Post-Abortion Flare (Please Don't Judge!)

[gadgetninjette91]

First, let me reiterate: if you have nothing supportive to say to me about this or are going to try to preach to me about why what I did was somehow wrong, please take your comments elsewhere. That being said, I don't know if anyone here has ever dealt with this particular issue but regardless of how anyone feels about my decision, I feel like crap and need support somehow, somewhere.

So I'm 24 and got pregnant by accident. Accidents happen. My periods have been so irregular and at times absent, I didn't know I could even remotely conceive. That's life sometimes. I was diagnosed with small bowel Crohn's last year which made me lose a ton of weight and strength, I've been struggling to keep myself stable through drugs and other means. Getting pregnant was entirely an accident. I'm nowhere near mature or self-sufficient enough to raise a child, and at 6 weeks there was no embryo to speak of, I was carrying an empty yolk sac. My body is too messed up to develop a baby properly right now is my guess. So I made the right decision FOR ME and terminated the pregnancy. I also had a copper IUD inserted after the procedure. And now I can't stop running to the toilet. Being pregnant sort of evened things out for a bit and I was able to eat and gain a bit of weight, but that weight will be gone before long.

Anyone else been through this? Is a flare pretty commonplace after any kind of pregnancy ends, whether a full-term birth or an abortion? Should I follow up with my GI? I'm just not sure this will get better.

Thank you so much in advance to anyone who can be helpful and supportive. This isn't an easy subject but I need help and as a fellow Crohnie, I think I more than deserve support and not shame.

 

[Layla]

Sorry, I don't have any experience to help you, hope someone comes along soon!

 

[DustyKat]

I’m so sorry to hear of all you are going through. I don’t have IBD, my children do, but I just want to offer you my support and understanding. :ghug:

I have an adult daughter with Ileal Crohn’s and she has also had a resection. It is difficult enough for a young woman to navigate life without throwing Crohn’s into the mix! I know for my daughter, and perhaps you will find for you too, that having small bowel disease affects the absorption of many things, medication included, so oral contraceptives can’t be relied on but I imagine you know that, hence the IUD. My daughter has an implant. I did look into both types of contraceptive when she was deciding which one to choose. As you would know each is highly individual when it comes to pros and cons. IIRC the IUD seemed to have more negative comments when it came to its use in those with Crohn’s, those being things like cramping and from the medical side of things whether there is an increased risk of an inflammatory response setting up simply by the association of having an inflammatory disease?? Again though, it is highly individual and I know I have read of members on here over the years having no issue with their IUD at all.

When it comes to pregnancy it is not uncommon to find women often feel their best and healthiest whilst pregnant so what you were feeling was likely spot on. Unfortunately that doesn’t always last once the pregnancy ends. It sounds like you were struggling pre pregnancy and you have now reverted back to that state.

I’m sorry I can’t be of more help. Sending much luck and well wishes that you can soon get on top of things again. :heart:

 

[Kat123]

Hi Gadgetninjette,

I'm sorry I've not experienced this, so can't really offer much advice, but wanted to comment to send my support. I would think with any kind of flare you should contact your GI, regardless of the cause. I hope you get it under control soon.

I think contraception is a tricky one for us (for all women really) as there are side effects with all the methods. I went through the pros and cons of them all and ended up sticking with condoms. I read an article that suggests the mirena coil can help with crohn's symptoms that come pre-menstrually. My gastro advised not to take contraceptives with oestrogens as there's slight evidence they could worsen IBD.

 

[EW8]

Poor you. I too haven't had your experience, but I do know that Crohn's is very hormone reactive. Hence your feeling better for a while whilst you were pregnant. My only advice is that I had a Merina Coil fitted a few years ago and during the three months or so it was there my Crohn's was really bad and improved dramatically once it was removed. I expect that your hormones are all over the place at the moment and as they settle down then your Crohn's may improve too. Good luck. BTW, I fully support your decision to do what is best for you and you are completely entitled to do whatever you need to.

 

[Bunty]

I'm so sorry, I have no advice regarding your crohns.
I do however echo entirely EW8s last sentence and wish you well.
Bunty x

 

[Kat123]

My only advice is that I had a Merina Coil fitted a few years ago and during the three months or so it was there my Crohn's was really bad and improved dramatically once it was removed.

Oh wow - glad I didn't get one now!

BTW, I fully support your decision to do what is best for you and you are completely entitled to do whatever you need to.

Absolutely! :ghug:

 

[scottsma]

No recriminations from me. Feel better soon.Best wishes.

 

[Crohns08]

I have never had an abortion but was pregnant and had my son. I mention this because pregnancy stirs up a lot of hormonal reaction in the body both during and post pregnancy. My guess would be it is a reaction to all of the hormones or your body rejecting the IUD. Definitely follow up with your doctors to find out the cause!

 

[gadgetninjette91]

Thank you all so much for the outpouring support. Not everyone has been supportive along the way but once again I'm reminded of how blessed I am to have found this supportive community.

I might be having a negative reaction to the IUD despite it not being hormonal (Paragard). Having worse cramps today, super tired, not much appetite. One out of the three nurses I consulted about the copper IUD said it might be an issue with the Crohn's because it essentially creates an inflammatory response inside the uterus but the other two said it wouldn't be a problem and would probably be better than anything hormonal. Certainly a call to my doctor is in order Monday. But contraception will always be a toughie. My boyfriend hates condoms and I'm allergic to latex, surely there must be other options. But the less stress on my body, the better.

Probably going to turn in early. Could use some decent sleep. Thanks again to everyone for the support.

 

[fuzzy butterfly]

Hi gadgetninjette. Sorry for all your going thro..no judgement here,your life your body your decision hun,hope you can feel better soon . Call to doc is defo in order to try and get yourself back on track hun. Best wishes n hugs

 

[tzvia]

During pregnancy, some women with crohn's do get a sort of "remission" but not all do. You may have been in somewhat of a remission yourself, and now your body is adjusting. Not to mention the stress of all you have just gone through--- that can also contribute to a flare. i would recommend Talking to your GI to get s med to help you through this flare. Best of luck to you.

 

[Kero]

Sending you many hugs! I personally have no experience with an abortion and crohns, but like was mentioned before, hormones can stir up alot of things. Also pregnancy can cause a ramp up of the immune system, to protect baby of course, and can cause us crohnies to have a flare. Hope you feel better soon! xo

 

[Lisa]

I became pregnant after a flare and hospitalization - even though I was on the pill - probably because the meds messed up things.....while I was pregnant I was pretty much in remission, but that ended a couple of months after I had my daughter. I ended up going on Remicade at that time.

As you can see, there is a LOT of support here, I too suggest putting a call in to the doctor to see what other options you can look at. At least if you try something else you can possibly tell if the symptoms you are having now are related to the IUD or something else.

Best of luck....and I'm available via pm if you'd like to talk at all.

 

[kellehbeans]

I had a slight experience. I too, had an abortion for the same reasons as you. I was slightly younger than you are now though, I was 17. However after it, I was in agony for a long, long time. I was constantly in the toilet and the stomach cramps for over 2 weeks were hell. It died down (the pain that was) but the toilet trips were something out of a horror movie.

As you know me from the undiagnosed forum, you'll know I'm still undiagnosed, but I know for me it made whatever I had flare up to no end. Sending you big hugs as it's a tough thing to go through, and then your bowels just seem to punish you as well!