What are the symptoms of irregular menstruation? Understanding these symptoms helps identify whether you have irregular periods, enabling timely intervention for regulation and prevention.
How to recognize irregular menstruation? Look for these symptoms:
1. Dysmenorrhea:
Refers to lower abdominal or back pain occurring before, during, or after menstruation.During severe episodes, patients may appear pale, break out in cold sweat, experience cold hands and feet, nausea, vomiting, or even collapse and fainting.If menstrual blood is watery, only slightly pink, or dark purple, it is abnormal. If menstrual blood consists entirely of clots, this is also abnormal and may indicate bleeding from another source. Seek medical attention promptly to ensure health.This may involve a short follicular phase (7–8 days), a luteal phase shorter than 10 days, or a basal body temperature rise insufficient to reach 0.5°C.
4. Abnormal bleeding:
Bleeding during menstruation or childbirth is considered normal. Any bleeding outside these two scenarios constitutes abnormal vaginal bleeding.
5. Menstrual Period (also called menstruation):
A woman's menstrual period typically lasts 2–5 days. The usual pattern is light flow on the first day, increasing on the second and third days, then gradually decreasing until the flow stops. Some women experience a small amount of blood returning one or two days after the flow has stopped, commonly called "spotting." This is not a disease but a normal phenomenon.However, menstrual periods lasting 10–20 days with persistent spotting, or extremely short periods that end almost immediately, are considered abnormal.Inflammation may cause lower abdominal pain that worsens during menstruation, along with increased vaginal discharge that is yellow or yellowish-white, thick, and odorous. Incomplete luteal regression may also cause heavy menstrual flow. Prolonged endometrial repair may result in persistent light vaginal bleeding after the normal menstrual period.
7. Menstrual Flow Volume:
Menstrual flow volume varies among women, typically ranging from 20 to 100 milliliters. Changing sanitary pads 3 to 5 times daily is generally considered normal. Excessive flow—where pads become saturated quickly after changing or blood runs down the legs—is abnormal.A flow less than 20 milliliters—requiring minimal or no sanitary pads—with dark purple or pink blood is also abnormal.In cases with ovulation, basal body temperature shows a biphasic pattern but with a prolonged follicular phase and a lower high-temperature phase; in cases without ovulation, basal body temperature remains monophasic. Traditional Chinese Medicine Dietary Therapy for Regulating Menstruation Dietary Therapy Formula 1: Cooled Bracken Fern Salad Ingredients: 200g fresh bracken fern, 2 pieces braised dried tofu, MSG, sugar, salt, sesame oil to taste.
Preparation: Wash mugwort thoroughly, blanch in boiling water for 1 minute, cool, then finely chop. Finely chop preserved tofu and mix with mugwort. Add sugar, salt, MSG, and sesame oil. Toss well. Serve as a side dish with meals as desired.
Efficacy: Clears heat and cools blood.
Indications: Irregular menstruation due to blood heat pattern, characterized by early onset, heavy flow, bright red viscous blood, irritability, thirst, yellow tongue coating, and rapid pulse.
Preparation: Wash purslane and boil with eggs. Once cooked, peel eggs and return to pot. Consume once daily in two servings: eat eggs and drink soup.
Effects: Clears heat, cools blood, and regulates blood.
Indications: Irregular menstruation due to blood heat, characterized by heavy flow, bright red color, sticky consistency with clots, thirst, and restlessness.