A pregnancy is always an overwhelming experience in a woman's life, and it can be quite shattering to know they are looking at a miscarriage. About 20% of all pregnancies end in miscarriages and most of these cases happen during the first 20 weeks of gestation. What many women don't know is that sometimes a miscarriage occurs even before a woman misses her period or realizes she's actually pregnant. You may, however, notice it if you experience amiscarriage at 5 weeks or even at 4 weeks. You will notice certain symptoms that will be physical and sometimes emotional as well. Find out early miscarriage symptoms and the way you can deal with the situation.

Signs of Miscarriage at 4 Weeks

It is possible to outline several signs of early miscarriage. Some of these signs are definite, while others are specific factors that may cause miscarriage in some cases.

Definite Signs

• ŸYou will have a miscarriage if you're experiencing heavy bleeding after being pregnant for some time. It should be heavy bleeding that could soak a pad in less than a few hours.
• ŸIf your breathing rate is fast and you're experiencing strong cramps followed by bleeding, you're having a miscarriage.
• ŸAnother definite sign of miscarriage is passage of tissue, which may look like thick blood clots.

It is worth mentioning that bleeding usually indicates certain underlying problems, but a little bit of bleed that doesn't accompany with cramps is usually okay. This may happen when your body stretches to accommodate your growing baby. All you have to do is lie down for some time and cramps should go away.

Possible Signs

In addition to some definite signs, you may notice some possible signs of a miscarriage at 4 weeks. You shouldn’t take these signs lightly and consult with your healthcare provider for confirmation.

• Bleeding intermittently: If you bleed intermittently, this may mean you're having a miscarriage. This usually happens when your hormone levels fall. It is therefore important to check your blood HCG levels to confirm what's causing problems in your case.
• Cramps: You are more likely to have a miscarriage if you're experiencing severe cramps. Again, it is not a definite sign because you're going to experience some cramping throughout your pregnancy. Cramping that accompanies with bleeding is usually more serious.
• No pregnancy symptoms: Sudden loss of pregnancy symptoms usually means that something isn't just right. It may be due to a pending miscarriage. You may not feel nauseous for a couple of days with little breast soreness. This is not always a cause of concern though, especially if it's after weeks 10 when your hormone levels balance out and placenta takes control of things.
• A fluctuating pregnancy test: You may notice your pregnancy test fluctuating between negative and positive if you test super early. If you're a couple of weeks pregnant and your test isn't always positive, you may experience a miscarriage. This is usually common with a miscarriage at 4 weeks. Discuss it with your doctor and have yourself checked for an ectopic pregnancy.

How Does It Feel Like?

A miscarriage can have a devastating effect on the mother. It will actually have a physical and mental toll on you. When the miscarriage occurs when you're less than six weeks pregnant, you may feel as if you're experiencing a very heavy period. You may even notice small blood clots that could be up to 2cm in size. This will also accompany with mild pain and cramping. You may not need any medical intervention for miscarriages that happen this early in pregnancy.

However, a miscarriage will always be very upsetting because most women develop a bond with their baby so early in pregnancies, which is the reason why they find their miscarriages very isolating, distressing, depressing, and lonely. It is important for both partners to console each other and recognize the fact that they can actually conceive again.

What Happens After a Miscarriage at 4 Weeks?

In case of an early miscarriage, your body is more likely to complete the process naturally without making you go for any further medical intervention. The bleeding may continue for some time but it usually stops in a week or so. You may need some rest with some painkillers and someone to comfort you.

Your doctor may ask you to confirm your miscarriage using a pregnancy test. Moreover, if your miscarriage symptoms persist even after a couple of weeks, you may have to go see your doctor who will conduct some tests to confirm why your body isn't recovering as it should.

Sometimes, your bleeding won't stop after a couple of weeks, which usually means there still are some pregnancy tissues left in your uterus. This usually happens when you have an incomplete miscarriage. If that's the case, your doctor may opt for one of the following two approaches:

• Expectant management: Your doctor will check for signs of infection, and if there are no signs, they will wait for another week for bleeding to stop without a treatment.
• Medical management: Your doctor will decide that you need some medical intervention to complete the miscarriage. They will suggest certain medicines for this.

When both these approaches don't work for any reason, your doctor may decide to perform a minor operation to ensure there isn't any pregnancy tissues left in your womb.