TTC After a Loss
BabyStewartsMommy
member
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What comes next?
BabyStewartsMommy
member
Hello all. I'm still fairly new to the discussion boards, but I have already found so much positive support here. I'm a pediatric ED nurse, and I am continuing to find out just how much I don't know about this women's health stuff. My husband and I found out at our 8 week US on June 2 (1st pregnancy) that our sweet baby did not have a heartbeat, although was measuring 8 weeks. I had a D&C on June 5. I decided to take a HPT today b/c I am a glutton for punishment, and it was surprisingly negative. This is good, right? Does this mean my body is able to start a normal cycle soon since my hcg levels must be near normal? I know I will get more answers at my follow up next Friday, but I was wondering about y'all's experiences. My husband and I are eager to get started TTC again.
Re: What comes next?
Isn't it amazing how little even highly educated women in the health field know about women's health? I thought I had a solid grasp on Sex Ed and biology, but when my losses started, boy, did I find out otherwise!
To answer your question, a negative pregnancy test is great. It indicated that your HCG has fallen normally, and is lower than 25 mlU/ml. Although in practice, most home tests are actually sensitive to 8 mlU/ml, so I'd call a negative a negative. Once your levels fall that low, your body should gear up and ovulate with your first post-loss AF arriving approximately 2 weeks after ovulation (dependent on your individual luteal phase length). After that, you just need to wait the number of cycles you OB recommended for you, based on your health and case. To help you get a real grasp on your individual cycles, head over to FertilityFriend.com and check out their free tutorials. They specialize in helping women understand (for example) why most women actually no not ovulate on CD14, and how to predict and then verify ovulation and to know when AF is actually due for you. Unlike 'period trackers', their data management tool uses real data in the form of you basal body temperature (BBT) to track the slightly elevated temperatures that occur after ovulation when progesterone rises and falls during the luteal phase. Paired with ovulation prediction kit strips (OPKs), which identify the luteal hormone (LH) surge that occurs 24-28 hours before ovulation, you can get an extraordinary grasp on your own cycle, and even identify red flags for your doctor to check out, such as a short luteal phase (<10 days) which can lead to early m/cs.
Best of luck moving forward!
All advice given based on lengthy personal experience.
I am not a doctor, I just have a working medical vocabulary.
Always available to answer questions about loss, infertility, and TRP.
