The first period after a caesarean section in a woman can occur at different times. For someone, the first bleeding appears after 1.5 months, while for someone they do not “come” even after 6 months. It is important to determine how long the first menstruation goes after a cesarean section and what to do if they are delayed.
When is my period?
It is impossible to say exactly when menstruation occurs after pregnancy, as this will directly depend on the individual characteristics of the woman's body. The terms in this case may be different.
After a caesarean section, when the baby came out and labor activity is over, the woman's body enters the stage of rehabilitation. The uterus begins to shrink in size and takes on a normal shape. Every day it falls by one centimeter. The rehabilitation process can take up to 8 weeks. Sometimes the uterus becomes even smaller than before childbirth. This can happen after intensive breastfeeding of a newborn.
What affects?
After childbirth, the hormonal system is gradually restoredwomen and improves the functioning of her ovaries. The first menstruation after cesarean may begin at any time, which will depend on the state of the woman's body and the functioning of the reproductive system.
The following factors influence the timing of the first period after a caesarean section:
- physiological characteristics of the patient's body;
- presence of bad habits;
- correct food intake;
- balanced rest and sleep schedule;
- baby feeding;
- psychological overstrain, stress, emotional depression;
- presence of dangerous chronic diseases;
- general course of pregnancy.
To a greater extent, the onset of menstruation is affected by the presence or absence of breastfeeding. When breastfeeding, a woman's body undergoes increased production of prolactin, which provokes the flow of breast milk.
Such a hormone can adversely affect the work of hormones in the follicles. In this case, the ovaries will remain in an inactive state. In this case, the egg does not mature during menstruation and menstruation does not come. But it is important to remember that if there are no periods at the beginning of lactation, this does not mean that they will not appear later when feeding.
You can get more information about your first period after a caesarean on the forums where members make their own stories of life, give different recommendations and advice.
Feeding and menstruation
Gynecologists distinguish the followingfeatures:
- If a woman is actively breastfeeding, then periods may be absent for a whole year after a caesarean.
- Most often, menstruation comes immediately after the introduction of the first complementary foods.
- If a woman feeds a newborn a mixed diet, including infant formula, then menstruation, as a rule, occurs after 3-4 months.
- There are situations when, after a cesarean, a woman does not feed her baby with breast milk at all, in this case, the first bleeding appears in the same month. However, they should not be absent for more than 3 months, as this may indicate the presence of violations and serious problems. In this case, it is important to consult a doctor in a timely manner, who will diagnose and identify the exact cause. If, after 6 months after the start of menstruation, the cycle has not adjusted its regimen, and menstruation appears irregularly, then it is important to undergo an examination and a course of treatment.
When to see a doctor?
Sometimes after the birth of a child, a woman's menstrual cycle immediately normalizes and becomes regular. In this case, menstruation appears at the right time and proceeds without much pain with normal discharge.
But in some situations, a woman should not delay and immediately go to the doctor:
- if within 6 months after the cesarean, the menstruation schedule did not normalize and did not become constant;
- if menstruation does not appear within 3 months after the birth of a child, and the woman does notbreastfeeds;
- if bleeding lasts only a few days or lasts longer than 6 days;
- if too little or, conversely, too much blood is released during menstruation;
- if the first menstruation after cesarean with clots and a strange consistency;
- if menstrual flow has a strong and unpleasant odor.
Lochia or period
Sometimes a woman's first period is too heavy after a caesarean. Most often this happens due to changes in the hormonal system. But you should not worry right away, since heavy discharge can last only a couple of months after the birth of a child. But if such a problem continues to bother you, then it is important to go for a check-up with a doctor.
After the birth of a child, a woman's body begins to slowly recover and recover. On this he is given from 6 to 8 weeks. At this time, a woman may have specific bleeding from the vagina, which is very often confused with the menstruation itself. After some time, the volume, composition and color of such secretions changes.
Normal highlights
What should be the first period after caesarean? The appearance of the first menstruation can be considered normal both a month after childbirth and a few years later. The timing of their occurrence will directly depend on:
- Does the baby breastfeed. The longer the breaks between milk feedings, the sooner menstruation will normalize.
