I hemorrhaged during the miscarriage of our twins, though I didn't go to the hospital because a dear midwife friend was able to stop the bleeding. If I'd gone to the hospital, I'd have probably received a transfusion, though I'm glad I didn't because then I'd be worried about exposure to disease. Anyway, I've had a tough time finding out how to best recover from blood loss, because everything assumes if you had significant blood loss, you had a transfusion. So, there's my mandate again: I had a tough time finding out about it, so I'll record it here!
I remember reading in the novels of G.A. Henty of heroes who would be sorely wounded in battles and lose a lot of blood. It would take them months to recover! I thought, "What Victorian baloney!" but now I know better! True, now we have antibiotics to prevent infection, but the reason we don't hear about recoveries like that any more is that nearly everyone who loses a lot of blood these days, gets transfused. Those who don't get transfusions, though tell about weeks and weeks of weakness and recovery time. I read on a Red Cross website that it takes 3-4 weeks for your body to replace the red blood cells in a pint of blood.
What can you do to get up to speed more quickly? My OB's office recommended taking twice the normal dose of iron supplements and vitamin C to increase uptake. My midwife friend recommended liquid iron like Floradix and liquid chlorophyll. The chlorophyll molecule is very similar to the heme molecule which hold iron in our body. The theory is that the body can use chlorophyll as a shortcut - remove the magnesium and add an iron. Everyone recommended eating lots of red meat (especially liver - if you don't like it you haven't had it cooked right!) and dark leafy greens (collards are my thing!).
Well, I've been mostly in the bed for almost two weeks and am still pretty weak. I don't want my experience to frighten you out of a natural miscarriage at home. Hemorrhaging is very rare and seems to be often connected to something unusual - like an already anemic mom who's losing twins - me! I'm still glad I did it at home because I don't have to worry that they made a mistake with the ultrasound, I got to be with people I love and didn't have to hear the smart mouths at the hospital, and I got to say goodbye in my own way to our beloved babies.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
120 comments:
I am very glad I found your site! My husband and I lost our darling daughter three days ago after carrying her for 19 weeks. I lost her due to placenta abrupta, and I didn't even know there was a problem. I delivered her on the 16th and am home now, recovering. I hope to resume my normal menstrual cycle as soon as possible so my husband and I can try again.
Oh dear friend, I am so sorry! Please do read through the site. I have tried very hard to gather up information and encouragement as it helped me into this one place. I will be praying the Lord will help you through this very difficult valley. I have a friend who lost a little one at about 19 weeks earlier this year and wrote a lot of helpful things. I'll look for her site and post it here.
{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}
Much love,
Melanie
Thank heaven I found you! I had a horrible miscarriage last week. I wasn't far along, but I bled and bled and bled and passed enormous clots. I really think I should have had a transfusion, but too many doctors involved and no measurement of how much I lost, I got overlooked, I think. I had to have a D & C to stop the bleeding and I felt great after that. Then, to my shock, here it is a week later, and I barely can stay up for more than an hour at a time. I get lightheaded and my whole body gets shaky. And the last two days I have had horrible headaches that the pain meds don't touch. I have found next to nothing online to indicated my experience is normal. I'm so grateful to have found your site. God bless you for doing this. I will be linking you to my blog.
Hugs
Elaine
Oh Elaine! I'm so sorry! I wish I could give you a hug!
It is hard enough to lose a child to miscarriage, but to then be absolutely wiped out by blood loss makes it very hard to cope.
I'll be praying you will quickly recover. In the meantime, take lots of iron, with vitamin C and liquid chlorophyll at the same time, and get lots of rest. Be especially careful not to stand up too quickly ... you will likely hit the floor even more quickly! I'm so, so sorry.
Much love,
Melanie
I am so glad I found this site. I was home with my 3 boys this past Monday and i started having contractions and then miscarried. I was 14 weeks. I lost a lot of blood. The blood kept coming so fast that i had to call 911. Since I was home alone with my kids, social services almost had to come to stay with them while I went to the hospital. Luckily my husband finally got home from work. I lost so much blood I almost passed out. They gave me intravenous fluids because my blood pressure was so low. I can barely stay awake for a few hours and I am having some excruciating headaches. They told me to take Iron supplements and i usually feel better for a few hours after i take the Iron.
Oh dear friend, I am so sorry! That must have been terrifying being torn between your children and needing to leave for the hospital.
Please take care of yourself and realize it is going to take quite a long time to recover from the blood loss. Remember that you can mother your children lying down on the couch, too! I hope you will recover quickly and the Lord will comfort you in His arms! Much love, Melanie
I too lost a lot of blood during my miscarriage and emergency D&C. Had to be 911'd to the hospital, because of passing out on toilet. Add on heavy bleeding for 4 hours and finally a softball-size clot convinced us to head in for help. Embryo was only 6.5 weeks old, but this was 4 weeks later. Should have opted for the D&C early on and avoided the whole mess. The bleeded was occuring because of a small piece of tissue stuck to uterine wall. The uterous just kept bleeding, trying to slough the thing off. Stubborn piece did me in.
Am tired, tired, tired, now 3 days afterwards. But I am encouraged that my experience is not an isolated one. Thank you for sharing.
I am so, so sorry about your loss and your hemorrhage! Bleeding like that is such a terrifying thing, isn't it?
That feeling of tiredness is so deep. I remember having to rest from walking to the bathroom. I hope you will soon be feeling better and that the Lord would comfort you in His arms!
My husband, three children and I lost our baby boy at 16 weeks gestation on the 2nd. I started everything at home, no one knows how much blood I lost, but it was enough to make me pass out in the tub. Hubby had to call 911, When they got there my pulse was 35 and my blood pressure was very low. I had to finish everything in the hospital. They did not give me blood but said that I lost alot, then they kicked me out! I had help for few days by friends and family, but no one felt comfortable talking about it. So now I am back to looking after the kids, the farm and the house on my own and I am very tiered, and I think I am getting depressed. I never had the chance to just lay in bed for a few days and just cry. How do I tell my husband that I need help with things and just need to cry for a while? I think he will be confussed as to why I need to do it now, and why I didnt do it earlier. My husband has to work his job to pay for the ride to the hospital, my mom works, my sisters have kids and live too far away. Please put me in your prayers, I need strength and endurance.
Oh dear one,
I am so, so sorry and I will certainly pray for you!! It is so hard to feel like that physically on top of the grief! It is so hard when all your children are young, too.
I think you should explain to your husband how long it is going to take your body to recover the blood you've lost and regain your strength (there are posts on this blog that should help). Express your gratefulness for the work he is doing to support you all, but share your heart, too. Likely he is grieving a lot more than you think - men tend to throw themselves into work to survive.
Explain to your children that you need help, too. I don't know how old they are, but at the least, you can set up a video in a child-proofed room and take a nap on the couch. If they are old enough to help at all (say, 4 or more) then enlist all the help you can get. Girls love to nurture their mothers and boys love to rescue her. Give them that gift to give to you if they are old enough.
And seek the Lord. It is okay to cry!! Remember the Lord cried over Lazarus and God the Father knows how it feels to lose a son. He feels your sorrow and loss and loves you.
I wish you were nearby here so we could encourage you. I will pray the Lord will sustain you and strengthen you and encourage you. The months following the twins' death were some of the most exhausting and stressful of my life, but God has helped me and things are much better. I will pray the same for you.
Much love,
Melanie
I'm sorry to read about the losses on this page but it makes me feel better to read the hope, support and love in your stories. I lost my baby on the 9th of Dec and am feeling pretty sad about it as hubby and I were having dramas at the time we found out we were pregnant and he didn't even want the baby...I don't blame him or anyone...I haven't been back to work as I couldn't deal with talking to my colleagues knowing that I was barren and empty...thanks for creating a positive site...God Bless from Auckland NZ
Dear Kiwi Friend,
I am so sorry about your little one! {{{hug}}} It is so hard to lose a child, no matter when it happens. I am so glad this site has been able to encourage you a little.
Be very careful to nurture your relationship with your husband during this difficult time. Times like these can pull you together if you avoid the "what if's" and blame, and just reassure each other of your love. I think in the post about the memorial I mentioned that for the first time I understood then how hurt my dh was - because he was worried about me and didn't want to add to my burden, I didn't even realize he was grieving so much, too. I'll pray that the Lord would heal the two of you together.
Much love,
Melanie
I am very happy to found you site .I my self misscRRIED AND LOST ALOT OF BLOOD ,but had to have a transfussion. but now i wake up in middle of the nights with really bad headaches. also in morning
It is comforting to read others who have suffered as I have. I miscarried at 12 weeks Dec. 28. I had to go to our local ER and then transferred to a larger ER more equipped for OB. I past out at home after passing an extreme amount of blood/clots. I lost a lot of blood, my hemoglobin was 7 I was discharged with an 8. I suffered extreme headaches, with no help from any physician. "Take Iron", was what I was told, still suffering though, emotionally and medically. Thanks for your site, helped me know I am not the only one.
Oh Tiffany,
I'm so sorry that you lost your little one! I hope this info about recovering from blood loss will help you and the other posts will encourage you.
{{{hugs}}}
Melanie
THanks for this post. I suffered a miscarriage on Friday. I lost lots of blood, but stayed home (it was the middle fo the night). I didn't think I could sit in a car 15 minutes to get to the hospital and thought I was okay enough to just stay home. I did pass out twice, but I regained consciousness very quickly. I had an ultrasound around noon to confirm what had happened. My doctor was very comforting as she always is, but I didn't think to ask any questions about recovery, etc. I had blood work drawn on Friday as well, but they don't expect the results until Monday (tomorrow). So, I am taking iron and resting a lot. Husband is helping a lot, but he is new to this as well (we have a 1 year old - otherwise I would be fine on my own just sleeping and getting a snack here and there). I guess I have rambled enough for now... Thanks!
I am sad to find so many similar stories, but feel better not to be so alone. I have one daughter but had my fourth miscarriage two days ago. I found it was a missed miscarriage at 11 weeks and decided to wait for my body to do things naturally. 2.5 wks later the spotting I had been having kicked into high gear and the severe bleeding started. I did everything in my power to stay home but when I got up to go to the bathroom at one point I couldn't stand up, and the blood just kept pouring out. After IV fluids and a low point of blood pressure being 79/44, and passing clots the size of my hand, I agreed to the D&C and finally stopped hemorrhaging. However two days later I'm still finding it difficult to stand and walk, my head hurts, I'm weak and tired. I lost 3 pts of blood but didn't get a transfusion. I'm taking the iron, etc. and I do eat chicken liver but it's going to take some time to recover. I do think there's a point in which it's important to get medical help; whether it's a midwife or ER, you don't want to try to do this alone too long. They said if I'd gone to sleep at home I may not have woken up the next day. It was a traumatic experience but at least we're all here to tell our stories.
I am so sorry for your loss. I wanted to write to you because I suffered a lot of blood loss during my delivery 10 days ago. My baby and I seemed fine after and I went home and did much what you are doing (except I got up a bit more maybe). A little over a week later I went into shock (I think) where my body was freezing cold and I couldn't stop shaking. I called 911 (I like you hate hospitals and didn't want to go after my delivery) and was taken to the ER where I was told I barely had any blood in my body.
Some of my symptoms were a massive headache, very pale coloring and a lot of weakness. There are many other symptoms though, but I didn't show them. I could in fact walk around and do quite a bit if I put my mind to it.
I believe if I hadn't have gone to the hospital that night I wouldn't have survived much longer.
I would highly recommend getting your blood tested. If your hemoglobin (red blood cells) are at a good range, nothing to worry about. If I had taken this test I would have known it was at 5, which is really too low and very dangerous.
Transfusions are very safe these days. At my hospital they continually checked to see who I was through many means and then checked the bag of blood and various papers. I really believe that if you go to a good hospital there is no danger of disease.
