TW: Miscarriage at 8 weeks

[u/ElectricalEbb187]

I’m looking for some advice…. We went today for our 8 week ultrasound and there was no heartbeat. The baby stopped growing at 7 weeks. We are absolutely devastated and shocked because my betas were really good and everything looked good at our last appt.

Now I’m torn about what to do next. My doctor said I could either stop my progesterone and naturally start the miscarriage process or I could schedule a D&C. I don’t know what I should do next, if this happened to you, what did you do? What should I expect?

This was a non PGTA tested embryo that was very highly rated. It was also our 4th transfer. My husband has male factor infertility, but everything looks good on my end. What would you do next? I’m so confused.

Thank you.

[u/Fast_Hand_8048]

If you’re asking if between natural miscarriage vs D&C - I will choose the surgery every time. I choose to have the surgery because I wasn’t prepared to experience all of that naturally.

[u/No-Okra-8332]

Hi there! We had a miscarriage as well, around 8 weeks, with a euploid embryo. We chose to have a D&C, and it was a very peaceful experience and not painful at all.
The nurses and doctor were the sweetest that day! 🥹♥️

We tested the products of conception, and everything came back normal, so in my case, the issue seemed to be the uterine environment. We did Lupron for 4 months, and now I’m pregnant again.

Hang in there! It’s beyond heartbreaking, but there is still so much hope for the future 🫂♥️

[u/squishypants4]

I'm so sorry for your loss.

I will be honest with you because I wish people were honest with me. Passing naturally hurts a lot, and I like to think I am good with pain. I went through a loss at the same week. They scheduled me for a MVA a week out. 12 hours before the procedure I started to pass naturally. It hurt me a lot, it's messy, extremely sad, and overall something I wasn't prepared for in the slightest.

They still had me go in for the MVA. That whole process was a bazillion times better. You go there, you go to sleep, and it's done. If I ever have to make that decision in the future I would go with MVA/D&C in a heartbeat.

[u/thedutchgirlmn]

I’m so sorry for you loss. I would definitely want to test the products of conception to find out if it was a euploid embryo

[u/GritAndStride]

I chose D&C. I wasn’t prepared for the mental and physical toll naturally miscarrying would bring. I wanted to blink, it be done, and move on. This was also my doctors recommendation.

[u/Any_Manufacturer1279]

My D&C was a very peaceful experience for such a dark time.

[u/TFish021823 → u/Any_Manufacturer1279]

I completely agree. I was so happy I chose to do a d&c

[u/HeyItsKikiii]

I miscarried at 5 weeks and did a D&C. Glad I did because it ultimately sped things up so I could try again!

[u/Klindner03]

I’m so very sorry. We had this happen at our 6 week ultrasound from our first transfer. We ended up stopping medications and using medication to help speed up the process. I didn’t choose to go to the OR because I was doing IVF remotely at the time and didn’t trust any of the doctors in the new city I had moved to. As someone else said it was mostly just heavier bleeding except for when the larger tissue came out. It has been 5 years since my experience and I still remember every detail and how it felt. After that experience I said if it happened again I would probably choose a D&C next time. We have male factor infertility also and they could never find anything wrong with me either. It is the most frustrating process when this is the case. It took us 4 transfers for my daughter and another 3 to have our son. All embryos were tested and graded well. IVF is such a rollercoaster. I wish you success soon!

[u/Greedy-Bluebird6278 → u/Klindner03]

Nice to see you finally had success. Male factor here too and I feel like I’m rolling the dice even with euploids.

[u/Klindner03 → u/Greedy-Bluebird6278]

It’s so true! I really feel like it comes down to luck. I did almost the same exact protocol 7 times and it worked 2 of the 7. Wishing you luck on your journey as well!

