Advice for getting pregnant when currently on 6mp

Hey Jess,

Welcome...I understand your fears and I'm in a similar situation expect my Crohn's has been controlled for 8 years without medication, after taking 6mp for two years.

I am slightly scared about becoming pregnant because of my Crohn's as well because I have the HLBA27 gene that is linked to uvetitis and RA. My fear is that my child will get the gene which is a possiblity and my other fear is that with these autoimmune disorders I understand that my white blood cells tend to attack the good things as my doctor once put it. So I'm scared that the baby will get attacked and lead to a miscarriage...I don't have a clue either. I have a preconception appointment scheduled in two weeks with a high risk OBGYN. So I have been trying to compile a list of questions to ask them.

I think your going down the right track about seeing the right doctors.

I wish you the best and think you joined to right place to help you through the tough questions that most women don't know how we deal with issues.

Savannah

Hi.  Just wanted to share my story with you.  I have a 7 (soon to be 8) yr old son.  I did conceive him about two years after being diagnosed with crohn's.  When I found out I was pregnant I was on 6mp.  When I called to inform my gi I was pregnant he took me off the 6mp and put me on just azulfadine.  My pregnancy was considered "high risk" b/c of the crohn's but thankfully my son was born with no serious health complications.  He was born with a cyst on his neck that had to be surgically removed when he was 6 months old and he also had to have surgery at 18 months b/c he had a hydroseal in his left testicle.  Other than those things he is a healthy little man.  I have asked my doctors is any medications I used during pregnancy would lead to these things and they said no.  Since I've had my son 8yrs ago, I've been in a constant flare.  Especially right after I gave birth.  My health really went down hill.  I was running high fevers and lost about 25 lbs.  Then 4 months after I gave birth I had to have my gallbladder removed.  Then in 2004 I needed to have a small bowel resection due to diseased bowel and was running 105 fever in the hospital.  I was given a temp ileostomy.  3 months later the ileostomy was reveresed.  I was given a clean bill of health.  7 months later I had a scope and disease was right back at the reconnection site.  I was put on 6mp.  Didn't work.  After being on methotrexate, remicade, 6mp, steroids, nothing waws working.  Then finally I had some slight relief.  It was like out of nowhere.  No where near feeling 100 % better but still an improvment.  So my husband and I decided we wanted to try to have another baby.  At this time I was on remicade.  Doctors gave us the go ahead.  Well I got pregnant after only 2 months of trying.  I had an ultrasound done at 5 weeks and another at 6.  Saw the heartbeat and everytthing looked great.  I went in for another ultrasound at my 8 week appt and unfortunately the baby's heart had stopped beating.  I miscarried naturally three weeks later.  I was the most emotional and heartbreaking experience of my life.  My husband thought it was b/c of the remicade.  I don't think it was and neither do my doctors.  They say that the remicade is safer then being pregnant and having a flare.  Now I've just had my section resection two weeks ago and my husband and I are going to try again in a few weeks.  I am going to continue taking the remicade before, during and after my pregnancy.  I think that the remicade is safe to use.  In research it says that the remicade molecule doesn't pass through the placent until the last trimester.  The doctors will advice you to receive your last infusion before then.  I think that after getting as much info from the doctors and making the decision that you're most comfortable with everything will be fine and you will have a healthy and happy baby :)

This is a topic that has been close to my heart for many years now. I know the anxiety you feel about conceiving, all the medications and what is the right thing to do. I wanted to share my journey, just to give you some comfort. I have ulcerative colitis, have been diagnosed with it for over 15 years.

 

We started trying in 2008 for our first baby. Luckily I was in remission and was on Asacolon only. I conceived within 9 months, which now looking back isn’t that long, but at the time it felt like forever.

 

I had a dream pregnancy, with no complications and no flare-ups. Had a very healthy baby boy in 2009, delivered by c-section.  Unfortunately 6 weeks after delivery, I went into a massive flare that even multiple courses of steroids wouldn’t put into remission, so I had to start 6mp. That finally worked and I managed to get into remission. I felt great and was able to enjoy my life with my toddler.

 

In 2011 we decided to start trying for another baby. I came off the 6mp, against my GI’s wishes. My colitis stayed ok, but I had a mini-flare going on that wasn’t too bad, but looking back now, I was just being stubborn. We managed to conceive 3 times in 2011, but sadly lost all the babies very early on in the pregnancy. The doctors couldn’t tell me why I was losing the babies and just blamed bad luck. I  also had a borderline low progesterone levels, which might have caused the miscarriages.

 

I consulted my GI and a highly thought of pediatrician and they both recommended that I go back on 6mp, as clearly I was flaring and my body was fighting the disease. I gave in and started the medication in November 2011.

 

To my utter shock, we  got pregnant again this March. I am on 6mp 50mg daily, Asacolon, progesterone support & baby aspirin to give the pregnancy the best chance. It is still early days, but I am now 14 weeks pregnant and all scans look good so far, so I am keeping my fingers crossed.  The next step is to figure out if one can breastfeed while on 6mp. My research to date shows that it s not advised, so I need to make a decision later on in the pregnancy. Should I come off the 6mp 2 months before birth and breastfeed as long as I can or stay on medication and bottle-feed. But that’s something I will worry when I come to it, my main worry is to carry this baby full term J

 

Apologies for the long story, but I remember searching the net for anyone who had been on 6mp while conceiving or being pregnant and it was hard to come across the information. My advice would be to listen to your GI, if they recommend you staying on 6mp, it’s probably the best thing. If you need to chat, feel free to pm me.

Both of the biologics are fine for pregnancy. There are some issues with one of them (can't remember which one) about breastfeeding within a couple of weeks of the injection.....you can read about all of this at infantrisk.org.

Oh, and pregnancy, delivery and the year after have been fine, no signs ofa flare.

I'm so glad I found this forum... I'm a 24 yr old woman and JUST found out I have Crohn's, even though I've had symptoms for a year (mostly perianal, I'm managing to control other symptoms with my diet somewhat..) And now I'm absolutely FREAKING out. And it's not even about me feeling sorry for myself or the pain and inconvenience. It's because we've been planning to get married and have a baby within the next 2 years, and I'm scared about the side effects of immunosuppressants that I may have to go on, and the increased risk of getting abnormal pap test results.. I think about it all and I think I'm going to have to go on crazy drugs and get a bunch of procedures and surgeries that make me infertile and I've freaked myself out to the point of wanting to try and get pregnant right now!!! But I know that I'm being irrational and crazy, and it's relieving to hear about women who have been dealing with this disease for years and living happy lives and having healthly babies. I'm sorry for my random venting, take care everyone!