Hefsek Taharah — When to Do It, How to Do It, and With Which Cloth

Here is the hefsek taharah end to end: when exactly it's done, how it's done, and which cloth to use.

Part one: the timing of the hefsek taharah

Once at least five days (or four for some Sephardim) have passed since the onset of bleeding, a woman may perform a hefsek taharah to confirm that all the bleeding has stopped.

At what time of day is the hefsek performed?

A hefsek taharah may be performed from minchah ketanah, roughly two hours before sunset.

The most mehudar time to perform a hefsek taharah is half an hour before sunset. That is not necessarily advisable: a woman may forget, be delayed, need more than one attempt, and so on.

A hefsek taharah must be performed before sunset. If a woman mistakenly performed one a few minutes after sunset, some poskim (mainly Sephardi) would count it as valid. So a woman who finds herself in that position by accident should ask, rather than assume automatically that her attempt was invalid.

Important: a woman should not rely on this in advance and take the timing lightly. The opposite: she should make the extra effort to do it on time — set an alarm, leave herself a note somewhere she will see it, and so on.

A morning backup hefsek

If a hefsek taharah is performed before minchah ketanah, even in the morning, it is usually still acceptable. So a woman who did that should ask her rav whether it is fine.

Women who are very busy or forgetful are advised to perform a backup hefsek taharah in the morning. If they forget to perform one at the right time in the afternoon, they can usually rely on the morning backup.

Why it is worth not delaying

Since there is a mitzvah for a woman to get to the mikveh as soon as possible, there is also a mitzvah to perform the hefsek taharah on the first possible day. Mitigating circumstances will be discussed when we study immersion.

Part two: how is a hefsek taharah performed?

Before performing a hefsek, a woman should shower, or at least wash herself from the waist down. This can also be done in the morning of the day she plans to perform the hefsek. Where that is impossible, she can clean herself with wet wipes or the like. All of this is to make sure that old blood does not interfere with the hefsek. Some women find that sitting in a warm bath helps particularly.

Wait about ten minutes

After washing, she should wait about ten minutes. (Views on the precise minimum differ.) This serves two purposes:

• To avoid irritation — performing a hefsek immediately after washing risks scratching herself.
• To make sure the hefsek reflects her situation accurately. Performing a hefsek immediately after washing may yield a clean result when the body is in fact still releasing blood, having simply caught a moment when it was free of it.

Put that time to use

While waiting, a woman can examine the cloth she intends to use for the hefsek, since cloths sometimes carry red or black threads, or specks of lint. Threads and lint do not invalidate a hefsek taharah, but a woman who found a black or red speck will need to bring it to a rav to be examined.

Performing the hefsek

After waiting, the woman should try to relax, which makes for a more comfortable hefsek. She wraps a cloth around her finger and inserts it, trying to insert the finger as deeply as she can. If she cannot, she should turn to a posek.

It is essential that she rotate the finger and reach all the sides and crevices. If she experiences pain in performing the hefsek, she should turn to a posek; there are several ways to reduce the pain.

Checking the color

After removing the cloth, she should examine it in good light:

• White, clear, pale yellow, green or blue — fine.
• Red or black — not fine.
• Any other color — needs to be shown to a rav (see the article on the colors of a bedikah).
• Some hold that light brown with no tendency toward red is always acceptable.
• Some have the practice of keeping the hefsek (even a clean one) until morning, to examine it again in daylight.

If the hefsek was not clean

She may try again, waiting at least ten minutes before the next attempt. She is not obligated to try again. If she is concerned that another attempt will scratch her, or she is confident another attempt will make no difference, she doesn't have to.

I have written this section in modest language, and on the assumption that most readers have at some point been taught how to perform a hefsek. Anyone who feels she needs a precise description is welcome to message me on WhatsApp.

Part three: which cloth is used for a hefsek?

In practice the easiest course is to buy bedikah cloths, which are sold at mikvaot and, in Israel, at some pharmacies and supermarkets.

If a woman finds herself without bedikah cloths

• She can cut squares from a white cotton t-shirt. Another option is to use the t-shirt without cutting it, and launder it afterwards.
• If there is no alternative, she can use strong toilet paper for a hefsek and afterwards ask her rav whether it was acceptable.
• Some poskim permit a hefsek with colored cloth. Again, only where there is no alternative, and a question must be asked afterwards.

Good advice — always keep some on hand

A good idea: keep a pack of bedikah cloths in your bag, so that if you are out you can perform a hefsek and never reach these situations. Some also recommend keeping a pack of cloths that have already been checked in advance, in case you are in a hurry and have no time to check the cloth.

Some women find one brand of bedikah cloth more comfortable than another.

Cotton wool — not recommended

Some women use pure cotton wool for a hefsek. This is not recommended: it is highly absorbent, and a drop of blood may be absorbed into it without appearing on the surface. A woman who wants to use cotton wool should ask.

A tampon — no

A tampon cannot be used for a hefsek taharah.

There is a newer product on the Israeli market called Edit, essentially a bedikah cloth attached to an applicator. It is not recommended for general use. But if a woman has a specific reason to want to use it, she should ask.