Again I am sorry for your loss and am happy to hear that you are on the mend and are recovering. I just wanted to share my story and make sure that your blood loss wasn't as severe as mine.
I absolutely agree, ladies, that there is a time to seek help. When I started losing so much blood, I would have gone to the hospital right away, but a midwife friend was able to come to me.
I am so, so sorry about your losses. This is an awful thing to go through! Thankfully now that it is almost two years later for me, I am doing very well emotionally. God is faithful to carry us through!
Thank you for blogging regarding blood loss. I find it hard to believe that no one at the hospital educated me regarding what to do to feel better(grow back blood)after a large amount of blood loss.
Jane
On Sunday, March 1st, I was hoping to have the miscarriage at home, but when I started filling pads every 5 minutes and passed two large clots, I decided to pack us up (2 kids, hubby) and head to the emergency room. It's a good thing we did. They couldn't stop the bleeding there with meds, gave me 2 IVs to replenish my fluids. I passed probably over a dozen clots the size of my fist when the dr. was trying to see my cervix. Finally they had to do an emergency D&C to stop the bleeding. I don't know how much blood I lost, but just when the dr. was doing the exam, they filled a container the size of a very large yogurt container, so I know it was a lot more than that. We spent over 10 hrs in the hospital before they sent me home. My hemoglobin was up to 9 and my blood pressure was up from 80/40. It's been 4 days and I'm still exhausted and feel so lazy being in bed all the time, but when I get up and move around or eat, I get too exhausted to even speak. I hope this ends soon. My husband has been wonderful, but I'm afraid he's going to start thinking I'm faking it if I don't get some energy soon.
I also get contractions once in a while and my legs feel like they ran a marathon. I'm not sure what that's about. Can't wait for my dr. appointment today to figure out if this is all normal.
Tatiana
Tatiana, I am so sorry!!
What you are experiencing sounds very normal. It takes a *long* time to recover from blood loss. I felt absolutely exhausted for weeks. Please tell your husband what you have been reading on this blog so he's prepared to give you a hand.
{{{hugs}}}
Hello,
To all of you that are taking iron to recover from your blood loss, please also take vitamin C at the same time. Vitamin C is essential in the uptake of iron. I got my haemoglobin up from 8.8 to 12 in 2.5 weeks after surgery from a ruptured ectopic, by taking only iron & vitamin C (and the odd steak for dinner!)
Kind Regards,
Lisa.
Dear Tatiana
I have heard that the feeling of having run a marathon in the legs is to do with the position you are in for the D&C - so just normal muscle strain I guess.
I have just had a m/c with ridiculous amounts of blood loss and huge clots. v. scary - passed out twice, BP 65/40. I am still here but quite weak and Hb 9 even after having two units of blood transfused.
Its useful to find a site about recovery from huge blood loss.
Love to all, Claire
Thank you for all of your stories.
Last week, I miscarried a 6 wk embryo at 10 weeks. Similar story to many of you. Passed the tissue in the first hour, then started passing huge clots. Went through 8 pads in 2 hours. Started thinking there was a problem after that. Called my doc and ended up going to the emergency room an hour later. Bleeding and passing clots in the ER for 2 more hours before I could get in for an emergency D&C. Had 2 IVs of fluid and another of some sort of blood thickener to keep my body from going into shock. Weak and tired after the ordeal, but I am ALIVE and able to enjoy my 4 year old, hubby and family.
I've been taking Floradix (20 mL, 2x/ day), prenatal vitamins (Rainbow Light), blackstrap molasses (1 Tbs in hot H2O, 2x/ day). After reading this blog, I am going to research chlorophyll and will probably take that too.
I too have gotten headaches, but I think that's related to dehydration. During the last week, I found drinking 7-8 liters per day keeps me hydrated and headache free. When I'm low on fluids, I get head rushes and headaches. Told my Dr & midwives about my fluid intake and they all said, "great."
In addition to all of the iron building supplements, be sure to take in as many fluids as you possibly can. I'm a week out and feel pretty good in comparison to the day after my 6 hours of hemorrhaging and a BP of 94/43.
Love and support to all who find this site.
I just lost my baby after a 10 weeks pregnancy. We are fortunate to have three other beautiful children. It happened last Friday at the hospital I just started bleeding and passing clots in the ER. I praise God I wasn't home. They did a D&C and wanted to send me home right away. I talked them into keeping me over night. I'm so weak and get short of breath very easy. My muscles hurt. My heart races whenever I do too much. I've had my iron low before and they tell me it was at 12.28 but I can't believe this. I feel terrible. I just want to crawl in a hole and stay there. I miss taking care of my babies (10,7,&2) I'm so angry. It helps to see that I'm not alone.
Liz, I'm so, so sorry you lost your little one! Miscarriage is so hard and most folks pretend it doesn't exist. {{{hugs}}}
It sounds like you are suffering from blood loss. That's just how I felt. Try out the ideas I've shared for building up your iron, and stay down until you feel better. I am praying you will recover quickly. Wish I could help more :-(
Much love,
Melanie
i am sooo thankful for this site. reading stories from others just made me cry...b/c i completely understand the loss, anger, and frustration that we all have felt. i miscarried in may (they said i had a blighted ovum - basically, the embryo implanted but didn't develop) i knew that i had miscarried, b/c all of my symptoms completely disappeared overnite, and i had had these big cramps that day. i went to my dr, who said they couldn't do an ultrasound that day b/c the ultrasound person wasn't in; so, they sent me to the ER after pretty much laughing at me b/c there had been no blood. "you do know that there's always blood when you miscarry." i said, No, i didn't know that, b/c i had already looked it up online and found that in some cases you can miscarry and not pass the clot right away (like others on this site) i went to the ER and the woman taking my info there made me cry b/c she, too, made it clear that i was over-reacting, and didn't have anything to worry about, b/c there wasn't any blood. after spending several hours in the ER (and my fiance and friend came to be with me) the dr. told me that even tho she didn't SEE anything in the sac, she said i was still pregnant, and that sometimes at nearly 7 weeks you just can't see anything yet. the ONLY honest person at the hospital was the woman who did the ultrasound, who said that the sac was empty - which was all she could legally say.
anyway, i, too, opted to miscarry naturally (after my dr. confirmed the blighted ovum the following week) and waited...some friends urged me to just do the D&C, but i wanted to do the natural thing...i wish i'd listened to them. i went to my parent's house on mother's day, and began miscarrying there. since this was my first pregnancy, i didn't know what to expect, but the massive blood loss that i went through didn't seem normal. still, we tried to make the hour-long drive home. i fainted 2x on the way back and thought i might die. the great thing is, i couldn't think of anyone i'd wronged, couldn't think of some Big Unfinished Business...my fiance got me to a hospital, and he was terrified. they talked transfusion, but didn't know my blood type, so they tried to get blood from me to test, and hooked me up to IV's. my veins had collapsed in my arm and hands so they had a really hard time getting blood from me.
i was rushed to the hospital in my hometown and had an emergency d&c. i missed a week of work (and had no paid sick days, so was just out that $) and was incredibly weak, which i hated, b/c i'm also a very active person.
i've spent a lot of time being angry...at myself, at my dr. (who will never be my dr. again, b/c he did not explain at all the dangers of waiting to miscarry naturally - he told me that this happens in 10% of cases like mine - he NEVER mentioned that when we first learned of the pregnancy) and i'm just now getting to a place - 7 months later (wow.) - that i can forgive and move on...i didn't think i'd ever want to get pregnant again, but now, i think i'd be willing to try...especially after reading how brave you have all been after going through a really similar situation...
THANK YOU. this has meant so much to me. good luck to you all, and many many blessings!!! you have all helped me just be BEING HERE and SHARING YOUR STORIES. much love, rachael
Dear Music,
I am so sorry about your miscarriage! How hard! And it's hard not to be angry when you just get sorry, unfeeling care :-(
I hope you will be open to having more children. They have been a huge blessing in my life and sitting here looking at my sweetie pie's bright eyes, I'm so thankful we didn't stop when I lost the twins.
I'm glad my site has been an encouragement to you. I started it because I couldn't find anything online that offered any hope!
With much love,
Melanie
Wow! I am so encouraged by the stories on this site. I really thought I was alone, as I didn't know anyone else who had been through masive hemorrhaging. It's one thing to lose a baby, but another thing to almost lose your
life. I started spotting at 12 weeks, and we found out the baby was no longer viable after six weeks. Like many others here, I passed the baby, and five hours later started
bleeding profusely and passing multiple blood clots the size of my fist. My husband rushed me to the ER after I passed out. I had five blood transfusions and tons of
fluids, and spent three days in the hospital, ultimately getting a d&c to stop the bleeding. The same thing happened to me as someone who commented above, where a piece of placental tissue was stuck. It has been nine weeks, but I am finally feeling close to normal, although I still can't do an intense workout without getting really tired. I have done so many things to rye and heal and all have been helpful, including Floradix (the iron pills tore up my digestive system), chlorophyll (I recommend the nature's sunshine brand), and a healthy diet. I have also done counseling for the trauma, as well as acupuncture to help restore balance to my body. My question is, shouldn't there be a law requiring doctors/midwives to inform women of terisks of blood loss during miscarriage?!?! I feel like there is so much negligence here on the part of the health care provider. Especially for first timers, how are we supposed to know what is normal? It just really bothers me. I feel like there shod be a national awareness campaign or something.
Oh Hilary! I'm so sorry you lost your little one and so sorry you've had such a hard time. I agree - there is not much information about miscarriage available out there - that's one reason I started this blog. I wanted moms to be able to find practical help and in a hope-filled context. So many of the sites I sought help from were so angry and bitter that I couldn't read them.
I hope you are going to feel better soon!
Much love,
Melanie
Hilary, I totally agree that doctors should be held legally responsible for failing to give out the best advice. I honestly thought of suing the dr who treated me b/c he didn't warn me of the 10% chance of hemorrhaging (he told me the 10% after the d&c)
I would totally sign a petition or stand behind any action that you/anyone here wanted to pursue.
Continue the good work at making yourself well! it's about 10 mos later for me, and i feel like i am pretty much 100% now...good luck!
:)
Rachael
Thank you for this post. I lost (probably twins) after an IVF cycle. One passed at 5w2d, and that's when the bleeding started - heavy in spurts for the next week and a half.
At 6w5d, I lost the second baby. And bled so much I was in serious danger despite being in the ER at that point. My blood pressure dropped, my heart raced, I dry heaved, I sweated - it was awful. I ended up with an emergency D&C and two units of blood. I still left the hospital with a hemoglobin of 7.5 after all that.
I have found so, so little about hemorrhaging after a miscarriage. All the doctors have just said it's very rare. We're so scared to try again.
Oh, Mrs. Hope, I am so sorry!!!
You are right, miscarriage is so hard, hemorrhage is awful and there is almost no information out there. That's why I started this blog.
I do hope you won't let this awful experience won't deter you from trying again. My children are such a comfort and a blessing to me and I pray you'll have lots of blessings, too!
I am so happy to have found this site! I just lost my baby at 11 weeks...the baby was only measuring about 9 weeks when I went into the ER with cramping and a little bit of bleeding. I was counseled at the ER to try to pass the baby at home...boy was that a mistake!! 2 days later, it started. I couldn't even get off of the toilet because the clots were coming so fast. I called the doctor on call and he said that was normal that I would be up most of the night. He said call me back if I get light-headed. An hour later I called back that I was getting light-headed. He said that was normal that my body should clot off before I pass out or anything! O.K...that sounded scary! Wouldn't you know, an hour later I passed out while sitting on the toilet. Thank goodness, my Mom was there to help me through this!! I called the doctor back and he said that there was nothing they would do for me at the hospital except a D&C. I really didn't think I could make it in the car for the half hour it would take me to get there. I passed out 2 more times on the toilet and then the bleeding really slowed down. After reading posts on this site, I guess I am happy to be alive. I am still weak and get headaches and a blood-thumping sound in my ears! I hope I get my energy back soon. I have 3 healthy children and this is my first experience with miscarriage. What a nightmare!!
