3 chemical pregnancies

[choccrumpet]

I'm currently going through my 3rd chemical pregnancy in a row.

We started casually trying for our first baby last August. First chemical was in September. We started trying seriously from December and I had another chemical that cycle. The next cycle I got pregnant once again but am miscarrying right now due to another chemical.

Does anyone have any success stories after 3 chemicals?

From my research, 3 chemicals are unusual and only about 1-10% of women experience recurring miscarriages. I had bloods done 2 months ago and everything came back fine, I have no known issues. Its heartbreaking and frustrating that it keeps happening. I am trying to stay hopeful but it's difficult.

Hi I had 2 successful pregnancies after 3 chemicals. I was midway through the referral to the recurrent miscarriages clinic when I had my first successful pregnancy. They are fairly common and although distressing at the time please don't lose hope, your body is capable of getting pregnant it's just the bit that follows is a bit tricky. One thing I did differently was I started taking half dose aspirin daily (I'm not advocating this at all please seek medical advice first) I did this after reading similar posts on the issue and I did become pregnant and it stuck so it possibly helped but I can't be sure.

@velveteenrabbittales thank you for sharing your experience, I'm glad to hear things have worked out for you, it does give me hope.

I've read about baby aspirin but there seems to be contradicting info about it and when to take it so I'm still unsure although it is tempting to try something to see if it helps. Did you consult with your GP about it or did you make that decision by yourself? When did you start taking it and stop?

No advice to offer but wanted to offer and sympathy. Been there, and it's heartbreaking. I think after the 3rd your GP should be able to refer you to the hospital for more in depth tests and support, I found my hospital dept really good with this.

I've had a few chemical pregnancies since hitting my 30's, I've also had 2 mc's at 8 & 9 weeks too. I think for me it's age related due to my eggs getting on a bit and having more chance of genetic problems. Currently 11wk again and doing well so far. I think you just have to keep going.
I think these sensitive tests have a lot to answer for, several years ago we'd just presume af was late but now we can find out so early that we are subject to so much more heartbreak. These days I only class myself as pregnant once I hit 6wk, that's when I do self referral to the midwife team.

Hi, I’m so sorry for what you’re going through, it’s truly heartbreaking.

I wanted to say I know how you feel, and there is light at the end of the tunnel.

I suffered a loss at 9 weeks in January 2020, then a loss at 6 weeks in March 2020, then a loss at 5 weeks in June 2020, and a loss in November 2020 at 4.5 weeks, each one floored me and honestly left me feeling so fragile and exhausted emotionally.

I really never thought I’d get through it.

After the 3rd loss my GP referred my partner and I to a fertility consultant for recurrent miscarriages, and we had all sorts of tests done including blood tests, scans and a semen analysis. All results were normal.

We just carried on trying and earlier this month I got another bfp. But this time things felt different to me straight away, my tests progressed quickly, and an early scan at 5+5 showed a baby with a heartbeat, something we’d not seen with any of the losses, not even the 9 week one.

I’m still only 6 weeks and I’m well aware anything can happen still, but I do feel different this time. I started on a low (150mg) dose of aspirin every day from ovulation so I’ve no idea if that helped. I’d read lots about aspirin being prescribed for recurrent losses and figured I had nothing to lose. So I’m still taking that, my midwife says to carry on with it, and they’ve prescribed me progesterone pessaries just to give my body that extra boost to hopefully hold on to this one.

I don’t know what the future holds, but there definitely is hope after several losses.

I hope you never have to experience another loss again. Please be kind to yourself. Early miscarriages are so common, and if it weren’t for early testing so many of us would never have known we were ever pregnant, so I try to take comfort in that, in that it’s unlikely to be anything to do with me personally, I’m just one of those many women that find out early and have it not stick.

Sending lots of love and hugs xx

I have also had 3 recurrent early miscarriages. I was referred to the RMC but with covid it was all postponed. All my bloods done by the GP came back normal but I read about aspirin and spoke to my doctor about it. The conversation went similar to this ‘I am aware aspirin is a treatment for recurrent loss but I can’t prescribe it to you for that reason as it is outside of my medical scope. It would need to be prescribed from the RMC consultants. But you are not contradicted for it and I can’t stop you purchasing your own based on ur own research and taking it on ur own accord’. I am a nurse and told my doctor to have it on my medical file that I will be taking 150mg aspirin daily at night myself.

I am now 32 weeks pregnant. At all my appointments the midwifes and consultants I’ve seen have been happy with me on it and have advised to stay on it until 36/37 weeks. I also finally had my appointment at the RMC on the 18th jan this year (I took it anyway for advice ) and the consultant there said she would have commenced me on the aspirin herself and also progesterone pesseries and that if I ever get pregnant again after this baby to start the aspirin again and the pesseries if I wish.

Aspirin has been a little miracle drug for me I think :) of course consult ur doctor to ensure ur not contradicted to take. There is no Straight evidence to suggests it prevents miscarriage but based on the fact that it seems to be helping more and more women and consultants are now looking into it more means something .

