Reducing postpartum bleeding?

[boysmom2]

I'm expecting my 4th in a couple of months.  With my 1st 3 I bleed heavily for several weeks and was still bleeding lightly by the time I went in for my 6 week check up.  I've always had very heavy periods too (need to empty the diva cup every hour for 7-8 days).  I would so love to not have to deal with this this time around.  So, does anyone know of anything I can do?  Either now (I'm 32wks) or after baby is here?  Thanks!

eta: I've never had a postpartum hemorrhage or anything, just really annoying heavy bleeding.  And I have natural births, no complications, and all my babies have been exclusively BF, right from birth.

Edited by boysmom2 - 12/7/11 at 11:51am

[Katie8681]

REST when you are postpartum, even if you feel great! How fast were you back to normal activity with the first three?

[boysmom2]

Yeah, I'm sure that has at least something to do with it.  I've never had anything like a babymoon.  I'm usually doing laundry the day I get home from the hospital and DH doesn't take much time off.  We don't have any family around, so I'm on my own right away.  At least this time we're homeschooling, so I won't be walking anybody to school 3 days postpartum.

I do wonder though if it could be at least partly related to my heavy periods.  And if there's anything I could do that would help with both.  I can't imagine that I need to stay in bed for a week each month when I get my period, yk?

[Katie8681]

>I do wonder though if it could be at least partly related to my heavy periods.  And if there's anything I could do that would help with both.  I can't imagine that I need to stay in bed for a week each month when I get my period, yk?

Have you ever been worked up for clotting disorders? You could ask for that.  I DO know that there is a connection between doing too much, too soon, and heavy postpartum bleeding. I would start by having some serious help at home and for the first two weeks, having two jobs: 1.feeding yourself and 2.feeding the baby. Sleeping when the baby sleeps. I bet you will bleed less and be back to feeling strong sooner than if you hit the ground running, caring for a house, a newborn, and homeschooling 3 kids! 

[Katie8681]

Oh woops, homeschooling 2 kids.

[boysmom2]

I have had quite a work up done regarding clotting issues.  I've had many miscarriages, so I've had a lot of testing, all of which came back normal.  So, I don't think that's it.  

I think I do need to do some better planning this time for after the baby comes.  And try to insist on more help from DH.  It's not that he's a heartless jerk or anything, it's just that I feel badly nagging him to do things and I would rather die than ask for help.   (I know, I know...) I think he sees me doing everything and insisting that I'm fine, so he figures he may as well head back to work and save some of his leave time for later.  

Also, does anybody know if things like RRL tea or other herbs or nutritional things would help? 

[DoubleDouble]

Stinging nettle tea is used for reducing menstrual flow. It is a blood clotting medicine, pretty much. I only drink that tea when I'm bleeding, I don't use it for every day. It works like a charm for me, and was especially helpful if the bleeding days coincided with a lot of physical work (athletics, competitions, etc.) Two-three bags of tea in one mug is pretty good dosage for menstrual bleeding, I don't know what the dosage is for postpartum.

[BroodyWoodsgal]

Boysmom,

We sound alike in more than a couple of ways.....we both have heavy bleeding after births and we both do to much....and it's because we both feel lousy about asking for help.

I've sworn to myself and to everyone in my circle of peeps...that I am NOT doing that again. Not this time, with my raggedy, three baby having body....no sir. I've got my MIL coming, my SIL....I've got friends who've committed to a meal (casserole type stuff that's easy) and my husband is taking a full two weeks after the baby comes.

I'm not messing around. Last time was just too much. Not only was my bleeding worse than it should have been, but I was an emotional wreck in the first few weeks PP. I was angry, sad, felt alone and abandoned....and looking back, I realized that it was because I didn't say "screw all this, I need to go lay down and other people can make this house run!" - I push myself too hard, I don't ask for help, I abuse my body when it needs rest and care and I'm not going to do it anymore.

Just over a week ago, right as I was serving up my thanksgiving feast, to he more than twenty people I had invited to my home....I experienced sudden, gushing blood and had to be rushed to the ER. I had been doing WAAAAYYYY too much heavy lifting, painting, jumping down from ladders...you name it, if it was stupid and physically demanding, I was doing it. That's just my style. I'm over it. I learned my lesson. Thank goodness everything is okay with me and with the baby....and I'm keeping this baby safely inside of me until s/he's ready to come out and after my birth I'm going to sit back, relax and let people take care of me.

We live in the middle of nowhere, far from family and friends....but they love us so much and have been so great about taking care of our family while I've had my feet up, keeping this baby inside me. I've broken down and confessed to how hard things were for me after my last birth and all the people closest to me have rallied and made a plan and this is not going to happen again.