I was so glad to find this sight!! I lost my baby yesterday at 12 weeks but was told last week it had stopped growing at 6 weeks. The dr. wanted me to wait and try and miscarry on my own. I was at work when I started bleeding extremely heavy-filled 2 pads and still had blood running down my legs in 15 min. The dr said to wait and see if it would let up in an hour which fortunately it did but then I had extreme cramping. 4 hours later they called in pain meds. I have had terrible headaches for 2 days now and feel extremely weak and tired. Can hardly stay awake. I feel like I lost too much blood and the dr wasn't taking it seriously. My husband didn't think we should go to ER because bleeding has lessened. Luckily the bleeding has almost stopped altogether now.Going to dr tomorrow for followup and hopefully have iron and hemoglobin levels checked. Not sure I will make it back to work as I had hoped because I just feel so weak. Husband is trying to help with our other 3 kids but not much support because didn't even want this baby and wouldn't acknowledge I was even pregnant. Reading through this site has really given me encouragement and showed me I am not the only one who has experienced this kind of blood loss.
I had a previous miscarriage 2 1/2 years ago but never bleed heavier than a normal heavy period so this was far scarier for me.
3ksmommy, I am so sorry you are going through this! It's one of the hardest things I've been through. I'm praying you will recover quickly physically and that the Lord would comfort your heart and draw you and your husband back into unity. {{{hugs}}}
Dear Anonymous Mommy,
I am so sorry you couldn't get any help from the doctor! That seems so irresponsible to me! I can't believe he did that!
I'm praying that you have a rapid physical recovery and that the Lord would comfort you dearly!
Much love,
Melanie
Hello, like the others I am also glad to have found this site to know I'm not the only one who experienced massive bleeding with a miscarraige. I was also told passing the baby at home would be the easiest and least risky. However when I fainted we realized something was wrong. Thankfully I did have wonderful doctors who I think were very thorough and only did the D&C when it became obvious the bleeding wouldn't stop on it's own. They said I did not need a transfusion and I am glad for this even though my hemoglobin level was ~7 or 8. After the procedure they insisted I stay until I could walk on my own and I ended up being in the hospital overnight, and I probably would have stayed longer if my husband hadn't been anxious to go home. I also wish I would have opted for the D&C to begin with (I've known for 3.5 weeks my baby stopped growing at 6 weeks) but miscarrying naturally seemed to be the 'right' thing to do. I also get the headaches every time I move too quickly and I'm praying I can go back to work next week. Thankfully I'm not too tired but I am a runner so I think the exercise helped me to recover a little easier. While we are extremely sad, I am thankful that God has given me this experience so I can share with others and hopefully prevent someone else from going through such a horrible experience. I agree that the risks of miscarraige need to be publicized more. Thank you for sharing your story and enabling the rest of us to do so. God bless you!
Although it brings tears to my eyes reading all of these posts; I must say, I am glad to know I am not the only one to have gone through this. My husband and I lost our firstborn and just a few days ago lost our second born to a miscarriage. I was 4months along; however, ultrasound showed baby was only size of 10 weeks so was not growing properly. I already have health issues...had me on insulin during this pregnancy and I have fibromyalgia but pain was worth it knowing we would have a wonderful gift from God....
Anyway I started delievering our baby at about 6pm by 7pm I had filled a fresh toilet 7 times with clots, tissue and blood....so dark you couldn't see through it and used up nearly a whole roll of toilet paper. Hubby finally called DR who said to take me to ER. He called 911 and I threw up and nearly passed out I was so lightheaded. Paramedics got here and put me on floor to keep me from losing consciousness and hooked up IV. At hospital I had lost so much blood that they hooked up a second IV. My blood pressure was low as was my heart rate. At hospital I soaked through two set of blankets before I went into OR.
now I am in dire physical pain as every muscle in my body is screaming in pain and I can barely move. Can't dress myself or anything and DR refuses to give me any pain medication. Which kills me I am already going though emotional turmoil over losing baby and then nearly dying and they wont help me make this recovery process easier? I am frustrated and hurting physically and emotionally. Can't seem to find any info online either *sigh* but glad I found this site at any rate. I did have a transfusion but was a life or death thing if they had not done so I wouldn't be here. Really all in all a miracle I am alive as hubby was going to go to church that night to run sound system. I sent him an email at work voicing that I did not want to go through this labor alone and he decided to come home. Had he chose differently he would have come home to a funeral. As my 13yr old son had no clue what to do and didn't think anything was really wrong and I didn't think I needed medical attention either.
Dr keeping me on insulin and prenatal vitamins as we plan on trying again asap and she wants my sugars in control from conception so this doesn't happen again.
thank you all for sharing your story. I appreciate any and all prayers.
MotherHeart
I left the super long post about losing a baby and nearly dying this last week forgot to link this to my email so I can get comments.
MotherHeart - so sorry to hear about your loss, and I completely empathize. It's nearly a year later for me, and I am just about 100% myself again - I can walk, workout, and lift weights about the same as I could pre-miscarriage. It will happen, but it may happen slowly, and my only advice is to be patient with yourself - and know that you're not alone.
I felt like no one in my life really understood physically what the blood loss did to me, the lasting impact...but reading other posts here made me realize I'm not alone, and that feeling incredibly weak in the weeks and even months after is *totally* normal.
Hang in there!
Love,
Rachael
Melanie you are a star for telling your story and supporting all those that have posted here with their stories. A strong soul out of the billions perusing the internet for advice, you are a welcome comfort.
I recently suffered my fourth miscarriage out of five pregnancies, the worst by far (not that any of the previous were any less upsetting). I suffered a tear to my uterus and was discharged without it being noticed, I came close to dying alone at home without anyone knowing if it weren't for the overwhelming pain I experienced that drove me to pick up the phone and call my mum. I never received a blood transfusion, nor did I get any aftercare after discharge and that was disturbing. But like all women out there, we fight on.
I have no idea if I'll ever be able to have another child but by God I'm going to try. Don't give up hope, not whilst you still have air in your lungs and love in your heart.
My best wishes to you all,
and a BIG thank you to Melanie for creating this blog
Gemma x
Three days ago I lost my second child in the hospital. It started out with very light bleeding, but then I started passing clots bigger than my fist and it wouldn't stop. Within six hours the doctor sent me home with some iron supplements. I am so very tired, but it is hard to be at home alone with a little one running around.
Thank you all for posting! It gives me strength to carry on and have hope for a better tomorrow.
Hello everyone :) I just came back from the hospital from a D&C... I have three kids already, never had a miscarriage, and was a bit "overconfident" I guess that this pregnancy would be just as wonderful as my other ones! I was totally wrong :( At 11 weeks, I experienced cramping and spotting, but thought it was due to intercourse, so thought nothing of it. But it lasted 4 days, and I realized this cannot be normal. When cramping and blood increased, my husband took me to the hospital where they checked my hemoglobin & hcg levels, and did an ultrasound and basically found NOTHING in my uterus! I was shocked because I had FULL pregnancy symptoms (nausea, tender breasts, weight gain, even a noticeable belly!). HCG levels indicated baby died at 6 weeks :( They sent me home with Ibuprofen tabs for cramping pain, and I was scheduled to see my doctor two days later, but my body couldn't wait. I started "period" cramping and bleeding incredibly heavily. I went through 25 pads in 4 hours! But my husband, who was not too happy with this pregnancy to begin with, was so wonderful with me. He spoon fed me dinner that night, and stood by my side. By 3am, I ran to the bathroom to clean another pool of blood all over me, when I fainted, He came to my rescue, picked me up, cleaned me up (and the huge clots I expelled all over the bathroom from my fall), showered and dressed me, and took me to the emergency room where they gave me an iv, and realized my hemoglobin went from a 12 to a 10 in less then 24 hours. Blood loss was massive...I wasn't sure what to expect as I never had a m/c before, but I knew it was much more then after delivering my three boys combined! No blood transfusion, thank GOD, and the D&C went smooth. They sent me home with antibiotics (to prevent infection-just in case), iron tabs, and painkillers (to use only when necessary-but I have no pain) I am incredibly saddened by the loss, but know that God works in mysterious ways, and I'm sure we will be blessed with this baby in heaven! Happy ending? Well, I realized my husband isn't all that bad....he stuck by me through my worst time...took care of me when I was bloody mess, with no complaints and only encouraging words. I thought I was going to die, and I think he thought the same. I see him different now. I feel very blessed with him and my 3 boys, and perhaps GOD wanted me to see that.
My love and prayers to all of you going through this horrible time. And thanks, Melanie, for your tender heart in creating this blog. GOD BLESS!
JULIE
Hello everyone :) I just came back from the hospital from a D&C... I have three kids already, never had a miscarriage, and was a bit "overconfident" I guess that this pregnancy would be just as wonderful as my other ones! I was totally wrong :( At 11 weeks, I experienced cramping and spotting, but thought it was due to intercourse, so thought nothing of it. But it lasted 4 days, and I realized this cannot be normal. When cramping and blood increased, my husband took me to the hospital where they checked my hemoglobin & hcg levels, and did an ultrasound and basically found NOTHING in my uterus! I was shocked because I had FULL pregnancy symptoms (nausea, tender breasts, weight gain, even a noticeable belly!). HCG levels indicated baby died at 6 weeks :( They sent me home with Ibuprofen tabs for cramping pain, and I was scheduled to see my doctor two days later, but my body couldn't wait. I started "period" cramping and bleeding incredibly heavily. I went through 25 pads in 4 hours! But my husband, who was not too happy with this pregnancy to begin with, was so wonderful with me. He spoon fed me dinner that night, and stood by my side. By 3am, I ran to the bathroom to clean another pool of blood all over me, when I fainted, He came to my rescue, picked me up, cleaned me up (and the huge clots I expelled all over the bathroom from my fall), showered and dressed me, and took me to the emergency room where they gave me an iv, and realized my hemoglobin went from a 12 to a 10 in less then 24 hours. Blood loss was massive...I wasn't sure what to expect as I never had a m/c before, but I knew it was much more then after delivering my three boys combined! No blood transfusion, thank GOD, and the D&C went smooth. They sent me home with antibiotics (to prevent infection-just in case), iron tabs, and painkillers (to use only when necessary-but I have no pain) I am incredibly saddened by the loss, but know that God works in mysterious ways, and I'm sure we will be blessed with this baby in heaven! Happy ending? Well, I realized my husband isn't all that bad....he stuck by me through my worst time...took care of me when I was bloody mess, with no complaints and only encouraging words. I thought I was going to die, and I think he thought the same. I see him different now. I feel very blessed with him and my 3 boys, and perhaps GOD wanted me to see that.
My love and prayers to all of you going through this horrible time. And thanks, Melanie, for your tender heart in creating this blog. GOD BLESS!
JULIE
julie - thank you for sharing your story, and especially the 'silver lining' that your husband proved to be such a rock and that you are even closer now. i felt the same way about my guy (who was my boyfriend then, now my husband). he really came through, and i saw that he could be strong when i needed him to be. that's a powerful lesson. thank you and all the best wishes to you and your family!
Thank you so much for your site! I especially appreciate your vitamin list to take. I am right now having a miscarriage - going on the 2nd day - 11 weeks along. Major blood loss - cramping and clotting. Being 43 years old, this pregnancy was totally a pleasant surprise as we told our 18 & 15 yr. old along w/family and friends on Christmas day. I felt that this little spirit had a specific purpose in our family - especially for our 18 yr. old. It's so sad what we are going thru right now - but nice to hear everyone's stories. I know we will have this little one in our eternal family. Thanks again for this site. It gave me comfort today in my mourining.
