Is My Prolonged Bleeding Menstruation or Irregular Bleeding?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
I have my periods every month for eight days. But this month, it extended for longer than that and didn’t stop. I went to the doctor and am taking medication, and although the blood has decreased, it still hasn’t gone away. I’m having trouble identifying this blood as irregular bleeding (istihada) or menses (hayd).
I’ve read that istihada is not related to menstruation. But my current blood is due to menstrual problems. And it’s also similar in color and consistency to menstrual blood. However, should I consider it as istihada since it lasts longer than my usual period?
I want to know if the blood I’m getting right now is hard or istihada.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
I pray you are in good faith and health.
If the bleeding continues for more than ten days, then the number of days beyond your habit – which is eight days – is considered irregular bleeding (istihada). So you will start praying as usual from day 11 onwards, fast if it is during the month of Ramadan, recite Quran and touch it, enter a mosque, perform Tawaf with wudu, and you may have intimacy with your husband. [Birgivi, Dhukhr al Muta’ahhilin; Naielah Ackbarali, A Muslim Woman’s Guide to Menstruation Rulings]
Advice
I advise keeping in contact with a local reliable female scholar who is well-versed in menstruation matters. Also, try to attend any on-the-ground and online courses on menstruation. Also, buy books related to the topic; some are in the link below.
It is a personal obligation (fard) for every adult woman to learn the basic rules of menstruation and to ask, as you’ve done, in the case of a complicated or unique situation). The books, A Muslim Woman’s Guide To Menstruation Rulings by Naielah Ackbarali and Coming of Age by Ustadha Hedaya Hartford are very accessible books to learn these rulings. They are in English and have many practical examples, life experiences, and even illustrative charts to calculate menstruation.
Also, you can download a first-ever menstruation period tracking app which is personalized for Muslim women to understand menses, purity, irregular bleeding, lochia, etc., at first glance! Get The app is in harmony with religious scholarship.
Related:
- How To Determine Periods With Dysfunctional Bleeding?
- How Can I Figure Out My Regular Period as I have Irregular Vaginal Bleeding?
- Menstruation: A Comprehensive Reader
- Myhayd.app | First Ever Islamic Period Tracking App Personalized For Muslim Women.
Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on SeekersGuidance?
I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.