Whatever you can do.....whoever you can talk to....do it, to have a supportive plan in place to take care of you PP. Your DH needs to help...and you need to let him. You need to let anyone who can, come rally around you and let you take time off.

Life with four kids, is what waits for you after your birth. It is going to be great, but it is going to be demanding...it's extremely important that you take a few weeks to let your body mend before you jump into that extremely demanding and physically taxing life.

Take care of yourself mama. If I can do it (ask for help) so can you....I'm the most stubborn, hard headed woman when it comes to reaching out. It's too hard for me to say "i need help, I can't do this alone" - it practically makes me skin crawl just THINKING it - but I'm not super woman and I'm going to really hurt myself if I don't let my body heal. SO that's what has to happen.

[boysmom2]

And that would be the sound of you hitting the nail squarely on the head...  :)  Right before losing consciousness during the miscarriage where I hemorrhaged, I was busy arguing with my dh that IF my mw thought I needed to go to the hospital (we had just paged her), I would drive myself.  So, apparently, I would rather literally die than ask for help.  I have problems.  

But, you have inspired me.  DH and I are going to have some serious discussions.  Thanks!

[BroodyWoodsgal]

Haha, yeah...I get it....let me set the scene for you:

Me: Getting ready for the party. Moving the downstairs furniture upstairs into the loft area....and the loft area furniture downstairs to the living room area. Furniture that needs to be moved to accomplish this: full sized couch, two wing back chairs, two coffee tables, two Asian day chairs and an Asian day bed (plus some shelving, odds and ends, boxes of books, etc).

DH: Coming in the door from work to find...

Me: 13 weeks pregnant. Bent over on the stairs, with the last of the wing back chairs on my back and head, with my hands behind me, gripping the chair to my back as I move it upstairs.

DH: "Are you out of your goddamned mind....where is all the furniture....where is the COUCH...why is all this downstairs....WHO CAME HERE?? DID YOU DO THIS BY YOURSELF! WHY DIDN'T YOU WAIT FOR ME TO GET HOME!!!"

ME: :glazed, wild eyes: :panting with raspy breaths: "Cause I'm tryin' to get shit done around here, that's why"

He's pretty used to it by now....I just completely lose my mind when I make up my mind about something, set a goal in front of myself or have something I need to get done. I become this unrelenting, unstoppable force of "get it done right now" and I completely lose the ability to understand when I'm pushing the limits of what I should ask my body to do.

Even not pregnant, it was stupid for me to be doing the things I did to get ready for this party. This has been on ongoing problem. The thing is....my mind getting stuck on an idea, pushing forward to make my plan happen, does something to my body...and I get this super strength about me. I mean, our couch...is a full sized, Ethan Allen couch from back in the day. It's that old, heavy heavy style of furniture. I can't say how I got it upstairs. I mean, I'm a tall person at almost six feet...but I'm thin and I've been suffering from Chronic Lyme Disease for a while now, which makes me weaker than I used to be a lot of the time. I don't know how I had the physical strength to move it up a set of stairs the way I did...and it was tricky, but I did it. I just got under it and made it happen. My mind gets fixated and my body responds with the (adrenaline?) whatever I need to make it happen.

So, I totally get where you're coming from. I am a planner. I like everything to go off without a hitch. I work best alone, I'm a control freak and I don't like to impose upon people....or wait for my husband to get home! I charge through stuff that I should really not attempt on my own. I mean, what if I had been seriously hurt, alone in the house with a 2 and 3 year old, in the middle of the woods...and started hemorrhaging right there. It was just stupid....and, sadly, completely typical.

My body isn't the same this time. I feel older in my bones, not from time or age, but from what I've asked my body to do in the last three years. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, pregnancy (delivered DS 16 months after DD) and then breastfeeding a hyper demanding kid up until a few weeks ago...and now pregnant again. That takes it's toll. You're in the same boat...this is your fourth, it's not like the first. We could really, really actually hurt ourselves this time. We gotta slow down and take this one easy!!

[MommyBecky]

Arnica (oral) is amazing for PP bleeding.

[boysmom2]

Do you know what the dose would be for arnica?  I've never used it before.

[boysmom2]

And BroodyWoodsGal, holy cow!  I think you win!  I don't think I've attempted anything quite like that. I imagine you'd be one of those moms who would be able to lift a car off their child.  Good skill to have, but yeah, you might want to save for emergencies only.  

[MommyBecky]

I think I took 3x or 30c, 4 pills every 15 min 1st two hrs then every 2 hrs.

[MommyBecky]

http://pipermartin.wordpress.com/2010/03/13/arnica-for-postpartum/

http://www.bastyrcenter.org/content/view/997/

Two links about Arnica for PP