The Top 5 Misconceptions about the Cause of Miscarriage [Infographic]

Status? Debunked.

Infographic by Once You Start Talking, You’ll Realise

An estimated 60% of miscarriages are caused by chromosomal abnormalities — factors completely out of the parents’ control. But with 78% of parents not ever finding out the cause of their miscarriage, many women and their partners stay silent in their suffering, believing that the miscarriage was somehow their fault. In fact, 19% reported feeling like they had done something wrong to trigger a miscarriage in a recent study.

Once You Start Talking, You’ll Realise is aimed at starting the conversation on miscarriages and debunking the common misconceptions that surround the real causes of miscarriage. Join the conversation now by sharing your thoughts below on the misconceptions of miscarriage!

Sarah

“No One Talks About the Physical Pain, So I Didn’t Expect it”: Woman Documents Her Agonising Miscarriages

Many women suffer their miscarriages privately, but not 41-year-old Lisa Francesca Nand.

Lisa, who now has two young sons, recorded home videos over a five year period, documenting her harrowing ordeal in which she suffered five miscarriages.

Lisa said that one of the toughest moments of her life was when she was told by her doctor that she had lost her baby at 12 weeks.

At 12 weeks, you think you’re more or less out of the woods. And then to have that all taken away from you is very shocking. We went home that night and I got drunk and listened to music, I missed my baby so much and we hadn’t even met.

Finally, Lisa went to see a miscarriage expert to find out why she was having recurrent miscarriages.

It was then she learned that she had abnormally high levels of natural ‘killer’ cells, which were causing her immune system to attack the implanted embryo — each time destroying her chance of becoming a mother.

By sharing her story, Lisa will be helping hundreds of thousands of women and their partners by letting them know they are not alone.

With statistics reaching as high as one in four pregnancies ending in miscarriage, it is our hope at Once You Start Talking, You’ll Realise that Lisa’s brave actions will encourage more women to share their stories, because together, we can break the toxic taboo.

Lisa’s home videos will be aired on TLC documentary First Heartbeat.

These Miscarriage Statistics Will Shock You [Infographic]

A recent study, surveying more than 1,000 participants across the U.S., shows that miscarriage has an emotionally exhausting impact on those affected.

Infographic by Once You Start Talking, You’ll Realise.

The study also identifies that misconceptions about the causes of miscarriage are held by a significant portion of the audience. Some of these misconceptions include believing that stress and previous use of oral contraceptives are triggers for miscarriage — neither of which are true.

Given these shocking statistics, it is clear that it’s time for the conversation about miscarriage to be brought into public light. Through talking about miscarriages in an open space instead of treating them as shameful secrets, misconceptions can be debunked and women can feel more comfortable asking for the emotional support they so desperately need.

Join the conversation today on our blog, Facebook or Twitter and help make the change. We can’t wait to hear your thoughts!

Think You’re Alone? These Celebrities Have Suffered Miscarriages Too

Miscarriages are more common than you think — and celebrities are not immune to them. With up to one in four pregnancies ending in miscarriage, celebrities are just like the rest of us when it comes to pregnancy loss.

Among those that have shared about their pregnancy loss publicly include Lost actress Kiele Sanchez and her husband Zach Gilford, who lost their baby boy to a late-term miscarriage recently.

Reality show Married At First Sight‘s Zoe and Alex also shared about their despair over their pregnancy loss in June, earlier this year. Watch their interview about their loss here.

Zoe and Alex from Married At First Sight

But Sanchez, Gilford, Zoe and Alex are not the only celebrities to experience the heartbreak that comes with a miscarriage.

Beyonce, who had even chose a name for the baby, opened up about her miscarriage:

I envisioned what my child would look like… I was feeling very maternal. I flew back to New York to get my check up — and no heartbeat. The week before I went to the doctor, everything was fine, but there was no heartbeat. I went into the studio and wrote the saddest song I’ve ever written in my life [called Heartbeat]. And it was actually the first song I wrote for my album… it was the saddest thing I’ve ever been through.

Friends actress, Courtney Cox, likewise shared that she had miscarriages prior to having her daughter Coco. Mariah Carey similarly suffered a miscarriage before giving birth to twins, Moroccan and Monroe.

Early on in Nicole Kidman’s marriage to Tom Cruise, Nicole suffered two miscarriages. Now, with her current husband Keith Urban, Nicole has two biological daughters — Sunday, who was conceived naturally, and Faith, who was born via a gestational carrier.

While miscarriage remains a taboo topic and private subject for many, these celebrities have opened up about their miscarriages, helping many of the rest of us to come to terms with ours.

It is our hope here at Once You Start Talking, You’ll Realise that you too can overcome the fear of sharing about your miscarriage, and in the process, help others in an emotionally difficult time.

