Just found out I'm pregnant

You have no reason on this earth not to take vitamins.  Unless of course you want to be sick and make your fetus sick.

You need to IMMEDIATELY contact vitalady and get on her regimen.  IMMEDIATELY.

And you need to start taking folic acid IMMEDIATELY.

How far along are you?

I had this big post ready for you. About responsibility etc. But, I just don't know what to write now.
I wish you good health and a healthy child.

NOW. TAKE YOUR VITAMINS. CALL YOUR SURGEON. and find a high risk OB.

Thank you,

Dana

 Your surgeon is my surgeon. I am two years out (as of April) and I am pregnant (30 weeks). I have seen him once during this pregnancy, earlier on in my pregnancy for my yearly with him, everything was fine. When I got my glucose tolerance pulled I also got second labs for late pregnancy drawn. Everything was fine. 

That said, I take what might be called WAY THE HELL over what he recommends and have been doing so from the start. I added Folic acid and four prenatal vitamins to my pill box as well and I take all of this daily, without fail (okay who am i kidding once in awhile I miss that last sacking out before bed dose, I'm not a saint).

Ultimately you don't need to see him. You just need your labs done and an OB/midwife/GP can request those for you, call up his office and tell them you need the lab order. You don't even need to specify really why you need it they will fax it to you immediately. 

I don't even have a high risk OB.  I deal with a midwife who works for the women's health services branch of Franciscan Health (the same hospital/medical group that Srikanth works with). It's a matter of staying on top of things and getting your ducks in a row.

While I am suspicious that your labs are going to remain fine and dandy taking little to no vitamins while NOT pregnant I can tell you that pregnancy is going to suck every single thing out of you. I didn't even have surgery with my last child and wound up anemic, B12 deficient, and partially from the merit of living in the great gray northwest, "criminally low" on Vitamin D. 

If you are keeping this baby you need to get your butt in gear, one way or another.  

 This is such a great post.  I was kind of wondering if high risk OBs are standard for post-DS pregnancies;  I didn't think so, but if she is deficient in a bunch of stuff already I can see there being a good reason for it.  Congratulations on your pregnancy and I love, love, LOVE your purple hair!!! 

 I already had seen this specific group of midwives (there are five in the practice), and this midwife specifically, for my second and third child (this is the fourth and final!) when I was incredibly heavy, I gave birth to my 2 year old at 453lbs with no complications, interventions, or medications just fine.

One of the midwives in this practice has had RNY, and they see quite a few bariatric patients in general due to working within the same medical group as my surgeon (and Dr. Oh and I believe one other doc whose name I am blanking on). And while, yes we are different us DSers and RNYers we are sort of fundementally the same in our pregnancy care and the extra management of our labs/nutrition. Though the ultrasound tech that works with my midwives (I have had a few extra ultrasounds to make sure my child is growing proportionately and properly, and he is!) knew of the DS and said "We've seen quite a few women with that surgery now it seems!"

I guess since I am proactive in my health I didn't consider myself high risk (I didn't automatically consider myself high risk at 450 lbs either actually and I had three healthy perfect pregnancies while SMO so I guess I was right). If your current OB or the OB you want to see, or midwife you choose to see is not comfortable or confident in managing or at least working with you to manage your nutrition needs then you may need to go with someone who is a high risk specialist to get the attention to detail you need. 

 Thanks for this!  I had a midwife assisted homebirth with my first, with no complications, so I'm hopeful that after I get my weight under control I will be able to have one more!  :)  

I am 11+ years post-op and I had a baby in January.  I saw a high risk OB because of my age and because of my extensive surgical history - but NOT because of the DS.  I am and always have been extremely vigilant about my nutrition and supplements and vitamins etc.  But somebody who is not and has not been,  and who goes into a pregnancy with deficiencies and issues, would benefit from  a high risk OB.  

I just read some of your earlier posts.  You are not fine - you said you are severely anemic and cannot afford infusions,  that you are deficient in all kinds of things,  that you are so financially strapped you cannot afford to take care of yourself....so how about you be honest up front here.  You cannot expect to have a healthy pregnancy and healthy baby if you cannot afford to take care of yourself NOW.  You need to see an OB and you need to take ALL of your required supplements immediately.  IMMEDIATELY.

How far along are you?

If you are so broke how on earth are you going to afford to have a child?  And you have no health insurance?

I'll be the thoughtless, insensitive heathen who asks if continuing the pregnancy is the best thing. You say the pregnancy is accidental, you don't sound happy about it, you're not financially stable and you clearly aren't following DS rules for supplementation. Why would you bring an innocent baby into all this?

Caroline

I want to be an insensitive heathen too, so I'll bite.

I am concerned that the OP will do more harm than good by continuing the pregnancy, especially considering how non-compliance (whether is't due to finances, lack of regard to one's wellbeing or a combination of both) will put the baby's health -both long and short term- in jeopardy.

to the OP- I 'm not sure how much sympathy I can offer, I mean how hard is it to swallow a goddamn vitamin? Or for that matter slip a rubber on the guy's wang... Why bother being pregnant when you're looking at a miscarriage or still birth due to severe malnutrition because you don't care enough about your own health... or worse, developmental problems crippling the child for life. I'd rather be dead than a drooling vegetable with brain damage.

It is not about you anymore. If you don't take responsibility for your child immediately, don't bother having it.