Measuring at 5 or 6 weeks and I thought I’d be 7 or 8. Have to wait 10 days for re scan..

[EllieJade95]

Hi everyone,

I was looking for some advice, because my mind is in overdrive right now. I found out I was pregnant nearly 4 weeks ago, on the 23rd March. The first test I took said I was 2-3 weeks (ClearBlue) and changed on the 28th to 3+. Now, there’s only two dates that I had sex, the first being the 25th of February and the 2nd being either on the 5th or the 6th March. I took an at home HCG blood test check on the 5th April which came back as 11,918 which put me either in the 6 or 7 week zone at that point so I assumed I conceived on the 25th and probably more likely 7.

Fast forward to now, I had a red bleed on Sunday (filled up the tissue but no red blood after) and I’ve had the smallest bit of brown discharge since then but only probably one bit a day. I spoke to my GP yesterday and he booked me in for a scan at the EPU for this morning. I’ve just had the scan and she said she can see a sack, the nutrient pole and can see the small bean (she actually pointed and said there’s baby which I thought was odd considering it’s quite obvious I could of had a miscarriage) and hovered for a second where she said the flicker could potentially be the start of a baby’s heartbeat (also thought was odd when she looked at my dates..!). She measured it at around 5 or 6 weeks and has booked me in for another scan in 10 days. I feel awful because I fully expected to go in and get an answer even if it was a bad one and be able to start moving on and dealing with it. Now, I feel like I know it’s not a good outcome because in my eyes whilst it’s possible I could be 6 weeks if I date it from the March 5/6th date and add 5 days from sperm to stay in, if my HCG level was that 2 weeks ago it’s not possible.

I was wondering if anyone has been in this position before, if there was a positive outcome or just in general what the outcome was. I was fully convinced I would know today either way and now this has made me feel awful as I have to wait for so long when I feel like I already know the answer. I know it’s possible that I may get my answer before if I start having more bleeding etc and it’s more evident it’s a miscarriage. I really didn’t expect this and just feel totally shit as I know it’s going to be that I lost the baby probably 2 weeks ago, but I have to wait to properly be told. I still have my symptoms and pregnancy tests are coming back strong when I dilute them so it’s pointless me even doing another blood test as my hormone will clearly still be high. I really wanted to be able to deal with the bad news, maybe have a D&C if it got to 2+ weeks with nothing else and hopefully have my period etc start coming back and can try again. I know in the grand scheme of things it’s only 10 days but feels so long when miscarriages can take a long time to clear through your body.

Any help with this? :(

@Stargazer89 Sorry to hear you had to go through this 3 times but so pleased it’s working out for you now 🤍 I’ve seen quite a few people saying about being super fertile after the miscarriage! Is that once you start having a negative pregnancy test & before you’ve had a period or after?

I had this for my first scan with my daughter. Went back and all was fine and was given an adjusted due date. Weirdly, my dd was born on the date I’d originally said. Perhaps it had taken longer for the spent to reach the egg than i thought as I’d only had sex on specific dates that didn’t match the adjusted date.

Also really hope all goes well for you, OP.

I spoke to you on your other thread I'm so sorry you are going through this.

To try and answer your question, when I had a missed miscarriage recently I still had strong pregnancy symptoms when I was scanned at what should have been 8 weeks but the scan found only a sac and based on the shape of it and how low down it was the sonographer was able to tell me that it was highly likely a miscarriage. She said that my body hadn't realised that the baby hadn't developed which is why I hadn't miscarried naturally and why I was still having symptoms. I was booked in for another scan the following week as apparently they can't arrange medical/surgical management without 2 scans. I was sure I would need the management because, as I saw it, why would my body suddenly now realise when it hadn't for 3+ weeks.

However, the nurse said that now my brain knew what was happening it was possible that my body would catch up and that's exactly what happened. I had the scan on the Thursday and started bleeding on the Sunday then eventually passed the sac on the Wednesday before the second scan.

In terms of pregnancy tests, I still had strong positives for over 2 weeks and it took 4 weeks for me to test negative.

