Bleeding during pregnancy

[faerymagick34]

Hello,

I was wondering if a lot of you had any bleeding during pregnancy and what did you specifically do about it? I just started bleeding again I am 9 weeks and 1 day along. I bled last week for a short time, and then it went away. I am now bleeding again, and it is actually coming out. Not like last time where every time I peed it would come out. I just stained my underwear.

As you guys know I am not seeing a doctor, and never had a miscarriage. I also bled during my last two pregnancies, one was brown blood and the other was bright red, and I carried both girls to term. 

I am also not cramping or having severe pain, if I do develop it I may contact my husband and possibly an ambulance. The only thing I can think of is my husband and I had sex two days ago.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

[faerymagick34]

I wanted to update, and say I am still bleeding, it is constant now, and it feels like I am having a period. The cramping comes and goes, and it hasn't been painful. Yesterday, I bled, then stopped, did some activity, bled again, then it stopped, and since last night it hasn't stopped, but it hasn't gotten worse. I am wearing pantyliners now, so i don't ruin my underwear. I guess it is a wait and see.

[sara-on-the-lake]

Just wanted to send hugs.  I never bleed when I'm pregnant, so I have no experience to relate to you.  If it were me, I'd see my OB to find out what's going on.  Blood during pregnancy would freak me out, I would worry about threatened miscarriage, and I'd want to be taking progesterone or something if that's what it was and there was anything I could do to prevent it.  That's just me, though.

Good luck and praying you and baby are well, and this is just something your body does, since you say it's happened in previous pregnancies. 

[junebugmidwife]

If  you are Rh negative, and the bleeding is coming from your uterus (sometimes the cervix can bleed) you should get a dose of RhoGAM to prevent antibody sensitization.  I'd see a midwife or doc to figure out what is causing the bleeding.

[zoebird]

It sounds to me suspiciously like miscarriage, but it may not be. the best bet is to get checked out -- particularly if it feels "like a period" and you think it may not be a miscarriage. It may be something else, but off the top of my head, I can't think of anything.

I hope that you and your baby are ok, and that it's just a rather severe form of spotting. If you are in the process of loss, then I also send hugs and prayers in regards to that too. 

let us know what you learn.

[elevena true]

hi mama-

    i wanted to say, that in my experience (five pregnancies, three full term, healthy babies, one on it's way in the next few weeks, and one miscarriage) the bleeding that you are describing is what i had when i faced my miscarriage. i did have slight bleeding in two of my other pregnancies, but they never got as intense or felt like an actual period. it was more like a very light period, at the most.

    my miscarriage started just like yours, with brown blood that got redder. the red is a color of concern, as it shows new bleeding. the blood also trickled for a few days before turning into the full on period like blood, and though it took a few days, i did start cramping and bleeding uncontrollably, and miscarried fully at home. something that i did not expect was that my miscarriage was much like a labor- fast, crampy, and i was out of control of it. i hope you are not experiencing this- but this is also to let you know what you might be in for, as it surprised me. if you were to follow through with a miscarriage at home, you also want to be sure to keep track of your bleeding. i think you want no more then one full pad in an hour? please don't quote me. look it up. i had a wonderful midwife that i called who helped to talk me and my partner at the time through it.

    i hope all is well for you! my thoughts are with you, as i know if this is what you are experiencing, it is quite hard and emotional. be easy on yourself.

[faerymagick34]

Hi,

I just wanted to update you guys, I have stopped bleeding by Sunday my bleeding had stopped to spotting and yesterday nothing. So that is good, I just have to be careful, I am getting Braxton hicks early again. I get early Braxton Hicks with each pregnancy. Mine usually start in the second trimester and last until I deliver. I was told by my doctor the last three times that my body really likes to contract a lot. I am just glad the bleeding stopped, I realized i was okay when it wa just medium flow and it wasn't getting worse but slowly going away. My husband and I do think it is because w had sex, so we haven't had sex in awhile, as he is afraid of making me bleed again. So it's all good news! Thanks for the replies!

[amberskyfire]

I just wanted to say that I had 3 miscarriages before going on to have a successful UC and I did bleed early on with the successful pregnancy. I had one day where a squirt of blood (about as much as would fit in a cherry tomato) come out. This was at about 10 weeks. At around 12 weeks, I had half an hour of very severe and painful contractions with a tiny amount of blood. It stopped and everything was fine. No one knows what could have caused it, but bleeding early on doesn't always mean miscarriage.

I had a friend who had scar tissue on her cervix which would bleed severely sometimes during her pregnancy. Hers was from having cysts removed by freezing when she was younger. The bleeding was severe enough that she had to go to the hospital. Having sex can aggravate it because the prostaglandin in semen softens your cervix and touching it can cause it to bleed during pregnancy. Have you had anything that could have caused scarring to your cervix? It may be something to get checked just in case if you think that could be it. My poor friend ended up having to have a section because her scarring prevented her cervix from dilating large enough. It's very rare, but so is bleeding red blood while pregnant.

