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Waiting to Miscarry

By periwinklebee Feb 5, 2017

I went in for a scan at a bit shy of 7 weeks, and we saw an embryo that was measuring at less than 6 weeks with a slow heart beat. When we followed up a week later, it looked the same - measuring a little less than 6 weeks with a slow heart beat. Since the embryo isn't growing, we know that it is not viable, and it is a matter of waiting for the heart to stop. I have another ultrasound scheduled this Friday, which will be around 9 weeks.

For those who had an embryo that wasn't growing but still had a heart beat, how long did it take the heart to stop? And did the miscarriage happen naturally or require a D&C or other intervention? I know people go through much worse - and I never expected to hope not to see a heart beat - but I'm ready to be done with pregnancy symptoms given that it's not viable and am hoping that having my body back will also help with emotional healing...

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42 comments

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SweetCaroline
pear / 1718 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I'm so sorry
mrskansas
nectarine / 2813 posts

Feb 5, 2017

No advice but I am so sorry
Miscarriages suck.
Kemma
grapefruit / 4291 posts

Feb 5, 2017

No advice but I'm in a similar boat so want to send you love and comfort during this awful time
Iced Tea
persimmon / 1310 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I'm so sorry. For me, we saw a slow heartbeat and miscarried naturally four days later. I was glad to go through it at home and not in the hospital.
GoGoSnoGirl
pear / 1558 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I'm so sorry you're going through this.
And hugs to you, too, @Kemma:
Pollywog
persimmon / 1111 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I had that. The heart stopped beating at 9 weeks. After another week I couldn't stand the wait and scheduled a D&C. Have you considered termination? The wait is absolute hell. I'm so sorry you're going through this.
azjax
kiwi / 578 posts

Feb 5, 2017

So sorry for your loss . My OB was monitoring me by betas and because the numbers were low, the ultrasound got pushed back such that I had started to miscarry beforehand. It took about a week from when we thought the pregnancy wasn't viable until I started to bleed and pass tissue. For my friend, she had 3 MMC where things weren't looking good between the 7-9 week mark and then she ultimately had D&Cs at 11-14 weeks.
delight
pomelo / 5326 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I'm so sorry you are going through this. For my miscarriage that was similar to this, by 10 weeks there was no heart beat. I was measuring behind from the start. At 8 weeks they could detect a heart beat but it was slow and at 10 weeks at my f/u there was just an empty sac. I took misoprostol/cytotec. There's a thread here with many of our cytotec experiences. I ended up having to do 3 rounds of the drugs but I was trying to avoid a D&C. In retrospect, I wish I had just done one. Take care of yourself.
Cole
grapefruit / 4649 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I'm so sorry. My situation was pretty different because it was a blighted ovum but for me we found out at just shy of 7 weeks and it took until 10 weeks to happen naturally. I had a d&c scheduled for the next day because I couldn't deal with the wait any longer but it happened naturally. I'm wishing you peace.
winniebee
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I'm very sorry for your loss
Nutella
persimmon / 1045 posts

Feb 5, 2017

I'm really sorry for your loss

My experience was a bit different but I had a MMC somewhere between 6.5 & 8 weeks, at which point I needed to make a choice wh they just to wait it out until my body decided to do its thing, or schedule a d&c.

I went with the second option. After only one day of angst, I just felt better knowing I could take some action. And I felt better following the procedure which was painless and easy physically, but emotions were a different story as the hormones levelled out.
mamainthesun
apricot / 356 posts

Feb 6, 2017

I'm so sorry for your loss
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 6, 2017

Thank you all so much for your support I'm sorry for all those who have had losses.

@delight: I saw more about your experience when I was looking through some old loss threads, and it seems very similar. I couldn't find many stories that involved measuring so far behind but still having a heart beat. I'm sorry for your loss.

@Pollywog: I'm sorry that you had a similar experience. We could go to planned parenthood for termination, and obviously the outcome would be the same either way, but I'm hoping it will take it's natural course soon, as I'm sure that's difficult in its own way. The wait is definitely torture.
delight
pomelo / 5326 posts

Feb 6, 2017

@periwinklebee: with that miscarriage I honestly wished I had not seen a HB and that things had ended sooner than 10 weeks. All that waiting and time between ultrasounds really wears you down. This miscarriage was also about 6 months after we lost a little girl at 23 weeks which made it hard as well. I am happy to say though that four months later we fell pregnant with our little rainbow boy. I wish you all the best in the next few weeks and if you have questions please message. I have had a D&E, a medically induced mc and a natural one. I really am sorry you're in this situation and I wish you lots of and support.
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 6, 2017

@delight: I'm so sorry - that sounds absolutely devastating. I'm so glad that you finally have your rainbow baby now. Thank you for your support.
SweetiePie
honeydew / 7463 posts

Feb 6, 2017

Really sorry to hear this. Limbo is also the worst.
For me it happened twice.
MC1: 7 week ultrasound showed to be measuring 6 weeks and slow HB. 1 week later it had stopped beating. At first I wanted to try and MC on my own but after 4 days and knowing it could still be weeks and I could be anywhere when it started, I felt tortured. Got a D&C.

