Post-partum Celiac?

[ut96grad]

New here. Hello everyone.

I have lots of questions.

First one is - has anyone on this board had pregnancy "bring out" Celiac?

I am 13 months post-partum (baby was born by c-section) and have LOTS of Celiac symptoms.

TIA.

Sheri in TX

[Ursa Major]

Hi Sheri, and welcome to these forums. Yes, unfortunately it is not uncommon for pregnancy to trigger the celiac disease genes and to bring out celiac disease in people. Quite a few members had that happen. I am sure those women (who are most likely sleeping right now, of course) will chime in soon.

[ItchyMeredith]

ME!

I had no celiac symptoms till I was 2 months postpartum with my first child. Suddenly I had DH something terrible. It lasted for many months but mostly subsided- even on gluten. I had another outbreak when I was 2 months postpartum with my second son. This is when we figured out that it was celiac.

There is something about postpartum or maybe breastfeeding hormones that exaggerate my DH. Pretty Crazy!

[missy'smom]

Pregnancy/childbirth was the trigger for me as well and unfortunately it took the next 8 years to find out that it was celiac disease. I tried to tell my doctors that something wasn't right(I didn't know about celiac disease at the time)but just got dismissed and even laughed at when I suggested to one that something wasn't right with my immune system. My intuition proved to be right in the end. I wish that it had been caught earlier. The lesson I learned from that is ...Advocate for yourself. Don't just accept your symptoms and keep pressing for answers until you get them. And don't say "it's only stress, part of being a new mom etc." "If only I..got more exercize, changed my diet etc."

[lizard00]

I'm pretty sure it was my trigger, too. I could pretty much eat whatever garbage I wanted to and be fine. After my son was born, slowly my body turned on me. He was 2 1/2 by the time I discovered what was going on.

I did get a lot of, "well, you are the mother of a toddler, you're supposed to be tired... " So double that from the PP... don't accept that as an answer. If I had of, I would still be sleeping my life away and while my head continued to throb.

[fedora]

me, my twin pregnany

I think I had celiac bad from9 to 13 years old. Then I went into the teenage remission thing. I still had some symptoms, but was not afraid I was dying anymore(for real I thought I might be dying). After I went off wheat at 19 for awhile, I got more healthy. I had one child at 22, then at 25 had twins. My rashes on my hands began during my pregnancy. When they turned two I was a wreck. Anxiety attacks, rashes all over both hands, my "spells" started, chronic constipation followed by horrible attacks of going to the bathroom, and almost fainted at times. I couldn't do anything at all for weeks I was so out of it. yuck. I had gone off wheat again and started to get better, but had also taken a herbal hormone balancer. I had been pregnant with twins, went overdue, and nursed them till they were two!!!! my poor body was shot. I assumed my hormones were shot and needed rebalancing. My doctor even suggested celiac but because I was feeling better(duh I had gone off wheat) and did not have chronic constipation he doubted it. I had never heard of celiac or gluten in other foods before. Truthfully I was in denial for years about gluten, no ones fault but my own there.

[jerseyangel]

I believe (as does the doctor who diagnosed me) that my C-section at age 29 was what triggered my Celiac. The sad thing is that I wasn't diagnosed until I was 49.

I had symptoms since childhood, actually, but felt better in my teens and early 20's (which I later found out it not uncommon).

[Mickide]

New here. Hello everyone.

I have lots of questions.

First one is - has anyone on this board had pregnancy "bring out" Celiac?

I am 13 months post-partum (baby was born by c-section) and have LOTS of Celiac symptoms.

TIA.

Sheri in TX

I found out I had Celiac when my DD was 11 months old!

[pixiegirl]

I started getting symptoms right after child birth but was not diagnosed until my daughter was 11 years old!

Susan

[slmprofesseur]

I don't have a definitive diagnosis, but I have had symptoms for years. My symptoms progressively got worse and the low point was my 2nd pregnancy. I had heartburn so bad it caused asthma flare ups. I didn't find out what celiac disease was until my son was diagnosed with a wheat allergy. I think that was part of the problem with his premature birth. At 26 wks I was diagnosed with intrauterine growth retardation. In spite of a healthy diet, I was not growing. He was born via emergency c-section at 33 wks. At 8 months old and in the 5th percentile for growth, he was tested positive for a wheat allergy. We went gluten free last year and my heartburn and asthma have all improved.

No one will test us because the "research" shows that there is a low incidence of celiac disease among African-Americans.

[WendyG]

Me too. I had a very difficult pregnancy and birth with my third child... My Harry was totally worth every bit even celiac!

My symptoms started while I was still in the hospital. I was very sick and looking back all that sounded good to eat was Gram crackers. I told my ob the next women who has terrible D after delivery and cant stop loosing weight don't tell her to take an anti diarrheal.

Wendy

[AJJ]

I believe (as does the doctor who diagnosed me) that my C-section at age 29 was what triggered my Celiac. The sad thing is that I wasn't diagnosed until I was 49.

I had symptoms since childhood, actually, but felt better in my teens and early 20's (which I later found out it not uncommon).

Where do I find out more about going to remission as a teenager? I think that happened to me?

[lizard00]

No one will test us because the "research" shows that there is a low incidence of celiac disease among African-Americans.

You know, sometimes I am just ASTOUNDED at the ignorance of doctors. So because there's a low incidence, you MUST not have it. My first GI told me that "in order to have Celiac, you must carry the gene." (Inferring that I didn't carry the gene, although he never thought to test me for it.) Somebody needs to take a book to the side of their heads, maybe would learn something through osmosis. They obviously aren't keeping up on it...