RRL and PPH

[Faliciagayle]

During both of my pregnancies I made and drank an infusion of RRL and other goodies (nettle, etc) through my 2nd and 3rd trimesters. With both, I had postpartum hemorrhages. This last time, my MW ordered a battery of blood tests (I counted - they took 40 vials of blood) to check for clotting disorders and other possible reasons and all the tests came back normal.

She offered that RRL can cause or exacerbate blood loss PP. Can anyone point me to some research? I don't know if her recommendation (lay off the RRL next time I get pregnant) is based off anecdotal/experiential evidence or real science, since this is counter to everything I've read and came to believe about RRL

Toward the end of both pregnancies the RRL infusion basically became my only drink, all day, everyday. I would make and drink a quart to a half gallon a day and drink it iced.

help is appreciated.

[Tresa]

I thought the opposite was true about RRL, that it strengthened the uterus and helped protect against hemorrhage.

However, reading in some of my herb medicine books, it does say that occasionally herbs can act in a directly opposite way than they're intended.

I was a heavy bleeder pp after both my babies, borderline hemorrhage after my second, so maybe there's something to that. I drink a lot of RRL tea, too, both when pregnant and not.

[dannic]

:subbing
Another PPH lady who drank copious amounts of RRL tea...please let it be so and I'll forgo the tea!

[VillageMom6]

Faliciagayle, I drink as much of the stuff as you do. The pregnancies in which I did not, I had excessive bleeding at birth. The pregnancies in which I did drink lots of RRL tea, I had very little bleeding.

I know that wasn't helpful, but I'm as baffled as you are as to why it might increase your risk of bleeding.

[megviolet]

I don't know, and a quick google isnt' telling me anything... what i DO know for certain is that both RRL and nettle are very high in easily absorb-able iron, so they must both increase hemoglobin and even add to iron stores if you're drinking it a long time.... so it seems like it should decrease the risk of bleeding.
Maybe there's something i don't know about RRL being a blood thinner somehow....?

[gradstudentmommy]

I had a post-birth hemorrhage last time and had not had any RRL. This time I'm drinking RRL with nettle and alfalfa on the advice of my midwife. I figure it can't be any worse than last time!

[MyFillingQuiver]

I'm a heavy bleeder...my menstrual cycles are generally heavier and longer than "normal". I had a late PPH hemorrhage with my 1st child-but there were other factors that likely caused it. I bled very heavily (to where I was concerned but OB's just said it was normal for me) after my 2nd vaginal birth, and my 2 c-sections.

My last pregnancy is where I got very interested in doing anything I could to really encourage a VBA2C, and discourage PPH. I drank RRL/nettle tea through the whole pregnancy, and really increased a lot in the last 2 months. My blood count was 13.5 when I went in to deliver, and the day after delivery was 12.5. My bleeding was no heavier than a period for me, and I bled for about 1/2 the length of time I usually do in the PP period.

This time, I'm doing the same! I'm going to sporadically add in alfalfa and nettle in teh coming weeks, though my finger prick a couple of weeks ago showed a level of 13.0, so my MW doesn't want me to overload!

For me, since I've had 5 births and this is a 6th pregnancy, it seems to be that the RRL/nettle tea most certainly helped me, as all other things (besides intervention in L&D) were equal.

I have also read about herbs having opposite effects on some people given their own make up. I hope you find some answers soon, and feel good about whatever choices you make.