Pregnancy loss

[Bernadette_Abraham]

@yasminatassi I’m SO sorry to hear you’re going through this. I’m glad you’ve reached out for support though because there’s definitely lots that can be done to help take care of yourself both physically and emotionally as your body recalibrates.

1. Prioritize lots of rest and eating nutrient-dense foods like bone broth, liver (or desiccated liver capsules), leafy greens, berries, eggs, wild fish, etc.

2. Given the blood loss, consider consuming more iron-rich foods and taking Ferrum Phos cell salt plus vitamin C to help support iron absorption from animal sources of protein which provide an absorbable form of heme iron.

3. Consider continuing your prenatal vitamin for another month or so to keep B vitamin levels replenished, especially folate. Make sure your supplement is not using the synthetic folic acid, but a methylated form.

4. To help with your uterus and lymphatic flow, consider castor oil packs over the lower belly. These can be done at night and left on while sleeping for convenience.

5. Get support to help you process and release your emotions. Acupuncture, craniosacral therapy and somatic breathwork can all help. Journaling and talking to someone who understands your grief can also be incredibly healing. We’re here for you as well if you need the outlet to vent and cry.

In terms of root causes, below are markers to start investigating which can help with trying to conceive again.

• Full thyroid panel: TSH, Total T4, Total T3, Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3, Anti-TPO, Anti-TG (even mild hypothyroidism can increase risk of miscarriage)

• Progesterone levels: Low progesterone is a common contributor to early pregnancy loss (should be tested between day 19-21 once you get a cycle again)

• Blood sugar panel: Fasting insulin, fasting glucose, HbA1C. Insulin resistance and PCOS can affect ovulation and implantation

• Important Nutrients: Vitamin D, RBC magnesium, RBC B12, RBC folate, RBC zinc

• Inflammation markers: hs-CRP or ANA if there are any autoimmune concerns

Additional functional tests to consider that may be helpful but not necessary:

• Gut health: GI Map w/ Zonulin stool test can help give a snapshot of overall gut and digestive health/inflammation including a marker that looks at estrogen metabolism. Do you have any gut or mood related symptoms?
• Hormones: DUTCH Plus (or simply DUTCH Adrenal test to look at cortisol the stress hormone) can help give a snapshot of your overall sex hormone status including cortisol pattern. If cortisol is high or low, this can impact progesterone because the body prioritizes survival over reproduction. Is stress something that might be at play for you?

And please read our guide on preparing for pregnancy which includes tips to reduce toxicity and stress, while optimizing nutrients to help you prepare again.

I hope this helps and gives you a sense of direction as you begin to heal, both physically and emotionally. Remember, you’re not alone – and your body is capable of incredible things.

[yasminatassi]

Hello B

Many thanks. These are all very helpful and have been doing since the MC.

I will reply independently about the testing and blood results, as i did do some testing just a few weeks ago which i will share with you but for now I wanted to ask about antibiotics

I did a D and C last week. The doctor offered a round of antibiotics as Standard procedure but i declined. Now a week later I went for a check up and I told him I have some foul smell etc but no other sympyoms and he took a swab but since I am going to travelling for a few days this week he gave me these antibiotics as a precaution till them to avoid a serious infection post procedure.

I had a stool test recently before pregnancy and the results were really good ( will post later for you ) so I wanted to make sure I don’t mess up my gut. Can you pls recommend what I should do in this case and measures I should take to ensure my gut is well supported and for how long I should do that post antibiotics

I am already on this probiotic I don’t know if this is enough. I am also taking rite gut health

[yasminatassi]

I also have this in my cabinet in case it’s better than what am taking now ?

[Bernadette_Abraham]

@yasminatassi I do the same when offered antibiotics – I resort to natural solutions first and only take them if/when there’s a severe infection.

