D&C tomorrow - am I doing the wrong thing?

chillinkate

I just read another post about letting everything happen naturally instead of having a D&C.  I thought the D&C was the option to choose but now I'm confused by the negative responses to the D&C option.  My one friend had it done after waiting 10 days to miscarry on her own and was happy she did.  Her neighbor did not have the D&C and said the pain from the natural miscarriage was like labor (she had a baby after the m/c). 

Can someone please tell me the cons of the D&C.

This was my first IVF round and I was pregnant with possible twins.  At the 6wk u/s we saw two sacs but only 1 strong heartbeat.  I went back 10 days later to see if we were having twins or not but instead saw no heartbeat at all.  Devastating!.  There was tissue in the one sac which the doctor said they could analyze.  That is why I chose the D&C.  Am I wrong?  Also, how long do I need to wait until I can try the IVF again?  I will be turning 39 in December and don't want to wait too long.  TIA!

katrinaadair37

I had a D&E which I think is similar. I had a fever because my body was developing an infection from not passing the fetal tissue (the baby had been inside me for 3-4 weeks after it stopped developing). My doctor told me that trying to miscarry naturally could pose a higher risk of infection and that she routinely performed D&Es if any patient that miscarried after eight weeks. I'm not sure if this answers your question, but this is my doctor's point of view.

Leida

I just had a d&c done today and I have no regrets.  My doctor talked to me about the pros and cons of having the d&c or miscarrying on my own.  I felt a d&c was the best option for me.  My baby died almost 2 weeks ago and body had shown no signs of rejecting the pregnancy.  I didn't want to wait and see how much longer it would take.  The d&c was quick and painless.  They told me I wouldn't remember anything and they were right.  I remember breathing in the gas and next thing I knew I was in recovery-felt like crap but it was still over with. 

We waited for HOURS in a room to go into surgery.  I'll be honest-as I was being hooked up for an IV I began to doubt my decision to have surgery.  But the more I thought about it, the more I knew it was for the best. 

I spoke to my cousin who has had 2 d&cs.  She said with her first pregnancy the doctors told her to miscarry naturally but she began losing a lot of blood and have to be rushed to the hospital to have an emergency d&c.  I know that's not the norm but I didn't want to experience that.  I didn't want to go through the pain and see tissue passing.  Maybe that's selfish but I had no desire to go that route. 

Obviously, you have the final say.  Once I asked my doctor how the d&c was done, I knew I wanted to go that route.  I didn't want to go any longer than possible having a dead baby inside of me.  I needed to move on and that was my best/quickest route.

Also, I can't remember all the cons of a d&c.  I just remember my doctor talking about the risks of infection, being put out and of the uterine wall being punctured.

Good luck to you and I'm sorry you are going through this.

Mrs.Boolie

Unfortunately, I don't have a pros and cons list but I do want to say that i am so very sorry for your loss and can relate somewhat to the age thing.  I had a D&E as that is what my doctor advised.  I would not have miscarried on my own as the fetus stopped growing at at around 71/2 weeks and I found no heartbeat at 9 weeks.  I think they assumed I wouldn't have m/c on my  own as I had not at that point.  for me, I would have opted for the D&C as I could not "wait" to m/c.  Maybe that is what your doctor is thinking.  The process is quicker and  your HCG levels will probably come down quicker than waiting and having all of the POC leave your body.  It can take a while on it's own.  My SIL had a month long M/C and I know how difficult it was to watch her so I can only imagine what it was like for her. 

 I would imagine that you would need to wait at least 1 cycle to try IVF again but I am not a doctor.  I wish you all the best.

VictorianDecember

I am so sorry you have to go through this.  I did not have a D & C so I can only speak to the natural miscarriage.  It was pretty rough.  I bled so much I ended up in the ER and some of the cramps were just like the labor pains I had with my son.  After the initial miscarriage, I bled for another 6 weeks.  (Other posters did not bleed nearly this long so I might be unusual. I have heard that with the surgery, it can be over quicker.  I did not opt for that because I do not do well with anesthesia.  I also felt that psychologically, I wanted the natural so my body could adjust to the loss naturally.  As far as cons for the surgery, there are some people that have to have a second D and C because the first one did not stop the bleeding etc. I have also heard that unless the doctor uses a hysteroscope, they cannot see all of what is going on during the procedure so you might want to ask your doc about what procedure they use.  I hope someone who actually had a D and C can weigh in as well.  Good luck to you!   

