Lovenox

[Drsamyjohn]

Wondering if anyone has experience with Lovenox injections? I just switched over from Heparin and have questions.
Also would love to hear about pregnancies going well with MTHFR, and what treatments are being used.

My current regimen is Lovenox, Baby Asprin, 4mgs Folic Acid, progesterone, Levothyroxine. Jeez that sounds like alot when I write it.

The new things for me this time around are Lovenox vs Heparin, progesterone, and the levothyroxine.

And according to my doctor all of these treatments are a shot in the dark. They hope it will work, but none are proven. That gives me warm fuzzies for sure.

Would love to connect with others in the same boat.

Best wishes to all,
Amy

 

[dodgercpkl]

Wait, they are giving you levothyroxine as a shot in the dark?! Do you have a higher TSH? Known thyroid problem? Thyroid antibodies? Gestational diabetes or the threat of it?

I don't have a success story yet, but I have homo c677t MTHFR. I've been on Lovenox after confirmed ovulation for a while now. What questions do you have?

Oh and for me, absolutely no folic acid since MTHFR mutations cause us not to break it down well. I bypass it with methylfolate (already broken down). Wishing you a happy healthy pregnancy!

 

[Drsamyjohn]

Wait, they are giving you levothyroxine as a shot in the dark?! Do you have a higher TSH? Known thyroid problem? Thyroid antibodies? Gestational diabetes or the threat of it?

I don't have a success story yet, but I have homo c677t MTHFR. I've been on Lovenox after confirmed ovulation for a while now. What questions do you have?

Oh and for me, absolutely no folic acid since MTHFR mutations cause us not to break it down well. I bypass it with methylfolate (already broken down). Wishing you a happy healthy pregnancy!

Darnit, I should have been more clear, the only thing that IS known is the hypothyroidism. Found that out at 5 weeks with the last miscarriage. Sorry about that.

Now, with the MTHFR and Folic Acid, I have read about not processing folic acid, so why in the world doesn't my doctor know about that?? I will request methylfolate next appt.

Lovenox questions:

Does it burn like crazy? Do you inject the bubble? How bad is the bruising for you?

Thanks and best wishes for you too!

 

[dodgercpkl]

Darnit, I should have been more clear, the only thing that IS known is the hypothyroidism. Found that out at 5 weeks with the last miscarriage. Sorry about that.

Now, with the MTHFR and Folic Acid, I have read about not processing folic acid, so why in the world doesn't my doctor know about that?? I will request methylfolate next appt.

Lovenox questions:

Does it burn like crazy? Do you inject the bubble? How bad is the bruising for you?

Thanks and best wishes for you too!

LOL! That makes more sense for sure. I was trying to picture a dr just toying with thyroid as a shot in the dark thing and I just couldn't imagine that! lol I'm glad they are treating it now though! Did they test your thyroid antibodies too?

As for the methylfolate vs folic acid and why drs don't know... boy I've been asking myself that question for over a year now! My RE told me my homo c677t wasn't a problem because my homocysteine levels were "normal". He said IF I wanted, he'd prescribe me Folgard (lots of extra folic acid). Luckily I have an Endo already on board who is the one who's given me my prescription for Metanx (high dose methylfolate, methylcobalamin (active B12), and P5P (active B6). She's the one who's really understood how to address it.

Honestly I think it's a case of the medical world being slow to catch up. There was a study done years ago that basically said that MTHFR mutations don't affect anything despite multiple other studies that DID and the plain and simple fact that a lot of ladies are dealing with recurrent miscarriage with NO other explanation then MTHFR mutations.

That said, if your dr poopahs it (which to give you a heads up, he very well might), you can make the decision on your own if you so choose. There are prenatals out there that are designed with bio active forms of B vitamins (Thorne Basic Prenatal, New Chapter Perfect Prenatal, Emerald Lab Prenatal, MegaFood Baby & Me Prenatal), and you can get extra methylfolate and methylcobalamin if you want to take more than what's in the prenatal. All of these are available over the counter - many in local stores (at least where I am most of them are) and all are available readily online as well.

Ok, so for the Lovenox. It might be different for you, but for me, they come prepacked - no needing to draw the right amount or anything, so no bubbles that we know of (my hubby does both my Lovenox and Progesterone shots for me). The needle is small, like *maybe* a 1/2 inch? But yeah it often does burn and usually for a bit after the shot is given. I just so happen to have pics of this cycles bruising! lol

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7361/9735640918_1ae40aceab.jpg

It's not too bad. My RE has me taking them from ovulation on, so since this cycle is a bust, we stopped them today. I figure if it gets me a take home baby then it's all worth it. I've had 6 miscarriages and am still trying for my first. >.<

 

[busybeaver]

I don't have a success story, either, but a tip on how to avoid the blue spots.
The first time I took Lovenox, I had blue spots about 4 cm in diameter (and nearly perfect circles).
I did always ignore the bubbles, and did the usual "pinch a fold" - plenty there to pinch ;-) - before injecting. What did the trick for me was pressing an ice cube on the injection point for about a minute afterwards. That got rid of both the burning sensation and the blue spots.

Hope it helps you, too!

 

[Holly TH]

Not to beat a dead horse but you definitely want to talk to your doctor about L-methylfolate. NeevoDHA is a prescription prenatal specifically indicated for women with MTHFR. There are also over-the-counter sources as Dodger mentioned which have smaller dosages of active L-methylfolate. You have a very limited ability to break down synthetic folic acid. Taking L-methylfolate is something simple and safe you can do to be sure folate deficiency is not an issue while trying to conceive and during pregnancy. Best of luck to you!