A 5mm pregnancy sac at 6 weeks is impossible, right?

[TheBirdintheCave]

Wondering if there are any sonographers on here who might be able to help me out or people who have had similar stories.

Basically, I’m supposed to be 7 weeks pregnant and had a scan at the EPU yesterday because of some brown spotting. All seemed fine with the bleeding. The sonographer couldn’t find a uterine cause for it, there was no bleeding around the pregnancy sac, my ovaries or anywhere else.

This was the only good news.

She then described what she could see. She said there was a pregnancy sac present with a yolk sac inside and ‘maybe the beginnings of an embryo’. She then mentioned that the pregnancy sac only measured 5mm.

The next piece of info I got was that I did not ovulate from the side I thought I did which blew my ovulation date out of the water (as I went by a sharp pain in my right-hand side, when apparently I ovulated from my left as that’s where the corpeus luteum is)

Based on this and the last time we had sex, I told her that I could be as early as 6 weeks and she seemed to suggest that these measurements were consistent with that date. She prescribed me some progesterone pessaries and told me to come back for another scan in two weeks.

When I got home I searched for 5mm pregnancy sac and was able to ascertain in about three clicks on Google that this was not an ok measurement for 6 weeks.

The only caveat to this is that I have a tilted uterus and know that this makes it harder to take accurate measurements even with a transvaginal scan. My son was measuring as a week behind at a seven week scan (though we saw him and his heartbeat) but had ‘caught up’ by his 12 week scan.

In my mind there are two options here. The first and most logical:

The pregnancy stopped progressing at five weeks.

Or:

I am six weeks pregnant and the measurements were just wonky. This theory does get bonus points for making sense of my scant pregnancy symptoms (My nausea has been barely there but has felt worse over the last few days. Though on a bad note, my breasts were sore but aren’t really anymore since yesterday). It would also explain why I had an extremely faint positive test at what I thought was 14dpo but could actually have been 9dpo.

She asked me to go back in two weeks for another scan which again I agreed to but now it just seems like a waste of two weeks that I could have spent getting my cycle back and preparing to try again. At 35 I really can't afford to waste a month or more. We also have male factor fertility issues so it’s highly unlikely for us to get pregnant at the best of times. This one was another miracle in our eyes.

What should I do? I don’t know whether to bother with the pessaries. Will they delay the miscarriage or will it happen regardless? I’m afraid they’re going to give me fake symptoms and I might be tricked into thinking it’s all ok. I just wanted a definitive answer but came out with a different problem altogether ☹

Why has she given me hope in an obviously hopeless situation? It just seems extremely cruel.

@Nikki037297 Yeah so annoying. I’ll bet it’s cheaper than scanning too!

I’m not sure how much my tilt affects the ability to scan. I was under the impression that it’s harder to be accurate but I can’t remember where I read this.

My friends friend had a tilted uterus and when she said she was pregnant she was 9 weeks at this point and they still couldn’t see her baby or a heart beat but she had 3 children already and said they had never seen them until around 14 weeks I said well what did they see then? She said it was mega blurry and nothing could be made out.
Also just found a thread of a similar situation
community.babycentre.co.uk/post/a31906004/tilted-uterus-baby-measuring-small-

@Nikki037297 Interesting! Shame the OP doesn’t provide an outcome. I’m comparing everything a lot to the scan I had at 7 weeks with my son (also transvaginal). They dated him at 6 weeks but he was at least there measuring 5mm and had a heartbeat.

Op I feel your pain.

I had a scan and measured 6+1 when I should have been much further along.
This scan was because of brown spotting and pink when wiping.
I knew my dates 100% as we did not have sex after my peak opk.

Like you I was sent away for 2 weeks and read all I could.
There are actually stories like yours with positive outcomes.

I went back after 2 weeks and they admitted they were getting a better bigger picture than the previous scan and measurements were bigger. It hadn't grown, they had a better angle. I also have a tilted uterus.

I'm wanting to give you some hope but you're preparing for the worst I get that.

My gut instinct told me it wasn't ok from early on, I just knew. Do you have a gut feeling?

I think you're right to take the progesterone as it might do good but won't harm.
I think the best you can do is have the medication on the day of the scan ready so if it's not good news you can take it straight away.

Good luck.

@Ellie5341 Yes from the very start when I got a faint positive and assumed I was 14dpo, I knew it wasn’t going to end well. I had anxiety about it for weeks and just when I thought it might be ok, the spotting started. Even though I now don’t know when I ovulated (since she told me it was the left hand side and I’d thought it was the right) I definitely know when we last had sex.

Our stories are very similar so thanks for sharing :) I am now more confident that I’m correct.

I’ve been in a similar position OP and found it truly maddening that the midwife wouldn’t (as I saw it) just be honest with me. I was meant to be 7.5 weeks, measuring just over 5.

From their perspective though I suppose they see lots of women who genuinely are wrong about their dates, or ovulated later than they thought, or they’re measuring 6+1 when they should be 7+1 and it turns out the measurement was just a bit fuzzy the first time. But from my perspective, I didn’t want “oh there are all sorts of stories, you never know!” - I wanted “in your specific situation, it is very very unlikely this will have a good outcome,” Which was the truth and I wish they’d just said that. So I had a conversation with a midwife that went like this:

Me: “Is there any way that with these dates and with these measurements, this can be a viable pregnancy?”
Her: “Oh absolutely. Women are wrong about their dates all the time. You can’t know for sure when you ovulated.”
Me: “But let’s say I was 100% sure of the ovulation date I’m saying, then is there any chance this could be viable?”
Her: “Well it could be.”
Me: “Really?”
Her: “Like I said, we get ladies coming in here alllll the time saying they’re sure about their dates and it turns out they were wrong.”
Round and round and round in circles (and through tears, I was in a mess.)

Looking back I think they also didn’t want to be in a position where they were telling women “yes it’s almost certainly a miscarriage but we will make you wait two weeks before offering you any treatment.” Understandable I suppose as they can’t change that 2-week rule, but I didn’t feel any better about it.

Mine was indeed a miscarriage. It’s shit. for you.

OP if there is any chance the measurements are incorrect, just wait. I know how hard that is though. Spotting at 5 weeks, sent home from EPU, scanned at 5+5 or 5+6. 2 sacs 9mm and 10mm. I know that's more than your measurement but I am sure it's not an exact science. No sign of anything more, no heartbeats. Had to wait for 2 weeks for another scan, 2 heartbeats.

@GoldenOmber Sorry for your loss :(

And yes exactly. I wonder if there’s any kind of form I could sign to say there’s 100% no chance of viability if those measurements are correct 🧐 I don’t want to wait two weeks.

@Africa2go I’d have to ask them but I don’t see how they could have been half a centimetre wrong with their measurements. That’s too big a jump.

After two days the progesterone has stopped the spotting, made my boobs sore again and made me feel more sick :( I hate it. It’s like it’s tricking my body into feeling pregnant.

You are probably right in that you know your dates and you have your gut feeling. I had the same happen to me 2 years ago. Positive test at 15dpo but was faint. Being my first test I didn't even know that was a thing... a faint test.
I have been there and I know it is nerve wracking the powerlessness and unknown, i went in the epu first at over 5weeks with spotting i think the sac was 3mm or something. Tiny and empty. Then 2 weeks later it had grown to 5mm i think and there was an unidentifiable small blob as the sonographer said possible fetal pole. No yolk sac. You would think by then they d say it's gone but no. They gave me an appointment 2 weeks later because they can't just write off a pregnancy unless it does not progress at all.
Anyway a week later i naturally miscarried. But until the very end I tried to stay positive.
And I don't regret it. What if I had been that special case?
I never gave up hope, not because I am naive or in denial but because I had to. Even if it is the tiniest chance that this could be an earlier pregnancy. Even if it is that rare positive story where somehow your dates are off... you can't give up and ask a medical professional to literally terminate the pregnancy.

Prepare for the worst and hope for the best is the only thing you can do.

@SunnySideUp2020 I just can't torture myself for the next two weeks. I need this to be over now so that I can move on and try again. I feel like my body is holding me prisoner and the stupid progesterone is preventing the miscarriage from happening. I'm too old to wait any longer. I just want it gone.

@TheBirdintheCave
I'm so sorry you are going through this. I've been there. I had spotting at 9-10 weeks and was scanned and although they could see the foetus it was smaller than expected and there was no heartbeat. However, they couldn't be certain of the dates so sent me away for 2 weeks.

It was bloody excruciating and put a huge strain on my mental health. I had to go into work and sit with colleagues who were pregnant. I had to tell my boss that I was pregnant but there was a good chance I would lose the baby and would need to work from home / take time off. There was fuck all support from the NHS, and very little information to be honest.

I ended up ringing the hospital on day 8 saying I really couldn't cope and did i really need to wait the full 14 days. The midwife I spoke to said no and they would be able to scan me again sooner than that and see if there had been any growth. So is not true you need to wait the full 14 days. I did not have a good outcome, I lost my baby the day before my second scan.

@2022HereWeCome Yeah if I can convince them that one week would be better I might be able to manage until then maybe? I don't know. I feel like I'm going insane.

@TheBirdintheCave
It was one of the most difficult times I went through and sending you

OP, I'm sorry for what you are going through but you are asking for the impossible.

You are currently pregnant. It may, sadly, not be viable, and that will be fully clear in time.

While I recognise that you are keen to try again as soon as you can, if you miscarry, it's only 2 weeks. Fundamentally this isn't going to slow down the process.

I think it would worth seeking some MH support / counselling. 💐

Really sorry, OP. I remember that trapped/stuck feeling and it’s horrible. The miscarriage itself almost came as a relief.

I appreciate some people would rather hold on to hope even when the odds seem vastly against it but not all of us find that approach comforting. I didn’t.

@EarringsandLipstick I'm nearly 35 and a half and we're not very fertile as a couple. We were told a few years ago that we couldn't conceive naturally yet somehow managed that miracle twice. Lightning isn't going to strike a third time so this was probably my last chance.

I keep asking people for help but no one will do anything.

Oh, and in my experience the NHS was not much help at providing any sort of support, but the Miscarriage Association had some good leaflets. www.miscarriageassociation.org.uk/

Would also recommend looking into what to expect if you miscarry naturally before the next scan - it can vary a lot.

@GoldenOmber Unfortunately I don't think I will because of the progesterone pessaries. They've already stopped my spotting.

I keep asking people for help but no one will do anything.

Nobody can do anything right now.

35 or not, fertility issues or not, 2 weeks will not make a significant difference.

I know that doesn't make it less agonising but you're being unrealistic here.

[quote TheBirdintheCave]@GoldenOmber Unfortunately I don't think I will because of the progesterone pessaries. They've already stopped my spotting.[/quote]
That's what they should do.

They aren't going to reverse or delay a mc. Sadly, it will happen if it's going to. 💐

@EarringsandLipstick But if I miscarry now then in two weeks time the bleeding might be over and a new cycle can begin. If I wait two weeks then I'm just delaying the start of it all until then.

So I can still start bleeding whilst taking them? If so, brilliant. I was worried it would sort of... hold all the dead tissue in place if that makes sense.

@TheBirdintheCave you are not alone in feeling the way you do. There is no right or wrong way to feel and you just have to find a way to get through all this.

@GoldenOmber has some good advice - I was not in any way prepared for a natural miscarriage and the aftermath of my emotions / feelings.
I'm stepping away from this thread now because it's bringing back some emotion and memories that I don't want to revisit (even though it was a long time ago)

I'm afraid no one can do anything at the moment. You might still have a viable pregnancy.
You need to try to relax and wait . I know it's hard and two weeks seems forever but you can't fast forward time .

@brainhurts There is no way that is possible but thanks. My husband is calling the EPU for me now to ask my questions. Hopefully I'll be able to sort something out for a quicker outcome.

[quote TheBirdintheCave]@GirlMama21 So sorry you had to go through that :( xx

@SunnySideUp2020 I know she can only go by what she sees but in everything I've read a 5mm sac at 6 weeks is bad news, I just feel like she didn't address the abnormality of that and try to prepare me for the worst. I think I'm more angry at myself than her as I didn't do all the maths there and then.

We last had sex on the 10th of February and sperm can only last up to five days. The latest I could have ovulated is the 14th (CD 21) based on that fact which would make me 6 weeks and no earlier. It's just not biologically possible to be earlier than that unfortunately :([/quote]
Same thing happened to me. I asked the sonographer if I should be worried and she just repeated the measurements.

In hindsight she was telling me it wasn't good without actually telling me.