2 miscarriages in a row - advice on next steps

[OneDayHope]

Hi All, just looking for advice/opinions from those with experience. I’m 31 trying for first child. I had my first miscarriage, blighted ovum, in July last year, finally resolved in December with surgery. I then fell pregnant again this May, miscarried in June and needed surgery again in July to resolve remaining tissue. I’m in an area where it is a matter of needing to have 3 before potential referral but I’ve booked a telephone appointment to speak to my GP next week in the hope they can at least do some basic testing/blood work. Does anyone have experience of this? Or suggestions of what I should request when I speak to them?
I just need to feel like I’m doing as much as I can.
Sorry to all those who are in the same boat, success stories after 2 consecutive mc to bring a bit of cheer also welcome! X

So sorry for your losses hun it truly is the worst thing to experience. I have also had 2 MC’s, first in June 2023 and second May 2024. I did get generic blood testing and ultrasound done in Feb 2024 from GP as i wasnt getting pregnant & low and behold i did straight after that and then miscarried again. They said my tests were all normal & everything was fine on ultrasound too. I did speak to a GP at my surgery and asked for them to refer me to MC clinic/give me some councelling or support as I was petrified of having a MC again. Not to put you off but the experience was awful with her. No support, basically in so many words was telling me to go away have a 3rd before they would consider referring me. Its a good job I spoke to the EPU when having my second MC and advocated for myself as they took me seriously and referred me. Ive had extensive testing with them now & just awaiting results. Sorry its not a success story and we are very much in the midst of it all. Hope this give you a little comfort tht you are not alone🩷🩷

Hello, I’ve also had two recent miscarriages and have used my private healthcare for tests. They are testing my thyroid profile, vitamin D levels and doing thrombophilia screening. I know since having my private appointment that you can get the first two through your GP so you could ask for those. Sorry for your losses too x

Ive had four losses of various types and I did ask my GP to refer me to the fertility/miscarriage clinic after the second which they did without any argument so it’s worth asking. They should also be able to do some basic blood tests in the meantime to check your thyroid, vitamin D levels etc. I’m sorry you’re going through it for a second time, I know what you mean about feeling like you need to do something as I was the same.

As for success stories, I had DS then a blighted ovum, a MMC, then a loss at 20 weeks. I really thought it would never happen but I had DD almost exactly a year later. Don’t give up hope. I’ve had an early loss since DD and am now pregnant again but vv early days. I really hope your GP is supportive of you and you can get the ball rolling on some tests x

I’m sorry you’ve also been through 2 mc, I hope you’re doing ok. Thank you for sharing and good luck with all the tests! I’m sorry your GP was like that with you, I must admit I don’t have high hopes with mine but got to give it a go I guess. Pleased the EPU were supportive of you though. I found with my first they were so comforting and giving me hope that it wouldn’t happen again but when I was in for my 2nd I didn’t get any words of encouragement which ultimately got in my head and made me think there must be something wrong with me. It’s such a shame care isn’t consistent for something so heart breaking.
I wish you the best of luck for the future 💕

Thank you for sharing, I’ll definitely ask for those tests then.
I’m so sorry you’ve also had 2 losses, I hope you’re doing ok x

Thank you for sharing, gosh you’ve really been through it, I’m so sorry for your losses 💐but it’s also lovely to hear you have your 2 DC. Wishing you so much luck with the new pregnancy! X

So sorry for your losses. I'm 30 and have had two miscarriages too. I've decided to go private. I'm in Ireland and the public system investigates after 2 miscarriages but the waiting list is so long. Got my hormone bloods done today and have a consultation next week with a fertility doctor to try and get to the bottom of it. I feel like making the decision to go private for tests has helped me cope better with the losses, as I now have a plan. Hope you are doing ok ❤️ it's so hard xx

I’m sorry you’ve also gone through 2 losses, you can’t quite budge the feeling of something not being right after a second can you. I hope you make good progress with your consultation. Wishing you all the best 💞

I'm so sorry for your losses OP
I've lost 3, had rounds of IVF, no cause for sub-fertility found and no living children. I was told it was my old eggs! I started TTC at 32, so yes, I was older, but didn't think I was ancient at that stage! We TTC 12yrs.

