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Can taking pain meds make it harder to get pregnant? Or cause miscarriages?

I am on pain meds due to a herniated disc in my back and in my neck. I have had 2 miscarriages now in 6 mos. time so I want to know is it possible that the miscarries are results of the taking these meds? I am on oxycodone 325 5 mg. I take 6-8 pills a day depending how bad the pain gets. I have been on these meds for about 18 months. Before with one little mishap and I'd be pregnant. Now its hard for me to get pregnant. In 2 yrs I've became pregnant twice and each have resulted in a miscarry. Please anyone tell me what you know about this.
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Avatar universal
I think you shouldn't let your life pass you by.. I mean this is why you're here anyway..right??  But, if you are going to try to have a baby it would be irresponsible to not take what peekawho has said into consideration.  I think you need to find a very good pain management physician who can help you while you are pregnant and can be a good guiding force for you in the meantime.  Remember, that although your pain medication is a narcotic it also has Tylenol in it.. (5 mg of narcotic Oxycodone and 325 mg of Tylenol).. Most people can only have up to 3-4 thousand mg of Tylenol in a 24 hour period.  Keep this in mind when you are taking your meds.  It is way too easy to do Liver and/or Kidney Damage.  You may want to also discuss with the physician who prescribes your pain medication to start prescribing you the 10/325 dose instead this way you will have 10mg of Oxycodone and only 325 mg of Tylenol which is way less than taking one of your current 5mg/325mg tablets and getting all that Tylenol every time you double up.  Additionally, you may even want to consider a medication like Oxycontin since it is a time-released tablet with a small amount of Oxycodone letting out into your system each hour and consistenly keeping down pain and you could take less tablets of your current dose of 5/325 oxycodone for any breakthrough pain.  

  As for pregnancy, I have heard that women who suffer any sort of back, pelvic and/or spine pain tend to have this alleviated during pregnancy.  Again, with that being said, it is imperative that you plan ahead for anything that could happen while you are pregnant and after you have a baby.  Plan ahead should you need a lot of bedrest or be placed of bedrest for any part of it even if you think you will be just fine and can handle it.. We are talking about another human life here!  

  As for not becoming pregnant because of the pain meds.. Not true.  However, there is some evidence that shows pain meds having an effect of hormones..Testosterone, Estrogen, etc.  for people who have been taking pain meds for several years..This would still be unlikely to hinder pregnancy.  Your best bet is to get blood work for your hormone levels as well as your immunity panel of blood work.  This way, if there is any sort of lower level it can be easily dealt with.

Goodluck and Best Wishes to you!
Helpful - 1
Avatar universal
How long does it take to get pregnant while taking oxycontin
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
It's my understanding that most pain meds do not interfere with becoming pg.  The one big problem is that if you do get pg you'll be a high risk patient and your child may be born with a dependence.  You might do a search on this issue.  There are doctors who do specialize in this area.  You need to find one to get good answers.

I'm not sure why your doctor hasn't changed your pain meds to something without aspirin or Tylenol in them.  If you're taking narcotics long term you might want to see a real pain specialist who may decide that you need to be on a time released narcotic like MSContin, Methadone, Oxycontin  or  Fentanyl.  These were made to take long term.

Charli
Female Veteran who's been on meds for Chronic pain 15 years
Drug Ed Spec in military
Degrees in Human Services, Criminal Justice, and Counseling
Helpful - 0
172023 tn?1334672284
Well, just understand that your back will be even worse during the pregnancy and even after.  And while yes, you can take certain amts. of pain meds during pregnancy, you are probably already at the max a human can safely take.

So if you can deal with the pain, do what you need to do.  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Sorry I meant peekawho not nala
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
My Doc has said the same, that I need to heal before I think about having a baby. It just seems hopeless in my case. I have had a herniated disc in my back for 10 yrs nows. The doctor I go to just made things so much worse than better. I dont see hope in healing, I know that sounds bad but think about it,  10yrs with a herniated disc and my doctor all he did was cause me alot more pain instead of getting me out of pain. My doc said I can take a certain amount of pain meds while pregnant. I didnt have to take strong meds for my back before the doc operated on me. The operation really made things bad. Before surgery I just took aspirin or whatever to ease the pain and since surgery things are alot different.
Helpful - 0
172023 tn?1334672284
The bigger question is should you become pregnant?  Pregnancy will put added stress on an already herniated disk.  You will not be able to take stronger meds than what you are on, no matter how bad the pain gets.  You are on the brink with the dosages you are taking now, certainly you can't much more than you are on now.

Lifting a baby/toddler will be unavoidable, and painful. So is the accompanying increase in laundry and housekeeping duties.  You also can't be taking large doses of pain pills while watching an infant or child.  There is also the risk of dependency to consider.  Oxycodone is particularly addictive, but I'm sure you are well aware of that.  

Is there any way to deal with the herniated disc first, and then when you are well healed, consider pregnancy?  I'd just hate to see you get pregnant when your pain is obviously not under control, judging by the amount of medication you take daily.

I don't think those oxycodone will particularly cause misc or prevent you from becoming pregnant, but you have to think about fixing what's causing the pain first, before you add more pain at a time when you can't increase your medication.  

See your OB for some preconception counseling, and address the issue of your medication management and how it relates to your planning a pregnancy.
Helpful - 0
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