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For Those Who Were Diagnosed After Having A Baby..

foodiegurl

By foodiegurl
in Coping with Celiac Disease

Recommended Posts

foodiegurl Collaborator
foodiegurl
Posted

I know a trauma can bring out Celiac, such as a pregnancy, surgery, etc...

I had a pretty traumatic end-of-pregnancy. I developed severe pre-eclampsia and HELLP, and had an emergency c-section. That was 4 years ago, and I was just diagnosed 2 weeks ago.

I think I may have noticed some tummy issues like 2 years ago, but otherwise, this comes as a total shock. when they say something can trigger it, can it trigger it years later?

One thing though..i know after my pregnancy, my constipation would be worse (I have had it all my life as does my mom), and I would joke that when they did the c-section they must have put stuff back differently, since I would have bad constipation. I don't have it constantly, but I do I get it. I find it is better when I get exercise and drink lots of water. So, maybe that was my symptom after pregnancy?

So how much time passed after a pregnancy did you get diagnosed or notice symptoms?

Thanks!

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lizard00 Enthusiast
lizard00
Posted

My symptoms appeared about a year and a half after my son was born, it took me another year to figure out that gluten was my problem, and another six months to be diagnosed. But considering the average time it takes for diagnosis is 11 years, I consider myself to be pretty lucky.

missy'smom Collaborator
missy'smom
Posted
I would joke that when they did the c-section they must have put stuff back differently, since I would have bad constipation. I don't have it constantly, but I do I get it. I find it is better when I get exercise and drink lots of water. So, maybe that was my symptom after pregnancy?

So how much time passed after a pregnancy did you get diagnosed or notice symptoms?

Thanks!

I didn't have a C-section but I told myself the same thing. I am very petite and thin and my tummy stuck out so much that even two years after Ds was born, people asked me if the second one was on the way! I can never be sure when mine became active but I know for sure that I was not well a day since my son was born. I barely functioned. I never got an official Dx but my husband's GI, who was a good listener, pointed me in the right direction, 8 years later. I had MANY symptoms but at the time didn't recognize them as such. I and my doctors kept writing them off as normal.

nw0528 Apprentice
nw0528
Posted

My symptoms started 20 months after having my son. (I also had preeclampsia, diagnosed at the end of my second trimester).

Nicole

I know a trauma can bring out Celiac, such as a pregnancy, surgery, etc...

I had a pretty traumatic end-of-pregnancy. I developed severe pre-eclampsia and HELLP, and had an emergency c-section. That was 4 years ago, and I was just diagnosed 2 weeks ago.

I think I may have noticed some tummy issues like 2 years ago, but otherwise, this comes as a total shock. when they say something can trigger it, can it trigger it years later?

One thing though..i know after my pregnancy, my constipation would be worse (I have had it all my life as does my mom), and I would joke that when they did the c-section they must have put stuff back differently, since I would have bad constipation. I don't have it constantly, but I do I get it. I find it is better when I get exercise and drink lots of water. So, maybe that was my symptom after pregnancy?

So how much time passed after a pregnancy did you get diagnosed or notice symptoms?

Thanks!

Mrs. Smith Explorer
Mrs. Smith
Posted
I know a trauma can bring out Celiac, such as a pregnancy, surgery, etc...

I had a pretty traumatic end-of-pregnancy. I developed severe pre-eclampsia and HELLP, and had an emergency c-section. That was 4 years ago, and I was just diagnosed 2 weeks ago.

I think I may have noticed some tummy issues like 2 years ago, but otherwise, this comes as a total shock. when they say something can trigger it, can it trigger it years later?

One thing though..i know after my pregnancy, my constipation would be worse (I have had it all my life as does my mom), and I would joke that when they did the c-section they must have put stuff back differently, since I would have bad constipation. I don't have it constantly, but I do I get it. I find it is better when I get exercise and drink lots of water. So, maybe that was my symptom after pregnancy?