I'm so sorry you are going through this and I really hope my post doesn't make you feel worse, but I know how awful the limbo is when you don't know what is happening and I wanted to try and answer the question you had asked.

I think the advice up thread to expect the worst bit hope for the best is the best way to approach things at the moment. Thinking of you x

Also I meant to say that I do think there must be some hope for you re the flicker - I am certain that in these situations they are very careful not to give false hope, or at least that was my experience. They were very very clear with me at my first scan that whilst they couldn't say that it was just a dating issue (apparently mine was looking like 5.5 weeks) they thought this was highly unlikely and expected that I was miscarrying

@MrsHsGirl Thank you for your message ❤it's a really awful thing to go through, especially as I really didn't expect that outcome - I thought i'd be told everything was fine or that I would miscarry, not the uncertainty of having to wait 10 days and prolong the inevitable. The sonographer that I had seemed different to yours, but I don't know if I would say this was a positive thing. She was delayed by 20 minutes because she took a phone call and part of me feels I was being rushed, there was no mention of it's likely to be a miscarriage and she didn't even tell me the weeks until I asked and even then she said 5/6 weeks. She could see the sack in normal position and pointed saying "there's baby" and also had what she called the nutrient line which I assume is the umbilical cord. In a way, that made me feel worse as I had a sudden visual realisation of what I would need to pass potentially.

I do agree that I feel like they are trained to see heartbeats etc and do this everyday, so surely she wouldn't give false hope and she clearly noticed something to say it - but equally considering she said it "could be the start" i'm not really taking that into consideration. She was very much "try not to think about it and lets just see in 10 days" even when I asked if it was a possibility that the foetus died 2 weeks ago she was like "it could be, I get what you mean" and then was trying to get me up and out.

No it doesn't make me feel worse because I feel like I know the inevitable, she didn't know about my HCG levels 2 weeks ago as I didn't mention it (as I was being so rushed) so maybe if I had she may be a bit more realistic but in my head I feel like i've accepted the answer. I hope that my brain catches up, but the thought of having a positive pregnancy test for so long just feels depressing - me and my partner discussed trying again fairly quickly, more so because I feel like if I have too much time to think about it it will create an anxiety and fear, so the thought I could be having these pregnancy tests as a positive for a long while plus a 10 day delay just makes me feel shitty x

@MagpieSong Thank you - I hope it's positive for me too ❤

Just wanted to add a quick message on here as i've been thinking..

I was looking back at when I first took a pregnancy test, when it changed from 2-3 to 3+ etc and it's got me thinking..

I took my first pregnancy test on the 23rd March and it said 2-3 weeks since I had conceived. On the 28th, 5 days later it changed to 3+. I never really went by my LMP as I am very irregular so it was pretty impossible to tell. I've always said there were two dates I had sex, the first being the 25th Feb & the 2nd being the 5th or 6th March (can't remember the exact one) - now when I work out 3 weeks before the date my test changed to 3 weeks, give or take a few days that ends up being March 7. I guess I was always going by dates based on what my HCG level was 2 weeks ago which put me in a 6-7 week bracket but i've seen a few posts saying their HCG was a lot higher than expected and it didn't really mean anything just made them worry they had an abnormal pregnancy.

I don't know if I am giving myself false hope, but if I go on when the tests changed & the fact that I last had sex on the 5th or 6th and sperm can live for 5 days it's actually highly possible I could be 5.5 or 6 weeks pregnant as what came up on my scan...

Am I just giving myself complete wrong hope and actually the tests can't give you much or could this potentially be right?

