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

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Peri menopausal bleeding

26 January, 2003

Question:

I am 48 and have been having irregular periods intermittently for a couple of years. (I have had several scans during this time, which have always been clear). My current situation is this: after 38 days I got my period (normally it would be 26 – 29 days) on 27 tevet. I made a hefsek on 4th shevat, but after only five days started to bleed again on 10th shevat. Bleeding was like a normal period but I was able to make another hefsek on 14th shevat. I went to mikve last night, on 22nd shevat and have now started to bleed again with all the signs of a normal period. I am quite distressed but more than that, confused about how I should be counting from here on. Is there a situation where one need only count 5 clean days rather than 7? Does this situation apply to me at all? Many thanks in advance.


Answer:

When you enter the niddah status, you always have to wait seven blood free days after bleeding has ceased (as confirmed by the hefsek taharah examination). These seven days generally begin after a minimum of five days counted from the first day of bleeding. However, if the bleeding restarted before you were able able to immerse in the mikveh, then you do not have to count the five-day minimum again, and you may do the hefsek on the afternoon of the day that all bleeding has ceased.

Your physician may be able to help alleviate this type of persistent bleeding, so you may want to discuss the situation with him or her.

 


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