spotting during pregnancy

Oh boy.  We had a slight case of stress this week.  Two days ago I found some blood in my normal discharge (an increase in discharge during pregnancy is normal btw).  Seeing blood in any amount, at any time, during pregnancy can be quite scary.  I got pretty worried.  Not only was I worried about my pregnancy, but I was also worried about our upcoming trip that my family is very much counting on, and that we all very much need.  What made it worse is that my hubby was away on business and I didn't want to worry him while he was away.  And NO ONE knows about this pregnancy so I had NO ONE to talk to (one of the downfalls of keeping it a secret).  So I had to wait.

First thing I did was pray.  Because everything is in God's hands.  What's meant to happen will.  So, I prayed that everything would be okay.  I prayed that I could stay as calm as possible and not dramatize the situation.  And I prayed that I could be more faithful.

Next, I went to the internet.  Now, this can be a bad thing, but for some reason I was drawn to do this.  I typed in what I saw in the search box and was actually relieved to find some many women who have gone or are going through the same thing.  Some women wrote that blood was the first sign of their miscarriage but there were also many women who wrote that they experienced spotting or even bleeding but went on to have healthy full term babies.  I felt hopeful.

And all the while I kept an eye on my situation.  I didn't find any more blood, which was a good thing.  I did not have cramping, or any other symptoms.  But, of course, I was still a bit worried.

Finally, my hubby came home that night and I was able to tell him.  One of the things I love about him is his calming way.  He assured me that even if the worst case scenerio happened, that everything would be okay.  We would work through it all.  Which are things that I know, but hearing it from him was comforting.

The next day, I still hadn't seen anything more, but I called my Dr.  She was busy with a delivery and asked for me to call her back.  I called back but she didn't answer.  So I called the hospital and was able to get an appt. the same day.  I went to my appt. and told my Dr. what I saw.  She told me that this can be normal but to be sure we need to do an ultrasound.  So I had the ultrasound done and THANK GOD, everything is okay.  Here is the advice from my Dr. on my situation:

• Spotting is different than actual bleeding.  And many pregnancies will have some sort of spotting during the nine month course.
• Spotting can be caused by a number of things.  It can happen after sexual intercourse.  It can be a side effect of taking baby aspirin (which I'm taking because of our upcoming flight).  And in the early days of pregnancy it can be caused by the egg being implanted.
• She advised me that if I have spotting it's a sign that I need to rest.  (Don't overdo it mommies!)
• She told me to continue the baby aspirin as I need it's advantages for travel.  But if I have actual bleeding (not spotting), then I should stop it.
• She prescribed Duphaston, which is a hormone supplement known to support pregnancy.  I will take 10mg twice a day for one month.
• And based on my ultrasound, my Dr. concluded that I'm experiencing a normal thing and there's no need to worry (a plus side to all of this is that we heard the baby's heartbeat, always a great sound!).

I asked my Dr. what would constitute an emergency while I'm away on vacation.  She told me this:

• Severe lower abdominal pain.
• Actual bleeding, like that of a menstrual period.

I started this blog as a way to document our journey.  But, I'm also hoping that it can help others too.  With all the stresses that can happen along the way, it can be comforting to hear real stories from real people.  That's the beauty of starting this blog at the beginning of our pregnancy journey.  I can share all of those normal ups and downs that happen along the way.  And maybe it can be comforting to other expectant mothers.

image via freeclipartof.com