Have you and your partner/DH had a fertility work up or any sort? Semen analysis, HSG or hycosy to check your tubes and uterus, STI screening, bloods for thyroid/anaemia, AMH to check egg count etc?
-I'd buy a copy of 'It starts with an egg'. I bought mine for about £2 off ebay. Some good tips on simple changes which 'might' help reduce toxins in your diet and increase your chances.
-Ensure you are a healthy BMI. Being overweight can really play havoc with hormones and impact fertility more than people might realise
-Sorry if this is TMI, and I obviously wouldn't want you to have a 3rd MC, but if your did, you could have the products of conception sent off for genetic testing. I bought a small, sterile jar from a pharmacy and when I had the 3rd MC, had it tested at the EPU. A result can't always be made, but mine did show a random, unlivable genetic issue.

-After my 2nd MC, the EPU said they'd be happy to see me at 7/8 weeks for an early scan if my GP referred me back to them (it can be different in different areas). The 3rd pregnancy was IVF, so I had a scan via that anyways, but its something to consider asking for in your 3rd pregnancy.
Happy to answer any questions you might have.

Just know that you aren't alone, and this isn't your fault xxx

Thank you for your advice,I’m sorry that you too had losses and feel for you TTC for 12 years, that must have been really tough 💞
We’ve not had any of those tests yet, I’m not sure if I’m mentally there yet so starting with baby steps speaking to the GP. That being said it’s all good to know as I think that’s the road we would go down if we have another loss.
I’m overall healthy, healthy BMI & diet, never smoked, only occasionally drink. I’m part way through ‘it starts with the egg’ and take folic, high strength vit D and Coq10, so generally feel I do everything within my immediate control.
Sorry again for what you’ve been through - I’d want to slap the person claiming you had old eggs at 32!
Thank you for your supportive words 💞

Just to update that I had the call with the GP, they said, as expected, it needs to be 3 mc to be eligible for any testing, but they can do bloods to test stuff like thyroid, kidneys, diabetes, liver x

That's so tough. Would you consider going private? I got my hormone test results and have found out I have low AMH levels. Slightly concerning 😢 I'm going to get miscarriage bloods done privately too. I got my appointment for the public miscarriage clinic though and it's not until November. They'll do all testing including genetics but I won't have any results until January/February. So now we've to decide whether we pay nearly 1,000 euro for private testing and have the results within 4-6 weeks or go public and wait 5-6 months for results 🙃😢

So sorry you're going through this it's unbearable pain so I hope you're being kind to yourself x

I am 31 and had 2 MCs in 2022. My GP did some basic blood work and all came back ok.

I did some of my own research including reading other people's experiences here on MN and decided to take low dose aspirin if I was lucky enough to fall pregnant again. I went on to have a healthy pregnancy and had my daughter last year, I'm now expecting my 2nd baby.

This isn't to say that aspirin will help, I will never know if it's helped me or not, but it certainly hasn't done any harm, have a read up on it... if my experience can help anyone then it's worth a share.

Sending love x

I’m sorry to hear you have low AMH levels 😔 did you receive info on any potential next steps now this has been found?
I don’t think I’m there yet mentally with spending money going private, but know I’ll probably feel different if I have a 3rd mc and get an idea of timeframes, every day feels a drag going through mc/TTC so I feel for you having to decide whether to wait or pay for quicker results, it’s so frustrating not having immediate answers! Best of luck 💞

Oh it’s so lovely to hear you have a daughter and expecting your 2nd 💞 stories like that I’m clinging to right now so thank you for sharing!
Yes I’ve read a lot about low dose aspirin, like you say it doesn’t hurt so worth trying!
All the best with your pregnancy 😊 x

I had 3 losses before I had a healthy pregnancy with my first. It was during Covid so the waiting list was incredibly long for testing so we decided to try again for a final time. I took matters into my own hands and did a lot of research, I decided to take baby aspirin from the first day of ovulation. That pregnancy was different from the get go, strong lines on pregnancy tests, lots of symptoms etc. il never know if it was because of the baby aspirin but I remember reading lots of success stories about it. I spoke to my GP before taking it and they basically said it wouldn't hurt to try.
I had 2 healthy pregnancy's back to back.

We're now trying for our 3rd and I'm currently going through another miscarriage. I wasn't taking aspirin this time so we're going to try again ASAP.

