Friday, June 19, 2009

Post 223

So what's important about post 223? I'm not really sure. It just sounded like a cool number.

Anyhoo, guess who showed up at my bathroom door? Yup the lovely Mrs. AF. Her timing was impeccable. It was the first day that I started taking meds for a bladder infection run rampant. She always knows when to knock huh?

I think I sort of started her myself though and it raised a few questions for all of you.

I've been taking 1000mg of metformin for three years now. I take one 500 for breakfast and then right before bed. My gyn always takes care of that part of life for me and I never faltered in taking it. It was my miracle pill. It cured some crazy ailments that I never would have connected to my fertility status. My MD knew about said medication and never said anything about it until I came in with the shingles.

He said he hated met and asked me how I felt about it. He politely probed into our baby making progress (or lack there of) and suggested that perhaps I could cut my dose in half for a little while (He actually wanted me to quit it altogether, but I would hear none of that). Since I wasn't actively trying, there wasn't much need to have a regular cycle and "Met just makes people feel yucky," he said. I'll agree with that, but I've always been happy to pay the price for all the wonderful things it fixed. He checked my sugar numbers and continued to push a bit saying that 1000mg was entirely uneccesary for me. My sugar is on the low side.

I promised I would give it a try and went home with dread in my gut. After a week, I just forgot about it. Then all the nasty symptoms started rearing their head again. My scalp broke out in psoraisis again and my face broke out. I couldn't handle eating any carbs, but I got really hungry. AF missed her scheduled visitation. The hair on my legs started growing in faster than I could shave it off and any libido flew quickly out the nearest window.

Last week when I got a bladder infection, I raised my hands up in surrender and said enough was enough. I know the infection had nothing to do with met, but I needed to get my body under control. I called for some antibiotics and took my met twice that day and then the next. The next morning AF showed up and I am starting to feel normal.

I wish that we could have multiskilled docs that could do it all. It would be nice if my two docs could communicate their feelings with one another instead of me having to go through the whole history lesson each time I stepped up onto the table.

Have any of you found yourself in a similar situation where two docs don't see eye to eye on a certain protocol or med? What did you do?

2 comments:

Amanda said...

I think you're new dr. may be letting personal bias affect his judgement on what is best for you.

And he may have checked your sugar levels and they may have been fine, but it's really the insulin level that matters... my sugars are fine, my insulin is crazy high w/o met.

I have personally seen so many improvements since I started met, I love this stuff and they will have to pry it out of my cold, dead hands. I may be a bit biased, but I've got good reason (bye the way, I'm finally preggers and will happily give some of the credit to met!).

Also, when I started on it, I was working my way up and took the 500mg for a while but eventually moved to 750mg Extended Release twice a day and I do much better on the ER dosage. I would always feel a weird rush shortly after my 500mg dosage and the ER leveled me out.

Also, remember the real benefit behind met is preventing miscarriage when you do get pregnant. I've read a lot of blogs where women experienced m/c and after starting the met, they maintained the pregnancy... seldom do these women acknowledge that met made a difference, but I've seen enough anecdotal evidence (as well as published research) to feel that the met may have strongly contributed to success of the pregnancy.

I would encourage you to read though Bird's collection of papers on met so that you can know some of the research for yourself: http://birdsandsquirrels.wordpress.com/2009/04/24/metformin-during-pregnancy/

I would also encourage to talk to the dr. prescribing you met about it and if that doesn't satisfy you, consider a third opinion.

Kristin said...

I ignore the doctor I don't agree with...LOL. Seriously, you know your body. And, the doc, for all his education, does NOT. Listen to your body.