Fyi the recent uk guidelines is 150mg aspirin daily at night. I started taking mine at 3dpo.

Some people take from there first BFP- again there is no clear lines of advice on this and it seems to vary. But some of my losses where very early I felt starting it around the time of fertilisation and implantation gave me a better chance. As the belief is the aspirin helps thin the blood to help with adequate blood flow to the uterus and growing baby.

Just stop taking it if your AF comes and then restart again after ovulation the following month

Sorry to hear this OP. I had a chemical earlier last year and another two a number of years ago. After this last one I had a hysteroscopy which involved inserting a camera under general anaesthetic. They found a fibroid that was preventing any pregnancy from burrowing in and attaching successfully. They removed it there and then and I became pregnant six weeks later. This time the pregnancy took and I’m now at 24 weeks after ten years of trying. If this continues, maybe ask if a hysteroscopy can be done to reassure you that all is well. Some problems don’t show on a scan or blood test.
I’m so sorry that you are going through this mental anguish.

I didn't consult the doctor first I just started taking it. I started as soon as I got BFP around 10 DPO. Consultant advised ms to stop at 36 weeks which I did. I didn't take it at all with second pregnancy though and both worked out fine

I too have self prescribed myself aspirin.

Thank you ladies for sharing your experiences with me, it really means so much to me and is helping me stay positive and have hope.

I'm 28 so age shouldn't be an issue at this point, but who knows. I'm hoping to speak to my GP tomorrow and progesterone and aspirin are top of my list to discuss, they seem to be the most common things that have helped others from the research I've done and based on your advice @Moominmiss @2020wish. I decided against taking aspirin this last cycle as I was hopeful things would work out but they have not, so I'm going to strongly consider it going forward so I appreciate you sharing your experiences with it.

I wish you and @Chelyanneall healthy rest of your pregnancies x

I had two chemicals, last one was July. I got pregnant early October and I'm now 19 weeks pregnant :)

Update: I spoke to my GP and she is referring me to the fertility specialist but it may take months until I get my appointment. I asked her about aspirin & progesterone and she has heard of them being prescribed but only by specialists, she couldn't say yes or no to me and that it's up to me if I want to try aspirin. I asked to also get a scan and make sure everything is as it should be.

She was okay about everything but I could feel a general sense of scepticism because my miscarriages happened so early, whether to consider them as miscarriages or not. It's difficult to hear that coming from a doctor. It makes me feel like she doesn't believe that I was pregnant in the first place.

I'm going to do more research on taking aspirin and think I'll try it this cycle.

I'm glad the dr made the referral for you. I found the hospital team way, way more informed and helpful than my GP. Best of luck OP you're doing all the right things.

Thank you @MichelleofzeResistance that's comforting to hear. It's difficult to hear the scepticism. She's the second GP to come across that way and maybe it's me taking offence to how and what they say. But I'm glad she's doing the referral and booking the scan.

I'm sorry you're going through this, and that the doctor seemed to minimise it. I had five chemical pregnancies over the space of not much more than a year, and had been referred to the recurrent miscarriage clinic before my appointment got cancelled at the start of the first lockdown. I then got pregnant again soon after and the result is nearly two weeks old and currently in my lap.

While it's horrible to go through it is a good sign you can get pregnant. I found some of the emerging research on hyper fertility really interesting - basically the theory that some women get pregnant more easily with embryos which wouldn't be strong enough to implant for most people and aren't viable. So it's not that they're having more losses than other people, but instead that non viable pregnancies are briefly showing up on tests, so it has no impact on how long it takes to have a successful pregnancy.

I hope it works out soon for you, but there are lots of positive stories out there - I spent a lot of time looking for them this time last year before I had my own!

‘Chemical pregnancies‘ are extremely common. It just means the fertilised egg doesn’t become established, that’s all. As fewer than half of fertilised eggs become established, most pregnancies are ‘chemical’ ie are detected BEFORE establishment. So for every single human being you see walking around the planet, their mother probably had two chemical pregnancies. No one cared or counted them in the past, as people were simply unaware of them

Sorry you're going through this - it's crap. Good that you're getting support from the hospital though - as someone else said GPs are fantastic but can't always have the same detailed and up to date knowledge that the specialists at the hospital have. Good luck and hang in there. At 28 you do have plenty of time - I know that doesn't help with the heartbreak today. I've always thought that the 1% stat is probably too low - it must be based on old data from before early home testing became so common. It's almost certainly a lot more normal to have this experience followed by successful pregnancies than we realise.

@effy6 I have read a little bit about what you mention and it is interesting, although heartbreaking and difficult when you experience it personally. I'm thankful my losses have happened very early instead of later on and am hopeful that it's either bad luck or there is a simple explanation for them.

I'm so happy for your little one, congratulations! Positive stories are what is helping me have faith that things will work out.

