When a pregnancy ends in a miscarriage or stillbirth, expectations turn into grief.
Unfortunately, it can happen that a pregnancy ends in miscarriage. During this difficult time, we are here to support you. A miscarriage is defined as the loss of a non-viable baby before 16 weeks of pregnancy.
A miscarriage occurs in about 1 in 10 pregnancies. It often happens because something goes wrong at conception. In such cases, following natural processes, your body will end the pregnancy by itself. It’s important to know that you can never cause a miscarriage yourself. Activities such as sexual intercourse, exercise, or lifting have no influence.
A miscarriage is usually signaled by vaginal bleeding and/or cramping in the abdomen. At the same time, bleeding early in pregnancy does not always mean something is wrong. To clarify the situation, an ultrasound is often recommended.
Sometimes tissue remains in the uterus after a miscarriage. This is called an incomplete miscarriage. Symptoms — such as bleeding or abdominal pain — may temporarily decrease but often return later. In these cases, it may be necessary to induce the miscarriage with medication (such as Mifegyne and Misoprostol) or undergo a curettage. You will be referred to a gynecologist for this.
The medication is in tablet form, administered vaginally and/or orally, and help the body expel the pregnancy when it does not happen naturally.
A curettage is a medical procedure performed in the hospital under anesthesia. Even if you prefer to wait and let your body expel the pregnancy naturally, it is a possibility to make an appointment with the gynecologist to discuss all your options.
Always contact the on-duty midwife at 040 – 285 83 23 in case of:
A miscarriage can be deeply upsetting and trigger a range of emotions, such as sadness, anger, or jealousy. This is completely normal. Take the time to grieve and come to terms with this experience. If you need someone to talk to or need support, we’re here for you.
Do you feel you need more support than we can offer? For example, because you’re feeling stuck in your emotions or having trouble processing your loss?
Then you can turn to Fier verloskundig coach for personalized support to boost your mental well-being and self-confidence.
Physical recovery usually progresses smoothly after a spontaneous miscarriage or curettage. In the first 1–2 weeks, you may still experience some bleeding or brown discharge. Once the bleeding has stopped, your body has sufficiently recovered. Menstruation may resume, and becoming pregnant again is possible.