So how much time passed after a pregnancy did you get diagnosed or notice symptoms?

Thanks!

I could not get pregnant to save my life then I was working at a health food store and not really eating alot of wheat and got pregnant and had a very early miscarrage. My really bad symptoms started exactly 1yr later.

caek-is-a-lie Explorer
caek-is-a-lie
Posted

I think I had symptoms before my pregnancy but didn't recognize it. I was pretty much gluten free until a couple months before I got pregnant. Then during my pregnancy I found I could eat what I wanted without consequence (or so I thought)...until they diagnosed me with gestational diabetes. Then it was back to the low-carb high-protein diet again. I should have stayed on it. After giving birth I went back on gluten more than ever and gained a ton of weight. Now I can't lose it. Oh well. At least I feel better.

WendyG Explorer
WendyG
Posted

For me it started in the hospital right after delivery. I had D terrible and it never stopped.

I was diagnosed one week after my 6 week check. I didn't own a scale at home so after my six week

check I knew what I weighed. I was still sick and my ob wasn't concerned she told me to take anti direals.

I saw my family Dr a week later and had lost 10 pounds in one week. That is when I knew something was really

wrong. She knew right away what it was. Which is amazing after reading many stories on this form. I had never

even heard of Celiac Disease. I had a positive blood test, saw a GI and had a diagnosis.

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wendstress Rookie
wendstress
Posted

Alex will be 2 in April....

I really started to notice my symptoms about 1 year ago. Weight loss, constant D, depression, stomach/abdominal pain. Took me awhile to put it together, but I saw my Dr. in Dec '08, and he ran the TTG IGA blood test right away, and I was diagnosed on 12/31/08.

kimis Collaborator
kimis
Posted

Three years after I had my daughter I noticed my GI problems were becoming a big problem. After I would eat I would feel bloated and have pains in my stomach. It got to the point where I would only eat once a day, at night, then go right to bed. After hearing a bunch of sh!t from all different Drs, I was dx with Celiac 5 years after my first symptoms.

Amyleigh0007 Enthusiast
Amyleigh0007
Posted

I have had stomach issues all my life but I believe it was my 2nd C-section that was my trigger. I remember feeling bad a month after my daughter was born but I thought it was stress. I progressively felt worse until my son was diagnosed with Celiac when my daughter was 7 months old. We took gluten out of our home and I instantly felt better. After researching Celiac I figured that is what I had too. Unfortunately I was off gluten for too long for my blood tests to be accurate. My primary doctor says I don't have Celiac but my allergist says I probably do. Go figure.

mamaesq Rookie
mamaesq
Posted

I think I've always had some issues, but I was diagnosed 27 months after my youngest was born. I had pre-eclampsia and an emergency c/s (stalled labor, high fever, and decels) with my first, and I often wonder if that triggered something. Things definitely got worse after my youngest baby was born 20 months later.

I was always bloated, but it got so much worse after kids. I figured it was normal because my mom was always the same way. We were diagnosed on the same day.

rueyn Apprentice
rueyn
Posted

Mine appeared pretty soon after I gave birth (my pregnancy was eventless, though I did have a bad reaction to the epidural). I was diagnosed with hypothyroid about 8 months after I gave birth, so I'm not sure which to attribute the exhaustion to - the thyroid or the celiac - but I noticed the bloating about a year after my son was born. I didn't do anything about it until February, though, because it never occurred to me that it was food related: I thought the general feeling of being sick was just what women who were moms felt like (seems stupid now).

I know a trauma can bring out Celiac, such as a pregnancy, surgery, etc...

I had a pretty traumatic end-of-pregnancy. I developed severe pre-eclampsia and HELLP, and had an emergency c-section. That was 4 years ago, and I was just diagnosed 2 weeks ago.

I think I may have noticed some tummy issues like 2 years ago, but otherwise, this comes as a total shock. when they say something can trigger it, can it trigger it years later?