@EllieJade95 I assume if you got a 3+ on the 28th that’d make you around 5ish weeks at that time, maybe earlier if you had high hcg levels so by now you would be 7/8 weeks? Xx

@ChloeN Ugh, I got it wrong because I forgot about the 2 extra weeks they give on top. If it's based on that, then yes it would mean I ovulated on the 25th (or around then, which is when I did have sex) - I thought the 3+ is calculated from when you actually conceived (which would make it around the 7th) and they add the two weeks on top. But yes I guess if I was going to a doctors appointment they would say 7 or 8 weeks so i've given myself a moment of hope then for nothing! xx

@ChloeN Although when I asked her if she was basing on size what weeks she'd say she said 5/6 - but thats based on the actual foetus and not with any period dates etc in mind. So is it not possible that given if I did conceive around the 7th or so, it could be fine, because the actual foetus is the size you'd expect at that weeks it's only the 2 extra weeks they add when you aren't actually pregnant with anything at that point anyway? Or am I just confusing myself xx

@EllieJade95 I guess you could still of concieved the 7th, then got a 3+ on the 28th which would make sense as that’s exactly 3 weeks later! But yes got to add the 2 weeks on with clearblue! I guess the baby could be measuring 5/6 weeks without the 2 weeks added on but even then it should have a heartbeat, because that would actually put you at 7/8 weeks pregnant?xx

@ChloeN I think it’s pointless me even working it out, the clear blues are not necessarily even accurate cause you could have lower HCG or higher HCG than the norm but I was thinking if it was the 7th, that would mean when I had my scan it could of been something like 5.5 weeks (not including the 2 weeks on top they put but I get confused how they measure based on that when the first two weeks you’re not actually pregnant) it’s my first time experiencing any of this so it just confuses me. I don’t know when she said 5/6 weeks based on the size she meant including the 2 weeks extra they give you or not. It’s probably wishful thinking🥹 xx

@EllieJade95 After first miscarriage I was pregnant before having a period but I bled on and off for about 6 weeks and just assumed I wasn't fertile until I stopped bleeding. It was a natural miscarriage and just awful. The second pregnancy never progressed so the miscarriage was just like a period. Got a negative test a couple of weeks later. I then waited to have a period before trying again and got pregnant that month. That sadly ended in miscarriage and measured quite far behind on scans and symptoms went. Had a D&C which was far and far more preferable than natural in my experience. We decided to take a break but then had unprotected sex a few months later which resulted in this pregnancy. I was so convinced that it was going to be another failed pregnancy after my scan because dates were so off. Later scans matched up with my dates and now i'm measuring ahead. The fetus is so small at that stage and I got told 1-2 weeks behind wasn't a concern.

Really hope you get good news.

I’m in the same position, and it’s awful, the waiting game, people say think postive keep busy I feel like that’s near enough impossible. I go next Thursday but I think I know the outcome.. devastated. I’ve had two ectopics before but I have had one beautiful son who has just turned one.. no one tells you how hard it is dealing with loss, I wish you all the best and hope you have a happy outcome

@EllieJade95 They always add the 2 weeks it’s just how they date pregnancies regardless of when you’re scanned😢 Its weird how they do it but I suppose people don’t know when they concieved so it’s the easiest way to do it! Hopefully you are just behind and it all works out xx

@Stargazer89 So sorry that you’ve had to deal with this many times ☹️ wishing you a healthy and safe pregnancy now 🌈
It’s truly terrifying. Even though they are so common, you can’t help but think is something wrong with you and have you missed your chance. I got pregnant super quick & feel like it’s a fluke and I’m already having the thoughts of am I even going to ever have a successful pregnancy. My tests are still so strong that I have to dilute them to get the strong result - I feel with that in mind it will take a long time to go and that makes me sad as I’d like to try sooner rather than later 😔
Unless anything happens naturally in the next 8 days out of my control I would definitely opt for D&C - seeing the sack and little bean on screen just made it such a visual realisation of what would naturally come so that terrified me. It’s so traumatising how long a process a miscarriage really is & the thoughts that come after it. I really appreciate your well wishes 💗

@Stayls89 So sorry you are going through the same thing, it’s truly awful isn’t it? After my bleed I fully expected to go and be told it was going to end in miscarriage and was preparing myself to opt for a D&C and almost feel this wait is worse as I am the same and feel I know the answer but just have to sit and wait. It’s especially worse knowing if it happened 2 weeks ago, plus an extra 10 days on top of that. I’m sorry you’ve dealt with the losses you have, I really hope this works out for you and everything will be okay. 🤍