Hope you get some answers soon xx

I’m so pleased to hear you had 2 healthy pregnancies 💞 those initial 3 losses must have been really tough, and I’m so sorry you’re currently going through another.
There certainly are some studies that show baby aspirin could help!
Take care and fingers crossed for when you try again, thank you so much for sharing x

I had 2 mc at 10 and then 12 weeks. I was terrified when I got pregnant again and then had a massive bleed at 12 weeks. Luckily that pregnancy was fine and my dc is 9 now!

The reason why the don’t tend to investigate after two mc is that it’s actually very common. I was anxious about mc during my pregnancy but booked private scans, which helped. I don’t really think about the miscarriages now, I just feel blessed to have my DC. I hope that helps x

Aww so pleased you had your DC after the 2 mc, that was no doubt an anxiety ridden pregnancy after what you’d been through. Glad it’s all become more of a distant memory for you now, I hope I will one day be in the same position. Thank you for sharing 💞

I’m so sorry to everyone who has been through miscarriages, it really is so heartbreaking and difficult to understand 💔

I had my first missed miscarriage in Dec 23, medically managed (but unsuccessfully on New Year’s Eve) and then surgery in late Jan 24.

We got pregnant with our first time trying, so it was then a suprise to us we weren’t falling quickly again. We got my husband tested in September and all his parameters came back normal apart from morphology (shape) was 0%. He had a sizeable varocicle and had surgery to fix that in October. We know this causes an increased risk of miscarriage due to potential DNA fragmentation.

We then found out I was pregnant again in November (meaning we conceived before his surgery) and then had another missed miscarriage December. We are hoping the medical management has worked properly this time.

We suspect male factors may be our cause, but to get some peace of mind I went to my GP who has ordered blood tests for blood count, vitamin D and thyroid function.

She also referred me to Tommys clinic in Coventry who accept people for reoccurring miscarriage testing after 2 (the charity are advocating for testing after 2 instead of 3). This does mean us travelling from London but in my view if it helps give us some answers or rule any other causes out it’s worth it.

The doctor also shared with me she had 2 miscarriages before going onto have her rainbow. She said that unfortunately although it doesn’t feel like it (feels often to me
like everyone else is successfully pregnant but me) she often sees people have 2 miscarriages before having healthy pregnancies. I found this reassuring.

Sending all my thoughts to those struggling, especially during the festive period ♥️

Thank you for sharing this, I’m so sorry you’ve also experienced losses. It’s so true about how much more common it is than we feel when going through it, when going through my 2nd I remember the Dr saying their good friend has 3 children but has had 8 miscarriages, to an outsider you’d think gosh how lucky 3 kids, but then there was such a struggle for her to get there ‘behind the scenes’.

I wish you luck with the testing and hope 2025 is kind to you xx

I found out I was pregnant shortly after joining this thread and luckily I am 18 weeks now. The difference this time was taking progesterone, aspirin and vitamin D. Will never know if that is the reason this one stuck, but I like to think it is. My vitamin D levels were low in my last blood test which they say can be linked to miscarriage 🤔

Aww that’s such lovely news,
congratulations! Thank you for sharing ❤️ Was taking progesterone, aspirin & vit D all advice off the back of private tests? And when were you advised to start taking all of them? Hope you don’t mind me asking! I have been taking vit d for a long time now and have wondered about low dose aspirin but read mixed reviews on when it should be taken? Want to start ttc in the new year after a break so it’s all on my mind about what to do what and when x

How are you doing OP? @OneDayHope ive just been through my second miscarriage and your story is so similar to mine xx

I’m so sorry you’re going through a second, my heart goes out to you, I hope you’re doing ok.
I am now pregnant…it’s not been an easy one as ended up referred to fetal medicine following 12wk scan, however so far all results/scans have been really positive, although still a longggg way to go (currently 22 weeks).

Following my 2nd mc I had basic blood tests with my GP but nothing came up, we then took a break from trying because I couldn’t mentally or physically cope with it all again so soon. After 5/6 months we tried again but as soon as I tested positive I had spotting, having been keeping a close eye on my cycles combined with having 2 prev mc, I pushed to be given Progestrone, which I took from 6 to16 weeks, whether that made any difference who knows but the spotting stopped upon taking it and I just knew i’d have regretted it if I didn’t try it.
Wishing you so much luck for the future xx