Unraveling the stigma behind miscarriage: WRAL reporter shares story
It is estimated that one in four pregnancies end in miscarriage, though it remains a topic not often discussed publicly.
After WRAL Durham reporter Sarah Krueger lost three pregnancies in 13 months, she decided to break the silence and share her story.
"The first pregnancy I actually didn’t know I was pregnant until one morning I woke up, it was right after New Year’s in 2020, and I woke up with this searing undeniable pain in my stomach," Krueger said.
Krueger called in sick to work and went to her primary care office, where a urine test showed she was pregnant. Krueger and her husband, Will, had only recently started trying to have a baby.
With the severe pain and positive pregnancy result, Krueger was then sent to Duke Regional Hospital. She discovered it was an ectopic pregnancy, which meant it occurred outside of the uterus. The pregnancy had ruptured, which was causing the extreme pain.
"By that point the pain was so severe, I could scarcely walk. I had emergency surgery," Krueger said. "Upon arriving to the ER I went through what I now know to be 'shock,' where I had great difficulty breathing. I had to be treated for that, too. I was out of work for a couple weeks recovering from the surgery."
In November, Krueger had another miscarriage. She knew she was pregnant but had been informed by her doctor that her first ultrasound showed a low heartbeat.
"The doctor informed us from there that a miscarriage would soon occur. After this one, I felt it was best for me to continue working, to distract myself and stay busy, so I told no one and kept going to work as normal," Krueger said.
In February, Krueger had another miscarriage.
"This time, too, we knew we were pregnant. All day while at work I could tell something was off with me. I felt anxious and like my heart was racing, even when I was just sitting down or driving. I miscarried that evening," Krueger said. "At that point, I decided it would be best for my mental health to take time off. I took a few weeks off, during which time I was able to visit my family, and take a needed break. I posted about my experiences on social media, and received an outpouring of support for which I am still so grateful."
"It just felt like everything caved down on me and just 'how much more can I take?'" Krueger said. "Then, it occurred to me, if I can help other people know that they’re not alone, then I’d like to do my small part to do that."
Krueger and her husband started seeing fertility specialist, Dr. David Walmer, co-founder of Atlantic Reproductive Medicine in Raleigh.
"The estimate is that one couple in six struggles with some aspects of fertility," Walmer said. "We take care of women that have recurrent miscarriages and women who have trouble getting pregnant."
Atlantic Reproductive Medicine co-founder Susannah Copland said infertility struggles can happen to anyone. She went through it herself.
"When people are having trouble building their family, it feels so isolating," Copland said. "Getting pregnant happened quickly but maintaining pregnancies was my concern. I had a child and then didn’t anticipate that there would be any problems. And then went through three losses."
Being in the reproductive field, Copland reached out to reproductive psychology for support moving forward to grow her family.
Copland said that the emotional toll of infertility can cause some people to give up.
"One of the heartbreaking things that we sometimes see is that it’s so hard that people stop trying. So wellness measures is probably the biggest tool that I ask people to put into their fertility toolkit," Copland said.
Krueger and her husband have found strength in each other.
"Whenever I feel down about what I’ve been through, I just look at him, and think like as long as I can have him as my family, then I have a really good family. So as long as we have each other, we’ll be okay," Krueger said.
Sarah and Will do have some good news to share. They are expecting a baby this December.