Often times, vaginal issues can be resolved by taking probiotics that are rich in lactobacillus. This creates an acidic environment that isn’t favorable for microbial overgrowths. The first 2 options you shared are 1) soil based and 2) prebiotics. The Women’s Care probiotic however, does have lactobacillus strains which is what you want.

You can see another example of such a probiotic in the protocol for bacterial vaginosis. And here’s another option for yeast infection relief.

Also, supporting overall immunity by optimizing vitamin D, vitamin A and zinc will be helpful in countering any future infections. Test your levels if you plan on getting additional tests. It’s always best to test RBC zinc instead of the more commonly run serum zinc. ‘RBC’ tells us what’s actually in the cell versus what’s in the blood which is highly influenced by what a person consumes the day/night before.

[yasminatassi]

Thanks B since am travelling this morning i will just take the women’s care one as I don’t have time to get another one

Before you replied I had actually looked into your protocols and I saw that you advised to take Boulardi strain in case there is a plan of taking antibiotics. Should I stop this as just take rhe women’s care then ?

Thanks !

[Bernadette_Abraham]

Both types can be taken together if a person doesn’t have a sensitivity to yeast.

[yasminatassi]

Hi B

I finally had the time to send you the results of some testing that I did recently, I fact I was in my early pregnancy then

Please let me know what you think and if any further testing is needed and suggested plan of action.

Horomone testing is missing as it didn’t make sense to do it while I pregnant and now will need a cycle or 2 I guess ti get back to normal ?

Thanek so much

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[yasminatassi]

More testing here

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[Bernadette_Abraham]

@yasminatassi thank you for sharing – there are some very important clues in these lab results you shared.

First off, total cholesterol is very low (not clinically, but suboptimal low). We need cholesterol to make all of our sex hormones, so for fertility, this is critical. There are many reasons why a person’s cholesterol can be low (which you can learn more about here in our Blood Chem course). Oxidative stress is one of those reasons, and your oxidative stress marker was in fact clinically high, along with clinically high CRP – a marker of inflammation.

So there is definitely something taxing your system and creating inflammation which may have likely contributed to early pregnancy loss.

Here is a handout on some common sources of oxidative stress. Oxidative stress can be created internally and also generated from external sources.

Internal sources can include:

• Normal cellular respiration (especially in high-energy organs like the brain and ovaries)

• Inflammation (even mild or chronic)

• Imbalanced blood sugar / insulin resistance

• Excess estrogen (without enough progesterone)

• Nutrient deficiencies (e.g., glutathione, selenium, zinc, CoQ10, vitamins C & E)

• Autoimmune conditions

• Chronic infections (bacterial, viral, fungal, or parasitic)

• Poor methylation or impaired detox pathways (like MTHFR mutations)

External sources include:

• Processed foods / seed oils (e.g., soybean, canola, corn oil)

• Pesticides, herbicides, and food additives

• Environmental toxins (mold, heavy metals, plastics, pollution, EMFs)

• Smoking and alcohol

• Medications (especially NSAIDs, antibiotics, chemo drugs)

• Excessive exercise (without recovery)

• Sleep deprivation

• Chronic stress

• Radiation exposure (phones, Wi-Fi, X-rays, air travel)

• Infections (e.g., UTIs, viral flares)

From the results you shared, although HbA1C was normal, it would be great to have a full blood sugar panel including fasting glucose, fasting insulin and HbA1C taken together.

Given the clinically low homocysteine, this might be due to nutritional deficiencies, a genetic methylation weakness, or a higher methylation need due to higher toxins for example. A full methylation panel would be recommended. Here’s a sample report of such a panel. Poor methylation can lead to miscarriage or implantation failure, as well as detoxification issues, including hormone & toxin detox. So it’s critical to see why this is low and find ways to support methylation. Are you over supplementing with vitamin B12/B9 by any chance?

In your GI map test result, calprotectin is also slightly creeping up, which means there is also some inflammation in the gut. Do you experience gut-related symptoms? Also, your commensal bacteria is overall low. Consuming fermented foods, more fiber/vegetables, and prebiotics like legumes and beans for example, can really help increase beneficial bacteria in the gut.

