Ectopic

Hi,

I'm scared to death and I read all the comments and felt that I could write to someone that could relate to what I'm going through. I'm not sure how far I'm pregnant but I've been bleeding on and off for the past two weeks my HCG came back at 3400 I had an ultrasound and it didn't show anything in the uterus I had another blood test after a 3 days and it was 3700 I have no pain, the doc said this is an ectopic and gave me two option the injection or the surgery which one should I go with I want two have another baby and most of all I want to live to raise my 3 1/2 son. Is ectopic common? what shall I do?

[cantwait4baby]

Take the shot - it will save your reproductive organs and at worst you will feel like you have horrible cramps, so taking care of your other child should be ok.  So sorry for this loss, I found the hardest part was making that choice to get that shot.  I felt like I was the one ending the pregnancy but the baby just cant be viable in the tubes, ovary, etc.  Must be in the uterus.  The shot has a little delay or at least it did with me.  It took about a week after for the miscarraige (miscarriage) to start and it did hurt.  Now 8 years later I just decided to get pregnant again, first one since then and although I have had many complications we are now 17 weeks along.  I chose to wait to try again I do not think I would have had a problem if I tried sooner.

Good Luck to you and again, very sorry for your loss.

[foxy1220]

Some people opt for the shot, but keep in mind that you will still be having pregnancy symptoms, and sometimes it takes more than one shot to deal with the pregnancy.

Some people chose to get the surgery because, you don't have to deal with the pregnancy symptoms or the chance that the shot will not work the second or the third time.

If you choose to take the shot be sure that you are no longer taking folic acid, it was discovered that folic acid deminishes the effectiveness of the shot...that is why some have to get two or more shots.

What ever you decide, do it quickly because you don't want to jeopordize your life by having it rupture....that and you may lose your tube.

ALso keep in mind, that with the shot or with surgery if your tube is saved, the chance is extremely greater for another ectopic pregnancy in the same tube

Hope this helps

[5preg2B]

I just had the surgery due to extreme pain and recovered rather quickly.  If I had not had the surgery I would of taken the shot.  good luck to you and whatever you decide to do.  Dana

[Tima]

I had a shot as well and 2 wks later ended up in ER as it did not dissolve. Dr had told me that for some women more than one dose is needed.

[nanis]

I had three,the first one did'nt take bc I was taking pre-natals also.Which is a big NO,NO.After the 2nd my hcg levels started going down.Two days after my 3rd my levels went down to 0.I had to wait 3 mos.to ttc.I had horrible pains, almost contractions but I'ts far better than surgery.Surgery is done only if your to far along & shot wont take(about 1 wk)& your tube can rupture...this is very serious.With surgery you still could have blockage & another ectopic(scaring)....nanis

[L'T]

i had an ectopic in 2002 I had the shot it was my first time hearing about it and all i think I heard was used against cancer so I was scared to death I never had any pains with it and afterwards I had an HSG (tubes flushed) to make sure there were no blockages or anything in my tubes to cause it to happen. at that time I had to have i think 3 different injections at 3 different times I did not have any side effects with it. anyway after the ectopic and the HSG i was pregnant w/n 3mnths and had a healthy normal pregnancy and baby. I was just diagnosed again with a possible ectopic HCG's going up but the farthest i was is 2 1/2-3 wks since conception but my hcg level was creeping up 50,63,87 2 days apart each and final 145 3 days after 87 even though it was too early to see anything anyway Dr advised was not a healthy pregnancy with hcg's going that slowly. it was not confirmed ectopic but he thinks it was so again i had the shot yesterday and he said with my levels that low it should only take that one dose. it was the hardest decision cause the thought in my mind that the levels are going up whats the chances i am making the wrong decision and it is still getting to me but I feel in my heart it was the right decision and the only fair decision to my baby and my body. I was angry at my boyfriend cause I felt like he did not understand the possibilities of everything being ok but after everything i understood what he meant by we can have other kids but we cant if we do not have a body to carry them in. ectopics can be dangerous and his friend lost a girlfriend to one cause it was too late and her tube ruputured so whatever you decide dont wait and dont feel guilty, you cant continue bleeding its not healthy for you, and to be honest i am hurt but i am also relieved and less stressed (blood pressure went sky high) because i no longer have to worry about whats going on whats my next level going to be is everything ok or running back and forth to the bathroom checking to see if I am still bleeding. so its hard and I cry everyday i have cried for the last week so know u are not alone in this. and I hope everything works out good for u.
****sorry so long****

[lajonez]

