TTC after D&C (When did you start trying and how did it go?)

kristen8164

Had a D&C the end of January (twins with no heartbeat measuring 6 weeks at 8 weeks). I was using OPK, just to track how things were going, and it showed a "positive" 2 days ago. Yesterday I started to cramp and bleed. It has continued today. My doctor said it could be my first AF after D&C (just weird it happened right after the OPK showed I was about to ovulate). 

On that note... I'm hoping it is my period and that I can start moving forward. For anyone who had a D&C (or another type of miscarriage), when did you TTC again? Did you have luck? I was hoping to try again after my first AF, as that's when my doctor had said we could. I just don't want to go through all of this again. It was so traumatic (especially being my first pregnancy and not thinking anything could/would go wrong), but I can't wait to be pregnant again.

dpjennifer

kleary818 Sorry for your losses. Definitely follow your doctor's advice and wait as long as they say to wait. Your cycles can be very wonky after a MC, and you could be experiencing ovulation pain, even if you never had it before (I did the first cycle after my D&C and it was super weird). The only normal after a MC is that there is no normal. I'd suggest tracking BBT to get a better idea of what's happening with your cycles post-MC. Fortunately for you, statistics are on your side. Most women come in here freaking out about their MC (rightfully so), and most of them get PG and are gone within the year. Those of us with multiple MCs that are here forever are actually the exception, and not the rule. You won't hear much success here from PG after MC as those women tend to 'graduate' from this board and don't come back.

bakerstreetboys

Sorry for your loss.  I had a D&C on January 18, and I'm still waiting for my first period.  It is super frustrating and I'm anxious to my body to start doing what it should do.  But yeah, it can take time.  My OB said to wait until after one period, so that's what we're going to do.  I'm using OPKs as well, but mainly because I don't want to risk getting pregnant before my period comes back.  So far they have all been glaringly negative.  Good luck!

Kath525

So sorry for your losses. Welcome to the group. I hope your stay here is short.

kristen8164

@dpjennifer thank you for your advice and your positive thoughts! I'm so sorry to see what you've been through and hope for positive outcome for you. You're probably right about the ovulation pains- wish there was a "normal" after a d&c so I knew what to expect and didn't question every single thing.

@bakerstreetboys after the 2 weeks following D&C did you have any bleeding? 

bakerstreetboys

  @kleary818 I bled for a couple of days and then spotted on and off for at least another two weeks.  Super annoying to think that it was over only to have it come back again.

coco2787

I’m so sorry for your loss.  I had a D&C December 12th and had bleeding on and off for about 2 weeks afterwards.  I was using OPKs and HPTs daily until AF showed up (and the day before AF showed up I still had gotten a faint BFP on FRER).  If you still have HCG in your system it could cause a positive OPK because LH and HCG are very similar.  My doctor told me AF would show 4-6 weeks after the D&C and it came back 29 days after.  It’s unlikely that your bleeding is AF already.  Our doctor told us to wait one cycle, which we did.  TW I got pregnant right away but that unfortunately ended in a CP end TW.  

zamoraspin

@kleary818 I’m sorry for your loss. Miscarriage is a major loss of innocence. I had a D&C for my third loss. I didn’t bleed hardly at all and I ovulated about 21 days later, then got AF about 15 days after that, but it’s different for everyone. Did you test out the hCG in your system either via blood tests or HPTs? My understanding is that pregnancy hormones can turn an OPK positive. After my first and third loss it took a few weeks to get down to zero for my hCG.
eta to add - We waited one full cycle to start trying again. I ended up glad we did, my first post D&C AF was terrible and I think if I would have gotten pregnant again right away it wouldn’t have worked out as my body was clearly not right at first. We are on our third full cycle of trying post-D&C.

baby1wasbornintoheaven

I ended my pregnancy due to our baby boy having full trisomy 13. Along with other major deficits we were given  90% he wouldnt make it until 30 weeks. So we had a D&E at 16 weeks 2 days. Our doctor told us to wait one cycle before ttc, has anyone else waited the one cycle then got pregnant with a healthy pregnancy so soon? She gave me one month of birth control to take to help my body get back to normal not sure if that will take a long time to get out of my system or not. She says since im 25 that I should bounce back faster as well but im not sure i just want a healthy pregnancy and not risk a natural miscariage from getting pregnant so soon. 

silvergreen

***Lurking***

So sorry @kleary818 and to all of those who have experienced losses.

Just want to preface the rest of my post with a general *TW*





Like OP, I discovered a MMC last April at 8-9 weeks but measuring 6 weeks. I was 27-years-old and this was my first pregnancy. I had a D&C a few days later and bled/spotted for a couple of weeks. It took 7 weeks to the day for my AF to return. Do not rely on OPK's or HPT's at this time. There may be HCG in your system for some time, turning false positives for both. I watched my HCG drop painfully slow during these 7 weeks using cheapies, but wanted to track it so I could get some idea of when to expect AF.

Thereafter, following my doctor's advice, I waited another 3 cycles. Part of me wanted to try straight away, but I put my trust in my doctor. I actually found my first intimate experience post-D&C (not TTC) very emotional, so in many ways I'm glad the doctor inadvertently gave me the time to heal physically and emotionally before TTC again.

I discovered I was pregnant the second cycle of TTCAL (fifth cycle after the return of AF). My progesterone was low both times - discovered late the first time, shortly before the heartbeat stopped (the stunted growth on my first ultrasound clued them in to test). My OB does not routinely check for progesterone levels so they did not send me for a blood test this pregnancy until I mentioned some light pink spotting that had me panicking; my advice to you is to be your own advocate and insist on your doctor testing both HCG and progesterone levels if they do not already do so. I was supplemented on oral progesterone and had my levels monitored until 14 weeks, when the placenta has fully taken over the job of sustaining the baby.

I am now 25 weeks with a mystery rainbow baby (team green), due June 7th.