Salam. Sometimes after my monthly period is over, I get alot of discharge and sometimes it has a little blood. Some times the blood is streaked-tinged and other times it is very dark blood. This usually only lasts about 2 days or so. The other days it would just be yellowish vaginal discharge. My question is: Can I have intercourse with my husband without taking a bath when this type of blood comes or is it obligitory for me to take a bath? Also, can I pray when this happens? Jazakallah Khayran.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

In principle bleeding from the vagina is menses as long as it does not exceed 15 days. If the blood exceeds 15 days, then this is without any doubt bleeding outside the monthly menses.

As regards the discharges which a woman has within 15 days, then she should look whether or not she can distinguish between her monthly menses and other bleeding. She should consider the discharges which she is sure are menses, as menses, and anything other than that is bleeding outside the monthly menses. However, if she is unable to distinguish between the types of blood she has, then she should take into account the days of her menses, in which case the length of the days of her regular menses, should be considered as menses and the other days are bleeding outside the monthly menses.

Therefore, if the blood discharges which you have after the first bleeding stops is within the fifteen days altogether, then in this case all this bleeding is considered as menses whether the second bleeding is light and streaked-tinged or dark and the like. In this case, you are not permitted to perform the prayer, fast or allow your husband to have sexual intercourse with you until after these discharges stop and you perform Ghusl (a ritual bath). If we presume that these discharges stopped, and you performed Ghusl, and then your husband had intercourse with you, and after this you had blood discharges again, then you are not sinful and your husband is not sinful.

For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 94252 and 83454. 

Allaah Knows best.