A miscarriage usually occurs because the pregnancy is not developing properly. The development of a baby from a female and a male cell is a very complicated process.
If something goes wrong with the process, the pregnancy will stop developing. Miscarriages are more common in older women than younger women, largely because chromosomal abnormalities are more common with increasing age. Another cause of miscarriage may be that the developing pregnancy did not embed itself properly into the lining of the uterus (womb). The natural reaction of the uterus is to expel the non-viable pregnancy.
Nothing can be done to stop a miscarriage once it has begun.
Treatment is aimed at avoiding heavy bleeding and infection. It is also aimed at looking after you, physically and emotionally. You may need to wait a short period of time before treatments begin. If you experience heavy bleeding with clots and crampy pain at that time, it is likely that you are passing the pregnancy tissue. The bleeding, clots and pain will usually settle when most of the pregnancy tissue has been passed but there are instances where the bleeding is very heavy and may be present with severe abdominal pain. If this happens, please see your treating doctor or attend your local emergency department.
Conceiving after a miscarriage
When making the decision to try and conceive after experiencing a miscarriage, it is important to consider both your physical and emotional health and wellbeing, and your grief surrounding your loss. Acknowledging that there may be increased feelings of anxiety, stress and grief throughout a subsequent pregnancy – especially around specific dates, gestation or activities such as an ultrasound – it will be important to gain support from your family, friends, community and health professionals.
Developed by Bare Mum in collaboration with Red Nose Australia.
recommended reads
