D&C? (sorry so long) - Update page 2

Not sure if this is the right board or not to ask this. I never posted on this board as I was waiting out the first trimester but I was diagnosed with a blighted ovum last week. This morning the doctor recommended we do a D&C tomorrow after looking at my sonogram pics. I wanted to try and stay away from a D&C as I know there can be complications. He prescribed me medication I can take tonight so I can miscarry naturally tomorrow (and pain meds to get me through it). He said if I am still bleeding bad on Saturday morning I may need to still go in and have the D&C done then. In the car ride to work after the appt I started wondering if maybe I should just do the D&C tomorrow and not worry about the chance of complications. By the way, DH is away this week on business and being I am still somewhat new to the area, I do not have too many friends here. The ones I have work.

Sorry this is long but I was hoping maybe some of you had some advice as to what I can do? I am so confused and torn. Thank you.

Message edited 2/15/2007 11:09:30 AM.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

So sorrry for your loss

I had a blighted ovum too, i m/c'd naturally at 5.5 weeks.

I didn't have a D&C I am sorry i can't more of help, but if it were me, I try to stay away from medical procedures and hopefully my body will take care of itself.

I know people who have taken the meds too, and their body kinda absorbs the pg and they go on the m/c naturally.

I am soo sorrry, this is such an awful thing to go through by yourself

FM me if you need anything

Re: D&C? (sorry so ong)

I am so sorry you are going through this. I had a blighted ovum back in May and had the D&C. I just disn't think I could let it happen naturally my Dr. basically gave me the option saying he'd prefer the D&C.

I don't really think if you decided to do the D&C you should go by yourself and I don't know if you can go to the hospital yourself. I'm sure a friend or someone can maybe take the day to be with you. Does he maybe think you can wait till DH gets home? I waited almost 2 weeks in between b/c he wanted to be 100% sure it wasn't just a miscalculation of the days! Granted it was hard to wait knowing what's to come but if it's possible I would. Just so your not alone. Recovery physically is not so terrible, it's more the emotional part of it or at least it was for me. I'm here if you just need to chat! Good Luck!

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Firstly, I am so sorry!! I had a natural MC back in September and I know how hard it can be. I have had no experience with D&C's but I am sure that someone here can help!!

Again, so sorry you have to go through this alone

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Thanks for your help. Thing is DH comes home Saturday night and we are supposed to leave for NY on Sunday (we are driving) and I have to be in CT on Tuesday night for a business meeting until Thursday night so next week is out as well.

The doctor wanted to do the D&C but I pushed back. I am just nervous about having to do the procedure. I know there can be complications and I do not feel like I have good luck lately.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Posted by zeta1996

Firstly, I am so sorry!! I had a natural MC back in September and I know how hard it can be. I have had no experience with D&C's but I am sure that someone here can help!!

Again, so sorry you have to go through this alone

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

i'm so sorry you're going through this - especially that you're alone... maybe one of your friends does not work on Saturday and you can do it that morning, this way DH will be back Sat. nite to keep an eye on you ?

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

I had a D&C in September. You cannot go home by yourself. Yes, there can be some complications, but the way my Dr. explained it was that if you take the drugs and then miscarry at home, you may still need to have a D&C if all of the tissue was not expelled from the body.

So, I thought, why do this process twice.

The day after my D&C, I was fine. A lttile crampy, but not that much!

Good Luck!

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

i'm so sorry for your loss

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

I'm very sorry for your loss I dont know anything about a D&C, so I cant really help!

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

I am so sorry

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Im sorry for your loss

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

I'm so sorry you are going through this. I would try and let my body take care of it without going through the procedure. I hope you will be okay.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Thanks everyone. I am a worrier by nature and the procedure just bothers me. But now I am starting to get concerned about taking the misoprostol at home all alone tonight I can't win!

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

My first PG was a blighted ovum which we discovered around 10 weeks. My Dr said I could go for the D & C OR wait and see if I'd miscarry naturally...which I did.

If you go natural, they still have you come in to make sure everything has been expelled properly because if it is not, then an infection can develop.

Why don't you give it a few days or a week and then if you don't do it naturally, then do the D & C. While getting it over with is great, it's an un-natural process and somewhat traumatizing to your body since it's an invasive procedure.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Posted by btrflygrl

My first PG was a blighted ovum which we discovered around 10 weeks. My Dr said I could go for the D & C OR wait and see if I'd miscarry naturally...which I did.

If you go natural, they still have you come in to make sure everything has been expelled properly because if it is not, then an infection can develop.

Why don't you give it a few days or a week and then if you don't do it naturally, then do the D & C. While getting it over with is great, it's an un-natural process and somewhat traumatizing to your body since it's an invasive procedure.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

no advice but i wanted to give you some

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

oh sweetie....the fact that you have already been bleeding leads me to believe you're already miscarrying naturally. Is it similar to AF with cramps?

