Anyone had to stop Metformin during pregnancy?

[IamnotwhouthinkIam]

I've been on Metformin for PCOS for 15 years - it's helped me go from a BMI of 42 and no periods (amongst other symptoms) to a BMI of 27 and a more regular menstrual cycle. I'm currently 16 weeks pregnant and have stayed on the Metformin as I read it can help prevent miscarriage for women with PCOS (as well as helping to continue to regulate my weight).

But my consultant wants me to stop the Metformin in a few weeks to take a gestational diabetes test - apparently it interferes with the test results (but that I should do the test as I am at risk for diabetes due to family history.)

Has anybody else stopped Metformin and later re-started it again during pregnancy? (I'm worried I'll put on too much weight if I stay off it!) Did you stop and start cold-turkey or wean yourself off it slowly?

I'm also confused because I've been told that if I do have gestational diabetes the treatment is .... Metformin! So it makes no sense to me stopping it, but the consultant seemed definite when I questioned it

I'm also confused because I've been told that if I do have gestational diabetes the treatment is .... Metformin! So it makes no sense to me stopping it,

It's so they can test to see if you have GD or not. If you are taking Metformin while you have the test then it can give a false negative. If you do have GD then you would be monitored more closely- asked to test your blood sugars daily etc, growth scans etc. As GD can have big implications for you and baby. It's important to get accurate results.

In my (bitter) experience, they ‘make’ you come off it during pregnancy, then won’t ‘let’ you go back on it afterwards as it’s now considered an old fashioned medication for PCOS and is no longer routinely prescribed. I’ve been trying to get back on it for nearly five years, after being on it for over a decade before that, but my GP says no and I’m no longer under the care of an Endo. It was the only thing that kept my symptoms under some degree of control, so me and my flabby belly and hairy face miss it so very much!

The point of this diatribe is to say don’t come off it unless absolutely necessary (but obvs the health of your unborn child is paramount!).

I declined stopping taking it after speaking to my private consultant.

I was told to stop taking it altogether so I could have a GD test at 12 weeks which is apparently standard at my trust if you fall into certain categories (I have pcos). But I was scared to stop as metformin is supposed to be helpful at preventing miscarriage, and I had had 2 miscarriages in a row and was pregnant for a third time at the time and was very anxious.

My midwife said I could decline the test and then have the GD test at 28 weeks which is more standard, so I did that. They say to stop taking metformin the week before so it doesn’t mask anything but again I didn’t want to stop taking it, so I just carried on as normal and luckily my GD test came back negative. I was also having the regular urine tests and stuff throughout so I felt pretty confident I made the right decision for me.

Totally up to you but for me I didn’t want to stop any medication that could be keeping my pregnancy going and it worked out for me, I’m now 37 weeks with a healthy baby boy and measuring bang on size wise for my gestation.

Good luck whatever you decide x

Also just to note - I’ve been honest with my midwife etc throughout and none of them have forced me to stop taking it -they did advise that I did but when I said no and explained my reasons they accepted it.

I originally got the metformin from a private consultant (paid for through my work’s health insurance scheme - I had enough for one consultation fee) and have been on it ever since, getting repeats through the NHS. I emailed him when I was told to come off it and said it felt wrong to me, and he agreed with me and said stay on it so I text my midwife and told her. She was fine about it.

I find the metformin gets questioned a lot as I don’t have GD but I just have to explain it’s for PCOS and previous miscarriage and thru just say ‘ok’ and move on x

They not thru!

@eldorado02

In my (bitter) experience, they ‘make’ you come off it during pregnancy, then won’t ‘let’ you go back on it afterwards as it’s now considered an old fashioned medication for PCOS and is no longer routinely prescribed. I’ve been trying to get back on it for nearly five years, after being on it for over a decade before that, but my GP says no and I’m no longer under the care of an Endo. It was the only thing that kept my symptoms under some degree of control, so me and my flabby belly and hairy face miss it so very much!

The point of this diatribe is to say don’t come off it unless absolutely necessary (but obvs the health of your unborn child is paramount!).

Go to anytime doctors site and get metformin on private prescription.

@eldorado02 I would echo what @CloseYourEyesAndSee said and go private. If it helps I got progesterone from Nova fertility during lockdown - I paid £150 for the consultation and did it over zoom, the prescription was emailed to me the next day and then I just went to boots to get it!

Yes, i was taking it for pcos to bring back my periods. My baby was conceived using metformin and letrozole. Advised by consultant to come off it at 16weeks so that it didnt hide any GD markers. Although the test was around 20weeks, GD can develop at any time. My endo consultant was fine with that. No GD in pregnancy and in fact my baby was IUGR so very small. Im now 14 weeks post partum and had my first post partum appt with my endo consultant last week. He said was happy to prescribe metformin again but was equally happy for me to wait if i wanted to. Im going to finish breastfeeding at christmas so he said he would prescribe it for me at my next appt in Feb. I'm struggling to lose the baby weight so going to make a concerted effort between now and then - but hopefully the metformin will help get things back under control again if not.

