Missed miscarriage at 8 weeks. How long until the bleeding starts?

[BiscuitStuffer]

Does anyone know - baby died at 6 weeks and I'm 8 weeks now. How long roughly will it take before I actually miscarry - has anyone else had any experience of this? I feel horribly bloated low down my abdomen but no other symptoms.

It can take about ten days. Has the doctor given you any drugs to kick things off or just told you to take painkillers.

I'm so sorry you've had this happen, it's so hard when you miscarry at this stage because everyone just assumes you won't be that upset because it's relatively early.

If you are not coping with the waiting, go back to your GP and ask for a D&C.

Thank you for replying - 10 days from when do you mean? I haven't had any pain or bleeding - just very very mild period pains a couple of days ago which stopped.

They didn't offer me any drugs and I'm keen to avoid a D&C if I can. If I hadn't have had the scan at 8 weeks, then I guess it may not have been picked up until my 12 week one???? I know people do discover missed miscarriage at that scan. So I'm assuming it could be weeks???

I was diagnosed with a missed miscarriage at around 10 weeks and the baby had died at around 8 weeks 5 days. I chose expectnt management and the actual miscarriage started around 12 weeks and i bled for about 10 days in total.

i am very sorry for your loss. Take care of yourself x

If you haven't had any symptoms ten days after a missed miscarriage, I was told to return to the hospital for drugs to expedite things. The mild period pains may be the start of it. With my first one I didn't actually experience much pain, just a lot of bleeding.

same thing happened to me in May, I didn't have a scan at first, I had a feeling in my heart that something wasn't right, it was then that they sent me for a scan.........anyway had scan on the wednesday and spoke to an EPU nurse ans was booked in for an ERPC the very next day, the thursday.......I just counldn't bear having a bean that wasn't alive inside me,driving to the hospital was heartbreaking and after the operation I felt relief, I could pick myself up and carry on.......

really sorry to hear of your loss and please be kind to yourself

I'm so sorry you are going through this.

I had a scan at 7wks ( knew something was wrong ) and showed no heartbeat. I was booked in for a rescan 2 wks later but started bleeding last Saturday and went on to mc on Monday night at 9wks. ( Was also told baby measured 6wks )

I wasn't offered a d&c as I hadn't had a 2nd scan but in hindsight, I think I would have taken it just because of what I went through. I guess every mc is different and everyone deals with it differently. I just wish I'd had some idea of what to expect.

I hope you are ok and like everyone else has said, take it easy and be kind to yourself.

Thanks again for your replies - Ebb how are you? Was the actual miscarriage awful? Are you feeling ok now? Did you see the embryo?

Also - I have loads of pressure in my uterus / area. It's getting worse - does that mean things are starting to happen naturally?

I'm doing ok thank you Biscuit. I think 1. Because I have a 17mth old Ds and 2. Because I had time to come to terms with the fact it was going to happen. I haven't 'grieved' as such yet but I'm sure it will hit me at some stage.

For me the mc was horrible. More because I'd read it was 'just like a heavy period' and I was soaking night time pads every 10mins. I wasn't expecting it to be so heavy and I did end up in hospital on a drip. My boss has had 3 mc's inbetween dc's 1 and 2 and hers were like heavy periods and she continued to work through out. It's so different for everyone.

I did pass big clots and maybe naively, I wasn't expecting that when you read at 6wks your baby is the size of a poppy seed. There is a thread on the miscarraige/pregnancy loss forum ( under Body and Soul ) entilted 'Natural' miscarraige - did you know what to expect' or something like that and people have been very honest and graphic. It varies so much but I do wish I'd at least been given some idea. At my scan everyone was trying to be positive and suggesting the dates could be wrong but I was 99% sure they weren't wrong. Even so nobody mentioned mc and the 1% of me kept hoping until Monday.

The tummy pains could be the start of it. I got 'period pains' then bled lightly Sat/Sun/Mon before starting to bleed heavily at about 10.30pm on the Monday night. The heavy bleeding only lasted about an hour and a half, maybe two hours and then settled to more like a normal period. The hospital did give me pain killers but I only took them on the Tuesday. I'm still bleeding now but much, much lighter.

To be honest afterwards I felt relieved it was over. Maybe because I'd been under such stress 'waiting' for it to happen. You're in limbo until then as you can't move on or deal with it or try again etc.