I started spotting around Dec 9-11 while in NY and did not miscarry naturally until Dec 21.

If you feel the need to take care of this quickly, then do so. It's alot of personal opinion.

AF returned at the end of Jan after a successful natural miscarriage of my blighted ovum. It was a tough ordeal emotionally but we got through it.

I am sorry for your loss.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

That is what got me thinking about it more on the way to work. What if I go through this tomorrow on meds (and go through lots of pain) and still need to go in for the procedure? For some reason the procedure just doesn't feel right to me. I am so torn because I am also scared that it will not all be expelled. Thing is I have been bleeding since Monday night and starting having lots of pain yesterday (which I needed a pain killer prescription to help). I wanted to let this happen naturally and felt it was. I was surprised to hear him say D&C this morning.


When I mc naturally, I bled for about 5 days. On day 4 is the day that the tissue passed (sorry if tmi), then I had very light bleeding on day 5 and it was over--I went in for a sono and the Dr checked to make sure it was all gone and it was. Maybe it will happen naturally. I had very heavy bleeding up until it passed. I wish you the best!!! FM if you need to talk more
ETA:how far along are you?

Message edited 2/14/2007 12:10:04 PM.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Thank you all so much for your advice and words of support. The spotting was light for about 2 weeks and I would have a twinge of pain every now and then. It was more on the brown side. On Monday night it turned red (sorry if TMI) and got a little heavier. By the time I woke up on Tuesday morning I had horrible cramps (like AF but a little worse) and some twinges of pain. I still have the cramping (taking the prescription pain killer for it) and the bleeding goes from light to heavy through out the day. This is why I was so surpised to hear him say that he wanted this taken care of qucikly this morning. I spoke with DH about it a little while ago (since he is 3 hours behind us right now) and he thinks I should try the Misoprostol and stay positive that it will expel everything since it seems like it is already beginning. He knows how I wanted to try and stay away from the D&C if possible. Man, losing the pregnancy was hard enough. Now to have to decide this makes it worse

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Posted by zeta1996

That is what got me thinking about it more on the way to work. What if I go through this tomorrow on meds (and go through lots of pain) and still need to go in for the procedure? For some reason the procedure just doesn't feel right to me. I am so torn because I am also scared that it will not all be expelled. Thing is I have been bleeding since Monday night and starting having lots of pain yesterday (which I needed a pain killer prescription to help). I wanted to let this happen naturally and felt it was. I was surprised to hear him say D&C this morning.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

I called the doctor with more questions a little while ago. He told me it seems as if my body is letting it happen naturally and this will just help it along. I asked him why doctors go straight for the D&C and why he recommended that over the meds and he said b/c it is more convienent for the patient as well as for the doctor. It gets it over with easily and quickly for the patient so as to get closure and the doctor can plan in in their schedule and not have an emergency in the middle of the night. It makes sense. He said the meds were a safer way to go, it just takes longer and is more painful than a D&C. I am ok with that as I really do not want to go through an invasive procedure. He also told me if I wanted to wait until DH and I were home from our trip next week I could do that to so I don't have to go through it alone. Only thing is that this will be dragged out that much longer. I really do need closure at this point. Another week and a half of this would be torture. DH wants me to wait until he is home with me but I am still considering taking the meds tonight to move this process along.

Thank you all for your advice and support. It means so much to me. I hope to be here on this board with you all one day enjoying the perils of pregnancy.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

My spotting was brown also for the 2 week time frame, then one Sun night it got red and I started feeling crampy. It was 10:45 at night and I was calling my best friend in a panic. I went to the Dr the next morning and that is when they did a sono and saw that the progression was not as far along as my LMP calculations.

That afternoon, the bleeding became heavy like AF and the cramps were bad too. I could not get up off the couch (physically or mentally). I was taking regular advil for it which did help as well as did nice warm bathes. I bled HEAVY for several days and then it tapered off and I think total bleeding after the M/C started was a few weeks. Then I had a small break from bleeding before AF showed up.

Part of believes that Dr's go right for the D & C because they get paid by insurance more and it requires less office visits, etc. Maybe even less emotions from the patient, knowing that the D & C takes care of it all and there is no waiting for mother nature to take her course.

I too did not want an invasive procedure when I dealt with this.

You really might not need the meds to "move it along"....sounds like everything is going well on it's own, but I am not a Dr. The meds were not even suggested to me by my Dr down here....maybe if it had not happened naturally, it would have been an option.

Re: D&C? (sorry so long)

Wish I was there with you. I kow this is a tough decisin, but do what you feel comfortable with.