Miscarriage #1: February 15, 2016, was the first time I experienced a miscarriage at or around 11 weeks. I ended up going to the hospital due to spotting (I was worried that something was wrong) and miscarried in the bathroom. I was hurt and little confused. I didn't take the break I needed after the loss, instead, I went right back to work later that day.
The backstory: In January 2016, I found out I was pregnant; however, during my initial appointment with the OBGYN, there was a gestational sack forming but there was no baby inside. The OBGYN present wasn't sure of what was happening and assumed it was too soon to see a baby forming although they knew I was at or around 6 weeks pregnant based off of my last cycle. I ended up going to planned parenthood because I was anxious to find out what was going on with my body. After several appointments with planned parenthood, I found out I had a Blighted Ovum (also known as an Anembryonic Gestation - a condition that occurs when a gestational sac develops with an embryo).
Miscarriage #2: April 8, 2018, I experienced my second miscarriage at 19 weeks and 5 days. I found out I was having a little girl at 13 weeks through the NIPT (Noninvasive Prenatal Testing) test. I felt so many negative emotions at the same time that I couldn't go back to work for about a month because I felt like I wasn't ready to explain to everyone that I lost my baby and how it happened.
The backstory: During my second pregnancy, I found out I had a cyst on my right ovary and a Chorionic Hematoma (the pooling of blood behind the chorion, a membrane surrounding the embryo, and the uterine wall). I bled almost the entire time during the pregnancy and I was ultimately put on bedrest until the bleeding stopped; however, I miscarried before the bleeding had a chance to stop.
Fast Forward: I thought I couldn't conceive again, so I decided to seek fertility services through Shady Grove Fertility in October 2020. After my initial consultation, I was told I needed testing to see if fertility treatment was needed. Some test I could take right away; however, some tests required my cycle to come on but my cycle never came in October. I thought that maybe I was stressed and that's why it didn't come. The test I took after my consultation showed that my Prolactin (caused by the pituitary gland often elevated when pregnancy is present) level was elevated, but I didn't think anything of it since I figured I couldn't get pregnant naturally anyway. My cycle was 36 days late so I took 5 pregnancy tests (yes 5 of them) and I found out I was pregnant with my Rainbow Baby on November 5, 2020. Thankfully, I haven't had any complications during this pregnancy. This pregnancy I found out I'm a carrier for SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy - a progressive, rare genetic disease that is caused by the survival motor neuron 1 SMN1 gene that is missing or not working properly). It doesn't mean that the baby has SMA; however, my partner had to be tested to see if he is a carrier as well. If he is a carrier, there is a 1 in 4 chance of the baby developing SMA; however, if he isn't then we have no worries of the baby developing SMA. I am very nervous about this pregnancy due to having 2 previous losses. Every milestone I reach, I get nervous to the point where I make myself sick (literally). I see a high risk OBGYN due to my loss at 19 weeks and a regular OBGYN currently. I am standing in faith that I will have a healthy, safe, natural, full term baby boy on July 6, 2021.