natural m/c V d&c

PinaColada · 08-17-2006, 12:52 PM

hiya ladies, ive just been for my 8wk ultrasound on tues, and it looks like a blighted ovum, there was just an empty sac and it was a lot smaller than it should be for my pregnancy. they want to scan me again next tues but said its very likely i will need a d&c. ive also been reading about people waiting on a natural miscarrage but ive heard about people having contractions and pushing out the sac etc. on the other hand im absoulotly terrified of actual surgery but if its the the best option i would go ahead. i dont know much about either of these options so im hoping to hear about everyones experience before making my descion

also, if its a natural m/c, should i get anything in preperation, i was going to stock up on sanitry towels, but is there anything else like painkillers etc, how long would i bleed for, how long would a miscarrage take, is there any exams afterwards to make sure theres no tissue or infection etc

thanks in advance
jo xx

SweetPea76 · 08-17-2006, 03:16 PM

I"m so sorry you are faced with this decision.

I had a natural m/c at 11 weeks, although from the u/s they determined that the baby had passed sometime during week 8. My doc gave me the option of having a D&C or letting it happen naturally. He said that with the D&C there is a very small chance of the D&C causing problems with furture conception (something having to do with the formation of scar tissue.) He stressed that the chance of that happening was very small, but I decided that since I already had a hard time getting pg, I wouldn't do anything else to risk making it worse. He said that since it had already been 3 weeks since the baby had passed that I would most likely not have to wait long for the m/c to begin. This was on a Thursday. We agreed that I would go home and come back Monday. On Monday if I hadn't had the m/c, we'd revisit the D&C option. He sent me home with 2 prescriptions- one for Vicadin and one for 800mg ibuprofen. The actual m/c happened 2 days later on Saturday.

It was extremely painful when it happened. I did have contractions. I had taken 2 vicadin (per doctor's orders) and was still doubled over in pain. The intense pain/actual m/c probably took 30 minutes to an hour. I bled extremely heavily (filling 1 overnight pad every 90 minutes) for the first day, like a heavy period for the next 2 days, a normal period for 2 more days after that, and then light spotting for 3 days after that. I took the vicadin for the first day, then on day 2 was able to switch to the prescription strength motrin.

I kept my appt on Monday, and the doc gave me an u/s to determine if I had, in fact, passed everything naturally. He said that the sac and baby were indeed gone, and that now it would just be as if I were having my period. He gave me blood tests and tracked my HCG until he was sure it was returning to zero.

If you have any questions that I have not answered, please feel free to PM me and ask.

ssaunders1187 · 08-17-2006, 03:37 PM

The doctor gave me both options, i didnt feel as if i was emotionally strong enough to wait it out, so I decided on the d&c. For me it wasnt a painful surgery just emotional. They gave me an iv and then a half hour later they took me back to the OR. I dont remember much after that because they administered the anesthesia and I passed out. I woke up in recovery with slight cramps, and only spotted for a few days. It all seemed like a dream. It really is all about what you want though, both waiting and a d&c have certain risks associated with them. I hope you make the choice that is right for you. I am so sorry for your loss.

Crownline266 · 08-17-2006, 05:10 PM

First of all, I'm very sorry you are going through this...we are all here for you.

I was given both options also. I decided to do the D&C because that's what my doctor thought was best and I knew it would be over fast. It was scheduled for the next morning. But that night before the D&C I was more active and passed more clots and was doubled over in pain for about an hour. I never passed the baby or anything really big, but I was glad at that point that I decided to do the D&C if I was in that much pain and the m/c was just starting. I'm not a fan of surgery either but I found out it's not really a big surgery. I mean, yes, you are under anesthesia but they don't stick a tube down your throat, just put a mask on you and an IV with anesthesia in it and my actual surgery was over in about 15 minutes. I wasn't given anything until they started, so I was only sleep about a total of maybe 30 minutes. I actually walked to the operating room and got up on the table! If I'm faced with this decision again, I'll do the D&C.

RunnerDuck · 08-17-2006, 05:21 PM

I used a medication called cytotec... I can't remember the generic name for it but you can google it if you are interested. It acts as a prostoglandin and induces uterine contractions and causes you to lose the pregnancy.

I was given three options - the medication, a D&C, or a "wait & see." I didn't want to wait, I wanted to get this behind me and get on with TTC. (I found out I was pregnant just weeks before what was to be my first RE appt...) I was afraid of the D&C because in rare cases they can cause scarring which can cause future pregnancy issues. Not that the cytotec was perfect - all the death stories you hear from the abortion pill are connected with it.

