# Is it possible my body won't naturally miscarry?



## lovbeingamommy (Jun 17, 2007)

I am really starting to get concerned about this and wanted to find out what everyone's experiences have been.

Background info - my baby passed at 6wks. and my gestational sac is still growing at 10 wks. I'm been having slight brownish spotting since wk. 9, but nothing else.

I really want to do this naturally, but is it possible that I will never naturally miscarry? In previous posts mamas have said that everything should be fine unless you have a fever or are bleeding too much - and I'm ok with that and watching for it. However, when do you think I finally need to say - Ok, it's time for some medical intervention. TIA Kate


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## kaylee18 (Dec 25, 2005)

Hugs to you. The waiting can be very hard.

It sounds as if you have a situation similar to a blighted ovum. In that case, your body will naturally miscarry, but it could still be several more weeks before that happens.

However, I would get a repeat ultrasound for any brown spotting if miscarriage does not follow within a day or two. Brown spotting can be a symptom of molar pregnancy. I had one. It's nothing to panic about, but nothing to sneeze at either; you would want to know about it because there are very important health follow-ups for molar pregnancy.

Brown spotting can also be a symptom of ectopic pregnancy, though I'd think there would be severe abdominal pain by 10 weeks if that's what you had.

If another ultrasound does not show any abnormalities, I would continue to wait for nature to take its course. I most definitely would not allow a D&C without a repeat ultrasound first, since there have been misdiagnosed miscarriages and I would want to be absolutely certain there was no baby beforehand.


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## jaclyn7 (Jun 9, 2005)

As long as there is no severe bleeding or signs of infection (fever), it really is a personal judgment as to whether or not you will seek medical intervention.

Honestly, I wish I could say that I am all for doing it naturally, but I'm not. The situation sucks so much already, women have to do whats best for them, but I will say that I was glad I did do it naturally, but that was only because it happened before my D&C was scheduled and after I had been told that my body was not going to give it up. So, I will caution not to take doctors or timelines too seriously either.


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## Amydoula (Jun 20, 2004)

I'm so sorry you are going through this. I was on week four and finally had the D&C. I'm glad I did. I needed closure and it was much easier on me emotionally and physcially than my natural miscarriage. I'll be thinking of you.


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

I had a blighted ovum that didn't m/c until 20 weeks.

-Angela


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## birthangeldoula (Feb 1, 2008)

I'm in the same boat as you. I found out today at 8 weeks 1 day that I have a 6 week 2 day fetal pole with no heartbeat. Now I wait with no signs of miscarriage.


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## jprivora (Feb 16, 2007)

I found out at 7.5 weeks that I had a blighted ovum. I didn't miscarry until over 30 weeks. There were times when I thought it would never end, especially the continuous spotting, but in the end, my doctor was not very supportive and I did not know my options so I just waited it out. In the end, the hardest thing was the not knowing what it would be like (never miscarried before) and also when it would finally happen (lots of false alarms).
I guess if like the other women mentioned if you aren't feverish or bleeding extreme amounts then medically you should be okay (like me), but I guess it really depends on if you can mentally take the waiting (I have to admit it sucked!).
I hope you get some resolution sooner rather than later.


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## lovbeingamommy (Jun 17, 2007)

Thank you everyone for your responses! I'm waiting for a call back from my naturopath to see if he can recommend any type of tea or herbs that would move this process a bit faster. It's somewhat scary to think that it might not occur until 20 or 30 weeks.







I never knew it could take that long. It's hard because I don't want to go too far from home in case it would start suddenly. I will probably have to re-evaluate my situation in a few weeks just because of my age (43) and wanting to try again soon.

Kate


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## can't wait (Aug 6, 2006)

My tiny, tiny stopped growing at about 6 1/2 weeks and it took only 6 more weeks to pass. It seemed like a very long time to me, but after reading all these posts, maybe not. I could not bring myself to use the cytotec they gave me. My body did what it needed to do, but I'm with ya on the wanting to try again ASAP. Unfortunately, still no period. Aagh! It's been another 8 weeks now since the MC. Waiting SUCKS!! Many healing prayers to you and much baby dust to you as you continue on the journey.


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## chel (Jul 24, 2004)

I agree, that if you want to get pg soon, waiting out a BO probably isn't want you want.

My BO stopped growing at 8w. Since my cycles are wacky, I was over 12w when I had my first u/s in Aug 07. I took the cytotec as I had a major camping trip coming up, and even with that I passed a chunck of something last month, which was around my duedate.


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## jessicasocean (Mar 21, 2008)

Kate, I am sorry. I really do not have any advice, just want to offer my support.


