Have you had normal menstrual periods? Cramps are due to prostaglandins that cause uterine contractions. Take Motrin and apply a heating pad to your abdomen. Cramps normally occur at the beginning of menstruation and also occur during pregnancy. I recommend that you perform a home pregnancy test a couple of days after a missed period and then repeat it a week later. It is necessary for your husband to have cleared sperm from both of his vas deferens and then brought samples for his doctor to check to see if they were sperm-free. Only after your husband has had 2 sperm-free samples will he be considered unable to get a woman pregnant. This can, in some cases, take up to 5 months. Approximately 15 out of 10,000 couples get pregnant the first year after a vasectomy.

Women who've had gestational diabetes (GDM) in the past are at a slight risk for developing GDM in subsequent pregnancies as well. A woman who has had GDM in a previous pregnancy has a 5.1% chance of having early recurrent GDM. It is recommended that all women who have had GDM diagnosed previously should have glucose tolerance testing performed early (before 24 weeks' gestation) in any future pregnancies.

Dr. Hanson, MD, PhD