pre-pregnancy questions and concerns...

[pdjenna]

Hi,

Just looking for some advice or to hear from anyone who has been/going through what i am...

quite bit of history - i am 29, married and been on animas pump for 2 years, i have been using dexcom CGM sensors since feb and LOVE them, last results in at 6.7% (sorry still deal in old money) i work as a theatre nurse (busy!) and play a lot of competitve sport (stresses out consultant). I have been married 6 years and started trying for family last sept. No joy yet tho. I take levothyroxine and seem to produce a huge amount of protein since late teens - was on irbesartan but been switched to methyldopa - it doesnt seem to protect my kidneys as well but have lovely low bp now! i live in Orkney, our clinics are ran through telemedicine links to aberdeen, and my pregnancy/birth would be looked after and in Aberdeen.

things i am concerned about are - is there alternatives to methyldopa that can help kidney/protein that anyone can recommend; labour - is it normal to be induced? or is it a case of better control more likely they will let you continue to a "normal" labour?? can i wear pump and sensors for labour? does being diabetic make it harder to conceive? i really dont want to start "googling" these types of things!

Thanks, Jenna

 

[Mrsass]

Hi,


things i am concerned about are - is there alternatives to methyldopa that can help kidney/protein that anyone can recommend; labour - is it normal to be induced? or is it a case of better control more likely they will let you continue to a "normal" labour?? can i wear pump and sensors for labour? does being diabetic make it harder to conceive? i really dont want to start "googling" these types of things!

Thanks, Jenna

Hey Jenna! Whilst I am not pregnant or have children I am planning a family myself, I can't help with any of the protein/kidney Q's

but from what I know about pregnancy/labour from my own research so far, I don't think because your diabetic you have to be induced into labour (could be wrong but I've not seen many of the girls on here saying they had to be)

Staying on your pump during labour I think depends on you and your midwives discussion and what is best at the time of labour, how well things are going with control etc.

I don't believe being diabetic actually makes it harder to conceive I've not read anything saying this.

I've read a lot of the posts on here from girls that have children, are currently pregnant, or are in our position of planning and everyone is really helpful and supportive so whenever you have any questions get them on here, my answers are only what I know myself and I'm still learning so may be wrong with some of them but I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong. I also googled a lot of things but only read what was on proper medical web sites and were helpful, didn't read any horror stories as I think you hear them from people that don't have the right facts quite often.

Hope I've been a little helpful and sorry for rambling, I'm sure some of the other girls will be along soon to help out too

Abbie xx

 

[JessP]

Hi Jenna,
Firstly well done for getting your hba1c down to 6.7. That's great. I'll try to answer some of your questions but don't think I'll get them all I'm afraid. About me, I'm a type 1 on Medtronic pump and cgms, last hba1c 5.4 and currently 17weeks.

Re methyl dopa, whilst this may not protect your kidneys it is safe for pregnancy which is why I imagine they put you on it? Have you seen a renal consultant at all if you've got that level of protein in your urine?

Re conception: the diabetes does not make it more difficult to conceive however other complications such as thyroid problems, renal problems may affect things but if you have a nice regular cycle then that shouldn't be an issue.

During pregnancy they will need to keep a very close eye on you, especially with the kidney issue and may recommend aspirin from 12 weeks which I'm taking and the idea is the reduce the risk of pre-eclampsia which diabetes is a big risk factor as the renal problems.

Re induction of labour: it is recommended that we are induced at 38 weeks providing no other complications. The reason for this is that the risk of still birth goes up after this time. Some women are willing too take the risk but personally I won't be at that point!

There are some stories of people using their pump during labour, I can't see any reason not to do this and will certainly be pushing for it myself! When your pregnant maybe negotiate this with your obstetrician and diabetes docs.

Anyway, I hope this is helpful. Let me know if you have any other questions. Whilst you might not want to google this forum is really helpful.

Good luck!
Jess x


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[pdjenna]

Thanks for your replies! and congratulations Jess... sorry for the personal question but did it take you long to get pregnant? Thanks for saying about the aspirin - pre eclampsia is a worry for me as my mother had it. re labour - I am in agreement - i wouldnt take the risk either, just heard some horror labour stories about girls who have been induced and the last thing i would want is an emergency section!! but i am jumping way ahead of myself here lol!

 

[jade88]

Hi pdjenna never too early to start planning! It's a long process! My partner and I decided we wanted to have a baby 6 months ago and still in the planning process! xxx

 

[DutchgirlT2]

Hi,

I'm affraid i can't help you with your kidney questions but i can tell you something about the preparation stage.
Because i am obese (according to the BMI scale) I'm 100 kilo's now they said to me that it will be difficult to get pregnant.
Especially because of my T2 they said that the combination of the two could give problems.
Keep in mind that my former med team said this to me so i wasn't really motivated by them .

Having changed med team and starting with insuline i tried to bring my HbA1c to the safe value (under 7)
Had a lot of stress during that stage but when we had the green light, all stress disappeared.
The doctor that i now have states that it's really important not to have to much stress in your life because that's what can
block a possible pregnancy. So if you just keep trying to get good BG's and HbA1c's you're doing half the work right.
But if you have to much stress in your life, your body will react to that and can block a possible pregnancy.
I tried a mindfulness course to get the stress out of my body and it certainly works.
Nevertheless you need a good med team that supports you and give you the confidence to do this!

I hope i can help you with this information. I'm still learning everyday and am 4 weeks pregnant now.
From the preparation stage until conceiving it took us 4 months.
Don't give up and if you want more info, please let me know!

Greetings Annemarie