Confirmed miscarriage, what happens next?

[ame1988]

Hi,

I had a private scan at Ultrasound Direct on Saturday after a week of bleeding and it was confirmed that I'm having a miscarriage at about 7 weeks. I had intense cramping last week with lots of clots but the sonographer told me that I have yet to pass the actual pregnancy which is sitting near the top of my cervix.

I have an NHS scan booked for two days from now, but hoping to pass it before then as I just feel unable to move on from it without the miscarriage being complete.

I'm wondering if anyone has had experience of expectant management and how long it took? She advised that the pregnancy should pass in the next couple of days all being well but I haven't had any more cramping or clots 24 hours after the scan, just more bleeding and I'm concerned that something's wrong. If it hasn't passed by my NHS scan, is it reasonable to ask for misoprostol?

Sorry for the questions, this is my first miscarriage.

I'm so sorry you're going through this, I think the best advice will be at your next appointment from your midwife. This limbo land is horrifically hard and no one ever tells you about it. I hope you have a good support network.

So sorry to hear this. I had this type of miscarriage last summer at 9 weeks, where the embro was still inside.

Mine was confirmed at an NHS early pregnancy unit, and I was given three options: expectant management (this wasn't recommended for me as my symptoms and bleeding had started to decrease), medical management (pills), or surgery. I opted for medical management, and was asked to take one pill in the hospital and another at home later on. I was given codeine to take if I needed it.

My miscarriage happened very soon after arriving home (this isn't always the case), and I won't lie, it was physically very painful. Of course, it is emotionally very painful too. But I'm glad I didn't choose expectant management, as I just wanted it over and done with.

I would hope that the NHS would give you all of these options if you are likely to need them, and they should clearly explain the pros and cons of each.

Thank you, @ZoeQ90 Unfortunately I don't have any appointments scheduled with the midwife and when I emailed her to tell her she only replied with 'Thanks for letting me know, sorry to hear the news,' which was disappointing but not surprising after the week I've had trying to get advice and help from my GP, the EPU, and my midwife.

I am very appreciative of the NHS but I see now why Northampton's maternity services scored a 'Requires Improvement.' I was very fortunate that I could afford a private scan at a licensed clinic and feel really sad for those who cannot.

Thank you, @Miller2021 This is exactly what I hope will happen. My symptoms have decreased in that I haven't had any cramping for two and a half days now though I am still bleeding.

I don't have a lot of faith in the EPU in Northampton but hoping they will give me the options. When I went in a week ago after starting to bleed and losing pregnancy symptoms I was told repeatedly by the nurse who scanned me that I needed to not think about my symptoms but instead just think positive thoughts for a good outcome. She refused to give me any actual medical advice aside from a pamphlet on threatened miscarriage that she handed to me as she ushered me out of the unit, which was confusing and surprising as she had refused to discuss the possibility of miscarriage, so you can see my concern!

Like you I just want to be over and done with it so will push for the medical management. I have a wedding to attend this weekend and I'm terrified of passing the pregnancy then.

Thank you again, this really gave me insight as to what I should expect or can at least ask for.

@Miller2021 And I'm so sorry you also went through this - it's so much more physically traumatic than I expected and I wish none of us had to go through it.

@ZoeQ90 It sounds like you've also gone through this and I'm really sorry. The limbo is so hard and like you said nobody tells you about it. I feel like miscarriage care is really lacking, and that I was just suddenly dropped by my midwife because I'm no longer having a viable pregnancy.

I felt so uncared for during my miscarriage. The impression I got was obviously they can't save baby so they don't care what's going on there and if I'm not bleeding to death, they don't care about me either. Mental well-being clearly didn't factor into the management at all. I also had to go private for confirmation. It sucks.

@ZoeQ90 Exactly that! EPU told me to go to A&E if I started having clots and intense cramping, so I went because I had both and the cramping was so bad I could hardly stand. They told me that since I wasn't hemorrhaging they couldn't do anything but it 'sounded like a miscarriage' and they sent me away. I left the A&E doctor's office crying and feeling completely hopeless.

@ame1988 I am so sorry you had to go through that too. I honestly struggled more with getting over the process and my experience with a&e (away from home so no epu) for the first week or so than the loss.

I'm so sorry you did as well, and I feel exactly the same about getting over the experience with A&E/NHS. The lack of care or concern for my mental wellbeing has left me in shock and I just couldn't stop crying last week because nobody would help. I was only even able to get a private scan because we found one single appointment a county over and drove 2 hours to get there. Everything else was booked out for nearly two weeks in our area so I'm assuming a lot of women are having some issues being seen by the NHS.

Hi, I had a scan which confirmed I was having a miscarriaged however tissue was stuck in my cervix so I had to wait 2 weeks and go back for a rescan to see if had passed however it’s broken apart and gone to either side of my cervix so they offered to give me the mananged medication to try help remove this it’s been a day now & im still bleeding really heavy and having intense pain in my stomach to the point I can’t really move or stand with out feeling lightheaded and sick. Is there any advice or does anyone know what’s best for me to do from here x

Hi @Annaxo - I’m so sorry to hear you’re going through this. I think that you should go to A&E with your symptoms and explain how long you’ve now had tissue stuck in your cervix and that you’re not sure if it’s passed. I’m sorry that I don’t have any better advice than that and that miscarriages are so challenging to navigate in the UK.