I was diagnosed with ICP and told I needed to call an OB and schedule an induction. I was told the only way to decrease levels was inducing and delivering the baby. I lowered my levels below 'high risk' in 4 short days and back to normal in less than 10 days. Below is that story and the protocol I created to make it all happen. First, I give thanks to God for providing courage, community, knowledge, and healing. I give incredible thanks to my midwife for her encouragement and support through it all and not ever making me feel guilty for not taking the advice I was given. She was one of my biggest cheerleaders.
This is not medical advice but a testimony of my own personal experience.
Pregnancy is a beautiful journey, but it often comes with challenges to our bodies. At 30 weeks pregnant, I found myself dealing with a resurgence of nausea and a sudden loss of energy. At first, I brushed it off as typical pregnancy symptoms, but little did I know, it was just the beginning of a much more complex situation.
Side note: I am convinced that this condition is not as rare as it is reported to be. I personally think it is under diagnosed because it is not actively tested for. It is also reported that those who get it are 60% more likely to get it in future pregnancies. I think this is skewed because once you have had it, you are likely to be much more aware of it, if not actively test for it in future pregnancies, increasing the likelihood that you would diagnose it. I personally believe many women suffer in silence and chalk it up to pregnancy symptoms. I think being extra kind to our liver during pregnancy should be a normal course of action.
By 34 weeks, the nausea had escalated into relentless vomiting. For three days, I couldn't keep anything down. Desperate for relief, I searched for a place to get an IV but had no luck. I resorted to filling a prescription for Zofran, which stopped the vomiting and helped me start the rehydration process. This was much needed. I had no idea how dehydrated I had actually become.
Just as I thought I was recovering, a new and bizarre symptom appeared. 3 days after I had stopped vomiting, I was laden with irresistible itching all over my body. At first, I thought it must be some odd symptom of my body's journey through rehydration. I was up all night with unbearable itching, especially on my palms and feet. I knew this wasn't normal, so in my insomnia, I began researching. My findings pointed to Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy (ICP), a rare but serious liver disorder that can occur during pregnancy.
Determined to get to the bottom of it, I had my blood tested the next day. The results came back with bile acid levels at 50 µmol/L. I was devastated. This diagnosis risked me out of my homebirth plan, and I was advised to consult an OB immediately. The recommended course of treatment was to induce labor between 36-37 weeks, as there was no 'cure' for ICP other than delivery. The consensus on ICP is that below 40 µmol/L, there is no additional risk for the mother or baby. Between 40-99 µmol/L, there is additional risk for preterm labor and meconium in utero. Above 100 µmol/L, the risk of still birth is increased 3 fold, from ~1% to 3%.
I received the results after noon on a Friday, and the OB's office had already closed for the weekend. This gave me precious time to digest the information and conduct thorough research. I discovered several alternative treatments and dietary changes that could potentially help manage my condition.
I immediately altered my diet and started taking supplements aimed at improving liver health. You can find the protocol I followed below. By Monday, I felt a significant improvement. Confident in my approach, I informed my midwife of my decision not to call the OB and to continue with my protocol, aiming to deliver at home.
Bile acid levels between 40-99 µmol/L carry an increased risk of preterm labor and meconium in utero. Ironically, the suggested early induction itself posed similar risks. Inducing labor prematurely can cause fetal stress, leading to the exact complications we were trying to avoid. Moreover, inductions come with their own set of risks, including a 36% increased risk of postpartum depression, a higher likelihood of C-sections, breastfeeding challenges, increased risk of jaundice, and increased need for intensive care, amongst others (sources linked below). The risks and benefits were clear to me.
I decided to monitor my condition closely, getting my blood tested every week. In just four days, my levels had halved to 25 µmol/L, no longer placing me in the high-risk category. Ten days into the protocol, my bile acid levels were below 10 µmol/L, well within normal range. We were so excited about the results and my midwife was one of my biggest cheerleaders. Honestly, I need to stop here and give her a huge shout out. She never once made me feel pressured to take a certain route. I never felt judged, only supported through it all, even when I told her "Here is my plan, I feel better already, I know its working and I'm not calling the OB. You can come along on my journey, but I understand if you can't or don't feel comfortable doing so". Once my levels were below 10 µmol/L, I stopped most of the protocol, eating some dairy (probably the thing I missed the most) and only continuing my teas. I also continued to drink 90+ oz of water a day.
At 40 weeks and 3 days, my baby arrived safely at home without any intervention. I am immensely grateful for the support of my midwife who never made me feel guilty for not taking the "advice" and found a way to remain my advocate and keep me in her care, even when I was considered high risk. I am immensely grateful for a couple really good friends, who provided help researching and the encouragement I needed to pursue this path.
