# Started natural m/c...how much blood is too much to lose?



## glowbabe

Sorry if this is TMI, but I just began a natural m/c. I am bleeding extremely heavily and passing huge clots almost every 10 minutes. I am scared about how much blood I'm losing. Does anyone know whats normal? If you've had a natural m/c how long does the heavy bleeding / passing clots last for? Is there a rule for how much blood you lose in an hour (i.e - soaking thru one pad in under an hour?)


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## MrsCrabs

i've been told that your shouldn't be filling a pad in an hour, if you are i recommend heading off to either the hospital or the doctors. 

sending you big :hugs::hugs: hope your ok.


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## MiissMuffet

Sorry for you loss hun. I hope it all clears up soon xx


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## Flick

hi glowbabe,

I think everyone is diferent; if you feel like you need help, go to a+e and ask for help immediately - and definitely see your gp asap no matter if you feel 'ok' xxx

i dont know how far along you were... i was @ 10 weeks, m/c monday night at home, i was on the loo for about 3 hours passing clots and bleeding a *lot*; i wasn't dizzy or in excessive pain and i felt 'ok otherwise' - and i didnt read about the pad-per-hour rule until mid mornig yesterday (tues), after I'd visited my gp, when there were no more clots and pad lasted about 2 to 3 hours. I'm still aching/cramping now with a lessening red bleed but no big clots, if cramps /red continue to friday Im going to the gp again.
edit @19:00, and now passing 'meaty' lumps as thick as my thumb, what i think to be the placenta, cramps are worse but since there is a reason am not panicking yet x

hoping for the best for you xxx


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## tabbicles

I felt the same same, esp as I have never had heavy periods so it was terrifying for me. I found myself practically glued to the toilet all night rather than just relying on a pad and losing so much blood and big lumps of dark coloured tissue. I am sure if I had passed that onto a pad and not in the toilet I would have broken the 1 pad in an hour rule a thousand times over. Make sure you take Iron tablets as I felt very weak after due to the loss and they sort you out very quickly.
I am ok now, 2 weeks later so I guess that it is normal. IF it lasts several days after it has happened then I would be worrying.


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## beachlover1

I was told more than a pad an hour is too much and to go to A&E if that happened. Hope you feel better soon x


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## smhres

I called numerous doctors and spoke to many friends. I was told that if you go through pads like crazy you should see a doctor. If your still losing alot of clots and blood and your running any kind of fever you may be setting up an infection which can be very dangerous. You need to see a doctor. They may have to do a DNC. If your soking through a pad in under an hour I would go as soon as possible. Im so sorry. I know how you feel.


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## Rikki

At the hospital they told me that if you go through a pad in less than 2 hours you are losing too much and at risk of haemorrhage.


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## lizzieredrup

I think you should maybe go and get it checked out, if only for peace of mind. As if going through this is not heartbreaking enough, you have to worry about all this too :( I know for me I didn't bleed alot at all, but I never have heavy periods either...do you usually have heavy periods? As I have heard people who do tend to bleed more during a miscarriage.

Really hope it sorts itself out soon..Take Care x :hugs:


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## bklove

I think everyone pretty much covered it, just wondering how you are doing? :hug:


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## sophster

I think it depends on you. I know I was not haemorraging (and this happened only today) because the blood was only coming out during the cramps; in between it would stop. I felt faint during the process but I realised that was because the feeling of the clots and placenta coming out (and my placenta had not broken up so was quite large) was quite horrible, as soon as that particular clot passed I felt fine again. The heavy bleeding only lasted about an hour total because everything came out extremely quickly. I was 15 weeks pregnant when they found out the baby had passed away at 9 weeks; but I think the development of the placenta and womb lining was more like 15 weeks so the blood loss was naturally more heavy. If you go the natural route or the 'medical management' route (tablets and pessaries) then you will pass a lot more blood than to soak one pad an hour; but it isn't for very long at all. You know your body and how much blood is too much for you; especially if you have ever previously had children. I lost so much blood during my first labour it was like a horror film and though they thought I initially needed a transfusion and then realised I didn't, they still tried to push iron tablets onto me, I insisted on a blood test and my iron levels were absolutely fine. Second labour I did bleed pretty badly and they had to give me five of those injections they give in your thigh (yes five) because the placental site was so massive; as soon as they stopped the bleeding though I was completely back to normal. Also clots can make the blood seem a lot more in volume than it actually is. I know as well when I was younger I did have such heavy periods that occasionally I'd soak a pad in 10 minutes; but after that things would settle down. I have never been anaemic. If you're anaemic already or have any other type of condition where heavy bleeding would be lethal, then of course the one pad an hour rule is an absolute, otherwise trust your instincts.