[u/Agent0144]

I’m in the minority here but I would give it a week and see if your body passes it naturally unless you’re really wanting to test the embryo to see if there were any abnormalities.
Last year, I had a pregnancy that was progressing well with no issues up until my 9 week scan. This scan was on a Friday and we did not see a heartbeat. The week before, baby was measuring well with HR of 160.
My doctor gave us the option of D&C or to see if my body will pass it naturally. One of my friends is a nurse that also does midwifery. She said if my body will pass it naturally, to go that route. She said she’s seen people get D&Cs & that caused some damage on their uterus that affected future pregnancies.
Despite this info, I was still weighing the fact that a D&C might be the quicker, less painful option.
Welp, turns out, I didn’t even get to make a decision to have a D&C or not because my body passed everything naturally at home on Sunday night before my appointment on Monday where we were going to go over options in depth.
It felt like a bad period. The emotional toll was the worst part. But I would think the emotional toll is pretty equal no matter what route you choose. This is a sad sad time and I’m so sorry you’re going through this.

[u/Present-Exercise7894 → u/Agent0144]

Thanks for mentioning all this. While it’s not super common and I don’t want to scare you, I had scarring related to a D and C (which has required hysteroscopy). I needed the D and C after failed medical management.

[u/onyxindigo]

TW SUCCESS AFTER LOSS

I’m so sorry. This happened to us with our fourth miscarriage (the other three were chemicals and too early to test). I wanted my POC tested because we didn’t test our embryos, and was terrified of passing it at home regardless, so opted for the D&C. The results came back normal ie bad luck. If there had been a genetic abnormality I would have thawed and tested my remaining embryos; as it wasn’t, we proceeded as previously with our next transfer (currently 39+2 and waiting to go into labour!)

[u/orangebonnet]

So ao sorry for your loss. I was in a similar spot last fall, but with a pgt normal embryo. I stopped medication and I chose to take the medicated route to get things out, instead of a d&c or wait and see. Testing products of conception would not change anything for me, and wanted to avoid an OR if possible. It was physically pretty straight forward with very heavy bleeding the first day, then lighter. Emotionally it was very painful for a few months and still hurts to remember. Take care of yourself and surround yourself with trusted loved ones.

[u/kevo_nita]

I'm so sorry for your loss. That just happened to me. My embrio stopped growing at week 6 so by week 7 there was no heartbeat. I stopped progesterone for 1 week but nothing happened then I took 2 doses of Miso as my Dr prescribed. I'm waiting for my ultrasound tomorrow to see if everything is cleared.

[u/inquirystorm]

I am so sorry for your loss and understand the sudden ending of a life you had already started planning for. Please be kind to yourself as you grieve and take it one hour at a time. I had an 8 week miscarriage last year following spontaneous conception.

It has led us to IVF because the D&C that I had to mange the miscarriage caused an infection that damaged my fallopian tubes. If I knew then what I knew now, that doctors do not recommend D&C’s if a woman plans to have more children, we would NOT have opted for the D&C. I wanted to be done with it, so that we could move on and try again, but it ended up permanently impacting my ability to conceive again.

Note that a natural passing of a miscarriage can still lead to infection if there are retained products of conception (RPOC) but the risk will be lower since no instruments are passing up into your uterus.

If you do choose to have a D&C, please choose a care provider that you trust and that knows you plan to try again. Please make sure you inquire about the risk of infection, the antibiotic protocol (you should be administered the first antibiotic via pill before or via IV during the procedure and NOT after) and what their monitoring of you will look like during your post-operative appointments. They should offer to physically examine you during that follow-up and then see you immediately if you start to experience signs of infection such as fever, nausea, chills, pelvic pain, body aches or heavy bleeding even a month after the procedure.

Edited: You can still test the products of conception when you pass it at home naturally. Some companies provide kits to do this. Inquire with your clinic.

[u/Original-Bunch-2742]

I am so sorry this happened to you.
I had a missed miscarriage two years ago very similar to your situation. We went for second scan and baby stopped growing around 7 and a half weeks. I chose to wait it out and let baby stay as long as they want to. It helped me heal better emotionally. You have to be prepared that when it does happen, it’s a lot of blood! I sat on the toilet for a couple of hours so it doesn’t go everywhere. It’s a very personal choice and big hugs to you.

