It\u2019s a code red \u2014 but what does it mean?<\/p>\n
Knowing what\u2019s normal when it comes to your period can be tricky. After all, women aren\u2019t exactly chatting about the color, consistency and smell of blood at the water cooler.<\/p>\n
But if you\u2019re informed about what to look for, that time of the month could be a useful tool in letting you know how your reproductive system is functioning.<\/p>\n
Hailey Puckett<\/a>,\u00a0a doctor of nursing practice, women\u2019s health nurse practitioner and Kotex partner, tells The Post exactly how to read your cycle like a book.<\/p>\n Look out for these red flags in your period. Donald Pearsall \/ NY Post Design<\/p>\n Clots bigger than the size of a quarter<\/p>\n Clots are OK as long as they\u2019re small. Bigger than the size of a quarter might indicate there could be a polyp, fibroid, endometriosis or adenomyosis.<\/p>\n Period consistency naturally changes over the course of each cycle, so how do you differentiate slimy blood and a clot? Puckett says clot is \u201canything that is not of a loose consistency that would just absorb straight onto a pad or tampon.\u201d<\/p>\n She recommends using pads over tampons to keep an eye on the size. When a tampon gets changed out, it\u2019s hard to tell how big any clot might be.<\/p>\n Dark, slimy blood for the duration of the period<\/p>\n Color, consistency, and smell naturally change over the course of a period.<\/p>\n First, expect dark brown or black, slimy blood with a milder smell. Then, it\u2019ll transition into a bright red with a more metallic smell, and stay a consistent color for two to three days, Puckett says, before it tapers off.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also normal for people to get a light pink to the brown again or brown to the light pink.<\/p>\n But that dark blood is oxidized, old blood, she explains, so it only should appear at the beginning or end. \u201cWe don\u2019t really want it through the entire time,\u201d she said, which would indicate the woman isn\u2019t having a regular cycle each month.<\/p>\n Heavy bleeding can cause severe pain. ty \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n \u201cThey might not be ovulating, they might be holding on to too much period. And you\u2019re only letting out a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n