D&C Questions???

Question

Surgery is next week and I'm terrified. So,...*Were you put under general anesthesia or just heavily sedated?? * Do they start an IV? *How long did you have to stay after you were awake? *How was recovery?? If you recall your experience, I would love to hear it.

Answer

I had a D&C; in February after I retained fetal tissue and had an infection. The surgery itself aside from the emotional aspect was a breeze. I got there an hour early the nurse noticed how nervous I was and gave me something to relax through my IV. I was put under anesthesia after getting into the room. They didn't give me a warning when they gave it to me and I'm glad because as soon as I got into the room my anxiety shot through the roof! I felt fine in recovery especially because they remembered to give me medication for nausea. (If you haven't been under anesthesia before you might get nauseous after just a heads up, I have to get meds for every surgery bc I have bad reaction.) Recovery was fast I did feel sore for a couple of days. Emotionally was another story, I'm very in tune with my body and that feeling of pregnancy stayed with me because of the fetal tissue. The worst part for me was waking up and feeling empty. I knew it was gone and it felt like there was a hole where something was missing. Im so sorry for your loss. 💖

Answer

okay take out the emotional part completely and it's honestly a breeze. you show up about an hour early for your surgery they hook you up to an IV and give you meds to calm you down so you aren't just laying there freaking out about a surgery on top of the fact that you lost your baby. my husband got to sit with me the entire time until they took me back into the OR then we said our "see ya later's" and kissed bye but by then I was so loopy I was just talking with the nurses not even realizing what was happening lol. they put you under with anesthesia and the surgery itself (if no complications)  takes out 10 minutes! my husband said he barely had time to go to the restroom before they called him back into the room to see me. I was sent home with enough pain meds for a week which was amazing because they do give you pitocin to dialate you and kick start labor (during surgery you won't notice till you feel the cramps from your uterus shrinking back up) I bled for about 3-4 weeks after that then my period came exactly one month later.

Answer

First if all I'm so sorry you are going through this. 💔😢  I had one this morning, so all the details are fresh so this will be long, but hopefully it will help you. It was confirmed at 8.5 weeks that my baby had stopped developing at 6 weeks. I wanted to naturally pass it but at 11.5 weeks and no signs of passing the doctor thought it was best for me to have a D&C.; Be prepared to be extremely emotional. I've had 3 weeks now of grieving and knew I would be emotional, but today it hit me harder than I ever imagined. Luckily the doctor performing the surgery and nursing staff were amazing and so caring.  Mine was performed at the hospital and I was put under general anesthesia. I arrived at 6:30 am for them to get me prepped which included a blood draw, IV being inserted, and reviewing my history. My doctor also explained in great detail what was going to happen (this was mainly when I lost it emotionally and sobbed for about 10 minutes). I was taken to the operating room at 8:00 am. From the time I was put under to me opening my eyes in recovery was 45 minutes, my doctor said to expect anywhere from half an hour to an hour. All I remember was being told to close my eyes and take deep breaths and then opening my eyes what felt like seconds later in the recovery room (I was put under through medication in the IV, and had an oxygen tube in my nose). I had to stay in the first round of recovery alone for half an hour and then they felt my vitals were good enough and I was alert enough to move to a different area where my husband could join me. They made me eat a snack and drink to make sure I didn't get sick. I stayed in that area for about 45 minutes before they discharged me. It was 10:30 am. Since waking up I have had bleeding similar to a heavy period and cramping that is strong, but very manageable with medication from the IV at the hospital and a strong dose of Ibuprofen now that I'm home (she sent me home with a prescription for stronger pain meds if I need it, but so far I am fine, it's currently 3:30 pm). I can continue to update with how the next few days progress if you would like. Feel free to ask any questions, I'm happy to help! I found it so helpful here while I was preparing myself!

