Alcholism and pregnancy- didn't know I was pregnant until 12 weeks, need some guidance.

[jaxy1185]

I am an alcoholic. I have been in recovery and sober until I relapsed this August. Both of my parents are recovering alcoholics, I got it on both sides evidently.

My partner and myself had discussed having children and decided to start trying once I was in full recovery mode. I did not think I would conceive right away if not at all because I have some ovarian issues. I am an athlete thus have very low body fat, my periods have always been late, short, irregular. I thought nothing of the spotting etc until one day I just started feeling 'strange'.. I took an HPT and it was positive- to my excitement and absolute HORROR.

For the past three months I have drank just about every day, some days way more than others. For example, there were a few weeks I drank nothing, or some days I had two light beers, but there were a good handful of days I was taking down at least a pint of vodka. I know, this seems absurd but alcoholism is a terrible disease, and absolutely horrendous when you have a tolerance like a Russian steel worker.

When I got the positive test, I nearly fainted. Luckily I eat very healthy and had been taking prenatal vitamins in preparation for baby time.

I have stopped drinking completely, am attending outpatient rehab, had a scan/ob gyn appt and am awaiting an appointment with a perinatologist/maternal fetal medicine specialist. I studied human cellular bio in my grad/undergrad so I am aware of the potential outcome for this little bean. I am curious, do any of you out there know anyone who has been in this situation, or have you been in it yourself?

I can't fathom the idea of terminating this pregnancy, I think everything happens for a reason, and I couldn't be more grateful to have this miracle come around to give me the push I really need towards recovery and providing the best life I possibly can.

I have scoured the web, forums etc for some semblance of calm in this emotional storm of fear that I have done irreversible damage to my baby to be- any information, personal experience may be helpful. Thanks for taking the time to read.

Philtrum I think .

Yes, there can be distinct facial features - the wide shallow philtrum, eye spacing etc. But these aren't always seen - it's a wide spectrum from severely affected to mild difficulties. Sorry - I do t think I put it well, I was trying to say you might not be able to tell for years - some children have problems for example with impulse control and that might only become apparent later on. Or mild learning difficulties for example.

Good luck to you op. Decent diet (processing alcohol takes a lot out of you) and good support around you is key. Whatever has been done can't be changed - you can only work to stay healthy from now on and you have a powerful motivator in your child

when you could relapse at any time
This pretty much applies to all alcoholics all the time. That's where the 'one day at a time' comes from.

Well done OP for stopping now, best wishes for keeping it up. Hope you have some good supportive HCPs on your side through the pregnancy and as a PP says it varies greatly between individuals, so hope for the best for you both

hello!
Thank you for all of the insightful replies and encouragement.
My decision to take serious control (or surrender if you are in AA :-)~ ) of my addiction is for myself, and the health of the baby now and in the future as a mother. All I can do is tell myself, "Not Today", and focus on the positives in each situation moving forward. The nature of addiction is not easy but having a little one, and adequate support sturctures, gives me SERIOUS motivation I have been wavering on to lock it up.

Developmental and cognitive disabilities lurk regardless of substance abuse during pregnancy- I am not absolving myself of my poor decision making but trying to stay level headed. Statistics in the US report 200,000 babies born with FAS every year; that is 200,000 out of ~3,999,386 each year, that is .05% of children born annually.

Since there is no true ethical way to study FAS in humans, we are left with a lot of uncertainty, giving way to much logical deduction reasoning.
I think that most anomalies and abnormalities, both cognitive and physical, are due to inadequate nutrition, genetic and environmental factors as well as level of stress (cortisol can be developmentally damaging to fetus etc) www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2846100/

From what I gather about embryonic and fetal development- alcohol significantly denatures certain vitamin/mineral/nutrient compounds essential for growth in a fetus. Alcohol specifically denatures Vitamin A, Vitamin B1 (Thiamine), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B3, Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine), Folic acid, Vitamin B12, Pantothenic acid, Biotin; Minerals Potassium, Iron, Zinc; and other nutrients Choline, Inositol, PABA (Para-Amino Benzoic Acid).
Choline is a supplement hardly touched in pregnancy topics. My perinatologist suggested 500mg-750mg a day to support brain and neurological synapse development throughout the course of pregnancy, which is crucial in combating cognitive delays later in life, regardless of teratogen exposure (alcohol etc).