The next step is to really figure out where the oxidative stress is coming from. Given the toxic world we live in, I always have to ask about heavy metals and mold. You can always fill out our heavy metal assessment questionnaires from our heavy metal detox program to get a general subjective assessment, and/or consider getting a hair analysis to see if there is heavy metal accumulation. Same with mold, you can fill out these forms or get a MyctoTox test.

Finally, stress is very often at the root of many “dis-eases”. If this resonates with you, then please let me know so I can share some suggestions and solutions, because as I mentioned previously, in a stressed state, the body will favor cortisol production over reproduction to save our life.

I would still pursue the list of markers I initially recommended in my previous reply, in addition to exploring these other possible causes.

[yasminatassi]

Dear B,

Thank you for all the details. I will try to be as thorough as I can in my details to you

1. First of all as you can imagine being a member of this community I do consider myself leading a very healthy lifestyle . I avoid plastics, eat organic e home made healthy food most of rhe time etc. The last few years I cut back a lot on a lot of exposure to toxins. Of course in this world we can’t be perfect! But I try most of the time

2. In 2023 I had exposure to toxins and an organic acid test confirmed I had high exposure to mold. I did a very thorough remediation ( with omar ) and a gently detox, a few months later I did another test and the mold markers were back to normal. I will attach below the last results of my organic acid test which I did last year. I don’t believe that I have have further exposure..in 2021 my oxidatuve test was around 100 or or after being over 500 ! It was due to heavy metals and I did a chelation ( which went very badly as my detox pathways were not open so everything ended up on my face !)

3. Also i have done a DNA test which I also attach here which you see I have with the COMR and MTFR variant and as such I was on high does of methyl protect ( 2 tablets twice a day ). I wonder if this contributed?

4. I had some hard stool passong since last summer which Is why I did the the GU map but after adding prebiotic fior and rite things are MUCH better . I don’t have any other gut issues

Am attaching here the organic accid test

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[yasminatassi]

DNA test results below

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[yasminatassi]

More dna testing pages

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[yasminatassi]

Final dna test pages

I also want to point out that while I didn’t have any major infections ( that I know of) over the last year I have been under tremendous of stress/ overload /overwhelm

[Bernadette_Abraham]

@yasminatassi thank you for sharing. It seems like you’ve been under the care and guidance of a knowledgeable practitioner. I’m assuming the handwritten numbers on the OAT test were your “before” results, which would show great progress across the board. Given the genetic variants, methyl protect was and is a good idea to continue at the dosage recommended on the bottle since genetically speaking, there is a greater demand for B6, B9 and B12. This supports methylation and detoxification, which is also compromised genetically with the MTHFR & COMT mutation.

You mentioned that chelation was a failed attempt, but do you know if heavy metals are still a concern? Have you retested?

Given the high CRP and oxidative stress, antioxidants are definitely in order! Things like astaxanthin, glutathione, melatonin and PQQ all have incredible antioxidant effects to help neutralize free radicals.

And yes, if high stress is part of the picture, this very well can be a major source of oxidative stress! Nervous system regulation is a priority. As I mentioned previously, if the body is under stress, it will prioritize cortisol production, which leads to less resources for making progesterone. And progesterone is critical for sustaining pregnancy. The solution therefore is to reduce stress. Easier said than done, I know. But it’s important to help your body feel safe on a daily basis.

I would highly encourage you to watch the last session we had with Dr. G. Although the focus was on cancer, nervous system regulation is absolutely foundational. He also shares patient success stories around fertility when patients did emotional release sessions. You might want to consider his full body “emotional release” virtual course.

Along the same lines, consider downloading the Human Garage app (it’s pay what you can so you can get it for as little as $1), and doing the Fascial Maneuvers daily. It’s only 15 minutes. This method combines, movement, breathwork, and affirmations to reprogram the brain, and although it’s still new, I have found it to be very calming. This can help your body reset daily.

