Post miscarriage acupuncture and the kindness of strangers

My scan after I lost Pipkin showed that there was retained tissue.  The doctor advised I give it a few days to see if it would pass by itself and scheduled a scan for the following week.  She said if there was still tissue then I'd need to have surgery to remove it.

I've only had a general anaesthetic once in my life, when my wisdom teeth were removed (they were growing the wrong way up into my cheekbones) and have no desire to experience that again.  I was also aware that a D&C can sometimes result in scarring which can affect the lining of the womb and implantation.

I was desperate to 'complete' the miscarriage on my own so emailed my acupuncturist with the news that I'd lost my baby and a request for advice.  I made an appointment to try to stimulate my body to expel the retained tissue naturally.

By the time of my first appointment, five days after my loss, the bleeding had subsided and I was just spotting.  The bleeding restarted quite vigorously within an hour of my first acupuncture session but after two days no clots had passed so I made a second appointment.

It was a nice day so I decided to walk the 25 minutes distance to my appointment.  The treatment went without any problems and I did notice on my way down the stairs that my legs were a bit trembly, but didn't think much of it as I set out to walk home.  

Within about 200 metres, my legs started feeling weird and I felt nauseous and faint.  I clung on to a garden wall as I felt my legs fold underneath me.  I felt a strong cramp and a gush of sudden bleeding.   

I was frightened and started crying.  

I had no idea what was going on with my body and felt alone and vulnerable in the middle of a main road in west London.  I made my way to the bus stop a few more metres up the road and took a seat, lowering my head between my legs to help with the fainting.  

I couldn't think straight. 

I didn't know what was happening and didn't know what to do.  Was this the haemorrhaging they warned me about at the hospital?  How was my blood pressure? Should I go back to the hospital?  I phoned Mr Duncan to tell me what to do.  He made me check my pulse.  A bit fast, but strong.  He offered to come and get me, but that would have taken over an hour by the time he took public transport home to get the car so we agreed I'd take a cab.

I know I was crying like a crazy person, but it surprised me how many people looked at me as if I was dangerous while giving me a wide berth.  Only the dope-scented old Rasta man at the bus stop asked if I was okay and listened to my incoherent response.  He sat with me and offered me his bus fare, bless him, but the buses weren't going in my direction.  He voluntarily missed bus after bus as he helped me hail a cab and saw me safely into it.  I feel a lot of gratitude to that kindly old man.

After about an hour of severe cramping, I passed a large clot and was given the all clear at my scan the next day.