Understanding Pregnancy Symptoms After Miscarriage
Miscarriage is a heartbreaking event for many women. After a miscarriage, emotions and physical changes can be difficult to understand and cope with – including the length of time that pregnancy symptoms might linger.
Know Your Hormones
Hormones play an important role during pregnancy, and they continue to play an important role after a miscarriage. After losing a baby through miscarriage, a woman will no longer be pregnant and the hormones produced during the pregnancy will gradually drop. The body needs time to adjust and pregnancy symptoms experienced during the pregnancy, such as a heightened sense of smell, nausea, tenderness in the breasts, or mood swings, can continue until the hormonal levels return to pre-pregnancy levels.
Timing of Pregnancy Symptoms
Exactly how long a woman experiences pregnancy symptoms after a miscarriage depends on several factors, including:
- Type of miscarriage: Pregnancy symptoms may linger longer after a surgical procedure like a D&C because the body needs time to heal from the procedure.
- Grading of pregnancy hormones: The level of hormones in the body is closely tied to pregnancy symptoms. The higher the hormone level, the longer the pregnancy symptoms may linger.
- Individual differences: All women are different and may have varying levels of hormones. In addition, the emotional grief of losing a fetus can cause the body to respond differently.
Managing Pregnancy Symptoms
There is no set timeline for how long pregnancy symptoms will last after a miscarriage, but they usually taper off within a few weeks. Emotional fatigue and hormonal imbalances can linger longer, and the feelings of sadness and grief that come with the loss will take time to adjust to.
In the meantime, a woman can manage her physical and emotional symptoms by:
- Eating a healthful diet
- Getting plenty of rest and taking time to relax
- Staying hydrated
- Exercising regularly
- Writing in a journal
- Talking to a therapist or counselor
- Connecting with supportive family and friends
Wom Enshealth.gov suggests that it can help to focus on the woman’s own needs and well-being in the aftermath of a miscarriage. This might include talking to friends, taking warm baths, going for walks, journaling, or finding a support group. Ultimately, no two women will have the same experience following a miscarriage, and it is important to give yourself time to grieve and heal.
