There are times, when the menstrual discharge becomes watery, an oddity from the usual texture or consistency, a woman usually experiences. Period or menstruation is the shedding of the uterine wall. This happens each month and involves release of blood and tissues from the uterus. Watery period simply means blood that is diluted; it has more of the fluid and light in color. Women who experience this condition usually soak their pants faster and blood may also leak.
Causes of Watery Period
Watery period can occur as a result of the following:
- An indication of labor: If you are expectant and you experience a watery period just days to the due date, it would be a sign of labor. Most pregnant women experience a brief, watery period when the mucus plug is discharged before labor starts. In some cases, amniotic fluid can mix with mucus plug giving it a watery appearance.
- Lighter period: In some cases, a watery period might be a lighter cycle for you. Sometimes you may notice thin, red bright period blood. This is new blood that your body has prevented from clotting. When this fresh blood is mixed with cervical discharge, it might make your periods appear watery. If this is your first time to menstruate, your periods may be lighter than normal.
- Pregnancy: Spotting is common in expectant women in the early stages of pregnancy. Spotting is light bleeding from the vagina that occurs at any time and not when your periods are due. Spotting can occur because of changes in hormones, miscarriage, implantation of the embryo and ovulation. Most of the women experience clear and normal vaginal discharge during pregnancy. When vaginal discharge mixes with spotting blood, you might have a watery period.
- Post-pregnancy periods: Women who have given birth recently may experience unpredictable periods; normal and abnormal. It is typical for periods to have more fluids and lighter after pregnancy so as to allow your body to recover properly.
When to See a Health Professional
You may call your health professional if you are experiencing the following symptoms:
- Your watery periods are accompanied by blood clots which are large. You feel pain during the periods. Your body temperature is high or you have fever. If you are pregnant and bleeding continues for days.
Treatment
You will need to see your doctor if your periods are watery than normal. Your doctor will first identify the cause of changes in blood. The following tests can be ordered by your doctor to find out the cause of the problem:
Urine test: Since watery period is an early sign of pregnancy, your doctor will order urine test to find out if pregnancy is the cause of watery discharge.
There are three urine tests that can be done to check for pregnancy at home such as:
- Strips: Strips can also be used to test for pregnancy. This method is cheap and you only need a sample of your urine and dip the strip in the urine. Take the strip out of the urine after about 4 seconds and put it on a clean absorbent surface. Read the results within 5 minutes and be careful not to take readings after 5 minutes. The strip is used to detect the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin hormone which is found in urine. Check the strips after 5 minutes. If there is only one color in the strip, it indicates that the test is negative and you are not pregnant. In case there are two colors on the strip, it means that the test is positive and you are pregnant.
- Early test: This test is used to detect human chorionic gonadotropin hormone before you missed periods.
- Conventional method: This test is used to identify human chorionic gonadotropin hormone after you have missed your periods.
Blood test: There are two types of pregnancy blood tests your doctor can order: quantitative and qualitative blood test. Quantitative blood test is used to determine the exact quantity of human chorionic gonadotropin hormone in your blood. Qualitative blood test is used to give no or yes answers and it is recommended before quantitative test.
To conduct blood test, your doctor collects a sample of your blood and evaluates it for pregnancy. The tests results will indicate the amount of human chorionic gonadotropin hormone in the blood.
Healthy diet: Your doctor may recommend a healthy diet to help restore your hormone balance and provide relief from watery periods.
- You can eat the following foods: coconut oil, avocadoes, olive oils, and sufficient Omega 3 fats. You may eat fermented foods and adhere to whole natural foods.
Besides changing your diet, you need to manage your stress and have adequate sleep. You also need to exercise regularly so as to restore your hormonal balance.
