A haredi mother with six children is pregnant again. Her doctor says she's at high risk of losing the baby. He offered her an abortion, which she rejected. And then, there's this – she's in a perpetual state of nida:
This perhaps seems the most trivial - but really just makes all the other issues worse. A side effect of my situtation is constant spotting. First of all this is just a sign that things aren't going right - a constant reminder of my situation and possible implications. Second of all - a big hug would probably do wonders for me right now.. and well that is just not going to happen - at least not in the forseeable future. I was practically begging our rav for some kind of way around this - some halachic loophole.. seems there is nothing to do. So I am doomed to this state for a while - maybe even a year...A WHOLE YEAR?? 9 months and 6 weeks postpartum -is that even possible?
Because I'm not married, I never learned hilchot nida. (The normal policy, at least in the haredi world, is not to teach these laws to unmarried men.) But it seems to me her spotting problem can not fall under a d'orita (Torah) prohibition because, by definition nida blood is menstrual blood and is directly tied to a woman's monthly cycle, and pregnant women do not have monthly cycles. Even if this is classified as a ziva flow, one would think pregnancy removes any fear of actual tuma (ritual impurity). What's going on here?
What I'm asking for here is help – for me to understand why she has been declared a nida by her rabbi, and for her, if possible, to find a way out of this. Readers?
[Hat Tip: Dr. R-F and also seen on DovBear.]
UPDATE – Anonymous writes:
There was a famous case in the 1950's in Israel of a woman who was in a
state of perpetual nida. Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach wrote a brilliant
teshuva article in the old Moriah journal describing a radical solution
but well within the framework of halacha.
But sadly, within days the posters went up in Meah Sha'arim denouncing
him and threatening him.
He withdrew the article.
Halacha rules by threats.
I also communicated with a well known haredi rabbi and rosh yeshiva who told me there is a possible heter if the bleeding is due to injury (which, I think, includes scarring from infection or injury):
There is a concept called "makko motziah dam" which is basically a waver (heter) that allows a (non-period-related) bleeding woman to be examined by a female, competent individual. if it is established that the bleeding is caused by an injury, she can go to the mikvah. Some very respected charedi rabbonim do this and send 'clients' to be checked.
UPDATE 2 – In reading the newer comments on this haredi woman's post, it seems that her rabbi told her there were other halakhic options (heterim) to get around the problem. He just doesn't believe in them, he told her, but he wanted her to know about them. It also seems this woman is uncomfortable relying on any of these heters. In other words, this woman got the incompetent rabbi and the insipid rabbinic advice she deserves.