Fatwa ID: 08877
Answered by Mufityah Shireen Mangera-Badat
Question:
She had a normal period until about 3 years ago (even with the coil in place for 8+ years). They lasted 9-10 days with 19-20 days purity in between. But then they became irregular. She had the coil removed in January and had 1 regular period, then no period for 3 months. Then she had 12 days of light spotting, 5 days of no bleeding, and then now heavy bleeding again like a regular period.
She is just confused about whether to treat the current bleeding as a period or irregular. It could also be the start of menopause which is causing the irregular bleeding. She doesn’t know for certain.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
According to the Hanafi madhhab, a woman’s habit the legal boundaries of haidh and tuhoor, and the circumstances surrounding irregular or abnormal bleeding all influence the menstrual rules. The monthly menses lasts for a minimum of three days and a maximum of ten days.” Fifteen days is the minimum length of tuhoor.[1]
Bleeding that lasts less than three days is not regarded as haidh. Only the days that correspond to her prior behaviour are counted as haidh for any bleeding that lasts longer than ten days; the remaining days are considered istihadah. There must be 15 full days between two menstrual cycles for a tuhoor (purity) to be considered valid.[2]
She experienced light bleeding for 12 days in a row. It was nine or ten days since her last known habit. Thus, only the first 9–10 days are considered haidh, while the remaining 2–3 days are considered istihadah. After five days without bleeding, she experienced fresh, severe bleeding. This is not a valid tuhoor because 5 days is less than the necessary 15 days of purity. Thus, rather than being a new haidh , the new heavy bleeding is also regarded as istihadah.
According to Hanafi Fiqh, a woman is only legally considered menopausal (yā’isah) after 55 lunar years (53.5 solar years), even though she believes this might be the beginning of menopause.[3]
Even if she is younger, her bleeding may still qualify as haidh if the necessary criteria are met.
To ensure peace of mind, your wife may consider having a blood test to determine whether she is menopausal, which could assist in managing her cycle.
References:
[1] أقله ثلاثة أيام بلياليها الثلاث……
[1] وكذا قوله (وأكثره عشرة) بعشر ليال……رد المختار ١/٤٧٦
[2] (نصاب الطهر) أي خمسة عشر يوماً فأكثر
رد المختار ١/٤٧٥
[3] (وقيل يحد بخمسين سنة وعليه المعول والفتوى في زماننا مجتبى وغيره (تيسيراً) وحده في العدة بخمس وخمسين . قال في الضياء : وعليه الاعتماد (وما رأته بعدها) أي المدة المذكورة فليس بحيض في ظاهر المذهب) إلا إذا كان دماً خالصاً فحيض حتى يبطل به الاعتداد بالأشهر ، لكن قبل تمامها لا بعد حتى لا تفسد الأنكحة، وهو المختار للفتوى جوهرة وغيرها، وسنحققه في العدة .
رد المختار ١/٥٠٤
Only Allah knows best.
Written by Muftiyah Shireen Mangera-Badat
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham