Failed pregnancy- suspected ectopic. I feel so sad 😞

[Sunflower221]

So today I found out that my HCG levels have dropped to what is considered a “failed pregnancy”. I went into a&e last week with terrible pain in my abdomen, thigh and back and after a blood test, got sent away and told to return for a scan two days later. The next morning the pain was so bad that I had to go back in. They performed an internal ultrasound scan to find “significant amount of blood” in my pelvic cavity. They told me to return on Monday for another blood test. From Friday to Monday my HCG had only risen 33% they told me to return the next day for a scan and another blood test. On Tuesday my blood results showed an 74% increase within a 24 hour period - I was feeling stupidly optimistic that the pregnancy was going to be ok. They kept me in overnight to monitor me as they were concerned about the internal bleeding in my pelvis. They performed another scan the following morning and were still concerned about the internal bleeding but agreed I could go home to rest. I came the next day for another blood test. Today I got the result. It had dropped by 43%. They are asking me to consider investigative surgery to rule out ectopic pregnancy/ to drain the blood from my pelvic cavity. Has anyone had anything similar? I feel so numb 😞

I haven't had this experience OP I just wanted to comment to give you a hand hold and send you some love in what sounds like such a hard situation.

Bless you Op , wanting to send you a handhold too xxx♥️

Hi Sunflower,
I had an ectopic pregnancy in February of this year. When I went in I was bleeding and in severe pain. My scan, like yours, showed free fluid in my pelvis and they were quick to diagnose an ectopic pregnancy. However, my Hcg levels were low. They kept me in for observation hoping my body was passing the ectopic by itself, however, in the early hours of the morning my tube ruptured and I became unwell and was taken to theatre where they removed my right Fallopian tube along with the pregnancy which had implanted there.
the surgery was laprascopic and I was discharged the next day.
I still really struggle mentally with what happened and have been in counselling since.
It sounds as if they are sure this is a non-continuing pregnancy and want to ensure no further harm comes to you. If they perform the surgery and find healthy tubes they will drain the blood in the pelvis and close you back up but if they open you up and find a pregnancy within a tube they may need to remove your tube for your own safety.
Im so sorry this is happening to you. It is terrible losing a pregnancy at any stage and in any way but I found my ectopic particularly cruel as my tube was taken too.
I have a positive outcome now but still struggle with what happened. Know you aren’t alone ❤️

I had an ectopic that ruptured and needed emergency surgery to remove the tube. It was all very hard to take in initially and took quite a long time to process. I hadn’t known I was even pregnant and although I’d seen my gp due to bleeding, I was completely dismissed. I then developed really bad burning pain in my back and took myself to hospital thankfully. I never had the typical shoulder tip pain. It ruptured whilst waiting for surgery and I was told by the surgeon I was lucky to be alive afterwards. I felt quite pessimistic about the future for a long time. I was told in a later appointment that the remaining tube could ‘catch’ an egg from the ovary on the other side. I didn’t believe a word of it. DS1 arrived 18 months later! I had an early scan and they could tell the egg had been released from the side with no tube due to the corpus luteum. I’ve gone on to have DC2, DC3 and pregnant with DC4 without any intervention. Miracles do happen! There is light at the end of the very dark tunnel. It will always be a traumatic event in my life, but it’s now just part of my story and part of the journey rather than being all consuming as it was at the time. It does get better OP.

Hey I had an ectopic and laparoscopy surgery in august.
It was such a confusing time especially because my levels were also rising I still had hope.
I do advise though if they suggest surgery for investigation then to go ahead as I was lucky they took me to surgery to remove all my right side tube however they caught it early and managed to removed the ectopic and just still seal my tube closed rather than removal.
There's still a change if they investigate early you may not loose your tube.
I too had a lot of bleeding for over 7 days.
Some cramping but a lot down my right leg.
No shoulder tip pain though that they swear is the sign.
I had a lot of internal bleeding as well that they saw on the scans over 7 days.
So Sorry your going through this :(
Good luck and keep us updated x

Hello BabyM2023,
thank you so much for your reply. I am so sorry this happened to you 😞 do you know what your HGC levels were? I’m happy you have a positive outcome now, but I’m so sorry for what you went through. I’m going in tomorrow to talk with the consultant and to have one last scan before a decision is made.

Hi Lillybobs86, thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my post. I have been so scared to have the surgery incase further damage is done, but I guess sometimes it is for the best. Do you mind if I ask how far along you were with your pregnancy? I really hope you’re doing ok now and I’m so sorry for your loss xx

The only damage that can be done is every day that goes by your tube can rupture any time - if your already bleeding internally it's not a good sign.
I was terrified of going to surgery but if I did not go through with it it could have ended up differently and not here today.
They wont be doing any damage by investigating - as I asked the same question to the surgeon and he said if they see the pregnancy is normal they wouldn't disturb it (that was 7 days before I found out was ectopic when first had pain)
Just speak with the professionals for reassurance but that is what they said to me.
I was 6 weeks when they said I had to have surgery immediately.

Hey Sunflower,
so my HCG went super low to 148 so they were hopeful that it was resolving itself. However, when my tube ruptured that night I was in denial and refusing to go to surgery, the consultant came in and said she had seen tubes rupture at HCGs of 60 so it doesn’t directly correlate with that.
I was convinced that I shouldn’t be going to surgery because of my low HCG and think that’s where most of my trauma comes from. After the operation the consultant came to see me again and admitted she didn’t know what to do so flipped a coin basically but when she opened me up she knew she had made the right decision which was reassuring.
Its such a scary time and you probably feel like no one is giving you a clear plan of action so hopefully you get that tomorrow.
Just make sure you look after yourself and be kind to yourself through all of this xx

BabyM2023 Oh I’m so sorry that must have been such a scary time for you 😞 how far along with the pregnancy were you?
sending lots of love xx

Hey Sunflower, I was between 6-7 weeks at the time so HCG should have been a lot higher which is why they were hopeful it was resolving itself but just think my body wasn’t resolving it fast enough! Hope everything goes ok for you today xx

How are you getting on @Sunflower221 ? Just found your thread whilst looking for information on ectopic. I'm being treated for pregnancy of unknown location, low HCG, stomach pain and only 3 weeks. They didn't have a slot to scan me yesterday and I think too early anyway.
Hope you have a clearer idea of what they need to do to help you.