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

  • Hebrew
  • English
  • Espnaol
  • Francais
Menu

Premenstrual cramps

17 September, 2003
Question:

I frequently have cramps before getting my period, but they may happen a few days before I actually see bleeding. Am I considered niddah when they start? If not, am I obligated to do bedikot to determine whether I have started bleeding or not?


Answer:

Cramping does not make you a niddah. If you consistently see a particular symptom prior to your period, then it may constitute a veset haguf (see article). During a veset day, you would do a bedikah. Intercourse would be forbidden but touching, hugging, and kissing, would be permitted. But if it is not a veset day, you are not obligated to constantly do bedikot due to the cramping and we would not recommend it.

It might be prudent to do a bedikah prior to deciding to have marital relations during this time period. If you find a spot on your bedikah cloth, it will make you a niddah. If you don’t, then you are not a niddah. You can decide whether to avoid intercourse but still be allowed hugging and kissing and no harchakot, or to take the risk of doing a bedikah, knowing that if it is ok you can have relations, but if it’s not ok you are niddah with all its restrictions.

This internet service does not preclude, override or replace the psak of any rabbinical authority. It is the responsibility of the questioner to inform us of any previous consultation or ruling. As even slight variation in circumstances may have Halachic consequences, views expressed concerning one case may not be applied to other, seemingly similar cases. All health and health-related information contained within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is intended to be general in nature and should not be used as a substitute for consulting with your health care professional. The advice is intended to offer a basis for individuals to discuss their medical condition with their health care provider but not individual advice. Although every effort is made to ensure that the material within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is accurate and timely, it is provided for the convenience of the Web site user but should not be considered official. Advice for actual medical practice should be obtained from a licensed health care professional.

For further questions or comments: 

The Nishmat Women's Health and Halacha Site is a public service of Nishmat, The Jeanie Schottenstein Center for Advanced Torah Study for Women. This project and others like it are made possible by contributions from people like you. If you have benefited from the service, and wish to enable us to help others, click here to donate.

Users of Internet filtering services: This site discusses sensitive subjects that some services filter without visual indication. A page that appears 100% complete might actually be missing critical Jewish-law or medical information. To ensure that you view the pages accurately, ask the filtering service to whitelist all pages under yoatzot.org.

Accessibility Toolbar