I know there are currently some pregnant ladies on the board that may be able to help me out. I'm currently 11 weeks pregnant following IVF. I've had a lot of stretching, pulling and sharp pains this pregnancy and I wonder if it's related to my scar tissue or stoma site. It's also made more complicated by the fact that I did have OHSS and my ovaries are likely still large. As well I know that my uterus is retroverted and tacked to the side due to scar tissue . It's hard because I live in a remote community and my doctors have very little understanding of a jpouch. My RE is 6 hours away and they are also little help. I'm worried about the uterus not being able to break through the scar tissue but also about not being able to see anything at my ultrasound next week due to the severe retroversion of my uterus.
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Hmmm, this sounds rough. I am 13 weeks now, so a bit behind you I think. Did the pains subside? I am worried about my scars not stretching, causing blockages etc, though so far so good. Most ladies seem to have pretty good luck with this, but it is anxiety provoking. I'd love to hear anything you learn. My MD's are all very calm, but then they aren't the ones that will have to live with things if it gets crazy again
To be honest it's actually become worse, I'm just letting you know so you don't panic like me. I am definitely showing now so I think my uterus was going through a growth spurt
Oh and all my doctors have seemed to validate my hypothesis, they said that I have a lot of scar tissue so it would make sense
Do they think there is anything to do about it? What are they recommending?
They aren't recommending anything really, I don't think my doctors really know what to do with me. I'm hoping that as my belly grows the pain subsides.
Hi Little Greeny,
I am currently 30 weeks pregnant with my second baby. My first pregnancy was about 2 years ago and both these pregnancies were about 10 years post surgery for J-Pouch. I had some ligament stretching with first baby but this pregnancy I had a couple bad bouts of pain around 24 weeks, almost felt like my utererous was badly cramping but ultrasound suggested all was fine with baby so we assumed it was scar tissue/adhesions stretching. My theory is that around 22-26 weeks your babies goes through a significant growth spurt and many women "pop" and start to show, depending on where the baby is located (perhaps near your stoma scar site) this can put a lot of stretch on your scar tissue. Good news is once the scar tissue has stretched or softened out the pain should subside. In my case I haven't had this pain since. So the good news is, if it is your scar tissue, in my experience it shouldn't last the entire pregnancy. But I know it can be nerve wracking because any pain in that area can be scary.
Hope this helps.
Lisa
Thanks for sharing your experience too Lisa! It is reassuring. So far I haven't had much in terms of stretching or pain, but it is something that I've been anxious about. (I'm only 16 weeks now, so obviously there will be much more growth before the baby comes.)
Little Greeny, I hope she is right and that is subsides! On-going pain can make life much more stressful! Sending extra energy.
Peace, Elizabeth
I was hospitalize at about 20 weeks with my first because the pain was so bad. All I could take was Tylenol. They told me it would be worse with my second but it was better.
I know this is an old post. But I’m really curious what happens to the scar after the delivery. I had my surgery back in 1999, and have a long scar from 4 inches above my belly button to like 10 inches below it. Does the scar tissue go back to normal after getting stretched so extremely?
I had my surgery in 2017 but after complications during the endoscopic surgery ended up with the big traditional cuts that sound similar to what you have. My jpouch baby was my third. I really did not have any substantial pain from my scars stretching during pregnancy and they looked the same postpartum. I definitely felt the scar tissue stretching but it was not disruptive for me. She was my third (and smallest at 7.11 at 39 weeks).
@JPouch2017 posted:I had my surgery in 2017 but after complications during the endoscopic surgery ended up with the big traditional cuts that sound similar to what you have. My jpouch baby was my third. I really did not have any substantial pain from my scars stretching during pregnancy and they looked the same postpartum. I definitely felt the scar tissue stretching but it was not disruptive for me. She was my third (and smallest at 7.11 at 39 weeks).
That’s so great to hear! Congrats on your post jpouch pregnancy and baby! I’m 18 weeks pregnant now and only slightly feeling it stretching at this point.
@SZ posted:I know this is an old post. But I’m really curious what happens to the scar after the delivery. I had my surgery back in 1999, and have a long scar from 4 inches above my belly button to like 10 inches below it. Does the scar tissue go back to normal after getting stretched so extremely?
Hi Sz, both my pregnancies post Jpouch surgery did very little to the appearance of my scar. I too was worried about how much it stretched and if it would look different when everything went back to “normal” but honestly it looks pretty much the same. Obviously this may not be the case with everyone, but it is amazing how our skin (and scar tissue) can stretch!
Congrats!! I hope it stays relatively pain free for you! Your first? I had two pre-jpouch and had two miscarriages in the two years I went undiagnosed (my third I was diagnosed and on humira but it was chromosomal). My little girl has been such a blessing to us all and I hope your pregnancy is a smooth ride!
Thanks everyone for sharing your experience! It is my first baby at 37. We’re pretty excited!
@SZ it is an older thread but I believe most of us are still here. My J pouch baby I wrote the post about turned three last week! I’ve since had another J pouch baby and am planning a third. My second j pouch baby was completely pain free so I credit my first for breaking up my scar tissue (and allowing me to get pregnant a second time without IVF). My scar went back to normal after both were delivered (once my uterus shrunk). Both my babies were vaginal deliveries so I didn’t acquire new scar tissue/scars with delivery
Hi there! I didn't have the pain described by a couple of you with either of my 2 j-pouch pregnancies, but I think it totally makes sense that it could be from abdominal scar tissue. Hopefully it does get better over time. I don't think my scars look particularly different from either pregnancy- they just stretched out and then went back to "normal." I had both my babies via IVF because of scar tissue and am also planning a third.