Thank you so much for your site! I especially appreciate your vitamin list to take. I am right now having a miscarriage - going on the 2nd day - 11 weeks along. Major blood loss - cramping and clotting. Being 43 years old, this pregnancy was totally a pleasant surprise as we told our 18 & 15 yr. old along w/family and friends on Christmas day. I felt that this little spirit had a specific purpose in our family - especially for our 18 yr. old. It's so sad what we are going thru right now - but nice to hear everyone's stories. I know we will have this little one in our eternal family. Thanks again for this site. It gave me comfort today in my mourining.
I had a miscarriage last week at 11 weeks (although it was only a six-week sac with no fetus on the ultrasound). I actually spent New Year's Eve in the ER. At midnight, I was being wheeled into the OR for a D&C.
I started light/moderate bleeding on Tuesday night, and had my miscarriage confirmed on Thursday at my midwife appointment. I was going to let my body naturally take care of the miscarriage, but on Friday evening (NYE), I began bleeding heavily, and passing huge clots. I thought I was actually passing the placenta they were so large. I have a 17 month old, so I remember the birth and large amount of blood, but this was nothing compared to that. So much more blood. I fainted in the ER from loss of blood and low blood pressure, but luckily my husband was amazing and caught me and called for help from the nurses.
I have been in my robe the last few days as I am too tired to even get dressed. I feel guilty that I cannot give my daughter more attention.
Melanie, thank you for the blog. People usually don't talk about their miscarriages, so it's nice to feel that the experience is not so unusual.
On another note, I am still breastfeeding my daughter. My midwife mentioned that breastfeeding can increase the risk of miscarriage. Does anyone have any information about this? Thanks.
you are all amazing sisters. I to lost my son at 16 weeks and I am also disappointed with the lack of information on miscarrying. I bled from month two of pregnancy and then had my son naturally and thought ok blood, large clots It's all good. I kept bleeding on and off heavy for four weeks. I hemoharraged and went to er once and they said I had no products of conception. I kept going to my ob who was my midwives friend and they just took a wait and see approach. I was tired ,exhaisted from bleeding , and devastating from losing what would have been baby #5. well finally 4 weeks pp I hemoharraged until I passed out. I was rushed to er , got iv fluids, my bp was 70/30s and my h&h was 22/7 I was shaking so bad and I was confused. I got the d &c and two blood transfusions.
I am 2 months pp and I. am still recovering. my midwife says a couple months. I'm blogging about my new hard core iron building reegime. I was doing floradix,chlorophyll and vitamins and def eating more raw vegan so I can make smoothies.
the thing is that when you lose blood you have to rebuild all components that make a red blood cell and I was still exhausted. honestl its been a few months and I just want to enjoy a lot of intimacy time with my husband. I really wondered after I lost my baby if id be happy again. I still cry and I am still depressed and I'm depressed I'm still tired.
the weeks that followed the hemmorhage were awful. even with the two pints of blood I feel horrible. my body wouldn't do much. I felt foggy and hazey. I cried I never felt so awful and I had four kids all over 6 to homeschool. my husband also worked away and he had to return to work. I had a lot of anxiety and I didn't want to be alone with my kids because I couldn,t take care of them. I needed help so we moved in with my mom. this was the most trying time of my life.
I'm still recovering and its a slow struggle. my husband is supportive but I don't think they can ever really understand.
I'm reallyinterested in writing more about these stories and our struggles. please email me or visit my blog:hebrewearthmama@gmail.com or hebrewearthmam.weebly.com, please be encouraged that time heals all and we do have life to enjoy our loved ones another day. I am with you in this heartache my sisters. you are all courageous and amazing.
you are all amazing sisters. I to lost my son at 16 weeks and I am also disappointed with the lack of information on miscarrying. I bled from month two of pregnancy and then had my son naturally and thought ok blood, large clots It's all good. I kept bleeding on and off heavy for four weeks. I hemoharraged and went to er once and they said I had no products of conception. I kept going to my ob who was my midwives friend and they just took a wait and see approach. I was tired ,exhaisted from bleeding , and devastating from losing what would have been baby #5. well finally 4 weeks pp I hemoharraged until I passed out. I was rushed to er , got iv fluids, my bp was 70/30s and my h&h was 22/7 I was shaking so bad and I was confused. I got the d &c and two blood transfusions.
I am 2 months pp and I. am still recovering. my midwife says a couple months. I'm blogging about my new hard core iron building reegime.
the thing is that when you lose blood you have to rebuild all components that make a red blood cell and I was still exhausted.I still cry and I am still depressed and I'm depressed I'm still tired.
the weeks that followed the hemmorhage were awful. even with the two pints of blood I feel horrible. my body wouldn't do much. I felt foggy and hazey. I cried I never felt so awful and I had four kids all over 6 yrs to homeschool. my husband also worked away and he had to return to work. I had a lot of anxiety and I didn't want to be alone with my kids I was to tired. this was the most trying time of my life.
I'm reallyinterested in writing more about these stories and our struggles. please email me or visit my blog:hebrewearthmama@gmail.com, please be encouraged that time heals all and we do have life to enjoy our loved ones another day. I am with you in this heartache my sisters. you are all courageous and amazing.
I am so glad you are okay, earthmama! Your story sounds a lot like mine. Blood loss is such a long term thing to recover from! Not what we are used to in our times.
I'm praying God would comfort your heart, I'm so sorry you're hurting!
Much love,
Melanie
Hi Melanie -
I just experienced a severe miscarriage last week. My story is here - http://organicmamacafe.blogspot.com/2011/02/miscarriage-and-unexpected-turn-of.html?showComment=1298618193044#c7657306643578979152
I, too, was surprised at the lack of information available about recovering from a hemorrhage like this. And though I know it's early for me, I wonder how to find the courage to be pregnant again.
Thanks for creating this space.
Monna
On March 9th I went in for an ultrasound (should be 7.5 weeks, found now growth since 6 weeks and no heartbeat). My OB gave me the option of d&c or take a pill and be at home. I took the pills. She said it would be a like a heavy period, should be over in a day and to call if there I go through more than one pad an hour for three hours. A few hours later, severe cramping then gushing of blood, two sacs and a lot of clots. A lot of blood over the next many hours. I called the OB late that night because it was not a heavy period and 'was worried it was too much blood. Bled for 10 days, then another gushing and lots of clots. Just started to get very light now at day 18. I've had headaches, feel sick -went to my naturopath and now I'm anemic -explains why I feel this way. Thank you for you for the tips about iron and chlorphyll --I'm taking it all and trying to get more rest. I am so sorry for anyone who has gone through this. My thoughts and prayers are with you all. Thank you for your support and for sharing your stories.
Thank goodness for your site Melanie. I miscarried our little one last week and feel soooo tired now..
My story is very similar to lots of the others on here. I was almost 10 weeks along and had been spotting very lightly for a couple of days before the severe bleeding started. I too had to be taken to the emergency room in an ambulance and was torn between the need for medical treatment and leaving our beautiful 1 year old daughter with my amazing parents for the night while my partner stayed with me for support.
I guess I lost around 2 pints altogether and was also passing fist-sized clots after the initial 'gush' of blood. I also fainted twice in the ER due to my blood pressure dropping and a low haemoglobin count and, thank goodness for my wonderful partner otherwise I would have been passed out for a long time before someone noticed.
I'm having a hard time forgetting the sensation of losing all that fluid and knowing that somewhere in there was our tiny little baby. Luckily I only needed to stay in hospital overnight as after a doctor 'cleaned me up' inside (not under anaesthetic so I guess not d & C?) the heavy bleeding and clots subsided.
An ultrasound scan shows that there is still a little tissue remaining, although I am passing small, thumbnail sized clots now which I'm hoping will continue so I don't need further medical intervention.
I'm due another ultrasound in a week or so just to check that mother nature has done her work....
I'm frighteningly tired though, and just walking up and downstairs leaves me out of breath and needing to rest and I can relate to everyone here who feels the same. I feel lucky to be able to potter around a little though and my wonderful little girl needs the best of her Mum, so I'm being as good to myself as I can at the moment and accepting all of the family support offered.
My prayers are with you all and I wish everyone a swift and uncomplicated recovery, both physically and emotionally {{{{dear friends}}}}.
Anonymous. UK.
Dear UK Friend,
I am so sorry about your little one! Miscarriage is so hard!!
Recovery from blood loss is pretty brutal, too! It helped me when I read how slowly we replace blood to realize that I was just expecting way too much out of myself.
BTW, one of our sons is studying at Oxford this year and *loving* your beautiful country!
{{{hugs}}}
Much love,
Melanie
Hi I too lost a baby 5 months ago and it started with a slight blled i went to the hospital and they said the sack was empty i told me to come back in two days so i knew that i had lost the baby, i went back and they confirmed it, i was deveststed, they advised me to go inj for a d and c i didnt go but 3 days later i had massive blood loss at home so i went in by ambulance,they done a d and c and kept me in for two days, however the following week it happened again massive blood loss and was rushed in again seemingly they hadnt removed all the tissue at the time so i had to go back in again, im ok now, ill never get over the loss, but 5 months later im still exhausted and fall asleep a lot, ive disciovered that im preganant again and im so worried all the time, i was 11 weeks pregnanat when that happened before and im now 14 weeks, but im stressed out from worry too, but i think about the other baby all the time and nothing will replace it. thanks for this site, god bless. x.
I glad I found your site. Everyone that I've talked to that had a miscarriage was nothing like mine. I was 11 weeks and was spotting for about 2 days with very light cramping. On July 3rd at 11:30 at night I starting bleed alot. So my husband and parents rushed me to a hospital. What sucked is that we were out of town on vacation and had no idea where one was located. Thank god for the GPS. The first hospital we went to said there was nothing they could do for me they did not have a OBGYN on staff nor did they have a ultrasound machine. They told us we could wait for about 2 hours for a abulance or drive ourselves to their sister hostipal 35 minutes away. We decided to drive on the way there I blacked out and passed out twice after passing countless clots of blood. All I remember is saying" wow that is a lot of blood" multiple times. After arriving and being attacked by about 6 people saying "you will feel a little prick" They had to do an emergency D&C to stop the bleeding. I was in the hopsital for a total for 12 hours. After only 3 days I am stil very week. All they told me was take iron. This was a huge lost for my husband and I. We had been trying for a year. I just want to feel normal again and nobody knows what to say and is walking on eggshell around me. Thank you everyone for your post they are helping me in my greiving process as well as posting this. I wish everyone strengh.
This site has been very comforting to me! All I have heard so far is how rare it is to have such a large blood loss during a miscarriage! I started to spot at 11 weeks, when I went into my Dr I found out the baby had stopped developing around 7 weeks. I was so distraught over the decision to miscarry naturally or have a d&c but decided to schedule the d&c anyway (for a few days later). That night I started to bleed so heavily for about 8 hours that I began to pass out. My husband took me to the ER at 2am. After multiple traumatizing tests the ER doctor thought I had passed the baby and was going to release me. They re-tested my hemoglobin levels and realized that in just a few hours it had dropped 3 points. Immediately my Dr was called and I was sent for emergency d&c followed by a blood transfusion. It ended up that I did not pass the baby on my own and probably wouldn't have. It's been a few days and I'm still feeling dizzy and weak. Not to mention I am terrified to get pregnant again! I have a 1 1/2 year old daughter right now and think what if I died during this and left her without a mother? The whole experience was extremely terrifying.