hopingwaiting

D&C ended up being the right thing for me.  At my first ultrasound, the baby had died 2 weeks prior and I had no symptoms/cramping/spotting whatsoever, so my doctor felt like since things hadn't started naturally on their own by then that they weren't gonig to.  I took misoprostol to try to have a medical miscarriage since initially I really wanted to avoid a procedure, but I didn't come close to passing all the tissue.  Finally about a week and a half after my miscarriage was diagnosed, I had the D&C.  I had mine awake in the doctor's office.  The limbo of knowing my pregnancy was over but not being physically over was really hard emotionally, and after the D&C I felt like I could start to move on.  Physically the recovery from D&C is quick.  Emotionally takes more time but I felt the procedure let me get started.  There are small risks of scarring or not getting all the tissue so needing another procedure, but there are risks of infection waiting so it is a matter of which you are more comfortable with.  It's a very personal decision.

 I am sorry for your loss and I wish you well tomorrow.

 

3ltlones

I am so sorry for your losses.  I have had both, I had a natural m/c at 8 weeks.  I hadn't had my u/s yet, while I knew what was going on there was really nothing I could do about it.  It does feel like labor, just didn't last as long as my labors have.  My second loss I was 16 weeks along, so the baby was much larger than 8 weeks.  I chose to have a D&E(similar to a D&C but generally used when you are farther along), the only regret that I have is that I didn't chose to be induced and deliver the baby instead.  I wish that I would have chosen to be able to hold the baby.  Otherwise no regrets, I wasn't sure how I would handle miscarrying the baby at home, and I have children and didn't want them to be scared of what was going on. 

I will be thinking of you tomorrow.  If you are unsure of the choice you made, talk with your doctor and see what how they feel, maybe that will help you.

Kara5109

I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for your loss and I hope that you make the right decision for you. When I thought I was naturally miscarrying I opted not to have the D&C only because I was scared of more emotional trauma. I found out my pregnancy was eptopic so I no longer had to choice of not having a procedure done. I wish you luck dear!

KateAndMark

I would say since you did IVF and with your age the D&C would be the best thing so they can test the babies so maybe you can some answers from that.

I'm so sorry for your losses. I lost twins 12 weeks ago so I know it's a rough road but I promise with time it will get easier.

Aiden'sMom

Make the decision based on your own heart and don't regret it or question if you made the right decision.

I have a very strong opinion about what I would do next time around. I m/c naturally and it took over three months to complete, with complications throughout. I know that I would definitely choose a d&c, if God willing, I had to go through a third loss. It's quick and then you have time to emotionally heal rather than concentrating on am I going to bleed next time I go to the bathroom. I spotted for three months straight. Although that is unusual, so follow your heart.

Good luck to you.

chillinkate

Thank you all for your kind words during this difficult process.  I still plan to continue with the d&c and hope it's the right decision.  I wish everyone else luck with their continued journey towards a sucessful pregnancy!  Thanks again!

TravelinMama

Please let me talk to the person that told you having a D/C was wrong.  No one has the right to tell you what you can and can't do with your body, and with what you're going through right now no one should judge you period.  I've had two d/c's, one with each of my last two pregnancies.  No cons that I can think of really....you have to wait at least a month before trying to TTC again so the lining of your uterus thickens again.  Of course it is a surgical procedure and so therefore any cons associated with surgery would also apply.  Every choice you make is going to have it's pros and cons.  I've had a natural m/c as well, and there were pros and cons with that as well.  I did get pathology results with both d/c's so it was a positive outcome to an extent.  Good Luck with your decision.

LMichelleG

Sounds like I may be weighing in too late, but I had a D&C a week ago and it too, was a very painful decision for me as I really wanted to naturally miscarry. However, like a few others, it was discovered at my first u/s that the baby had stopped developing at 6 weeks, and my Dr. said it looked like it had started out as twins (which made the decision more traumatic for me). Regardless, by the time I had the D&C (week 10) it had been 4 weeks and my body was still showing no signs of miscarriage. The D&C was the right choice for me. While it was a painless procedure it was very emotional for me. I've been in the hospital for numerous surgeries, but all were to "make me better" in some form or another. This one was difficult for me, but DH was right by my side and we got through it. I'm glad I chose the D&C. My recovery has been virtually painless and I bled very little. Either way, I'm so sorry for your loss and that you are struggling with this. Good luck with everything. I will pray for you today.