I'm so sorry for your loss. I had a missed MC @ 10 weeks. Went for an early scan as I to knew something was wrong. No HB. This was this time last year & I as well as all the other ladies who have replied feel for u. Make sure u have someone to look after u. I did have the D&C but had to wait a week to go in. I'm lucky to have had a great family standing by me & a great partner.
Look after yourself x

I had a mmc which was discovered at the dating scan (blighted ovum, but placenta had continued to develop). I waited 2 weeks to see if I'd bleed naturally and finally started the day that I went into hospital for the ERPC, so I was 14 weeks pg, despite the embryo not making it past 6 or 7 weeks.

I went in and had the ERPC anyway, as I needed to move on by then. I think that you need to have a cut off point in your head, or you could just be waiting and waiting, which is so hard.

I too have have had a missed miscarriage. Mine died at 8 weeks. I started to bleed at 11 weeks but no pain. After 2 days of bleeding I had a scan which confirmed missed miscarriage. Was sent away to let nature take it course. Within 2 days I developed really bad period like pain. Was given ward number after scan so came in. Given option of going home with painkillers or to take tablet to bring it on or ERPC. Went fo ERPC. I just didn't want to prolong things.

Thinking of you

Hi
i had mmc at 8 weeks but didnt bleed at all an only found out wen i went for my 12 wk scan. I got given an option of letting the it happen naturally (tho this wasnt happening as the baby had already been dead inside 4 4 weeks an nothing had come away so far), or 2 take some tabs 2 bring it on, i just couldnt haddle this an decided 2 go in for a d an c as i just wanted my body back to normal. Im really sori 4 your loss, hope your ok xx

BiscuitStuffer, so sorry to hear you've been going through this. I had a mmc last year - baby died at 8 weeks, we found out at 10 weeks, and it wasn't until about 11.5 weeks that I started to bleed.

Unlike some of the others here, I had absolutely no idea that anything might be wrong - I only found out due to a scan I had after the tiniest amount of bleeding possible, which I assumed was just 'one of those things' but got checked out anyway.

I still had most pregnancy symptoms even after I found out about the mmc (although some had improved around 8 weeks). I chose not to have an ERPC and let things happen in their own time. I bled for about five or six days; reasonably heavily but nothing terrible. I assumed that since it was pretty much like a heavy period, everything inside me was breaking down and coming out in bits. However, on the Friday night I had half an hour of pretty bad griping abdominal pain (a bit like period pains only worse). On the Saturday night I had the same again, but for an hour. On the Sunday evening, I had it again, really painful for about 3 hours. In the end it was so bad that my husband had to take me to the hospital because I was so desperate for some pain relief.

It turned out that the pain was actually contractions because the foetal sac was still inside me and my body was trying to get it out. It all came out in one piece in A & E, which was a bit of a shock as I'd previously assumed it had all broken up inside me. They kept me in overnight, did some tests and found out there was still some tissue inside me. I then had the choice as to whether to have an ERPC or just let things sort themselves out - I chose not to have an ERPC. I bled for a while afterwards (a week? fortnight, perhaps?) but didn't have any more bad pain.

I wish I'd known when I decided not to have the first ERPC that I could end up having contractions and delivering the foetal sac all in one go - all of that was a bit of a shock, and I didn't have any painkillers at home stronger than paracetemol. However, I think I'd make the same choices again next time. Letting things happen naturally gave me time to come to terms with things.

Whatever happens, do keep an eye on how tired you feel afterwards. I suffered from complet exhaustion and depression for 7 months afterwards, even though I had coped pretty well with the miscarriage itself and came to terms with it quite quickly. It turned out that all of that was due to me having low iron levels as a result of all that bleeding - within 2 weeks of starting the supplements I was a different person, no longer exhausted & depressed.

Make sure you take care of yourself and I hope things aren't too horrible for you.

Thank you so much for all your supportive replies - I really appreciate you spending the time to give me all the detail of how you all found it as it is helping me understand what to expect. I am just waiting for it all to kick off so that i can get on but really want it to happen naturally if possible. It has only been 3 days and I'm very impatient already. I am trying to tell myself just to get on with things and pretend that I'm just waiting for my next period in a months time and that it will just be a bit more of an event. I'm not good being in limbo and we really want to try again as soon as possible.

