What changes have you made?

[NatoPMT]

Have you made any lifestyle changes while waiting to try, or while trying after a loss? If so, what changes have you made?

<nosy and obsessive>

 

[KitKatBit]

Hi Nato, I've been wondering the same thing. I've started taking vitamins for trying to conceive this time, in case my folic acid levels weren't high enough at the start last time. I think I might take extra folic acid if I do manage to conceive this time too - maybe a double dose or something. My insides have been in an uproar (sorry TMI) since I conceived, so I've been wondering if I wasn't absorbing the folic acid properly before.

I'm also thinking that once I finally get some flipping energy back I might try and get a bit fitter, as my body really didn't feel prepared for it last time. That one may be wishful thinking though lol.

K x

 

[SmileyShazza]

I started taking vitamins specifically for ttc as soon as I came off bcp at the end of last April.

Since we had our mmc I have completely cut down on booze not that I am a massive drinker anyway but I would occasionally have a couple of drinks if I was out. Now I don&#8217;t drink any alcohol in the 2ww, and try not to have anything around ovulation either. In fact to be honest I am hardly drinking any alcohol now as I just can&#8217;t be bothered.

I&#8217;ve switched to caffeine free tea, coffee and caffeine free diet coca cola when at home &#8211; it&#8217;s a little harder when out and about but if I can&#8217;t have caffeine free I just drink less of it. Again I don&#8217;t drink much tea or coffee anyway (about two or three cups a day maximum) and I tend to save Coca Cola for special occasions.

I am trying to eat lots of fruit and vegetables and am attempting to lose some weight, not that it appears to be working that well. I&#8217;m also doing a little more exercise to try and help with the weight loss.

 

[NatoPMT]

I think I might be in the Going Too Far bracket.

How much change is going too far do you think? I am a bit obsessive about most things I get a bee in my bonnet about, and knowing this, I bought a book called How to Get Pregnant Faster and of course, I am now making notes, turning corners of pages over, cross referencing and being generally all Monica about it.

I am taking per day:

1 x low dose aspirin (my mum and my sister have autoimmune probs and the general consensus is that only adult dose has been shown to be problematic but will discuss with dr)
4mg of folic acid (again, my nephew had spina bifida, my mum has 1 unclosed vertebrae and I am allergic to latex which is linked to spina bifida and am yet to discuss with dr) Like kitkat, my sister thinks we don&#8217;t absorb folic acid.
1 x pregnacare prenatal
1 x co enzyme Q-10
Milk thistle

And am just about to go to the healthfood shop to establish if there are fish oils without vit A for DHA and EPA (think I&#8217;ve got that right)

I have given up all coffee / tea / green tea / coke
Given up chocolate, white bread, white pasta and anything white or chocolatey in general
I have gone organic &#8211; always been dairy organic and I don&#8217;t eat meat, but now am buying organic everything
No alcohol at all
Stopped the smoking I started again at mc &#8211; that ones a no brainer really but I was smoking for the first couple of weeks last time which I am feel incredible guilt over.

And now I have forced men&#8217;s fertility vitamins on husband. He got excited when he saw id got the expensive ones for him.

I kinda feel that I have to change something from last time, otherwise it might happen again. Is every change good or can it get too much do you think?

Kitkat- I was taking 2 or 3 folic acids last time, so .8 &#8211; 1.2 mg and I told my dr and he said to do it if it made me feel better (accompanied with a pat on the head). If you don&#8217;t absorb folic acid you will need higher, so if you have a reason, push your dr for tests

Hi Shazza, Im not a big drinker either&#8230;generally start to make a show of myself 3 units in. This book im reading says that decaff isnt much better really, but I don&#8217;t want to start dragging you into my obsession so as long as its only a couple of cups a day its within guidelines, but this damned book also says avoid drinks in aluminium cans and cooking in aluminium pans. Im going to drive myself mental aren&#8217;t i.

 

[SmileyShazza]

I think it is easy to become obssessive about these things but you have to try and remain sensible. It does sound as if you might drive yourself mad if you keep reading into everything so much. You can do all these things they tell you and unfortunately still have a mc.

I always think to myself as long as you are not doing thing which are harmful to your body or any possible baby that may be developing and are taking prenatal vitamins etc then don't go too overboard on cutting back on things. Lots of women have and do get pregnant and have babies even when they are doing stuff they shouldn't - I'm not saying this means you should go out and smoke 40 fags or drink 2 bottles of wine a day but the more you deny yourself stuff the more of a chore ttc is going to become.

Before all this supposed research was done women were drinking and eating what they wanted and still managed to conceive and have babies so I think it is easy to get carried away these days.

