Hi all
Ive been hovering over these boards for the last couple of months and they've been such a support that i wanted to share my experiences in the hope they'll help the next lady.
I found out that there was no heartbeat at my 12 week scan. I was still deep in pregnancy symptoms so it was a shock. My baby hadn't developed since 8wks. I opted for a surgical management of miscarriage and was able to get an appointment the next day. I felt a little betrayed by my body and just wanted to get it all over as soon as possible - I'm very glad i did.
The hospital staff couldn't have been nicer. I hadn't been put under general before but actually it was all fine. In the end i had the procedure done twice while i was under as they missed some tissue the first time. Although the baby had died at 8 weeks my body had gone on producing 'tissue' for 12 weeks, i believe that if i'd taken the tablets and miscarried at home it could have been quite a complicated process and i'd probably have ended up in hospital anyway!
Unfortunately i bled for longer/more than the dr hoped (again due to the amount of tissue) and so i was kept in over night. The bleeding wasn't pleasant but i felt very looked after and was frankly just pleased to put myself entirely in someone else's hands!
There was very little bleeding when i got home, some cramping and of course the general anaesthetic makes you a bit crappy for a couple of days but 48 hours later i felt much stronger. Unfortunately the loss of blood had made me anaemic which was probably the worst physical bit, but iron tablets and rest sorted that in a few days.
I took a week off work and that was really important. The grief comes in waves even when you feel that you've made peace with the fact that miscarriages happen to lots of ladies. Get ready to cry at very strange moments - tv adverts, friends messages, in the shops!
About a week after the procedure i suddenly got craps and bleeding but this stopped again in a couple of days and then i spotted brown for around 3 weeks after the procedure. You think it will NEVER END. Just give yourself and your body a break. It does eventually :) I also had some insane boob pain at about 2 weeks after (stabbing cramps) and my nipples leaked a little - cruel, but this also settled down in a couple of days. The hormones were still going a bit nuts in my system i think.
They say that you should get a period 4-6 weeks after the procedure but that wasn't the case for me. It took me 3 weeks to get a negative pregnancy test (again this felt like forever) and then i ovulated 2 weeks later. I got some insane ovulation pains (thought it was my period coming, no such luck) but i was temping after the procedure (prepare for crazy temps for a few weeks!) and thats helped me understand what was really going on. I should get my period in the next week or so which will be almost 9 weeks post op.
I had some acupuncture and reflexology - dont know if it made a blind bit of difference but made me feel like i was doing something! I also exercised after a week which helped my general sanity, although it also made me spot a bit (which didn't help my sanity!)
I feel for anyone going through this. It was my first pregnancy and the whole process is cruel and at times feels like it will never end but just try to stop yourself over analysing every moment (easier said than done) and try to look at your symptoms a week at a time rather than day to day........so much improves in a week!