Thank you so much everyone for your advice

Having looked again at my letters, it looks like my GD test might be delayed because of the Christmas Holidays - they told me it was supposed to be at 24-28 weeks but my appointment letter mentioning "no food after midnight" isn't till 30 weeks. So at my 20 week scan I'm going to ask how long I need to be off the Metformin for before the test- the test sounds important but I'm hoping they'll say I only need to be off the meds for a week before like pp mentioned.

Thanks also for the warning that the consultant/the hospital might not want me to go back on it - I'll fight tooth and nail to do so, plus luckily the communication with my GP doesn't seem great so hopefully they won't realise and will keep prescribing the Metformin. It seems a relatively cheap generic medication for the NHS - it would unfortunately cost them far more in the long run if I developed type 2 diabetes like others in my family (I really don't want the regular blood sugar tests either - I faint each time and the drop in blood pressure can't be good for the baby!)

Thought I'd update my thread in case anyone searches for this subject in future - at the moment I'm due to have my GD test at about 29 weeks gestation, but I really don't want to come off the Metformin. I keep reading studies that say it has protective effects for the babies of pregnant women with PCOS and I'm worried if I stop it for at least a week to do the test (possibly 2weeks as it might be better to wean off?) then something could happen to my insulin levels that could effect the baby - as I'm guessing the protective effects would equally take a while to build up again.

The medics I've spoken to don't seem to understand that when you've had years of fertility treatment (in my case multiple IUI and IVF cycles) and when it's likely your only chance to have a child (I'm a Solo Mum to be at 40), that you might be wary to change anything now it's finally worked! They just say that if I'm not diabetic there is no need for the Metformin, but when I ask if there's any evidence for it harming the baby, they say there's not .

I'm really tempted to just have the GD test without stopping it like @Cafeaulait27 did - but I can't seem to get a clear answer on why it "masking" the test results (ie. stopping any symptoms of GD) would be a bad thing. It just seems they want to stick to the standard protocol of no "unnecessary" medication .

@IamnotwhouthinkIam I have found reading this thread really helpful thank you. I know it was some time again now that you posted but I was wondering if you are able to advise how you got on in the end? I’m at 17 weeks with PCOS and wondering whether to stop taking metformin as I have been advised to stop it but my googling tells me not to!

@IamnotwhouthinkIam I’ve also been finding this old thread really useful! I’ve had quite contradictory advice so far (I’m 13 weeks and on Metformin for PCOS) - GP said it was fine to keep taking it, but the midwife was less sure (but hasn’t given a definite no), so I’m still taking it for now. I’m not sure what to when the time comes for a GD test - I’d read somewhere online you should stop taking it for 3 days before but I’d rather get some advice from my GP.

Hi @IamnotwhouthinkIam,congratulations on your pregnancy!

I’m glad to hear that someone is in the same boat in terms of trying to work out what to do with Metformin. It’s bizarre that they prescribe this drug but then don’t know whether or not you should continue it once pregnant!

I am also taking Inofolic Alpha as prescribed by the fertility nurse and am petrified that these drugs could be harming my baby, but at the same time I’m afraid to stop in case I have another MC.

The fertility nurse told me to come off it when I got a positive pregnancy test. I ignored this advised and I’m so pleased I didn’t stop and carried on taking it through the first trimester as there is so much positive research about this.

Now I’m trying to work out what to do from here! My midwife and doctor don’t know anything about it, one consultant has told me it’s up to me as it won’t do much either way (?!), and another has told me to stop it as it does more harm than good 🤯

Hi @mrsalice2022 and @scarceiron - sorry I don't get much chance to check Mumsnet at the moment, I'm now wiped with a super active, into everything (and the epic tantrums when he doesn't get to do what he wants! 😡) but seemingly happy and healthy 16 month DS!

I stayed on the metformin before my GD test. Good job I did as it still flagged up the I had GD! (always likely thanks to my PCOS and history of Type 2 diabetes in the family) I dread to think what really high blood sugar raises he might have been exposed to without staying on the metformin.

First thing the GD nurse said was "Right we treat GD by giving you Metformin - Oh, you're already on it?"! So for the rest of my pregnancy , as well as obviously staying on the metformin! I also did 4 daily blood monitoring/finger pricks and dietary changes - my diet wasn't previously that sugar heavy, although I do like my treat of dark chocolate, but I did also eat a fair amount of (usually brown/wholegrain) carbs and whole fruit and I had to learn to pair them with high protein and fats at the same time so I didn't get blood sugar spikes. I managed fine and didn't need insulin.

Anyway basically I stayed on the metformin and all my supplements (including Myo inositol @mrsalice2022 ) throughout pregnancy and breastfeeding (which I'm still doing) and he seems absolutely fine 😀. Good luck to the both of you!

@IamnotwhouthinkIam thank you so much - great advice!!! I just didn’t want to go off Metformin after finally getting used to it and having to start all over again if I did get a GD diagnosis. Congratulations on your DS!

Thank you so much @IamnotwhouthinkIam for getting back to us, that’s really kind of you given that you have your hands full! Congratulations 😊 Good luck @scarceiron with the rest of your pregnancy 🥰