Just found out I had a MMC - what happens now?

[icklemssunshine1]

Hi all,

Started a thread yesterday debating whether I had a MMC or whether my dates were wrong. Anyway I had a transvaginal scan today & no foetus was detected. As a heartbeat was spotted last week they want to scan me again in a week's time as a doctor wouldn't do anything with being 100% sure. I knew my dates were correct - my last LMP was 4/12 yet at scan last week the foetus was only 6 weeks.

What I want to know is what should I expect now? Will I miscarry naturally or what are the alternatives?

Any advice would be gratefully received.

earlypregnancy.org.uk/FindUsMap.asp

I have created all kinds of trouble for my school now! Someone in my dept is leaving in July so school decided to interview early to get good candidates. The interviews were last week so I told my HoD I was pregnant so they could employ someone for a year on a temp contract - which they did - our current PGCE student :( I feel awful now :(

I don't know what to do regarding scan. My GP said if there's no foetus they make not offer me surgery. I really just want it over with now. The thought of carrying an empty sac (or even worse) is making me sick. Might get my DH to call later, I haven't got the energy now. Think I'll go to school Mon & just let everyone know I may have to leave at a second'a notice & then the ball's in their court whether they want to let me in front of a class or not. Don't know what age group you teach but I'm worrying about how the time off will affect my A-level & GCSE groups which I know is stupid as I should be focussing on me.

Big sigh!! Thanks for the link (& your support when you should be taking care of yourself!)

Your husband calling is a good idea - the GP sounds like he has no idea - I was only measuring 7 weeks and they still did the surgery - a consultant will help you just hope you get seen ASAP - don't worry about school, things change all the time someone else may come back and hand in notice etc - the exam children will be fine - if you have energy this weekend just have your planning/cover ready so you don't have to worry about it at all if/when you need time away -

Right, here goes! LandsN, congrats, I'm sure feeling different is good, this time I never really felt preg which I guess was the first sign something was up.
Ickle glad the mw got back to you although she was useless, not really sure what your GP was on about though! If it were me I wouldn't go in on mon, all I've been able to think about is suddenly bleeding loads while out, which thankfully hasn't happened! Right now you need to look after yourself. I guess I'm lucky as I am high risk so already under a consultant and have got an appt for right after the scan on tues. although the bleeding is getting heavier now and the cramping worse the nurse was useless, she spent most of the time trying to work out if I needed another scan even though I told her I had one booked and that I didn't want another one, just a bit of advice/reassurance! She basically said go home and wait till tues and only take paracetamol so I don't harm the baby, there is no baby stupid woman! Agh! I think I'm going to have to wait it out now in terms of medical/surgical options, the same things that make me high risk in preg make surgery more complicated and now it's started I don't know if medical management would benefit me,
Dora, hope you are looking after yourself and have some time off work too, I'm not at all envious of your drugs! luckily I'm on annual leave so I guess that is one worry less! All round I think

Sounds like you've had a horrendous 24 hours in terms of medical professionals too! Feel like screaming! I know they have to follow certain procedures but I also know my body! I just hope I get to see a consultant after my scan Weds as I really don't want to wait any longer. The waiting is terrible, every little twinge I'm thinking 'is this it?' Just want to get out & do normal things but, like you, afraid something could start any minute. Guess DD's trip to the safari park will be postponed again :( Would love a glass of wine but then I think 'am I betraying the baby?' Then again there is no baby :( On the positive I've really appreciated all the support on here, feel I can be totally honest. IRL find I'm putting on a front as not to upset people. My MIL visited yesterday & she was in tears, I ended up comforting her!

Dora hope you've had a better night'a sleep, I'd really consider at least a week from work. Our job is stressful enough.

Mrs, hope the pain has subsided somewhat. Keep me updated.

Big hugs to you both :)

Didn't want to read the thread without unit saying anything. So sorry for your loss and also to everyone else going through the same on this thread. I had a MMC last year and opted for an ERPC but I was told that if I didn't want to go through the surgical route then I could take tablets to speed things up.
Big hugs to you x

Thank you Charl. I def want the surgery, think it'll be a quicker process physically. That's why I'm worried about starting to miscarry naturally, it's an unknown to how long it'll last. So sorry you had to go through this. It's terrible so many of us are but the support is amazing :)

Sorry I've not posted sooner, cramping is awful, bleeding like a period now spoke to gp earlier as I was crying in pain, he agreed it sounded like a mmc, finally! And rang the hosp for some advice for me! Got some stronger painkillers and the number for the ward to ring if I need anything before scan on tues, am so glad I managed to speak to someone who listened to me and agreed with me about the mmc phew! Ickle def go for surgery, this is more painful than the section for DS!! Anyway, I feel so much better now I have a number to ring, hope everyone else is ok and looking after themselves, sainsburys have half price cookies atm!!

