Understanding Bleeding and Spotting After Pregnancy - A Concerned Mother's Question

Question
hi, my name is heidi, i am 24 with a 5 month old daughter. the date of the first day of my last menstrual period is august 1st. friday night i was sitting at my computer when i noticed some blood had trickled onto my leg. the bleeding only lasted a couple minutes, then turned to pink spotting, and then to brown - now it's gone, but i do have minor cramping every so often. could this possibly be a miscarriage? how long does it usually take for miscarriage to happen or progress - i'm just confused cuz i was spotting and now i'm not. please help! thanks!

Answer
If you are 26 days late for your period, and had some bleeding (even if it was only of short duration), you have to consider that you were pregnant and this was a miscarriage. However, it is not always a miscarriage and it still can be a normal pregnancy. If your last period started on August 1, then you are now (September 27) 8 weeks pregnant and a sonogram will show a fetus, a fetal heartbeat, and a gestational sac. If there are any doubts, call your doctor and get a sonogram and you will know for sure.