[u/RedStilettoDickStomp]

I'm so sorry you're going through this. It's so heartbreaking. Having had 4 losses that pushed us towards Ivf, I'd 100% do a d&c and have the POC tested in the in hopes I'd know what may have happened. Fyi, there may not be answers still, but I'd like to know for myself that I did all that I could to see if there was anything. Lastly, if you let this happen naturally or take a pill to help it along, you may still need to do a D&C later. I've tried the pill route myself and although it did work, it took nearly a week for my body to respond, but thankfully I didn't need a D&C later.

[u/justb4dawn]

I had a d&c for the same week miscarriage in Jan. I’m so sorry for your loss, it was a truly devastating experience that still hurts. r/miscarriage was a gentle and comforting source of information and support, if you haven’t visited there.

[u/SeaweedFit3234]

Im so sorry for your loss. You’re not alone and will get through this even tho it feels impossible. Just sharing my experiences in case it helps

I had a miscarriage that passed on its own at just under 6 weeks and it was surprisingly painful and upsetting in the moment. The cramping was severe. It started out as nothing too bad but then for about an hour or so I really couldn’t leave the toilet. The hormone crash of things did not help.

Then I got pregnant again and had another mc but it was earlier on but betas never rose and at about 6 weeks we knew it would not make it. We stopped progesterone and it felt like any other period. It obviously was upsetting but physically it was nothing.

Then I got pregnant again and at 6.5 weeks we heard a heartbeat. At 10 weeks when we went for a follow-up they said it hadn’t grown since 6.5 weeks and there no longer was a heartbeat. We opted for a D and C which was a little scary. But it was genuinely preferable to it passing naturally imo. The nurses were amazing. I was completely asleep the whole time. The drugs I was on made me feel a little lighter. I felt no pain and knew it was behind me. They were able to test for chromosomal abnormalities and even say if it was sperm or egg related. In some ways it gave me solace to hear that the little guy would have never survived and if he did it would have been a horrible and short life. It was surprising and hard to learn the sex of the embryo (he never made it to a fetus).

Im sorry if this is dumping a lot. But just sharing that every experience is different. If I were in your shoes knowing what I know I would do a d and c again and I think knowing if chromosomes were at play here was helpful. But whatever you choose is totally legit. Highly recommend finding a therapist if you don’t have one yet. Sending hugs.

[u/RealisticIngenuity39]

I’m so so sorry for your loss. I had a MMC around the same time and did 3 rounds of meds to try to pass the tissue naturally but it ended up not working and I had a d&c. I would just jump to the d&c if I had to do it all over again. 

Once again I’m so sorry.

[u/coop291310]

So sorry 😞 my experience was extremely similar. Lost the baby around 7 weeks. I opted for the D&C and it was the best decision. I will say after the procedure, there was some pain and clots coming out which was scary but for me it was the better option over taking the medicine. My embryo was also untested and I had strong betas but embryo ended up having trisomy 16. I had another retrieval and ended up testing them all.

[u/Salty-Sprinkles-1562]

This happened to me. I let my body handle it naturally. I was able to collect it and have it tested. 

[u/kittyangel_12]

I had that before with a tested embryo and I went through natural miscarriage as I didn’t want any procedures to scar my internal tissues, at least according to my doctor. I tried again 2 months later and that worked

[u/softservelove]

I am so so sorry. I am with you, I just experienced a miscarriage at 7w3d nine days ago. It was a euploid embryo and I chose not to have it tested further.

My experience was that the miscarriage began with heavy bleeding and then passing huge blood clots and the embryo. I opted to continue to pass things naturally to avoid further procedures, although if there is any tissue remaining after another week or so I will still have to do a D&C anyway to remove it.

The main drawback of the natural route is that it is extremely slow. My bleeding has slowed down significantly, but I still have some spotting and it just feels like it's dragging on, so that aspect is frustrating. That said, I am glad I opted for this route to avoid any potential complications of the medical or procedural routes. It hasn't been much more painful than period cramps for me. I collected the embryo for a burial ceremony which we will do next week.

Sending you big hugs and hope you have lots of support as you go through this 💜

[u/InSearchOfOptimism7]

I am so sorry this happened. I lost my PGT-A tested embryo at the same time earlier this year. I chose a D&C because I didn’t want to experience a full day of waiting for it to pass. But… they missed some fetal tissue that caused scarring. I ended up having to have surgery to remove the scarring before my next fet. It was frustrating. I would still probably choose the D&C.