Hi, its good to know that other peple have experienced what I have. I was only 10 weeks and I miscarried, 12 days ago... I literally couldnt leave the toilet for 5 hours becuas the blood and clots were pouring out. then it started a day later again and then another day later. I am a very active person and have taken such strain while my body recovers.I have been taking loads of iron tabs and trying to rest as much as possible. I could come to terms with losing the baby as it was still very early and i know that I am not in control of these things...but the effect it had on my body was Hectic! Also suffering from headaches, but they getting better, and have battled to sleep at night so had to take a sleeping pill for the first time in my life. My husband has been amazing and we will definately start trying again as soon as i have recovered. Can definately say that I am a bit nervous that it will happen again, but I need to trus God.. to you other Moms, my heart really goes out to you and I pray that each day will get better, much lovexx
Thankyou , thank you all, and God bless you for this site. My heart and my prayers go out to all of you. I have two children, and I have had four miscarriages in the last 7 years. All have been around 8 or 9 weeks. On August 11,2011; i had some trouble. I know that God is good and he knows how to take care of us. I started bleeding badly at 5-or 5:30am. I normally don't ask for help. After 4or 5 hours, I fell down at home, started throwing up, and shaking, and i couldn't talk for a minute. My kids got my husband for me. My husband called 911.
The ambulance guys, staff at the hospital, the and the doctor were very helpful to me. I lost a lot of blood, had many clots, and everything was taking much longer than I thought it should. At the hospital, they gave me fluids and an ultrasound, and helped me to finish miscarrying. when my pressure went up enough, they let me go home around 5 or 6pm. I have had headaches and (weakness) ever since, and i didn't know why.
Because of all of you, i finally cried a little bit. Thank you.
Thoughts that helped me when I labored: "Even when the rain comes"... and "where does my help come from, my help comes from the Lord"
Anger and blaming no longer suit me; I wish to love and encourage people. I thank you for the care that you have shown for others by sharing your stories; thank you for encouraging me.
Shawn
I wanted to thank you so much for your site and giving women information, help, and sharing your faith. I miscarried on August 8, 2011, lost an incredible amount of blood at home and had an emergency D&C at the hospital. I had severe headaches due to the blood loss and plummeting hormones. I found so much information and encouragement via your testimony and testimonies from other women who have had similar experiences. Today is August 21st, and I am just starting to feel physically better. I want other women to know that the headaches WILL pass with time. Thank you for your post on this; I was not prepared for this pain. As another believer, I know that God has the absolute best plan and we are already blessed with a wonderful son. I am sorry for your loss, but I know God has you in the palm of His hands and has and will carry you through everything. Thank you so much for helping women via your site-may God bless you.
Kelly,
I am so sorry about your miscarriage! {{{hugs}}}
I pray the Lord would comfort your heart and heal you, sweet friend!
Much love,
Melanie
To those older commenters just posted, I apologize, I *just* got the notification about your comments. May the Lord comfort you and heal you, sweet friends!
Much love,
Melanie
Thanks for sharing your experiences & ideas about recovering from blood loss. I'm 54, peri-menapausal, & have been bleeding fairly heavily for 4 weeks. Drs. are working with me but it's a slow process &, in the meantime, I'm anemic & getting shakier by the day. I hope to avoid needing a transfusion & this site was helpful & encouraging. :)
So glad I found this site. Friday Dec 16th we went to the dr for a normal checkup expecting to hear the babys heartbeat and get a due date. When they did the ultrasound I was only measuring at 6 weeks and was suppose to be 11 weeks. I decided to let things happen naturally. Over the weekend I passed some clots and on wed we were back at he drs to see if I had passed it all. I had not and later that afternoon I found myself in the er. From 5pm til almost midnight I was pouring blood. Finally I decided to have an emergency dnc done. I was out in no time and the bleeding as stopped except for the spotting afterwards. My blood count went down to 7.3. The dr came in on thurs and said he wanted me to eat and drink and try to walk. He was on the verge of giving me blood but wanted to see how I would do. I was able to walk down the hospital hall without passing out or getting dizzy. Here I am on Monday and still very tired and having headaches in the morning. Thankfully they prescribed me a strong ibprofen and iron supplement. I have decided not to work until after the new year. I've never had anything like this happen before and am realizing how important it is to rest during this time. Thankfully I have a wonderful husband who has been taking care of me and has not complained once. I believe the Lord is healing my body but in time I will be back to normal. Thanks again for all the posts. They have helped me tremendously.
Danielle,
I am so sorry! What a sad and scary time for you. Please do take it easy. It really took me months to feel like myself again. Blood loss is so hard to recover from.
May the Lord Himself comfort and heal you, my friend.
Much love,
Melanie
Hello,
I was 19 wks pregnant, on sat, christmas eve, i coughed and the baby came out. It was a boy, but i was told it was a girl the preceding monday. Two shockers! I was rushed to the hospital, of course the baby was already gone, but still attached. They gave me something to help the contractions to get the afterbirth out. Just so you know, i have had two c-sections, labor with both. So this was all new to me. They cut the cord and we saw the baby. But because the placenta never came out on its own, they had to do a d&c. I lost alot of blood. Today, thurs, i am still weak and my legs are not that strong. Been taking antibiotics and iron to build my blood back up and fight the infection. As my husband would say, this was the christmas from hell! But he has been my prince charming. We have been together since 1986, and i love him more now than i ever di! He is the best man alive in my book! We lost our first child at the age of 3 after she had open heart surgery three months prior. We do have a 9 yr old son who is a jewel to have in our lives. Needless to say, our lives have been ripped apart yet another time. But i am holding on to gods truth and believing i can get pregnant again and the baby will be healthy! Thank u for this blog, it helped me alot! You take care.
Dear Friend!
How traumatic!! I am so sorry. :-(
May the Lord wrap you tight in His arms and give you more children -- to raise for Him.
Our youngest had a life-threatening heart condition. I know how hard it is, though thankfully, she's still with us.
Don't lose heart -- if you email me at info(at)raisingrealmen(dot)com, I'd love to send you a free download of a retreat on suffering I led. You can read about it here: http://www.raisingrealmen.com/ourstore/workshop-cds/walk-by-faith-bundle/
{{{hugs}}}
Much love,
Melanie
Hi Melanie,
Thank you for this website. I had a postpartum hemorrhage with my last pregnancy and I have also been unable to find out much info on recovery from blood loss without a transfusion. I am assuming that you are totally recovered at this point and would like to ask you about how long it took. I am taking a ton of iron, vitamin c, chlorophyll, yellow dock, and dandelion root. Just wondering when i might expect to be recovered and able to do my normal activities. Thanks.
Jill, I was back to doing my normal activities in about a month, but honestly, I didn't feel like myself for probably 4 months or so. It just takes such a *long* time to rebuild all those cells. I did not have a transfusion and had a couple of hemorrhages, so my experience may be extreme.
I am so sorry about all you have been through!! {{{hugs}}}
Melanie
I'm so glad that I was able to read all this stuff. This is my 3rd miscarriage and the first two I guess were called chemical miscarriages or pregnancies or whatever. But this one is bad. Every time I go to the rest room it's not to pee, it's to push out more clots. It's painful and I don't want to go to the hospital. So thank you for your strength and guidance on making it easier to stay home to do this. It was hard when they told me the baby had died, but feeling the physical part right now, is the worst thing about it. I know we can try again, I just hate the physical aspect of it all.
I'm so sorry you are going through this, Kimmy! You are right, the physical stuff is just plain old hard without even talking about the grief!
May the Lord wrap you tight in His arms and give you the strength to get through this.
Much love,
Melanie
I know what its like to have lost a child. I experianced a miscarage back in september 2010 and it was the worsed thing ever. I then left it some time before even thinking about trying again. Then just when I thought everything was going well and was getting my life back on track, desarster strikes again with the loss of a second child. This was just a few days ago and I still feel so weak and helpless. All I wanna do is sleep all day. I prob should have been checked out but I've been there before and know it just takes time.
Kathryn,
I hate to hear that you have had to go through this twice! I'm so sorry!!
I am praying the Lord would comfort your heart and give you children you can raise. Do get checked out -- there might be something avoidable going on, low progesterone or something.
{{{hugs}}}
Much love,
Melanie
Melanie,
I just found your site searching for info about how long to expect my recovery to be after severe blood loss... I am somewhat relieved to find that my experience isn't terribly unusual (it is the second time for me). My husband posted briefly about our experience this last week @ thetuttletribe.blogspot.com/2012/02/scary-hours.html. Though I am still so sorry to read of so many having had such traumatic experiences. I am so thankful to the Lord, for the love, kindness and prayers of others on our behalf. I personally have felt much emotional comfort and am extremely grateful. I am sad, but am comforted by the fact that the baby is with Jesus and that his life was not without purpose, even if it was way too short, imo! I'm even okay with the experience we went through as it has reminded us of the delicacy of life (baby's and mine) and drawn my husband and I closer together.
A friend wrote me and will be sending me chlorophyll, I'm excited. I'm also taking double iron and vit. C and sleeping as much as possible to help my body replace the blood. I just had no idea that the recovery would be so long. The Lord of course knows, and now we'll just have to adjust our plans somewhat as we were planning to move this very week! *Q* Do you know if light exercise (increasing as able) would sabotage the blood replacement? I'm wondering because though I'm too weak to do much at this point, I'm often not at all sleepy either. So, I lay around but can't really rest. I was thinking that if I walked a bit it might help me feel tired enough to sleep? I've heard of that in other instances of insomnia, but I'm not sure it would apply here.
I also just had to comment because I have followed your raising real men site over the last couple of years and had read almost all the way through this page before realizing that I already knew who you were! :) Fun.
This page is such a help to so many to find that they are not alone and to find comfort through your kind words of encouragement. I just wanted to encourage you and express my thanks on behalf of all. :)
amy in peru
fisheracademy.blogspot.com
Hey Melanie, I posted the story of my miscarriage back in December. Well here I am almost 3 months later and i am still having trouble with low iron and it is efecting my everyday life. My blood level dropped to 7.3 at the time if my miscarriage. I've had my blood check about 6 weeks ago due to fatigue. Once again it was low. Dr told me to take my iron pills and have it checked again in another 6 weeks. Just had it rechecked and waiting on the results. Here are some other issues I've never had until the miscarriage. Now I felt sometimes that my legs are shaking but really aren't. Also still feel not myself and feel tired alot and like my nerves are crazy. Could all this be from the blood loss? I've never had so many physical in all my life and its all been since I had the miscarriage. Thanks!
Yes, Danielle, it could be from the iron loss -- I had the same symptoms. They told me to take iron, liquid chlorophyll and vitamin C.
I hope you'll soon feel better!
Much love,
Melanie
Amy,
I am so sorry to hear that!!! You poor thing!
How funny you found the blog, *then* realized you knew us from Raising Real Men!
The big concern with exercise is will the bleeding break out again. As long as you keep an eye on that, you should be fine.
I've got to say that it takes a looooooooong time to recover, though. You're really going to need to rely on the Lord for strength. I'll be praying for you!!
May the Lord comfort your heart, dear sister,
Melanie
Hello,
After reading all the posts in this blog I am finally feeling a sense of comfort since my horrific miscarriage, which began 3/5/12.
The morning of, I had mild bleeding, mild back pain and thought 'well, this is it.. It's not that bad..i'll just go to work'. My obgyn had not been hopeful that this would become a viable pregnancy with slow rising low HCG and an empty geststional sac at 10 weeks. I decided to call my doc and let them know the bleeding had started and doc suggested i go, immediately, to the ER to b checked. So, I did. Was placed on IV fluids, all day..ultrasound indicated my ueterus had cleared everything out, and was sent home. Next morning I felt drained and decided work was out of the question. I have 2 boys ages 9&6, and their dad has not been happy about this pregnancy at all..to the point we are seperating..he also has addiction issues so really, its for the best..but crappy timing. Long story short(er), nxt morning by 12pm I was passing blood clots as big as a baseball..and bright red blood was pouring..dripping.. non-stop. I was alone, no family to call for help and knew I was in trouble.Shaking, and weak I got in my car and drove about a mile..paramedics took over from there. The hospital put me on IV fluids, transferd me to another hospital where I was released..bleeding still. By 3am that morning, in an attempt to use the bathroom I collapsed from blood loss. Another 911 and the ER rushed me into surgery where they were able to stop the bleeding...and then wanted to release me! This is day 3 heavy bleeding..!! I refused, good thing b/c my CBC hemoglobin had dropped from 8 to 6!! I needed blood, received 2 liters...had I left I would have died. My blood pressure, after surgery, was 80/44. Today is the 10th, and I am so weak. The babydaddy was unavailable, after 12 years and 2 kids together...he couldn't come be by my side as I was bleeding out..and nearly died. My heart is breaking now in more ways than I thought ever possible..and the worst is not 'feeling' strong enough to take care of ME right now..but I have too.
