Miscarriages. A word that for some people brings up painful memories of what could have been. For others, it’s one of those scary topics and stories that you would hate to happen to you. The truth is this is a reality for many women out there. Having a miscarriage is almost always a terrible loss of a child you were hoping for. Most women experience one, two or maybe more miscarriages during their fertile life, some have the misfortune of having several miscarriages. This is why there’s a need to educate ourselves to know how to go about it. Like we do in the app.
What is it?
A miscarriage is a pregnancy that in one way or another doesn't grow and develop as it should. Most miscarriages occur during the first weeks of pregnancy, but some can sadly happen later in pregnancy. In some cases, early miscarriages are in such an early stage of pregnancy that a fetus is not even developed.
So, what signs and symptoms should you look out for during early pregnancy? What could indicate that a miscarriage is likely taking place? Well, let’s discuss that.
Signs and symptoms of a miscarriage
On early miscarriages, some women experience severe cramps or back pain, but the most common and obvious sign is vaginal bleeding. Not the kind you get during your menstrual cycle, often a bit more heavy than usual. If you experience a miscarriage later in pregnancy, those bleedings can be really heavy and on some occasions pose as life-threatening. To put it into context, any bleeding during pregnancy deserves medical attention. However, soaking up a pad in just 5-15 minutes or several pads in an hour, is considered a sign of heavy bleeding, which requires immediate medical attention.
Since all our bodies are different, a miscarriage might not always show any signs for several weeks even though the fetus stopped growing. In such cases, women may notice that the pregnancy symptoms just suddenly stopped. Some of the symptoms being referred here can be swollen breasts and nausea which are very typical symptoms of pregnancy.
What causes it?
The cause of miscarriage depends on what stage of the pregnancy you are in. Almost all miscarriages in the first trimester are caused by the fetus having some kind of genetic defect that can't develop into a healthy person. Late pregnancy miscarriages usually have other causes such as infection or weakness of the cervix that leads to difficulties of the uterus to keep the pregnancy.
What happens after a miscarriage?
Normally the bleedings will lead to a miscarriage and empty the uterus. If the bleedings won't start, last for long or if they get very heavy a doctor might help, either surgically or medically. After bleedings have stopped the cycle usually go back to normal and the fertility returns.
Does it affect chances to conceive again?
Simply put, No! A miscarriage does not affect your chances of success in the next pregnancy. As previously mentioned, once all the bleeding has stopped your normal cycle should resume and that applies to your fertility or chances of conceiving again. The next time someone tells you something different make sure to reference this blog post. :)
How to prevent it?
Unfortunately, it's almost impossible to prevent miscarriages, especially early ones. However, there are a few lifestyle changes you can make to live a healthy life:
Avoid drugs, smoking and alcohol.
Eat healthy food including fruit and vegetables.
Maintain a stable body weight.
Doing these main three things will help you to have a good foundation for a healthy pregnancy, but if a miscarriage occurs it's important to remember that it’s not your fault. Should you be experiencing several late miscarriages make sure to seek the doctor's help to try and prevent it from repeating.
In conclusion
Miscarriages are tragic, especially when you are longing for a child. However, miscarriages are the body's natural way to stop a pregnancy from developing when the foetus has no chance of developing as a healthy baby, and as sad as it is, this could help you come to terms with it and heal. Having one or two miscarriages in life is common, and by talking to other women you'd learn that it can be more common than you would have thought.
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Stay informed, stay strong.