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Pad with blood on it

Vaginal bleeding or fluid leaking AFTER pregnancy

  • You have heavy bleeding – soaking through one or more pads in an hour
  • You pass clots bigger than an egg or you pass tissue
  • You have vaginal discharge that smells bad
     
More Information

Vaginal bleeding, fluid leaking, or spotting after pregnancy may be a warning sign of other problems, such as:

  • Hemorrhage – too much bleeding
  • Retained placenta – when all of part of your placenta remains in your uterus after birth
  • An infection
  • An unhealed vaginal repair site

Some vaginal leaking is normal after pregnancy. It’s normal to have bleeding and cramping while your uterus heals and returns to its pre-pregnancy size in the 6 weeks after birth.

Bleeding should slow and stop over time:

  • The first day after you give birth, bleeding may be more than or the same as your period
  • In the first 1-2 days, you may pass a few small clots (no bigger than an egg), especially after you stand up
  • In the first 2-3 days, bleeding should be the as a period or heavy period, with cramping that feels like a period
  • Over the next 5-6 weeks, bleeding should be less every day and will turn into browning, pinkish, then whitish discharge.

6 weeks after giving birth, your uterus has usually healed and returned to its normal size.