I need prayers..a mirracle to keep me from the depression that is looming about me.
This site has been a great resource of comfort for me during this confusing and frightening situation. Thank you to all who have posted on here...I didn't realize this experience was so common. I am deeply concerned about the lack of care I received, and many others as well have received, by the medical industry. I just can't believe that I was released twice, in my condition.
God bless everyone and prayers for fast healing.
All my Love,
Jen
Hello,
After reading all the posts in this blog I am finally feeling a sense of comfort since my horrific miscarriage, which began 3/5/12.
The morning of, I had mild bleeding, mild back pain and thought 'well, this is it.. It's not that bad..i'll just go to work'. My obgyn had not been hopeful that this would become a viable pregnancy with slow rising low HCG and an empty geststional sac at 10 weeks. I decided to call my doc and let them know the bleeding had started and doc suggested i go, immediately, to the ER to b checked. So, I did. Was placed on IV fluids, all day..ultrasound indicated my ueterus had cleared everything out, and was sent home. Next morning I felt drained and decided work was out of the question. I have 2 boys ages 9&6, and their dad has not been happy about this pregnancy at all..to the point we are seperating..he also has addiction issues so really, its for the best..but crappy timing. Long story short(er), nxt morning by 12pm I was passing blood clots as big as a baseball..and bright red blood was pouring..dripping.. non-stop. I was alone, no family to call for help and knew I was in trouble.Shaking, and weak I got in my car and drove about a mile..paramedics took over from there. The hospital put me on IV fluids, transferd me to another hospital where I was released..bleeding still. By 3am that morning, in an attempt to use the bathroom I collapsed from blood loss. Another 911 and the ER rushed me into surgery where they were able to stop the bleeding...and then wanted to release me! This is day 3 heavy bleeding..!! I refused, good thing b/c my CBC hemoglobin had dropped from 8 to 6!! I needed blood, received 2 liters...had I left I would have died. My blood pressure, after surgery, was 80/44. Today is the 10th, and I am so weak. The babydaddy was unavailable, after 12 years and 2 kids together...he couldn't come be by my side as I was bleeding out..and nearly died. My heart is breaking now in more ways than I thought ever possible..and the worst is not 'feeling' strong enough to take care of ME right now..but I have too.
I need prayers..a mirracle to keep me from the depression that is looming about me.
This site has been a great resource of comfort for me during this confusing and frightening situation. Thank you to all who have posted on here...I didn't realize this experience was so common. I am deeply concerned about the lack of care I received, and many others as well have received, by the medical industry. I just can't believe that I was released twice, in my condition.
God bless everyone and prayers for fast healing.
All my Love,
Jen
Oh Jen, what a horrible experience! I'm so glad you listened to your gut and demanded care! What if you had left!
I'm so sorry your husband is behaving so selfishly. That must really hurt! I'll be praying the Lord would bring him to repentance, faith and release from his addiction.
{{{hugs}}}
With much, much love,
Melanie
I am so deeply sorry for your loss. Your sweet spirit and willingness to share your experience is a blessing to those of us who are walking behind you....thank you for sharing what you have learned about blood loss. After a natural miscarriage at home 10 days ago, I am still weak and sometimes light-headed....good to know that my recovery is "normal" for severe blood loss. Thanks for the suggestions you mentioned! May the Lord bless your family and restore what has been stolen from you.
thanks for your website, it has been a big help. 5 weeks ago I also suffered a misscarrige at week 19. It began at 530pm, and by 730 I knew I was in trouble as I began to bleed heavily. Praise God my Mother in-law arived and took me to the ememrgincy room. The emergincy room was busy that night, and after takeing my blood preasure they decided I was not a priority, and so I continued to bleed until 2am when OB finaly arived Preforming a DNC. He then told me to go home and that I would be ready for work by monday. I remember passing out as the nurses atempted to help me dress, and then almost 3 times more walking from the car to my bedroom. 5 days later I still could not stand more then 3 min without being overcome by dizzyness and shakeing. Calling the OB I was told this was not a side effect of the misscarrige and he would not see me. Returning to the emergincy room my Hemoglobin count was only 7. They called the OB who said not to give me a transfusion, and so I was sent home again. My mother in law in the mean time found this web site and sent me some chloriphil. Ive been takeing that, along with iron 700mg, and vitamin C 2x a day. And seeing my Primary Care Provider who has been keeping tract of my blood count and testing for infection. After 4 more weeks Ive now returned back to work, and although I feel that Im functioning at about 80%my normal capacity am continuing to improve.
Wow, you poor thing! It's awful enough having a miscarriage, but dealing with the blood loss and getting so little help from your doctor - wow. I hope you'll find another OB!
I am so sorry about your little one. I wish I could bring you a casserole and give you a hug! May the Lord wrap you tight in His arms and comfort and heal you, my friend!
Much love,
Melanie
I'm glad I found this site, I was beginning to think I was abnormal or something! I miscarried my 8 wk baby and I lost so much blood today that I ended up passing out in my shower. Going through 7 or 8 maxi-pads an hour along with huge blood clots kind of freaked me out. Luckily I phoned an on-call gyno and she said to take 800mg ibuprofen, drink lots of fluids and if an hour later the bleeding doesn't decrease noticeably then I should go in to the doc. I wasn't too sure about if this would work. Well I took the ibuprofen and after drinking a few bottles of water and a half an hour long nap the bleeding was more controllable. It's still tiring just walking to the bathroom or to get water. I hope I can get my strength back up quickly because after tomorrow I have to go back to work. I'm a cashier so it's just scanning and counting so hopefully I can get enough energy to stay standing.
I am thankful I have found this site. I have been going through my miscarriage for a week now, and have been completely exhausted and lightheaded. I was only about 5wks along, but the first 4 days of the miscarriage I lost a lot of blood, passed enormous clots, and had excruciating cramps, and now almost 7 days the bleeding has almost stopped. My doctor likes to let nature do as nature is going to do and said as long as I was able to get up from the couch without passing out, then it will pass and I should start feeling better in a couple of weeks. I have had trouble with anemia and low blood pressure in the past and I have been trying to find the links between those and miscarriage. I have a 15 month old son, and I can't afford to be this exhausted. I will be starting on the iron and vitamin c. Thank for taking the time to research thing and for caring enough to share what you have found.
Jessica,
I am so sorry! This is not an easy road, but it will get better by and by.
Be sure to let your friends and church know how weak and tired you are. A teen girl that could come by for an hour or two a day and let you sleep would be a godsend.
I hope you are feeling better soon!!
Much love,
Melanie
I'm so glad I found this site. 3 days ago I miscarried at 14 weeks, although a scan done the week before had confirmed the baby died at about 7 weeks. I wanted to wait and miscarry on my own, which started to happen, but then I started having excruciating contractions, passing clots the size of my whole hand and haemorraeging (sp?). My blood pressure plummeted and I kept blacking out. I got rushed to the emergency room, where they performed an emergency D&C, and after that I had 2 blood transfusions as well as 5 bags of fluid. I've since found out that I lost about 3/4 of my blood. I am feeling a lot better since the blood transfusions, and am back home now, but am still feeling weak, dizzy if I stand up too fast and very, very weepy. I honestly thought I was going to die. I am just so thankful I'm still here, because I have a wonderful hubby and also an 8 year old daughter and a 5 year old son, who unfortunately, witnessed the whole thing :-( Thank you for this site. It really helps to talk about it.
Leah, New Zealand
Wow what you went threw was hard! I'm going threw an at home miscarriage right now as I type. Granted I was not aware until my mother told me what had just come out of me.Now I'm having whats called a complete miscarriage.... I didn't even kno I was pregnant! I'm haemorrhaging pretty bad and I'm very small so I kno ive lost too much blood. I'm scared..I'm only 19 in college trying to get an education. Now I'm ashamed and in alot of pain. But you make me feel like everythings going to be alright. Thank you
Leah,
I'm so sorry about the loss of your little ones! And, about all you've gone through -- so hard!
May the Lord wrap you tight in His arms!
Much love,
Melanie
Dear Young Anonymous Friend,
I am so sorry! Miscarriage is so hard!
If you feel like you've lost too much blood, I encourage you to go to the doctor, or even the hospital, especially if you are feeling weak or faint -- blood loss is very dangerous!
Hoping you'll be feeling better soon --
Much love,
Melanie
Hi my name is tiffany I'm 22 I have an 8month old boy I had my iud placed in march sometime. My Dr didn't do a pregnancy test and apparently I was a month pregnant I don't gain weight no morning sickness and no cravings with my pregnancies well on the 24th of June we had intercourse and bleed a enough to pool on him then the 27th had intercourse again this time I left three big puddles on the bed and one small on the floor on the 5th of July went to the hospital because of bleeding and cramps found out I was 6months pregnant the baby had a strong heart beat they sent me home the 6th I went to my moms and told her I was pregnant the 7th started having bad contractions so my mom got my son and we went to the hospital the told me treat it as a threatened miscarriage and sent me home was home about an hour and went to the bathroom passed a lot of blood and clots so I decided to sit on the tub to let so I didn't have to keep wasting tp I literally filled almost the entire bottom of the tub and still had pain so back to the hospital this time they did ultrasound baby still strong no reason to bleed they said I can do a d&c or be admitted to hospital and see what happens so I chose to be admitted my hemoglobin kept dropping I couldn't stay awake on the 9th my contractions got extramly bad I called my mom to the hospital they called Dr for an epidural I was in active labor at 23weeks pregnant I gave birth to a baby girl she was alive for an hour to an hour and a half after her birth and so beautiful even tho they have different daddies she looked just like my son it was amazing I got to hold my first daughter till she passed which is extreamly sad and hard to deal with ill never forget her breathing and the sounds she made the Dr's said I lost a little more then half my blood I didn't get a transfusion just a lot of antibiotics and fluids I was sent home on the 10th with a prescription for iron,stool softners,and two pain meds I still am super dizzy can bearly walk and my breast milk is comming in more I still breast feed my son but it is sad because I don't have a newborn babygirl to breastfeed I have to pump it then give it to my son he has 4 teeth and likes to bite
Oh Tiffany,
I am so sorry! You've been through so much!
Miscarriage is real grief, though most people don't recognize it. Please seek the Lord -- He's the only one who can really heal this hurt. See, God the Father sent His own Son to die for our sins, He knows this hurt and He willing went through it so we could be forgiven. He will forgive us and heal us!
With much love,
Melanie
I find it interesting that so many others are suffering from headaches after miscarriage and major blood loss. I lost our baby at 14 wks. almost two weeks ago and ended up in the ER for a D&C due to excessive blood loss. I could barely get out of bed for 6 days, but am much better now. However, I'm still getting headaches nearly every afternoon and too physically and emotionally tired to really take care of my kids and house. Any idea what causes the headaches? I am taking a raw food based prenatal and iron supplement, extra vitamin C and some liquid chlorophyll.
