Hi.

I'm new here and wish more than anything my first post were directed to any board than this...

Please could you help me understand what is happening to me?

About 48 hours ago, I started to feel a bit different in my abdomen area. Not in my uterus (as with a period) but more next to it. Alongside it. I put it down to "I'm pregnant. Things are changing." By my calculations, I was 9+1 that day. I live in England where first scan happens in week 12 to determine how many & due date.

A few days earlier I had started to feel a bit bloated and this new mild strain along each side made me feel just a bit more 'aware' of my middle. Then, two days ago, I urinated normally. When wiping, I saw shiny mucus tinged a very, very light brown.

Rang my midwife who said that this can happen. Perhaps some of the plug has become dislodged? I described the strains. She said it could be ligaments around the uterus, that it's felt on both sides doesn't raise an alarm. She asked if I was in pain. No, not at all. Just feels like I did situps yesterday (but hadn't). I followed my instinct and just got horizontal & rested.

Then, yesterday afternoon I started to feel (in addition to strains) period-like
symptoms: the drone of uterine pain and also rumbly (gas) tummy. I started to pass very dark rust colored blood. Not shiny as day before and much much darker. More brown than red. Just like the start of my period. I called midwife who said hormones are all over the place, some people experience regular bleeding & still carry babies to term whilst others have regular periods during pregnancy and also still deliver healthy babies. Said to rest, pay attention to what's happening, and whilst any blood is of course worrying, brown blood indicates nothing fresh. Bright red blood is worrying, esp if there's a lot of it. (I wasn't flowing much...clear TP after three or four wipes.)

Had a very brief period-like 'incident'...my periods have been bad though have been quite lucky past five years. Became very hot, very suddenly. Bit of diarrhea 'helped along' with some quick breathing. The drone pain became worse and I just wanted to get fetal, as with a bad period.

Slept fine last night. No flow whatsoever. Got vertical, and as I experienced the three times I got up yesterday, there was flow. Like a period. This time, bit redder. No clots. No shiny mucus. Just dull coloured reddish brown blood. Not a lot. Less than the first morning of a period.

Have been laying low today. Cramping has gotten worse. Just like a bad period. Very focussed pain on uterus. Only 'new' symptom the ab strain. Sent
husband to get hot water bottle which provided relief. Slept two hours. Got up to urinate. Blood redder. Shiny. Some discharge resembling texture of egg whites. Bit of hormonal hotness but not nearly as bad as yesterday (or prior periods, esp those in early 20s).

Am I miscarrying?
How long does the bleeding last before sac is expelled?
What I'm experiencing is not pleasant and is uncomfortable bur overall it's just worrying.

Am trying to listen to my body and trust it knows best. So part of me thinks 'If it's not a healthy set-up and MC is what body says to do, shouldn't it be happening then?, clearly?, quickly?'

At same time, wondering if I'm one of those 'has a period during pregnancy' women.

All the while, reassuring baby she/he is so wanted.

With it being Easter weekend, can't get a scan 'til Tuesday. And don't feel a trip to hospital will yield anything useful, really.

Would be grateful to hear from any who have miscarried or bled during pregnancy. Just not sure what is happening to my body/baby.

Am 40. This is (hopefully) my first child.

Many thanks, in advance, for any perspective you can offer.

hi,

Its impossible to say without having a scan or monitoring your hcg levels.

When i miscarried, i had bright red spotting the first day and from the second day onwards it was very very heavy bleeding with clots and painful cramping that lasted 6 days.

the best thing to do would be to go to the hospital on Tuesday.

some bleeding can be normal in pregnancy, my sister bled through 1st tri and now has a healthy two yr old to show for it

i'm sorry you are going through this and hope you get answers soon x

Thanks, lindblum. Such a strange 'state', pregnancy...and so different for everyone.

Update:
Over the past few hours, things have changed noticeably. I got up to go to the toilet. Did that. Passed some bright red blood. But then, as I stood up, I no longer had the bad period pains. Still feel the strain on either side of my uterus bit it's lessened, as well. I can almost stand up straight now.

