What Do I Need to Do? - Quincy,WA

Hi, J.;
My heart goes out to you. I understand the loss having miscarried 5 babies in between my two living children. You say you have 5 children and 2 grandchildren. This means you are getting to a point in your life when your body is getting tired of bearing children. After the age of 40-45 our ovaries will begin to produce non-viable eggs or partially viable eggs. The non-viable ones simply won't fertilize, while the partially viable ones can. Mind you, "partially viable" is a term I use for ova that might produce a fetus, but not a healthy one. What happens is that your body recognizes this and signals a miscarriage. This also happens when the fetus can't survive and dies in utero. I don't know that you can improve your chances with diet or vitamins. Some people believe you can and there are women who have carried healthy children to full term after the age of 40, and rarely, after 50. If you really want another baby, you might try vitamins from Melaleuca, Inc. They have a higher absorption rate than most and were used by the woman who had the first set of septuplets where all 7 survived. Other than that, I recommend you talk to a professional nutritionist. Good luck.

J.,

I had the same thing happen to me. I found out I was pregnant when I miscarried. Then 3 years later I got pregnant on the pill. My son is now 3. Last year we got pregnant again after trying for a year and had bleeding and pain at 9 weeks. The ultrasound showed no heartbeat and baby measured at 6 weeks. I opted for a D & C with the second. Way easier emotionally. 2 months later we got pregnant again and just had our baby girl 3 weeks ago. People always say things happen for a reason and they just do. Don't blame yourself or your diet. It is wasted negative energy. Good luck and god bless.

My heart goes out to you J.!

You really should discuss with your doctor what might be going on. You did not write when your first miscarriage happened and how soon after you got pregnant again, or whether you had a live birth in between. All those are factors in determining whether you are simply having "bad luck" or something medical going on.

From what you are describing it does not sound like you are unable to carry the pregnancy to term, but rather that the embryo was not developing properly.
You do not write how old you are, but I see that you are married for 25 years and have children and grand-children, so I hope I am not offending you by guessing that you are probably towards the end of your reproductive years (I am getting there too....)
It is just a matter of fact that with age our eggs degenerate and it is harder to produce a viable, healthy embryo.

You might want to consider seeing a fertility specialist to find out what's going on and if there is anything you can do to increase your odds.
Good luck!

not me, but my sister suffered 3 miscarraiges in less than a year. what turned out to be the problem was a folic acid deficiency. she now has a beautiful and very healthy 5 month old. she had to take a supplement every day, like 3000% folic acid or something. no long term side effects... she was like you, no trouble getting pregnant, but lost all 3 between 5 and 8 weeks - never a heartbeat. maybe you can ask you dr to check if thats the problem.... it took a while to diagnose her - becuase they didnt know what they were looking for, but maybe you can figure it out sooner. good luck!

So sorry about your loss. I've been there, too. Don't blame yourself. Some embryos just do not have the stuff it takes to survive for long and to keep developing into a healthy baby. Talk to your doctor to see if there is something that you can do to prevent this from happening again, but it is not your fault by any means.

J.,
I'm really sorry to hear about your loss. I went through a similar one, "missed miscarriage" with about the same timeline. I was pretty devastated. I waited about another week after they saw no heartbeat and then had a D & C.

I suggest talking with your doctor to see what she/he thinks. Unfortunately though, especially for older moms, they usually feel it's just part of the group that we're in, that has a higher risk of miscarriage. And, to be honest, that is what it might be. If that's the attitude, like it was with me, you could seek another doctor, or try some things on your own, which is what I did.

Like a couple of other women who answered, I suspected low progesterone due to symptoms I had, one of which was an abnormal lunar phase. Ovulation tracking was showing me that I was ovulating just a day or two before my period. My dr. didn't think my progesterone was low, but the test had it below what some metrics rate as normal. So I started using progesterone cream in the second half of my menstrual phase and for the first 15-18 weeks of next pregnancy.

I also did acupuncture, Chinese crude herbs, tuina, and diet. I used a book called Fertility Wisdom and really liked it. The other thing I did was sweep out any products in my house that contain endocrine disrupters, or suspected ones. That was personal care products such as shampoos and lotions, as well as plastic containers for food storage and house cleaners (I didn't have much anyway, but I was more thorough). I think it did take me 6 months to get pregnant after the miscarriage; we were about to try Clomid when I got a positive test, and now I'm having a baby in a few weeks.

I hope you find a solution that works for you and have a successful pregnancy next time. Take care of yourself.

Your diet shouldn't matter. It is important to eat healthy and nutritious foods for anyone.

I too am lacto-ovo veggie and have had two miscarriages. We have no idea why for either one. My OB explained that most miscarriages are because of a genetic abnormality and the miscarriage rate is actually close to 50%. You're not alone in your loss, and it's not your fault.

My first miscarriage sounds similar to what you're experiencing now. We tried to let nature run it's course, but after a month of bleeding, I ended up having one shot of a chemo drug. Starts with a T, but I'm blanking on the name. Worst cramps I've ever experienced, but the miscarriage was complete in a few days (maybe 5?).

You didn't say how old you are, but age can be a factor. You might also talk to your ob about seeing a fertility specialist or a family planning specialist.

I have been through the same thing! I had no problems with my first pregnancy, but when we started trying for another child, I had 2 miscarriages within a year. When I got pregnant again I switched doctors and told him my history of miscarriages, he put me on progesterone right way! Your body may just need a little extra help and it seems that the progesterone does that. I took the progesterone until I was 12 weeks along. I had an Ultra Sound and blood work done every week for the first 12 weeks to make sure everything was ok. Since then I have had 2 more babies!!

