When your cervix starts to soften, you may notice pink discharge or bright red blood. Other colors – such as yellow, green, or gray – may signal an infection or other problem. Normal, healthy discharge is usually creamy white or clear, but it may also be tinged brown, pink, or red. You may have noticed more vaginal discharge during pregnancy, thanks to your body's increased estrogen. Without the other signs of labor noted below, you don't need to call your doctor or midwife if you pass your mucus plug. The mucus plug may come out in a lump all at once or as an increased amount of clear, pink, or slightly bloody vaginal discharge over the course of several days – or even weeks. If you see mucus, it's likely a sign that you're dilating – but it can still be some time before labor begins. If your cervix begins to efface or dilate significantly as you get close to labor, you may pass your mucus plug – the small amount of thickened mucus that has collected within your cervical canal during your pregnancy. If this isn't your first baby, however, lightening may not happen until labor begins. (On the downside, you may need to pee more often because your baby's pressing on your bladder.) If you experienced heartburn during pregnancy, it might now improve. When your baby drops, you might feel less pressure just below your ribcage, making it easier to catch your breath. Lightening means your baby has "dropped" and now rests lower in your pelvis. Learn more about Becca here.If this is your first pregnancy, you may feel what's known as lightening a few weeks before labor starts. There is also no need to be concerned, unless there are other things going on, like significant bleeding from the vagina, regular contractions or you think your water has broken.īecca Raper is a registered midwife with Generations Midwifery Care. Easier said than done, but it usually it isn’t much more than a couple of weeks after losing the plug although there is no guarantee! There is no need to alert your care provider immediately. In summary, expect any colour of the rainbow except maybe blue or purple.Īll that’s left to do is to admire your body’s ability to do all of these amazing things and wait ever-so-patiently for your little one’s arrival. Brown mucus in the plug is often older blood and of no concern. As your cervix softens and begins to dilate, small blood vessels break down at the site of the cervix, creating some bleeding or spotting. This is generally a good sign as it indicates that your cervix is changing. Commonly, the plug passes with red or pink streaks, or even like a bloody, gelatinous mass. The mucus plug can also be yellow or green tinged, and does not mean that there in an infection present. It normally matches the colour of healthy snot, clear or milky, as opposed to the fluorescent green of a sinus infection. It is quite similar to the mucus that comes out of your nose, with somewhat of the same purpose and immune system factors. It can be an all-at-once clump or a steady, slimy release over days. For some women there is what seems to be a never-ending supply. Up to 30% of women report that they never noticed this stuff. ![]() Every body is different and every labour is different. Some women might not start losing their plug until labour begins, or may not ever notice that it came out. Sometimes this process is encouraged earlier by vaginal exams or intercourse. Around the same time, the cervix starts softening and opening, leaving the space for the plug to slip out. ![]() The first of these changes is a shift in hormones, causing the mucus plug to thin out, making it easier to slip. This happens due to a few different changes. In the weeks or days leading up to the big day, your birthing day, the mucus plug may start to come out. Your mucus plug doesn’t form all at once and stay the entire pregnancy, it regenerates itself continuously, without ever losing its mass…until the end. In the secretions that form the mucus there are even components of your immune system, to fight against any bacteria that made it that far. It is your body’s way of keeping the baby safe. This mass then seals up the entrance to the uterus, blocking the way for potential bacteria and pathogens. As odd as it sounds by its original name, the operculum, it is completely normal.įrom the time you first got pregnant and the new little bean of a baby implanted into your uterus, the cells of your cervix starting producing a thick, jelly-like mass to fill in the spaces of the cervix. From the overactive bladder to leaking nipples, and what is this slime coming from the vagina? The mucus plug is a jelly squishing out of the vagina towards the end of pregnancy. For some, the changes in bodily fluids seem to be the most startling. Pregnancy is a time of fantastic change in a person’s body.
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