D&C and covid

[Everybodyfednobodydead]

I was wondering if anyone knew if hospitals are still offering surgical management during lockdown.
I had a mmc in January last year. Ended up in a&e a couple of weeks after medical management due to excessive bleeding from retained products. I was given a second lot of medication and sent home. The bleeding had stopped before I had the medication and never started again. I rang epu 2 weeks later to tell them and they said to wait another week and take a hpt. The next day at work I started bleeding heavy again. Through my pad and through my scrubs. I found the whole experience very traumatic and sank into a deep deep depression afterwards (I have bipolar 2)
I then conceived again and had a natural mc in October. Conceived straight away and seen a hb at 6 weeks scan. Unfortunately another scan at 10 weeks showed no hb or growth and I have an appointment at epu tomorrow. I really do not want medical management again. It just doesn't work well for me. I'm worried I'll be fobbed off because of covid. My partner is not allowed with me and in the state I'm in right now I'm not confident I can stand up for myself. I have 2 children at home off school and can't bear to go through the pain and bleeding with them at home. Any advice would be appreciated

Sorry that was a lot longer and more rambled than I wanted

I am so sorry to read what you went through abs are still going through. I had a MMC over the summer and I was offered all the options including surgical management with either local or full anaesthetic. Wishing you the best of luck.

I'm sorry to hear you've been through it yourself. Thank you for your reply. It's given me some reassurance

Sorry you are going through this. I had surgical management this Friday after a MMC. The hospital were really good.

@Everybodyfednobodydead so sorry for what you are going through. On the support thread on here there are quite a number of ladies who have had surgery in the last 2 weeks so definitely still an option. Wishing you best of luck xx

Thank you. I've just had my appointment. Didn't go well. The scan showed baby had died a good few weeks ago. Due to the size I have to wait 10 days for another scan despite me telling them it's impossible for it to be a new pregnancy as I have only had sex once the day I conceived. There is no chance my dates were wrong.
They also don't offer surgical management due to covid. It's so unfair I have to wait. I've had no pain or bleeding so can't see it happening naturally. I just want it to be over

Hi my daughter is in a similar situation, she went for her 10 week scan on Thursday (14th January). She was told that the baby died 5 weeks ago and they were so sorry! She hasn’t had any bleeding or cramps and she said it was so rushed due to the COVID that they had to hurry out of the building. She wasn’t offered any after care , medical treatment or anything! As a mother I’m furious that they have left my daughter in this way ! It was her first pregnancy and she hasn’t got a clue what to do next ?

I am so sorry OP. That sounds horrible. It's probably a long shot but you could try another trust. I was very unhappy with the care in my original hospital so I referred myself to King's where I got much better care.

Id ask to be referred to another trust due to your mental health and the impact of having to have natural or medical management. I had surgery under GA for MMC quite recently so most are doing them

I'm sorry to hear about all of your experiences. I rang epu about being referred to a different trust. The person I spoke to was quite abrupt and rude and said there'd be no point as it's the welsh guidelines that I need to be scanned again before any treatment options can start. She also said she highly doubts my next nearest hospital will offer a d&c aswell.
She then said basically I need to wait it out and the shock of knowing may encourage things to start on their own soon. I can't see that happening. I have no pain or spotting and still have pregnancy symptoms. My body just seems unable to recognise what's going on. I'm so upset and frustrated

@Everybodyfednobodydead hi, I'm so sorry for your loss and the frustrating treatment you're recieving.

I had something similar where a scan showed missed miscarriage (7th Jan) but due to there being a fetal pole, they wanted to wait one more week to officially make the diagnosis. I had only had sex once to conceive so I should have been 8+3 at that scan, but was measuring 6 weeks. I went back in on the 14th and scan confirmed the pregnancy hadn't progressed past the 6 weeks point and fetal pole still had no heartbeat.

Having to wait the extra week when I knew without a shadow of a doubt that my pregnancy was over was just horrendous so I really do feel your pain! The limbo of knowing my pregnancy was over but not getting any help for it was just awful.

I can't offer any help other than to distract yourself as much as possible whilst you wait.

I had an MVA on the 14th, they started the process right after my scan. An MVA is the surgical option but under local anaesthetic - more trusts seem to be offering this option as you don't have to wait for a negative Covid test before you come in for it.

If you want any more details about MVA in case that's one of the options you're offered I'll be happy to answer any questions x

@LauraT94 thank you for your reply I'm so sorry you have experienced this to. "Fortunately" for lack of a better word I started bleeding very heavy 2 nights ago. Epu have now cancelled my scan appointment and have said to take a test in 3 weeks and to contact them if positive. I'm a bit upset as I've had retained products before but that time the bleeding was no where near as bad so I am hoping it's all complete.
In a way I feel relieved now. My pregnancy symptoms have stopped and now I feel I can move on. I do wish women had more support for this. I understand the reasons for the guidelines but like you I only had sex once so there was no way I could've been earlier. We should be trusted that we know our bodies but then I suppose a lot of women have had better outcomes. I hope you're feeling as ok as can be

@Everybodyfednobodydead oh I'm so sorry 😢💐

I can understand the fear about retained products. After my MVA I started to suffer contractions. I spent a few days in and out of hospital, begging for painkillers. They gave me an emergency scan and told me my uterus was empty and that the pain would just go away. Two days later after more intense cramps I passed a load of clots and tissue at home! Luckily the pain disappeared very quickly after that and my bleeding has all but disappeared.

I understand that might not be the story you want you hear right now but just so you know that it's normal and that EPU/scan right now wouldn't necessarily help in any way.

Definitely fight for stronger painkillers if you feel you need them - I was eventually prescribed 30mg codeine phosphate and that's the only thing that's helped me.

And I can totally understand the feeling of relief now that it's over ❤️

We have a MC/MMC support thread if/when you feel ready to come and join. Everyone has different stories and I've personally found it really helpful to read through xx

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/miscarriage/4139555-Support-thread-for-those-experiencing-or-recently-experienced-a-MC-MMC-Thread-2-ALL-welcome

@LauraT94 I'm sorry you experienced that it's frightening when you think it's all over. I haven't actually had as much pain as last year. But sadly maybe I'm more used to it now.
Thank you for the link. I'll have a read. I hope when you're ready you have your beautiful baby

Hi @Everybodyfednobodydead, sorry you are going through this. I am booked in for a surgical management tomorrow so they are definitely still going ahead however due to covid restrictions I will need to go alone and DH is unable to accompany me. I’m absolutely bricking it. I understand it’s the guidelines but just seems really cruel to make me do this by myself (this was my first pregnancy)