Expert: Pat G - 6/3/2010

Question
QUESTION: I was 19 weeks pregnant since apr2010 & in mid of april I went for a regular ultrasound check-up and I came to know that my baby hasn't grown after 16week.Later I got it aborted and doctor said the left infection will come out after consuming some medicnes.After 2 weeks thick blood fluid were coming,when I went to get it checked with my gyanae,I came to know that infection was still thre.D&C was done on May first week and after taking 2 weeks of rest I started with my routine work.But now I feel that I am gaining wieght inspite of regular exercise and 3 days I did sex with my husband.Is it ok to do sex and how can I loose weight.Will it affect my future pregnancy?When can I conceive again ?Please help Me !!

ANSWER: Hello, Sangeeta,

I can't tell you whether or not you still have an infection. For that, you will need to be tested by a doctor. And given that I cannot tell you whether or not you still have an infection, I can't answer your other questions for sure. It would be a good idea to make sure you are healthy before having sex. Also, it would be a good idea to make sure you are healthy before you conceive again. Unfortunately, some of these infections can be very secretive. For example, pelvic inflammatory disease, caused by an infection, can have no symptoms at all, but it can also affect a woman's ability to conceive. So to answer those questions, please see a doctor, and make sure that you are totally satisfied with what they tell you.

I'm not comfortable with your doctor's decision your baby wasn't growing, or his decision to do an abortion. I went through something sort of similar to what you are going through, and I didn't let them do anything to me. In the long run, my body took care of things, and I then bore a healthy son, coming from that situation. I actually carried two children, and one was 4 months older than the other. The older one didn't survive. It's the younger one who was born healthy. And I didn't develop an infection or any other problem. I went on to have another son two years later. So I recommend you see a different doctor. Make sure you see one who doesn't believe in intervening very much.

One thing to keep in mind is that there are different kinds of infections, and normally, a doctor will give antibiotics, but antibiotics only treat bacterial infections. If you had some other kind of infection, they wouldn't help. Also, if they gave you an antibiotic, there may be difficulty with your digestive system, because antibiotics also kill off good bacteria. To correct this problem, a person should get some pro-biotics. These can be gotten in pill form, or from fresh yogurt with live cultures (but if you have to buy that in a market, the cultures may not be very potent), or from fermented tea called Kombucha. If you have upset the balance of your good bacteria, it might explain why you are gaining weight.

The result of this is that the doctor really needs to test you for different kinds of infections. He can test your blood, and he may need to test what's in your uterus in some way. Let the doctor tell you when it's safe to have sex and to have another baby.

As for gaining weight, do you know for sure that you are gaining weight? Have you been on a scales? Has your diet changed? What are your hormones like right now? Have they been tested? Please give me a little more information. I won't really be able to tell you much until I know more.

Please take care, and get back to me with answers to my questions, and let me know what the doctor finds out.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Pat thanks for your reply !!

As for gaining weight..my bust has grown,waist is also growin,all the dresses do not fit any more.At times I feel like stop eating everything..I just wants to get rid of this over weight !!

After D&C  I was suffering from vaginal infection,where in yellow discharge comes out and at time white milky discharge comes out.My doctor has asked to apply an anti bacterial ointment and it was recovered after a week.But when I stopped using that ointment,it started again.I do not understand why do that vaginal infection occur?Do I need to get my husband examine?

Answer
Hello, sangeeta,

You're welcome!

Please don't stop eating. Sometime abortion leads to eating disorders, so you don't want to have this problem because it can be dangerous. Make sure that you have a healthy diet. Let's talk about your diet. Did it change?

Obviously the ointment didn't really cure the infection. I don't know if your husband has any abnormal problems or not. It's hard to say. The nature of the infection needs to be diagnosed. They should run some tests. Sometimes it's not bacteria, and when it's not, anti-bacterial ointment won't help. If you are able to tell me what is causing the infection, I may be able to give you some suggestions. Definitely, you shouldn't have yellow discharge. Under some circumstances, milky discharge is normal, but not yellow.

Please let me know the answers to my questions, and I'll see if I can offer you any further thoughts.