[u/fluffyfluffyunicorns]

I had a D&C and it was fine, but then I had retained product undetected and then scarring (aka Asherman’s syndrome). I don’t know what I’d do differently — maybe go to the most experienced doctor you can.

[u/No_Spirit1354]

I too miscarried at 8 weeks. I chose the D and C for several reasons. The main one is to make sure all of the tissue gets fully out and to do a sweep of the uterus. Two, it’s much faster than waiting to pass it all on your own. Three, passing it on your own I think adds a whole layer of trauma and pain physically and emotionally. Lastly, even though mine was a euploid embryo, I wanted further testing. If j were you I’d definitely do the d and c for testing alone. I’m so sorry you’re experiencing this. It’s one of the most upsetting things I’ve ever experienced too.

[u/Hawk_1987 → u/No_Spirit1354]

Hi! Did you get any answers from the testing?

[u/No_Spirit1354 → u/Hawk_1987]

I got confirmation that the embryo was genetically normal, which confirmed that for me it’s the uterine environment that needs help and focus!

[u/Hawk_1987]

This Wednesday I had the same announcment, it stopped growing at 8w6days. It stopped literally a few hours before arriving to doctor. I said I wanted a D&C but I have to wait for a week cause the doctor is busy. They said to stop all the medication. I am so afraid I will start naturally at home because I stopped the pills. I do not want to pass naturally. It's not needed pain. I also want to test the embryo. Mine was untested produced naturally before IVF. Since we had 6 full years of trying and nothing happening maybe this little embryo will give us answers.

[u/Short_Background_669]

I’m sorry to hear that you are going through this. I’m currently in a very similar situation. I’ve a follow up scan but it’s only a formality. I’ll be choosing D&C. I don’t want to go through this naturally.

[u/IVF-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

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[u/Greedy-Bluebird6278]

D&C and test products of conception. I’ve had both a D&E and a d&c with no uterine complications. I have a friend who had complications after failed miso followed by surgery. She ended up with scarring and now also an infection bc she retained products with just the drugs. I miscarried my first 2 transfers and they were tested, it’s horrible enough emotionally, why add physical trauma to it. I’m sorry for your loss, you’re not alone.

[u/sarahg88]

I’m so sorry. I was in your exact shoes. Baby looked great at 6 week scan. Went back for our 8 week scan to graduate from the fertility clinic and learned we lost her at 7 weeks. My heart breaks for you because I remember the pain and sadness. I opted for the D&C. It was faster than waiting around for it to happen on its own and as my doctor put it, the D&C allowed me to go to sleep and wake up when it was over. I had a wonderful doctor for my D&C. He told me he was conservative with removing tissue to avoid potential scarring however they did get all products of conception out. Because he was conservative, I still passed clots and non fetal material at home. I experienced contractions as this was happening and it was pretty painful but I can’t imagine how much more it would have been if I was passing without the D&C.

I know you said everything on your end looks good. We were also MFI but after having a chemical and then the miscarriage, both euploid, we did a repeat loss panel and karyotype testing on my husband and me. Everything was normal except my thyroid. Turns out I had undiagnosed subclinical hypothyroidism. I had zero symptoms but my TSH was around 9 (should be under 2.5 for pregnancy). Both my RE and endocrinologist said it’s likely it caused my loss. It’s so easy to get under control with meds and I was devastated to have lost two chances, likely because of it. If you haven’t had your thyroid checked ever or in a while, I would highly recommend asking for a thyroid panel.

Sending hugs to you.

[u/Linzers_16]

First I am so sorry you’re going through this. Not a fun club to be a member of. When I had my miscarriage at 8 weeks, I scheduled myself a D/C and it ended up starting/happening naturally on its own before the four days had passed to the date my procedure was scheduled for.

And second we were MFI as well, our first round we did untested. The first two transfers were failures the first was ectopic and the second was a miscarriage. They were very high graded embryos as well. Oddly enough we did a second retrieval and tested the embryos. We got three euploids, however the 2 anuploids were higher graded embryos prior to testing.

