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Expecting my first child......

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 5/17/2011 6:33 PM (GMT 0)
Hi all im expecting my first child and although im in remission im worrying about once ive had baby how poorly will i get??

I managed to go into remission so me and my partner decided it would be a good time to try for a baby so here i am 22 weeks pregnant and at the moment im feeling great with no medication however consultant has said he expects me to be quite poorly after ive had the baby he said that i can have steriods to get me well quickly im just worrying about how poorly i may get just wanted a bit of advice from others who have had children as the thought of having a newborn and living in the loo doesnt sound great at the moment!  x

Posted 5/17/2011 6:46 PM (GMT 0)
I wouldn't stress about it unless you have an issue. I have a friend who had active proctitis before getting pregnant and after the birth of her child, she's had very minimal issues with inflammaton. Maybe this will happen to you too.
Posted 5/17/2011 7:30 PM (GMT 0)
A lot of women have a flare after giving birth so, it's a good idea to have a plan of attack with your GI. You may not flare at all, you may flare severely, or you might fall somewhere in between it's really kind of impossible to predict. I was diagnosed after my daughter was born so I assume her birth was the trigger for my UC. But my case was really mild to begin with so I didn't have any trouble really.
Posted 5/18/2011 1:17 AM (GMT 0)
I did flare about 3 months after the births of each of my two children. My son is now 6 months old, and I am currently tapering off pred and feeling much better. When I had my first child, it was much easier to deal with the postpartum flare. It is very stressful and exhausting taking care of a newborn even without the flare, but they do sleep alot. Just not at night and not for long periods of time. But this does allow you to rest throughout the day. Will you be working outside the home? Will you be breastfeeding? Fortuneately, I am home with my kids and breastfeeding. I napped whenever the baby did, and breastfeeding allowed me to lay down and rest with the baby. I made sure to have a place to set the baby in the bathroom and lots of toys/entertainment in there, too. Things were much more complicated with the second child, as I now had a toddler and couldn't nap and rest every time the baby napped or fed. There were many times I was in the bathroom with the baby, the toddler, and the dog! But we all survived. It was horribly stressful at the time, but those sweet little ones are worth it. I hope you continue to have a healthy pregnancy and delivery. You may also be lucky and avoid the postpartum flare. Keep thinking positive, but I agree, have a plan in place with your GI just in case. Good luck.
Posted 5/18/2011 1:38 AM (GMT 0)
I would definitely want to have some enemas on hand, steroid and 5ASA. I always have a closet full of ammunition. I hope that I don't have to use it but you never know. I think everyone with UC should have some tools at their disposal, you never know when things may act up and you want to be able treat at first sign of inflammation. Hopefully you're one of the lucky ones who feel better after the babies birth! Best of luck to you!
Posted 5/18/2011 5:52 PM (GMT 0)
I was in Flare whole my pragnancy, however, it stoped as soon as i had my baby! For the next 6 month I even forgot that I have UC, my GI blames it on the brastfeeding. But after 6 month i was stopping breastfeeding, and it started again. So, everyone is different, but you have to deside with your GI what is best for you IF you gat Flare. Don't stress out, baby can eat formula, but they need healthy happy mommy to take care of them!
Posted 5/18/2011 6:11 PM (GMT 0)
I've had two children both while having UC. With the first there was no issues at all. With the 2nd, I was in a flare when she was conceived but felt great by the 2nd semester. I think the only reason why I flared after delivery is b/c I had to take antibiotics for a post pardum infection. It's too bad your Dr. EXPECTS you to do poorly after delivery! It doesn't have to be. Take probiotics and fish oil and get as much rest as you can you will be just fine. Stay positive. Congrats!
Posted 5/18/2011 6:22 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks all for your messages back, I will be home and hoping to brestfeed so hopefully that can be my rest time =]
Fingers crossed i get a baby that likes sleeping so i can sleep too =]
Before i got pregnant i was in remission so with any luck i can go back on the medication that put me there =]

Thanks again x
Posted 5/18/2011 7:39 PM (GMT 0)
I too am expecting, and though not my first child, this is my first since my UC diagnosis.

I am sad to hear your doc expects you to flare!!! That is really a shame.

That said, there is definitely the possibility, so it is good to be prepared. I need to start putting some serious thought into that as well since I *am* on meds already.

I asked at my last appt about this, and my GI said what they have seen seems to mirror what they see during pregnancy. about a 1/3 of women improve, 1/3 stay the same, and 1/3 get worse. So going into it already feeling good should theoretically increase your chances of staying well post delivery as well.

I am nervous about this also though. I have had 2 c/s, and while my OB is ok with my trying for a VBAC this time, I know there is a possibility for a third c/s (they have the date set already as a backup), and that will likely involve antibiotics and such for me, which could cause problems. But all we can do is be prepared for the worst and hope for the best!!

Congratulations to you, and prayers being sent that your remission continues long after your baby is born!
Posted 5/20/2011 10:55 AM (GMT 0)
Some GI have that theory: in general preganancy hormones are good for puting UC into remission. But after delivery, 1-3 months after, when there is a sudden decrease in the hormones levels, there is higher risk of UC flaring up.
When I got pregnant with my 1st child, I just got Dx with UC. But the whole time I was only on Colazal, Rowansa (Or something similar, I don't remember name) and Casasa suppositories. And we got it under control. When I had my dauhgter, I put Colazal on hold, even though my GI said that it is safe for breasfeeding. And I got a very mild flare up about a month after delivery. I started taking Colazal once agian and we got it into remission not too long afterwards.
With my 2nd pregnancy I was in full remission for a long time, taking Colazal and Casasa ocassionally, becasue my rectum had still some issuess. I stopped even Colazal when I was @4 months pregnant because I had no symptoms at all and was feeling very well. And this time, once again, after deilver I had some symptoms but suppositories made it ok. I stayed out of med up to April this year, when I had major flare up and was put on prednisone.
If I were you, I would just stock up on everything ELSE THAN steroids and try those first. As you can tell from the posts, there is just a higher risk that you could flare up after delivery but it is not for sure, and it can be something very mild and easy to keep under control without steroids.

I hope, you will be the lucky one without any isssues after delivery.
Posted 5/20/2011 1:28 PM (GMT 0)
I would be prepared but not worried. I guess I was in the 1/3 that did well.... I was in my very best health since diagnosis from pregnancy throughout breastfeeding. I had no UC activity until almost 2 years after my kids were born. (My GI wanted me to have 10 kids, he was so excited about how well my UC acted until after my kids were weaned.....!)

Best of luck to you!
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