Interstitial Cystitis

[ICJP]

Can anyone share their experience with IC and pregnancy? This past Spring my doctor and I decided to lower my dose of Elmiron since I was responding so well, but it caused a major relapse. I was back to visiting the bathroom every half hour and could barely make it through a day of work. I'm on a higher dose of Elmiron now plus a mild anti-depressant (I had heard it was a treatment option and I'm responding pretty well to it). I'm almost back to where I was last Spring, but I'm worried about what will happen if we decrease my medication again. I'm 24 and not planning a pregnancy in the near future, but would like to know if it's still an option in my life. I know that I couldn't take these drugs if I were pregnant, and I'm worried that my IC may rule out the possibility of pregnancy. It was hard enough getting through the day when I wasn't diagnosed yet and not being treated, and I can't image what it would be like to have those symptoms coupled with a baby sitting on top of my bladder. Can anyone offer any advice or just their own experience?

[sunnybunny]

I was diagnosed with IC in 1997. My doctor had me stop all meds. three months before trying to conceive. My IC symptoms improved with both of my pregnancys and I was in remission for about 2 years after each birth.My doctor says pregnacy hormones do different things for different people! Don't let this disease destroy your hope of a future family.

[karen10]

I don't have any personal experience, but I work with IC patients and I have heard more positive than negative about the effects of pregnancy on IC. Something to do with the hormones that are produced during pregnancy in addition to our usual ones! I would suggest looking for other message boards as well!

[chiyaki-chan]

I hope that what I use will help you. I know that it's safe to use whilst pregnant, the website that I order it from has stories about it being used by new born babies, small animals, very young children and a wide age range of adults. It says that there are no known side effects or interactions with other drugs. Check it out, it's called 'Waterfall D-Mannose', it's a natural sugar that simply flushes the bacteria out of your body when you urinate.

I really hope that you get well from it.

Hugs,

Chiyaki.

[katelee]

Sorry I don't know how it is with pregnancy but like you I'm in my 20's. I didn't react well with
Elmiron I had a worse time with Elmiron than with my terrible frequency every hour roughly sometimes more or less depending on diet or cold weather, etc. I've had this for about 8 yrs. but
only about 2 years ago got diagnosed. I have no sex life whatsoever because of the pain. If I relax while trying to get intimate with someone I am afraid I'd let my darn pee out. I don't know if that sounds strange. I've had the bladder hydrodistension thing done couple times with no help except the first time just to diagnose me, the doctor took pictures of my bladder wall and it looked inflamed.
Anyway going back to the Elmiron thing it made me so sick pukey all the time I couldn't go to work.
Not to mention at work I'm sure people know I've got a problem going to the bathroom so much. Okay
so it made me sick also I lost some hair which the doctor's nurse said don't worry when you stop taking
this medicine you hair will grow back. It's been over a year and my hair still didn't grow back.
Pretty embarrassing considering it's in patches. I'm happy for you Elmiron is atleast helping you.
I hope medical science will come out with something that will help me too. I feel I have no life,
I can't really go out unless I know where the bathrooms are, how long it's going to take at that destination, trying to find someone to share my life with that can except this. I JUST WANT TO LIVE
MY LIFE,HOW DO ALL OF YOU NOT JUST GIVE UP.

[chiyaki-chan]

It's important not to give up, there's always something, you just need to find it. As you'll have guessed if you've read any of my other posts, I'm a huge fan of the Waterfall D-Mannose, which is a natural bladder health product. I'm not a fan of standard issue anti-biotics since the list of side effects are huge and often permanently damaging. I still frequently get pains that were caused by anti-biotics. Always try to exhaust what natural products have to offer before you go onto anything else, a lot of the time they work far better and won't break you, the pharmacy route should always be a last resort.

Chiyaki x