Baby aspirin for miscarriage prevention? « Back to Group Discussions

[JENinOR]

I've been doing some reading on this and a baby aspirin (and sometimes a progesterone combo) has been helpful carrying a baby to term.  There are lots of stories of mamas who have experienced multiple miscarriages finally having a babe in arms after starting 75-81 mg at conception or positive pregnancy test by a doc's prescription or just trying it on their own.  Any experience?  I KNOW there are several of us here with miscarriage concerns, so I wanted share!  I guess the baby aspirin helps with clotting and antibody issues.  Here's a great thread with lots of helpful info.and experiences.  I'm planning to pick some up tomorrow. :)

[JENinOR]

and, if anyone is interested, my research showed that 200 mg (100-200 mg is the consensus range) of USP grade progesterone applied throughout the day is ideal and this is what I'm taking now.  I ran that by my dr. and she said that is exactly what she would have recommended.  I use a natural, parabean free over the counter kind. You can find it for cheap here with a lot of reviews, if you're interested!

[JENinOR]

One more thing!  This article was interesting about a progesterone, baby aspirin, folate, prednisone combo being very helpful for some women.  I really don't know what prednisone is and is sounds like a drug.  Personally, I wouldn't feel comfortable taking it at this point and would probably try the other three first.  Maybe with a lot of research and it made sense in my situation? Anyways, I have a good friend who had soooo many miscarriages, saw midwives, then doctors and finally a dr. could tell from blood work that she wasn't processing folate very well and prescribed a high dose.  Mama was preggers soon after and in now expecting her third!  I'm personally getting about 1,000 mg of folic acid a day right now, and am feeling good about that. Just throwing stuff out there that may or not be helpful to you or someone you know in the future!  

[1babysmom]

I took baby aspirin last time (though I still lost the baby) but this time decided to go with more natural blood thinners because I just wasn't comfortable with the aspirin overall. So I am consistently taking my vitamin E and cod liver oil instead. I am also avoiding EMF's as much as possible because they can contribute to hypercoagulation in some people, and they're already proven unhealthy anyway so I figure it can only benefit me to avoid them.

I've been taking large doses of folic acid for the last year or so (I, too, read about that being helpful in preventing some miscarriages) and while it obviously hasn't prevented them for me, I feel better than if I weren't taking it!!

I am also taking herbal progesterone via Welcome Womb along with bioidentical progesterone cream. I used the cream with DD1 (after 2 miscarriages, though used it with one of those too) as well and while my progesterone wasn't even low at the time, it did reassure me. I eventually got into my OB and got on suppositories so I wasn't paying nearly $30 for each tube/bottle of cream, but after reading some more (here's one article that I liked- http://bioidenticalprogesterone.info/miscarriage.html....also really important info on finding creams that do not have phytoestrogens!) I think I'll stick with the cream this time. But I am only *hoping* it helps, as progesterone hasn't been a huge problem for me in the past, and I don't know for certain if I have clotting issues, so I'm just doing what I can with the supplements and praying that they might help!

[JENinOR]

Thanks for sharing your experience! It's good to share...we can't all afford lots of tests!! I know my body makes vb lots of antibodies, hence my food allergy, condom, and other allergies. It makss sense for me to try the baby aspifin...it'sthe not the best for the gi tract, but its not like ill be taking it long term and its a small dose...the benefits outweigh the risks to me right now. We all have to what wefeel is best and that looks diff. for everyons!!!! After 8 miscarriages, 6 b4 my first ds and two after my last ds...my dh is excited for me to try it, too. He is just amazed that such a little thing can make such a diff. One thing about vit. E...too much can cause the placenta to deeply inbed into theuterus and cause probs...i have an aqaintance who downs the stuff...6 kids...lots of serious placenta issues, but I haven't mentioned the possibleconnection cause she knows it all and wouldnt want me to share :P...oh, well! I doubt you take as much as her though!!!!

http://www.naturallyhealthy.org/askshonda2.php

Q. My husband and I had our second child one month ago, a beautiful baby boy. I had a home birth again, and, again, I hemorrhaged. With my first birth, I hemorrhaged (we think) because the placenta detached early. This time the placenta ripped off of the uterine wall and practically chased Javan out. My mother-in-law said that when the head came out, she could see the placenta right next to it. Both times I had to stay in bed and then basically sit for a week. I know that you need rest after a birth, but I want my recovery time to be from birth itself, not from hemorrhaging every time. Is there anything thing preventative that I can do or take so that it won't happen the next time? During my pregnancy, I took prenatals, calcium/magnesium and zinc tabs, vitamin E, and I took the Labor Prep for 5 weeks before the birth. Should I add to or take away any of these? Thank you for your time, and thank you for your wonderful books. The Lord is using you in a mighty way. Your family is blessed to have you!
In Him,
Jennifer 

