Finally, after 4 miscarriages and an ectopic pregnancy, we had our first appointment at the Recurrent Miscarriage clinic at Hertford County Hospital on Wednesday.
Whilst waiting to go in the nurse asked if we minded seeing the Registrar as the Consultant wasn’t there. Of course it’s always great to see the “top bod” but to be honest, the number of Doctors I’ve/we’ve seen these past couple years we don’t really care who we see, so long as they know what they’re doing! As it turned out the Registrar was very on the ball, as well as friendly and calming.
He asked a LOT of questions. I had to go through my medical history, my cycles, my weight, my diet, the miscarriages, the health of my family, had anyone in my family had a miscarriage, were there any known chromosomal issues in either of our families. So many questions, but I guess they need to know as much as possible.
He then asked further questions about my cycle (which has been all over the place since coming off the pill in 2005), my weight and the spots I have under my chin which have been there pretty much all the time since my first miscarriage in 2011. I’m sure I didn’t have as many spots when I was a teenager. This discussion lead him to believe I have Polycystic Ovary Syndrome or PCOS. I countered that all my previous blood tests and scans showed no sign of PCOS but he explained that even though my ovaries are free of cysts the other symptoms are there, and you don’t need to have ALL the symptoms to have it. As Mr R reminded me, this Doctor is an expert in this field, and the more I think on what he said, the more I agree he’s right. Probably. PCOS can cause miscarriages, especially early ones like mine. It can also hinder a woman’s chances of conception, but thankfully that doesn’t appear to be such an issue for me now. With this initial diagnosis in mind, I’m to start a low GI diet as it’s known to help those with PCOS, thankfully it’s not too far removed from what we eat anyway. I also need to start exercising. That part I’m not very good at but Mr R has got the Wii Fit out for me so I can ease into it gently!
The Doctor then ran through the other possible causes of early miscarriages – a blood clotting issue, thyroid problems, my immune system (natural killer/NK cells) basically killing the embryo because it sees Mr R’s DNA as the enemy, or a chromosomal issue on either side. All of these will be tested via blood tests. He also wants to carry out another transvaginal scan, as the only scan they have on file is from my ectopic so he wants to check the shape of my non-pregnant uterus as well as my ovaries again. Having had so many scans and various Doctors, nurses etc looking at my bits, and really not wanting to have any more meetings with the dildo-cam, I asked if they could use one of my previous scans carried out at the hospital we were previously under, which he has agreed to. Now I just need to see about obtaining my scan pictures.
If I fall pregnant before the tests are completed then I’ve been told to contact EPU, and the Recurrent Miscarriage clinic and they’ll decide what to prescribe me, though he mentioned it would probably be Clexane. From a quick Google search I believe I’d need to inject this eek! I’ll also start taking low dose Aspirin, and he’s happy for me to continue with the progesterone I had from my last pregnancy. He said I’ll be scanned every 2 weeks up to 12 weeks, at which point, assuming everything is progressing well with the pregnancy, I’ll be released back to the Obstetric team.
Hurrah! At last somebody who is on our side, and is going to provide proper monitoring for me. Although I’d be required to have an early scan anyway due to previously having had an ectopic. Oh, I asked him about the ectopic, if he knew why it had happened? He said having looked through the report from the surgery, it was purely bad luck. In some ways that left me feeling relieved but also, how much bad luck can I have! Please, no more!
All in all we felt it was a positive appointment, and I’m actually looking forward to getting pregnant again instead of fearing it. A shame that after thinking my body was doing what it should, when it should, it actually hadn’t and AF arrived today. Oh well, hopefully I’ll have a BFP in time for my birthday next month.
Amy says
So good of you to share this journey. I’m glad you are getting looked after. I have a couple of friends who had recurrent miscarriages (both were cases where the immune system attacked the fetus). Both have healthy children now. So keep positive and fingers crossed for next cycle x
Amy says
Ps popped over from BYOBH
Tee says
Me too. It’s been a hard slog getting the referral for the recurrent miscarriages and I believe if I’d not had the ectopic I’d still be fighting to be seen. Now feels like a weight has been lifted. Lovely to hear that your friends had successful pregnancies following their own miscarriages; there is hope.
Thank you x
liz says
So glad you have someone making plans and helping you to look forward. I will be thinking of you. I had clexane when i was pregnant because of a dvt and its not ideal but completely worth it. Good luck x
Tee says
Thank you Liz. Good to know Clexane does help x
Baby Hopeful says
I’ve just come across your site and have been reading your story. So sorry for your losses, I’ve had 2 and feel only a little of your pain, you’re so strong to keep carrying on. So great that you are finally being seen for your recurrent miscarriages though. And also interesting to hear that they suspect PCOS, I would have thought like you and not have suspected it. I’ll be interesting to hear what the Docs find in your tests etc. I’ll be following your story and sending you babydust. xx
Tee says
Thank you; I can’t wait to get the tests underway and finally get (hopefully) a definite answer as to why this keeps happening. If it is PCOS then it sounds like quite a simple fix, fingers crossed. I’m sorry to hear of your losses too, and hope you have a successful pregnancy very soon. x
Leoni-fay says
I poped over from byob and so glad I did! There is so much here I can relate to, and possibly an answer to some of my unanswered questions too. Thank you so much for sharing your journey here.
Tee says
Thank you for your comment, and I’m glad my blog has provided some answers for you too x