Pregnancy & UC

Hi Guys,

Hope your all well.
Quick one from me, I was diagnosed with proctitis April 2020 have been in remission for approx 10 months to a year.

Found out I am pregnant this week and unfortunately it looks like I’m starting to flare (just loose stool first thing but of mucus) I’ve been on the Saloflak granules continuously and went back on the Saloflak suppositories this week as my consultant told me there perfectly safe for pregnancy.

My question is probably an impossible one to answer but will this flare stay throughout my pregnancy? I’m very early pregnant approx 5 weeks I just assumed as I was in remission the last while that the pregnancy would be okay, hopefully it might just clear up in a few weeks if I just continue with the suppositories and enemas?

Any experience would be great!
It’s only my first stool in the morning that’s affected but obviously as we all know with IBD I want to kick it in the butt ASAP before it gets any worse.

Thanks guys
X

Thanks so much for the reply Quincy, we’re over the moon about the pregnancy, just a bit anxious about the UC flare at the moment but it’s manageable. I presume the enemas are safe during pregnancy too??? I was thinking I may start them tonight as I don’t want this to get worse. I have the 4g one here at home.

Will keep in mind about the after baby is born part do you know if it’s sudden like a few days after birth that a potential flare could arise?

I suppose it depends on the person.

Thank you 😊

Thanks so much Quincy for your help.
Definitely want to enjoy the experience rather than flare that’s for sure 😊

Will keep you posted throughout.
Starting enemas tonight!!

Thanks again…

Hello All,

Just an update I’ve been using the Saloflak enemas nightly for the past 3 weeks. I definitely feel like it’s keeping the flare at bay. My BM has been once in the morning, start of the BM quite loose but then second part is solid.

However, the past two days now I’m quite constipated I’m not going in the morning like I usually would, yesterday I went afternoon time (still the same loose at the start and then it gets solidish) today (6pm here in Ireland) no BM so far. Obviously pregnancy can bring on constipation too so I hear and as I’ve been feeling quite nauseous the past while my diet has been quite bland so that may have contributed to the constipation too. Finding it hard to stomach foods high in fibre.

Just wondering should I keep with the enema’s or move to suppositories?? I still feel like there could be a bit of inflammation there but there’s no bleeding at all which is great but unusual as usually that was one of my first symptoms.

Thanks for any help 😊

If your diet has changed that's likely the culprit for constipation. However, I would keep the enemas for now. I really struggled with nausea from 8-20 weeks while pregnant and ate and drank far less than usual. I think that caused constipation for me. I didn't develop UC until my boys were 3 & 6 so I didn't have to contend with UC and pregnancy so take whatever I say with a grain of salt as I am no expert in dealing with the two together. .

It does, but takes a while. Stool softeners, food changes to soften stool and increase peristalsis will help stool consistency.

q

Suppositories should be fine. Each trimester brings a noticeable hormonal shift so hopefully as time passes you will start to feel better. I wouldn’t want to take pred when pregnant either, but if your UC flares it is more dangerous to let it get out of control. Sounds like you are doing everything you can and are holding steady. Hang in there!

Could be hormone related...but I would push for a stool sample kit just to make sure nothing else is going on.

What supplements are you using! And has your diet changed at all?

You could try the supps for a few nights and see if your symptoms change re diarrhea.

q

Hi All,

A quick one if anyone could provide any insight, still on the nightly enemas going maybe 1/2 times a day mix between mushy/solid.

However, I’ve tried to change between suppositories & enema and I started bleeding & felt like UC got worse that was a few weeks back so I stuck with enema every night since however the last two nights I used suppositories just for convenience as I was feeling great & the suppositories are so much easier and I can move around better in bed than the enema anyway I’ve had two BM this morning and hour between each other both solid but bled quite a bit (had not done in ages) but it was bright red blood in bowl and paper is this because I moved from enema and suppositories for them two nights?? I don’t have an external hemmie I checked, I did feel a tiny bit of pain recently while going to the toilet like it was difficult to pass.
Usually when I bleed with UC the stool would be loose with mucus etc but it was solid today, any ideas?

Currently 18 weeks pregnant.

Thanks so much 😀

Hi Quincy,

Thank you so much for your reply.

I’m currently on 3g of granules per day. I definitely think the enema makes my stool loose whereas when I use the suppository I feel so much better and have a better stool but lately I tend to bleed when I use the suppositories as opposed to the enema.

I would really love to reduce the enemas as I find them a nuisance every night especially as I get bigger but I can’t seem to kick it. I’m also quite afraid of tapering off meds and this getting worse because I am lucky at the moment it’s manageable most of the time & hopefully when baby comes I may just need stronger meds to beat it.

Could the suppositories bring on the blood that quick within a day or two?

My doc said to try and keep it to either to an enema or a suppository a night instead of including extra rectal meds during the day unless I really need it (no sure if that’s because I’m pregnant).

I sometimes wonder if using rectal meds for the past 4 months every night could add to irritation also…

Pain in the butt!!!

Hi Susie...unless you're allergic to the mesalamine suppositories ... no it wouldnt cause bleeding.
However, if you don't bleed with the enemas, it's possibly because the bleeding is higher than the suppository reaches.

In saying that, you could go off the enemas and suppositories to see if there is any change.

The enemas could cause scraping of hemorrhoids if you have them.

You could try fibre...it does help bulk, soften stool, and good if you have hemmies.
I would suggest metamucil capsules...start with a capsule with a meal and increase with that meal...then add to another meal. I take 6 with breakfast and 6 with supper.

q

I would do the steroid enemas first...That might be what she meant with up the meds. There are options...can be used during the day if a foam and the mesalamine enema at night or vice versa.

q

Thanks for the update...looking forward to the other one.
q