It's normal for women to experience post-pregnancy bleeding.
All women lose some blood during and after delivery. This postpartum symptom is called lochia.
It usually starts with a heavy flow of blood and mucus after delivery and then continues for up to ten days. Light bleeding and spotting after pregnancy can continue until four to six weeks after delivery.
The bleeding will change colour and become lighter as the uterus heals and returns to its pre-pregnancy size i.e. from heavy and bright red to pink then brown, and eventually to yellow-white.
Should I be scared?
No you shouldn’t. Because the amount of blood in your body rises by about 50 percent during pregnancy, your body is well prepared to cope with this normal blood loss.
What causes post-pregnancy bleeding?
Regardless of whether you had a C-section or vaginal delivery, your body needs to rid itself of all the extra blood and tissue it needed to nourish your baby during pregnancy.
The blood may come out in gushes, or flow more evenly, similar to a heavy period.
What can I do?
All you need to do is to wear maternity pads or sanitary towels. For the first day or two, you will most probably need to wear a hospital-grade pad. As the bleeding slows, you should be able to wear a normal sanitary towel.
It is advised that you change your maternity pad or sanitory towel every hour or two to start initially, then every three or four hours in the following days and weeks.
Ensure you wash your hands before and after changing your sanitory towel.
If you have a wound between your vagina and back passage (perineum), you will need to keep this part of your body clean to prevent infection there.
Take regular showers, at least once a day, and change your maternity pad regularly.
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