I can’t help but cry when I read these stories. This October I suffered a miscarriage at 11 weeks of pregnancy. I have a one year child and I had a C-section with him. My husband and I wanted the children close in age so we tried for the second when we felt it was safe. My husband went in for a major operation on his bowls due to his Chrones disease and I stayed home from work for a week while he was in hospital to care for our son. A couple days at home I had notice twice a slightly darker discharge and the odor was strong. Also I was having cramping. The discharge wasn’t enough to warrant much concern as I was told unless there is bleeding your fine, so I didn’t worry. My husband called and let me know he was being released early because he was receiving poor care so I raced to drop off my son and pick up my husband at the hospital, which was two hours away. When I arrived I went to the washroom and noticed that I was bleeding and the blood was dark like late in your period. I said a prayer and drove to the hospital in my home town. There I went to the washroom again and found a small fleshy colored clot. Soon after I was admitted to the ER where upon changing into my gown I stared bleeding like when my water broke. My husband was also in the ER to get help with his post-surgery symptoms. We were devastated. The Dr. did an ultrasound and an exam and said there was a 90% chance that I was having a miscarriage and that I should come back for another ultrasound in the morning. cont...
I crossed my fingers for that 10%. My husband went to stay with his brother and I stayed with my son at my sisters as she was close to the hospital and my husband was in no condition to be taken care of anyone. That night I started hemorrhaging and had passed large clots. I was so scared and I knew my 10% was now 0%. My sister took me to emerge and the Dr. removed some of the large clots and gave me 3 options. 1. Let your body do things naturally, 2. Take a medication to help the contractions along, which will make me sick or 3.have a D&C, which I would have to be put under. After confirming the risks and my situation I chose option 1 and had the ultrasound the next morning. After seeing the Dr. I was given the same 3 options and told that there was just a couple of clots to pass and that a D & C was a highly unlikely option at this point. Two days passed and then I had severe cramping. I thought it was time to pass the clot. What was actually happening was I was dilating as my body was trying to expel the tissue still attached. My husband drove me to the hospital and I was soaked with blood and passing large clots. After listening to the Nurse explain the Dr. that there was only one more ambulance to go to the next hospital and that I needed to be at a hospital that could perform the D & C in order to stop my bleeding the Dr. Still hesitated. It was my husband who made the call to move me or he would do it himself. They moved from my home town hospital to the major hospital 20mins away. cont...
There they had trouble finding vein to draw blood in order to find out what I needed for the transfusion, because I had lost so much blood. I nearly died. After the D&C I slowed on the bleeding, but was still very dizzy and weak with a massive headache. I was told to take iron supplement and let my body regenerate itself. When I saw my GP he was upset that they didn’t give more blood because I was as low on blood as I was when they decided to do the D & C, two days after the fact. It’s been a month and a half and I’m still having dizzy issues and fatigue. Along with the emotional trauma of losing the baby, I am mostly suffering due to almost leaving my son with no mother. My husband can’t even begin to understand and is dealing with his own recovery. He thinks I’m fine as he cannot see the injury. I’m back at work and caring for our family. I am weak and exhausted and he is off doing is own thing. I can’t seem to get through to him how weak I am and how much I need his support. I had my period which dropped me again and I was left with my son alone. After I fell into the wall trying to get him a bottle I was pretty scared and my husband was unreachable. How can I make him understand how serious this was and that I’m not just over it physically or emotionally? What happened to my hero that was at the hospital with me? He wonders why I’m depressed. Any way I hope this help others make the right choice and get the D &C right away if it’s confirmed they are having a miscarriage. thank you to the blood donars.
Leah, I am so sorry I didn't comment earlier - we travel speaking and this summer were on the road a *lot* so I got very behind.
I am so sorry about the loss of your precious little one and how traumatic it's been. I hope by now you are feeling better physically and emotionally. {{{hugs}}}
Much, much love,
Melanie
Dear Nadine,
Wow, what a stressful and hard time. I am so sorry about your dear little one! Don't despair, though. There's hope -- hope in heaven to see our little ones again, and hope here to heal, recover and Lord willing, conceive again. Praying you will soon be feeling better. {{{hugs}}}
Much love,
Melanie
Thank you so much for your site. I am a breast cancer survivor. I was diagnosed in April of 2011. I had chemo, mastectomy and radiation. Plus a year of infusions with a cancer specific drug. I was told that I had a 70% chance of going into menopause from the treatments. They were wrong. Late October I found out I was 6 weeks pregnant with my 4th baby. We were terrified because I had just finished my year long treatments in August and I was also on 2 different blood pressure medicines. Went to the obgyn and had ultrasound and all was well. He sent me to maternal fetal medicine for a consult due to all the cancer treatments. They said there all should be ok and the risk of issues from the mess was very low. We breathed a sigh of relief and became very excited. Last Friday I started spotting and called my OB. Said it was normal and not to worry. Still spotting Monday so he scheduled ultrasound for Wednesday. I was 11 weeks pregnant. Baby had a heart rate of 110 and was only the size of a 6 week 6 day old fetus. The fetal sack was also misshaped and oblong. He told me things didn't look good. He put me on bed rest. I continued spotting until 3 pm Thursday when I began flooding and passing huge clots and tissue. Thank God my husband arrived home at that time. He took me to the ER and my OB was to meet us. My OB said I was losing a lot of blood and recommended a D & C. The hospital was slow and after being there an hour still hadn't typed my blood or started giving me fluids. I told my husband I was going to be sick and began dry heaves. I then blacked out. My husband told me I was non responsive to them yelling at me and shaking me. My pupils were fixed and dilated. I stopped breathing for a bit and they couldn't find a pulse. It was there but weak. They finally started giving me fluids and typed my blood. They were calling for a crash cart when I finally started to come to. Then I was trembling. After the d&c I ended up spending the night because I got sick and almost passed out twice more. I had a horrible headache until Sunday when it finally began letting up. I tried to go back to work on Tuesday and made it half day. My legs are like rubber and I get so tired especially in my big muscle groups. The emotions are terrible and I go from fine to sobbing. The sight of expectant moms and babies are more than I can take. My husband has been such a rock to me through my cancer and now this. The grief is horrible. I so badly wanted a 4th baby but now am not sure it will happen. I just turned 38 and don't know if my body can't handle the pregnancy because of the cancer treatments or if it was just one of the normal 20% that miscarry. We were so excited and this has been difficult. I want to try again but don't know if I can do this again. I am so grateful for my 3 beautiful healthy boys and amazing husband. I just always pictured our family 1 larger. God bless each of you for posting your experience. Though I would not wish this on anyone, it is comforting to know that others know exactly how it feels both physically and emotionally. Both are exhausting. May we all find peace and good health!
Jen
Thank you for this site. It has really helped with my grieving process.
Hello Everyone. I typed something from my phone but for some reason when I hit preview it disappeared, so I am going to try to re-write this.
I miscarried in September at 11.5 weeks. It is a long story, not much unlike the others I have read here. I did not know how common miscarriages were until after it happened to us. I always believed it was rare and that it wouldn't happen to us. I was wrong.
I do have a few questions for you though. Were you told how long to wait before you try again? I was told minimum of six months. Partly because of the D&C but mainly because of the blood loss. It's been three months and as much as I am still grieving I feel I am close to ready to start trying again. Should I wait the full 6 months? Two different doctors told me to wait that long.
This Christmas has been hard so far. It was a planned pregnancy and I was so looking forward to getting a family pic done with our 3 year old, fiance, and pregnant belly.
I actually thought I'd had a second miscarriage a couple weeks ago. I was 7 days late for my period and thought I'd been having pregnancy like symptoms. I took a total of 7 tests. First was negative, second looked very faintly positive, the rest negatives. When I finally "started" it was so heavy and full of clots for 2.5 days. And it was painful. Finally after the third day I went to the hospital after speaking with a nurse. They checked for HCG but there was none. They did a rush ultrasound and it took two weeks to find out everything was "ok". No sign of miscarriage or pregnancy, no other issues. The doc said it was a "false positive". I'm not really sure. Maybe it's better that I believe it was just a heavy period and not taking it as a loss. The miscarriage in September was much, much worse.
I have a site as well, perhaps I'll eventually write my full story. Thank you for this site, its really the first one I've found that I can connect with.
Tania
Ty so much for yr hlp. I never read these articles, let alone respond. However, iv Bn told to go to the hospital, but I refuse due to the same fears u experienced. My ansisters never had to go through this. Im a 39yr old female, w/29yrs of type 1 diabete. I hav nvr bn on birth control bec the Dr.'s dnt recomend it. W/in the last cpl years I hav experienced lots of blood loss & prior to that (miscarriages). Its only bn the last few periods that I hav experienced n hav bn bad w/serious blood loss n found yr article. I will try this-Ty for sharing yr exp, strength n hope. May God bless u. I will keep u in my prayers.
Thank you for posting so many stores this site to help others- I just found it today, after having a miscarriage for the past 3 days. I am so weak and exhausted and in pain. My fiance couldn't be bothered to take me to the hospital since we don't have the money to pay for a hospital stay/procedures. I don't even know what to do. I have been hemmoraging for days, passing huge clumps of blood and tissue. I have never had such an excruciating headache, chills, nausea & fever. I just lost a baby and very nearly lost my life in August from a placental abrubtion and emergency c-section- I had to have a complete transfusion of all the blood in my body over weeks in ICU, now this. I am blessed to have my 2 healthy kids, but I am grief-stricken and just in shock about this happening again. I'm so sad to see so many similar stories on here, but at least it's helpful to know that others have experienced this level of blood-loss/pain with a "natural" miscarriage. So sorry for everyone's loss- I really do know exactly how you feel. :(
I am so sorry, Seashell. You have had a hard year. {{{hugs}}}
I'm praying that you will be able to get the help you need. I am so sorry!!
Much love,
Melanie
I'm glad to have found this site...It seems like major blood loss due to a miscarriage is more common than I had been led to believe. I found out at my 12 week ultrasound that the baby had no heartbeat and likely died at around 6 weeks. I was scheduled for a D and C a week and a half later. I was told the baby would likely not pass naturally as I had not had any cramping or bleeding (and actually had very high HCG levels still). I considered using Cytotec but decided against it. When I woke up from the D and C, I was told that I had lost a lot of blood and would likely need to stay overnight so my blood pressure could be monitored. The next morning they told me my hemoglobin had gone from 13 to 6.5 and that I should have a blood transfusion. I decided against it, and was sent home. In the middle of the following night I woke up with the worst headache I've ever experienced and I spiked a fever. My feet and ankles had also swollen up. My husband took me to the ER (thankfully my parents were in town and able to stay with our 2 other children). At the ER I was admitted and give IV antibiotics and a two unit blood transfusion. After the transfusion my hemoglobin was up to 9, and I felt MUCH better. I'm so sorry that so many of the women on this site were given such poor care when they sought medical attention. Though I was apprehensive at first, I do highly recommend the blood transfusion, particularly if you have other children to care for. It's been a week since all this took place, and now that I'm finally feeling better, I feel like the weight of the loss is really hitting me. I will love my sweet little baby forever and will look forward to the day when we are reunited. Praise God for that hope.
I found this site last night around 3am and I am SO INCREDIBLY THANKFUL for finding it! I knew 4 weeks ago that my unexpected baby no longer had a heartbeat. The baby was 10w5d when it stopped growing. Since I am a big fan of the human female body, I wanted to wait and just let my body do its thing. I had had a previous miscarriage in 2006 and had no complications so I naturally assumed it would be no different this time. WRONG!
At home this past Sunday I started gushing blood all of a sudden. Barely made it upstairs to our bathroom before blood was literally pouring out of me like a faucet. I had a good book with me and some water and I settled in to have this closure with my pregnancy. Within less than 10 minutes, I passed out for the first time. I came to leaning against the wall and got really scared. Texted my husband who was downstairs with the kids and made arrangements for our kids to go to a friends house.
