Nurse Practitioner Barbara Dehn presents the following options for treating heavy periods, or menorrhagia:

• An ultrasound can be taken and then perhaps an endometrial biopsy, depending on how thick the endometrium is on ultrasound. In this case, menorrhagia can be treated with combination hormonal treatment in the form of the birth control pill, patch or ring. These are the most convenient ways to give a combination of estrogen and progesterone to balance the hormones.
• Some women will use the progesterone-containing IUD, Mirena, to provide the progesterone balance. Others will take oral progesterone either 10 or 14 days each month.
• If the cause of heavy bleeding is a fibroid or a polyp,it can be removed and the uterus can be spared, or a woman may choose to have a hysterectomy. In the old days, menorrhagia contributed to the high numbers of women undergoing hysterectomy. Now, the numbers are much smaller because we know more and have better options.
• For heavy bleeding, some women take a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug such as ibuprofen. This can decrease blood flow by about 10 to 20 percent.