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Kim, I totally understand where you're coming from and your post really hits home for me too. I too feel like I just CANNOT go through losing another baby and that i don't know if i could try again if i lost this baby. please hang in there though and try not to get so caught up in the nitty gritty of the numbers and what they may or may not mean. i know that's easier said than done, as i obsesss over the numbers myself! but I think i've learned my lesson though after last week. the nurse at my ob's office had me completely freaked out, thinking my progesterone and hcg were both way lower than they "should be". being as scared as i am about the numbers, i truly believed i was going to be facing another miscarriage. when i saw my doctor a few days later, he looked at my numbers (hcg didn't quite double in 2 days) and said they were probably right where they should be given i was only 4.3 weeks pregnant. what i wanted to say (but didn't) was that they should teach their nurses more about what are "normal" numbers and explain that everyone can be different. also hcg "should" double in 2-3 days, so if you are having blood drawn at 2 days (instead of 3) and the numbers are a bit less than double, then perhaps enough time hasn't gone by. and also everyone's numbers are different, as i learned by comparing notes with a pregnant girlfriend of mine. at 4 weeks her hcg was 57 and mine was 88, yet both of us are being told we have good numbers. i think nurses working in ob offices either shouldn't be allowed to disclose numbers from hcg tests, or they need to better educated at interpreting them and discussing with a patient what they mean--and if they don't know they should have the doctor call you. i think what they may not realize is that their patients hang on every word they say about the numbers when delivering the news! as for low progesterone having nothing to do with miscarriage, that is most certainly incorrect. the progesterone hormone is essential in keeping the lining of the uterus intact and not shedding prematurely. obviously the lining of your uterus is essential in pregnancy, so progesterone is extremely important. i had low progesterone (probably due to the fact I only have one ovary) and my ob has me on Prometrium (progesterone supplement) as a precautionary measure. i have heard that low progesterone is not a direct CAUSE of miscarriage, however it *could* be an effect of a pregnancy that isn't doing well. notice i said COULD be--there are other reasons a woman may be low progesterone. i have read extensively on the low progesterone topic and it is a known fact that women with history of miscarriage can sometimes have the reason traced back to being low progesterone and once this is discovered and progesterone supplemented they go on to have normal pregnancies with healthy babies. please hang in there and try to overcome the feeling that your pregnancy is doomed. i know it is hard, we are all scared of the trauma, hurt and failure that is felt when a miscarriage happens. part of taking care of yourself while pregnant includes taking care of yourself emotionally and mentally too, not just physically. try to keep positive thoughts about this baby and know that there are people here supporting you and hoping and praying for you and your baby. thinking good thoughts for you....(:

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