One thing though..i know after my pregnancy, my constipation would be worse (I have had it all my life as does my mom), and I would joke that when they did the c-section they must have put stuff back differently, since I would have bad constipation. I don't have it constantly, but I do I get it. I find it is better when I get exercise and drink lots of water. So, maybe that was my symptom after pregnancy?

So how much time passed after a pregnancy did you get diagnosed or notice symptoms?

Thanks!

ang1e0251 Contributor
ang1e0251
Posted

Looking back, I think the real problems started after my second pregnancy. But both of mine were pretty normal. I had other health issues before but they weren't digestive. Not to say they couldn't have been related but they sure weren't related by me or anyone else. I self diagnosed last year and that baby turned 22 YO yesterday.

  • 3 weeks later...
JustAGirl79 Apprentice
JustAGirl79
Posted

Hi all. I'm new to this site.

I was just diagnosed, via bloodwork, on Tuesday of this week. This site is amazing!

My son was born Dec 3/07, via somewhat emergency C-section after 30 hours of very unsuccessful labour. For about 6 months after my C-section, I had horrible bloating, gas cramps and constipation. I chalked it up to everything being 'moved around' from the C-section. Finally, I mentioned it to my family doctor and she diagnosed me as having IBS. For the next six months, I saw my family doctor off and on for various stomach-related concerns (the constipation turned to "D" and the cramping got much worse, so did the bloating). She continued to say IBS. Three weeks ago I asked for a referral to a gastro-specialist as I was convinced I have colitis. She ordered bloodwork to go along with the referral - including a celiac screen, which she said she was surprised she didn't order when I originally came to her with my symptoms. Four days after bloodwork, the lab report low iron stores and low white blood cells. No results at that point on the celiac screen. Family doctor sent me for another round of blood work. By the time, the second round of blood tests were done, the original celiac screen came back positive. So, diagnosis over the phone on April 14. 16.5 months after having my son.

Am now waiting for a referral to a gasto-specialist. I've been told it could be 18+ months. S/he may or may not do a biopsy - it's his/her call. In the meantime, it's day two of gluten-free. If biopsy is ordered, I'll eat gluten for a few months leading up to my appointment.

foodiegurl Collaborator
foodiegurl
Posted
  • Author

I also used to joke around that my bloating and irregularity was due to everything being moved around during my c-section :)

Welcome!

samcarter Contributor
samcarter
Posted

I had a very traumatic delivery (C section, nearly died) with my firstborn, and it was after that birth that my allergies went into overdrive. I had an anaphylactic attack, and nobody could link it to any foods i'd eaten, but I was found to be severely allergic to cats, dust and mold. I also found out during that pregnancy that I have pregnancy-induced ITP, which is an immune disorder.

I had always had constipation, even as a kid, so I just dealt with it. It wasn't until after i had my third child (he was 12 pounds, and I guess you could say the delivery was traumatic, as his shoulders got stuck, but I was fine--delivered naturally and everything). But about a year ago I started having diarrhea as well. The brain fog started, and lethargy. I had little energy to deal with the kids and housework.

soccermom Newbie
soccermom
Posted

I wasn't diagnosed after childbirth, but I believe that is what triggered the disease. I had a difficult pregnancy with my firstborn (bleeding, pre-eclampsia, emergency C-section after a long labor). I had never had any digestive problems whatsoever before the birth. Afterwards, I would get random bouts of D, but figured it was just my body recovering from the pregnancy.

I dealt with this for years, and then would get random bouts of painful constipation. I saw several doctors who said it was probably IBS. I went on the Curves diet which is very low carb and felt much better. I figured it was the healthier diet combined with exercise. After a bout with diverticulitis, the GI doctor told me to add fiber to my diet. My symptoms went crazy. I ended up going to a different doctor because of extreme lightheadedness. I was terribly anemic. This led to the diagnosis of Celiacs, almost exactly one year ago.

By the way, my firstborn is sixteen.

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