Plaque Buckle

Is it bad that your gums bleed when flossing and/or brushing?

So I'm admittedly horrible about keeping up with common hygiene for my mouth, but lately have noticed my teeth as well as my gums getting pretty bad. I've started to really buckle down and do the routine of: 1. Whitening pre-brush, 2. Brush, 3. Floss and remove plaque with 'pointy thing' (don't know the name), 4. apply whitening strips

When I brush, I can notice that my mouth retains a lot of discolored elements, because the toothpaste is not white when it comes out (i don't know if that's normal or not). Also, my gums are quite unhealthy (I can tell b/c they are red rather than pink), so when i floss sometimes the floss will cut into my gums and make them bleed. I'm wondering if it's bad for my gums when this happens, or if I should just keep it up until they get in better shape.

You have some degree of gingivitis. Healthy gums should never bleed when brushing or flossing. Here is what you need to do.
First stop with the strips.
Brush and floss at least twice a day.
If in two weeks your gums still bleed, you may have a more advanced case of gum disease called periodontitis. If that is the case you will need to see your dentist for some treatment.
Once the gums are healthy, you can start up the whitening. Good luck.

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