J.,

I am so sorry for your loss. I experienced three miscarriages before having my son. During the last failed pregnancy I had contacted a midwifery team regarding homebirth. When we had this miscarriage, I decided to continue with this team as they were also NDs (Naturopathic Doctors). Once I'd started healing from the miscarriage we worked together on health optimization. If you've ever visited an ND, one of their hallmarks is the holistic approach. To this day I'm not sure if it was this work or if my body was just 'ready' to be pregnant, but I did become pregnant with my son.

All this to say that if you are seeking advice for diet and more natural boosts for fertility and carrying to term, this might be one avenue to take when you are ready.

Please be sure you have good care and support during this time. My heart goes out to you.

J.,

Don't blame yourself. According to what I read in the books, 25%(?) of women will have miscarriage in the early 3 months due to some unknown reason. This is surely not your problem.

One of my friend got pregnant about 3 years ago and her son is now 2. She got pregnant again when her son was 11 month old. She saw the heartbeat at 7 weeks but then the heartbeat stopped at 10 weeks. Early this year, she's pregnant again and her daughter is now 2 month old.

Relax and Good Luck.

When I miscarried, the doctor let me know first hand, that there isn't anything that I did that could've caused the miscarriage. Unless you drank something you knew you shouldn't have (i.e. alcohol), ate something you shouldn't have (paint chips, chalk), or put your body through some kind of serious trauma, then don't think you are the cause for your miscarriage. Supposedly miscarriage has something to do with the chromosomes that help create a child. Sometimes, you end up missing some of those, in which case miscarriage happens. Don't blame yourself for something that nature has intended. I'm sorry for your loss. I hope things get better for you and your family. Don't worry, if you are meant to have more children, it'll happen. *hug*

You didn't cause the miscarriage by being Vegetarian. You didn't cause either miscarriage. I am Vegetarian also but was vegan when I miscarried this time last year. It's a horrible thing to endure and the first thing we do is blame ourselves but please don't. I also totally understand your desire to want the miscarriage to be done and over with at this point. It's so hard to sit and wait. I would call your doctors office and tell them how you are feeling. Their are medications they can give to help speed the process or also the option to have a D&C. I opted to have a D&C, but their are risks. You should know that because your body has retained the fetus for 3 weeks you are at an increased risk for bleeding disorder or hemorrhage.

I would highly recommend getting a copy of a book called "Taking Charge of your Fertility" by Toni Weschler. See tcoyf.com. Use the information in this book to track your cycles. Most insurance companies will not pay for testing or fertility treatments until you've had 3 miscarriages. You can bypass the waiting and the heartache, not to mention the expense of testing by learning to track your cycles. As I'd mentioned I had a miscarriage last year at this time, I had been tracking my cycles and trying natural methods for boosting my fertility. I learned by tracking that I had low Progesterone levels, taking high doses of vitamin B6 helped me to become pregnant but did no sustain the pregnancy. My doctor recommended a round of Clomid when we decided to start trying again following the miscarriage. But all I needed, apparently, was a month of dual-hormone birth control pills to reset my body and I became pregnant immediately the following cycle while tracking. I now have a healthy 3 month old baby boy!

Tracking also is empowering...you don't have to sit, and wait, and feel helpless...Learn to track, then take your charts into your doctor and they will often be able to diagnose and treat based on your charting. My doctor did. Good luck, and my heart goes out to you.

Have your Dr. Check your hormone levels- Particularly Progesterone. I am @ 5ish weeks and my progesterone level is low so I am taking extra and getting an injection to get my levels back up.

You don't mention how old you are. Sometimes late in life pregnancies result in less than perfect embryoes, and Mother Nature steps in, and a miscarriage occurs because this embryo would not result in a complete fetus and a healthy baby. Taking prenatal vitamins while you're trying to conceive is a good thing, as the iron levels are adequate to help insure a greater chance of neuro developement (reducing spinabifida and other conditions). Have a serious talk with your ob/gyn. Be sure to get some idea of how long you should wait for Mother Nature to take her course before you have the intervention of a D&C to help clear you uterus, so there will be no chance of decay or infection.

I'm so sorry for your loss. I hope that there is some resolution for you so you can carry a healthy, full term pregnancy. Lots of hope and prayers coming your way!!!

You have 5 children and 2 grandchildren, how old are you?
You know sometimes age can play a big role in pregnancies.
I felt I was lucky. I had a baby when I was 45 on my second marriage and I truly understand wanting to have a baby with the current wonderful man of your dreams that you wish you had been with all along. I think that when you get older, it is purely God decided. I have not gotten pregnant again and it has been 3 yrs and I haven't taken any king of preventives. God intended for me to have my little girl so I got pregnant and had her.
If I were you and you really and truly want this, I would make an appt with my OBGYN and sit down with him/her and tell her your feelings and let him/her come up with suggestions and tell you the ins and outs of what is going on with you and nature and all things involved.
Good luck. I wish you well.

well, i'm not sure how old you are, but it may be past your prime childbearing years. If you're concerned,i'd go see a doctor who specializes in fertility.

I would highly highly recommend acupuncture. Your womb needs to be "warm" to support a baby and yours could have too much "cold". I would suggest eating veggies that are cooked and eating more ginger, garlic, and cinnamon to begin warming your digestion up.