A. Jennifer, I am sorry your recoveries have been difficult. Hemorrhage can certainly make for a longer recovery time for mom. I would encourage you to reconsider taking zinc tablets in addition to your prenatal. Most prenatals have an adequate amount of zinc, and too much zinc can actually depress the immune system. This is unlikely to have caused your hemorrhages, but it would still be a good idea not to overdo a good thing. As long as your total vitamin E intake does not exceed 800-1,000 IU daily, I would be concerned about that nutrient either. In fact, excessive vitamin E tends to make the placenta more difficult for the body to release as it helps it embed so firmly (sometimes too deeply) in the uterine lining. My concern has more to do with your daily diet rather than the nutritional supplements you have been taking as well as evaluating maternal blood flow to your placenta. The biggest factor in placental health has to do with mom’s diet if a maternal blood flow problem can be ruled out. If you saved the placenta(s), you could send them for evaluation to Dr. Carolyn Salafia, M.D. at EarlyPath Consulting Services, www.earlypath.com . Dr. Salafia was very instrumental in helping me figure out the problem with my last pregnancy as well as giving some indication for my repeated miscarriages. As to your diet, I would recommend you keep a one-week food diary, then order our Naturally Healthy Daily Exchange System packet here on our website. Then, evaluate your diet with the ideal and see where you might make changes to prepare for the next pregnancy. I’m assuming your midwife responded quickly to your hemorrhage with either herbs or pitocin. I do know that HemHalt formula by TriLight Herbs (www.trilightherbs.com or 1-800-HERB-KID) is very effective if given immediately after the birth to decrease blood loss.

[1babysmom]

Oh yeah, I am definitely aware of that. :)  I plan on stopping the vitamin E all together at some point later on.  For me the benefits- at this point anyway- far outweigh the risk.  I feel more comfortable with it than the baby aspirin though, so it work out. :)  (plus my bloodwork showed I have a moderate allergic reaction to aspirin, which I didn't find out until into my pregnancy last time where I was already taking it and didn't want to stop)
 

Originally Posted by JENinOR 

Thanks for sharing your experience! It's good to share...we can't all afford lots of tests!! I know my body makes vb lots of antibodies, hence my food allergy, condom, and other allergies. It makss sense for me to try the baby aspifin...it'sthe not the best for the gi tract, but its not like ill be taking it long term and its a small dose...the benefits outweigh the risks to me right now. We all have to what wefeel is best and that looks diff. for everyons!!!! After 8 miscarriages, 6 b4 my first ds and two after my last ds...my dh is excited for me to try it, too. He is just amazed that such a little thing can make such a diff. One thing about vit. E...too much can cause the placenta to deeply inbed into theuterus and cause probs...i have an aqaintance who downs the stuff...6 kids...lots of serious placenta issues, but I haven't mentioned the possibleconnection cause she knows it all and wouldnt want me to share :P...oh, well! I doubt you take as much as her though!!!!
http://www.naturallyhealthy.org/askshonda2.php

Q. My husband and I had our second child one month ago, a beautiful baby boy. I had a home birth again, and, again, I hemorrhaged. With my first birth, I hemorrhaged (we think) because the placenta detached early. This time the placenta ripped off of the uterine wall and practically chased Javan out. My mother-in-law said that when the head came out, she could see the placenta right next to it. Both times I had to stay in bed and then basically sit for a week. I know that you need rest after a birth, but I want my recovery time to be from birth itself, not from hemorrhaging every time. Is there anything thing preventative that I can do or take so that it won't happen the next time? During my pregnancy, I took prenatals, calcium/magnesium and zinc tabs, vitamin E, and I took the Labor Prep for 5 weeks before the birth. Should I add to or take away any of these? Thank you for your time, and thank you for your wonderful books. The Lord is using you in a mighty way. Your family is blessed to have you!
In Him,
Jennifer 
A. Jennifer, I am sorry your recoveries have been difficult. Hemorrhage can certainly make for a longer recovery time for mom. I would encourage you to reconsider taking zinc tablets in addition to your prenatal. Most prenatals have an adequate amount of zinc, and too much zinc can actually depress the immune system. This is unlikely to have caused your hemorrhages, but it would still be a good idea not to overdo a good thing. As long as your total vitamin E intake does not exceed 800-1,000 IU daily, I would be concerned about that nutrient either. In fact, excessive vitamin E tends to make the placenta more difficult for the body to release as it helps it embed so firmly (sometimes too deeply) in the uterine lining. My concern has more to do with your daily diet rather than the nutritional supplements you have been taking as well as evaluating maternal blood flow to your placenta. The biggest factor in placental health has to do with mom’s diet if a maternal blood flow problem can be ruled out. If you saved the placenta(s), you could send them for evaluation to Dr. Carolyn Salafia, M.D. at EarlyPath Consulting Services, www.earlypath.com . Dr. Salafia was very instrumental in helping me figure out the problem with my last pregnancy as well as giving some indication for my repeated miscarriages. As to your diet, I would recommend you keep a one-week food diary, then order our Naturally Healthy Daily Exchange System packet here on our website. Then, evaluate your diet with the ideal and see where you might make changes to prepare for the next pregnancy. I’m assuming your midwife responded quickly to your hemorrhage with either herbs or pitocin. I do know that HemHalt formula by TriLight Herbs (www.trilightherbs.com or 1-800-HERB-KID) is very effective if given immediately after the birth to decrease blood loss.