Sorry to hear of everyone's losses.
OP I was exactly where you are over Xmas after my MMC was discovered at 12 wk scan on Xmas eve. The limbo/waiting was horrible. I ended up ringing the EPAU where I was due to go back in for the repeat scan and asking them to book me in the same day as my scan for an ERPC - like you I was certain of my dates and knew there was no baby. They were very sympathetic and did book me in, and the ERPC itself was fine. Do insist they give you cautionary antibiotics.
I wanted to post because you are clearly worrying a lot about work, and I wanted to give you a heads up that you perhaps need to prepare for taking some time off. I rushed back to work too soon out of a sense of responsibility to others and it was a massive mistake - emotionally I did not give myself the rest and the break that I needed, and physically I underestimated how much it would wipe me out. Please try to put work to one side and take a couple of weeks off - I don't think you should be going in tomorrow to be honest. This is a major life event, you need to put yourself first and look after yourself otherwise your recovery might take much longer. I wish you well.

Thanks for your reply & your advice. Sorry for your loss :( I rang gynaecology outpatients this morning after reading your post & I have been provisionally booked in for an EPRC after my scan on Weds. Finally feel like something is being done - thank you! I haven't gone to work but feel really guilty although I know that's totally irrational! Feeling at a but of a loose end at the moment :(

How are you feeling today Mrs?

Ickle I am glad to hear both those things. My counsellor, when I was telling her about how I was still marking essays the day after my ERPC because I felt too guilty to pass them on to colleagues, asked me the question 'so why were you putting your colleagues above yourself, and looking after them rather than looking after you?' I have been mulling that over all week. My experience was that I tried very hard to soldier on when I should have taken time off properly, and then that caused my body and my brain to force me to stop which was very hard, and I think has prolonged my recovery. So maybe worth thinking that, for the sake of your team as well as yourselft if you want to be reliably back at work and at full capacity later this term, you need to take time off now and properly rest. I don't want to alarm you, but you need to be prepared to feel floored later even if you feel fine now - it can be very up and down - and I needed this saying to me several hundred times for it to sink in!

Ickle - I hope everything goes ok on Wednesday will be thinking of you -

X

Ickle glad you've got some time off work and that you're booked in for wed, I'm feeling a lot better today thanks, scan tomorrow so will see what it shows, even though I'm bleeding I've not passed many clots so I'm a bit worried they might want to operate, just have to wait and see, I'll let you know what they say. Hope you're taking it easy

Thanks for all the kind words, trying to look after myself (& not feel guilty!). My DD has picked up yet another virus from nursery so have been up all night, praying for some sleep tonight. Not possible to tell a 19 month old that mummy needs some rest!

Quod/dora (if you don't mind me asking) how did you feel after your surgerys? dora I know from your posts that you felt quite unwell, are you feeling any better? I know I shouldn't be thinking of work but I know they would like a guide to when I'll be back.

Mrs I really hope physically it'll be over for you soon. Can't believe it's almost been a week since I first posted & you replied. Feels an eternity :( keep looking after yourself :)

Me too, thanks, if it were me I'd tell work I'm having a few weeks off and then if you're able to go back sooner thats a bonus, I'm not thinking about work at the mo, except the fact they didn't pay me this month

Ickle - physically I was surprised how ok I felt immediately afterwards - then slowly I think it all hit and I did feel quite poorly over the weekend - pain and increased bleeding - and a bit of a low level temp -

But having rested properly the pain has gone and bleeding much less (day 5)

Mentally still very active dreams/mind at night so not sleeping - very sad and physically I look (not just being dramatic) very very pale and poorly - washed out -

I am not sure if that helps -

The procedure was fine - I remember the clock being 10 pm when I was being put to sleep and just before 11 when I woke in recovery - I cried all the time in the hospital, literally did nt stop all the way to theatre and afterwards and on discharge and the staff were all very very kind -

I agree with a previous poster if you book 10 to 14 days away from work and then you may go back earlier but it gives you that time that is needed to physically repair and have lots of duvet days to mentally have time for yourself -

Ickle, I felt remarkably OK after the ERPC, groggy from the anaesthetic and a bit weak but not too bad. HOWEVER, this lulled me into a false sense of security that I was 'fine'. I had the op on the Monday and by Friday thought I was well enough to go out all day and all evening. Early hours of Saturday morning I developed a really high fever and ended up in out-of-hours being prescribed very strong ABs for an infection,. It turns out I had residual tissue which I subsequently passed at home, but I really really think it was the going out which tipped my body into infection territory, and it was the infection and treating it which really wiped me out. The consultant I saw afterwards was quite surprised I hadn't been given precautionary ABs after my ERPC - this is why I am recommending that you insist on some. And why I am advocating taking it easy for longer than you might feel is necessary. If I was your doctor, to be on the safe side I'd say you should definitely take 10 days off and not go back to work until at least 2 weeks today if you are having an ERPC on Wednesday.

