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36 WEEKS PREGNANT AND JUST STARTED A FLARE

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 5/2/2010 11:41 PM (GMT 0)
Hello everyone ,

I am freaking out! Well quick background, I was diagnosed with UC at 17 years of age, been dealing with flares once or twice a year. I am currently pregnant, I was on 6mp but there wasn't to much research in re: to pregnant women, with this particular drug, so I chose not to take it. In the beginning of my pregnancy, I had a flare for the first 3 months, took prednisone and recovered pretty quickly and have been off since. As for my maintenance medication I am on two pills of Lialda daily. A few days ago I started to notice that I am having a minor flare, and my MD put me on 30mg, and today was my first dose. I am just freaking out because I am worried about the baby and breastfeeding. Although I understand that he is getting it through my blood now, but I just wanted to be "clean" when I breastfeed and of course I didnt want to be on any medications at all! :( I dont know. If anyone can give me some advice I think it would really help me relax a little...


Thank you

Innessa Dan rolleyes
Posted 5/3/2010 12:14 AM (GMT 0)
I was on prednisone throught out my pregnancy due to a flare i started at about 20 weeks. My son is healthy and was born 38 weeks. I also took my 6mp up until about 30 weeks pregnant but then my liver enzymes started to elevate and they took me off. All went back to normal post preg. except that i flared 3 weeks post part and have been trying to get it under control since.
Posted 5/3/2010 12:17 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you!!
Posted 5/3/2010 2:00 AM (GMT 0)
Innessa,  Did your doctor not recommend any rectal meds to try to control the flare if it only just started?
Posted 5/3/2010 4:00 AM (GMT 0)
I flared during both my pregnancies and had a hard time getting out of it after birth, so I say nip this flare in the bud. Take the prednisone and do the rectal meds and everything else they throw at you.
And don't get hung up on the breastfeeding thing, like I did, and lose sight of what is really important--a healthy baby and a healthy MOMMA. I stopped taking my imuran to breastfeed my first and it was (predictably) a bad decision for us both.
Good luck and hang in there!
Amy
Posted 5/3/2010 1:21 PM (GMT 0)
i breastfed my son for 6 months on salofalk tablets and supps. It is safe and even though I didnt feel totally OK with taking the meds while bfing I knew I had tostay healthy. I am in flare now though having a scope this week.
Good luck, I agree with AmyWaffle, breastfeeding is important, but trust me, if you dont feel well it will make everything sooooo difficult with a new born.
Posted 5/3/2010 5:38 PM (GMT 0)
I am so sorry - I know that has to be scary! I am 23 weeks pregnant and have been in a mild flare since about 8 weeks I think. I have really good weeks then will have a week where I see blood. Overall my symptoms have been mild and I have felt well but I also worry about breastfeeding and medications. I would visit with both your GI and OB/GYN about breastfeeding while on pred. I don't know much about that at all. I know I will have to decide when to start Imuran after I give birth. My GI does not recommend breastfeeding while on it because he does not feel there are not enough studies on the issue to make an informed decision. He and I both think I will go into a big flare at some point after giving birth (based on my past and on the fact that I have been in and out of a minor one during the pregnancy). My thoughts right now are that I will likely start the Imuran as soon as possible after giving birth and stop breastfeeding at that time. I agree with some of the other posters that a happy and healthy mom is as important (if not more important) than breastfeeding. Best of luck to you!
Posted 5/3/2010 9:00 PM (GMT 0)
thank you everyone... i think i feel a little better.. good luck to all of you and may G-D bless you and your loved ones.
Posted 5/3/2010 9:15 PM (GMT 0)
My heart aches to hear your story, because I was right there with both my babies!!  I flared at 6 weeks with my first because I went off all meds thinking I was FINE and not wanting my baby to have the meds.  Bad choice!  Then with both of my kiddos I flared really badly when they were newborns for a few months.  It is the hardest thing in the world dealing with a newborn AND a flare, so you really really really want to get back under control before you give birth.  Listen to your docs about meds and what is safe and isn't safe, but please take your meds!  I BFed both babies on Asacol(same thing as Lialda) and Mesalamine enemas and they are as healthy as horses(now 4 and 18 months).  Take care of yourself, otherwise you can't take care of your baby.  Hang in there.  I know the emotions your going through, but I can tell you you will get through it!!  Good luck with your little one and congrats!

Posted 5/3/2010 10:26 PM (GMT 0)
I am also flaring and pregnant (19 weeks). With hindsight I wish I hadn't come off azathioprine because I'm clearly not great at maintaining remission without it. I'd be pretty relaxed about taking steroids at this late stage in your pregnancy... your baby is fully formed and ready to come out as it is so you can't do too much to harm it. I've found enemas (Salofalk) to be absolute lifesavers through all of this because the inflammation seems to be confined to the end of the colon (I get bleeding but no D).

I personally think it is far more important for you to be well as a mother than it is to breastfeed. There is a huge marketing campaign around breastfeeding (in the UK at least), but whether you do it or not isn't the most critical decision you'll make for your baby. I've read all the medical evidence (I'm a statistician and know various academics who have worked on the breastfeeding evidence) and breastfeeding is undoubtably positive for a baby, but the effect size is tiny relative to everything else you can do/fail to do for your child. The biggest health benefit I've given my baby is marrying a man with no family history of auto-immune/inflammatory diseases, unlike mine!!!!

I've decided I'm not going to breastfeed, regardless of the cocktail of drugs that I happen to be on when I get to 40 weeks. The worry of whether or not I'll be able to breastfeed was just making me really depressed and stressed, which definitely isn't good for the baby. It seems much healthier for me to just decide that I won't do it, and then to concentrate on getting myself well. I'm thinking about going back onto AZA/6MP in the last month or so of the pregnancy to try to avoid the post-pregnancy flare that so many people get. There are a number of reports of problems with breastfeeding on Asacol and other mesalazines so even if I'm not on immuno-suppressants or steroids it just doesn't feel worth the risk to me. However, this is a very personal decision and I understand that many other women would prefer to try to breastfeed and just wait and see if the baby reacted badly.

Good luck with everything and look after yourself!
Posted 5/3/2010 11:09 PM (GMT 0)

beckyinlondon said...
(There are a number of reports of problems with breastfeeding on Asacol and other mesalazines so even if I'm not on immuno-suppressants or steroids it just doesn't feel worth the risk to me. )

 

Totally agree that everyone has the choice to bf or not and that a child who is not BFed(my husband wasn't) is not going to have any major issues because of it, but I do want to be sure the facts are correct in case women on here are trying to decide for themselves.   I go to Dr. Uma Mahadaven in UCSF and she is involved with many many studies(I was part of just two of them) in the US around women and UC.  She informed me that the only possible issue for the baby while taking Asacol/mesalazines is the baby may get diarrhea from the very small amount of medication in the mother's breastmilk.  She said all the studies show there have been no harm to the babies and if D develops to just stop breastfeeding.  I was lucky that both my children had NO issues with the medication as I had no choice but to BF.  They both had protein sensitivies to dairy and soy and could not break down the proteins.  I had to remove them completely from my system and the only food they could get for the first 6 months was my milk as everything else caused severe acid reflux, gas, and very upset tummies, along with a bad rash.  Both my kids are 100% fine now and have absolutlely no allergy to dairy or soy, but if I hadn't bfed things would have not been happy for the first year of their lives. 

Just wanted to share my story, as I know what a tough decision it is whether or not to BF on medication.

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