Once You Start Talking, You’ll Realise provides a safe and open forum for women who have experienced miscarriages to share their story and help destigmatise miscarriage. Follow our Facebook and Twitter conversations to be part of this cause!
Sarah

Popular Blogger Speaks Out: Don’t Suffer Your Miscarriage Alone

Popular fashion, beauty and lifestyle blogger, Chriselle Lim, shares about a dark time in her life when she felt very alone and helpless. She speaks out now, urging women to open up about their miscarriages because, in opening up herself, she realised she didn’t need to suffer alone.

The reason why I wanted to share this with is because, as months passed by, the more women I met and the more I realised that there’s so many women that also go through miscarriages… It made me realise that I am not alone. [Miscarriage] is something that’s not openly talked about, but you are not alone — we all have each other. I want to encourage you guys to keep an open dialogue with each other — of what’s going on and what you guys are going through.

– SN

Actress Laura Benanti Opens Up About Recent Miscarriage

Tony Award-winning Nashville actress Laura Benanti has opened up about her recent miscarriage, calling for the destigmatisation of miscarriages.

If this is so common, then why do we only speak about it in whispers, if we speak about it at all? … It seems to me that we, as a culture, haven’t quite learned how to broach this painful subject.

Laura also urges women who have experienced miscarriages to realise that they are not alone.

My hope is that talking about it in an open forum can be healing in some small way. Sometimes it can be helpful to know that someone out there has felt the same pain as you, and that they are holding you in their heart.

Once You Start Talking, You’ll Realise provides an open forum for women who have experienced a miscarriage or multiple miscarriages to share their stories and gain the support they need from each other.

Remember — you are not alone. You are one in four.

Read Laura’s full article here.

– SN

Our Miscarriage Story

Australian YouTube singer Sonia Yang recently shared her story in the hope that other couples who have experienced miscarriage will realise they are not alone.

We have been through a roller coaster of emotions over the past two months — falling pregnant after 9 months of trying to conceive and then dealing with the devastation of our loss. This one is for all the couples and women out there who are going through or may go through the heartache of a miscarriage. We are sharing our story with our YouTube family and the world because we believe there is strength to be drawn from our experience. It’s easy to share the good stories but sometimes the hard ones are the ones that make a difference in somebody’s life. We will be sharing our story in our next vlog.

Watch the video here.

– SN

The 5 Most Common Causes of Miscarriage (They’re Probably Not What You Think)

A survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults has found that misconceptions about miscarriage and its causes are widespread. The results of the study, published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology, show that 22% of participants incorrectly believed that lifestyle choices during pregnancy such as smoking, drinking alcohol or drug use are the single most common cause of miscarriage — more common than genetic or medical causes.

There was also a high percentage of participants who had wrong perceptions about the causes of miscarriage:

• A stressful event (76%)
• Lifting a heavy object (64%)
• A sexually transmitted disease from the past (41%)
• Past use of oral contraceptives (22%)
• Getting into an argument (21%)

Talk About Miscarriage has put together a list of the top 5 actual causes of miscarriage (and they’re probably not what you think):

Common Cause #1: Chromosomal abnormalities 

Chromosomal abnormalities account for at least 60% of miscarriages. Once in a while, when an egg and sperm meet, the chromosomes are unable to line up properly. In these situations, the pregnancy usually results in a miscarriage.

Common Cause #2: Uterine abnormalities and weak cervixes

Uterine anomalies account for about 10% of miscarriages. This is when the uterus is abnormally shaped or divided. A miscarriage can occur because the embryo either cannot implant or is unable to receive the nourishment it needs to survive. A weakened or incompetent cervix is another factor that can lead to miscarriage. This is particularly toward the end of the first trimester where the foetus has grown significantly and the cervix cannot hold the foetus in.

Common Cause #3: Immunologic disorders

When you consider that a woman’s body views sperm as a foreign object, it’s a wonder that pregnancy happens at all. But most of the time, a fertilised egg sends a message to the mother that says “don’t treat me like a germ” and pregnancy occurs without incident. In some cases, however, the embryo is not accepted by the woman’s body and this is when a miscarriage may occur.

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Common Cause #4: Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

PCOS is now an emerging cause of recurrent miscarriages. Around 5-10% of women have PCOS. Women with PCOS have high levels of the male hormone testosterone which causes irregular ovulation and menstruation. Even in women that do not suffer from diabetes, PCOS causes insulin resistance which prevents the endometrial lining from maturing properly. Treatment with oral anti-diabetic drugs such as metformin (Glucophage) have been successful in reducing miscarriages in women with PCOS.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ubshealthcare/2153565230/in/photolist-ezg2BM-6fzdSB-4hewLt-4hizV1-gQdNFP-ooBsFf-gFzUhm-34spaJ-nPictv-9vHYHX-tBCaNP-hetiw8-4RuE8e-3QeLdX

Common Cause #5: Bacterial infections

Countless microorganisms live in the male and female reproductive tracts. These organisms can be harmless — even helpful in some cases — but certain bacteria such as mycoplasma hominis and ureaplasma urealyticum can cause problems, including an increased risk of miscarriage. In women, bacterial infections can inflame the lining of the uterus, making it impossible for an embryo to develop.

