3 miscarriages...advice?

[girliedreamz]

I've had three miscarriages in a row. Very disheartening. But my dh and I are more determined than ever to add one more child to our family. I've had 3 healthy, normal pregnancies (boys) and never had much trouble getting pregnant. After swaying girl, it took me four months of TTC to get a bfp. Unfortunately, I miscarried at 5 1/2 weeks. I waited one cycle, then got another bfp but mc'ed again very quickly... bleeding started only a few days after getting the bfp. (chemical likely?) We got a bfp again I think it was the next cycle, but I just lost this one at 11 weeks. (Still in the process of expelling everything now.)

While we do want to TTC again, I want to make sure I'm giving it the best shot I can. I will finally have insurance again (yay!) in Jan, so I definitely want to get whatever testing I can done to rule out some possible issues. I'd love any advice on what sort of things I should test for! I'd prefer to go in to the doctor armed with a list.

At this point I'm thinking that waiting a few months and doing a fertility diet before TTC might be best. I know it doesn't necessarily sway pink to do that, but I just can't take another loss. I'm 38 and dh is 45, so time's a' wasting!

Thoughts? Advice? Anyone had experience with recurring miscarriages?

[kitkat18]

Sorry I have no advice for you girlie dreamz, just wanted to say how sorry I was for your losses and hoping you get your DD in the new year big hugs XX

[bunnywabbit]

I've had three early miscarriages in a row and decided to go to the doctor who told me it was just horrible luck on and didn't think there was anything wrong. But because of my age and still hadn't had a child she referred me to the local hospital for tests. I actually was fortunate to fall pregnant again before my appointment at the clinic. My doctor was right - seems like it was just bad luck on my part. I went on to have a healthy baby.

It might be worth having a word with your doctor if you're really worried to see if there's anything they can suggest to help. Again, it may just be lousy luck on you part. Hang in there. I hope baby sticks soon. x

[nuthinbutpink]

With an 11 week loss, I would test the fetus and see if there was a chromosome problem. If not, I would look into possible immunity issues. So sorry for your losses.

[bluebonnet22]

girlie - I'm so sorry for everything you've been through! In the 2 cases of my friends who had successful pregnancies and then went on to have losses (some early, some at 10-12 weeks), both of my friends had blood clotting issues (factor V) that they were unaware of and didn't suspect (because both had had 2+ successful pregnancies before). In both cases taking baby aspirin during early pregnancy prevented anymore losses for them. To see if this might be an issue for you is just an easy blood test at the doctor's office. If they are running blood tests for a lot of issues this is just something I'd add to the list to be sure. Good luck to you and again I'm so sorry for all the pain and sadness you've been through.

[girliedreamz]

Thanks for all of the suggestions - much appreciated! It will likely be into mid January before I can get an appointment, so I'm keeping a running list of things to talk to doc about.

And thanks for the kinds words. Focusing ahead on things I can DO to make things hopefully better in the future is helping.

bunny--I almost like the idea of bad luck the best. At least I know there's nothing I did wrong or am in danger of doing wrong next time! My doc suggested this as well, given my age, but I'd still like to test everything I can to rule out other issues. Crossing my fingers that my luck changes!

[atomic sagebrush]

Oh no I'm so sorry to read this.

IT ~may~ simply be coincidental and unrelated. the one thing I always like swayers to check is thyroid, and of course they'll check for clotting issues too. I think you've seen this before but I do have an essay here.

[atomic sagebrush]

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...scarriage.html

[essnce629]

I agree with the others to check for thyroid (ask for a "full thyroid panel" including antibodies) and blood clotting issues.

Also, after my own loss 2 months ago and my research since, I'd ask them to test your ferritin levels and to do a MTHFR test. Both are simple blood tests.

I ended up having EXTREMELY low ferritin (iron stores) and tested positive for homozygous MTHFR c677t. Low ferritin can lead to infertility and low egg quality and thus increased risk of miscarriage. And having the MTHFR mutation can lead to increased blood clots and increased miscarriage risk as well. With the mutation, I will probably need blood thinners (aspirin or lovenox) for any subsequent pregnancy (even though I've had 2 perfectly normal pregnancies in the past).

[girliedreamz]

Thank you, atomic! I've been reading that section like mad.

Essnce - so sorry to hear about your loss as well! Thank you for the suggestions. I will add both of those to my list. I love that it's such a simple *fix* (aspirin), so it's honestly worth testing for everything if something as simple as daily aspirin can make a difference.