Brusing from blood test

[AllieW]

I had my first appointment with my midwife yesterday, which went really well. (Heard baby's heartbeat for the first time, which was fabulous).

However, a little while after my blood had been taken, my arm was aching and when I got home and took off the plaster I noticed that it was swollen and bruised.

It is still bruised now, although the swelling has gone down. I've never had this sort of reaction to a blood test before (I used to give blood without problems) and she found the vein straightaway.

What I'm wondering is this: is it safe to dab Witch Hazel on it, or is that not a good idea when pregnant?

 

[fothers]

The bruising will settle in a few days- it is blood under the skin. Nothing will may it go away any quicker really

 

[ella]

on hearing your LO's heartbeat

Nothing to be done for the bruising, its just luck unfortunately!

 

[NIE]

I had this at my last blood test. I didn't feel the needle at the time but it was very badly bruised for 10 days afterwards.

I never did anything about the bruise, I was quite proud of it actually as I'm not very good with needles. xxx

 

[KJ]

Hi ladies,

I take blood as part of my job. The best tips to avoid bruising are to make sure you press firmly on the cotton wool ball for at least 2 mins after the needle has been removed. This will ensure that the vein has stopped leaking and will not leak blood under your skin.

DON'T bend your arm, contrary to popular belief, this actually puts more pressure on the vein and it is more likely to leak into the arm.

But sometimes, the phlebotomist just manages to put the needle in too far, causing it to come out the u nderside of your vein a little. Then the vein will bleed out the back as the blood is being taken, and will bruise anyway. And sometimes, you might just be one of those people who doesn't clot quickly, in which case you're more likely to bruise.

Hope this helps.

K.xx

 

[Ladybird]

Hi there,

Just a little warning in case the thought pops into your head...

Don't use arnica cream for thr bruise!

At about 15wks I bashed the back of my hand quite hard and a huge lump came up. I didn't think and put arnica cream on it for a day or two, and had quite a lot of stretching pains at the same time. Then I read that arnica cream can cause miscarrage, uterine contractions, prem delivery and birth defects. That's quite list. Appearently the cream is a lot stronger than oral homeopathic remedies.

Bubs is fine, but needless to say, I was really worried at the time!

I'm sure your bruising and swelling will go down naturally.