First AF since loss - need to know

KristinDMiller · April 2014

Hi ladies,

TGIF I must say! I hope you are all well and having a good day.

Since losing my daughter Claire at 21 weeks gestation due to chorioamnionitis, I am having my first AF (period). It started last Thursday and is still going strong like Niagra Falls. Is this normal? Has anyone else had the same thing happen after a loss? My normal AF is 5 days or so. I am on day 8 with no end in sight. Now, I have no idea where I should start to track my BD (baby dance) days. Grrrrrr. Do ovulation prediction kits work? Would anyone suggest trying them? Or is it pointless? I bled for 3 weeks straight after having Claire, so I am not understanding how I could be having such a heavy period now.

Thanks for reading.

buggirl72 · April 2014

With my 20 week loss, my first AF was substantially the same length as before. I know cycles after a loss can be quite wonky and this may be a new normal for you. Is it heavy bleeding that is filling a pad or tampon in an hour or less, or are you passing large clots? If so, then you should check with your doctor. It is very common for parts of the placenta to be retained after an early delivery.

As far as tracking sex, I track it throughout the month regardless of whether it is in the FW or not. OPKs also are good. Just make sure you follow the directions as some require FMU but most do not want you to use morning urine.

KristinDMiller · April 2014

It's just heavy bleeding, no clots. I'm not filling a pad in an hour, it's just heavy bleeding like it is on day two of my normal period. The heavy bleeding has lasted 4 days now. I think my body may just be kicking back into gear. I do have an appt. with my new OB next Friday. He is my doctor now that I am high risk.

I've been using fertility friend as an app on my phone. I've heard it's helpful for tracking those good BD days. I put in the start date of my period last week and it told me my BD days but now I am wondering if they are accurate days since my period seems never ending.

PinkCamino · April 2014

buggirl72 said:

With my 20 week loss, my first AF was substantially the same length as before. I know cycles after a loss can be quite wonky and this may be a new normal for you. Is it heavy bleeding that is filling a pad or tampon in an hour or less, or are you passing large clots? If so, then you should check with your doctor. It is very common for parts of the placenta to be retained after an early delivery.

As far as tracking sex, I track it throughout the month regardless of whether it is in the FW or not. OPKs also are good. Just make sure you follow the directions as some require FMU but most do not want you to use morning urine.

This.

I bled for about a week after my girls were born. 3 weeks later I started bleeding profusely and ended up in the ER because it was clearly not a normal period. There were retained products that needed to be removed.

If the bleeding doesn't slow down please give your doctor a call. Also, how long did your doctor tell you to wait before TTC again?

smcniff · April 2014

I bled for 35 days this cycle (2nd after my loss). There is no "normal" after a loss. My doctors recommendation was that if you don't know where you are in a cycle have sex at least every 72 hours. OPKs are very helpful to many of the women here, but some people never see a positive or have false positives.

ikrystal · April 2014

That was what happened to me. It was pretty bad, but my doctors just said it was my body trying to get back to normal. They said the first few periods I had wouldn't be like what I was used to. I wouldn't sweat it, but call your OB if you are worried. A nurse will at least call you back and talk to you about it.

bunnybun4 · April 2014

I've had three losses and all three were completely different when it came to my first AF...I've had everything from a normal AF to bleeding so much it filled up a pad in an hour. I would put in a call to your OB just in case.

Bigboneded · April 2014

Good lyck, cycles can be out of whack for a while. FF is an estimate, and tells you after the fact... but can show you a pattern.

kflynn81 · April 2014

After my loss at 20w1d, I bled nonstop (eventually slowed to a spotting but never fully stopped) for 7 weeks. I had a break from it for less than a week when spotting came back...since I don't normally get period, well nearly never, I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. My doctor called it a period though, and then strangely enough I got another one a few weeks ago. Losses make your body do strange things, you never really know for sure at first. As pps said though, if its super heavy like that definitely get that checked out.

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First AF since loss - need to know

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