MC2: 7w ultrasound showed just a couple days behind but HB was good. 8w ultrasound showed even more slowing in growth but same HB. I was concerned but my doc was not. 10w ultrasound again behind in growth but good HB so again I was worried but doc was not.
Went in at 11/12 weeks (I forget now) and there was no HB. Stopped growing at 10 right after our previous US. Doc was shocked, I was not. I got a D&C a couple days later.

If you are ready to move on and want to end symptoms and so forth, once the HB stops I would opt for a D&C. I felt the same as you, I just wanted it to be over. Waiting can be weeks and I've heard very painful and traumatizing. With a D&C you are completely out and don't remember a thing, recovery is generally very easy and just like a regular period.
Mrs. Sunshine
hostess / cantaloupe / 6486 posts

Feb 6, 2017

I am so sorry. We never found a heartbeat but I didn't have a follow up visit until two weeks after my first ultrasound and I know how you feel. Every day I was sick, praying to see blood or hoping that when I went back everything would be okay. I still hadn't miscarried on my own by my follow up so I had the D&C because I couldn't take it any longer. I am so sorry you're going though this. It's so so hard. Know that you are not alone. We are all here for you and many of know the feeling of just wanting the whole experience to be over.
FaithFertility
eggplant / 11861 posts

Feb 6, 2017

@periwinklebee: I'm so very sorry for your loss!
shellio
pear / 1614 posts

Feb 6, 2017

@periwinklebee: I'm so sorry - this is exactly what happened to me. At the second ultrasound we saw a flicker that may or may not have been a heart beat, like you, it was too slow if that's what it was, and the embryo hadn't grown from the previous week. I opted for a D&C because I wanted to try again ASAP. The 2nd ultrasound was a Tuesday, the D&C was a Thursday and by the time I had the D&C they only saw a yolk sac on ultrasound but told me there was still no way to predict how long it would have taken to miscarry naturally. I had the D&C in the office with local anesthesia and it was very uncomfortable for a couple of minutes but overall much simpler than if I had gone into the OR. (I only mention this because when I was looking for experiences here, it seemed the vast majority had their D&C under general anesthesia.)
MaryM
pomelo / 5129 posts

Feb 6, 2017

I'm so sorry you're going through this.

Not totally similar, but I found out at our NT scan that my baby had trisomy and likely wouldn't make it to term. On top of that, her heart rate was only about 60 (half what it should be) and the geneticist said she likely wouldn't make it through the weekend

I scheduled a couple of follow ups, and at the first one, the outcome was the same. About a week after the first US my doctor couldn't find the heartbeat, and she'd moved to a different position. We scheduled a D&C for 4 days later, but I ended up going in two days early when I started spotting.
bubblegum
pear / 1717 posts

Feb 6, 2017

I am so sorry. No advice but you're in my thoughts during this time.
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 6, 2017

Thank you so much for the responses and support. Hearing the stories of others who've been through a similar experience gives me a much better sense of what to expect, and I'm really touched by all the wonderful support in this community. I'm so sorry for everyone who has experienced losses.

If we make it to the point of not seeing the HB before a natural miscarriage - which from other's experiences seems likely - I'm hoping to be able to schedule a D&C relatively promptly. It's really good to know that they can be done under either general or local anesthesia.
MaryM
pomelo / 5129 posts

Feb 7, 2017

@periwinklebee: I think it depends on doctors, but my OB keeps an hour or so in the morning and afternoon relatively free (and I think all day Friday) in order to handle emergency appointments, deliveries, and surgeries. So when I saw him on a Monday, he scheduled me for Friday because it was totally open for him.