HI there,
Something exactly like this happened to me in July. I had my first ectopic in January, and then what my doctors thought was another one in July. At 6 weeks, they could not see anything in the uterus. They gave me the methotrextate shot, and sent me on my way. I had to have my HCG levels checked every three days. They kept going up. We flew to LA for the 4th of July. My dr never mentioned anything about flying. I then went to the midwest to see a girlfriend to get my mind off of having another ectopic. While I was there, my dr said I needed to have another blood test to make sure that my level had gone down. It was still rising, now up into the 6k range. They said that i needed to go to the hospital and get another dose of the metho. While in the hospital, in a state far away from CA, I ended up spending an entire day there only for a radiologist to find heartbeat. I was now 7 weeks/4 days along. They sent me to a materinity specialist across the street from the hopital. The specialist knew right away what was going on. It WAS NOT an ectopic. It was something very uncommon, called a CORNUAL pregnancy. It's where the embryo embedded itself into the the curve of the opening of the fallopian tube. The injection of methotrextate can get rid of the pregancy when it's in the tube, but not in the spot that this pregancy was. At this point, he said I could not go home until the pregnancy was gone. He said that I should have NEVER been allowed to be on a plane in the first place with any trace of an ectopic, as the pressure on the plane can cause a rupture of the tube in the air. HE said I was very lucky that I ended up in his care. I had to have potassium injected into the sac, (thru my stomach, with no anestesia) to stop the heartbeat. It was so heartbreaking. I was alone in strange hospital, 3000 miles away from home, and my husband. The procedure was the most painful thing I had experienced. My husband ended up flying out to be with me, as the procedure did not work the first time. I went back two days later, and sure enough, still a heartbeat. This little guy was a fighter. My husband finally arrived and was with my during the second procedure, in which they used the needle vaginally to puncture the sac and stop  the heartbeat. It worked the second time, and had it not worked, my only other choice would have been surgery. He said if I would have had surgery, I would have never been able to carry a baby, as my uterine wall would tear from having surgery.

I know this is a long story, but I WOULD HATE TO SEE ANYONE ELSE go thru this. We spent over $6k on flights, hotels, hospital bills, etc., because my doctor never said I could not fly. I am lucky to be here.

Thanks for listening, and remember, if your doctor says that you have an ectopic, but nothing can be seen when you are that far along, and have such high HCG levels, something isn't right. Ask him about a CORNUAL pregnancy.

Best of luck to you.

[nanis]

Omg,I'm so sorry.For everthing you went threw.((hugs))...nanis

[scaredincanada]

I am so sorry to hear of your loss, I too can relate to what you are going thru, from both sides. The shot vs surgery. In 2000 I had to have my tube removed because of the ectopic, and the tube was already severly damaged. It took me 6-8 weeks post opt to get back on track, work wise, emotionally, physically.
6 years later, I am going thru the process of Methotrexate, and honestly girl, don't let my story sway you into a decision, I may be a rare case in regards to the shot. I was informed on October 25th that I had another tubal pregnancy in me left tube. My family doctor/obgyn referred me to a specialist as it was very important to save my only tube. Since that date, I have had two doses of Methotrexate, and honestly, the cramps from that HURT. (I can see why the say "Metho Cramps". Imagine your AF cramps x 10). My HCG have been decreasing, right now I am down from 2600 to 65, in a matter of 4 weeks. I have to go in for blood every two days, pretty much a weekly ultrasound. The majority of the cases show a decrease in size, but mine has been growing, but there is no heartbeat. I am scared I am going to rupture. Right now I am 7.6 x 7.1 x 4.7, from 7.4 x 6.9 x 4.5 cm
Your hormone levels are good enough for Metho (if in fact that is the shot you are referring to). My spec informed me that in order for it to work, the embryo (or gestational mass) has to be less than 3 cm (a little over an inch) and no sign of a heartbeat.
For peace of mind, in a sense, and less risk - I would opt for surgery, but I may be offering a biased opinion.
For another chance at natural conception - take the shot.

[bluesky08]

I was recently diagnosed with an ectopic pregnancy at 7w after going through two weeks of bleeding and cramping.  My doctor thought that I was going to have a miscarriage.  Ectopic wasn't even discussed because I was only experiencing mild cramping and no pain.  (I now know that having pain on one side is not necessarily a symptom that is always present with eptopic pregnancies.) As this was my first pregnancy, I had no idea what to expect.  Once I had the ultrasound, it was clear that there was no fetus in the uterus and a small mass in the left tube.  I was given the choice of taking the shot or having laproscopic surgery.  My husband helped me make the choice of having the surgery and I'm glad that I did.  The OB surgeon told me afterwards that he was pretty sure that I would have had to return for surgery because he didn't think that the medicine would have worked completely -there was too much bleeding.  I made the choice to have the surgery because I was so emotionally and physically drained by that point that I just wanted to have the problem identified and taken care of.  With the medicine, you have to wait to see what happens and are likely to experience cramping, nausea, and diarrhea.  Luckily, the surgeon was able to remove the fetus from my tube and reseal the tube.  There is a good chance that the tube will heal properly.  I have been advised to wait 3 months before I try to get pregnant again.  I think that as long as you are very healthy and are confident that you have a good doctor/ surgeon, the surgery is a good option.  It will take less time to recover and get back to your normal routine than the shot option.  I just thought I'd share this experience in case anyone is going through the same thing.  My one question is does anybody know how long it is normal to continue to bleed following a laproscopic surgery for ectopic?  It has been four days since my surgery and I am still bleeding a little (about the same as a light period).

[lila1]

My af is seven days late. I took a HPT and it was negative. At five days late I took a hcg blood test due to previous ectopic and it was negative. I am regular from month to month my af usually comes on or within a day of the previous ones. I am wondering if anyone thinks I may have taken the tests too soon?

[gabbycastro]

I was trying to get pregnant and took test after test prenatal pills not drink, I have a healthy baby boy 3years of age and the past week I woke to a horrible pains after having to what I thought was my second period in a month it happens u know ....well I went to emergency and found out I was pregnant more than a month everthing happens so quickly from them telling me I was pregnant to an hour later being in the operating table I would never choose the shot but that's just me I had so muchsupport but its hurtfull for our loss think wiseley not everyone's body is the same and has thesame effects