# How did you feel after methotrexate?



## krisixx

Hi Everyone,

I am curious as to how people felt after recieving methotrexate to treat ectopic pregnancy. 

I got 1 80mg shot yesterday and feel so weak and drained with sore sides. Does anyone know whether you bleed after it aswell? Just can't wait until my body gets back to normal so I can TTC again. x


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## Rachel613

Hi Kris!
I see this was from a few weeks ago, but I just got a shot two days ago. I have similar symptoms....feeling really tired, side hurts, bad cramps, and bleeding a lot! I feel like the tiredness mostly has to do with the crying and emotional rollar coaster of all this. The waiting game is the hardest. I just want it to all be over so we can start trying again!! I just super stalked the forum on here "TTC after methotrexate" and SO many of those women got pregnant 2-6 months after their shot. It gave me a lot of hope! 

How are you doing? Did you start to feel better? Have you started TTC? How long did your doctor tell you to wait? Mine said after I get my frist period I can start right away. I've read a lot about it on here and so many of the ladies say 3 months, but I fully trust my doc, so I just do what he says :)


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## jammers77

Sorry to hear about your loss. My ectopic happened on Mother's Day last May. I ended up having two methotrexate shots because my numbers stalled in July. Both times, I had crampy stomach pains. Felt like really bad gas or something. Muscle weakness, malaise, all that stuff is normal too. I had a bout of diarrhea after the second shot. The shot itself did not make me bleed at all.


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## karebear76

I found out I had an ectopic pregnancy on Jan 18, got the methotrexate shot that day. Would have been about 11 weeks along. Originally I thought I had had a miscarriage on Dec 8... I thought I was just bleeding from the miscarriage. It turns out all along it was an ectopic. I was putting off getting checked out because I was dealing with my mother's terminal illness and my health was the last thing on my list. 

I definitely felt weak, tired and in some pain. My HCG levels reached 0 on February 20- so I guess only 1 month later. I had a "normal" yet longer period that just finished a few days ago but I am still feeling some residual pain/soreness almost like bruising on my ectopic side. I am worried about this and if it is normal.

I desperately want to get pregnant again. Was told to wait until 2 normal cycles pass so we will be trying again in April. Even though I have no history of STD, tubal scarring, etc- I am terrified that this will happen again. Do you think there is any way to "heal" your body and prevent a recurrence?


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## jammers77

Sorry to hear of your loss, karebear76. I know your concern. I harbor it myself. I don't have anything that generally causes ectopic (like you said, STDs, endometriosis, etc.). However, I've read in many articles that the older a woman is, the greater the chance of ectopic pregnancy. You may not be 35 like me, but that's a statistic I'm dealing with. 

I would highly recommend waiting the two normal cycles to pass like your doctor suggested. My doctor recommended 3 months or two full cycles, whichever was longer. I know it's hard to wait, but the reason I really stress it is that it really can mess up your eggs (even after my two shots 6 months ago, I wonder if the chemical I experienced two weeks ago wasn't a result of that). There are some ladies here who waited the three months and had a miscarriage. I know they would definitely suggest that you wait.

There's no way to know for sure if you'll have another ectopic. There IS a test that they can do called an HSG where they run dye through your uterus that goes through the fallopian tubes to check for scarring, growths, etc. Oftentimes if there is any blockage, the HSG will help clear it away. It's not a guarantee, though.


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## karebear76

Thanks jammers, I will definitely be waiting until mid-April. I wouldn't want to risk a future child with birth defects etc either, just because I am impatient! Hopefully we won't have any issues next time. It's hard to see so many of my friends pregnant or just having had babies...

My gyne/obs told me that if it happened on the same side again, I would probably have to get my tube removed. Then my husband and I will be looking into IVF. Have you ever considered that as an option or known anyone to have success with it after an ectopic?


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## allforthegirl

krisixx said:


> Hi Everyone,
> 
> I am curious as to how people felt after recieving methotrexate to treat ectopic pregnancy.
> 
> I got 1 80mg shot yesterday and feel so weak and drained with sore sides. Does anyone know whether you bleed after it aswell? Just can't wait until my body gets back to normal so I can TTC again. x

What you feel is completely normal, and may even have experienced even more pain between day 4-7. I'm sorry you had to go through this, but I know lots of women on here right now that really great support. :hugs:

As soon as your levels go to 0 take lots of folate. I'm now taking 1000 mg a day in hopes my levels will go back to normal by the time we are ttc again. I too don't want to take any chances.


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## traceyAndLee

10 months after methotrexate and still ttc, 
so sorry for you los hun hope your doing ok x