Not sure if I've worded that very well so hope you know what I mean

 

[Nosy_Cow]

I am taking per day:

1 x low dose aspirin (my mum and my sister have autoimmune probs and the general consensus is that only adult dose has been shown to be problematic but will discuss with dr)
4mg of folic acid (again, my nephew had spina bifida, my mum has 1 unclosed vertebrae and I am allergic to latex which is linked to spina bifida and am yet to discuss with dr) Like kitkat, my sister thinks we don&#8217;t absorb folic acid.
1 x pregnacare prenatal
1 x co enzyme Q-10
Milk thistle

Are you taking micrograms or milligrams? If it's milligrams it will be prescribed by your doctor. You are entitled to take the higher dosage of FA as it runs in your family. It's a 5milligram dose - a hell of a lot stronger than the normal stuff you buy in shops!

Pop along to your GP and ask to be prescribed the higher dose. They'll be more than happy too with your family history! Hope this helps!

 

[KittyKatBabe]

Hi,

Since my losses I have been trying to lose weight and get healthier and fitter, I was making good progress until about 4 weeks ago, I tore ligaments in my ankle and its put training on hold. But getting back to it and hoping to reach a good target for June. I also want to be fitter and find physical exercise easier, even just climbing stairs.

I also have cut back on alcohol, I do drink still but apart from odd celebratory nights I have really cut down what I drink too.

I am just taking pregnacare vitamins and an extra folic acid tablet as figured it can't hurt.

 

[NatoPMT]

Hi Shaz &#8211; I think if I conceive without making changes, I will just be too damned scared and freak myself out and be terrified it will happen again. It might just happen again anyway (for eg my sister had to be on steroids too which even I am not prepared to start popping willy nilly) &#8211; I know what you mean though, lots of women eat and drink what they like and breeze it, and lots of mc&#8217;s just happen. I just have to do everything I can to prevent it happening again, but I like the idea of 2 bottles of wine, yum. Will have to have squashed grapes instead, boo.

I think everyone deals with it differently, and my way is to take action and read too much and start getting all regimental. Some of I am drawing the line at, but then they have case studies where women have even been peri menopausal and even conceived through changing diet etc. Dangling carrots in front of my nose.

Hi Nosy (you and me both)

At the mo, I&#8217;m taking 10 to 12 x 0.4mg = 4mg &#8211; 5mg a day until I get to the drs. My sis said the same thing, he will prescribe if I ask for it given what happened to her son and the rest of our family history. I will discuss with him and start placing demands. If I get all wild eyed, he cant refuse me.

Hi Kitty &#8211; well done on your progress ...and sorry about your torn ligaments, that sounds painful. How much have you got to go before you are happy with your weight? Hope your ankle gets better very soon

 

[KatyKat]

I don't think you're obsessive at all Nato! Lets face it, after an mc you want to make damn sure you've done everything you can to give you the best chance next time, it's only natural.

Me and my husband have completely given up alcohol and caffeine (still have decaff tea though) and we must rattle with all the supplements we're taking

I haven't done much with my diet, as I think it's pretty good anyway (I LOVE fruit and veg), but I have stopped eating unpasteurised cheese, having soft eggs etc just in case......

Hopefully these changes will give us all the result we're after ;-)

K

 

[Libra Mariah]

Have you made any lifestyle changes while waiting to try, or while trying after a loss? If so, what changes have you made?

<nosy and obsessive>

Since my MC I have started trying to eat healthier.
I totally ELIMINATED cokes. Before I never drunk water I drunk cokes pretty much all day. Now I only drink water and 100% juice. I use to always skip breakfast and now I make sure I eat every morning. Before I was taking prenatal vitamins. However I did miss a lot of days. Now as soon as I eat breakfast, I make sure to take my folic acid supplement. I have also started walking and working out with my mother at least every other day if not every day. I know that all these changes will not guarantee that I will get pregnant or even to prevent me from having another MC. However I think these are some changes that could possibly help my overall health whether I am pregnant or not. I at least want to know that I am doing all that I can to ensure that I gave my all. This way if something bad did happen again It will be easier for me to not blame myself. Now when I think of my MC I totally start wondering if maybe I was doing something wrong to cause it. It's a terrible feeling and thats part of the reason why I have decided to make these changes. .

Good luck to everyone!!!!

 

[lightweight]

I did some of this last time, but being extra careful now.

No caffeine at all - apart from one or two cups of tea and some chocolate! (and possibly one can of coke when AF comes along!)

Limited alcohol - trying to keep below the 5 units per week which I've read in several places.

Folic acid daily

eating more fruit. Desperately need to lose some weight as put on about half a stone from pre-pregnancy weight - ate my way through the m/c I think.

Exercise - gone back to pilates and going to start swimming / walking more.

OH is taking Zinc and eating bananas.

Anyone else having trouble convincing OH of healthy things? Mine survives life on caffeine and does binge drink a bit, though not on such a regular basis, but I'd quite like him to cut down on things like that.

