5 miscarriages and pregnant again for the 6th time! SCARED!

[Bootsralphie1]

Hi all, found out on sunday that I am pregnant again after having 5 miscarriages in 4 years! I am around 4 weeks and due on 13th Jan 2012, 5 days after my 23rd birthday!

I have a muscle disease called dermatomyositis (what a mouthful!) which I am on medication for including azathioprine and prednisolone steroids. My consultant assures me that azathioprine is safe during pregnancy (but not in breastfeeding) and that prednisolone at 7.5mg daily only carries minor risks. I am so worried that they will be harming my baby but can't stop them as this would apparantly cause more harm???

I also have factor 5 leiden which is basicaly thickening of the blood during pregnancy mainly. For this I am taking 75mg asprin daily and am injecting myself in the stomach with 40mg clexane injections. In my last pregnancy I also did both but only 20mg clexane injections, unfortunately I still miscarried at around 8 weeks so I have been instructed to double the dose so fingers crossed x

I keep having very mild period like pains which I think is normal but is really adding to my worry but I have to go to st marys in paddington London to the reccurant miscarriage clinic when I am pregnant, they are great there and I have an early scan booked for next wednesday the 16th so maybe that will put my mind at rest! I will then be scanned every 2 weeks which is reassuring.

I am so scared after so many losses and just feel like I will never be a Mum and every time I fall pregnant it never feels real. Has anyone else had any similar experiences? I would be very grateful for any advice!

Thanks in advance guys x x x

Hi Boots

Sorry for your losses but congratulations on your pregnancy. It is normal to be freaking out at another BFP.

I have no direct experience of your condition but I am a recurrent miscarrier who took Prednisolone in the early stages of my current pregnancy. I am not sure if you know this but taking Prednisolone is actually a treatment for something called high natural killer cells which is thought by a growing body of doctors to be something that can cause recurrent miscarriage (foetus is being rejected as a foreign object). So being on that might actually help the pregnancy. I was on 25mg until ovulation and 40mg from BFP until 13 weeks pregnant, so a lot higher dosage than you. It does not harm the baby. On a high dose they say there is a very slight increase in cleft palate but this is very very rare and something that can be treated by an operation easily after birth.

It sounds like you are on a good programme and have every chance of success. I too was seen at St Mary's and although there was nothing they could do to help me (apart from take a blood clotting test called TEG once pregnant, as apparently it can be negative when not pregnant and positive after a BFP) it was definitely nice having those regular scans. I was also being seen by the Miscarriage Clinic and it was the specialist there who prescribed Prednisolone plus several other things. Am now 29 weeks pregnant after 4 previous miscarriages so the medication had to be doing something.

Supplements that have been shown to be helpful in maintaining a healthy pregnancy (and recommended by the specialist I saw) are Pregnacare plus Omega 3 and Vitamin D of an additional 25ug (on top of what is in the Pregnacare). I too was on aspirin (took that until 25 weeks). I also added in Selenium (an extra 200ug a day) as from my own research that seems helpful. I am not a doctor obviously so do your own research and talk to your consultant before taking anything that might interfere with your treatment. But the vitamins might be worth a shot either way.

Mild period pains seem to be normal. If you are going for a very early scan at St Mary's be aware that you don't always see a foetus before 7 weeks.

If you need any more advice there are a group of around 40 of us chatting about being treated with Prednisolone and similar for recurrent miscarriage on the Conception boards.

Good luck with it all!

Congratulations on your pregnancy. I'll bet you are terrified but you must also know that nothing you can do will make one iota of difference to the outcome. Take it a day at a time. Tick them off the calendar if that will help. And you'll be having very closely monitored so that's helpful.

FWIW my friend had one child, nine miscarriages and then one more healthy baby. On pregnancy number 11 she'd all but given up hope. But it happened. Never say never and just keep on going. :) good luck!

Hi bootsralphie1

Congratulations hun sounds like you've gone through a lot and are on a great treatment plan!

I too am on to pg number 6 after 5 miscarriages in 3 years and never thought it'd happen. I was put on 75mg aspirin and 5mg folic acid to be taken before conception, until 35 weeks pg. I've been on the aspirin since sept 2010 and high dose folic acid since last mc in sept 11.

Seems to have worked as im now 23 weeks:-) the early reassurance scan is definatley reassuring I had to go back as wasn't ss far gone as what I thought, next time we went saw a definate hb and little bean!

Good luck sending you a virtual hug xx