Hi biscuitstuffer, I know you have thanked everyone for there supportive replies but thought I would add something too as I am also going through the same. I had my scan at 10wks and the baby had died at 6wks. I went for a scan a week later (making me 11wks) to make sure they was right and it was confirmed again, no heartbeat. I decided to let nature take its course. I have had 2 other m/c's which I chose to have d&c's but definatly didnt want to to have a d&c with this mmc. I started bleeding a week after my scan with the hospital (12wks), the blood was dark brown in colour for the first 2 days then went red for a day and has now gone back to brown, I haven't had any pain just the odd period like cramp but nothing that has lasted, I stopped bleeding for a day and it has now started again, I have been like this for 6 days. Very light bleeding not much at all. I go back for another scan on Thursday to see if all has gone which I am hoping as I really don't want another d&c.

So from when my baby died at 6wks it has taken 6wks for the bleeding to start. But I only found out at my 10wk scan that I had a mmc so it hasn't felt too long. I am praying I won't suffer as much as some of the other ladies that have posted on here but who knows we will see Thursday if all has gone.

Take care and sending you my love. x x

Oh I forgot to mention I am also suffering from very bloated tummy. I looked like I was 7mths pregnant last night. But I think that is just down to the pregnancy hormones still being in our body.

Thank you Lulu and I'm sorry this is happening to you too. Fingers crossed for next week and please tell me how you get on. Out of interest - why have you decided not to have another D&C and prefer to wait?

To be quite honest biscuitstuffer I really don't know why I decided against the d&c I think it's because in the back of my mind I was thinking each time I have a d&c is it causing scarring to my uterus which can cause miscarriage or is it causing any other damage? I was told by another lady on here that your chances of scarring goes up to 48% on your 3rd d&c, my epu nurse didn't tell me this. d&c's are much quicker and its over and done with in a day, I had some light bleeding after for a couple of days and then my period came 4wks after so your body returns to normal pretty much straight away or mine did, everyones different. The natural way is such a long process, my body still thinks Im pregnant and Ive always got the worry like you mentioned what if I am out and it gushes out of me, so far I have been fairly lucky with the light bleeding but in away I think is that worse because it's just going to take longer and then I still might have to have the d&c.

I feel I have made the right decision letting it come away naturally and I am happy I have. I have noting against d&c's and the 2 I had went really well.

Will keep you posted about the scan on Thursday.

Take care of yourself and let me know how things go.

Biscuitstuffer sorry to hear you are going through this. I had a mmc at 8 weeks last year, but didn't start to bleed until 11 weeks (very light spotting) then had my dating scan and found out.

I then continued to have very light bleeding (with the exception of 1 evening when I used a whole pad) and after 2 more weeks of this had the ERPC as it was just going on with no real evidence of progress. The nurses in our gynae emergency unit were very good at assessing how much you should be bleeding given the length of gestation and in the end I was glad to have the ERPC to put an end to it. In a funny way it made me feel I could deal with the loss, rather than have the ongoing focus on physical symptoms that may have carried on for several more weeks, but I know everyone has different feelings about what is the right thing to do.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Im very sorry for everyone reading this thread. It's heartbreaking to go thru this but these threads were very helpful to me.
So my miscarriage just occurred so I'll share while I still remember all detail.
On Monday I went for my 8 week 5 day scan. The ultrasound lady could not detect heartbeat furthermore the baby looked about 5 weeks. So after the dr came in with options... He seemed to favor d & c and made sure to tell me natural at home would be very painful and also said if I got the pills he would give me the highest dose. Something about him I didn't like so I changed drs which I will see tomorrow.l hopefully but appt is for Friday. back to where I left off I chose to wait. Nothing seemed to be happening and if I was almost 9 but stopped around 5 it seemed like my body would never let go. So Friday (4 days after ultrasound) I took 2 black cohosh pills after I saw a string of brown in pantyliner I figured it was time. Next day Saturday I read I had to take black cohosh with dong quail to speed things along so I did every 4 hours. There was some blood eventually that day but nothing like a regular period I went out that night had 5 beers and even a cigar because I knew in my mind this pregnancy was over. Anyways I ended up crying about this that night alcohol is a depressant afterall. So Sunday morning around 5:30 cramp starts and I continue with the herbal pills. There was blood now similar to a period nothing unbearable. Then around 11am the heavy cramps hit but no shooting pains so I thought I was still a long way from the end. I stopped the herbal meds once the cramps were painful at 11 so my last dose was at 9ish. Then the cramps were awful I would say worse period cramps ever combined with major upset stomach best I can describe. Still no shooting pains. So by now I think it was 12:30pm. By 1:30pm still awful cramps and finally I felt some liquid come down I go to the bathroom and look at pad and it looked like water and a little more water came down while on toilet figured that my water broke. After that maybe 2 minutes later fetus came out I could tell what it was because I could see some flesh like color so I collected and put in bag (fridge) maybe for genetic testing moments later some mass followed somewhat thin maybe 3 inches I collected it not sure what it is still. The pain did not stop it was best at this point to remain in toilet to make sure everything was out. So from 1:45 pm to 2pm water broke , fetus, and mass came out. The cramps were now worse and I was bleeding rapidly and very runny blood. Around 2:15 thankfully the blood stopped releasing so quickly and runny also between that time I'm guessing more contents came out but I was just flushing . Cramps continued until about 4pm when a somewhat large clot finally came out after that the cramps finally got less painful. I would strongly recommend anyone wanting to pass baby at home to ask for a pain meds like a high dose Tylenol I think that would have helped but the pain was tolerable for me since I'm guessing it happened within a short period of time had it been longer I don't know. Also only take the herbal pills once your doctor has confirmed pregnancy is not viable I almost now regret not having gone for a second untrasound not that the doctor offered again there was now heartbeat but seeing the fetus so intact makes me very uneasy but when I see the new doctor hopefully I'll get answers. Prayers for anyone on going thru this it's very hard.