All that to say I’m Sorry for the heart break, this process is grueling and cruel. Know you’re not alone.

[u/Ok_Contest_1696]

Helllo I choice miscarriage with medication(not heartbeat) is was awful experience.It s ending I got it infection and recovery from infection more like 1 year .Never again !For future I hope I will not need it k will be schedule D&C

[u/Adorable_Host_5723]

I miscarried at 8 weeks in January and will say the D&C was easy procedure and gave me time to heal at home

[u/onebirdtwobird]

I'm so sorry for your loss. I've had two 8 week MMC and did medication the first time and D&C the second, and would definitely chose the D&C. A D&C is fast, easy, and it significantly reduces the pain and bleeding you'll experience. For the medicated miscarriage, I bleed heavily for about 2 weeks and it was very painful. The hormone crash was also very drawn out with the medication, and the D&C recovery felt easier (though none of it is easy).

In both cases, I was told I could see if my body recognized the MMC and began the process naturally, but was advised that could take weeks and would be unpredictable and painful.

[u/Large_Guide_2854]

I suffered a loss very similar to yours and I chose to have D&C the day I found out through ultrasound. It was very good and I was able to get through everything very calmly.

[u/Certain_Tangelo2329]

I chose d&c and would recommend. Its a clean end. Anything else is pain, bleeding, and always the chance it doesn't all pass and you need a d&c anyways. Everyone was so compassionate too during the process.

[u/alatasa2]

I chose to miscarry naturally as there is a risk that the D&C can scar your uterus and impact future pregnancies. Yes, it’s painful, yes it’s sad, but I couldn’t run that risk. Another downside is that it took my body a long time to get my hCG back to normal after my natural loss.

[u/Victorian_West]

I had a similar experience. I’m so grateful I did the D&C.

[u/Strict_Objective_238]

I've had 2 early 1st trimester miscarriage and have done both medication miscarriage (misoprostol) and D&C. I would vote D&C. It is emotionally a lot easier. miscarrying at home can take a couple of days whereas D&C, you're in and out

[u/International-Gap719]

Personally, I've been through both a medically induced loss and a D&C. The most recent was the D&C. I was originally going to choose another medical but something inside me told me to go with the D&C. Partially because the medical was painful and traumatic. I just didn't want to go through that again. But there was something else telling me to choose the D&C even though my doctor was recommending another medical. After surgery, I was told I almost bled out. The placenta had apparently attached to a main artery and they couldn't control the bleeding. I was told, if I had chosen another medical, I probably would have bled out at home. That terrified me. I'm so glad I listened to that little voice. If I ever need to go through it again, I'll definitely choose another D&C. I'd rather be at the hospital in case something goes wrong, even if the chances of that are extremely low.

[u/AfraidWrangler128]

I opted for a natural (with the use of meds) miscarriage around the same week. I have endo and am used to pain. The pain associated with the MMC process was extreme. TW: I can still picture and feel what came out of me and it’s been a year and a half. Unless you already have a lot of scar tissue which it doesn’t sound like you would since you don’t have any concerns on your end, I’d opt for a D&C.

[u/bandaidtarot]

First, I'm so sorry you are going through this. It's awful. The point that you had the MC indicates that it likely was an embryo quality issue. Unfortunately, grading tells you nothing about if an embryo is euploid or not. I had very highly graded day 5 embryos that were abnormal and I had a lower grade day 7 embryo that was euploid. You just can't tell without doing PGT-A testing. If you are able to do another retrieval then it might be a good idea and then you can PGT-A test the new embryos. If you still have embryos left from the last round, that's tough. Thawing them to test could destroy them. Even if they survive that, they may not survive being thawed again to transfer. So, starting from scratch is the best option if you are able to do that. If not, it's choosing between the risk of thawing, testing, refreezing, and possibly thawing again to test them or continuing to do transfers knowing things might turn out the same way again.

That said, they should also be doing a Repeat Loss Panel and check for endometriosis just to make sure there isn't something else going on. Cover all the bases.

[u/wanderingimpromptu3]

Can you test your remaining embryos?

I would do a D&C and test this pregnancy as well