Menstruation period: It’s duration &
other continuous bleeding

Q383 :Menstruation period: It’s duration & other
continuous bleeding

A383 : There is no set limit for menstruation which
applies to all women. As you may realize, this is something that
relates to the physical constitution of every woman. Hence, there is a
wide range of variation between women, although the overwhelming
majority continues in menstruation for seven days. Many women finish
their periods after six days, while others may go on to the eighth day
before they are finally clean. A few may have longer or shorter
periods. Although most women have a regular period, which netes every
28-30 days, some are not so regular. Therefore, there is no maximum
limit for the length of time of cleanliness from menstruation. On the
other hand, some scholars say that the longest that a menstruation
period can take is 10 days. The weightier opinion is that there is no
such limit. Every woman knows her normal course and she acts
accordingly. Sometimes, a woman continues to discharge blood after the
end of her menstrual period. The discharge may continue week after
week. She has to differentiate between menstruation and a normal blood
discharge. The two are different. During her menstruation, a woman may
not pray, fast or have sexual intercourse with her husband. The case is
different when she has a blood discharge. What a woman should do if she
has such a discharge is to calculate her menstruation period on the
basis of its normal length, and she takes a bath and pays no attention
to the discharge apart from taking the normal precautions not to allow
the blood to fall on her clothes or body. Umm Salamah, the wife of the
Prophet, asked him about a woman who continues to bleed. He said : “Let
her calculate the nights and the days which she used to menstruate
every month. She should not pray during these days. Thereafter, she
takes a bath, uses a piece of cotton or cloth ( to absorb bleeding )
and prays.” (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim and others). The case is
known in the books of fiqh as ” estihadhah “, which is different from
menstruation which means “haith.”

Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )