Patient's question:
Bleeding has been occurring on and off. Then it stopped. It has been almost two and a half months now. Yesterday, I still found some bleeding, but it wasn't much—much lighter than menstrual blood. It has been going on for three days now. Is it the start of my period? On the fourth day, I started experiencing some pain in my abdomen, similar to the pain I used to feel during my periods. What could this be? I have been breastfeeding exclusively. Is it the start of my period? If so, why is the amount so little and the blood so pale? Could it be that my uterus hasn’t recovered well? There is no pregnancy in this case—I have already taken an early pregnancy test and it was negative!Onset Time and Cause:
Treatment Status:
Help Needed:
Please advise, doctors.
Doctor's answer:
Considering the condition of postpartum menstrual irregularity, when treating menstrual disorders, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) identifies symptoms such as delayed menstruation, reduced menstrual flow, dark purple or black blood with clots, lower abdominal distension and tenderness to touch, or stabbing pain, which alleviate after the clots are expelled, as signs of blood stasis. The treatment for menstrual disorders with blood stasis is based on the principle of invigorating blood circulation and removing stasis. Commonly used herbs include Guizhi Fuling Wan (Cinnamon Twig and Eucommia Bark Decoction) and Tianqi Tongjing San (Tianqi Pain Relieving Powder).When treating menstrual disorders, TCM identifies symptoms such as delayed menstruation, dark and scanty flow, lower abdominal cold pain that improves with warmth, aversion to cold and cold limbs, pale complexion, and thin white tongue coating as signs of blood cold. The treatment for menstrual disorders with blood cold is based on the principle of warming the meridians and dispelling cold. Commonly used herbs include Shier Wenjing Wan (Twelve Warming Meridians Pill) and Ai Fu Nuangong Wan (Mugwort and Angelica Sinensis Nourishing Palace Pill).