Bleeding at 12wks - can't get hold of midwife or ante-natal unit - any advice/experience/hand-holding would be very welcome

[ArtemisTheHunter]

Morning all

I'm 12+3 and started bleeding yesterday - it started after sex, so after some frantic googling I hoped it was just a tender cervix, but it hasn't stopped this morning and I am beginning to panic. It is not heavy and there is no pain or cramping but it is continuous and bright red with small blood clots. This is a much-wanted IVF pregnancy after an early mc (naturally conceived) 18mo ago and I am terrified something is going wrong - my mc started after a couple of days of painless spotting while I blithely convinced myself everything would be OK.

I've been ringing the community midwives and the hospital antenatal unit for the past half hour but nobody answers the fecking phones - just a cheery message from the midwives saying 'please leave a message and we'll get back to you within 2 days'. In 2 days I'll have gone insane. While I sit here pressing redial I would be very grateful for any experiences or advice if anyone's experienced something similar.

No experience but you could try GP or try MW/ AN clinic at just before 9 as the day staff might start at 9 so there would be admin rather than just on call staff.
Hope everything is ok.

GP or EPAU is your best bet I think, the GP can refer you to the early pregnancy assessment unit or they might take direct referrals. Other than that get to A&E and make a fuss.

Hopefully it is just friable cervix, hoping for good news for you.

art I'm here to hold your hand and squeeze it tight. There is no way you can wait 2 days, are they having a laugh? Could you try the GP and see if they can refer you to the epu?

You could always go to A&E. they will send you to EPAU.

I had the same thing and everything was okay, how every I still went to A&E to be checked over, spending quite a lot of time blubbing thinking the worst. The cervix and vagina have a greater blood flow and are more tender during pregnancy. Go and be checked over, but try not to worry too much (easier said than done I know). X

You poor thing, how worrying, does sound like post-coital bleeding although that's not going to be much help to you until you get some reassurance that baby's ok. Please DON'T go to A&E, unless you are bleeding very heavily, are in severe or one-sided pain or you feel unwell. The vast majority of A&E departments can't scan you no matter how much of a fuss you make, they can only refer you to EPAU and your GP and/or MW an do that without the unpleasant sit in A&E. A&E can't get you a scan any faster. I so hope you're on the phone to your GP now getting an EPAU appointment, good luck xx

hi all

thanks very much for the advice and hand-holding, really appreciate it. Squirrels glad everything was OK for you, that's given me hope. I finally got through to the midwife who first said they would take a 'wait and see' approach, because I had my 12wk scan on Thursday and they don't like to do scans less than a week apart, but then rang back 20 mins later with an appointment at the gynae assessment unit for tomorrow morning (not the EPAU for some reason). She said that no amount of scanning can promise that it will be OK but I'd rather see someone and be checked over than sit here for a week waiting and worrying. Though obviously I'm still worrying! Now just have to try & concentrate on work & stop the obsessive knicker-checking every 20 minutes because clearly that's not going to help...