With your body changing and things in flux, it’s hard to know what’s normal and what’s not in pregnancy. You may be wondering if a fishy odor in early pregnancy or fluid leaking out of your vagina are normal or cause for concern.
Here’s everything you need to know about discharge and signs of vaginal infection during pregnancy.
What Is Vaginal Discharge?
The term vaginal discharge can mean a lot of things—and can be caused by a wide range of conditions. However, vaginal discharge is, in its simplest form, fluid that comes from the vagina.
Is It Normal To Have Vaginal Discharge During Pregnancy?
While it may seem alarming, it is perfectly normal to have discharge during pregnancy. In fact, vaginal discharge during pregnancy can help prevent unwanted bacteria from traveling from the vagina to the womb. It also creates a barrier which helps form the mucus plug.
What Causes Vaginal Discharge?
Vaginal discharge is normal, and while the amount, color, and consistency of discharge will change throughout the ovulation process, in most cases, vaginal discharge is not a cause for concern.
What Causes Abnormal Discharge?
Abnormal discharge can be caused by a variety of factors:
Yeast infections can cause thick, cottage cheese-like discharge.
Bacterial infections, like bacterial vaginosis, can cause a greenish discharge with a fishy odor.
Sexually transmitted infections, or STIs, can sometimes cause painful or uncomfortable discharge.
Does Your Vaginal Discharge Change During Pregnancy?
Just as vaginal discharge changes throughout the menstrual cycle, it also changes during pregnancy. Early in your pregnancy, you may notice increased vaginal discharge. This helps to remove dead skin cells and bacteria from the vagina. The amount will also increase toward the end of your pregnancy, as the body prepares for birth.
What Does Spotting During Pregnancy Mean?
Nothing is scarier than bleeding when we’re not supposed to. Countless pregnant people have a little spotting in their first trimester, after sex or a pelvic exam, or late in pregnancy. It can happen because of implantation bleeding (the fertilized egg embedding into the uterine lining), cervical irritation, or for no reason at all.
Late pregnancy spotting is sometimes a sign that labor is on its way but it could also indicate a more serious condition like placenta previa or placenta abruption. Any time you have spotting, let your midwife or health care provider know.
What Does Wet Underwear During Pregnancy Mean?
Could wet underwear indicate your water is breaking? Possibly, but the culprit is most likely urine—especially if you leak only occasionally, such as when you cough, sneeze, or have a good belly laugh. Leaking urine is normal during pregnancy, and it occurs because of the pressure of the growing uterus on the bladder. Kegel exercises—contracting and releasing the muscles around the vagina—help some people control their bladders.
If you felt a big gush, and liquid is running down your leg or dribbles constantly, let your health care provider know immediately. It could be amniotic fluid (your “bag of waters”), which should be clear but can also be brown, green, pink-tinged, or yellow. Unlike with urine, this leakage doesn’t happen only sporadically. If your membranes are ruptured, you usually continue to leak fluid.
What Does a Clear or White Discharge During Pregnancy Mean?
“Some pregnant people have an increase in their vaginal discharge during pregnancy, and some don’t have an increase at all,” says Karen Nordahl, MD, author of Fit to Deliver. Discharge during pregnancy is usually normal if it’s thick, sticky, and looks a lot like mucus. The vagina is working overtime, making liquid to keep the cervix moist, sealed, and healthy.
But if your discharge is a weird color, smells bad, or makes your vagina itchy or irritated, see your health care provider or midwife. You could have an infection.
If you experience discharge during late pregnancy that looks like gel or thick jelly, you might be losing your mucus plug. Sometimes it comes out in one blob, but often it comes out in bits and pieces. This could indicate you’re going into labor (but is not a guarantee).
Can You Get a Yeast Infection or Bacterial Vaginosis While Pregnant?
Pregnancy doesn’t protect you from getting a yeast infection or a vaginal infection. Yeast live in your vagina all the time, but pregnancy creates the perfect conditions for yeast to breed. Signs of a yeast infection during pregnancy include:
Yellow or white discharge that’s chunky, thick, or resembles cottage cheeseItchingRednessSoreness in the vaginal regionPain during intercourseBurning when you urinate
Consult your health care provider about prescription or over-the-counter vaginal creams or suppositories and, if deemed necessary, to rule out bacterial vaginosis or a sexually transmitted disease.
What is bacterial vaginosis?
Bacterial vaginosis is an infection caused by an imbalance in the bacteria normally found in the vagina. It’s sometimes asymptomatic, but symptoms may include a fishy odor or fishy-smelling discharge. The discharge may be most noticeable after sex, and itching or burning may accompany it. Left untreated, it can cause pregnancy complications.
“Bacterial vaginosis starts out as a vaginal infection, but it can sometimes ascend into the uterus and cause premature rupture of the membranes and preterm birth,” says April Sarvis, MD, an OB-GYN in Michigan. If you suspect bacterial vaginosis, see your health care provider right away. Prescription medications can clear up symptoms without endangering the fetus and decrease the likelihood of preterm labor.
