Wednesday, April 30, 2008
I was diagnosed with RA a year ago. I'm going to be getting married soon and I do want children. I was wondering what the risks of having children are. Can someone please help?
Is it safe to have children?
Alternative for Prednisone?
5/ 6/08 4:32pm
Hi Betsy,
I have had RA for the past 10 years and everyday is a struggle. The greatest time was when I was pregnant with my third and last child who is now 4 1/2. All I can say is make sure you first check with your doctor and he will probably take you off any medications that you are not supposed to be on when getting pregnant. At the time, I was on Metho, Enbrel, and prednisone. You have to have these meds out of your system before even becoming pregnant. Make sure you are taking that folic acid everyday. I'll tell you one thing, though, it was absolutely wonderful being pregnant. My doctor even confirmed that it's the best time for people with RA because it goes into remission throughout the pregnancy because of all the extras your body is producing for you and your child. Just be careful and listen to your body after you have your angel. As much as it tore me apart, within the first 3 months, I had to stop nursing my son because the RA came back with a vengence and I had to get back on my medication. I'm not trying to scare you, just trying to help. I'll pray for you and hope all goes well.
Maria
By Betsy ann— Last Modified: 12/20/10, First Published: 04/30/08
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I am not a doctor, but I do know a little about this. If you were only diagnosed a year ago, this may be a great time to to get pregnant. Of courst it is something that you should definitely discuss with your rheumatologist first because or medications and risks. From the many people that I have talked to that have been pregnant and had RA, I have heard that it can cause a temporary remission. In fact I have even heard people say that they wish they could be pregnant all the time because they had so much relief from their RA. That being said, unfortunately it is different for everyone. I have also heard that people have had bad flares shortly after as it was in my case. If you are currently on methotrexate you really need to discuss having kids with your rheumatologist. I can not express that enough. Methotrexate is a highly toxic medication and you may need to be off it for a certain period of time before trying. Like I said before discuss it with your doctor and he can best tell you what he thinks and what it would involve such as stopping some helpful medications. I have found some articles that might be helpful to you in regards to your situation.
http://www.healthcentral.com/rheumatoid-arthritis/c/97/2702/ra/
This is a great article about about a personal experience with RA and pregnancy
http://www.healthcentral.com/rheumatoid-arthritis/c/53/11173/drugs/
And this article talks about pregnancy and certain RA medications.
I hope this helps and wish you the best of luck what ever you may decide. Keep us posted! Good luck and best wishes!
thank you so much your help is greatly appreciated. I've been off methatrexate for a while cause i told my doctor i would be getting married and wanting to start a family. But i will surely talk with her some more before i have a baby. Your information helped me sooo much. thank you!