I was diagnosed with PCOS by my original Ob/Gyn in 2011 when we first started realized we were having trouble TTC. She diagnosed me based on CD 3 b/w that showed elevated testosterone and an elevated fasting blood glucose level. I was prescribed 1500mg daily Metformin which has since made my A1C and levels manageable ever since. When I visited an RE, the RE decided I did not have PCOS but kept me on it because she said it was good for my blood sugar levels and "wouldn't hurt anything"
I have also been under the care of a primary care doctor who agrees I should be on it PCOS or not, and in fact I switched Ob/Gyns in 2012 and she also said I would want to continue on it during pregnancy, if and when that happened. She said discontinuing Metformin during pregnancy could be harmful because it can cause miscarriage due to blood sugar fluctuations. Besides,it's a class B drug with no proven negative implications to a fetus. None. In 2012, I did a ton of research myself and found many reputable studies that confirmed that there has never been proof that there is harm to the fetus during pregnancy.
Fast forward to now. I have a new RE, and of course when I started with him I listed all of my current meds including Metformin during their intake process. It has never been brought up since so I assumed it was okay to continue taking it.
However yesterday, when my nurse emailed me telling me we were adding synthroid to the mix, I asked if there would be any interactions with it and Metformin. My nurse seemed surprised that I was taking metformin at all (despite the fact that I listed it at intake and should be on my file.) Well, today I get an email saying that my RE wants me to discontinue use immediately now that I'm pregnant.
Again, everything I have read and even heard from my new OB/gyn says it's safe, and can actually be quite harmful to stop. It has been proven to help decrease miscarriages, gestational diabetes in late pregnancy, and can even help with milk production.
I emailed the nurse back saying I was reluctant to stop for these reasons and asked for supporting evidence to discontinue, but I'm afraid they will put their foot down. I just have a really bad feeling about stopping it. I hate the idea of going against a doctor's direction which is something I've never done before. But technically, my OB has a conflicting opinion and says it's safe! Would you continue to take it even if your RE said to stop? Would you tell your RE you're disobeying (and probably irritate the hell out of them) or just keep taking it without their knowledge?
Thanks for reading all of this!
Re: Disobeying doctor's directions for discontinuing Metformin
Anovulatory cycles, increased Synthroid Diagnosed Sep 2010
1 Clomid/Ovidrel BFN May 2011
Natural cycle Aug 2011 BFP M/C 4 Weeks
1 IUI Sept 2011 BFP M/c 7 weeks
Provera Dec 2011 BFP M/C 3 Weeks
IVF March 2012 BFP m/c 4weeks 5 days (IL, Prednisone)
IVF#2w/DS July 2012 MEGA FAILURE BFN (IL, Dexamethasone)
Diagnosed No real HLA Match, DQ Beta Triad, High TNF, Low NK Cells
Oct 2012 Natural Cycle m/c 4wks (Lovenox, Prednisone)
Went to Beer Center- high tnf, low lad, implantation failure
Jan 2013 BFP
Humira,LIT,Prednisone, Lovenox, IVIG, Baby Aspirin
Miracle Born August 2013 Premature
Yours doesn't have to be a sad story
04/07/11- PCOS Diagnosis w/GYN. Put on Metformin (1500 mgs)
04/25/11- 1st consultation with RE (Confirmed PCOS & Anovulation)
05/09/11-HSG-All clear! 05/13/11-SA-Normal. Found out on 2/14/12, low Morph (1%).
06/17/11-10 days of Clomid (100, 150) No response.
07/10/11-03/20/12- 5 Injectable (Follistim) IUI cycles; 4 BFN, 1 C/P. (stims ranged from 11 days to 25 days)
05/28/12-Diagnosed with Hypothyroidism. 75 mcg Synthroid.
IVF with ICSI in June/July 2013 = BFP!. Beta # 1 = 123. Beta # 2 = 252. Due March 25th. Baby boy arrived March 27, 2013!
FET #1 - 10/4/14 = BFP!! Beta #1 = 179. Beta # 2 = 499. Due June 22nd.
talk to the RE in person (or at least by phone), not the nurse via email. Not all dr's agree on one thing, so 2nd opinions are invaluable. I , personally, have known many people that stay on this through the first trimester-- i would trust my OB more with this or at least want to know EXACTLY why the RE is saying no-- then bring this to info to my OB before doing anything!
You shouldn't ever blindly follow what a Dr says-- you have to be your own advocate, and sometimes follow your own instincts. and always, always get 2nd opinions!
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Positive for HLA-B27, I'm a mutant
Testing - Me ok, gluten issue? DH - borderline count, low motility
4/28/11 IUI#1 = BFP!(5/25), EDD 2/2/12 - m/c 5w3d
7/3, 7/31, 9/25 - IUI#2-4=BFN
IVF#1 - 1 blast = BFP!! (12/30), EDD 9/9/12, confirmed c/p 4w2d
FET#1 3/2/12 - 2 blasts =BFP!! EDD 11/18/12, us#1 = twins! Confirmed m/c 5w6d
4/20-surprise BFP and another c/p 4w2d
FET#2 7/16/12 - 2 blasts = BFN
FET#3 8/20/12 - 1 blast - BFP!! Beta #1-2=177, 354
1st u/s 5w6d, one beautiful little HB , 2nd u/s 146bpm
baby girl born 5/10/13
TTC#2 since 12/17/2014, Cycle 8
Repeat Testing...FSH=12, AMH=3.8, AFC=28.
