Nishmat's Women’s Health and HalachaIn memory of Chaya Mirel bat R' Avraham

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Expecting period on wedding day

22 October, 2017

Question:

Thank you so much for providing this service.

A kallah asked me a question concerning a potential chupat niddah. She said that she’s expecting her period the day of her upcoming wedding, which is in about three weeks. She has heard that it’s problematic to go to the mikvah before one’s wedding if one is expecting one’s period within three days of going to the mikvah. She’d like to know if that is correct. Is there a reason that going to the mikvah before her wedding would be a problem?

I mentioned to her that she may want to consider using hormones to delay the onset of her period and discuss the situation with her mesader kiddushin. Is there any other information I should provide her?


Answer:

We have never heard of the custom mentioned by the kallah. It is fully permissible for her to immerse even if she expects her period within the next few days.

It is often medically possible to delay a period, and we recommend that she speak with her doctor about this as soon as possible. If her period is regular, and she expects it on her wedding day, progesterone pills can be taken beginning about five days before she expects her period and continued until after they consummate the marriage. This would delay her period for the few days necessary and, unlike birth control pills, these are taken for just a short period of time. Note that these are not the same progesterone pills normally prescribed for contraception.

Please feel free to get back to us with any further questions.

B’hatzlacha!


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