Menorrhagia refers to menstruation that is regular and lasts the normal time (around 5 days) but is excessive in the amount of blood. Women who experience this report that the bleeding comes suddenly or they fear staining their clothes because the bleeding overflows whatever they use to collect the blood (tampons, pads...) and they have to change often. According to Maciocia, menorrhagia can occur in a context of Qi deficiency, blood heat or blood stasis.
By Qi deficiency
Causes
Excess activity, work, insufficient rest... See: Qi deficiency. If Spleen-Qi weakens, the function of containing blood within the vessels fails and bleeding occurs easily. If Kidney-Qi weakens, it does not adequately nourish the Ren Mai and Chong Mai channels.
Symptoms
- Very abundant bleeding.
- Blood tending to pale and thin.
- Tiredness.
- Pallor.
- Weak voice, little desire to speak.
- Spleen-Qi deficiency: pasty stools, abdominal distension.
- Kidney-Qi deficiency: lower back pain, dizziness, frequent urination.
- Pale tongue.
- Weak pulse.
Treatment
Tonify Spleen-Qi and Kidney-Qi. Rest more. Moxibustion is beneficial (if there are no signs of heat):
- GV-20 ascends pure Qi
- CV-12, ST-36 tonify central Qi
- CV-6, CV-4 can be used with moxa box
- SP-6 gynecological disorders
- BL-20 and BL-23 the back-shu points of Spleen and Kidney
By blood heat
Heat speeds up and agitates the blood producing bleeding. See blood heat.
Causes
- Heat and fire of external origin that reaches the blood layer. See: Four Levels diagnosis.
- Inadequate diet: excess of pungent foods, hot foods, alcohol
- Seven passions: emotional problem that produces Liver-Qi stagnation. Over time it transforms into fire.
Symptoms
- Very abundant bleeding.
- Blood of very red, bright or dark color.
- Thick blood. Heat condenses the fluids.
- Anxiety, restlessness, nervousness.
- Heat.
- Thirst.
- Dark, scant urine.
- Tongue: red or redder at the edges.
- Pulse: rapid.
Treatment
Avoid heat, change diet. No moxibustion.
- SP-4 and PC-6: Chong Mai, sea of blood, relates to menstrual blood.
- LI-11, SP-10, BL-17: cool the blood.
- SP-6, SP-8.
- LR-2 or LR-3: eliminates Liver fire or favors Qi Ji.
By blood stasis
It seems contradictory that blood stasis produces excessive bleeding. The stagnant blood blocks the vessels communicating with the uterus and the new blood that forms is poured out as excessive bleeding.
Causes
- Emotions that produce Liver-Qi stagnation and that stagnation blocks the blood.
- Cold in the uterus.
- Trauma, surgery or after childbirth facilitates blood stasis in the uterus.
Symptoms
- Very abundant bleeding.
- Bleeding with clots, they can be large.
- Intense menstrual pain that relieves after expelling the clots. See: dysmenorrhea.
- Stabbing abdominal pain that worsens with pressure.
- Tongue: can be purplish.
- Pulse: fine and tense (wiry).
Treatment
Exercise (walking, dancing...) can help move stagnant blood.