re-repost as I mentioned the v*rus that can not be named!!
hey guys!
So, bit of an update. It’s nearly a year since my bypass and Christ, hasn’t time flown by?! I’m now the grand old age of 35. I know, just a baby!
So, our/my plan was to get pregnant a year after my bypass and my surgeon/cardiologist at the time was ok with that but they wanted me to see an obstetric cardiologist specialist. The problem being that the obstetric cardiologists that exist specialise in congenital heart disease and in her words “women really don’t tend to have babies AFTER a bypass because they are normally much older”…thanks. I know that lol. So there is just no literature on women like me, so nothing to go on. Again, in her words, I sit in the “weird and wonderful” category.
When I first met her back in May she was actually ok with me going ahead with getting pregnant but wanted to do a couple of tests first. The tests came back showing some reversible ischemia in my heart and I have had just one episode of angina since the op. Also I had an exercise test and she doesn’t think I’m as fit as I should be for my lifestyle (young, slim, hikes with the dog)…I don’t know why but it felt like a real kick to be told I was unfit! Did you know that being pregnant is the equivalent to doing the Tour de France for your heart?! Give the mothers you know a hug!
So, she is now worried that being pregnant might kill me off/bugger up my heart more or they’d have to terminate the pregnancy because of my heart not being able to cope. If I am lucky and I’m successful (this is not impossible), the labour would need to passive…again, never heard of that. Slight oxymoronic…labour and passive are two words I wouldn’t put together. They basically give you an epidural and pull the baby out…not allowed to be in pain or push at all. No c-section allowed apparently much harder on your heart.
What next? More tests. They are trying to pin point this ischemia and get as much info about my heart and vessels as possible so they can build a more accurate picture. They are going to give me an angiogram to look for microvascular issues and an also a MRA (magnetic resonance angiogram) to image all vessels from brain to pelvis. They are also worried I have fibromuscular dysplasia (when your blood vessels are too fibrous).
So, what are my questions? Has any one had a MRA? Or a microvascular angio? Has anyone reading this has a bypass and a baby after?! Ok, I know that third question is less likely to get a response lol.
I just feel a bit bleugh. After the op I felt SO MUCH BETTER! I could walk with the dog pain free, I didn’t get chest pain by just lying in a hot bath, I wasn’t breathless from slightest exercise - I was fixed! Bring it on! Now, although pain free I’m being told that I could get super sick from doing what I want, starting a family. It totally sucks. And also, can you imagine getting to 18 weeks and having to have a termination? I’m in total denial about that. It’s unthinkable.
Any advice is always welcome, you guys are the best xxx
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MarmiteB
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I had a baby at 41(first and only one) and I had, unknown to me then, congenital heart disease. I do not compare myself with you but there are couple of similarities.I had a C section due to a prolongue labour ....epidural and a calm procedure that went fine. Try to gather info. before you say no to yourself about the baby.....and babies can be born quite early so you may not carry full term and still have a good outcome.My sister in law had a healthy 7 month baby.
A very premature baby (24-28 weeks) is their biggest worry for me, that’s what my cardiologist is most worried about and is why I’m having yet more tests. Or being pregnant is so bad I have to have a termination Both of these are of course just risks but rather scary possibilities. Hmmm… you could also argue the ethics of it for hours (maybe after/over a glass of wine!)
Wow your story is fascinating and i wish you all the best.
Dodgy tickers and babies is hard work. And i am a man! So i am very lucky to be able to have another baby child at 37 but unfortunately do have heart failure pretty bad. So as a bloke (pretty irrelevant to your story) i do say it is of course hard work. But i guess if your fit, motivated and have a great partner to support you then i would take the chance. Especially if it will be your first child.
I dont think any outside advice would be anything that a specialist could give you. But medical specialists are proven wrong. They can only advice and weigh up the risks. Ultimately its up to you and as a women, well theres no one stronger than the power of a women. and her wish to have a child
yeh, it’s funny. Part of me thinks “Oh Christ, why would I put myself through that?!” And the other part says “But Rosie, you DO want a baby”…so tricky. So much to weigh up. They will never be able to say resolute “yes, you’ll be fine” and I think that’s were I’m struggling. And plus, my husband would be beyond devastated if something happened to me so there’s more to it than just what I want. Let’s see what these next results show…
Perhaps contact the British Cardiovascular Society's Maternal Cardiology Society to find a specialist you maybe able to help you make the decision that is best for you.
Regarding your query about ' a microvascular angio'
The microvessels are too small to be seen during a routine angiogram. The microvessels can in some cases not function properly, they fail to dilate or stay dilated in response to exercise, this is known as microvascular dysfunction. It causes microvascular angina.
During a functional angiogram it's possible to assess if the microvessels are working properly.
