Bleeding after depo injection

Dear Ask The Doctor: I have been on the depo injection for nearly 5 years. I was late for my last injection by 5 or 6 weeks. In between i had unprotected sex with my partner. When i went to the doctors for my injection i was meant to have a pregnancy test but because i had started my period that day the nurse said it would be OK. My period lasted for 5 days. This was over a week ago. Today i have started bleeding again quite heavily just wanted to check this was ok and nothing to be worried about?

Dear Jenny: It is most likely that the bleeding is caused due to the depo injection. Depo injection sometimes disrupts the menstrual cycle causing irregular bleeding, spotting or heavy/prolonged bleeding. Usually these are not a concern, however if you continue to experience heavy or prolonged bleeding, you should inform your doctor.