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## sophster

And this is what the ob-gyn said in the EPAU (early pregnancy assessment unit) in the hospital as well; he said if things get too much for you to cope with; then come in but he didn't specify any amount of blood loss or pain as too much; he said you will know what is too much to handle and there is no right or wrong level of what is too much for you....


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## sophster

And glowbabe how are things going?


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## glowbabe

sophster said:


> And glowbabe how are things going?

Hi Sophster, thank you for your messages. I'm sorry for your loss. It really is the worst thing a woman can go through. 

I am doing better. After finding out on Tuesday that my baby no longer had a heartbeat I had booked a d&c for Friday but as soon as I got home I miscarried naturally on Tuesday night. I was losing a lot of blood and I'm anemic so I was feeling incredibly weak. I called telehealth and the nurse told me I should go to emergency. While I was there I started to cramp pretty badly, must have been contractions bc they were way worse than period cramps. After 3 hours of passing huge clots and bad cramping I passed the amniotic sac there at the hospital. As soon as that happened the cramping wasnt as bad and the bleeding lessened. When the doc finally saw me he confirmed everything was out. I could have just stayed home I guess but I was really worried about the amount of blood I was losing and I felt better after having a doctor examine me. 

Today I am still bleeding but starting to feel a bit better. I am trying to be positive and think that the next time I get pregnant I will have a healthy baby. This one just wasn't meant to be for some reason. I will never be able to replace my lost baby and although I never want to relive this experience, it has taught me the real meaning and extent of a mothers love. I never thought I could love something as much as I loved my baby.

Thank you for your message and I hope you are doing well xx


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## js9

i wouldnt worry to much everyone is different.i only lost a few clots then something a bit bigger think it was the placenta.didnt want to look.but still bleeding,when did you miscarry.


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## glowbabe

js9 said:


> i wouldnt worry to much everyone is different.i only lost a few clots then something a bit bigger think it was the placenta.didnt want to look.but still bleeding,when did you miscarry.

unfortunately on tuesday :(


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## js9

glowbabe said:


> js9 said:
> 
> 
> i wouldnt worry to much everyone is different.i only lost a few clots then something a bit bigger think it was the placenta.didnt want to look.but still bleeding,when did you miscarry.
> 
> unfortunately on tuesday :(Click to expand...

mine was wed evening,if your worried get checked out.:flower:


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## sophster

Hi Glowbabe;

I think you did the right thing; if you feel anything is amiss its always better to be safe than sorry. Its amazing how once everything is out (and with me the sac came first; then everything else and it was all pretty much intact so hard to pass); the pain suddenly stops and everything just seems to 'close up shop' and go back to normal. I hope you're recovering well. I am feeling a lot better now; the bleeding has gone down to almost nothing and I am feeling back to normal; though of course its not totally accurate and they are going to test and scan me in two weeks to be safe anyway I did a HPT just to see if it was positive (I did one a few days ago before getting the bad news and it was) and the one I did today was a negative so hopefully everything is going back to normal hormonally as well.

Soph


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## lisica

I was 11 weeks pregnant and this morning I started to spot. It was brownish and light. Half an hour later i passed a long bloody thread while i urinated that looked slimy. The cramps I felt were different from the pregnancy cramps i felt a few times and I was worried. 
I checked into the ER two hours after I saw the first bleeding and after blood tests , an ultrasound and urine test were done, I was told that no heartbeat could be detected. I was told that the pregnancy is still visible but it looked more like I was 5 weeks pregnant. The fetus was 0.25cm small and my blood HCG levels were 5,900 which correlated with a 5 week pregnancy. I was perplexed when I heard the news, especially because no one in the ER was able to consult me properly on the things I could expect. I was told that I should check by into the ER if I should bleed heavier, especially if a changed a pad within less than an hour. I changed 5 pads within 4 hours and have bled a whole lot into the toilet, passing big blood clots. 
I am clearly having a miscarriage and no one mentioned to me that this might occur. Thanks to this forum, I feel relieved because I know there are more of us that bleed as heavy during miscarriage and do not check into the ER. 
I think I will wait this out and see what tomorrow brings. I am not in extreme pain, occasional intense cramps and still bleeding. A truly disturbing experience that I wish no one had to experience. 
Thank you all for sharing!


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## butterfly_x

I was told my natural MC would last 7-10 days and it was, lasted 8 days from start to finish. You shouldn't soak through a pad within an hour.


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