Spotting in Early Stage of Pregnancy

Hi N.,
I had spotting at 3 different times when I was pregnant with my daughter. The first time was just before I got my positive pregnancy test and I believe that was implantation spotting. Then I had spotting again just before the 6wk mark and again around 9 weeks. Each time it was just a little bit and only lasted a couple days. My doctor did the HCG test and my numbers were rising as they should. They also did an ultrasound and the baby looked fine. My daughter was born and is now the most healthy 4 year old you have ever seen.

Then I got pregnant again last December. I began spotting a couple days before I was supposed to start my period. This time the spotting lasted almost 2 weeks and did not get lighter over time. I went in again for my HCG tests and my numbers were going down not up. Unfortunately, I did end up miscarrying.

I am now 29 weeks pregnant with our second child. I did have some light spotting right before I would have started my period again. This time I went to to the OB's office right away and they checked my HCG (numbers were great and going up). They also checked my progesterone levels. It turns out they were a bit low and that may have caused some of the spotting. I was prescribed progesterone suppositories to take throughout the first trimiester until the placenta takes over production of progesterone. I have not had any more spotting with this pregnancy and so far baby is looking great.

I will also say that I automatically thought that spotting equals miscarriage. But since it happened to me, I have talked to other people. And I have honestly found more women who have had some minor spotting at one point or another during pregnancy than women who have never experienced it! I think it is definitely something that needs to be checked out by your doc, but that it can be completely normal during pregnancy.

Sorry this has been a book but I hope some of it was helpful/reassuring to you. Good luck with your pregnancy!

Hi N.,
Everyone has just about told you the same thing that I had to say. But something that happened to me... and to be a little more personal, have you had sex lately? With my second pregnancy I had some spotting right after sex in my first trimester and it scared me like crazy. I lost the first and third pregnancy to miscarriage. My fourth pregnancy I spotted and cramped through the whole nine months. I think you did a smart thing in going to your doctor. Remind yourself that there is nothing you can do to hurt this pregnancy and take it day by day. Good luck and I hope everything goes well for you!
T.

I believe the best policy is.... any type of spotting should be checked out with your dr.

I guess you would say I am one that is extremely cautious... Then again having 4 miscarriages would do that.
I always spotted before miscarriage.... and it was not always red.

So in my opinion.... when you see the dr.... ask to see if everything is ok.
HTH

In the last week, I've been doing a lot of research on the internet about spotting in early pregnancy. From what I've learned the brown spotting is very common and nothing to worry about. It is the consistent bright red blood that should be more worrisome. I started spotting bright red blood last week (at 9 weeks). It never subsided. Went into the Dr. on Wednesday and there was no fetal heartbeat or movement. Went into the hospital for a D&C yesterday. Just keep an eye on the spotting. I'm guessing that your HCG levels are rising and everything is normal. Congrats and Good luck with everything!!

I was around 10 weeks in my 2nd pregnancy I had some cramping so the Dr's did an ultrasound (we were going on vacation later that week) the baby looked fine. About a week or so after we got back I was feeling fine, but when I went to the bathroom I had some blood, it was reddish brown, I freaked out I continued to bleed that whole day and night and finally quit the next day. I called the Dr and scheduled my 12 week ultrasound for the following week, I was so scared because I did not know if I miscarried (I had 2 friends with similar situations who miscarried a few months before), I was told by my DR to relax and not do too much for a few days. Once I had my ultrasound my baby was doing great! I had a healthy baby boy :)

It's good to take the precautions, but it really sounds like implantation bleeding, which is normal for some. That is "old blood" your body gets rid of after the implantation stage. If it starts to brighten to a redder color and increase, Get Off Your Feet.

Do take it easy. When you feel exhausted or even tired and hungry, rest and do what you have to do. I remember thinking I wasn't going to let my body dictate my accomplishing things. I was so wrong. This is the one time to use that excuse!

I started to spot when I was 5 wks along also. I panicked and went to visit my doctor and he said it is normal to do so in the early wks of your pregnancy. He said it happens when the egg attaches itself to your uterus, which causes it to spot. For me it lasted a few days, but that was it. I hope this is all it is for you! Good luck to you and your family!

From my understanding, it is totally normal. And it is even less of a worry if it is brown, since that's old blood.

This is totally normal. If you have an excessive amount of bleeding and cramping that is the time to talk to your doctor. I had spotting early in my pregnancy and my doctor told me that some women bleed durning their entire pregnancy.
Congratulations! Enjoy the experience, it goes so fast.

I started spotting about the same time, freaked out called the Doc and she said it was normal. It stopped in a few days and everything went fine with the rest of my pregnancy. They told me to call them if I was cramping, or bleeding heavily.

Hi N., you've gotten a lot of good advice, but I wanted to tell you about my two different scenarios:

First pregnancy started with brownish bleeding - lasting for about a week. I had a beautiful healthy baby girl.

Second pregnancy started with brownish bleeding - lasting for just a week, then turned red and I had a miscarriage.

So, please just always let your DR know...

Hi N.,
I remember having spotting at around 8 weeks and it lasted several days. It was brown, not bright red. I remember being worried, even though it turned out to be nothing to worry about. I now have a healthy 14 month old.
T.

