Lochia - what's "normal"?

[CryPixie83]

What is consiered "normal" for lochia flow?

I'm at 11 days pp and flow is still bright red, with clots and about like a medium menstrual flow. I read somewhere (I think it was babycenter, so I have my doubts concerning it's accuracy) that red flow should stop at about day 4 pp, which seems a bit early to me, so I wanted to get input from experienced and educated mamas

[GatorNNP]

There is a wide range of normal. The key is it should gradually decrease and start turning darker and then to a pinky/brown etc. Are you fairly active right now? Too much physical activity can make it too heavy or last longer. Sometimes a tiny piece of placenta or small uterine clot can prevent the uterus from really clamping down well and allow a little more bleeding than you want. I wouldn't want it to keep staying bright red/bloody. red and mucousy is one thing,but continued fresh bleeding is not what you want to see. Also, how big are the clots? grape size, plum size? as long as they are small they are likely to just be from a little bit pooling in the vagina. If the color doesn't change to either darker or lighter due to mucous then call your care provider.

[Village Mama]

Normal?!

Hey mama ! Im no expert but with both of my guys it lasted quite a lot longer than the books or my regular g.p. said it would. I remember worrying TOO. this last birth 9 month ago the midwife wasnt worried at all when my bleeding was still quite heavy at 2 weeks postpartum. I think that the body has to work hard to expell anything left in that womb of yours. As long as there arent warning signs such as fever, foul dor etc. signalling infection, or profuse bleeding, soaking through a pad in less than an hour, I think that bodies are all different in there recovery time. If you are worried though Give your doctor a call! You wouldn't want worry to cause even less sleep than you may be having already!congratulations by the way

[charmama]

Congratulations on your new babe!
My first baby was born sixth months ago. For me, pp bleeding lasted 6-1/2 weeks. It was not real heavy after the first few days, although I did have some good sized clots up through a few weeks. The color sort of went back and forth a few times-- it would fade to a pinky color, I'd think it was ending, and then I'd have a bit of bright red again. The red concerned me, but it must not have been a problem, just normal for me. I was in touch with my midwife who told me to watch for the same things that Village Mama and GatorNNP mentioned. I hope your feeling well.

[oceanbaby]

I bled after my first birth for a good 4-6 weeks -heavy and bright red with some clots.

I am 12 days postpartum with my 2nd, and I am bleeding still, but what I would consider a light period. And like someone else mentioned, the bleeding will increase if you are up and about too much. Mine increases if I sit for too long.

It sounds to me like you are well within the range of normal.

[TwinMom]

I bled for 12 weeks after my twins and 6 weeks after the singleton. IIRC, there was red blood for at least the first couple of weeks then it became pink or more like streaky mucus. Actually, I think with the twins it would almost stop for a few days and then start up again with red blood and clots. I'm sure there are many variations of "normal" for this, just like there is for menstruation.

[stafl]

I bled pretty heavily for, I think, six weeks after my first. Doc said that unless I was overflowing a super maxi pad in less than an hour, that it was nothing to worry about.
After my second DD, I bled for a day or two before my lochia turned yellow/clear.