I should add that I don't want to scare you, I think both residual tissue and infection after ERPC are quite rare (and both easily treated) but my point being that you shouldn't take any risks, and as Dora says, be prepared to feel worse a week after the ERPC than the day after, it's a lot for your body to go through, and I think the hormone crash also contributes to leaving you feeling wiped out.

Thanks all for your honesty. I'm one of these people who had to know ALL the facts even if it can be frightening; somehow feel calmer & much more prepared. Will let work know I could be out up to two weeks then to be on safe side. I'm going to have to write down a list of questions to ask consultant Weds - they won't know what's hit them when I take out my pad & pen!! Any advice on things I need to but re painkillers and sanitary pads (type)?

I just had dark tracksuit bottoms/pjs with me about 4 clean ones and a dressing gown as when you are in the gown waiting to go down and afterwards the dressing gown helps - I got back to the ward at about midnight and was desperate to get out of the gown which was stained - my bp was too low for them to want me to go to the loo but I asked again and as the rest of the ward was sleeping they helped and I felt so much better when in my own clothes, by the morning I had to change the trousers again - but then it settled down -

Exactly as (can't remember the name as on my phone) the pp said it was strange how ok I felt and like her I probably did too much and the got pain, temp etc - I did nt go to ooh but was very tempted as felt awful but really rested and feel ok this evening -

Have a massive headache and dreading sleep but all ok -

Just pack as if you are staying in Ben of day patient as there is a chance you may stay in - headphones and iPod/iPhone as the ward at night is pretty grim and even the daytime is quite depressing -

I also did nt eat while I was in but was glad I had Ribena/lucazade for when you can drink -

They recommend maternity towels but they had them there as I had not gone home -

Like previous poster I was shocked no antibiotics to go home with, it used to be standard but maybe one of those cuts, ask about it as I think getting them afterward is quite common-

For pain relief I had codeine in hospital and diclofenic at home but only needed it post 48hrs -

They will go through everything before they went through if this happens we will operate here and if this happens we will cut here - so in recovery I remember feeling my tummy to see if I had any cuts!

Keep asking and here if you need anything -

Sorry about typos - not even sure what Ben is meant to mean in the day ward bit! Sorry!

Ickle I am exactly the same about wanting to know things in advance.

For my ERPC I was in and out of the hospital in about 3 hours, and actually took far too much stuff - there was no point me putting my own dressing gown on as I was only in the hospital gown about 30 minutes before my op, and then I got changed back into my own clothes straight after I came round. The one thing that I wasn't prepared for was walking into the operating theatre (day surgery) and getting on the operating table myself - I thought I would be wheeled in for some reason! Everyone in the unit was incredibly nice to me and I felt very very well prepared.

Take some light snacks that you think you might fancy when you come round, otherwise it's rank hospital sandwiches only. You will need to be nil by mouth on Weds in preparation (hopefully they told you that) so may well be hungry. Leave your jewelry at home (they cover wedding rings with a plaster).

For the whole of my MC I bought 3 large packs of sanitary towels and I still have most of one pack left over. Normal heavy-duty pads were fine for me, the bleeding was rarely very heavy and I was mainly sitting on the sofa not doing anything active. I took paracetamol and ibuprofen together for the worst pain (which was just a few hours when I was expelling the tissue). Heat packs/hot water bottles are good, and lots of lightweight bumf to fill the hours on the sofa, your concentration may not be very long.

Thanks again both of you for advice - really appreciate it :) I had day surgery in Oct (tonsillectomy) so I was the same regarding walking to theatre etc. I wasn't released that day though as although had surgery around 12 the anaesthetic made me sick so I couldn't eat, therefore when I did eat at around 8 it was too late to go home. I'm going to take my overnight bag just in case. As I have a scan in morning ice been told to go with a full bladder but not to have anything else to drink after, I can have a light breakfast before 7. Phew! I'm terrible if I don't eat! Good idea about taking some food! Off to Asda today to buy supplies. Can't face buying maternity towels (dora don't know how you did that :( ) so I'll buy this thickest sanitary towel. Hopefully I can by on paracetamol & ibuprofen; I do have codeine left over from my tonsillectomy but that made me sick.

Thanks again for getting back to me. Will keep you updated.

Hi Ickle - I did nt buy the maternity pads they were in the ward loos already - nighttime sanitary towels have been fine - my husband bought all my stuff in as I did nt go home from the scan so he just followed my list! Anyway hope my badly written posts have made some sense!

Hope all goes well -

Actually dora I remember you saying that in one of your posts. Sorry! Got some nighttime pads in, plenty of puzzle books & a trashy crime thriller. (Plus loads of chocolate) All set I guess :-/