Ectopic Pregnancy and Grief

[KMFDallas]

I am a DES Daughter and DES Advocate; Feb 14th will always be a very very sad day for me.

It was on this day, many years ago, that I lost my last baby due to another ectopic pregnancy thanks to my in-utero DES Exposure (Diethylstilbestrol).

It was a tough journey. I felt ... knew that I was pregnant. This was in the 70s. I called my doctor and was told it was too early for a test.

A week maybe two went by and I began to have abnormal pain. I called my doctor in Boston, and I was told to go to the hospital. I remained in the hospital for over a week. On the morning of the 14th, I was told that I could go home and that the baby was fine, and the baby was in my uterus.

At home, I was okay until around 8 pm and the severe pain started. My husband called the ambulance. The paramedics were concerned and wanted to take me to the local hospital. We said no, we wanted to go back to the Boston hospital which was almost an hour away. It was a long ride, and they kept losing my blood pressure.

Once I arrived at the hospital, I was taken quickly to surgery. My husband was told that I might not survive. The fallopian tube had burst open, and I was hemorrhaging. I received two units of blood. I remember waking up during the surgery and I could hear them, but they did not know I was awake. (Anesthesia Awareness).

Recovery was difficult since they had to remove my remaining ovary. At 26, I was now sterile and in surgical menopause. Oh my.... the instant severe hot flashes! I will never forget.

When my Mom and Dad arrived, tears flowed because we both knew the significance of what I had experienced.

I will never know if it was a boy or a girl, but it was my baby! A baby I never got to hold in my arms! I will never forget!

Karen
DES Info Association: Administrator