Step by step

What to do when your period starts

What changes during menstruation, what to make up, and what to do when it ends.

1
Stop praying and fasting
When the period starts, salah and fasting are paused. Allah has excused you: this is not a sin and not a weakness of faith.
2
Salah is not made up
The prayers missed during the period are forgiven and are not made up.
3
Fasts are made up
Ramadan fasts missed during the period are made up later, one day for each.
4
Qur'an and the masjid
In the Hanafi school you do not recite the Qur'an or touch the mushaf, and do not enter the masjid. You may read duas, adhkar and salawat, listen to the Qur'an, and keep learning.
5
Know the limits
A period lasts at least 3 days and at most 10 days. Bleeding for less than 3 days, or beyond 10 days, is istihadah (irregular bleeding), not a period: you pray and fast, making wudu for each prayer time.
6
When it ends, take a ghusl
When the bleeding stops, take a ghusl and resume salah. If it stops with enough time left in a prayer's time to make ghusl and begin the prayer, that prayer becomes due.

Questions

Common questions

Can I make dua and dhikr during my period?

Yes. Dua, dhikr, salawat and istighfar are all encouraged. Many women keep their morning and evening adhkar throughout.

What about bleeding after childbirth?

That is nifas, which lasts up to 40 days. The same rulings apply: no salah or fasting, and fasts are made up later.

Can I listen to the Qur'an?

Yes, listening is fine. Teachers who must teach may say the words one at a time; ask a scholar about your situation.

My period started in the middle of a fast.

That fast is broken and is made up later. Do not keep fasting for the rest of the day.

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