Anembryonic pregnancy at 10 weeks - advice/questions and what is erpc procedure?

[GentlyGentlyOhDear]

I had a private scan yesterday expecting to see a 10+1 foetus and sadly there was a sac measuring 2.5cm and nothing in there.
I'm quite shaken and shocked by it. I've managed to get a scan for Monday morning at the EPAU, but I'm just wondering what the procedure will be.

Will they make me wait and have another scan after Monday? I am certain of my dates, so really hoping they can confirm then and there if things are what they are supposed to be.

I am really scared about miscarrying naturally - I am very squeamish and can't stand gore and found childbirth quite traumatic, so I'm just on edge that something is going to happen.

I think I will opt for the surgical method, but Ive never had a general anaesthetic or operation before and this concerns me.
What happens when I go into hospital for the op? Do I have to be nil by mouth the night before? Will I have to hang around in hospital until the op time or do I just go straight in and have it.
How long are you out for?
What if I have a bad reaction to the anaesthetic - can they give things to counter this?
Will I have a big hormone crash afterwards?
Will I be sore afterwards?

Sorry lots of questions, but just wondering about the practicalities and trying to ease my anxiety.

[jazzyjenbo]

Sending you hugs, this was me in January and it us truly awful, i was ment to b 10 weeks, sac measured at 10 weeks but was empty.

I opted for medical management which was the right route for me, didnt want an op.

Lots of ladies in hear hav been though this so u are not alone.

Afterwards yes u will hav a hormone crash and will feel very emotional, upset, angry.. All very normal. It only really hit me a week after mc. And now 3 mths on am ttc again and although my little one is in my mind everyday, i also have to focus ob the future. You will to given time x

[NiSaBula]

Sorry to hear your news Gently, I had a mmc nearly 17 years ago, it was a big shock to find out I had miscarried, I thought miscarriages involved blood and pain. But, the erpc was fine. I had never had a GA or even been in hospital. I bled a bit afterwards, but don't remember any pain or discomfort. I got to the hospital in the afternoon and had the op at about 6pm, I think I was out for about an hour. In a weird way the anaesthetic was quite restful and it felt like a really good night's sleep. I went home the next day. It was an emotional time but I got through it and went on to have 2 dds. Sending un-mumsnetty hugs at this sad time.

[officelady]

I am sorry to read you are going through this, Gently. I had a similar experience last month, went for a private scan at 10 weeks and saw an empty sac on the monitor. They think the baby stopped developing by 6 weeks so there was just a tiny "fetal pole" visible to the sonographer.
I had to wait 10 days for a scan at EPU because the protocol where I live is that they want to be absolutely certain that your dates are correct (even though I hadn't actually had sex since I conceived so I knew the dates were correct). I suppose this is to rule out the possibility that it was a more recent pregnancy and then a heartbeat or some growth would be visible 10 days later. As it happened, I miscarried naturally in the days leading up to the second scan. It was awful but not as bad as I had feared. I actually carried on going to work throughout, which looking back seems insane but it helped me cope.
If I hadn't miscarried naturally I would have opted for ERPC because I just needed it to be over and done with once I knew there was no hope.
I hope that it all works out okay for you in the future.

[GentlyGentlyOhDear]

Thanks for all of your replies. I'm just waiting to go to the hospital for the NHS scan at 11.30 and feel really sick.
I'll update later for anyone else who might end up going through this too.

[GentlyGentlyOhDear]

officelady if you don't mind me asking, how was the natural miscarriage? I'm just worried about seeing lots of blood and I'm also worried in case I faint or go dizzy or something gets stuck etc. I'm just such a wimp and worried full stop really!

[officelady]

Hi Gently - I hope your scan went ok this morning. My own experience was that the hospital staff were lovely and made a horrible process a little more bearable.
You asked about the miscarriage - one of the worst things is not knowing exactly when it will happen or what it will be like. Unfortunately everyone is different so I can only speak about my own experience but there is a good thread on here which has lots of people's advice and experiences on. I am glad I read it while I was in the limbo between the scan and the actual mc - it helped me to prepare mentally and physically. I stocked up on painkillers and sanitary towels (super absorbent massive ones). I wanted to try and kickstart things myself (not sure if any of this actually made a difference, but at least I felt I was doing SOMETHING). So I did loads of exercise, had hot baths, drank strong coffee and lots of wine. Basically all the things I had stopped doing when I was pregnant. A couple of days later I had some light bleeding which turned heavier over the next few days. I did have quite bad cramping, especially at night, and I had 2 days when the bleeding was a lot heavier than a period (changing towels every hour or so for a few hours). But I didn't "see" lots of blood, only a few biggish clots, the rest was absorbed by the towel or went straight down the toilet. The worst bit was passing the sac which was not painful at all physically but emotionally was tough to see. I was warned that I might feel sick or dizzy or have heavy blood loss and pain, but I was "lucky" and managed fine. If you do end up opting to wait for it to happen naturally, is there someone who can stay with you in case things get tricky? And definitely make sure you've got plenty of paracetamol/nurofen etc and STs with you at all times. I definitely wanted to stay close to home and really only left the house to go to work. I work in an office with a toilet right next to it, had I been working anywhere different I probably wouldn't have felt "safe" to go back to work.
Anyway I have rambled on long enough. Good luck whatever you decide to do.

[GentlyGentlyOhDear]

Thanks for your reply officelady.
The scan confirmed an empty sac so I've opted for the erpc on Wednesday. I don't think I will sleep until then!

The nurse took bloods and did the pre-op assessment and explained that I need to arrive at 8am on Wednesday, the doctors check through the info and then I am just waiting until theatre is free to be taken down. I'll be out for about 15mins and then get wheeled into the recovery room and then back up to the ward where I have to stay for a couple of hours.
Oh well, it's all under way now and once it's over I can stop thinking about it!

[GentlyGentlyOhDear]

Just a final update for the thread.

I had my erpc yesterday and all went well. The staff were wonderful and the anaesthetic was fine - just a bit tired afterwards but no nausea or anything (I did ask for extra anti-sickness meds though!).

I woke up from the anaesthetic crying and have a vague memory of someone asking me what was wrong and I remember crying 'I want a baby' . I think I fell asleep again then as woke up with a tissue in my hand and a very attentive nurse watching over me. Not sure if the crying incident actually happened, but I'm pretending it didn't!

I did have some strong stabby cramp pains last night, but the hospital gave me codeine and paracetamol to takeaway and a couple of tablets and a hot water bottle later and I was fine. I'm fine this morning and have bleeding a bit like a heavy (for me) period, but it's tailing off.

If you are rhesus negative, remember to ask for anti-d. I got given the jab just before I left hospital. Lovely little souvenir!

Thanks to all the ladies who have replied to me on this thread and to to everyone whose posts and threads I read. It really helped me get through the waiting and anxiety.