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

  • Hebrew
  • English
  • Espnaol
  • Francais
  • donate
Menu
Side Bar

Corona: Continuous contraceptive pills

8 October, 2020
Question:

I have been taking birth control pills on an extended cycle for several years with no breakthrough bleeding. Since March (the outbreak of the pandemic), I have been taking it continuously (with the approval of my midwife) for seven months to avoid having a period because I am very nervous about going to the mikvah given the pandemic. Tonight, after using the bathroom, I saw red on the toilet paper. I do not know how long I waited before wiping. Am I considered to be in niddah? Do I need to separate from my husband if there is no more staining nor start of a flow?

Thank you for being there to answer questions of women like me.


Answer:

When a woman has waited at least a few seconds between urinating and wiping, discharge on toilet paper may be disregarded. (Deliberately waiting a few seconds can help prevent future questions.)

If you wiped immediately after urinating, then your status depends on a number of details, including the shade of what you saw (and under what lighting conditions you saw it), if there was plausible non-uterine source of bleeding, and whether you follow Ashkenazi or Sefardi halachic rulings. Please see our article on toilet paper for more details.

When a woman has non-niddah staining, we recommend abstaining from intercourse for a day or so. This is a precaution to prevent a flow from beginning during relations, and not a strict halachic requirement.

It is fairly common for women to experience breakthrough bleeding when extending active pill use. When breakthrough bleeding begins, it often makes sense to stop the active pills and allow for withdrawal bleeding. We recommend checking in with your midwife or physician for guidance on how to proceed at this stage.

We appreciate your concerns about going to mikveh during the pandemic. At the same time, immersion in a mikveh that follows the guidelines of local health authorities is generally considered safe for women who are not at high risk. By preparing at home, maintaining distance from other women there, and wearing a mask as much as possible, you can increase your Covid-19 safety.

In light of your nervousness, you may also seek to arrange to immerse first on a given evening, before other women arrive. Please see our extensive section on Coronavirus and Taharat Hamishpacha for guidelines and FAQs on immersing in the current circumstances, and please let us know if you have any further questions.

B’hatzlacha!

This response was updated on 4 February, 2024.

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