Could dates be out by 3 weeks? worried, no heartbeat

[Fifi78910]

I went for a private scan at 9 weeks and they told me I had a ‘missed miscarriage’ baby had no heartbeat and only measuring 3mm - which is more like 5 weeks.

They referred me to the hospital and yesterday I had a scan with the consultant. He said it is too soon to say if I’ve had a miscarriage because my dates could be completely wrong. He said baby measured 4.7mm and is unlikely to find a heartbeat until 5mm. I’ve had no other symptoms of miscarriage. He wants to see me again in 1 week for a rescan. Has his happened to anyone else? Is it possible my dates could be that wrong? The consultant said it’s possible but I’m really finding it hard to believe and don’t want to get my hopes up too much.

Wish I never went for a private scan, the worry is killing me!

This is such a horrible thing to have to go through, I’m so sorry. Of course it’s possible but it depends on how sure you are about your dates? It would essentially mean that you pretty much fell pregnant the month after you thought you did. But presumably you did a pregnancy test more than 5 weeks ago which doesn’t even account for the fact that the baby is dated from your last period. A few days out is easily possible, 3/4 weeks sounds implausible. I’m so sorry if that across as blunt but there’s nothing worse than false hope 😭

Thank you,no need to apologise! I’m certain of my last period date and my first positive test was 31st December so that doesn’t make any sense really! It’s just been such an emotional rollercoaster since the sonographer at the private scan just seemed certain and didn’t say anything about dates being wrong or a heartbeat wouldn’t be expected at that size. The NHS consultant was quite adamant we couldn’t say for certain yet, so it’s an agonising wait. Constantly wondering if I still feel pregnant or if I’m getting any pain etc….

So sorry you’re going through this @Fifi78910. Are you cycles usually regular? From what I understand, dating from the first day of last period can be a bit off for those who don’t have regular 28-day cycles or for those who ovulate early or late. My friend had an early scan and was dated about 2 weeks out from her calculations, but it turns out it was because her cycle isn’t very regular after coming off contraception. Sending lots of positive thoughts

Thank you. I was tracking my ovulation which I think was a week late. So could be a week out but 3 weeks just seems too much 😣

Hi @Fifi78910 I am sorry you’re experiencing this. I had this happen back in February last year. Like you went for a private scan at what should have been 9 weeks and baby was only measuring 5/6 weeks. As we had been trying for over a year I was certain of my dates. It came as a huge shocks because I still felt very pregnant! I was referred to EPU the next day and they confirmed why we had been told at the private scan however it is NHS policy to invite you back a week or two later to see if there has been any growth before they will confirm a miscarriage. So without meaning to sound awful I would take the potential false hope you have been given by the consultant as more of a reluctance to confirm or deny a miscarriage before he sees you again. If the worst is confirmed next week then you will be given choices about how you deal with it. I found this incredibly tough as it’s obviously a choice you never want to have to make. My body never recognised the miscarriage which was honestly torturous and I was terrified of what might happen between those scans. I chose surgical management and it was much easier than I imagine the other options might be. For me at least I was in and out the hospital the same day and the limbo was finally over and I could begin to grieve. I can absolutely empathise with where you are right now and I promise no matter what happens you will come out the other side. It’s a terrible journey but if it gives you any hope at all I write this to you at 30 weeks pregnant with our rainbow baby conceived 5 months after the surgery. Take care x

Thanks so much for you reply. It really helps hearing other people’s stories, congratulations!