 

[NatoPMT]

yeay katy, someone encouraging me (dont need much to be fair)

Tulip told me that its the tannins in tea that reduce the uptake of iron and folic acid, but as youre supplemented up to your eyes, i would imagine thats not really a problem, but decaff tea still has tannins it in - someone please throw something at me if i get too much.

I think the not eating soft cheese is a good idea - you dont want to find out you are pregnant and have listeria at the same time. That would be a nightmare.

well done on kicking the coke habit Libra (that sounds worse than it is) - My sisters IVF dr, the controversial one that they tried to strike off, Mr Tannassi? told her to drink 2l of water a day and 1l of milk during her treatment - defo good to get as much water down you as poss.

However I think these are some changes that could possibly help my overall health whether I am pregnant or not. I at least want to know that I am doing all that I can to ensure that I gave my all. This way if something bad did happen again It will be easier for me to not blame myself. Now when I think of my MC I totally start wondering if maybe I was doing something wrong to cause it. It's a terrible feeling and thats part of the reason why I have decided to make these changes. .

I totally hear you on that L, i wasnt drinking or smoking and i was taking prenatals, but i was also drinking green tea and stuffing my face with chocolate and i was so hungry, the quality of my general diet went a bit downhill - i need to know ive done everything i can

Hi Lightweight, kitkat said on her thread her oh was kicking up a stink about vitamins. He does need to consider his part, the baby is made up of 2 sets of chromosomes not just yours

from https://www.diagnose-me.com/cond/C340376.html

Research has indicated that men who drank two to three cups of coffee a day had an increased incidence of abnormally formed sperm. Having five cups a day appears to make sperm sluggish as well.

but a brazilian study says it makes them swim faster, i dunno, its ok if they swim faster, but not if they are all knobbly and malformed. The studies show mixed results, so mebbe if he could cut down as they all say too much is not good. My husband has agreed to not drink for the 2 weeks before i ovulate and only have a couple at a time before, after im pregnant he can lie face down in a barrel of beer <incentive>

when i was pregnant he stopped cos i got so stroppy i was missing out on having fun and stopped in sympathy without me asking him to - as long as hes taking zinc hes doing lots of good though. If you have any problem conceiving, giving up alcohol might be more important, but as you dont know whats causing the mc, he should really do all he can to ensure you dont have to go through that again

 

[Sparkly]

Oh goody, we're talking about being obsessive, my fave

I've had to check my 'pill drawer' to remember what I take everyday

Agnus castus
magnesium
chromium
multivitamin
low dose aspirin
folic acid (x2)
co enzyme q10
milk thistle
evening primrose oil
false unicorn root
metformin

I do have pcos so I take a lot of that to help

I also am dieting like mad, as I am a big girl and desperately need to lose at least 2 1/2 stone before we try again, and am exercising every day.

I don't drink, or smoke, but I do drink a lot of tea! I intend to switch to decaff coffee when ttc.

 

[NatoPMT]

oh goody, more encouragement

have you been prescribed the aspirin sparkly? and youre taking milk thistle and co enzyme too, im not even sure why im taking the co enzyme, but its good for your skin if you snip the top off the capsule like a teeny tiny egg and rub on your face. Turns your face a bit orange too, like Peter Andre.

i always take milk thistle as it stopped my PMT when i was a nipper in my 20's and never gave it up, its my default supplement. Should help with metabolism for your weight loss too which you cant sniff at, and i read that it helps inhibit fat cell formation too

i went and got the DHA/EPA but am a bit worried as it has a blood thinning effect so am withholding that self medicating till i speak to the dr. It says on the packet you should exercise caution when taking with warfarin, which is the only thing im not taking.

 

[heart tree]

Nato, if you are being obsessive, then I am too! I had a blood clot in my uterus during my first pregnancy and it whacked the baby out of place when it was dislodging from my body. I know that baby aspirin is used for clots, so I tried it intermittently after my mc. I never talked to my doctor about it, so I would take it every 3 days because I was a little concerned. I also took :

• fish oil,
• extra B6 and B12 for a short luteal phase
• prenatal
• progesterone cream during the luteal phase
• acupuncture with Chinese herbs (who knows what was in them?)

WELL…I ended up having another mc, so now I take:

• all of the above except Chinese herbs
• a pregnancy tea that contains

red raspberry leaf
nettles
oat straw
dandelion
lemon balm​

• EPO
• extra folic acid prescribed by my doctor
• I’m going to give the baby aspirin a go for real this time. My doctor said it was ok.

I don’t drink caffeine or smoke, but I still love my glass of wine on the weekends! I am committed to eating very healthy foods and exercising, thought I’ve always done that. I’m also trying to distract myself from obsessing, so I’ve starting sewing purses. It’s a lovely 2nd obsession!

