not always, but very often-the outcome of your lungs after preg will be around what it was before preg. the cff reccomends having a fev1 of 70 or above for a 'good' (meaning, safer, easier) preg.
basically, if your lungs were in that range before, they are more likely to be in that range after. if they were lower than that before, perhaps there will be less stability or predictability.
but indeed, as jeana said, everyone is so different. and it might take you a long time to get your lung function back up after birth. it always goes down-always. it takes time to come back up.
for my case, my fev1 was around 73 before preg. my lo is 2.5 now, and I just made it back up to my pre preg fev1-with alot of work. there were many bumps along the way.
the number 1-i mean # 1 !!!!! stressor on your cf between now and the next 2 years is......stress! it plays such a big role.
lowers your immunity, provokes asthma, on and on. it really is all a mindset. if you know and believe everything will be ok, it will be.
you sound very compliant, so you've overcome the 2nd biggest hurdle already. once the baby is here, your compliance will be tested, but you have to keep up with it.
i trained my lo from birth that pt time is mommy's time, and its her time to watch a special tv show.
at this stage of your preg its normal to feel more short of breath and cramped up. but if its concerning you, go to the doc. i got so short of breath around then-but most preg women w/out cf are too.
i had a great, normal birth. i was fortunate enough to be able to have natural childbirth. i labored for about 16 hrs. baby was fine-no problems.
what they usually say with cfers and preg now is, its not the pregnancy that is the issue-its afterwards!
caring for a newborn is absolute heaven!-but yes, its soooo exhausting.
if possible, please try to be at home-even now, if you can stop working or reduce your hours, thats best for your health. rest alot. one thing that is true with us is-you just can't do it all. i had to get over that, and not compare myself to other moms.
preg and cf is a big 'world'-it can be scary, but one thing that a nurse said to me that really stuck with me was-you may have cf, but your body was made to be able to have a baby'. that takes alot of fear away-if you dwell on that.
another thing that really helped me get through the fear was to look at other preg women without cf-(i have a lot in my family so it was easy to compare)-they all get short of breath, even healthy ones may need oxygen during birth or other intervention, they all are exhausted when caring for a newborn, they all get scared and have fears. its all normal.
hope all goes well with you!
