QuestionI am currently 21 years old and am trying to get pregnant, have been for a few years. By the time that I was 18 years old I had already under gone 2 Leep Procedures, an ovarian cyst removal, and a laperoscopy for my endometriosis( I don't spell good). Anyways, I was told that it would be hard for me to get pregnant because it would be hard for the fertilized egg ot stay attached to my cervix wall. I will go a month with my regular 5 day monthly and then the next it will either come early or late and the end product would be this brownish color that doesn't look right, but I am just now realizing that that's not something that other women do cause I was too embarrassed to say anything. Is this my bodys' way of expelling the fertilized egg(a miscarriage) or what? I am going to make a doctor appointment but before I did I wanted some advise on what it could be.
AnswerDear Bobby,
Unfortunately, you have been through quite a bit for your young age. If your doctor has told you that you may have problems maintaining a pregnancy due to an issue with attaching to the uterine wall, it would more than likely have to do with your endometriosis or scar tissue from that procedure. The previous LEEP procedures should not have any significant detrimental effect on your fertility.
I can find no long-term studies that have specifically evaluated the LEEP procedure with respect to fertility and childbirth. However, the effect (damage) on the cervix is identical to, and, in most cases, less than what would occur with other similar procedures such as cryotherapy (freezing therapy), laser therapy, electrocautery or surgical conization. And with the exception of deep cervical conization, none of these procedures has been associated with infertility, pregnancy loss, or premature labor.
As far as your periods, the good news is that it sounds like you are ovulating regularly. That is half the battle in fertility issues. Menstrual cycles are actually considered regular even if they don't come every 28 days on the dot (or 29 or 30...). If your period comes every 28, then 30, then 29, then 31, etc,... it is still considered to be regular in nature. And not all periods are the same. Some women have very heavy periods for 5 or 6 days. Others have 2 days of heavy red bleeding with clots and then 2 days of light reddish brown spotting/bleeding. Others have just a few days of light red bleeding. All are different.
I would not say that you are miscarrying every single month when you see this brown discharge at the end of your periods. I think that this probably just has to do more with the effects of your endometriosis.
I hope I've answered your questions. I am glad you will be visiting with your doctor soon to further address your concerns. Please don't hesitate to write with any additional questions.
Brenda
