Drinking alcohol whilst TTC

[Anais]

Just wondering if drinking alcohol is a bad thing whilst trying to conceive? I probably had a bottle of so of champagne last night and probably do this every other weekend (I know I need rehab lol).

Of course I would stop the second I get a BFP but can't help but wonder if alcohol can cause other problems and possibly even dry up cervical mucus (dehydration). Am I over thinking this? After all, a lot of women get 'knocked up' whilst drinking!

 

[keekeesaurus]

You have expensive taste Anais . I dunno, there are so many things you're 'advised' to avoid whilst TTC - alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine, yada yada - but I see women all the time who don't follow this advice who are pg so who knows? I think it's good to be healthy, certainly (not that I particularly follow this ) but personally I do have a wee drink now and again, especially when it's AF. TTC is so stressful that you've got to let go now and again.

 

[Miss_C]

honestly why risk it - I abstained from just about everything for the last 2 years - I would however have a glass or two of red when the witch rocked up.

 

[NorthStar]

9 months of pregnancy is long enough to go without a drink, and the more you to do to put your life on hold whilst TTC the more you add to the stress and pressure on yourself.

It is likely to be 12 months of TTC, maybe more at our age, so I think all things in moderation, a few drinks is fine, no real need to put your life on hold.

 

[sadie]

I continued to have wine until a day after my IUI and then a week later, I had just a glass at a holiday dinner (already conceived at that point). Both sisters drank until they found out about their BFPs too, mainly just wine, tho.

 

[Jo.t]

I used to have a couple of glasses of wine most evenings but since ttc I just have a few at the weekend !

I will still drink until I get my BFP !

I am mostly drinking decaf coffee & made a few other changes but as ive been ttc for 14 cycles now & refuse to put my life on hold !

 

[Bluebell bun]

I have a glass or two of wine if I am out. Just figure I could have been abstinent for 11 months by now and still no sniff of being pregnant so what the heck! It's not as though I am out getting drunk!

 

[hockey24]

My doctor said in moderation. A glass of wine now and again is ok.

I personally will not drink anything after ovulation until AF arrives - just in case. Otherwise, I will have a few glasses during AF and the first week.

 

[NorthStar]

The alcohol does totally stuff up your chart though, temps rocket from a few drinks, so it does wreck the data

 

[MrsRH]

My doctor said in moderation. A glass of wine now and again is ok.

I personally will not drink anything after ovulation until AF arrives - just in case. Otherwise, I will have a few glasses during AF and the first week.[/QUOTE]

That's me too! And I drink within the safe limits so no binging when I do drink


x

 

[froliky2011]

I am waiting for AF and am having a glass of non-alcholic cabernet. It's good. I had a couple of glasses during the 2WW but made sure it was with food and water. Now, it's non-alcholic until I get a verdict of BFP or AF.

 

[Miss_C]

I don't understand how abstaining from things like caffeine or alcohol is putting your life on hold. Surely it is worth doing everything as healthily as possible when TTC at "advanced maternal age". Is it that much of a sacrifice. I agree the odd glass now and then doesn't hurt and may probably help with a little bit of relaxation but I still only ever have a glass when the witch is here. Everythign about having children is about being selfless and sacrificing some things for others. To me it is not a sacrifice. I could not live with myself if I was wondering IF I had done this or IF I had done that would it have been or be any different.

TTC requires certain sacrifices or "compromises", when you are pregnant this needs to be done too, soft cheeses, fresh prawns etc etc then when breastfeeding what you put into your body also has to be considered.

I don't believe doing ALL you can in order to achieve a healthy pregnancy and a healthy take home baby at the end of it is putting your life on hold. Saying "other" people smoke crack, drink alcohol or don't even try to get pregnant but all do is just irrelevant to me. It's what I do and how I am able to live with my choices and decisions that matter. I never try and "justify" doing something that is potentially not good for ttc, the baby or myself etc etc. If I do it, I do it and it was my choice. But to judge another for their choice is wrong and to come on here and seek justification for that choice is also wrong in my book.

Make your decision based on knowledge, facts and what your choice is, not what someone else says they did or didn't do.

 

[Anais]

Thanks girls. I really need to curb my drinking & I agree that it's best to drink in moderation. This is the start of a the new me

 

[Gingersnaps]

I try to stick to tea instead of coffee after O. I read an article recently, that said caffine can have an effect on your tubes and inhibit the egg traveling, it softens them or some such.
As for alcohol, I try to have very little even during AF as your eggs are in an important developmental stage for three months and I want the best eggies possible I suppose the older we get the more risk of a sub par egg to begin with so want to be extra careful.

 

[sumatwsimit]

i'm totally decaf now and have been for a number of months. putting the ttc aside, i feel it has helped me get over my headaches and sluggish feeling on a morning. it's not a hardship for me, and if you get a good decaf you don't know the difference even if i wasn't ttc i'd be decaf now ( this includes fizzy drinks too like coke)

wine now then, i love my wine but again i have kept away from it. when af arrives , i have a few and then it's back to being serious with the stuff again. it's o.k. hubby let's me have a 'taste' and a sniff from his glass - he's a generous soul when i spoke to the fertility doc the other week he said a casual glass once or twice a week is o.k. and not to stress about it. he says the worry to do things perfectly can have more of a detrimental affect when ttc i.e. causes high stress.

 

[Mindy_mini]

I wasn't a massive drinker when ttc number two as dd never understood please play quietly - mummy's hung over! But I would have a glass of wine a couple of nights a week so I'd have that during the first two weeks of cycle then after ov I'd maybe have one glass if we went out to a social event but didn't have the evening glasses of wine.

I'd say drinking a bottle of champers every other weekend is a bit out and would say cut it down but I wouldn't say give up totally as you don't know how long you're going to be ttc if that makes sense

 

[dachsundmom]

As an FYI, my doc said that the process and chemicals used to decaffeinate drinks is worse than the actual caffeine itself...lol...never easy.

In the end, do what feels right to you.

 

[NorthStar]

There is no scientific data which has ever proven caffeine to be a problem, the Swedish study often quoted for that was conducted over a sample size of 45 women already experiencing fertility problems and undergoing IVF, so it's a flawed data set and also too small to draw a meaningful conclusion.

But if dropping caffeine makes you feel better, why not.

 

[Miss_C]

As an FYI, my doc said that the process and chemicals used to decaffeinate drinks is worse than the actual caffeine itself...lol...never easy.

In the end, do what feels right to you.

which is precisely why I use the swiss water decaf - super expensive but at 1 maybe 2 cups a day no real budget buster as it then lasts a whole while

 

[sumatwsimit]

miss_c - i've got a q. for you, you might know this...is organic coffee chemical free too? i just assumed it would be

it's good that certain coffee chains are using the swiss water method, i love caffe nero, there's one just close to where i live, their decaf is free of chemicals and i love the taste. i'm not certain but i don't think starbucks could be trusted on that for that though!?

blimey, it's so confusing what it suggested we should or shouldn't be doing. i agree with dmom, in the end do what feels right. if we went over everything with a fine tooth comb, we'd drive ourselves mad