Fibroids in Pregnancy

[Firsttimer7259]

This is my first pregnancy and I think I am 6+5. I had a little bleeding a few days ago which ratcheted up the anxiety. I went to see my GP who on feeling my stomach said that I felt more like 15 weeks pregnant. Now I know I am not - especially because an early HPT I did in this cycle was negative. I am also regular and record my menstrual cycles.
I think it could be because of my fibroids. I have a lot of fibroids and at my last scan in 2007 the report said that my uterus was 'baggy' and measured the the size of a 12 week pregnant uterus.
I now feel quite grossed out at the thought of this huge womb and worried that my nasty fibroids are going to squash my little bean out of existence. I try not to think about how big they are.
Before I was worried that my fibroids could mean trouble conceiving. Now that I am pregnant I am worried I am going to miscarry because of the fibroids or even that its going to be really difficult because I will be so huge with fibroids plus baby.
Does anyone have any similar experience? Is it common? It would really help to hear more about it

Hi, congratulations on your pregnancy.

Try not to worry too much, I know its hard, but I was diagnosed with fibroids and I've gone on to have 3 healthy children !

Funnily enough, when I had my first meeting with the MW with baby 3, she questioned my dates as she said I was further gone than my dates suggested. Maybe that was my fibroid ? I dont know ?

Anyway, the fibroids do stretch and grow as you grow, but they shouldnt have any bearing on the growth of the baby, unless they are quite low down which would affect the baby when he eventually comes out.

Mine was quite low down, so I had to have a couple of extra scans at 30 and 35 weeks or so. In my case, as my uterus stretched, my fibroid stretched upwards too, and I had a normal delivery.

I could feel a hard lump, and apparantly it was the size of an orange.

Nobody was particularly concerned, and they shrunk after the birth.

One thing you might find after the birth is that you might bleed for longer than you expected. On the other hand you might not.

Hope all goes well

Thank you, thats calmed me down a bit. Everytime I think about this I feel a rising surge of panic

Looking back it was soo much easier when we didnt have the internet to worry ourselves to death with ....

When I had a section they also took out a surprise fibroid! No-one had known it was there. It didn't affect the baby. Watch the bleeding afterwards though as I had to be readmitted a few weeks after delivery. They didn't contribute this directly to the fibroid though so may not be connected.
And congratulations on your pregnancy!

Hi Firsttimer

I too have fibroids. I'm currently 14 weeks pregnant but am measuring about 21 weeks because of the fibroids.

I was exactly the same when pregnant with dd but apart from my size (and incidentally some bleeding on and off which I was told was nothing to do with the fibroids), I had a perfectly normal pregnancy and birth.

I had about 10 of them and the largest was 12cm in diameter

A lot of it depends on where the fibroids are. Sometimes they can be at the bottom of the uterus, blocking the "exit route" and that can mean you will need a c section. Sometimes they can be near the placenta and you will probably have regular scans to make sure there are no issues with growth etc.

See if you can get referred for an early scan so they can tell you what sort of fibroids you have and where they are located.

They are apparently very common (1 in 3 women have them I believe) and are usually absolutely fine so try not to worry.

Also I meant to say have you spoken to a GP or midwife about your concerns? They must see this quite a lot.

Oh - and congratulations

Also - I had a syntocin drip put in straight after birth to help my uterus contract so there was no risk of post partum bleeding.

Thanks for all these messages. Especially as I think my fibroids are about the size and number as Tillyscoutsmum. Really reassuring to think this might be fairly normal

I guess when I google I just find all these awful stories. And I want this baby so much...

It is worrying - when I thought about how much space the fibroids took up I was seriously concerned about how there was going to be room for dd in there ! My consultant kept warning me that I probably wouldn't go full term and might have a small baby. She arrived 1 day before her due date and weighed 9lb 12 oz

You do get really closely monitored and well looked after ime... Lots of scans and opportunities to see your baby which is always a bonus

Good luck .... and step away from Google !!

In case anyone is still reading this thread or comes across it in searching for discussions on pregnancy and fibroids I thought I should update on the outcome of this little saga so far.

Exactly a week later from my first bleed I had a second bleed. This time it included cramps (mild), a couple of (small) clots and the sense that the flow was increasing. It also went on from Thursday night to Sunday. The bleeding was admittedly quite little - blood on wiping and spotting.

So I called the EPU and they booked me in for a scan. I have few other preganacy symptomss. We were not feeling very hopeful when we got there and the person doing the scan said that with fibroids it can be very difficult to spot the baby.

But she found it within seconds and there is a heartbeat and a good size for its age. I was 7+4. They estimated it as 8+2 (+/- days). They could see where the blood was coming from as there was a little tear on the implantation site. But the bean is implanted and well. So we are reassured.

My next scan is at 13 weeks and I am going to do my best to relax until then. Its possible that I will need some extra monitoring as the preganacy progresses and with delivery because of the fibroids but will deal with all of that when I get there

Really happy.

Thought I would come back to this briefly. I am now 22 weeks pregnant- hurrah!

For the benefit of anyone else with fibroids I thought I wuld update: It turns out I have at least 5, with the largest 2 measuring about 8cm across. They are intramural and two are down near the cervix and at the front of my womb.

Aftr the 12 week scan I saw a consultant about them and he explained the various ways in which fibroids and pregnancy interact - including the placenta coming loose, problems with a natural deliver if fiborids are blocking the way out, fibroids growing alongside pregnany, and possibility of hemoraging if c-secton cuts through a fibroid. Not fun

Anyway I am now involved in the waiting stage. From what the sonographer said about the fibroids at the 20 week scan they sound like they are still the same size and baby looks well attached. In terms of the birth we are waiting until nearer the end of the pregnancy to see how everything is positioned. I was told the lower part of the womb grows in late pregnancy and hopefully this will pull my lower 2 fibroids up and out of the way in time for delivery...I have a few extra scans booked to check on that from 28 weeks onwards.

I was absolutely huge at 12 weeks - many people thought I was about 5-6 months! I guess at the time my uterus was effectively filled with triplets as my two largest fibroids were the same size as the baby. While my bump is still on the large side I seem to be evening out with with everyone else as time passes and fibroids stay roughtly the same.

Will let you know what happens nearer delivery and after. Am keen to know of anyone with positive experiences/ good outcomes. For now please no bad stories, I am trying to stay as upbeat as possible for the duration of the pregnancy. Thanks