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## Emme22

This will be my 2nd loss in 6 months. The 1st pregnancy was after 2 years of trying and we went to our 9week u/s appt. and were told there was no heart beat. I had a D&C 2 days later. I decided to go to see Reproductive Endocrinologist at a University hospital. He ran several test on my thyroid & anti bodies to make sure that was not a problem because I have been dealing with those issues since I was 17. I also had an HSG which came out perfect. So my doc said we could try again in January 2013. This pregnancy started out not right from the beginning. I tested 2 days before my expected period and it was negative although I was experiencing all the pregnancy symptoms. I tested 2 days later and got a very faint positive on a dye test it was still negative on a digital test. Tested 2 days from then and a little darker but still not a dark positive and still negative on a digital. I called my fertility doc and told them what was going on and they sent me to do blood. My 1st blood test at 5weeks was a 53, 118, 177. So after the 1st week of blood testing it didn't look very promising. I was told at the end of the week it could be ectopic. They continued to do blood the next week 283, 353, 470 & progesterone 3 and had me come in for 2 u/s. The blood was rising but not doubling and I defiantly was having some pressure on my left side. The u/s didn't really show anything. The 2nd u/s the doc thought he might of seen something in my uterus. I really didn't want to do the shot for many reasons so we decide to try a D&C 1st and hope what he saw was it. Well it wasn't and my blood 580 confirmed it was ectopic. So I received the methotrexate shot yesterday at 12pm. I'm bleeding a little but not sure if it is from the shot or D&C. Mild cramping more pressure on the left side. I did feel really nauseous after receiving the shot yesterday. I will have my blood tested again on Wed to see where the #'s are. This last 6 months have been a nightmare so after I get through this I want to give my body a break. Plus I want that shot completely out of my system so there is no question if it will effect my next pregnancy. I wanted to share this because though all of this these pages have been such a help that I not alone in all of this. I feel the same seeing all of my friends and clients having all these babies with no trouble at all and it is so fun and happy. Not how I feel at all. :cry:


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## karebear76

I hear ya Emme, it's so hard going through all this. It's been 6 weeks from my methotrexate shot.. my levels have been a 0 for a couple weeks but I still feel sore/bruised on my ectopic side. I think the healing process is going to take a while. I've been taking my prenatals religiously and drinking "greens&berries" smoothies everyday to try and up my folate levels and heal faster. I just want it to be all better so I can try again and am having a hard time accepting that it's going to take some time. It's really tough, but Just know you are not alone!


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## jammers77

karebear76 said:


> Thanks jammers, I will definitely be waiting until mid-April. I wouldn't want to risk a future child with birth defects etc either, just because I am impatient! Hopefully we won't have any issues next time. It's hard to see so many of my friends pregnant or just having had babies...
> 
> My gyne/obs told me that if it happened on the same side again, I would probably have to get my tube removed. Then my husband and I will be looking into IVF. Have you ever considered that as an option or known anyone to have success with it after an ectopic?

Has your doctor even mentioned an HSG? I'd think that he'd have suggested that before jumping on a surgery bandwagon. HSG is where they run dye through the uterus that goes through the fallopian tubes. It looks for growths, abnormalities, blockages, etc. and often will at least clear a blockage in the fallopian tubes. 

As for your question, no, I've not considered IVF. IVF carries its own increased risk for ectopic, and there's no way we'd have the money to try anyway even if I wanted to. An increased risk when I already HAVE an increased risk scares me. Obviously, if you have no useful tubes and/or have no other choice than IVF, then you just take your chances. At any rate, I hope you don't have to face any of that and go on to have a beautiful little one!!

https://www.womens-health.co.uk/ivf-ectopic-pregnancy.html


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## allforthegirl

:argh:Oh my I can't believe how nervous I am to get my AF. It is supposed be here by the end of the week. I have heard it can be really heavy or more painful than usual....:argh:


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## Rachel613

Allforthegirl.....I'm sure it will be fine!! If we can get through miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies AF should be nothing in comparision! I hope it is painless for you!! On the bright side you will know that your body is ready to get pregnant again!! I can't wait for my AF at this point :)


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## Nique85

Emme22 said:


> This will be my 2nd loss in 6 months. The 1st pregnancy was after 2 years of trying and we went to our 9week u/s appt. and were told there was no heart beat. I had a D&C 2 days later. I decided to go to see Reproductive Endocrinologist at a University hospital. He ran several test on my thyroid & anti bodies to make sure that was not a problem because I have been dealing with those issues since I was 17. I also had an HSG which came out perfect. So my doc said we could try again in January 2013. This pregnancy started out not right from the beginning. I tested 2 days before my expected period and it was negative although I was experiencing all the pregnancy symptoms. I tested 2 days later and got a very faint positive on a dye test it was still negative on a digital test. Tested 2 days from then and a little darker but still not a dark positive and still negative on a digital. I called my fertility doc and told them what was going on and they sent me to do blood. My 1st blood test at 5weeks was a 53, 118, 177. So after the 1st week of blood testing it didn't look very promising. I was told at the end of the week it could be ectopic. They continued to do blood the next week 283, 353, 470 & progesterone 3 and had me come in for 2 u/s. The blood was rising but not doubling and I defiantly was having some pressure on my left side. The u/s didn't really show anything. The 2nd u/s the doc thought he might of seen something in my uterus. I really didn't want to do the shot for many reasons so we decide to try a D&C 1st and hope what he saw was it. Well it wasn't and my blood 580 confirmed it was ectopic. So I received the methotrexate shot yesterday at 12pm. I'm bleeding a little but not sure if it is from the shot or D&C. Mild cramping more pressure on the left side. I did feel really nauseous after receiving the shot yesterday. I will have my blood tested again on Wed to see where the #'s are. This last 6 months have been a nightmare so after I get through this I want to give my body a break. Plus I want that shot completely out of my system so there is no question if it will effect my next pregnancy. I wanted to share this because though all of this these pages have been such a help that I not alone in all of this. I feel the same seeing all of my friends and clients having all these babies with no trouble at all and it is so fun and happy. Not how I feel at all. :cry:







HI DID U END UP GETTING PREGNANT AGAIN I JUST WENT TRU THE SAME THING


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