# Baby stopped growing/helping along a miscarriage



## wombat (Nov 3, 2002)

I hope it's ok to ask this here.

Are there any ways to help along a miscarriage? A friend is at least 10weeks pregnant but baby stopped growing and is about 6w size. She's been spotting for weeks and doctors have been monitoring baby's growth. They found a heart beat at one stage but it was very slow (~50) and now they've lost the heartbeat. She would prefer a D&C but her doctor convinced her the natural way is better and she understands there is less risk of damage and infection that way. Doctor said it could take 3-4 weeks and my friend is afraid and upset about waiting that long. She's is very worried about how painful it will be and seems to imagine the miscarriage will be like labor (another friend has scared the hell out of her) And in her culture, a D&C in this situation would have been the norm.

Is there anything she can do to hasten the inevitable? Any herbs that would help?


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## Ms. Mom (Nov 18, 2001)

It's so kind of you to post for your friend. You're obviously concerned. I'm so sorry for her loss









I would caution against using herbs without the supervision of a midwife. The typical herbs used to induce miscarriage are VERY dangerous if not used properly or monitored.

If she's already spotting, her body is moving throught this. In most cases women can miscarry naturaly without assistance. She just need so to watch for the obvious signs of infection (fever, body aches, severe abdominal pain, bleading through a pad every hour).

The cramping can get intense in some women. She needs to keep hydrated and try to rest as often as possible.


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## JessicaS (Nov 18, 2001)

There *are* herbs that would help but many of them can increase the chances of hemmorage, increase the intensity of the contractions, making the cramping worse.

So sorry for your friend.


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## wombat (Nov 3, 2002)

Thanks for the info. I'll pass it along. I'm sure she won't want to risk taking anything that might make it more painful. I'm not sure the sac around the baby has broken yet - the ultrasound showed the sac was the bigger but the baby hadn't grown. Does the sac need to break for the miscarriage to happen? I think she's concerned if the sac keeps getting bigger, that'll it'll be more painful. She's still spotting but nothing has happened yet.


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## midwyfmomma (Aug 23, 2004)

You can go to www.sisterzeus.com for this type of information. Terminating a pregnancy/inducing miscarriage is more easily done when the pregnancy has already terminated itself. Since she has an incomplete miscarriage she does need to pay close attention to infection symptoms, fever, lower abdominal pain or tenderness (around her pubic bone area) and the above symptoms mentioned. If she develops ANY of these syptoms she should call her doctor & go to the hospital for treatment immediately.
In Anne Frye's book, Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year she recommends Vitamin C as the most effective and safest emmenagogue. Your friend can take up to 6 grams of vitamin C (6000mg). Take 500mg every hour for 12 hours a day for up to six days. (may cause loose stools). This either works or doesn't, but usually is not associated with the increased bleeding like some of the other herbs.


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## wombat (Nov 3, 2002)

Thanks for the website and Vit C advice, I'll pass it along. I never knew Vit C had so many uses.

NursingMother, thanks for sharing your experience. That must have been so hard miscarrying that late. She has been staying home because what you described is exactly what she's afraid of. I'll tell her about this thread - I think it helps when you know other women have gone through similar or worse. I had a very uneventful miscarriage at 6w once - if I hadn't known I was pregnant, I would have just thought it was a heavier than normal period.


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## hmg7500 (Jul 20, 2002)

i had a missed miscarriage- which is when the fetus stops growing, but your body does not expel it- at the end of may, this year. my midwife's back up doctor tried to scare me into a d&c right away, even saying i was risking a hysterectomy if i did not do it right away. i knew, though, that there had to be other options, and i searched for them.

the book wise woman herbal for the childbearing year has some tips on helping complete a miscarriage. i definitely would not recommend doing any of it without the help of a midwife or herbalist. the general recommendation is 20 drops blue and black cohosh ticture under the tongue every hour. it says not to continue for more than 4 hours. dong quai is also a good herb to add in to complete miscarriage. you need to have an herb that inhibits bleeding, in the case of hemmorhage- witch hazel (not the drug store kind, but the REAL witch hazel) under the tongue is s'posed to help.

i ended up using blur cohosh, black cohosh, dong quai and vit c every hour on the hour for several days. it was not fun, and when they tell you to not use it for more than a few hours, they mean it. the herbs are basically toxic in that amount and i ended up with toxicity headaches and aching kidneys. i was desperate, though, and i felt it was what i needed to do.

in the end, i sought the help of another doctor, who relunctantly prescribed cytotec after i begged for it. the herbs, even in mass quanities did nothing for me, and i had to seek allopathic help or run the risk of a d&c. i fully understood the risks of cytotec, just as i understood the risks of using herbs and the risks of having a d&c, and i chose what was best for me. once i used the cytotec, my miscarriage was swift and painful, but it was over with in a matter of hours, and it was a huge relief after spending weeks looking for information and using herbs.

please let your friend know that you are there for her, and that you will help her through anything she needs to do. the only person who respected my wishes and wanted to help me was my husband- everyone else thought i was nuts for not choosing the d&c. i still have people telling me i did it "wrong" because i choose the cytotec.

be strong for her and help her be strong, too.


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## taradt (Jun 10, 2003)

my story involved cytotec as well. which was better then the D&C option (for me). the baby had died around 14 weeks and by 18 i really needed closure, we tried various herbs and even though i had spotting for almost 2 weeks, nothing worked. my experience was it was a birth, i had labor (all 10 hours of it) and very minimal bleeding.

tara


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## wombat (Nov 3, 2002)

Just an update - my friend's miscarriage eventually happened naturally - she had bad cramps and bleeding for about a day. I think it was about 2-3 weeks after she found out baby stopped growing. Luckily it wasn't as bad as she had imagined and she's glad she didn't have the d&c.

And I've learnt so much from this thread. And so many strong mammas - I really feel for the pain and loss you've been through.


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## hmg7500 (Jul 20, 2002)

i'm glad she was able to miscarry the way she needed to in order to heal.


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