Answer

I had one done on May 8th. It was a very simple procedure. They put an iv in, let my husband come back and hang out until it was time to go into the operating room. They put the anesthesia in my iv, I remember my husband leaving the room. The procedure was about a half hour. I woke up about 20 minutes later, sat up & said I need lipstick. The nurse laughed at me, got me a sprite & said I could get dressed and go home. It took about 2 Days for bleeding and cramping to start, but it was very mild. I just had spotting for about 2 weeks. What I will say is that I felt better afterwards, both physically and mentally. Prior to the procedure, I felt like I was in limbo. Afterwards, I felt like could start healing. I did request an additional ultrasound at the hospital prior to the d&c;, just so I could double check there was no heartbeat. They happily obliged. I am sorry you have to go through it, but in my opinion, it was the best option for me. I was almost 12 weeks, and couldn’t bare the thought of having a home birth alone or the uncertainty of when it would happen. I also had some bad headaches the week following. My ob did some blood work and determined it was from the hormones dropping so quickly. I was at 70 by week 1 post op, and 7 by week 2 post op.

Answer

I had my first D&C; done two weeks ago on Wednesday. That day wasn’t to bad. I showed up at the hospital at 5:30 am for a procedure starting time at 7:30am. They let me husband and sister come back and sit with me while they got my prepared for my procedure. They placed an IV catheter in my hand and then shortly after that they came and took me away for the procedure. This was all after the anesthesiologist and my obgyn came in a made sure we didn’t have any questions and informed us of what was going on. They wheeled me back to the OR and positioned me on the surgery table and then placed a mask on my face to give me oxygen and that was the last thing I remember. The next thing I remember was waking up to the nurse calling my name and making sure I was okay. Then when I woke up more they offered me water. I was able to drink water and they made sure I was able to pee before the could send me home. I went to the bathroom with no issues and kept the water down also. I didn’t feel one ounce of nausea at all. They called my husband back allowed me to get dressed and pulled my IV catheter out and sent me on my way home I was in recovery for about an hour total. The pain afterwards wasn’t all that bad I felt pretty good the rest of the day of my procedure but the next day it must have hit me because I slept most of the day away and made sure I took my medications. Otherwise after that I was pretty good. Until the hormones caused havoc in my body. I lost my mind when my husband was supposed to go to work. I couldn’t stop crying and I couldn’t explain why I was so sad but I knew I didn’t want him to go to work and it wasn’t because I didn’t want to be alone because the though of having my sister or friend come over didn’t sound very good either. I was like that for a couple days and then seemed to get some what back to normal. I still am not back to 100% today but feeling more normal as I got back to work and back into my normal routine. I went back for my recheck luckily a week early (due to my doctors schedule) and found out there was still a lot of tissue and stuff that needed to be passed. So then I was sent home with a medication to help increase cramps and help pass things. It seemed to work the first time I took it and my doctor wanted me to take it a second time just to be sure so i did. The bleeding has sicnr stopped and I am waiting to be able to get back to working out to make me feel even better. 
I am sorry that you are going through this it isn’t fair and no one should have to do that. I hope my story helps you be prepared for what is to come.
Please let me know if you have any other questions

Answer

procedure is about 10-30 minutes(I’ve had one myself and also work at a surgery center that does them). They do an IV. It doesn’t hurt much. The recovery is okay, crampy and some bleeding and clots but not any worse than a light/medium period.

Answer

Ive had 2 D&C;'s. The first it was at the hospital and I was completely knocked out. I had an iv in already the that time. The second D&C; was horrible. It was an outpatient experience. The gave me something for my cervix and only motrin. I thought they would sedate me or something but they didnt. The pain was absolutely horrific. Dont do it if they dont put you to sleep...seriously..that pain was horrible. I have a high tolerance for pain but I was literally screaming in pain. Both times they held me there until theh felt I was okay to go.

Answer

You can ask your dr as for me I had some choices in the matter because it  varies from patients, and the drs and facilities.

D&C Questions???

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