miscarriage and Multiple Sclerosis

Somewhere I Recently saw an article or discussion that there is ‘no evidence’ of MS having a higher rate of miscarriage.

Yet, Patti miscarriaged twice between 1985 and 1990. Frankly that is more than ‘evidence’ in our story of living with MS as a family.

First was in first trimester, the second following an amniocentesis procedure … essentially bookending the successful birth of our one daughter in 1988.

Back in those days, there was even some neuro mumbo jumbo  that pregnancy may help and/or slow MS progression.

Patti’s second miscarriage resulted from our failing belief in ourselves.  MS erodes more than the physical.

A week following an amniocentesis procedure, the fetus was found dead on ultrasound. Patti underwent her second surgery for dilation and curettage (D&C Procedure), both miscarriaged fetuses were female.

In those days, miscarriage was considered a rare risk yet it happened. Did MS increase the risk?  … In a handful of months Patti would be hospitalized for her first major MS exacerbation. Was this linked?

Back in ’88 the New York Times published “Study Finds 31% Rate of Miscarriage”. I did not even have to take my shoes off to calculate Patti’s rate was 66%. Why double the norm? MS?

Lacking a National Health Service we build a health system not on numbers or facts but on shared conjecture.

Except that a miscarriage is never a statistic, it is the death of a dream. How do you bury a dream? How to you mourn a dream? How do you not abhor Multiple Sclerosis, this murderer of dreams?

When I have paused through the quarter century of juggling MS Spouse Caregiving and basically single parenting our daughter and pondered if three daughters would have been harder or easier … I just hate Multiple Sclerosis more.

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Patrick Leer

Health Activist:

Caregivingly Yours, MS Caregiver @ http://caregivinglyyours.blogspot.com/

My Lung Cancer Odyssey @ http://lung-cancer-survivor.blogspot.com/