Early miscarriage often causes vaginal bleeding and cramping, but symptoms can vary a lot and some losses have no obvious signs at all.
Common early symptoms
- Vaginal bleeding or spotting, which may be light brown discharge or heavier bright-red bleeding with clots, sometimes heavier than a normal period.
- Cramping or pain in the lower abdomen, pelvis, or lower back, which can feel like strong period pains and may get worse over time.
- Passing fluid, clots, or tissue from the vagina, sometimes described as “chunks” or material different from normal period blood.
Other possible signs
- A sudden loss or noticeable decrease of pregnancy symptoms that were previously strong, such as nausea, vomiting, or breast tenderness.
- A gush of clear or pinkish fluid from the vagina, even without much bleeding.
- Fever, feeling unwell, or foul‑smelling discharge can suggest infection (septic miscarriage) and need urgent care.
When it may be “silent”
- Some miscarriages are “missed” or “silent,” where the pregnancy stops developing but there is little or no bleeding or pain; these are often found only on ultrasound.
- Only a scan and/or hormone tests can confirm whether a pregnancy is still progressing or has been lost.
When to seek urgent help
Seek emergency or same‑day medical care if you have:
- Very heavy bleeding (soaking a pad in an hour or less, or passing large clots), severe or one‑sided abdominal pain, shoulder tip pain, dizziness, fainting, or fast heartbeat, as these can indicate severe miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy.
- Fever, chills, or foul‑smelling discharge along with bleeding or pain.
If you think you might be miscarrying or have any of these symptoms in early pregnancy, contact a doctor, midwife, or emergency service right away; getting checked is always safer, and nothing you did or didn’t do is likely to have caused it.