@Rowenasemolina I agree and think more of them happen than are reported. It's confusing how to feel about them as they happen so early and are over so quickly, but a loss is a loss at the end of the day. I am thankful I can get pregnant but am confused as to why they're not continuing so the saying "ignorance is bliss" may be appropriate here. At the same time, if there is a more serious reason for them, I'd rather know.

Thank you @BlueberryPancake21, I think the 1% stat is insanely low and terrifying for something that we know is quite likely underreported. I wish we knew more about this. I'm happy that more women are speaking up about their experiences nowadays and forums like these really help. It helps bridge the gap between what little is being reported or is known about and reality

A bit of an update in case this is helpful for anyone, although it's not a positive one.

I took 75mg aspirin from my fertile week. My period was 8 days late which it has never been before so in a way that was positive as I've never progressed that far before although am still a bit unclear whether that was due to potential late ovulation or pregnancy or something else. I got a few faint positives but no dark clear lines, nothing different here. I believe I'm losing this pregnancy as I've started bleeding with fairly bad cramping. So my 4th loss in a row.

I’m so sorry to hear that it wasn’t a good outcome for you this time. I really hope you get success next time.

I’m on my third pregnancy after one mc and one chemical, I actually started taking 150mg aspirin as that’s the official guidelines the nhs recommend now. I know it’s just a small change but may help you next time?

Also I got progesterone privately (but it was super expensive) but once i was on it I managed to get my gp to do a prescription for the rest of the quantity I need.

Having said all of this - I haven’t any idea whether it has worked yet as I haven’t had a scan. But I’m 8+4 with no bleeding which is a big step forward for me and I’m experiencing some nausea which hasn’t happened before.

What’s happening with your referral? Don’t be afraid to push them a bit.

Hope you’re taking it easy and taking your time to emotionally heal xxx

@Cafeaulait27 thanks so much for your reply and your kind words.

I'll try 150mg next time, it's the only thing I can do that might help so worth a try, although I'm not convinced that it will help.

How did you go about getting the progesterone if you don't mind me asking? I have no idea how to go about doing anything privately, if there is a recommended route/options etc.

I'm so happy you're doing well, I hope things continue to go well for you and good luck on your next scan.

Last time I asked my GP she couldn't tell me how long the referral will take. She did the referral probably over a month ago now but I haven't heard anything about it. I'm not sure what else I can do here?

I've got a pelvic ultrasound next week to check everything is okay down there. Apart from that there's nothing else my GP can do or so they say. It's so hard going through it over and over again. So I'm trying to figure out what my other options are if the referral will take a long time

@choccrumpet I’m so so sorry. 💔

You could try chasing again just in case your referral hS been lost or something - but I know it can take some time for things to go through.

Someone else on mumsnet said they had a zoom appointment was Nova fertility and got progesterone - so I dm’d her and did the same! It was really easy, I just went on their website and made a booking. My appointment was with a doctor called Lamiya and she was lovely, and the prescription was emailed to me the next day. She prescribed me for 7 weeks worth but Boots didn’t have enough so they just gave me 2 weeks worth. It was very expensive so I asked my midwife/epu for a prescription for the rest and they did it, I picked it up from the hospital last week.

The appointment was £150 and the progesterone was £114 for 2 weeks, super expensive but I think it depends on the brand name they give you and your area, I was given cyclogest. I’ve now been taking it for 3 weeks. In my eyes it’s well worth it, although I don’t know what’s going on in there I haven’t had any bleeding so that’s a good sign.

Please feel free to DM if you want or ask any more questions. If you do go for the Nova fertility they may prescribe you more medication, for me as I’d only had two losses she said aspirin and progesterone should be sufficient xxx

Hi @choccrumpet

I have just come across this thread as I am also currently going through my fourth chemical pregnancy at the moment, this is my fourth over a space of just 5 months.

I used the progesterone pessaries this cycle also and unfortunately they didn't work for me but I have heard a lot of positive stories and they have worked for many people.
I self referred to a private clinic and the consultant then prescribed them for me as my GP wouldn't.

All my others tests so far have come back ok so I am at a loss as to what to do next 😩

@Icklemissgem I'm sorry for your losses. Sounds like we're going through something really similar.

I chased up my referral and turns out that the clinic wasn't open during covid at all so they're preparing to open now and could give me no indication of waiting time so I'm not counting on it right now. We've decided to give it a few more months and if nothing happens then we'll look into private options at that point.

That's great that you were able to get progesterone and frustrating that it didn't help. I'm going to take 150mg aspirin soon and see if it helps (second aspirin cycle).

I feel your pain ❤️ unless you get further testing there is very little that either of us can do and that's what makes this situation so much harder.

@choccrumpet

I have been referred through the NHS also and I am in the same boat, on a long waiting list as they haven't been operating for a while now. That was the only reason we went privately as I was impatient haha!!

Yes I think the not knowing what's going to happen is hardest.
We are definitely not trying for a few months now to try and then see what happens in a few months and just hope having a break helps 🤞🏻

Good luck - let me know how you get on 😄