Is It Normal to Have a Period for 8 Days?

Is it normal to have a period for 8 days? That is longer than average. What is average? Most women have periods that last five to seven days. Then eight days is on the outside edge. A longer period may occur if your body hasn't cleansed itself for a while. Or it may last a while if you are having a miscarriage. I'm having my period, not a miscarriage. If you have unusually high uterine tissue buildup, you'll have a longer period. What would cause that? A hormone imbalance. I thought PMS was by definition a hormone imbalance. Did you change birth control methods lately? Why do you ask? If you are getting back in the cycle of things after quitting the birth control shot, your body may have a longer, heavier period the first time around. Or your period is heavy because you got an IUD. Neither of those things happened. If you have an STD, your period might be heavier because it is fighting the disease. I read somewhere that women have periods to periodically cleanse themselves to fight STDs. It might be an evolutionary tactic, but it isn't a cure-all, or else you wouldn't have several million women getting STDs every year. If that's the case, I need to see a doctor. Even if that isn't the case, you'll want to see the doctor. A long period has a physical cost. Yeah, because tampons are expensive. No, in lost iron and trace minerals. I'll get some multi-vitamins before calling the OBGYN. And if this is a regular inconvenience, you may just want to switch to birth control pills. I’m already using contraception. Yeah, but using birth control pills chemically forces your body to not have one longer than a week.