From there, I began to feel when I was going to pass out but instead began vomiting. I vomited every 10-15 minutes and had my husband coming to check on me every few minutes and clean out my "puke bucket." (Gross I know but necessary) After my 4th vomiting attack, I sent my husband off to clean out the bucket again. He heard a loud noise and came running upstairs to find me passed out on the floor where I had fallen off the toilet.
He then decided it was time to call an ambulance. Paramedics were there within 10 minutes and began working on me. As they were walking me to the stairs since they couldn't bring the bed up the stairs, I passed out again. They finally just put me in this bag thing and carried me down the stairs.
Once in the ambulance, my blood pressure dropped again and I started to pass out again just as they were wheeling me into the ER room.
Skipping ahead, I continued to bleed heavily this entire time and pass clots but had not yet passed the baby. ER doc went in and scraped around pulling out clots and trying to stop the bleeding but to no avail. My OB finally got there and she readied me to do the same thing the ER doc had done a few hours later. I asked for some morphine as I did not want to be conscious for that whole thing again but as soon as they started filling my IV with all kinds of drugs, I passed out again. I would find out later that my blood pressure had dropped to 10 as the top number!!! I just remember waking up and having all these people in my room calling my name and freaking out.
Finally got stabilized again, OB went in and pulled remaining clots and finally the baby out and was able to slow the bleeding down somewhat. By this time I had been bleeding for nearly 6 hours.
The ER doctor forced me to stay overnight due to my blood pressure still not being any higher than the 80's. I was released the next day on Monday afternoon but still had low blood pressure.
So thankful for finding this blog because at home I am having excruciating headaches and I can barely get out of bed without getting winded and light-headed. Once I lay back down, the headache sets in. Even though I know I need to eat, it is difficult because the headaches make me so nauseous. The headaches are near migraines and ibuprofen and tylenol make no difference in them.
I have read on here many people took iron, Vitamin C, and liquid chlorophyll. Can anyone tell me how much of each did you take? My OB prescribed Ferralet which is iron with vitamin B12 and a stool softener in it. She only has me taking one a day but I am wondering if I can take more. Then how much Vitamin C and how much liquid chlorophyll?
Again, so thankful for all the stories shared here. No one I have talked to about this has had experiences like this and even my OB's office was surprised at the headaches and fatigue especially since they pumped me full of 5 bags of IV fluids before leaving the hospital. I was puffed up like a Macy's Day balloon but still had low blood pressure and was light headed. I did not have a blood transfusion of any kind also.
I really appreciate everyone sharing their stories as it has given me hope that at some point, I will feel "normal" again.
So let me know how much of the supplements you took. Thanks to everyone for sharing and helping each other through this horrible experience.
Anonymous,
Please forgive me for answering you so late - blogger didn't notify me of your comment. I am so sorry you lost your little one! I pray the Lord is comforting your heart!!
I'm glad, though, you got good medical care. What a blessing to feel better physically after just a week or two instead of the months it took some of us!
{{{{hugs}}}}
Much love,
Melanie
Wow, Tracie! What a blessing you lived through that! Whew, that was a close call!
I can't understand why they didn't give you a transfusion with that kind of blood lost. It's going to take you a long time to replace all those blood cells, so get enough rest, drink lots of water, eat plenty of protein and keep taking your iron.
I can't remember how much I took, but I would definitely get your hemoglobin rechecked so you doc can up it if needed. You can also eat iron rich food -- steak, liver, spinach.
I am so sorry you've had such a traumatic experience on top of losing a baby!! I pray the Lord is healing and comforting you all!
Please forgive me for taking so long to answer. I've been out of the country on a speaking trip and I am way behind.
Much love,
Melanie
I'm having a hard time finding out how long it takes for your blood to recover from a miscarriage. I started bleeding a week and a half ago. I went to the ER and had an ultrasound. My baby had stopped growing around 9 weeks and didn't have a heartbeat. I was almost 12 weeks. The day I was 12 weeks (Saturday before last), I started bleeding very heavily. In 30 minutes, I filled two humongous pads and 3 size 4 diapers with blood and clots. Not to mention what went into the toilet. It just wouldn't stop coming. I started feeling light headed and really tired, so we headed to the hospital. I'm pretty pale, but I was white/yellow like I've never seen before. They gave me an IV at the hospital but didn't really stayed focus on the reason I was there - blood loss. They kept wanting to do tests they had already done at the ER (a different ER) the few days before. They weren't taking my blood pressure or checking on me and go frustrated when I had to go to the bathroom. I never saw a doctor in the ER, and they didn't call my OB until I'd been there for several hours. My OB (the OB on call from my office) had them keep me overnight for observation. He had the OR on alert for an emergency D&C. They checked my every hour to make sure I could stir and checked my BP every now and then - which, of course, was low. Gratefully, bleeding slowed down and I got released Sunday morning. I'm on iron pills and taking them with OJ. I'm pretty jaundice though. I just am wondering if you have any idea how long it takes for your blood stores to recover - and for iron to recover. My headaches are getting better, and I am less yellow. I supposed I'll have my OB test my iron in a month or so. If we decide to have another baby, I definitely want to make sure my blood is recovered. Thanks for your website!
Robin, I am so sorry you lost your little one. That is so hard! And having such a traumatic time makes it even worse - I felt like I was in shock!
Unfortunately, according to the Red Cross, it takes a month or two to replace the red blood cells in one pint of blood. Considering in a serious hemorrhage you can lose a couple of pints or more, it's going to take quite a long time to feel completely like yourself again. I felt significantly better in a few weeks, much better, but still very tired in a couple of months and felt like myself again in about 3 and a half months.
I know that's not great news, but it can help you not have unreasonable expectations of yourself.
{{{hugs}}}
Much love,
Melanie
Thank you so much for this post. i know this is an old post but I just suffered my first miscarriage after having 7 healthy children no issues. I had a severe hemorrhage and nearly died. Emergency D&C the lot. Feel so weak and really run down. The headache is horrid. Nice to find some information :)
So many stories, so many similarities to my situation. I had a dramatic miscarriage 5 days ago.
My midwife told me that baby died and I was expecting it to happen quick and easy as it happened to me before.
But I ended up in the ER as many of you did.
5 days later I feel my heartbeat in my head. It's pretty annoying to hear your own pulse.
Thank you for your advice and reassuring that recovery takes Time. ...
Hello ladies. I know this is an old thread, but I am so very very glad to have found this site. I had my second miscarriage (second pregnancy) almost three weeks ago, but five days ago began to suddenly bleed heavily. Hubby kept folding towels and putting them between my legs, but they'd be soaked in seconds. Passed huge clots. I passed out after several hours and hubby took me to the emergency room. Many tests uncovered an abnormal artery in my uterus, which had ruptured. I was bleeding out, and according to docs, would likely not have made it if hubby hadn't taken me to the ER when he did. They did two surgeries to repair and block the rogue artery, then another D&C. No blood transfusion (my blood count was a 8, I guess this hospital doesn't transfuse until you drop to 6), but I sure wish they had! It's five days later now and I am just laid-out tired. I'm devastated from our second loss, we so want to be parents, and ashamed of badly I behaved at the hospital, crying and hysterical. I'm Sore from the inscision in my groin where one of the surgeries worked in the artery, dizzy, nauseous, but the worst part is the headaches. I've never had migraines before, but these are a classic presentation-- one sided, above my left eye, pounding of blood in my left ear, feels like someone sunk and axe into my forehead. My OB doesn't seem to have much of an idea why I'd get these headaches. I've stopped taking any meds but ibuprofen, they were making me throw up. But these headaches are debilitating.
Having found this blog (thank God!) I'm not so worried about the headache indicating a major problem, especially the headaches beginning at night, since so many other women seem to experience the same after extreme blood loss. But I am wondering if anyone found a particularly effective treatment to help deal with the migraines? Or how long they lasted? Unfortunately, I MUST travel exactly two weeks from today, and while I won't be running marathons, the trip is unavoidable, and I really want to get myself into as good physical shape as possible beforehand. I'll be able to snag the occaisions lol nap while in there, but an eight hour flight with a migraine is not appealing...
Many many thanks, I'd be hugely grateful for any advice. ❤️ Love to each and every one of us here, miscarriage is so hard.
I know this is an old post, so maybe no one will see this, but I am so glad I found it! I Have 6 healthy children, had an early miscarriage years ago, and was pregnant with my 7th. I knew something was wrong with this pregnancy and began bleeding at 9weeks. Ultrasound confirmed the baby has died at 7 weeks. I got a prescription for cytotec and went home to miscarry. An hour after the cytotec, I started bleeding worse than anything I've experienced before, but I am a heavy bleeder, so didn't worry. 5 hours later, I knew something was wrong, 1 hour after that I started going into shock. Husband took me to the hospital, they gave me an IV and I felt better. I got a prescription for more cytotec and left. We went to pick up the prescription and dinner and I started passing out. We went back to the hospital, I got another IV, and felt better again. They had the nerve to ask me if I thought this might just be nerves. I laughed at her. I am the mother of six children, I don't pass out from nerves! They finally had me stand up to take my blood pressure, it was 88/44 and my pulse was racing. At that point they admitted me even though I was in denial and wanted to go home. I couldn't even go to the bathroom, couldn't get my body to cooperate and the nurse told me to pee on myself. I loved her, I just did it and she cleaned me up. They wouldn't let me eat or drink in case I needed an emergency d&c. But I didn't get anything for over 10 hours which infuriated me. I called my husband, who I sometimes think is lazy and irresponsible. He came in there on the warpath. He got my doctor in there and got them to get me some food and water once she cleared me to eat. He was wonderful! My hemoglobin was down to an 8, so the doctor said I could have a transfusion " if I wanted ". After I had a "spell" right in front of her, lost my hearing, went white, and completely incoherent, she ordered me 2 units. I got those and was discharged later that night.
Now, I have been shocked at how sick I am. I have never been in the bed, even after giving birth I am right back on my feet. Just going to the bathroom can make me see stars and put me out of breath like I've run a marathon. I have been in denial at how close to death i was. I have been so embarrassed because the doctor said I bled like that because I didn't take the cytotec right, but she didn't give me enough information, I had to Google how to even take it. Now I see this happens even when you don't take it. I also want the women here to know that even with a transfusion, it is still this hard. It is Halloween, and I had to watch my mom carve pumpkins with my kids. I had to stay home while my kids go to truck or treat for the first time without me because I still can't handle a car ride. I am sad that we lost our baby, and I want to let that go and move forward, but I can't because of this. I am terrified of getting the bill for all this.
I know that God loves me, and He has a good plan for me, so I will praise Him more and more. In my research I found depression is a symptom of anemia, so that, too, is a physical effect of this illness. I cried when I read the earlier post about the woman who came to appreciate her husband again through this experience. That is so true for me. We have been married a long time, and I was taking my husband for granted, and thinking maybe he didn't love me anymore. But when my big strong rock of a man started crying at the hospital from fear, I knew nothing could be farther from the truth. My "lazy, irresponsible" man has been working full time and then coming home to care for me and our children. I am so grateful for him, and my children, and I pray there are more in my future!
Something that helped me with the loss of my baby was lighting a candle. The flame somehow made me feel that my baby is living on in heaven and it comforted me that I will see him/her again.
Dear friend,
I am so sorry you had such a traumatic time -- in the middle of the trauma of losing a child! Yes, indeed, it sounds like you came very close to death. I can't believe they thought it was nerves. Wow. What a blessing they finally figured out what was going on and what a blessing your husband stepped in and was such a hero!
You're right. Recovery from blood loss is no joke!I have never felt so deeply exhausted. It would wear me out to walk to the bathroom. Take care of yourself and get all the rest you need. It honestly took me about three months to really feel like myself again.
I'm praying the Lord would comfort you all and heal you.
Much love,
Melanie
Post a Comment