Women, were you told you'd become more fertile?

[Kristy29 0]

I am watching the show I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant. There is a woman on there who had irregular periods and never could conceive a child. Then she had gastric bypass and lost weight. Then she was rushed to the emergency room with severe stomach pains and found out she was 35 weeks pregnant and in labor. She kept insisting it was impossible because she tried for 15 years and was unsuccessful.

When I went for my initial seminar and consultation, they told me 20 times that losing weight would most likely make me fertile. They told me about women who return a few months after surgery pregnant. They also made me sign a contract saying I would use birth control for 2 years.

I think that her doctor was irresponsible for not telling her that losing weight might resolve her fertility issues. Did your doctor talk to you about it?

[qtney1 1]

I was told it will make your cycle more regular, which can increase your fertility to what it should be

[Mel Mel 0]

Yes. I was told that being obese I would have a harder time concieving than of being normal weight. Although I didn't have to sign a contract I was told it's not safe to concieve for 18months. 14 months to go! We will be able to start trying right after our 3 year anniversary!

[Mommy2Ps 4]

I think it's absurd that your doctor forced you to sign a contract NOT to get pregnant for two years. I'm assuming it was for the band, and if so, that's insane.

No, the band or any other surgery won't make you fertile, it's the process of losing weight (any way you do it) and like the others have said, regulating your cycles which in turn can help you conceive.

I was TTC my second child for almost a year with no success. I was even on fertility drugs and nothing. We stopped trying and I lost about 15lbs on my own (this was all pre-op) and found out I was pregnant the day before our Reproductive Endocrinologist appt! Losing just that little amount of weight seemed to do the trick, IMO. It could have been anything really (drugs still in my system, HSG test, perfect timing etc...), but I really think the weight loss helped a lot.

For some reason, the excess fat in your body messes with the chemicals that control ovulation, hence the reason why most obese women have irregular cycles (and PCOS). It's all chemical/hormonal that causes the irregularities.

Anyway, sounds like your doctor is just CHOA by having you sign a contract. That's insane to me, but maybe it's a common practice that I just didn't know about. Although, I'm still in my child-bearing years and was never told anything like that by my doctor.

[PianoLady 0]

My daughter had problems conceiving, but when she lost weight and started exercising she became pregnant. This happened twice and I have two beautiful grandchildren as a result.

[Kristy29 0]

Well, the contract was a general contract about the surgery, but it included the part about the birth control. They don't want us getting pregnant until after we are done losing weight. If I were to get to goal in say a year and a half though, I'm not going to wait because I signed the contract.

I also know that losing weight won't be an automatic cure, but I think the woman on the show should at least have been told it was a possibility she could become fertile. As a result of her not believing she could become pregnant her child received no prenatal care and his life was put in jeopardy as a result.

[BetsyB 9]

Yes. And even though my doctor is Catholic and operates from a VERY Catholic institution, they strongly suggest use of birth control for 2 years postop.

[Bryn 3]

I hate to sound mean or rude, but i thought it was common knowledge that women know that being at a healthy weight means having a better opportunity of being fertile. I mean, we all know that weight fluctuation can make your period irregular, and that if some women are severely morbidly obese, their cycle even stops.

so i don't think the doctor was at fault for not telling her that (if you mean the bariatric surgeon)

majority of the time on that show most of the women who didn't know they were pregnant are fat to begin with (irregular/no periods; and all the other relations between being fat and pregnant)

[Kristy29 0]

Well, yes, I totally agree with you. I think it is common knowledge, but that's because I know it. I do think that even when things are supposedly common knowledge, that doctors should still discuss them, because there are people out there who don't know, so assuming they do know could end in these kinds of situations.

[Nile 0]

I don't think it's common knowledge, at least not here in Argentina. Anyway the doctor should've told her patient about it (if she previously told him about her fertility issues, obviously), it doesn't matter if it's common knowledge or not. If you want to read about the adipose regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis just google Leptine :tongue2:

Saludos :thumbup:

[gingerjane 5]

I don't know. LOL! I see those shows and I'm like "how did you have NO CLUE that you were pregnant?". I've had two kids and let me tell you - I know something is up when they kicked me in the bladder and I peed on myself. Your entire stomach MOVES constantly.

But, back to the question at hand. My doctor did say to not get pregnant for two years afterwards and he did talk about how it will resolve a lot of infertility. We went through 4 years of IF with our 2nd and I had lost about 15 lbs when I got pregnant with her. It was like even the smallest amount of weight loss helped my body get back on cycle.

Even now, I've noticed that my periods are changing. They're regulating themselves and aren't as bad as they used to be. I see my OB/GYN next month and I'm sure she'll talk to me about it some more, too. Fortunately, hubby is snipped and clipped so it's not a concern. :thumbup:

[Manda87 3]

The whole purpose of not TTC within the first 18 months after the surgery is because this is the time to lose weight! Generally, when you get pregnant you gain weight. I knew a lady that had PCOS, and was told she couldn't have children. She got the lap band and lost weight. She became pregnant unexpectedly.

[illinoishusker 0]

I think the only way you become more fertile is the weight loss which would regulate your estrogen and hormone levels. If you happen to have other issues causing infertility then it wouldn't affect it so much. I think it's smart to wait to get pg so that you can lose as much weight as you can. Any weight loss could possibly make you more fertile.

[Melinco 1]

I got the lapband in order to become pregnant, but using donor eggs/embryos, not my own, as I have diminished ovarian reserve. In order to minimize complications during pregnancy caused by being morbidly obese, both my RE and OB suggested lapband.

So far, I've lost 75 pounds. The thing is, I'm still 39 years old. I still have DOR. The chances of me becoming pregnant, accidentally, are slim to none. Buy my not becoming pregnant has nothing to do with my weight.

And, BTW, my periods have been regular, like clockwork, even at my highest weight. My REs (I've had two) were in shock that my periods were regular, but alas, they are.

As far as not feeling a pregnancy, if your placenta is attached to the front of the uterus, it is quite possible you would never feel a kick. And if you have always had a big belly, depending on how much weight you need to lose, that belly may take a while to shrink, and if you got pregnant and had the forward facing placenta, you may not know, especially if you never got a period (because the first time you finally ovulated you had perfectly timed sex and voila! your egg fertilized and implanted).

While I didn't watch the particular episode the original poster is referring to, it is quite possible the surgeon did mention the use of birth control but his patient either didn't hear him (how many of us have so many questions running through our heads that we sometimes miss what the surgeon is saying) or she refuses to acknowledge that he did tell her, thus not taking responsibility for her situation.

Regardless, I really don't see how a female patient in her child bearing years, who has done any amount of research into WLS, cannot NOT know that her fertility may increase as she loses weight.

[MrsCabes 2]

Yes, I knew - I, too, signed a "contract" that I wouldn't get pregnant for 2 years after surgery and that I would use TWO forms of BC. I already knew that fertility increases with weight loss so it was no surprise to me.

The 2 major things (besides weight loss, of course) that occur after surgery is 1. pregnancy and 2. divorce.