[JENinOR]

Really good article explaining why clotting and antibiodies can form during preg. I learned so much! http://www.rialab.com/miscarriages_prevented.php

Eta. I learned what prednisone is for and why it works.

[zubeldia]

I haven't tried baby aspirin, but I was honestly very tempted but I just had a full panel recurrent miscarriage work-up done and nothing showed up that would indicate the need for a blood thinner. Mind you I am on prescription progesterone to see if this makes a difference. I'm hoping it does! I also take fairly high doses of folic acid, too.

Hoping so much for a rainbow baby.

[JENinOR]

Originally Posted by zubeldia 

I haven't tried baby aspirin, but I was honestly very tempted but I just had a full panel recurrent miscarriage work-up done and nothing showed up that would indicate the need for a blood thinner. Mind you I am on prescription progesterone to see if this makes a difference. I'm hoping it does! I also take fairly high doses of folic acid, too.

Hoping so much for a rainbow baby.

Zubeldia, I tried the baby aspirin and it made mmy tummy hurt!  I did talk to my dr. and my last prenatal blood workup...last miscarriage...didn't show any antibody concerns.  This along with the tummy pain made me too uneasy to keep taking it...although I have heard of moms taking BA despite good tests and feeling like that is what gave them a successful pregnancy.  I didn't realize that the blood draw that they take on your first prenatal showed antibody stuff.  I wonder if it's a thorough as what you had done?  I need to get to the lab to get my blood draw this pregnancy to make sure everything looks good, too.  Hoping for rainbow babies for us, too! 

[zubeldia]

Jen, I don't know about the blood work. I had some testing done through my RE and I think it was different. I did talk to the nurse today about aspirin and she said it couldn't hurt so I think I will try it. It's just a nerve wracking time. How are you doing?

[aprilshower]

I'm using compounded progesterone suppositories 100mg, 2x/day, 81 mg aspirin/day, 4000mcg folinic/day, 1000mcg methyl B-12/day, and 50mg B-6/day.

I have a history of low progesterone.

With ds3, I used the cream but my level was never that high.  Still, we had no problems.

With my 4th (loss) pregnancy, I was using the cream - but it essentially did nothing for me.  My progesterone dropped on it.  I used the suppositories with that pregnancy, but I started much too late.  Even so, my progesterone increased pretty well on the suppositories while it had not with the cream.

I had MTHFR bloodwork done in 2006, essentially because I'm an autism mom (my oldest has autism) and autism families tend to have MTHFR mutations.  I have homozygous C677T, which is the worst and linked to miscarriage.  But I've never had high homocysteine, and it seems that the mutation plus high homocysteine is much more dangerous than just the mutation alone.  I have never had a miscarriage prior to my 4th pregnancy, and I find that a bit puzzling.  I never before have addressed my MTHFR issue in pregnancy but am for the first time - thus the above supplements.

For anyone with MTHFR, it is better to take folinic than folic - as MTHFR people don't process folic well but do absorb folinic.

I've been in conflict with whether I want to do anything further such as injections, and I think I'm deciding against it. 

I'm trying very hard to be peaceful and welcoming to my baby.  Its hard to not be scared, though.

[MacKinnon]

I also have MTHFR, although I have a heterozygous mutation and years later I forget which. I have had three losses, and after the third, they did the blood work. My next pregnancy, which resulted in DD2 in September 2010, they put me on aspirin, plus high doses of folic acid, B6 and B12 and progesterone. I began that regimen again as soon as I found out I was pregnant this time, and so far, so good. Previously, I had a loss in between each of my full term pregnancies, so I somehow felt this pregnancy was doomed, although I know that is not true in any logical way.

[ErinL 34]

JenINor, thank you for all the links/information

My history includes 5 m/c (all ranging from 5 weeks to 11.5 weeks) - so at this point I would love if I could get some answers.

I am still waiting for my genetic testing to come back (my OB said it would take about 6months) - so this month I should hear something.

We are with a fertility clinic and was prescribed progesterone suppositories twice a day and baby aspirin.

My doctor said that studies are all controversial but it doesn't hurt to try.

I have been charting my basal temperature for the past 6 months. We are now 6 weeks pregnant (based on ovulation date) - and I am still taking the baby aspirin and progesterone.

I have an ultrasound next week to see if everything is going as expected.

So, although it appears that there is no answers/conclusion for baby apirin - it must still do something to our bodies that 'lessens' the chances of miscarriages?