I am having trouble getting my husband on board. He drinks on weekends mostly but also smokes pot a few times a week. Uuugghh. I’ve explained to him that it takes two to create this baby, so he’s cut down. I just wish he’d quit. He does take a vitamin willingly, so I’m thinking about getting him on a fertility vitamin. He did a semen analysis and his were very healthy, so that makes me feel a bit better.

 

[KitKatBit]

Ooh I might have to look into milk thistle and start taking that - it sounds ideal!

A lot of the lifestyle things I do already (no caffeine, organic food and products, little alcohol, no aluminium products, etc). I have stuck to all that since I fell PG the first time. I'm thinking I might stick to all the PG guidelines from now on, so that I know I'm safe even before I know I'm PG for sure and also to stop people who know about the MC and about me TTC twigging when I'm PG again. I don't think I could bear everyone knowing from an early stage that I'm PG again, not until I know everything's ok.

I don't think it matters how obsessive or not you are. You have to do whatever you need to make things feel better. Whether or not it actually does make a difference doesn't matter as long as it helps you mentally.

 

[Sydd]

OMG!
Look at you all go. :thumbsup:
I think I'm far too lazy to be obsessive, however tea and fags will be gone soon (I must admit I probs drink 5 - 8 cups a day and smoke 15 roll ups) I hope! And alcohol will be cut down once I know where my heads at!

 

[Sparkly]

have you been prescribed the aspirin sparkly? .

No I haven't, but after many hours of extensive internet research by me after my m/c (it was a was of coping) i discovered that sometimes women with pcos can have blood clotting probs which can cause m/c, so I figured it wouldn't actually do me any harm to give it a try. Basically I'm trying everything I can, with the hopes that it may help any future pregnancy. It's for my peace of mind really. It isn't cheap, to buy it all, but I don't care and neither does my hubby, he just tells me to order it whatever it costs if I think it will help me. In fact he positively encourages me, saying have you taken all your tabs???

I'm very blessed with a lovely 16yo son, I had him when I was 23 and I can't believe how naive I was back then, I never considered that anything may go wrong, and I wouldn't end up with a healthy baby. I never even took folic acid back then!!!

 

[NatoPMT]

You'd think with all this being healthy, id be looking better, but oh no, my skin is bumpy as buggery, dark circles and i have a patch of eczema under my eye, i have never had eczema before. Score.

I also went to the dentist this morning to get rid of any coffee/ smoking staining, and he butchered me. My gums are all sore from him blasting them with salt. They are very white mind.

Hi Heart, so sorry to hear about your 2 losses, so very close together too, I hope you are doing ok. I think low dose aspirin sounds like a very good idea for you. Just get some and start taking it now, its easier to get from independent chemists without a prescription. There is some evidence it can help with conception as it stimulates blood flow to the ovaries too.

Kitkat - the milk thistle stimulates your liver, so its good for helping get excreted properly. If your liver is a bit overworked, then the hormones it should be filtering get sidelined and recycled in favour of getting rid of toxins, so its very good if you get sore boobs towards the end of your cycle, have cellulite or get hangovers when you (used to) drink.

Sydd, I know what you mean, i am not a big coffee drinker, but the fags are sooo hard to give up. This time, its been actually easy to give them up, and i have just decided i dont want to smoke and that stops you entering into that internal dialogue and bargaining when you give up, i can have one with a drink, i will just have a couple a day, if i have one now, i can give up after etc etc, i just havent done that this time. Any wavering and it gets you. Any discussion with it, and youre back to smoking. I had a little epiphany when i was waking up - i dreamt that there was no need to fear the withdrawal, because actually, its much less physically bad than having a headache, and we dont bang on about how awful it is to have a slight headache all the time. Physical withdrawal symptoms are nothing really, we are just used to responding to them with a cig and conditioned to believe they are terrible. I am having slight lightheadedness, thats it, and the cravings start then as long as i dont try and negotiate a cigarette with them, the craving then goes.

Sparkly, thats exactly my way of coping too, i need to know stuff and do stuff.

Of the studies, none of them say there is any risk with low dose, unless you have a stomach ulcer or something else that prevents you normally taking aspirin, and as i dont have any reason not to take it, im taking it. Im glad your husband is supporting you though, Im really quite surprised at how many bumpers arent really getting the same commitment from their oh's

 

[Sydd]

Nato my lovely 5 - 8 cups a day is a lot I think!
I find it really hard to give up, I won't lie even when I was pg before I smoked I cut down A LOT. Like 3 - 4 a day.... Which given my circumstances midwife was v. pleased about.... Don't wanna sound like a dick.... Alcohol and fags have always been my crotch... Alcohol I was fine with but fags no

After reading this I hope when me and the boi start trying properly we can make some real changes for now though we're young and think we have a right to be a bit foolish I hope to start the folic acid properly though which I didn't say... And I'll make him cut down on tea as he drinks more than me!!