– SN

Talking About Miscarriages on Social Media: Is It “Oversharing”?

“Oversharing” on social media has negative connotations. For example, when the word “oversharing” comes to mind, many think of photo albums of other people’s toddlers that are updated on the daily and Kim K bikini selfies.

But what about publicy sharing about miscarriages? Does talking about miscarriages on social media fall under the category of oversharing?

The Guardian opinion writer Isabelle Oderberg says that posts that are often dismissed as “oversharing” should be seen as a opportunities by others to offer their advice or support to someone who might be really needing it.

“If you relegate everything to the whinging or oversharing basket, you might miss the opportunity to give someone a helping hand that they desperately need.”

When Isabelle shared her miscarriage story, she received an abundance of support from her Facebook friends.

Miscarriage is not a topic that seems to be talked about widely … once I posted about it, many friends, both male and female, publicly and privately, came to me to talk about their own experiences, ask me questions and offer me support.

Read her full article here.

What do you think? Should talking about a miscarriage on social media be classified as “oversharing”? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or follow our Facebook or Twitter conversation threads!

– SN

5 Ways to Cope with Your Miscarriage

I’m struggling a lot after suffering a miscarriage six months ago. Is it normal to feel this upset so long after it happened?

Thousands of Australian women each year ask themselves a question similar to this after experiencing a miscarriage.

It is perfectly normal for a woman and her loved ones to grieve for a pregnancy loss the same way as they would for the death of a relative or friend.

Pregnancy loss can be devastating. The recovery process can vary, lasting from weeks to years. The amount of time you were pregnant does not necessarily have to correlate with the amount of grief you feel and the amount of time it takes for you to recover. Whether you lost your pregnancy at four weeks or 24 weeks, your pain is completely understandable.

Talk About Miscarriage has put together five tips for women struggling to cope with their miscarriage:

Tip #1: Address your feelings of guilt. 

Try to remember that the majority of miscarriages are caused by chromosomal abnormalities — factors that are completely out of you or your partner’s control. Miscarriages are often the body’s natural way of ending an unhealthy pregnancy.

There are many myths surrounding the causes of miscarriage, for example, that lifting heavy objects or going through stressful events such as an argument or a tough day at work, can lead to a miscarriage — but these are simply not true. The truth is, your miscarriage is unlikely to have been something you could have prevented or foreseen.

Tip #2: Talk to your partner. 

You and your partner may find it difficult to communicate as you both attempt to come to terms with the miscarriage. It is natural for one or two of you to worry about saying the wrong thing, but it is important to keep the communication channel open and talk to each other about how you’re feeling.

Tip #3: Ask your family and friends for support. 

The ’12-week rule’ dictates that expecting parents should not reveal that they are pregnant in the first trimester of pregnancy due to the high risk of a miscarriage occurring. But the high chance of a miscarriage is exactly why you should talk to your family and friends during the early pregnancy stages — to receive the support you need, should anything happen.

In the case that a miscarriage has occurred, there is no shame in asking for the help and emotional support you need. If you have other children to look after but feel you need a break, ask for help at home. Likewise, if you need a shoulder to cry on or just someone to keep your mind off things for the afternoon, your family and friends will be more than happy to be there for you.

Tip #4: Join support networks and seek professional help if needed. 

There are a vast array of support services across Australia dedicated to helping women affected by miscarriages.

Sands Australia has a 24-hour national support telephone line that provides a safe place for anyone who wants to talk about their feelings. Callers will be put in direct contact with a trained Volunteer Parent Supporter. One caller says:

“I didn’t know why I dialled the number, I don’t normally like to talk about it… when they answered, I didn’t know what to say, but finding this gentle voice who allowed me to take my time and really listened to me was exactly what I needed. The fact that the person had also been through the same experience was what made a big difference – I really felt they understood.” 

For other Sands Australia support services, please visit their website.

Pregnancy Loss Australia is another national support program for bereaved families who offer counselling services and support groups. For more details, visit their support services page.

If you believe you are suffering from depression, seek immediate professional help. The Lifeline telephone number is 13 11 14.

Tip #5: Get the closure you need. 

There is no right or wrong path to closure. It is important to not compare. Some families hold small ceremonies to say their goodbyes. Others write farewell letters. Allow yourself to do whatever it takes to get the closure you need, depending on what feels right.

– SN