Last week on Tuesday was our second ultrasound, the tech didn’t have to say a word; I knew something was wrong with the baby. A week earlier the Doctor told us the pregnancy was measuring on schedule, but wanted us to come back in a week to check the heartbeat.
After my second ultrasound the Doctor came in concerned and compassionate. She wanted to send us off to missionary training with a healthy pregnancy. That was not the news she was about to deliver, the implantation occurred in a very unusual place in the womb. The baby had died, but the gestational sac was still growing, which was alarming to her. If growth continued it could be life threatening. I started to sob. Matt put his arm around me tight and the Doctor grabbed a box of tissues. A miscarriage is tough as it is, but this was so much more complicated.
At that time she gave me two options, each had major risk factors. I was terrified to choose either. She was going to seek a second opinion from the high risk Doctor and would call us with her final recommendation. When she called that evening, I was relieved, they had confidence they could get to it through a normal D&C. There were still risks involved because of where it was located, but nowhere near the extent of the earlier options. They scheduled me for surgery Thursday morning.
Thursday came and I had news for the doctor, “Last night the miscarriage started on its own.” I told the receptionist, “Do I still need to sign all this?” “Yes. I’ll send in a nurse to talk to you.” The nurse greeted me warmly and guided me down the hall, “How are you feeling?” Breezing by her question I responded, “Fine. I started miscarrying on my own. Can I talk to my doctor? I don’t want to do this if I can have a natural miscarriage.” “Dr. W. will be here at 7:30, we are going to prep you. She will probably still want you to have a D&C.” Meanwhile, I was prepped and hooked up to an IV. “The anesthesiologist will be in shortly.” A few minutes passed and the anesthesiologist walked in wanting me to sign forms, “If I don’t have the procedure does it matter that I sign this?” He smiled and said, “No, but the Doctor will probably want you to have the procedure anyway, even if you are starting to bleed.” Eloquent I thought, and why does everyone keep saying that?!
My husband was finally allowed to join me. I filled him in on the general assumption that the Doctor will want me to have surgery regardless. I was getting upset. We prayed. The doctor walked in at 7:15. Her first words were, "Ashley, no one is going to make you have this surgery today." I love my doctor. She gave us the rundown of what to expect during the miscarriage and some encouraging words before she left the room to fetch the nurse to take out my IV and send me home. Praise God. A week has passed and I had an ultrasound yesterday confirming a complete miscarriage. It was painful to go through, especially since this pregnancy was further along than any of my previous miscarriages, but even the high risk Doctor commended the decision. I am very grateful to God for working out the timing of events so I did not have to go through anything more invasive or harsh.
Please continue to pray for a diagnosis of our recurrent miscarriages. We move on August 22nd and will be meeting with a lot of specialists and doctors in the next few weeks to get started on more extensive testing. Pray we can have moments to grieve in the midst of this move to Texas. Matt and I have officially resigned from our current positions. We both had supportive reactions from our supervisors. We are praising God for being sovereign and we feel His hand powerfully in all of the details of this season of our life, even the hard stuff. Thank you so much for your prayerful support! Ashley
After my second ultrasound the Doctor came in concerned and compassionate. She wanted to send us off to missionary training with a healthy pregnancy. That was not the news she was about to deliver, the implantation occurred in a very unusual place in the womb. The baby had died, but the gestational sac was still growing, which was alarming to her. If growth continued it could be life threatening. I started to sob. Matt put his arm around me tight and the Doctor grabbed a box of tissues. A miscarriage is tough as it is, but this was so much more complicated.
At that time she gave me two options, each had major risk factors. I was terrified to choose either. She was going to seek a second opinion from the high risk Doctor and would call us with her final recommendation. When she called that evening, I was relieved, they had confidence they could get to it through a normal D&C. There were still risks involved because of where it was located, but nowhere near the extent of the earlier options. They scheduled me for surgery Thursday morning.
Thursday came and I had news for the doctor, “Last night the miscarriage started on its own.” I told the receptionist, “Do I still need to sign all this?” “Yes. I’ll send in a nurse to talk to you.” The nurse greeted me warmly and guided me down the hall, “How are you feeling?” Breezing by her question I responded, “Fine. I started miscarrying on my own. Can I talk to my doctor? I don’t want to do this if I can have a natural miscarriage.” “Dr. W. will be here at 7:30, we are going to prep you. She will probably still want you to have a D&C.” Meanwhile, I was prepped and hooked up to an IV. “The anesthesiologist will be in shortly.” A few minutes passed and the anesthesiologist walked in wanting me to sign forms, “If I don’t have the procedure does it matter that I sign this?” He smiled and said, “No, but the Doctor will probably want you to have the procedure anyway, even if you are starting to bleed.” Eloquent I thought, and why does everyone keep saying that?!
My husband was finally allowed to join me. I filled him in on the general assumption that the Doctor will want me to have surgery regardless. I was getting upset. We prayed. The doctor walked in at 7:15. Her first words were, "Ashley, no one is going to make you have this surgery today." I love my doctor. She gave us the rundown of what to expect during the miscarriage and some encouraging words before she left the room to fetch the nurse to take out my IV and send me home. Praise God. A week has passed and I had an ultrasound yesterday confirming a complete miscarriage. It was painful to go through, especially since this pregnancy was further along than any of my previous miscarriages, but even the high risk Doctor commended the decision. I am very grateful to God for working out the timing of events so I did not have to go through anything more invasive or harsh.
Please continue to pray for a diagnosis of our recurrent miscarriages. We move on August 22nd and will be meeting with a lot of specialists and doctors in the next few weeks to get started on more extensive testing. Pray we can have moments to grieve in the midst of this move to Texas. Matt and I have officially resigned from our current positions. We both had supportive reactions from our supervisors. We are praising God for being sovereign and we feel His hand powerfully in all of the details of this season of our life, even the hard stuff. Thank you so much for your prayerful support! Ashley
3 comments:
Praying for you Ashley!
You are in your prayers every night! We are so sorry to hear the news. We love you both :)
~Alyssa M
God must have something wonderfully in store for you guys. Keep the faith, we are praying for you both! Love you guys.
Mark and Cindy
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