Who here was DX after giving birth | Arthritis Information

 

Hi I just wanted to see how may women here were diagnosed after giving birth to there child/children.  I was diagnosed after the birth of my son.  Some of the docs say this was a tramatic sistuation and it triggered the onset of the disease.  I love my sons to death  and wouldn't change having them but I wonder if I had not had them if this disease would have stayed dormant in my body or would have eventually appeared.  I don't have any family history and I'm not sure how It came to be.

 

Hi, here's my story! My girl is 4 months and a half now, and i have no time to write here, just read a little from time to time (I am also working at home, translating).

 

http://www.arthritisinsight.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=15798&KW=my+ra+story&PID=177864#177864

 

I feel very good now, just on MTX for 3 months, only a slight problem with some fingers, but no inflammation, and only in the morning.

 

My girl is taking all my time, but I am SOOO happy that I can manage. When she sleeps in the afternoon I try to rest and/or translate, and in the evening she falls asleep all by herself at nine o'clock, so i have another little hours, if i'm not too tired.

 

All the best!!

Miruna

miruna2008-06-12 04:48:31My troubles all began after the birth of my daugher 14 years ago. I was diagnosed right after the birth of my children but that is when I started feel not right. It just took  three and 1/2 years for me to finally decide that it was more than me just being tired and hurting all the time for no reason to go to the Dr and then it took her 3 months to find the issue and diagnose it. I was just diagnosed 2 weeks ago and referred to a RA Dr. and will see him on July 16.  Oh I guess I should mention it was the birth of the twins in 2004 after which I started feeling bad. I was diagnosed about 8 months after giving birth to my 2nd child.

I wonder the same thing - if he had not have come along if the RA would have stayed at bay. I love him dearly, but wish he didn't come as a package deal with RA. BTW, he is now almost one year old.

My post should have said I was NOT diagnosed right after giving birth, funny it took me this long to catch that typo.

Who here was DX after giving birth


Hmmmmmm    I was diagnosed two weeks after my second son was born, but looking back I had symptoms for years.

 

You asked how we handle motherhood? Personally, I do crack. It's great.

My sister had a sudden, severe onset of RA about two months after giving birth to her first child ... she was 36. Her symptoms completely went away two years later while she was pregnant with her second child. They returned in full force a few weeks after she gave birth. I started having symptoms while pregnant with my first (and only) child.
Officially dx'd 5 weeks after she was born when it hit with a vengeance.
Wouldn't trade her for the world but it sure was tough!
She's 7+ now and my RA is "controlled" but i have quite a bit of damage from how hard and fast it took a toll on me!
Lisa I have 2 sons, 1 and 3 years old.  No problems after birth of the first.  Problems began after birth of second.  But the problems for many months were fatigue and feeling weak, then costo started the domino effect about 9 months postpartum.  It's only been 8 months now (jesus!)  Still under control with NSAIDs but can't wait for mtx to actually work. 

 

Also, this happened after 2 babies, when I was 29, but I had problems with my feet when I was 19 that were probably the beginings of RA (and my uncle has RA in his hands).  So I won't blame it on the kids, who are precious and beautiful!

 

My dad has attempted to claim that I inherited this from my husband's family.  Ha!

This is interesting.  I do not have children but I remember 20 years ago when I got RA I was reading that this disease ususally affects women who don't have kids.   You just never know.  I remember as a little girl having the tip of my pinky finger swell and thinking "I'm going to have arthritis."   I never dreamed it would be this bad and so early.The last month I was pg with our oldest DD, if I had to make a fist I couldn't straightened my fingers back out, I had to open my fist with my other hand. I was dx'd a year later, when my jaw hurt so bad, I could barely chew. She's 21 now.When I was 3 months pregnant with my son I had wrist pain (severe in my right wrist) which lasted a couple of days and then jumped to my left wrist and lasted a couple of days.  This went on for a couple of weeks then disappeared.  After I had my son I was really REALLY tired more so than even a new mum and when he was eight months old I stopped breastfeeding and about a week later the wrist pain came back - then it jumped to my shoulder and I started feeling shivery chills like I was coming down with something then I woke up one morning with the worst sore head I have ever had and I was sick, the headache lasted all day and i was taken into hospital for a lumber puncture because they thought i'd had a brain bleed or something but it was clear as was the CT scan.  then about 4 days later I flared from sheer hell everywhere and I mean everywhere and I thought I was going to die and no one believed me because I had low white cell count and only a weak RF.  So I went private and got anti ccp test which was really high and eventually after seeing 7 RD got a DX.  I only have one child now and don't want to risk another because I can't take the flare up and don't want to put my child through seeing me like that again.   I HATE RA it is a sick sick disease. Flint - Our stories sound very similar! When i was 4 months preg is when my symptoms started, jumping all over the place! My flare from hell was about 5 weeks after giving birth (and i was still breastfeeding). It was SOOOO awful - i too thought i was dying or something! I was so confused! When i look back on that time i don't know how i lived through it (thank god for prednisone, i guess!).
I too only had one child b/c i couldn't risk 1. going off my meds to GET pregnant or 2. living through that nightmare with a newborn again!!
RA is a wretched wretched disease!!   

Lisa
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