Microvascular angina along with vasospastic angina are types of non obstructive coronary artery disease.
Fibromuscular dysplasia canbe associated with microvascular and vasospastic angina.
Here is a link to a story about another women with heart failure who did have a baby.
hey! Some great links as always, I will get in touch for second opinion, it’s something I’d been considering. I’ve now emailed the British Cardiovascular Society, so thanks and what a lovely story about baby Anna.
In regards to the angiogram, I’ve had routine one before (not much fun) but they want to do the “fancy” one with specialised catheters…lucky old me. I wonder if I’ll be on the torture table for longer than normal?
Oh Christ 😬😬🙉🙈 sounds like fun then!! I’ll have to get them to give me something other than morphine, I don’t get on with it but thanks for being honest.
wow i like that word fancy angiogram, I got mircovascular angina and its horrific angina painpain that lasts for ages . You would only know the out come of anything if you did get pregnant, no matter how many test etc you have, I suppose you would have the best care from everybody if you decide to have a baby. Dont know what else to say to you but good luck whatever you decide ❤❤❤❤
Thank you xx I think that’s part of the problem, haven’t got any angina now (apart from one episode) but they are worried it’ll hit me when I am preggers. Let’s see what these fancy tests show!
Good morning,
I know my story is not the same as you but it involves heart issues and babies...so maybe it will help give you strength and confidence to investigate further.
I had my first baby at 34. Suffered sickness throughout ( one of those things!) an early mid wife visit spotted an irregular heart beat ( I was missing every third beat) , but as this was not unusual it was not investigated. I was under a gynaecological consultant due to early issues, unrelated to the heart. I ended up with pre eclampsia and a c section at 36 ish weeks. My daughter weighed 4lb 6oz. She did not need any interventions and is now a fiesty 23 year old who I am incredibly proud of. My heart rhythm never returned to normal and I was told by a go it was because I didn’t go through a natural birth! No investigation needed. 4 years later I was pregnant with my son. I was under consultant care again and was told by a registrar that my heart beat was now irregular but I should seriously consider natural birth as it might regulate everything! I opted for another c section ( at 38 weeks) and the consultant said it was the correct choice as they could keep an eye on the heart. Again no further cardio follow up. By the time my son started school I decided that my tiredness etc was not right despite my beautiful babies not sleeping through until nearly 3 years old.
I was diagnosed with sick sinus syndrome and tachy braidysyndrome ( or something like that) with no medication and follow up appointment. At the same time at a different hospital I was also diagnosed with ME/CFS ( chronic fatigue syndrome) and that was what I have lived with for the last 10 years.
Due to an unidentifiable episode a year ago, which is on record as a possible TIA, I finally had many tests and met the most incredibly man( my cardiologist) who said he would make me a new woman by Easter! My irregular heart beat during the day was 42 bpm and lower at rest as well as all sorts of electrics! Despite everything that is happening in the NHS I had a pacemaker fitted in March and during the surgery my hero told I had a combination of genetic conditions that I had been born with! This 57 year old woman is definitely a ‘new woman completing ‘ Go Ape ‘ with her ‘babies’ this summer.
I guess what I am saying is don’t leave it. I settled for an ME diagnosis and didn’t push the heart issues despite symptoms.
Get a second opinion, find the right specialist and you can make an informed decision. I wish you luck moving forward and hope you find your hero who can give you want you want!
thank you so much for getting back to me x yeh, it’s so tricky, I think I will look for second opinion but it’s the time that it will take that scares me. I’m 35 now, want to be pregnant ASAP…already waited a year because before I got I was sick we’d just got married and were planning it. I know, my rational side says “Oh? What’s another year?” My irrational side screams to get on with it and each month is wasted!
How do you get a second opinion though? Like, milk fairy said (thank you milky xx) the London Brompton is meant to be amazing but how do I get in front of them?
