Repeat Miscarriage
I think that this has
to be one of the hardest challenges I have ever endured.
I have a long history of miscarriage, beginning before
I had my first child, and then in between many of the
others. I lost count of how many times I miscarried
somewhere after 20. Most are extremely early - just
a few days late. If my body did not tell me unmistakably
when I am pregnant, I'd have never really known that
I had been pregnant at all. I have miscarried maybe
5 times at about 7 weeks, and once at 20 weeks, and
then we lost a baby right after birth.
The longer you carry
them, the harder it is, both at the time of the loss,
and during subsequent pregnancies. I used to have a
"safety" point. If I made it past a certain
point, I pretty much knew I'd keep them. The 20 weeker
was a fluke, and we knew it. At my age, I am not so
sure that the loss after birth was a fluke - there is
every chance that I might lose another.
Right now though, what
is hardest is the month to month roller coaster. I am
in a miscarriage cycle where I miscarry when I am just
barely late. I bleed much heavier, and have different
symptoms from a regular period, so not only do I have
pregnancy symptoms beforehand, I have miscarriage symptoms
during. It is all distinctly different from a regular
period.
I know when I ovulate.
I know within 24 hours of conception that I am pregnant
- my body changes rapidly. Every month, I know that
I am pregnant, and I know that I will lose it. It happens
on almost exactly the same day each time. First I start
spotting, then about 24 hours later, I am in full flood
(different from a regular period where I start with
a moderate flow on day 1). I watch for pink every time
I use the bathroom. And I just hate it. All the joy
is gone from being pregnant, and those weeks are just
torture.
This last time, D-Day
came and went. Foolishly, I began to hope. Four days
later, I started to spot. I made it a little further,
but that is small consolation. It just means that the
torture time this month will be longer, and I'll be
less certain of when I am out of the woods, if I get
there.
We are not sure what
is causing my miscarriages, but we have isolated several
things that could be a factor, and which I feel comfortable
about treating. I am VERY cautious about what I will
take, herbal, medicinal, or supplemental. Because I
realize that many things are harmful that we don't realize
are, or that when things have to be just right, the
wrong thing can prevent pregnancy as easily as promote
it.
So for now, we are doing
two things: Making sure I get good nutrition, with as
little additives as possible, supplementing with a couple
of very carefully chosen supplements, and then we are
making sure my husband is getting good nutrition, and
avoiding potential chemicals that could interfere with
a healthy pregnancy. I do not even use Tylenol if I
might be pregnant. The doctors assure me it is safe,
but then, they assured me that other things were safe
that were not, and found out later that they harmed
my children, so I am more inclined to go with my gut
feeling, which is, that if staying pregnant right now
is so difficult, I'd rather err on the side of safety.
We are hopeful that
the last miscarriage being later indicates progress,
but have no way of knowing that yet. Many nutritional
changes can take three months or more to have an effect.
I am having miscarriages
so early that I cannot confirm them with my doctor.
I don't want to have to go in and then miscarry the
next day. He is not willing to do anything unless he
can confirm that I am pregnant, and with the way I have
been losing them, a pregnancy would not show up, because
hormone levels are already declining by the time my
period is late. So I am caught in a catch-22.
If you are having later
miscarriages, your anxiety and torture time is even
worse than mine. Causes of later miscarriages can be
very different from causes of early ones, but genetic
damage to the fetus is a common element that is responsible
for losses at all stages. So eliminating potential chemicals
and insuring good nutrition is important no matter when
you are losing them.
Disease processes which
lower the blood flow to the uterus can also cause both
early and later miscarriages. It can cause improper
implantation also. Anemia, diabetes, and circulatory
problems, as well as medications which constrict blood
vessels can contribute to this type of problem.
Details about what kinds
of herbs and supplements can help with miscarriage issues
are found in the individual categories for those items.
|