When I called Wednesday morning when I started spotting and cramping, he just had to work with the hospital to find an opening with the OR (which ended up being at the end of the day). I think I had my pre-op time scheduled within an hour or two of calling him that morning.
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 7, 2017

@MaryM: Thank you. Your doctor sounds really good. I hope they'll be able to schedule things quickly for me. My experience with my doctor has been less than great, but the clinic is in a hospital and I wouldn't be surprised if they refer out to another unit in the hospital - there's a bunch of clinics affiliated with it. I hope it's not something my doctor does himself - he spends most of his time in his lab/teaching and only sees patients once a week, so I imagine that could take awhile.
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 10, 2017

A little update...we went in today for a follow-up and the heart had stopped. We were able to schedule a D&E, but unfortunately not until next Friday. Our doctor recommended testing the tissue, which surprised me a bit since it's our first loss, but I think the slow heart rate/slow growth can be the result of translocations, which could affect future pregnancies, so they'd like to rule that out. The doctor said there's also a good chance that it was a perfectly healthy baby and just had its blood supply choked off by an SCH blood clot that developed at 5 weeks, which is heartbreaking in its own right. I'm a bit worried now that in a week things will have disintegrated too much to test the tissue - they need the placenta to still be growing - but anyways it is what it is and will be over eventually.
mrskansas
nectarine / 2813 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee:
Banana330
nectarine / 2317 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: I think mine was about a week from no heart beat to D&C. They did take tissue for testing but couldn't get live cells to test. Don't be surprised if that's the case. We never found out what the issue was but my next pregnancy was my DD! Good luck. Remember to take it easy for a few days after your D&C, I went for a long walk a day or two after and had heavier bleeding/cramping. Sorry for your loss.
Bibliolove
kiwi / 526 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: I'm sorry, this sounds heartbreaking.
mrsbubbletea
nectarine / 2821 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: sorry to hear but glad you can have some closure. I hope the testing is able to be done and you can heal
StrawberryBee
nectarine / 2530 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: I'm so sorry that you're going through this. Everyone at the hospital was so nice when I had my D&E. They put a nice warm blanket on me and then next thing I knew I was being wheeled out. It was surreal. I expected to feel different in recovery, but I felt completely normal. Hoping yours goes as easily and that you're able to try again soon .
Mrsbells
squash / 13199 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee:
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@mrskansas: @Bibliolove: @junebugsmama: @Mrsbells: Thank you

@Banana330: Thank you, this is good to know. How far along were you? The doctor was pushing a d&e in order to do the testing, but I won't expect anything out of it (except the bill, hah hah). I'm sorry again for your losses.

@StrawberryBee: That's good to hear. Having to sign the consent forms about the risk of a surgical instrument puncturing the uterus, etc was a bit unnerving, though I know the risks are quite low. It's good to hear that recovery is usually pretty quick.
StrawberryBee
nectarine / 2530 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: I don't even remember that one, so I must have just signed without reading. The worst (for me) was the anticipation leading up to it. DH was allowed back to the prep room with me, which was good. After I was wheeled in he left to get some lunch and got the notice I was out as he was eating. The physical recovery was easy, emotional took some time longer. Give yourself time to rest and recover. Thinking of you
Periwinkle
pear / 1879 posts

Feb 10, 2017

I am so sorry to hear about your loss. Wishing you strength in this difficult time.
Banana330
nectarine / 2317 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: I was 9 weeks with twins. Hopefully it will all go smoothly.
delight
pomelo / 5326 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: I'm so sorry for your loss. My recovery from my D&E was physically easy and I was 23 weeks along. The nurses were all super nice and DH was able to come see me right away. Emotionally it was super hard on me. We were able to try again 3 months later but hopefully you can try again right away. I don't know if there will be enough tissue though to test. I posted above in this thread before but with one of my MC there was a slow heart beat at 8 weeks and by 10 weeks there was nothing in the sac. I hope they can do the testing for you though. Did your doctor say there was a chance you would miscarry on your own before next week? I'll be thinking of you and again I'm sorry you're going through this. Best wishes in your next pregnancy.
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@StrawberryBee: Thanks - my husband was reading the form (I would have prob just signed it) and was like what? I will be relieved to have it over with...

@Periwinkle: @Banana330: Thank you

@delight: Thank you so much for your support. The way the doctor explained it, they don't actually test the fetal tissue - since it is so small - but if any of the placenta is still alive they can put it in a petri dish and grow it, and then test that. The placenta comes from the baby, so will have it's DNA. I won't count on live cells, though. The doctor didn't mention anything about miscarrying naturally, though I know I should be prepared. Thank you again
Kemma
grapefruit / 4291 posts

Feb 10, 2017

@periwinklebee: I'm sorry to read your news and hope that you get some closure and resolution soon. I'm still waiting to miscarry (hcg is dropping) and I know that hanging in limbo sucks
periwinklebee
grapefruit / 4466 posts

Feb 11, 2017

@Kemma: I really hope your HCG drops quickly, and you get your rainbow baby soon. Can you feel symptoms disappear as your HCG drops, or does it pretty much feel the same?

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