I realize that there is potential that I may have slowed the progress for the foundation during the embryonic phase of development, but the scan appears up to snuff, blood panel is near perfect, and I have a positive outlook moving forward. I am SO grateful and fortunate to have found out when I did. On the up side, all of the organs and brain continue to develop throughout the course of pregnancy, especially cognitive and neurological functions. I am super excited and energized to get this baby to a healthy start, and MORE excited about my sobriety and preparation to become a good mother.

All of this is making me think I should have reconsidered my M.S. in molecular bio for an M.D.

ANYWAY enough nerd speak- thank you to all. I am not easily offended so no worries on the comments that seem a bit negative. I really enjoy reading the mumsnet forums, especially because here in the U.S. we have a penchant for the gloom doom rather than optimism and support.

I will touch back with updates. Thanks again

Jaxy I wish you both all the best. Everyone makes mistakes

Wow, you are well clued up!

I think you have the right attitude - don't drink TODAY and then make that decision again tomorrow that's how I managed BFing which I did not particularly liked but was keen to day: I'll do the NEXT feed and then I'll see.

I think doctors are guilty of pointing gloomy pictures in the interest of 'informed patients' when really and truly nobody knows how your baby will turn out and that is what you want to know of course.

You are well on track, so keep on keeping on

painting

And it'll be worse in the US than here in the UK (where it is bad enough) because of litigation...
Particularly in obstetrics.

That's Great .. you are obviously super bright . I wish you well !👌🏻

Jax I didn't find out until 5 months as no periods and told I couldn't conceive. Whilst not a alcoholic during these 5 months i drank every weekend and I suppose what you'd call an excess. Spirits, shots etc. My dd was fine. I found out about ds almost immediately and never had a single drink. I no you can't take back what is done but sometimes things are out of your hands even if you WOULDNT do them. I wish you lots of luck and well done.

I think research suggests 60% of alcoholic mothers have neuro typicak children. So the stats are in your favour especially if you stop now and eat healthier.
Be careful going cold turkey though, you should seek medical advice.

The stats I've seen say 1-2% of pregnancies affected by alcohol. The lower figure is for full on FAS, the higher for FASD - which is a spectrum.

All you can do is look after yourself and your little one as best you can from now on. Really get good support in place - whatever you need. Good luck!

"All of this is making me think I should have reconsidered my M.S. in molecular bio for an M.D."

I'm inclined to agree! You sound very intelligent so don't rule out an MS in future

I'm really hopeful that the studies looking at biomarkers for maternal alcohol consumption in meconium will provide some better information in future about the levels of alcohol consumption that cause foetal problems. Self-reports of alcohol consumption are generally very inaccurate so it's difficult to ascertain risk.

Hey Jaxy,

Just wanted to wish you luck with your pregnancy and managing your addiction 😊

Congratulations on your little bean!!
I found out I was pregnant at 10wks with my first ds when I was 19, not planned, i was on the pill, and got treatment for thrush. I had also been drinking for most of the 10wks, at least a 2 pints @ some shots every night after work and a days off even more, I stopped drinking as soon as I knew I was pregnant. I now have a very healthy ds17. No ill effects noticed, the health visitor & docs were aware and checked for things but he met all his milestones. This is just my experience hope you have a happy & healthy pregnancy

The people judging obviously dont understand what its like to be addicted and if you've sobered up for your babys sake, you've done an amazing thing. I've never suffered with addiction so i have no advice BUT my cousin was a raging alcoholic, to the point where we had to say goodbye to him 3 times as they were going to turn his life support machine off. He promised to change for his children but he never did, he couldnt and wouldnt even try to put alcohol before his children. What you've done is amazing and a lot of people in your position wouldn't have done what you did. Keep taking the help you're getting and although j think you should maybe read about fetal alcohol syndrome and other potential risks INCASE the worse comes to the worst..in my opinion no matter what illness or disease a child is born with, it is still your child and is better than no child. Congratulations and good luck x

I didnt find out i was pregnant until 12 weeks and id been on a drinking holiday in prague and all sorts so i was horrified id hurt the baby but the midwife said to me that the main damage you can do before 12 weeks is cause miscariage. She said if you dont miscarry the baby then the alcohol will not likely have done any damage before that point because the baby isnt using your bloodstream or something yet? She said that after 12 weeks when you drink it does enter the babies blood and can damage the babies development without causing you to miscarry so its much more important to stop drinking as your pregnancy progresses.
Good luck to you i wish you all the best with getting sober. xx

Any updates on how your baby turned out? Thanks in advance... very worried mum over here!!