Hi there. I haven't had a bypass so sorry I cant help there. However im 34 now and i developed a heart condition in my pregnancy back in 2019. I ended up with sinus tachycardia and was put on beta blockers at 36 weeks. Nothing like tou situation but I can shed light on the labor. The cardiologist who took me under his wing was also obstetrics. He liased with the midwives and obviously it was noted I was a high risk pregnancy. I was expecting a 10lb baby and that was sending my heart rate sky high. They let me go to term before they decided that an early epidural was needed so " as not to get excited". However labour never came and at 40 weeks and 3 days I was induced. 24 hours later nothing so they fitted the epidural and wired me up to an ECG machine. They then broke my water but nothing. Then 6 hours later I had a drip to start labour. I was full of epidural by this point and they were monitoring me very closely and also monitoring babe. Eventually i asked to stop the epidural because ot began to fail on my right hand side so it was pointless. I pushed with gas and air so my heart rate went up a bit. I was instructed to take my beta blocker at 8 am and had babe at 12pm. He was taken away and checked over to see how his heart rate was because id been on beta blockers in pregnacy. He was fine. I had to express the first build up of breast milk and throw it away because there was no way of measuring the concentration of bisoprolol in there. I was sick afterwards but otherwise fine. Gave birth to a wonderful 9lb 6oz baby boy. I carried on breast feeding while taking medication and he's now a happy 3 year old. The team were fab and monitored me throughout. Cardiology arranged to see me 7 days after the birth. I still have my heart condition 3 years later but i have been advised not to get pregnant again but if i do to tell my cariologist straight away. Sorry is so long winded and not similar to your situation at all but I can only share my labour experience with a heart condition. I wore my smartwatch through labour and checked it 2 days later. I went back to the start of inducing right up to about a few hours after delivery and my heart rate went no higher than 98 the whole time. Great considering i have fast heart rate.
that’s interesting, I didn’t think about beat blockers and breast milk - suppose they don’t go together! Also, they are obviously doing their job with keep you below 100beats. I found I got dizzy on them-did you?
When i first had bisoprolol my heart rate averaged around 110-118. They hit me like a ton of bricks. I remember feeling so tired after an hour of taking them because my heartrate was lowered. That disappeared after a couple of weeks and now I dont even notice taking them. I dod alot of research about bisoprolol and breast milk before I delivered so that I could make my own choice about what would be best for my son. I spoke to cardiologists, pharmacists, a lactation nurse and many more. When my son was born he was born with a blood disorder not relating to beta blockers i was taking and was tube fed for about a week. He was a big boy so was fed expressed breast milk and top ups of formula to make up 600ml a day. It was advised that I expressed both breasts until empty and dump that milk straight after delivery as it probably would of contained to highest levels of bisoprolol. Breast milk didnt do him any harm. By the time you've processed the bisoprolol yourself only a traceable amount is probably found in milk.
GUCH patient here with 4 open heart surgeries before the age of 30 (now I’m 49).
I’m under the care of the Royal Brompton Hospital where my amazing cardiologist, following my last open heart surgery (age 29), suggested me that if I wanted to start a family, that would have been the right time as my heart, from a pumping point of view was working well.
As soon as I got pregnant I contacted my cardiologist who registered me under the care of his colleague obstetrician at the Chelsea and Weatminster Hospital.
Being pregnant with congenital heart disease is demanding from a time point of view too as I was fully checked every single week for 9 months.
I’ve overheard once the obstetrician explaining a student who was in the room with us that things can turn for the worse any time during the pregnancy for the patient (in that instance me!) but patients have been through heart surgery even when pregnant!
Never heard of a passive birth 🤔, I was explained from the very beginning that I would have not be allowed to suffer any pain or push for longer than 30 mins as both of these things can put too much stress and strain to the heart.
As the uncertainty of not being able to predict an easy natural birth I’ve opted for an elective C-section.
I was explained that the trickiest part of the the procedure was actually the anaesthesia itself so I had one of the most skilled anaesthetist, used to patients like me, taking care of my C-section epidural.
Lastly, it is procedure for congenital heart disease patients to have their fetus checked for heart defect around the 20th week of pregnancy and termination will be offered if the defect is very bad.
So, I think the bottom line is: if you want to go ahead find a centre which will give you clear guidelines if you’re likely to go through with a pregnancy damage free or not, somewhere where it is offered proper care with weekly appointments and be aware that it is not a walk in the park from start to finish and even if you get the go ahead, nothing is certain in life and complications can arise.
I was extremely lucky, had a perfect pregnancy with very few symptoms and a super chilled birth as every detail was planned properly, I have now a beautiful and healthy 17yo daughter.
Thank you so much for your reply, it was really good to read and I’m so pleased you have your daughter.
It sounds like being pregnant for you was a huge amount of logistics! But what a great outcome. They very reluctant at the moment to go for a c-section…let’s see if it changes (if I get the green light).
4 open heart surgeries before 30?! Crikey, you poor thing! Sounds like a huge amount of hard work for you, I hope your well as you can be now xx
I’m much better than many other people with my original condition so I consider myself lucky that my heart can cope with so much and I can lead an almost normal life.
Have a great Xmas and all the best for the future xx
Hi Marmite, being a man and 66 at that, I can't be of any help whatsoever 🙆♂️. BUT, I just wanted to say what a pleasure it was to read your very eloquent post. I am so sorry to hear of your dilemma and wish I could help - sorry ⚘
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Both of these are of course just risks but rather scary possibilities. Hmmm… you could also argue the ethics of it for hours (maybe after/over a glass of wine!)
and what a lovely story about baby Anna.
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