6 weeks and still no baby?

[MMkorie]

Supposedly, I am about 6 weeks along in my pregnancy.  I had my last period on May 10th, and I have a 30-31 day menstrual cycle.  I have had some issues during my pregnancy that makes me really worried.  I had two ovarian cysts that burst, which isn't supposed to cause any issues because it is not in the uterus.  So, I had that.  When I first found out that I was pregnant, it was June 4th, which was 8 days before my missed period.  So, that was pretty stressful because the at home pregnancy test was able to detect it better than the one in my doctor's office was.  I got blood work done, and everything was fine.  Now I am about 6 and half weeks, and I had an u/s yesterday, but they were not able to see the baby yet at all.  I am getting nervous because the doctor is making me come back to get blood work done to make sure everything is okay.  I don't know if I should be stressing out about this or not?  Is it just too early?

[AnnieBrooke]

I wouldn't fret quite yet.  There are a lot of tales on this forum about women seeing nothing in their 6th week and seeing an embryo and beating heart at 8 weeks.  I hope that is what happens for you too.

[MMkorie]

Now I am ten times more confused than I was in the first place... my blood test came back yesterday with a really really high pregnancy hormone.  They are now concerned because with it being as high as it is, they should be able to see the baby, but they can't.  They suspected it to be a molar pregnancy, but the problem with that is, my uterus and everything isn't enlarged and shaped funny like it is supposed to be for that diagnosis.  Also, they think it could be a miscarriage, which makes no sense because my hormone sky rocketed, not plummeted.  It is not an eptopic(sp?) because they don't see anything in the tubes.  I am so confused now!  

Ps, I have had NO bleeding whatsoever...

[AnnieBrooke]

The range my perinatology clinic considers "normal" hCG at 6 weeks goes up to 108,000.  Is your doctor considering the reading "abnormally high" or just high?  It sounds like a series of ultrasounds are called for until they find the embryo.

[MMkorie]

It was like 57,000.  I don't think it is really way too high, like they are saying.  They are just saying with it as high as it is, they should be able to see something.  I am just worried that they are stressing me over nothing.  I have to go back into the hospital tomorrow to get more blood work done, then I have yet another ultrasound on Monday.  If they don't see it then, they are going to suggest that I have a d&c or whatever.  An abortion, kind of.  So idk.  I am just stressing really hard.

[AnnieBrooke]

Well, they won't schedule a D&C if they can't find the embryo, because there would be no point in scheduling a surgery and cleaning out your uterus if there is nothing in it.  If they find it there at the next ultrasound, there will be no reason to do a D&C because presumably it's a normal pregnancy.  If they don't find it in your uterus but your numbers keep going up, they might assume you have an ectopic that has found a spot in your body where there is some room (thus does not have restricted growth and low hCG numbers), in which case they might urge you just to have methotrexate shots to stop it growing no matter where it is.  I would insist they find it somehow, by MRI, ultrasound, whatever, before taking action.  I would not be too excited about them just presuming it is ectopic without finding it, but if they could prove to me that it absolutely, positively was not in the uterus, I might listen to reason.  An ectopic that keeps growing can be very, very dangerous to a woman's life.

(If I had to guess, I would guess they will see the embryo in the uterus next time.  Ectopics that simply cannot be found are awfully rare.)

[MMkorie]

I thought that was the case.  I would not do a D&C if they simply couldn't see it.  I mean, if there was evidence that it was a molar pregnancy or something, then yeah, but since they don't see anything, I would not just clean myself out.  I would question it greatly.  I highly doubt it is an ectopic because I am now 7 weeks or so, and through all the ultrasounds that I have had (4), they didn't see anything in my tubes at all.  I haven't been having any severe pain... so I just don't see it likely.  I just think they are stressing out about nothing.  I still think that I am not as far along as they seem to think.   I don't know, but I just hope that they will be able to see it tomorrow...

[AnnieBrooke]

Keep us posted.  There is such a thing as an ectopic pregnancy that attaches somewhere inside the body cavity (i.e., the fertilized egg makes it past both the uterus and out the open end of the tube and attaches to an intestine or the abdominal sidewall) and it would not hurt as soon as a tubal pregnancy would hurt, and not seeing a mass in the tubes obviously does not rule out that kind.  But those kinds of ectopic pregnancies are very, very rare, while being a little off on the conception date of a pregnancy is very, very common, so if a vote were being taken, I would vote for the more common cause not the wildly rare one.  Let us know.  

Annie