Anyway, this may surprise the very few people who know me that regularly check my blog. I just felt that it was necessary to talk about it. I think I feel so alone dealing with it but truth is, its quite common (well actually I'm only like 1% but when you think about how many people there are in the world., 1% is quite large) and the more I talk about it, the more I learn how common it really is...
What's this 1% you may ask... simply put, I am one of those girls, I though I'd never be. I'm the girl who has miscarriage after miscarriage with no real reason. So far, I've experienced 3. I'm a recurrent miscarriage-r. I am officially considered high risk and now have to undergo a shitload of invasive testing. My whoo-ha has never seen so much action. (Side note, I think gynecologists should have to serve you dinner, but i'll hit on that in another post) FUN TIMES!! When I was younger I always said I never wanted to have kids but as I etched closer to 30, I realized I was wrong but now it's not as easy I as I once thought it could be. Biology and health class made it seem so simple. I think people take for granted that for most, it's easy to get pregnant, and easy to carry a baby to term but not for people like me.
Even more surprising to many is that my last miscarriage occurred in December after no heart beat was detected during an ultrasound. My D&C was scheduled on December 9... the same day my sister ended up going into labor. I don't even think she knows. I went in for the procedure at 9am. Zonked out on pain meds until 11pm, then went to the hospital to welcome the birth of my niece. Creepy right!? Nobody knew but my fiance, a couple of my close friends, and my mom (and people say I can't keep a secret lol). Anyway I thought I use my blog to educate people on miscarriages so that they don't feel sooo alone like I did. But I'll also still talk about hair, funny stuff and random goings on.
For those of you who are like "what the hell is a D&C?" You gon' learn today... Read below and until next time Peace, Love, and Healthy Babies...
According to the American Pregnancy Association...
D&C, also known as dilation and curettage, is a surgical procedure often performed after a first trimester miscarriage. Dilation means to open up the cervix; curettage means to remove the contents of the uterus. Curettage may be performed by scraping the uterine wall with a curette instrument or by a suction curettage (also called vacuum aspiration), using a vacuum-type instrument.
Is a D&C necessary after a miscarriage?
About 50% of women who miscarry do not undergo a D&C procedure. Women can safely miscarry on their own, with few problems in pregnancies that end before 10 weeks. After 10 weeks, the miscarriage is more likely to be incomplete, requiring a D&C procedure to be performed. Choosing whether to miscarry naturally (called expectant management) or to have a D&C procedure is often a personal choice, best decided after talking with your health care provider.
Some women feel comfort in going through a miscarriage in their own home, trusting their own body to do what it needs to. Some see this as a vital part of the healing process, eliminating the question of “what if?” about the health of the pregnancy. There are also many women who miscarry who have a history of gynecological problems and don’t want to risk the possibility of any more complications occurring from having a D&C procedure done. For most first trimester miscarriages, expectant management should be a viable option.
For some women, the emotional toll of waiting to miscarry naturally is just too unpredictable and too much to handle in an already challenging time. Healing for them may only start once the D&C procedure is done. A D&C may be recommended for women who miscarry later than 10-12 weeks, have had any type of complications, or have any medical conditions in which emergency care could be needed.
How is a D&C procedure done?
A D&C procedure may be done as an outpatient or inpatient procedure in a hospital or other type of surgical center. A sedative is usually given first to help you relax. Most often, general anesthesia is used, but IV anesthesia or paracervical anesthesia may also be used. You should be prepared to have someone drive you home after the procedure if general or IV anesthesia is used.
1) You may receive antibiotics intravenously or orally to help prevent infection.
2) The cervix is examined to evaluate if it is open or not. If the cervix is closed, dilators (narrow instruments in varying sizes) will be inserted to open the cervix to allow the surgical instruments to pass through. A speculum will be placed to keep the cervix open.
3) The vacuum aspiration (also called suction curettage) procedure uses a plastic cannula (a flexible tube) attached to a suction device to remove the contents of the uterus. The cannula is approximately the diameter in millimeters as the number of weeks gestation the pregnancy is. For example, a 7mm cannula would be used for a pregnancy that is 7 weeks gestation. The use of a curette (sharp edged loop) to scrape the lining of the uterus may also be used, but is often not necessary.
4) The tissue removed during the procedure may be sent off to the pathology lab for testing.
5) Once the health care provider has seen that the uterus has firmed up and that the bleeding has stopped or is minimal, the speculum will be removed and you will be sent to recovery.
What are the possible risks and complications of a D&C procedure?
- Risks associated with anesthesia such as adverse reaction to medication and breathing problems
- Hemorrhage or heavy bleeding
- Infection in the uterus or other pelvic organs
- Perforation or puncture to the uterus
- Laceration or weakening of the cervix
- Scarring of the uterus or cervix, which may require further treatment
- Incomplete procedure which requires another procedure to be performed