Supposedly the deaths happened when the pill was used vaginally, which is an off label use. So I took the pill orally... and it didn't work. All it did was give me horrible gas. So they gave me the option of trying again 48 hours later... and if that failed, having a D&C... or I could just revert to waiting (not take a second dose). I was really nervous about taking the second dose but I but the bullet and did it, taking it vaginally that time, and it worked. It was a little over 12 hours between inserting the pill and the actual physical loss process starting.

My doctor prescribed me some vicodin but I really didn't need it. The whole thing was not much worse than a bad period. It was not as horrifically bloody as I feared it would be, either... I passed the sac pretty much first thing, and the first few days were pretty much just heavy period bleeding, following by several days of spotting... All in all a little under 2 weeks of bleeding, most of it moderate or light. So physically, not so bad.

I had to go see my doctor a few days later and they did an ultrasound to see if things had passed and everything was out then. If it hadn't been they would have done a D&C. It is very important than everything comes out so you don't get an infection.

So I was happy with this decision... it worked, and no surgery. Do you know if this is an option for you?

*SAHMommie* · 08-22-2006, 12:44 AM

Sorry that you are having to go thru this. (((HUGS)))

I had a miscarriage in June & miscarried naturally. I had the option of a D&C & just decided that natural was best for me-emotionally.

I am sorry you are having to make these choices. I am so sorry for your loss.

Take care.

LaurAnnHere · 08-22-2006, 01:04 AM

I'm so very sorry for your loss. I have had many natural m/c and the pain involved in my first trimester m/c varied from a really painful period to early labor pains. I would recommend asking the doctor to prescribe you something to take if the pain is intense or at least something to help you relax. I have never had a D&C, but in some ways I think it might be better b/c the endless waiting is so hard. However, D&C's can have some effects not only on being able to get pregnant, but potentially damage to the cervix. I think it's probably really rare, but it is one of the risk factors for IC.

PinaColada · 08-23-2006, 01:07 PM

thanks for the replies ladies, ive decided apon the d&c, and im going in on fri at 8 am. now, they said i would need to insert something into the vagina, something to soften the cervix? did anyone else have this, is it just like a thrush pessary or similar? also i was going to book a week in the sun as we really need to get away after all thats happened recently, but how far ahead should i book it, as i want to use swimming pool jacuzzi spa etc.my hubby is off the first 2 weeks in sept and we were thinking of going away the 2nd week, do u think that should be enough time or should we wait to oct, i dont want to catch an infection or anything

thanks
jo xx

carine6 · 09-08-2006, 01:23 AM

Dear Mollie,

I am sooo sorry for your loss. I just went through a very similar situation and nobody should have to go through this. I got pregnant in July and went for my 1rst u/s at about 6 1/2 weeks when they found out there was no heartbeat. I had a blighted ovum and another small embryo but neither where viable. So they gave me the same options as you. I did not want to wait so I opted for cytotec which I took orally, did not work so I had to have a d/c. I opted to be awake throughout the procedure with an epidural rather than being asleep. I did not want to deal with after effects of anesthesia. I hear that it is not bad if you get the anesthesia. The procedure was very painfull but finished rapidly. It was not so bad after, I bled a little bit for about 10 days, then got my period which was a little worse than usual but not terrible. There was almost no pain after the d/c except for the epidural site (I had really bad back pain). 2 days after the d/c, I realized I needed a vacation so my husband and I left 2 days after that for a week. It did us a great deal of good and I do recommend doing that. I swam mostly in the ocean so I don't know about the pool. I did read about risk of infection if swimming in pools when still bleeding. I am not sure about how risky that is. You could ask your doctor. Bottom line, the vacation was the best thing I did, really helped and I hope you go for it. I hope you take care of yourself. It is so hard but I am sure it will get better, keep talking about it, it helps. Unfortunately there is no way to just get better magically. That would be really nice! Anyway, don't let anyone tell you that this pregnancy was not real because it was a blighted ovum. It was real and the pain is real too.
Big hug!! Hang in there!
Carine

orcajbh · 09-11-2006, 01:36 PM

Mollie -- I hope you are doing well.

After my first D&E I bled pretty heavy for two weeks. But that was a case where I was actively miscarrying at the time of the D&E and I bled pretty severely.

After my second (last Wednesday) I am noticing it is much more like a regular period. It is already 5 days later and I am noticing the bleeding decreasing.

I would say to make sure to give yourself two weeks, if possible (if you want to swim) because you shouldn't use a tampon.