6 days post birth bleeding

[Dreamhex]

Hey!
I gave birth to our gorgeous little baby boy Thursday at 5:30pm so he is 6 days old today!

can I just ask a personal question and ask what your bleeding is like/was like at this point? I had 2 50p size clots on Saturday which the midwife said was normal after that I’ve only had tiny ‘fruit pop’ size clots every now and again. The flow seems to have slowed in generally and the colour is now lighter red rather than dark red straight after. Still wearing maternity pads but don’t have to change often (I do for hygiene reasons though! ). Every where I’m seeing seems to say I shouldn’t be losing red blood still though?

I get a rush of blood when I stand up from breast feeding or stand up in general from sitting around too long but don’t seem to lose much when I’m sitting/lying down etc.

im not sure why but it’s really affecting my mental health at the moment I hate to feel blood coming out and seeing blood every time I wipe etc I know it’s normal but it’s leaving me with pretty bad toilet anxiety ☹️ i normally have super light periods (I’m talking 2 days total of bleeding and day 1 being pretty moderate and not heavy) so this seems like a alot to me although I’m sure it’s not!

[abeeabeeisafterme]

Congratulations on your lovely baby.

Bleeding erratically and irregularly after birth is normal. It can last weeks, and is nothing like your usual period.

I've had four babies and each time bled for up to 3/4 weeks, using progressively lighter pads. Initially I needed massive doubles. And bleeding is triggered by breastfeeding- but that is normal and a good hormonal response of the body. So it sounds like your body is working perfectly well and all- whilst uncomfortable and not pleasant is healthy.

Please ask other mums, as it would be such a shame for this to cause you any unnecessary anxiety.

[Sailawaygirl]

Congratulations!!
I know exactly what you mean with post partum bleeding. Especially if you have light periods normally.
Mine seemed to be just as you described, not many big clots after day 2 but then a bit stop and start, especially after b feeding or standing/ walking. I can't remember time scales but I know I went to normal period maxi pads by 2 weeks. And used pads for over a month just in case although most bleeding had stopped.

Hope that helps and congratulations again

[Sprogonthetyne]

It does sound normal to me, but I don't mean that in any way to minimise how unpleasant it is for you. Yet another crap experience for women that no one ever talks about. Are you still taking the pregnancy vitamins? The iron in them should help.

Congratulations on your baby!

[LolaJ87]

It sounds totally normal. Mine varied from red to brown to red for about 6 weeks. There was always a gush after a breastfeed, breastfeeding encourages your uterus to contract back down which means more blood is expelled. I went through so many of those big maternity pads for about 2 weeks, then normal pads after that. I never use pads for periods and I hated the feeling too, like I was never clean. Sorry you're struggling with it, hope it passes fast for you and congrats on your baby boy ❤

[Dreamhex]

Thank you all so much for your super quick responses and your congratulations ❤️ They have made me feel so much better! I’m trying not to worry about stupid stuff but I guess this is all part of being a mommy now 🥰

I’m loving being a mom but I do wish people would take about the not so great parts more ! Just feel a little gross at the moment with bleeding, leaky boobs and my new body but I’m sure these are all normal feelings!

[artfuldodgerjack]

I bled for about two months! Didn't know about that before I got pregnant!
And yes, kept going bright red too, which was scary. Didn't know when my first period was either as there was no let up in the bleeding.

[Sailawaygirl]

Totally normal! And I found this weird thing that as soon as you are a mum friends and even strangers will now start to talk to you about all the bad bits and I suddenly felt included in the I've had a baby club!

Also be kind on yourself, your hormones are all over the place. I cried everyday for at least a month! Leaky boobs get better once supply evens out but I found it really hard to manage.

My mantra was ' it will change / its not forever ' and that helped me through the first months.
My baby is 5 months now and is the most cutest smiling thing ever! I could not have imaged it when he was first born.

Your body has just done something amazing! Give her a bit of time and she will recover x

[Seeline]

If you're not doing much atthe moment it sounds quite normal (and don't take htat the wrong way - you shouldn't be doing much!), but you may find when you're up and about a bit more, the bleeding becomes heavier again.
I bled for 8 weeks with both mine, so it sounds perfectly normal to me.

[MrsTeepee]

It's so normal, I noticed if I overdid it with chores my bleeding was starting up or getting heavier again, so it was a good reminder for me to enjoy the newborn cuddles!

I remember feeling SO annoyed no one had told me just how horrid the fourth trimester can be, but then since meeting mums to be I've also not had the heart to tell them the gory details as it could ruin their pregnancy and they may not have quite the same experience anyway. It took me about a year to get to that point, maybe because that's how long it took for me to come to terms with it myself. Instead I now just remind people to plan and accept help from those around them, and expect to take some time to let their body heal whatever their delivery was like.

[TheOneWithUnagi]

Breastfeeding releases oxytocin which helps the uterus contract which causes bleeding, also you will have random uterus contractions which cause bleeding until it's shrunk completely down to normal size. It seemed like the bleeding was slowing at points then suddenly it restarts again.
Obviously if you're unsure about anything ask your midwife, they won't mind :) congratulations!