If you’ve experienced a loss of any kind, I’m so sorry. All pregnancy loss is devastating. But you should know that no matter the timing, circumstances, or repeated nature of your miscarriages—it’s not your fault. It’s easy to fear that you did something wrong, or that you caused the loss in some way, but miscarriage is complex and still, in many ways, poorly understood.
Pregnancy is truly a miracle of life, but many people think it’s something that happens naturally and effortlessly. TV shows and movies make it seem like getting pregnant is an easy task. But if you’re one of the 12 percent of women in the United States who has difficulty getting pregnant or carrying a pregnancy to term, then you know that having a baby is not nearly as easy as it’s made out to be. (1)
Recurrent miscarriage can definitely be associated with MTHFR, but even with recent research, it is not always easy to find a doctor who is well-versed in this connection.
Does this sound familiar?
“I was just told by my high-risk OB that there is no research proving MTHFR is connected to miscarriage.”
Have you experienced a pregnancy loss? If so, our hearts go out to you and we are so very sorry for your loss. Unfortunately, as many as 26 percent of pregnancies result in miscarriage due to a number of factors, often related to abnormal chromosomes. (1) Recurrent miscarriage is defined as three or more consecutive losses before the 20th week of pregnancy. Some doctors and statistics include pregnancies that are lost before they are confirmed by ultrasound, while others do not include biochemical pregnancies or losses before five or six weeks. Regardless, recurrent pregnancy loss affects between one and two percent of women. (2)