@EllieJade95 sorry to comment nearly a year later but I'm spiralling into mumsnet threads and your story is exactly the same as mine - I'm very impatiently waiting a rescan next Friday!
Do you mind me asking what happened to you at your rescan? Xx

@omghavingababy Hey, I’m so so sorry you’re going through this anxiousness - I remember this like it was yesterday and it was so hard to deal with waiting for an answer. Unfortunately this was a missed miscarriage, but I had accepted this as I had my bloods done & it showed it hadn’t risen for over 48 hours so I kind of knew - is there any way you could do this? I had an at home blood test kit but your doctor might potentially do it if you plead. It’s still not a 100% answer but if it is unfortunately bad news then it may prepare you a bit.

I am pleased to say though I got pregnant again about 3 and a half weeks after my D&C and have my 7 week old now (who is keeping me up at night from being a very noisy baby! 😂) and everything worked out. Same for a friend of mine who went through a similar thing.

Praying everything is okay for you - in hindsight I wish I never spent time going through mumsnet threads, I know it’s easy but you can either be on the lucky side or unlucky side and I think all you can do is wait and see. If you want a chat you’re welcome to message me because I know how awful the anxiety can be 💗

@omghavingababy just wanted to say I was the same as @EllieJade95, I now have a 9 week old and although it broke my heart at the time everything worked out in the end, sending you lots of love and wishing you all the luck in the world xx

@EllieJade95 and @Stayls89 oh my goodness thank you both so much for replying! And congratulations on your newborns! Sorry it was bad news for you both but the same time such a relief you both managed to conceive so quickly after 😍

My next mumsnet spiral tonight is medical management, I've decided I definitely don't want the tablet option to miscarry at home and definitely surgery - can I ask did you have local or general anaesthetic?

@EllieJade95 3 weeks after is pretty impressive did you have a period during that time or went straight into ovulation tests after your negative

• Like you, aswell as being behind with dates (that I am certain on) i got told and shown (!!) there "was a flicker" of heartbeat which is the thing messing with my head most. Also like you I kind of have accepted fate and want it over with now and not the wait, but then there's like 10% of me like WHAT IF

arghhh

Congrats again! I hope to be not too far behind you 🤞🏼 hope your little one gives you some sleep tonight xxx thank you

@omghavingababy 100% agree with you on not having medical management! I was actually advised by a midwife I knew to go for surgery instead of medical management as you really don’t know what you’re going to get. I knew someone that did it and she had a bad experience, because essentially you’re forcing your body. My hospital only does general which initially I was nervous for but that was really only down to having this random fear of waking up and feeling sick haha which I didn’t anyway! I would have been happy with local as well to be honest. It’s honestly such a quick procedure and I didn’t actually find it as emotional/hard as I thought - maybe that was because I had time to prepare but I think I would have found medical management harder for sure. I got there for 7:15am and was in theatre by 9:15, home by 3pm! Also didn’t even feel weird after waking up from general. I would say that your hospital will probably only do one option, you may be able to find it online but if not they’ll tell you at the scan.

I didn’t have a period but I think the bleeding after almost acts like a period. I didn’t start bleeding until 2 days later when my hormones dropped (as that can take a while) and was on off bleeding for about 12 days but it was just like once a day by the end of it. I kept track by the cheap ovulation sticks, purely to see the hormone going down. I then knew once I had got a negative clear blue that if I got any ovulation it would be genuine. They tell you to wait a cycle which looking back I probably should have done but don’t regret it as I’ve got my rainbow now! Just have to do what you want to do ultimately.

It’s so awful that they say about the flicker.. I do wonder if they are told to say that to try not to panic people. It’s good you’re doing research so you’re a bit prepared but I’d say you’ve probably done enough now and now is time to look after yourself and hopefully get some good news next Friday. 💗💗