Good luck and I hope it's nothing!

[bluemadmommy]

I had severe bleeding during the first trimester of two of my five pregnancies.  In both cases I rushed to the ER, and was told to prepare myself for the miscarriage they were sure I was having, and in both cases the baby was fine.  Bleeding stopped by the second trimester, and baby came at full term, healthy as you please.   The last time this happened, I bled so much that I had to stay off my feet for most of the first trimester, so I was online a lot, and ended up joining a support group of women who were all bleeders in pregnancy.  I'd say about 80% of us went on to birth the baby.  From my research, bleeding that is not a miscarriage is often a sign of an estrogen/progesterone imbalance.  Too much estrogen, and too little progesterone.  I found that using some wild yam cream (Jason brand is my favorite) before bed every night, not only slowed or stopped bleeding, but also alleviated morning sickness and helped me sleep better.  Incidentally, I did have a miscarriage once, but during that pregnancy, I never bled, so maybe my body is just strange.  Good luck!

[amberskyfire]

I also used wild yam cream in early pregnancy (don't use after 13 weeks) for my bleeding.
 

Originally Posted by bluemadmommy 

I had severe bleeding during the first trimester of two of my five pregnancies.  In both cases I rushed to the ER, and was told to prepare myself for the miscarriage they were sure I was having, and in both cases the baby was fine.  Bleeding stopped by the second trimester, and baby came at full term, healthy as you please.   The last time this happened, I bled so much that I had to stay off my feet for most of the first trimester, so I was online a lot, and ended up joining a support group of women who were all bleeders in pregnancy.  I'd say about 80% of us went on to birth the baby.  From my research, bleeding that is not a miscarriage is often a sign of an estrogen/progesterone imbalance.  Too much estrogen, and too little progesterone.  I found that using some wild yam cream (Jason brand is my favorite) before bed every night, not only slowed or stopped bleeding, but also alleviated morning sickness and helped me sleep better.  Incidentally, I did have a miscarriage once, but during that pregnancy, I never bled, so maybe my body is just strange.  Good luck!

[contactmaya]

(((hugs))) Im so glad to hear your update.  Will you find out what the cause of the bleeding was?

Bleeding can come from your cervix which isnt a big deal, just scary. You may  have what they call a 'friable cervix', which is extra sensitive and bleeds easily if touched. You might bleed if you have sex,  are straining with a bowel motion, or  having a pap smear. I bled the other day when the doctor inserted a way too large speculum inside me. If you have a yeast infection, a polyp, you may be more inclined to bleed. And to make it all the more fun, the condition of 'friable cervix' is exacerbated in pregnancy , as are polyps, yeast infections, because of increased estrogen. Also, your cervix might turn somewhat inside out (not sure how to describe it) when pregnant, that can cause bleeding to touch.

How do i know this? I had spotting twice, and both times was rushed to the emergency room. The first time, i saw  my little one on the ultrasound as healthy as can be. I am rh negative so got my shot. Probably wasnt necessary. The 2nd time, i didnt bother with the ultrasound, as i am opposed to too many ultrasounds.  I had to wait forever and  got sick of it. What were they going to do if i was having a miscarriage? Nothing at all. What if everything was ok? Same thing. Spotting stopped presently. 

I wish there was a simple test to show if blood comes from the cervix or the uterus, that didnt involve sticking things up your vag, that is already  inclined to bleed in the first place.

Ive never had a miscarriage either,  and  never spotted in my prior 2 pregnancies. But apparently, this condition of the cervix, can  be brought on by  giving birth itself. 

I dont panic when i see spotting now

[contactmaya]

ps. ....forgot to mention, that in the earlier weeks of this pregnancy, i used wild yam cream too-'pro gest'. It definitely helped, but there was a point where it didnt seem necessary. I havent used to for weeks now.(am now 12 weeks) Apparently the placenta *starts* to take over progesterone production around 8ish weeks, before that it is the ovaries that pump it out.

[bluemadmommy]

The switch from ovaries to placenta producing the progesterone actually occurs sometime between the 8th and 12th week, which also coincides with when most miscarriages occur, and it has been theorized that women who have repeated miscarriages during that four week period, a very probable cause might be a snafu in the transfer of responsibilities of progesterone production.  That's why I typically use the progesterone cream from the time I find out I'm pregnant, until about the 12th week.  It also greatly lessens the severity of my morning sickness, which incidentally is often caused by an overabundance of estrogen.  I have PCOS, so it makes perfect sense to me that I would need to give my body a little assistance in hormone balancing.