@anutter
Thanks for replying I really didn't think anyone would be reading this anytime soon it means a lot. And I am very sorry for your loss :( almost 12 weeks I imagine would be emotionally harder .
As far as pain it's gone it's weird how it went away suddenly I'm not sure if this is some break but hopefully like you said it shouldn't be getting any worse. And bleeding is now similar to regular af.
Right now is just emotionally hard this could be hormonal too.

I forgot to mention this is a "missed miscarriage" for anyone that may be researching.

*i made a bit of a mistake in my timeline
It was about 1hr and 15 minutes of watery ongoing blood
I wanted to correct that because that was scary had it continued I would have had to call the doctor but thankfully it stopped.
I never read anyone warn about very liquid blood so though I'd mention and correct.
Ok I'm going to eat now and try to relax.

I had 2 MMCs

Both times I ended up having ERPCs (it's called something else now). My body just doesn't seem to eject failed pregnancies

First time I went for scan at, iirc,10 weeks and it was showing 7 weeks. No sign of bleeding or cramps. GP feints explained that the pregnancy might only have failed 1 or 2 weeks earlier but it then becomes smaller.

Scan was on the Tuesday. Had a doublecheck scan on the Friday (as the first one had been borderline on their protocols: only just big enough that it should have been showing a heart beat) and was booked in for the ERPC on the Monday. All weekend I was expected bleeding to start but it never did.

2nd time (different hospital) went for early scan (because of the earlier MMC). Knew I was 8 weeks but it showed twins at 5 weeks (which I knew was wrong as I wouldn't have got the positive pregnancy test when I did ). GP was great: he did 3 blood tests for me (HCG change in 2nd test was borderline - a slight increase rather than the expected doubling - so did a 3rd one) which confirmed I was no longer pregnant. Hospital kept on asking me to come back for scans At the 3rd one (3 weeks had now passed), the sonographer asked me why I was coming back, was I wanting to see what would happen naturally?: I told her because I was being told to come back, even though I knew it was no longer viable.

I was then told by the midwife to come back a 4th time - at which point I had a flaky. Turns out that they were misreading what the sonographer was saying (maybe because it had initially been twins). She then tried to tell me I needed blood tests (which, because they need to be taken a few days apart, would have added yet more delay) before she could even book an ERPC so I told her my GP had already done them, so I knew the pregnancy was over, and that I wanted an ERPC booked now.

At this point she moved dh and I out of the waiting room into a private room to "talk through our options".

Got my ERPC 2 days later

Just noticed that this is a very old thread. Over35 - hope you're ok. It is indeed cathartic to write it down.

Best bit of advice I was given after my 1st MMC (and remembered for my 2nd ) was to look after myself and that just because I was no longer pregnant didn't mean that my hormones wouldn't be all over the place. Probably didn't take enough time off work to grieve the loss either time because "I felt ok".