Planning on Getting Pregnant

i know, dnt know if getting preg is a good choice! Dnt know when this UC will give us some peace so that we could also enjoy our family. I know what u must be going through, we r sailing in same boat - we want to have baby but at the same time scared not to cause health problems to the little one with the medication we r on + the hereditary stuff. Even i used to think - m i being selfish in getting baby to this world for our happiness - knowing the baby might have increased risk of getting this disease from me :-( i m worried... really upset! Dnt know what to do!

Both my kids ended up with health problems that neither me nor my husband could know we would pass on. It is a bit of leap of faith for every single set of parents who choose to have children.

I don't know about any of you, but ...

I Have Not Once Wished I'd Never Been Born Just Because I Have Ulcerated Colits.

yes!! u r right - let's look at the happy side :) and forget the worries - "whatever will be, will be" - let's not waste time thinking all that

Like my hubby said, in 20 years, they'll probably be able to turn off the u/c gene anyway with gene therapy technology!
They can already do that with some genes in mice. Give 'em 20 yrs (the time it usually takes for u/c to show up) and they'll be able to stop it!

I was on pred, asacol & sucralfate for my pregnancy. All of which I had multiple Dr.s say were SAFE during pregnancy. I'd tell the Dr.'s what I was on, and they'd wave their hands like no big deal. My baby is fine!

I did see my regular OB, but she also referred me to a perinatologist ( a high risk Dr.) They monitored the growth of my baby. B/c they said babies born to people with IBD can be smaller, but babies born while mommy was on steroids can be bigger. I guess that averaged her out :) LOL

Chasblah, Thank you very much!!! I feel much better now, we need more of these replies instead of "Don't have baby, they will be sick! " :(

WishfulMA said...
I am so confused because I went to a high risk OB and she said that it is SAFE to take 6MP & asacol during pregnancy. She said she has delivered many many babies who's moms were on 6MP. I asked why it was a category D and she said because there is not a lot of data.

My GI spoke to a specialist about this and he told her 6MP can be given in very high dosages for other diseases like leukemia, etc.  He said the dosages they give for those reasons (>100 mg)  are typically much higher than that given for UC and the amount you'd typically take for UC is not substantial enough to warrant concern.   I was on 25 mg, and could never see any benefit from it, even when I was on more, so I stopped taking it after the first trimester. 

superdeejayanna, GOOD LUCK TO YOU!!! Who is PCP?

Just saw this thread. Wanted to say good luck to Superdeejay. Hope you stay in remission postpartum too.

To everyone else who is contemplating getting pregnant and having to be on medication while pregnant, it's not an easy decision, but keep talking to GIs, OBs, and high-risk OBs until you find ones you like, trust, and are competent. It's easy to get conflicting answers, but you have to make the decision that is right for you, your UC, and your baby.

I am 20yrs old and my partner and I have decided to have children my only concern is am I too young and should I wait.

Diagnosed Aggressive U/C 2008

Steroid dependant U/C for nearly 2 1/2 years. Now on weekly Methotraxate Inj.

In remission for nearly 1 yr.

I know that my U/C responds well to Prednisone and I could switch to that I just wanted to know if its too early.

I haven't read rest of the 43 posts but here are my 2 cents. I have NO intention of scaring you or something, I am putting facts with me, you decide how you want to take them.

My 3 year old son is high functioning autistic. He has decent language delay. When I was researching about autism, I came across research that indicated a connection between UC parents and kids with autism. I asked this question on this BB as well but the response was negative. As on today, the research on autism is very limited so there is NO definitive link established between IBD and Autism but if I may suggest, read around a bit about body detox (we take loads of drugs, I was taking too when my wife conceived) and prepare your body for new life. The least you could do is, eat loads of healthy foods only for 6 months or so with exercise or similar so that body naturally detoxifies itself. Start multivitamin at least 2 months before actually you plan to. I admit that these suggestions are super vague but there is no drug that does this job. Talk to the docs (most likely this will be brushed aside) for any suggestions.

Finally, good luck.