successful birth after mult. m/c stories?

[leurMaman]

Okay, I am going in to the hospital today to have a D&C procedure. I went for my 12 week visit on Tuesday evening and the midwife was not able to find a heartbeat. She had me get an u/s immediately after, and the tech showed me that the fetus had passed away.

I just had a miscarriage at 10.5 weeks (which started on Christmas day 2009) and bled for 6-7 weeks through this January. It was painful and a long process. I don't want to repeat that again, so I'm opting for the D&C to give myself a break from all of this. I'm very sad. I waitied until the 12 week mark and had just started celebrating and telling people. This is my third miscarriage (one in 2005 in between DS and DD).

I wasn't worried that I got pregnant so fast (one cycle after I stopped m/c bleeding). I did the same thing after my first one and that resulted in my beautiful daughter. This time I have to wonder if that had any bearing on the second m/c in a row.

I need to read some positive stories from mommies who had m/c in a row or multiple m/c and then tried again. How long did you wait? Mostly I just want to stay positive. Thanks,

[MaerynPearl]

Have you been tested at all to find out why you have had repeat mc?

There are several things (both those that can be helped and those that cannot) that can cause mc other than just chance. These things can even be present in women with other children... for example I know of a woman, I cannot think of who at the moment, who has a chance for her children to have a chromosomal problem that will often result in a miscarriage, but also has the chance of having perfectly healthy children and will not know which she has until further into the pregnancy... I know of other ladies with clotting disorders that can lose babies (even after healthy pregnancies) but are helped with simple treatment such as taking aspirin. Really, having had 3 miscarriages or more I would say your doctor should be looking into this. It could really just be bad luck but there could be an actual cause for this.

I do not think really that it is your fault (even if you have a disorder or a chance of abnormality it is not YOUR fault)

That said... my doctor had two miscarriages (10 weeks and around 10-11 weeks) found out what was wrong and conceived again... treated what was wrong (I do not remember what it was... a hormonal imbalance but I do not think progesterone) and ended up having identical twin girls! Very healthy, very adorable 4 year old girls who look JUST like their mother! She is now pregnant again (she likes to have babies at the same time as me I guess) and treated what was wrong last time right off the bat to avoid the miscarriage before it ever happened.

[limette]

A friend of mine had many, many miscarriages. She later got divorced and married a new guy and has had no trouble having kids.

It's definitely possible.

[NicolleLynne]

Hi Mama,

First off, , I'm so sorry for your losses. As one who's been there, I know how devastating miscarriage can be. I'm currently 35 weeks along with my first. My last pregnancy ended in a missed miscarriage at 10 weeks and the first was lost due to a severe chromosomal abnormality at 13 weeks.

After the second loss, I wasn't sure what to do - I wanted a baby so much but didn't know if I could handle another loss. I ended up seeing an Eastern medicine doctor/acupuncturist who said I was very stressed and needed to work on my anxiety before trying again so my body could support a pregnancy. I did acupuncture, herbs, a detox diet (no processed foods whatsoever), started yoga and a vigorous exercise program. After two months, she said I could try again and we got pregnant immediately. My OB had me take a baby aspirin as soon as I got my BFP up until 20 weeks and so far, so good! Our little girl is due May 26th.

I don't know how much you can take away from my story, we're all so unique. Some of us have easily identifiable issues that cause our losses, some of us are just the victims of terrible luck. From my experience, I would recommend seeing an Eastern medicine doctor who specializes in fertility, as mine does. The Eastern perspective is holistic, they look at the whole person to identify issues and the treatments are wonderfully relaxing, as well as healing. During my first trimester, I went every week for acupuncture as it's supposed to help blood flow to the uterus, aid implantation and maintain a healthy pregnancy. I never felt so at peace with being pregnant before and my OB has been so impressed that she recommends my acupuncturist to other patients.

I hope this information helps and that you're pregnant with a sweet, sticky baby soon!

Best wishes and much luck,
Nicolle

[2sweetboysmom]

Many hugs for you mama. I have been there.
My story is not compleatly written yet...but I am currently 26 weeks pregnant after 2 losses at 14/15 weeks last year and 7 total losses. After I discovered the second loss last year, I remember thinking "There is no way I can possibly do this again." My initial gut reaction was to have my tubes tied (glad now that I did not do that) Emotionally navigating pregnancy after loss(s) is a stretching experience. Do get some testing if you possibly can. Also feel free to post your concerns and questions in the loss boards http://www.mothering.com/discussions...splay.php?f=22 there are sections for conceiving after loss, and pregnancy after loss too.

[leurMaman]

Thanks, ladies. I will post on the other board a little later. I really like the useful information about using acupuncture and also looking into chromosomal abnormalities or blood-clotting disorders. I have asked these questions, but I think it is time to pursue more tests. In any case, I'm greatly blessed by my three little ones. I trust that if I am to be blessed more it will one day happen. Your stories are very encouraging!

[WeasleyMum]

I'm so sorry for your loss, mama. I had four miscarriages, at 10 weeks, 12 weeks, 6 weeks and 8 weeks, before finally carrying a pregnancy to term. That was my DS and he's almost a year old now.

I don't know if waiting or not waiting has any effect; it probably depends on what caused the first miscarriage. Our first two losses were back-to-back (I got pg again on the first cycle after) and DH was *convinced* that we hadn't waited long enough, so we waited about six months to try again. It made no difference-- obviously-- since that was a m/c too.

I hope you get the answers you need and that you have a successful pregnancy in no time.

[gradstudentmommy]

I'm so sorry for your losses.

My friend had a healthy baby, then 3 miscarriages in a row and then another healthy baby. She got pregnant very quickly after her miscarriages. She had some testing done after the third miscarriage (not sure what) and everything came back normal. She was told it was just "bad luck."

I hope there's another baby in your near future!

[happythistle]

I've also had 4 m/c's and am now 17 weeks pg with a healthy little one. We did all the testing and although it didn't show any abnormal stuff, we were given the option to do progesterone and lovenox once we were pg again. The cocktail has worked!
We didn't wait long to ttc again - happened on the second month.
So sorry you are going through this - it sucks.

[OrchideZ]

Hi Mandi...its Viv from your Oct 08 DDC so sorry to hear about what you have been going through mama.
I just wanted to give you some support, sounds like you have gotten some good advice so far.
Maybe also if you haven't already, get an appt. with a good endocrinologist and get your complete thyroid work-up done. That includes the TSH as well as your T3 and T4.
An imbalanced thyroid esp. a hypo (underproducing one) can be a cause of m/c.
Hypothyroidism is quite common in women and can run in families in the females.
In my family, I was diagnosed during my pregnancy w my son and immediately got thyroid treatment which is very easy to fix.
Once we realized it can be hereditary, both my sisters got tested and have it too. They both had m/c too over the years and didn't even know about getting their thyroids looked at then.
Just something else to consider if you haven't already.
I had no obvious symptoms myself and was quite surprised when my midwives discovered this in the blood panels.
I do feel so much better and healthier now with my thyroid working well.
I have you in my thoughts mama...big hugs.