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## RunnerDuck (Sep 12, 2003)

I have had 3 m/c and 2 "normal" pregnancies and first wanted to say I have never heard of brown spotting as being a sign of an ectopic or molar. Brown spotting can happen in any pregnancy.

Second... with my first m/c (blighted ovum at 6 or 7 weeks) I was told waiting it out, it can take till the end of the first trimester to m/c. Not sure about 20-30 weeks. I looked into some herbal methods to induce but everything seemed vague or iffy. I ended up using cytotec... first does was oral and didn't work. Second dose was vaginal and did work (passed intact sac the next day). For my 3rd m/c I went the cytotec route again but 3 doses vaginally and it didn't work - I had bleeding but did not pass the baby (that time was an 8 week loss, confirmed heartbeat). It was something like 3 weeks later when I finally passed what I think was a small placenta. Never saw an embryo or sac - I think the sac may have ruptured at some point.

In that case I continued to bleed off and on for months before passing a baseball-sized blood blot around 3 months later - eek! - which seemed to finally wrap things up. BUT like I said that was an embryo with a confirmed heartbeat which I think will be rougher than a blighted ovum - who knows?

At any rate - chances are a D&C will not be needed YET - I would ask about cytotec if I were you. It is a pill that causes uterine contractions.


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## League_mama (Jul 21, 2007)

Sorry you are going through this, it is very, very hard. I had a non-viable pregnancy (not a b/o, though) that stopped growing at around 5 weeks; when I went in w/spotting at 8 weeks the dr just said it was not going to be viable and they didn't really offer me any sort of resolution other than give them a call in 6 weeks if I hadn't m/c yet. I did not actually m/c, ie pass all the tissue, FOR 3.5 MONTHS. I spotted and bled off and on, a couple of times passed a largish piece of tissue, and had blood draws every two weeks to monitor my HcG (that it was declining, which it was, but it had a LONG way to go--from 35000 at 8 weeks to below 2 before the m/c would be considered complete). My dr didn't push intervention, in fact they really encouraged me to wait it out (I'm not sure why, I know if I had insisted he would have done a D & C but he also knows I am really pretty anti-intervention). Anyway, it sucked but in the end I'm glad I waited because I think my body wasn't ready for another baby (and our lives weren't ready either). There are lots of ways to speed up a m/c naturally, I'd search here for some suggestions. Best of luck to you.


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## mommyfied (Jun 25, 2007)

My embryo stopped growing around 5.5-6 wks and my sac grew to 10 wks. I discovered this at an u/s at 13 wks. I had nothing more than brown spotting for a couple of weeks and by 17 wks or so my HCG was under 20. The OB thought I reabsorbed everything so I waited and waited for AF. After 3 months, it never came and brown spotting started again, so I got a blood draw and my HCG was still at 8. Around that time I passed the embryo (sac had broken down) and I finally started bleeding a couple of weeks after that. It turns out the bleeding was due to my body trying to deliver the placenta, which finally happened when I would have been 35 wks pregnant. But then it was finally over and I started a regular cycle within 2 weeks. I've had two normal, ovulatory cycles since.

It is not as common to wait this long, so hopefully you won't have to. Looking back, I would have done started some things a bit earlier to try to speed things along. Other than that, I wouldn't change anything.


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## lovbeingamommy (Jun 17, 2007)

: I simply cannot explain in words how genuinly grateful I am for all the replies. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that there's no one around me IRL that has an understanding of this process...so your posts are so valuable to me. I will be calling the triage nurses Monday to request the beta hCG levels be drawn. It sounds like that number over time will give me a pretty good indictator as to whether or not my body is recognizing the failed pregnancy. Also, I plan to take some natural remedies to try and bring about the m/c. Being 43 and "waiting" is truly the hardest thing I've had to do in my life.


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

I understand the difficulty of waiting. I am not facing that ticking yet and STILL the waiting was one of the most difficult parts.

-Angela


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## heatherh (Jun 25, 2005)

My m/c drug out with many false alarms as someone else mentioned. I can't believe there are so many of us that have had similar experiences. In the end, I waited it out and m/c naturally. The worst part was definitely the waiting... and waiting... and waiting.

If I were 43, I think that would be even harder. You could look into possibly trying black cohosh and blue cohosh. My midwife recommended them... didn't help me, but I've heard reports of it working for other women.


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *heatherh* 
If I were 43, I think that would be even harder. You could look into possibly trying black cohosh and blue cohosh. My midwife recommended them... didn't help me, but I've heard reports of it working for other women.

Yeah, I've heard they work well for some women. Did nothing for me either.

-Angela


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