Bloody Heck

Before we go any further let me warn you that this post contains too much information. Whatever happens, I'm not liable if you throw up.

I've been having really heavy blood flow for 3 days now. And I mean really. Too much information, I tell you.

As a nurse I'm familiar with what goes on after a woman gives birth but after 3 weeks of bleeding red after my c-section I started to wonder if something might be wrong. I really didn't pay any attention to it until the other day because I realized I used up 7 maternity napkins in 2 days.

That makes 4 weeks of bleeding, and that's a lot of blood.

So I texted my mom last night and told her I've been bleeding since February 6th and the past couple of days have been extremely heavy. Today is March 12th which means I've been bleeding for more than a month. She told me I should go back to my OB and find out what's going on.

I followed her advice and this morning I paid my doc a visit. The moment I stepped into the clinic I happened to see her outside her office and immediately there's a look of shock and surprise on her face. Which is understandable. My appointments have ended 2 weeks ago and there should be no reason for me to come back post-op. But I was there, so she might have been thinking I could be pregnant again or there could be a problem. (Pregnant again? As if.)

My OB was a little skeptical about the news but why would I lie about something that could be very serious? Worst case scenario is she would operate on me again to cauterize a bleeding blood vessel or something. There was a hint of worry on her face though. She asked me a lot of questions and I was patient to answer each one truthfully. I told her I've been bleeding red nonstop since I gave birth but this week I've noticed that there's an increased amount. Sometimes it stops but then it comes back. And then I told her that a few days ago I soaked 7 big napkins in 2 nights. With clots.

She looked a bit alarmed, but she was determined to get to the bottom of it. She and the ultrasound technician scanned my uterus and ovaries and found out that everything appears to be normal. "The endometrium looks alright," she said. And then after a bit of deliberation, they came up with a conclusion that didn't even cross my mind.

It seems that my period has come back.

Yep, the M word. I'm back on the red cycle. I'm still a little skeptical though why I never really stopped bleeding, but I guess it makes sense that the bleeding did fade a bit for the last 2 weeks and then came back bright red this week. So was the faded red blood lochia serosa after all? And did my period came back and overlap the lochia alba phase? Sounds pretty unusual, but I guess it's plausible.

My OB prescribed iron tablets and contraceptive pills then sent me home.

Glad that's over. At least I found some answers and peace of mind. My only worry is that if I still continue to bleed for a couple of more weeks, this could be more serious than we all thought.