Why are T1 diabetics 4 times more likely to miscarriage....

[Lilllaura87]

Is this due to people having poor control of their diabetes or something out of a diabetics control?

Looking at pregnancy is so scary as it is, then reading all these horror stories just make it some how seem not worth doing. THEN when you finally think 'Ok, lets give it a try...' you get told a Diabetic is 4 times more likely to miscarry?? Doesn't seem fair at all really....

 

[Catherine4188]

Hello,

I’m no expert on the figures but I’m T1 and was only diagnosed in February when 9 weeks pregnant. I lost the baby and was told it was most probably due to the undiagnosed and untreated diabetes which had cause catastrophic issues with baby. But there is good news. I quickly got my hba1c down from 108 to 50 and was given the green light to try again. We fell pregnant quickly after and we welcomed a very healthy baby boy on 16th December. My hba1c throughout the pregnancy was below 40 and even 32 at the end.

So from my POV I think control is a major factor is miscarriage for us T1s and keeping your hba1c very low too to prevent abnormalities.

Just focus on your diabetes control and then it’s down to nature. I know that’s easier said than done, but it’s all you can do. Take care and I wish you all the best for your family plans. Xx

 

[NicoleC1971]

I remember being really excited to be pregnant with my 1st child only to be faced with the GP's reaction which was rather negative . I am type 1 and have had 3 successful pregnancies (15, 12 and 9 years old) with no miscarriages. Do bear in mind that these are statistics and not and individual prognosis of risk. I do not know if those figures pertain to type 1 or type 2s either and what other associated conditions might impact upon the statistic.
A type 1 pregnancy can be a bit scary because it can be quite medicalised with everyone reminding you how critical it is etc. to have very good bgs etc. but there is no reason why you can't do it with good planning and support. On the plus plus side you will get plenty of scans and checks that a normal woman would not and this can be reassuring. Its a big step though so its perfectly natural to fret about what might go wrong even if you're not diabetic too.

 

[EllieM]

I suspect the T1 statisitics are heavily skewed by T1s with very poor control, who get pregnant accidentally before they've taken control of their diabetes. Personally I had 2 T1 pregnancies, with 2 healthy babies, now healthy (non-diabetic) adults. My mother did have one miscarriage/still-born baby, but that was because she got pregnant too soon after a very late (she almost died) T1 diagnosis. I find it hard to believe that you're at much greater risk if you're watching your diabetic control from the start.

But please don't feel guilty if you do have a miscarriage: it's more common than people think, particularly in the first 3 months, and is very unlikely to be because of anything you have or haven't done diabetic wise (well, assuming you're trying to keep a reasonable balance). And no, that balance doesn't have to be "perfect"?.
Good luck.

 

[Lilllaura87]

Thank you all so much for your replies I’m not your perfect diabetic but I do try. It’s so very hard when you see all the pregnant women just getting on with their normal routine and knowing if it happens to you, it would be such a regimented procedure. Did any of you actually enjoy parts of your pregnancy? Xx

 

[Kateyo]

Hi @Lilllaura87 I agree with what everyone else has said you can have a perfectly healthy pregnancy with T1 as long as you are closely monitoring your bs and looking after yourself. What I would suggest is that you ask to be referred to your local pre-pregnancy clinic, I found that to be really helpful in preparing my body for a pregnancy with T1. Also make sure you take the higher dose folic acid, your GP can prescribe it. Looking back pregnancy was worrying at times and stressful when there was an out of range bs but I can honestly say it was one of the happiest times of my life so far at the same time. I actually wished I’d let myself enjoy it more when we were struggling to conceive again. Now I’m pregnant second time round so it can’t have been that bad! Ask to be referred to pre pregnancy clinic and speak to the consultant or DSN there because while there are risks that we need to be aware of it is totally achievable with lots and lots of testing, monitoring and more testing. It’s hard work but worth it!

 

[kitty55]

Thank you all so much for your replies I’m not your perfect diabetic but I do try. It’s so very hard when you see all the pregnant women just getting on with their normal routine and knowing if it happens to you, it would be such a regimented procedure. Did any of you actually enjoy parts of your pregnancy? Xx

I totally enjoyed it - every single second of it . I can't wait for it to happen again! xx

 

[Apples1986]

Hi, I was recently diagnosed with type 1 on the 27th November. Fortunately I took myself into the doctors advice I knew something wasn’t right - thank god I did as my levels were a little bit high. 29 on the blood sugars and I was told 6.0 on keytones but that seems crazy high. They were quite baffled at the hospital that I had been doing everything as normal, or trying to! I had all the talks in hospital about not having kids until I had sorted out my levels, it was really tough to hear as we had been off the pill for about 4 months getting ready to try. I was hit with all the negative reasons as to why I shouldn’t which I was completely onboard with and made the decision to go back on the pill. Turns out my body had other ideas as at the time of going into hospital I was 3 weeks pregnant, just didn’t know it.

I am currently 11 weeks and going for my 2nd scan on Tuesday. It isn’t incredibly daunting, especially when you hear the statistics but it is so common, turns out that quite a few people (that don’t have diabetes) have had them. Fate works in mysterious ways! I am trying to stay positive but I do worry about the damage that may have been caused in the early few weeks. I am doing much better now although I am trying to master carb counting and I have a few blips where my body doesn’t react how I think it will. The hypos in the first trimester have also been insane!

Good luck to anyone else out there trying / in the same boat. Xx