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Breakthrough bleeding or miscarriage?

corgifancorgifan member
edited February 2016 in Miscarriage/Pregnancy Loss
First off, I'm on here because I have absolutely no idea where else to find the information I'm trying to get, and first hand experience from others might be the best.  I am in no way comparing my experience to the loss many of you have experienced (and I mean mine as an experience, not a loss, as I'm not even sure what was/is going on.)  I'm just looking for any feedback for someone who's experienced something similar and was able to confirm if my suspicions are totally off base or potentially spot on.
 
A little backstory - my husband and I are not TTC and I've been on birth control taken regularly and effectively for 4 years now.  My cycles are like clockwork on the pill.  2-3 days after beginning my inactive pills, I get my cycle and it stops 2 days after I resume my active pills.  Every other cycle is heavier.  If I have breakthrough bleeding, it's rare and only occurs during my second and third weeks before I "step-up" to the new pill (I'm on a triphasic).
 
I've been functioning that way since going on this particular pill 3 years ago, until this last cycle, and I'm having a hard time telling if there is a possibility I 1) had the strangest cycle I've ever experienced, or 2) could have been pregnant and miscarried.  During my last set of pills, I was on a round of antibiotics for a bronchial infection early on in the pill pack.  We used back up birth control a couple of times, but admittedly not the entire time (otherwise I'd have no doubt this is just a strange occurrence).
 
I'm going to stop there and preface with the fact I'd already had an appointment with my OB/GYN for my annual in two weeks, so I'm just going to stick to seeing her then.
 
So, what happened:
 
When I got to my inactive pills, my period didn't start.  I eventually had an incredibly light flow about 5 days later that warranted no use of products (unusual for me - I'm typically a moderate flow).  When I started up on my active pills, the flow slowed and almost entirely went away.  Around the same time I was experiencing incredibly sore breasts (also highly unusual for me).  I continued to have the occasional light spotting, sore breasts, and a raised body temp (not measured, just noticed by how much I was throwing the covers off), even after beginning my second week of active pills.  That changed on Wednesday of my second week, when the bleeding stepped up a bit and I needed to use feminine products.  I was a bit crampy, and my breasts were feeling less sore.  By Thursday, all breast tenderness has gone away, and on Thursday afternoon I suddenly passed several large clots and had heavier bleeding that was bright red for the first time. 
 
The bleeding since yesterday when I passed the clots has slowed significantly and the cramps diminished.  My body temp has lowered (I have gone back to using all my blankets).
 
I'm going to let my physician know when I see her, but I really do wonder if there is the remote, but possible, chance I had gotten pregnant while on the antibiotics.  If that is the case and this was a miscarriage, it would have been incredibly early.  I also realize it could just be very strange breakthrough bleeding. 
 
Any insights from experiences people here have had?  I want to assume the more possible chance of breakthrough bleeding is the likely explanation, but my cycles and cycle related symptoms are so predictable and have been for years that I am at a bit of a loss.  Still a couple years out from actively TTC, I haven't done any research on pregnancy particularly, so any input from those who've been there would be helpful.
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Re: Breakthrough bleeding or miscarriage?

  • BooksForMe23BooksForMe23 member
    Well, like you said, your doctor will be the only one who can tell you for sure, but I can tell you a little about my experience to maybe answer some of your questions.

    I had implantation bleeding when I got pregnant.  It lasted for several days, but it was much lighter than a period.  At the time, I just thought it was a weird light period.  It sounds like there's a chance those first few days of bleeding that you talked about could have been implantation bleeding.

    If it was a miscarriage, depending how long ago this was, there is possibly still HCG in your system.  If that's the case, you could take a pregnancy test.  If it's positive then you would know for sure.  If it's negative, it may just be that you didn't have that much in your bloodstream to begin with, and it's already gone.

    Sorry I can't be of more help!
    TTC #1 since June 2015
    BFP #1 Nov 2015 ended in MC Dec 26 2015
    BFP #2 Feb 2016, EDD Nov 8 2016




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  • corgifancorgifan member
    Thanks!

    I took a pregnancy test to check. It was negative, which I assumed would be the case.

    Hopefully the doctor will have some more insights. I'm almost 30 and have never experienced these types of symptoms, so it's the deviation from years of consistency that threw me off.
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  • WishilivedinfloridaWishilivedinflorida member
    Your period is regular until it is not, even on the pill. You most likely had a disruption due to antibiotics, and if a pregnancy test was negative, you were not pregnant. Not trying to sound mean, but I've debated what to say in response for a while now. Please don't put yourself in the MC camp because you had irregular bleeding. It's an awful place to be. I would venture to say all of us here have had confirmed losses. Not all, but many of us have seen our babies' heartbeats that then later stop. Some have even had to deliver a stillborn child. I'm not saying you did or did not have a MC as I am a mere Internet stranger, but as PP and yourself stated, only your doctor can confirm or deny this. This post did come off as upsetting to me at least-please don't speculate about a MC unless your doctor says you had one. I hope your doc gets things sorted out for you. 
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  • MamaCoffinMamaCoffin member
    edited February 2016
    Wishilivedinflorida said:
    Your period is regular until it is not, even on the pill. You most likely had a disruption due to antibiotics, and if a pregnancy test was negative, you were not pregnant. Not trying to sound mean, but I've debated what to say in response for a while now. Please don't put yourself in the MC camp because you had irregular bleeding. It's an awful place to be. I would venture to say all of us here have had confirmed losses. Not all, but many of us have seen our babies' heartbeats that then later stop. Some have even had to deliver a stillborn child. I'm not saying you did or did not have a MC as I am a mere Internet stranger, but as PP and yourself stated, only your doctor can confirm or deny this. This post did come off as upsetting to me at least-please don't speculate about a MC unless your doctor says you had one. I hope your doc gets things sorted out for you. 
    This. Thank you for putting into words in a kind way. I've come back to this post several times to say something and just haven't been able to do it. 

    Op if you did have a loss I'm truly sorry... But to post in a place like this when you most likely just had an odd period is pretty upsetting to others here. I understand your question and your concern but like Wishilivedinflorida said everyone here has confirmed losses. There was a baby. With a heartbeat. And a name. I have an urn with my babies cremated remains sitting to my left.... And my experience was far less difficult than others. There are women here who delivered full term sleeping babies. 

    Like.... Don't. Try to be a little more sensitive. 

    Mama to two perfect little girls.
    Lucy 07-13-11
    Violet 03-13-14
    Conceived #3 since September 2015
    11-25-15 twelve week loss
    07-21-16 ten week loss
    10-03-16 5 week loss
    TTC again soon!
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