A recent e-mail from one of our readers spoke of a dilemma. For a long time she has had problems with heavy vagina bleeding. Like most women with this problem, her daily life was affected tremendously.  She sought help and her medical provider treated her with birth control pills. The pills helped her menstrual cycles but eventually the side effects became unbearable. So she stopped taking them. And guess what? Yes, you guessed it. Her heavy periods came right back.  She was wondering how to stop heavy bleeding  other than taking hormonal pills.


I’m happy to say that there are several treatments other than hysterectomy which may be helpful for those who cannot take birth control pills. This post will discuss some of the alternative treatments which you can consider. But remember, we at heavybleedinghelp.com cannot give you advice or recommend any particular treatment for you. You and your medical provider must decide that together. We will provide helpful information for you to have the heavy bleeding talk.

 

Mirena IUD

If you would like to continue to be able to have pregnancies in the future, one helpful treatment for heavy bleeding is the Mirena IUD. For those of you in other countries it is the levonorgestrel containing IUD (probably marketed under a different name). It is primarily used for birth control but has been used for the treatment of heavy bleeding for a long time.  The Mirena is a small device containing a small amount of hormone levonorgestrel.  Your healthcare provider will insert this device into the uterine cavity usually during an office visit. The hormone in the device  is released inside the uterus for a period of 5 years. The amount of hormone released from the device is very small, and serves to make the lining of the uterus very thin. The lining or endometrium is the part of the uterus which bleeds every month.  Many women who use the Mirena may experience no periods at all. Others will have a great improvement in the amount and duration of the menstrual period flow. Few will have no improvement. Rarely some will have worsening of the bleeding.

 
 

ADVERTISEMENT:

 

 Lysteda

Tranexamic acid (marketed in the United States as Lysteda) is another non-hormonal method of controlling heavy vagina bleeding. This medication is taken for 5 days during the period and has been shown to decrease the amount and duration of bleeding by up to a third.

Note: This video is published by the company that produces Lysteda.  You should speak to your healthcare provider for more information.

 

Endometrial Ablation

The final option option is really meant for those who no longer desire to have children.  Endometrial ablation is a procedure in which the lining of the uterus is destroyed.  This can be accomplished by several different devices including a superheated baloon of water (Thermachoice), electrocautery, radiofrequency (Novasure), and freezing (HerOption).  Which method you are offered will depend a lot on you healthcare providers resources.  One device I use regularly is called Novasure. It has a great success rate, providing improvement in bleeding (according to the company that produces the device) for 90% of those surveyed after having the procedure.  Here’s a video to explain a little more.

 


Your heavy bleeding problem is very unique to you.  What your provider offers you will depend on the cause of your heavy bleeding.  My hope is that this introduction to some of the treatments available will give you the knowledge to help you and your provider decide on a treatment that’s just right for you.  Here’s hoping that you quickly make your heavy bleeding problem a thing of the past.

 

 

Please share click here