You can also consider downloading “The Breathing app” by Eddie Stern (it’s free), who was our guest as well. Or download the “Balance” app (first year trial is free). Deep breathing and meditation is underrated, but so powerful.

And of course, daily grounding and getting outside as often as possible. Nature heals & soothes the soul!

[yasminatassi]

Thank you very much B for all this.

The nervous system info was very interesting and I watched the full recording, definitely something that I need to start implementing. My feeling about all this is that it was a a result of intense nervous system disregulation that been going on for at least a year, alongside the fact that I wasn’t pooping or empting my bowels every day, very hard stool . Hence toxins were just circulating around. Things on the front are much better now I think cos pf the prebiotics I am taking. Hopefully they will stay that way.

And yes I have been followed by a knowledgeable practitioner for years now although sometime I do have to push her to do some further testing For example it was me who insisted that we test my gut after consitently tellling her of hard stool since last summer that was not getting resolved.

Chelation didnt work in a sense that after i think 4 sessions everything ended up on my face with the worse acne ever. We realised that i was being detoxed aggressively without checking if the pipes were empty! It only got resolved when i got pregnant ( successfully ) 3 years ago

I haven’t tested specifically for heavy metals again , she always aaid the hair test wasn’t result accurate amd testing mostly recent exposure and preferred rhe oATS test which gave more info. Would you recommend doing thr OATS test again ?

And just to recap since there was a lot of back and forth and i dont want to get cofused which tests do you think i should do to investigate further or to fix rhe issues?

And can you suggest which brand of rhe antioxidant supplements you were suggesting?

[Bernadette_Abraham]

@yasminatassi the OAT test is great, but it will not tell you if there’s a heavy metal burden. It will however tell you if your body is struggling with detoxification and glutathione production.

To better understand the different ways to test heavy metals in urine, blood, and hair, please watch this lesson from our Heavy Metal Detox Program. Hair testing can show longer-term exposure but doesn’t show what’s stored in the body, so this can be a helpful test to see if you’re exposed to heavy metals over the past few months.

As requested, I’ve compiled my previous suggestions from my previous threads below so it’s easier for you.

From a root cause perspective, below are markers to start investigating which can help with trying to conceive again.

• Full thyroid panel: TSH, Total T4, Total T3, Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3, Anti-TPO, Anti-TG (even mild hypothyroidism can increase risk of miscarriage)

• Progesterone levels: Low progesterone is a common contributor to early pregnancy loss (should be tested between day 19-21 once you get a cycle again)

• Blood sugar panel: Fasting insulin, fasting glucose, HbA1C. Insulin resistance and PCOS can affect ovulation and implantation

• Important Nutrients: Vitamin D, RBC magnesium, RBC B12, RBC folate, RBC zinc, vitamin A

• Inflammation markers: hs-CRP or ANA if there are any autoimmune concerns

Additional functional tests to consider that may be helpful but not necessary:

• Hormones: DUTCH Plus (or simply DUTCH Adrenal test to look at cortisol the stress hormone) can help give a snapshot of your overall sex hormone status including cortisol pattern. If cortisol is high or low, this can impact progesterone because the body prioritizes survival over reproduction. Is stress something that might be at play for you?
• A full methylation panel would be recommended. Here’s a sample report of such a panel. Poor methylation can lead to miscarriage or implantation failure, as well as detoxification issues, including hormone & toxin detox.
• Given the toxic world we live in, I always have to ask about heavy metals and mold. You can always fill out our heavy metal assessment questionnaires from our heavy metal detox program to get a general subjective assessment, and/or consider getting a hair analysis to see if there is heavy metal accumulation. Same with mold, you can fill out these forms or get a MyctoTox test.

In terms of brands of antioxidants, I can suggest the following options:

Astaxanthin, glutathione, melatonin and PQQ

Hope this helps.