Hoosiers51
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15759
posted
Hey all.
I am currently being treated for babesia, but this is my third time treating it in the last 3 years, which is sort of demoralizing.
I haven't necessarily tested positive for active infection each time, but my C1Q Immune Complexes were extremely elevated (a blood test my doc uses to gauge "active infection"...anyone heard of it?), so my LLMD has been thinking I am having issues with it.
Who knows though.
But I do have babs symptoms, and each time I am treated I get babesia herxes.
Anyways, it seems like it just keeps coming back, and even in between, I am lucky if I am functioning at 50% so I am thinking getting pregnant sometime in the next few years is scary, though I would like to.
I am not as worried about the lyme, because I can take Amoxicillin. But, how to you safeguard against transferring babesia to the fetus? (or bartonella?)
I will obviously not try to get preggers when I am having babesia symptoms, but my fear is that I can still transfer it, or during pregnancy I will feel worse than it will flare.
Advice? Help!
PS---I don't need to get pregnant now, still have plenty of time. But, I have been sick 7 years, who's to say it won't last another 10?
Posts: 4590 | From Midwest | Registered: Jun 2008
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CD57
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11749
posted
I have heard this from docs: if you can prevent the Lyme from getting transmitted to the fetus, it might not be so terrible if babs and/or bart get thru. When I asked why I was told this, which makes sense: there is a symbiotic relationship between these three bugs. If baby just gets babesia or bartonella/BLO (or maybe both), immune system could maybe handle it. There are some studies out there about how asymptomatic, subclinical babesia (silent) was present in a group of sickle cell anemia patients.
So--if you prevent Lyme from getting through, the baby may be able to take care of the other infections--or they may be "silent" and not express. There are a LOT of people walking around with asymptomatic babesia/BLO/bart.
So good news!
Posts: 3528 | From US | Registered: Apr 2007
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savebabe
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9847
posted
Yes, I heard the same thing. My llmd is mostly concerned with passing lyme to the baby rather than co-infections.
Thankfully, there is a treatment protocol that can prevent the transmission of lyme to the baby.
Posts: 1603 | From ny | Registered: Aug 2006
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Hoosiers51
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15759
posted
Thanks, it makes me feel better to hear those things.
Another reason I am worried is because I have the gene that makes lyme very hard to treat, so I would be worried about passing that too.
It would just depend if the gene makes LYME hard to treat, or if it makes tick borne disorders hard to treat, but I think it is the first.
Do you think that gene along with babs or bart could be a bad combo for the baby? I would think you would still need the lyme to cause problems.
There are also just a lot of bad autoimmunity genes in my family, we are not a very strong group on my mom's side, so I am sort of afraid if my kids could be a little sickly anyways, God forbid.
All these things have combined to make me scared.
Thanks again for your support though, and if anyone else has any opinions, feel free!
Just to clarify, I haven't had any children yet. But, I have been symptomatic for 7 years, and have been diagnosed and undergoing drug therapy for at least 5 years, and still am not better! Yikes!
Posts: 4590 | From Midwest | Registered: Jun 2008
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Before becoming pregnant with Lyme please, please research Syphilis and the horrific stillborns and birth defects that occur in third world countries such as Haiti and Africa.
Syphilis is a spirochete disease and a very close cousin to Borrelia. Both organisms are neurotropic, meaning that they prefer to colonize and, consequently, damage the brain and central nervous system. Imagine your beautiful child born with a severely damaged brain and/or nervous system.
My son was born with Down's syndrome, unrelated to Lyme disease, and I am well aware of the nightmare that a birth defect can do to a child and family.
My wife was infected while she was 8 months pregnant with our third child. He has no birth defects because he was already formed into a baby long before infection. Although he was given I.V. antibiotics in the neonatal unit, he does test positive for Lyme and has had flare ups with the disease. He has no symptoms at the moment.
My wife was later diagnoised and treated for Babesia, Bartonella, Mycoplasma, Borrelia, Ehrlicia.
The antibiotics that they gave my wife did not stop the Lyme from infecting the baby, and the I.V. antibiotics that they gave the baby did not cure him of the disease - that was 5 years ago.
The baby got Borellia and Mycoplasma. We believe that the baby did not get Babesia or Bartonella from my wife because she had an emergency C-section instead of a natural birth.
Lyme disease, tick borne illnesses, and pregnancy are incompatible.
Be careful with what you are doing, you are playing with fire, and you've got a very high probability of getting burned.
Godspeed.
Posts: 45 | From upstate NY | Registered: Sep 2007
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posted
Dear LCGNY, hope you don't mind if I abbreviate, I'm so sorry to hear of your troubles concerning Lyme w/ your family. If you don't mind me asking you had said:
quote:he does test positive for Lyme and has had flare ups with the disease. He has no symptoms at the moment.
Could you please list some of the symptoms your little one has during flare ups?
I know there are many, especially on my husbands side that have Lyme and choose not to except it. It's like banging ones head against the wall to try to get them to do something about it,
but No....... I'm the crazy one.
The nephews are now at the age where they are getting married and having kids and I will continue to point things out, hoping I'll break thru, alls I can do is try.
One thing I have noticed on the one baby is a reddish birthmark on the back of his head at the hairline / neck area as does my husband.
I have seen a thread on another lyme website a while back where someone was asking about the very exact "birthmark" at the same place.
So I was just wondering about other things that maybe a coincidence. thanks for any help. KENNEDY
Posts: 158 | From PA. | Registered: Jul 2006
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SForsgren
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7686
posted
http://www.drnicola.com/ does a lot around pre-conception planning. In fact, she just did a presentation this weekend at LIA. DVD is available at www.zenworksproductions.com on this one topic. You might consider doing a phone consult with her as well.
-------------------- Be well, Scott Posts: 4617 | From San Jose, CA | Registered: Jul 2005
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