Am hoping this is a good sign, of course. But can't help wonder if this is just my body's way of signalling the 'struggle' of the fetus fighting to persist is over. One's imagination can sure run wild, as I'm sure you (and all others who've gone through complications/MCs) have experienced.

Gonna continue to lay low. Calmly. And plan to go to the hospital on Tuesday where we can hopefully be scanned. Preparing for the worst but hoping for the best. Limbo. Awful place...

I so feel your pain! Continue to hope for the best! A lot of people have bled in their first trimesters and carried healthy babies to term. The fact you haven't had a lot of bright red bleeding is a little reassuring. When I had my m/c at around 7/8 wks it started as very light spotting and quickly went to bright, heavy bleeding during the same day. And the pain was way worse than period cramps - I would compare it to early labour (of course if you haven't been in labour you don't know what that feels like yet). If you haven't passed a lot of bright red blood, clots, or tissue... I would hold onto hope!

Keep us update!

I am also having this issue I have like cramps though and I did have clots pass.. I just hope everything is okay and that this cramp that is prodominately on my left side goes away

Oh, finallytrying, hang in there! Thinking of you...

Thanks for replying.

I continue to hope but am still quite worried, of course.

Update (as of 9am Easter Sunday):
Woke up at 6am with what felt like a very full bladder. Soreness/ache in abdomen area when I stood up so stayed hunched over. Went to the toilet. No blood flow overnight (pad clean) but a small stream of bright red blood (same colour as yesterday afternoon) but much, much less in quantity. Urinated very little. Didn't drink enough yesterday so understandable. It must have been the general soreness that woke me up then?

The sharp period pains that were localised to the uterus yesterday (and related hormonal hotness coming in waves) have gone. I'm taking that as a good sign. It still could mean a bad outcome but at least I'm not suffering in that way any more. General abdominal soreness persists. It's a combo feeling of too-many-situps-yesterday + got-bashed-in-the-belly-by-a-basketball. And I still have rumbling gas. Very odd feeling. And not normal.

Plan is to continue to lay low (hip joints are starting to hurt from being horizontal & fetal for most of the past three days!). See how things develop. And go to hospital on Tuesday for a scan. Expecting it to be emotional, whatever the outcome. Sigh. Not fun. Nor easy. I guess moments like these make us.

I'll be thinking about you too, I have an update too. I woke up my cramps are gone and the blood clots and bleeding either slowed or stopped through the night because it's turning to old blood. My hips to are hurting but a pillow between my legs helps quite a bit. Today I will stay horizontal as much as possible and I go for a scheduled scan Tuesday if they don't have me come in Monday.

Fingers crossed for both of you xx

I bled brown bleeding for 4 weeks in my last early pg. It stopped at 8+1 and all my scans (4 of them had shown a lovely heartbeat and a growing baby) Dr's weren't worried at all, so try and stay calm and hope that all is well. My baby didn't make it but it wasn't related to the bleeding as the baby died a couple of weeks after bleeding stopped. Good luck to both of you xx

Thanks, everyone.

Bit of an update (as of 8:30pm, Easter Sunday):
Have been relaxing/sleeping all day. Feeling much better today in that I have no period-like pains (as I did heavily yesterday). The strains alongside both sides of my uterus remain but feel less intense (perhaps in the absence of the additional period pains?).

In terms of bleeding: nothing flowing onto the pads. Only a bit of discharge when I'm sat on the toilet and then, it's as thin a stream as possible without being a drip (tough to see if it was actually 'flowing'). Colour is dull red (wouldn't describe it as bright as I would at times yesterday's and not as brown/rust coloured as Friday's discharge).

So, overall not a lot of blood passing in past 24 hours and big improvements in uterine pain. Am still not 'normal' by any stretch of the imagination and so still worried, of course. Have been able to sit up on sofa (don't need to be as hunched over) which has been great the past few hours. Hips very sore.

Will rest tomorrow (Monday) and get to a scan on Tuesday as early as we can. Just trying to prepare our minds, really, and our hearts for whatever news is coming. Trying to trust that 'body knows best' but it's tough.

Thanks to everyone who has replied. Your presence helps my husband and me feel less alone and for that we are grateful.

PS. to finallytrying: thinking of you!