- Regularity of normal periods. If beforeIf a woman's pregnancy had regular disruptions in the menstrual cycle, they can continue after the birth of the baby.
In a normal state, periods after a cesarean should be almost the same as before pregnancy. Some women even report that after pregnancy, their cycle has become better, the level of pain has decreased and the amount of discharge has decreased.
In some cases, everything happens the other way around: there is severe pain, unpleasant clots are observed, blood loss increases significantly. This can be considered normal only in the first months of the recovery period. If negative symptoms continue for a long time, then this may indicate the presence of a pathological process in the body. In this case, it is important to consult a doctor in time and establish the cause of the lesion.
Why does pain occur?
A woman should not worry if even before the conception of a child her menstruation passed with pain and constant discomfort. But if such symptoms were not noticed before, then it is important to understand the reasons for their appearance and, if possible, undergo a course of treatment.
Uterine contraction process
With regular breastfeeding, a woman may start her period several months after the birth of the baby. In this case, the timing of the appearance of menstrual flow will be completely individual.
The fact is that when the baby is attached, the nipple is irritated, which provokes a reflex contraction of the uterus. It is at this time that a woman may feel unpleasant pain in the lower abdomen. The same sensations are characteristic of menstruation, since during them the sensitivity increases significantly, and the uterus contracts regularly to clear its cavity.
If a woman has pain due to contractions in the uterus, then you should not worry, since such a process does not indicate the presence of pathologies. Pain during menstruation will pass immediately after the end of feeding milk.
Surgery
Almost every woman has pain in her lower abdomen after a caesarean section. This is due to the fact that during menstruation, during the contraction, the area of \u200b\u200bthe scar is touched, which has not yet had time to fully heal. As a result, menstruation becomes painful and heavy, but this should not bother the woman much.
This situation is also common in the event that during the caesarean section, myomatous nodes were additionally removed. This procedure is carried out if the uterus has reached a large size and it is necessary to open its cavity.
Not such severe pain is observed with less voluminous operations. For example, when scraping or manually separating the placenta. If, along with pain, a woman develops a discharge with an unpleasant odor, it is important to seek medical advice in a timely manner.
After a caesarean section, after some time, adhesions may appear in the abdominal region. If they are connected with the uterus, then in the process of contraction during menstruationthey will stretch and cause pain.
Rupture or injury
During the birth process, a woman often has serious tears, sprains of muscles and ligaments. After stitching the damaged areas, the woman's body can react completely differently to the stitches. As a result of this procedure, stenosis, severe scarring, can appear in the vagina, which leads to pain during intercourse and menstrual flow.
In some cases, after a caesarean section, uterine rupture may cause stenosis of the cervical canal. During an ultrasound examination and during an external examination, such a violation will not be very noticeable.
Narrowing the cervical canal during menstruation will lead to the accumulation of menstruation, which will put pressure on the walls of the uterus, leading to acute pain. Pain symptoms will increase as the volume of outgoing blood increases, in some cases it becomes unbearable. This condition requires urgent treatment.
Another sign of cervical stenosis is the prolonged release of dark clots after menstruation. Pain in this condition does not always appear immediately in the first menstruation, most often the disorder is diagnosed a year after the operation.
Presence of endometriosis
Endometriosis is a disease that is widespread in gynecological practice. This condition often leads to pain during menstruation. Generic processes can provoke the appearance of such a disease and becomereason for its progression. The disease is especially dangerous during a caesarean section.
Endometriosis pain almost always goes away with menstrual flow, it starts at the beginning of the period and continues all the time. A sign of pain as a result of endometriosis is a strong spotting of blood before and after menstruation. Pain can come from the lower abdomen, sometimes present in the perineum. In the latter case, the woman constantly feels discomfort when stressing this area (cycling, sitting on a chair).
For the treatment of endrometriosis, complex therapy is used - an operation and taking hormonal drugs.
Increase the threshold of sensitivity
If, after examination, no factors for the appearance of pain during menstruation after cesarean were not identified, then the reason may be an increase in the threshold of pain sensitivity.
This phenomenon is common in complex birth processes, in which a woman receives psychological trauma. In this case, it is important to consult a doctor to prescribe the necessary medications.