HI N., I experienced the exact same thing with my pregnancies. And I spotted until I was 12 weeks. It is a little unnerving . As long as it isn't frank red blood, I was reassured that it was ok and it was. Good luck.

I started spotting at seven weeks with my pregnancy and I was on vacation and couldn't get ahold of my doctor. I panicked but when I got back he said that it's very normal to have a bit of spotting and there was nothing to worry about. My little boy is almost three now and I hadn't even thought about the spotting until i read your question.

I would like to advise you to be careful, and not to over do. I have five children, and two other pregnancies that only lasted until 3 1/2 months. It is good to check in with your doctor, so they can advise you. It is probably no problem at all, and will just stop on its own. My neice had spotting, and just had a beautiful baby boy a few months ago.
Just take it easy!

Hello N.,
First let me congradulate you on your upcoming arrival. I spotted when I was around 5-6 weeks and off and on a couple more times. You need to make sure you tell your OB because they should do an ultrasound to check everything. A lot of times at this stage in the pregnancy it is due to the changes in your uterus and body and I want to say the plantaion of the baby in the womb. Its all not uncommon, and it is also good that the discharge is a brownish tinge. If it is ever a larger amount and a brite red is when you should be checked out emmedietly.
I have a very healthy 10 week old baby boy and I experienced these same issues several times due to a high work and stress load at work so that could be a possibility as well. Especially with caring for a 2 year old and being a grad student. You will probably have to take it easy for a little bit but God willing you will be just fine.
Best of luck and God Bless,
S.

Spotting can be a scary thing when you are pregnant. I had the same experience with my second pregnancy. It lasted several days and it was also in the early stage of the pregnancy. In my case, I went on to deliver a full-term, 9 lb. 5 1/2 oz. baby boy with no complications. You are probably fine, but it is always a good idea to check with the doctor if you feel really uncomfortable about anything.

Good luck with school and your new baby.

Hi N.,
I had that problem with my first and last pregnancies. Both turned out ok with healthy babies. I did try to stay off my feet some until the spotting stopped, which was about 8-9weeks.
I wish you well with this.
Thanks,
E.

Hey N.,

I just wanted to let you know that I think that as long as it is brownish and not bright red and a lot of it, it is pretty normal. I had brown discharge for the first couple of weeks with both of my children, who are now healthy 14 & 10 year olds! I think by checking with your doctor you did the right thing, cause you just never know. Good luck! and Congrats!!!!

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Two out of my three pregnancies I had spotting. One of them I miscarried at 7 weeks and the other I spotted somewhere around 5-6 weeks and had a perfectly healthy baby. The only difference between the two is that when I miscarried, it just kept on coming. For the other, it was a one time thing. Your blood tests will tell you whether everything is okay, but just remember that if you are miscarrying, there is nothing you can do and you didn't do anything to cause it. My miscarriage was my 2nd pregnancy and I stressed horribly, so when I spotted on the 3rd pregnancy, I had no stress about it because I knew it was out of my control. Hang in there and don't stress. The blood tests will tell all.

Hi! I have had 3 children- my first two I never experienced any kind of spotting. But the third time, I did. It was just a little and it was dark brown. When I called the doctor about it, she said it's good that its dark brown and not bright or red. When it's dark, that means it's old blood. I never had any problems. And hopefully you won't either. Maybe think of it being dark as a good sign. This is my only experience with it. Good luck to you.

I had spotting at 8 weeks, just as we were leaving on vacation. Since it was my first pregnancy and I was 36 yrs. old I panicked, of course thinking the worse. So I made an emergency check to the ob/gyn. She did bloodwork and a pelvic exam; since I was catching a flight out of town within a few hours of the appt. she couldn't send me for an ultrasound. She called me 2 days later at our vacation destination (the longest 2 days in my life)to let me know all was okay with the bloodwork. She assured me that many women get some mild spotting in the beginning, as the embryo is attaching to the inside of the uterus. She told me not to worry, but if the blood was more of a flow then head to the ER. The rest of our vacation and my pregnancy went just fine!
So, you probably are experiencing what I did. I'll keep you in my prayers just the same.

M. J.

I had the same thing at 6 weeks and my Dr did an ultrasound and we could see the heartbeat! I did have to take it easy for 6 weeks, no cleaning, lifing, intercourse. But everything turned out fine! I am now 21 weeks with no problems!

My experience has been similar to lots of the other ladies. I spotted dark brown early on in my 2nd pregnancy. I had a healthy baby boy. It's good to get it checked out and not stress too much.

With my first there was no spotting at all so when I was pregnant with my second and I spotted I freaked out! It was just like you described it. Everything turned out fine and he is now 15mo. I had a miscarriage almost 2 months ago at 6 weeks and it was different. It started out as just a little but it was bright red. I knew that was bad and I just knew that I would lose the baby. There was NO cramping but it got heavier and then I passed the baby. If it is dark brown and very little, it's probably just implantation bleeding where the baby is just settling in and making a permanent spot. Take it easy and relax, there is nothing you can do to stop it at this point so worrying won't help. Easier said than done I know. I wish you the best!