Living in a body I don't even know anymore...
My m/c lasted about two full weeks and I had "higher than 5" hcg draws for 2+ weeks afterwards. I was told it could be 5-8 weeks before the next sign of any blood. So imagine my surprise when 4 weeks post-m/c I start bleeding profusely over the weekend. It was way more blood than I would have thought possible after the m/c and considering it had only been a couple of weeks that it could have been building up.
My old cycles were always 35-40 days long so that threw me off too. Now I don't know if I should expect "normal" cycles of 28-ish days since that's what this seemingly was? Or if I'll go back to the extra long ones again? With the chances of us getting pregnant on our own really slim, I don't know if it's even worth attempting to figure out when I'm ovulating. I am definitely living in a body I know nothing about anymore. It's very frustrating and when I try to talk to DH, his answer is, why are you worried about it? Umm, because I don't want to carry an arsenal of tampons and the like wherever I go not knowing when the floodgates will open?
The weirdest part is that I always have really bad headaches, cramps and bloating a few days pre-period. DH would say that I am really moody as well. He would be correct. So there has always been an indicator in the past. But this time, besides the tremendous amount of blood, there was nothing. It's baffling really.
In the meantime, I had my 6 week post-m/c draw to test for Factor V, MTHFR, etc. etc. etc. to see if they can determine why I lost the kids. Oddly enough, DH's family has tested positive for the clotting disorders. DH is a carrier of MTHFR but not Factor V. Since this lab work is pretty extensive (it better be, nine tubes of blood later!), I couldn't schedule my follow up with the RE until Sept. 21. So again I'm waiting, waiting, waiting. My dad suprised me with flying me to Florida for my stepmom's birthday so I'm looking forward to that from the 30th to October 5th. That at least keeps my mind off things somewhat.
Finally, a crazy "I couldn't make this up if I tried" moment--during my big draw last week, the tech at the desk at the satellite lab I go to comes into the room and says to the phlebotomist, "I can't find what this one code is. I googled it, and it says Factor V Leiden, so I assume that's what it is." The phlebotomist agrees that's probably what it was, especially if typing that code into Google yielded that result. I am sure they are right, but the fact that they were googling lab codes as they drained me of nine tubes of blood made me laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of it all.
At least I can laugh! God is great. I continue to enjoy life in the meantime and I hope my next appointment has a positive outcome with no googling necessary.
My old cycles were always 35-40 days long so that threw me off too. Now I don't know if I should expect "normal" cycles of 28-ish days since that's what this seemingly was? Or if I'll go back to the extra long ones again? With the chances of us getting pregnant on our own really slim, I don't know if it's even worth attempting to figure out when I'm ovulating. I am definitely living in a body I know nothing about anymore. It's very frustrating and when I try to talk to DH, his answer is, why are you worried about it? Umm, because I don't want to carry an arsenal of tampons and the like wherever I go not knowing when the floodgates will open?
The weirdest part is that I always have really bad headaches, cramps and bloating a few days pre-period. DH would say that I am really moody as well. He would be correct. So there has always been an indicator in the past. But this time, besides the tremendous amount of blood, there was nothing. It's baffling really.
In the meantime, I had my 6 week post-m/c draw to test for Factor V, MTHFR, etc. etc. etc. to see if they can determine why I lost the kids. Oddly enough, DH's family has tested positive for the clotting disorders. DH is a carrier of MTHFR but not Factor V. Since this lab work is pretty extensive (it better be, nine tubes of blood later!), I couldn't schedule my follow up with the RE until Sept. 21. So again I'm waiting, waiting, waiting. My dad suprised me with flying me to Florida for my stepmom's birthday so I'm looking forward to that from the 30th to October 5th. That at least keeps my mind off things somewhat.
Finally, a crazy "I couldn't make this up if I tried" moment--during my big draw last week, the tech at the desk at the satellite lab I go to comes into the room and says to the phlebotomist, "I can't find what this one code is. I googled it, and it says Factor V Leiden, so I assume that's what it is." The phlebotomist agrees that's probably what it was, especially if typing that code into Google yielded that result. I am sure they are right, but the fact that they were googling lab codes as they drained me of nine tubes of blood made me laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of it all.
At least I can laugh! God is great. I continue to enjoy life in the meantime and I hope my next appointment has a positive outcome with no googling necessary.
Replies
Oh, I am feeling the same way right now! My m/c was right after yours (July 31st to be exact) with 14 days of bleeding and I\'m just starting my next cycle too. I had no warnings either...no cramps, breast tenderness, PMS and the bleeding is quite heavy as well. Our bodies are such a mystery....aren\'t they? Well, at least we\'re experiencing the same things!
We decided to try naturally for a few months and so I\'m starting Clomid again. It would be such a miracle if I ended up getting pregnant without IVF, but it\'s worth a shot, I guess!
I hope all your tests come out okay. Good luck over the next few days. I hope both our AFs have a short stay! :o)
Sounds like you are having a rough time. I\'m sorry. Our bodies change so much yet our minds stay the same...so unfair!!! (Can\'t we just digress like the rest of our body??? ) Glad you were able to get away to Florida (as hot as it is here)!!!
Isn\'t it funny how we are addicted to googling? It\'s almost scary but what the heck did we do before the internet?
Keep your chin up! Find more things to laugh at. Have you found the website www.999reasonstolaugh.com? It\'s all about infertility and it cracks me up!
Our bodies can feel quite mysterious at times, but know that your intuition is strong and that you still know your body better than anyone else. I would get it would take some time for your body to regulate again. Florida, awesome! Think of laying on the beach! Glad you could laugh during your blood draw. I know that some things they do in the medical profession really get me scratching my head. Hang in there, you\'re doing an amazing job of \"returning to normal.\" Sending you extra love because you should give yourself extra love since what you have been through.
A lot of times the first AF after a m/c is at a weird time, because the body doesn\'t necessarily ovulate right afterwards. After my m/c I did OPKs at home, even though we weren\'t allowed to try for 2 months, just so I could figure out what my body was doing and know when AF was coming. Like you, I like to know what my body is doing!
I\'ll be interested to hear how your visit on the 21st goes, and if they come up with any concrete answers!
I have been there as well. Unfortuantely, I cannot be of much help as my miscarraige was only 2 months ago. It took 30 days for the first cycle. Last months cycle was on day 27 and this was all after being on a 25 days cycle since trying to conceive using AI methods!!
The reason I shared that was to let you know it may be 3 or so months before you are \"regular\" again. (And that is just me guessing. Like I said I am only two months out myself). Remember there are a number of us here for you if you need to talk.
Thanks everyone!! I appreciate the support and knowing that I\'m not the only one to go \"what the...\" with the latest oddities. Interestingly, the bleeding tapered off considerably compared to those first few days of gushing. Everything just happens so dramatically lately. I\'m pretty tired of drama! Normalcy, please... :)