Early Pregnancy - am I harming my baby??

[Jester]

my dh and I have been trying for our second baby, the other day i had some very light spotting which I am assuming/hoping is an implantation bleed, the next day I came down with a cold that has turned into the flu. I was trying to just take panadol and nothing else but with another baby to look after I had to take something stronger so I have been taking Ibuprofen. I am worried I may be doing harm but I am just in too much pain. Any advice?

[Santosha]

I'm afraid I'm not that informed... as in, I don't know why, or dosage issues etc., but I understand that it's recommended that you avoid taking Ibuprofen during pregnancy. Hopefully someone will pop in with some more info., but in the meantime, I would suggest going to your GP and having a chat about what you can safely take. I know a friend ended up on panedine forte for a toothache when pregnant... perhaps your doc can prescribe you something stronger than panadol that is known to be safe.

All the best for a quick recovery from your flu, and a happy and healthy pregnancy.

[CrazyLady]

I was advised against ibroprofen. Best to talk to your GP about safe options during pregnancy. Hope your flu gets better!

[Curly]

The warnings against ibuprofen are something to do with the risk of placental bleeding...I'm a bit vague on it. It would be easy enough to google but it is such a well known "no no" I would stop immediately.

You CAN take Panadeine. Codeine is okay. I had horrendous sinusitis when pregnant with DD (crying with pain, incapacitated in bed, Panadol did NOTHING) and GP prescribed pregnancy-safe antibiotics and told me to take Panadeine until I felt that Panadol would be sufficient...I was taking the full allotment of Panadeine for 5 days.

[Curly]

Okay looked it up. Apparently a VERY occasional SMALL dose of ibuprofen is okay in the middle of pregnancy, say for an occasional headache. Not recommended during the first 8 weeks of pregnancy because of the rapid development of the embryo.

Should definitely not be used for chronic pain (in other words, regularly).

Under no circumstances should it be taken after 32 weeks. May damage the foetus and can complicate labour and delivery (this must be the placental bleeding part I vaguely remember).

Soooo....ummmm....stop immediately and send your DH/DP down to the after hours chemist and get some Panadeine. For a blocked nose it's okay to use a nasal spray as long as you don't go overboard...my GP okayed this with my sinusitis. Also recommended is a saline nasal wash (disgusting but effective).

HTH.