My journey through ICP taught me the importance of trusting my body and taking control of my health care choices. It's crucial to feel empowered to research and question mainstream advice when it doesn't align with your comfort or intuition. For anyone going through similar struggles, know that there are alternative options available, and you can take charge of your health and your baby's well-being.
God designed our bodies to heal themselves when provided with the right tools. He also put all of those deliberately on this beautiful planet as well. I am forever grateful to God for the blessings of this life, the trials they include, and very specifically, all the tiny humans He has entrusted us with.
The Protocol:
Diet -
lean meat (only fish and skinless chicken breast)
no fats (other than from avocados and nuts), dairy, grains, or sugar
I ate a plain egg omelet, topped with sauerkraut, avocado, and some green (arugula, spinach, lettuce) and salt and pepper every morning (so delicious I still do this a lot!)
I had fresh fruits and veggies and humus on hand for snacking and substituted regular milk for almond milk.
Side note on diet: I did not realize how much a homestead diet included so much additional fat and dairy. Moving from a suburban life to a farm life 3 years ago, we have 2-3 dairy cows and so we are swimming in milk, and as such, all kinds of dairy products. We butcher our own chickens, so instead of buying chicken breasts at the store, we are regularly cooking whole birds and eating the dark meat and skin. I also consume a decent amount of bone broth. We cook with rendered lard instead of olive oil. These are some examples I connected.
Supplements (daily) -
1 cup of roasted chickory root tea (coffee has conflicting information about whether it is good or bad for your liver, so I opted for chickory root every morning with a splash of almond milk)
2 cups of dandelion root tea
2 droppers of burdock tincture (a dropper added to each cup of dandelion root tea)
2 droppers of yellow dock tincture (a dropper added to each cup of dandelion root tea)
SAM-e
as many spoonfuls of activated charcoal as I could do - usually 3-4 tbsp taken 1 tbsp at a time throughout the day
Nux Vomica and Chelidonium 2-3 times daily (make sure if taking homeopathy, to avoid mint and caffeine and to wait to eat/drink at least 15 min after dosing)
NAC 100 mg daily
Milk Thistle pill
D3 and K2 blend (make sure if you take vit D, that you also take potassium or your body will not absorb the vit D)
Chlorella (as a source of chlorophyll)
Betafood (blend of swiss chard and beets)
I was also still drinking 90+ oz of water a day, taking my prenatal and was drinking a cup of raspberry leaf tea and taking primrose oil but this was not specifically to treat the ICP.
This may seem like a lot to some. If you are currently sick, reading this and this all seems overbearing or overwhelming, something you couldn't commit to, my suggestion would be to focus on the diet, dandelion root tea, milk thistle, SAM-e, and charcoal. Also, its only for a short period of time and you've got this mama! Your body and your baby will thank you in a matter of days. Feel free to reach out if you need a cheerleader. Have a friend or family member go collect the things you need or order on Amazon from your bed.
I pray for the moms this empowers and educates. I pray for healing and that many more moms and babies are able to avoid the interventions, that, in my opinion, cause more harm than good for many. You can heal and quickly too! I'm praying that this protocol work wonders for many more mamas and babies to come. May my trials produce fruit, in His name.
Sources:
Lothian JA. Saying “no” to induction. J Perinat Educ. 2006;15(2):43-45. doi:10.1624/105812406X107816
Grobman WA, Rice MM, Reddy UM, et al. Labor induction versus expectant management in low-risk nulliparous women. N Engl J Med. 2018;379(6):513-523. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1800566
American Academy of Pediatrics. Caring for a premature baby: What parents need to know.
Seyedi R, Mirghafourvand M, Osouli Tabrizi S. The effect of the use of oxytocin in labor on neonatal jaundice: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Pediatr. 2017;5(12):6541-53. doi:10.22038/ijp.2017.26526.2277
Aimee R. Kroll-Desrosiers M.S., Benjamin C. Nephew Ph.D., Jessica A. Babb Ph.D., Yurima Guilarte-Walker M.S., Tiffany A. Moore Simas M.D., M.P.H, M.Ed., Kristina M. Deligiannidis M.D. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.22599 Association of peripartum synthetic oxytocin administration and depressive and anxiety disorders within the first postpartum year
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8171288/ Treatment of cholestasis of pregnancy with peroral activated charcoal. A preliminary study R J Kaaja 1, K K Kontula, A Räihä, T Laatikainen PMID: 8171288 DOI: 10.3109/00365529409090459
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2081476/ Role of S-adenosyl-L-methionine in the treatment of intrahepatic cholestasis P Almasio 1, M Bortolini, L Pagliaro, M Coltorti PMID: 2081476 DOI: 10.2165/00003495-199000403-00011
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