IUI#5 5/10/15- c/p?
IVF#2 8/19/15 - cancelled due to cysts
IVF#2 take two 10/2015 - 5 blasts frozen
FET#4 12/11/2015 - BFN - 4 blasts remaining
FET#5 2/18/16 - BFP!!! Beta1-3, 126, 250, 745!!
Tons of love and ((hugs)) to my IF sister NMscubagirl
~*~Married 8/31/08~*~
DX: MFI due to Chemo/Stem Cell Transplant for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. RE said IVF is best option with DH's frozen boys.
IVF #1 April 2012: Menopur and Bravelle; 1 egg retrieved, 0 fertilized. Boo.
IVF #2 August 2012: Gonal-F 300, Menopur 300. Beta #1 9/6: 382... BFPx2!
Our boys couldn't wait to meet us! Colin and Kieran arrived March 26, 2013 at 33w1d.
I would ask the drs to call each other and figure this out. My dr put me on it because even though my blood sugar and glucose testing was all good he want4ed to make sure that it stayed ok throughout the pregnancy. I am still on it. So I do not understand why they would take you off of it.
************ Signature/Ticker Warning ************
Me (32) DH (36) - Finding our way to baby #1
Me: POF/DOR - AMH <0.16, heterozygous c677t MTHFR, insulin resistant and gluten intolerant
DH: Severe MFI
12/2/11 - IUI #1- BFN
8/1/12 - IVF #1 - Zero response from max stims (600iu intramuscularly)
My ovaries are just for decoration
12/6/12 - Adopted five embryos that had been frozen for over ten years!
2/11/13 - DEmbryo FET #1 Thawed four, sadly two didn't survive. Transferred two beautiful blasts.
2/16/13 - First BFP of my life @ 6dp5dt! EDD 10/30/13
3/27/13 - After beta and u/s hell, no heartbeat ever detected. D&C at 9w1d.
6/5/13 - Adopted four new embryos that had been frozen for seven years!
9/12/13 - DEmbryo FET #2. Thawed and transferred two beautiful blasts
9/17/13 - BFP @ 5dp6dt! EDD 05/31/14
9/29/13 - m/c @ 5w1d.
11/19/13 - DEmbryo FET #3. Thawed and transferred one blast from each batch. Wow!
11/23/13 - BFP @ 4dp6dt! EDD 8/7/13
Beta #1 @ 13dp6dt - 522 Beta #2 @ 16dp6dt - 1373
6w5d ultrasound showed one perfect baby with a beautiful heartbeat of 134bpm!
Snowflake baby is a girl!
Our beautiful Snowflake girl arrived on July 22, 2014!
My embryo adoption blog: Wishing on a Snowflake
I had the opposite problem. I was put on it by RE after an early miscarriage after my 3rd IUI. I do have PCOS and are pretty much textbook. I had tried it in the past but always had stomach issues on it. So RE convinced me to try it again after my mc and I took it while gearing up for IVF, but only 1000mg. Our first IVF was successful and RE told me to stay on it until 12-14 weeks. OB actually wanted to keep me on it for the reasons you stated. She didn't understand why RE wanted to take me off. Anyway, I made the decision to taper down and went fully off at 14. I know I'm at risk for GD, but I didn't want to be on metformin for life and would prefer to regulate my blood sugar through healthy diet and exercise. So I want to see how I do this pregnancy and fingers crossed I can get through it without GD!
Id say stay on it and you've done the right thing so far, ask for supporting evidence on why they want you to go off it. Personally, I wouldn't go off during first tri but thats me. Everyone is different.
Some doctors will keep you on it throughout your entire pregnancy. Some take you off early, some after 1st Tri. It really just depends on the doctor and patient. Like you said, there's no research to suggest it will harm your baby so if you're more comfortable taking it, as is your OB's recommendation, I'd continue.
I was given the ok to start tapering down my 2000mg/day dose by my RE at week 9 and to be completely off it by week 10-11. I chose to continue taking it until week 12, when I was also given the green light to stop the progesterone supps. At my recent OB appointment (13w), my OB specifically verified that I had stopped the Met and P4 supps so I guess had my RE not already stopped me, she was going to.
I'm also on synthroid and was diagnosed with PCOS by my OB which is why I started the Met in the first place.
**PAIF/SAIF Welcome**
TTC #1 March 2010 - Nov 2012
Me: 29, PCOS (anov), Hashimoto's Disease // DH: 30, normal SA
3 Clomid, 1 Clomid/Menopur, 1 Menopur w/ TI (CX 4x's due to cysts) - All BFN
1 Clomid/Menopur, 2 Menopur, 1 Follistim w/ IUI - All BFN
RPL & Karyotype testing normal
IUI #5 (12/1/12) --> Follistim + 1/3 hCG Trigger = BFP! EDD: 8/23/13
Betas --> 61 (13dpo) // 156 (16 dpo) // 223 (18dpo) // 656 (21 dpo)
U/S --> 5w0d - sac seen // 6w0d - hb detected // 7w0d - hb seen and heard, measuring 6w6d!
8w6d - wiggly baby! // 9w3d - wiggly baby with fingers!
Baby boy born 8/24/13
My Blog: Searching for Lucky Socks