TTC/ pregnancy on Prednisolone or similar part 3

Can I just say am addicted to this board. I feel that this is the only place where I can be honest about how heartbreaking the whole recurrent miscarriage experience is. I do not know how people managed before there was the internet.

I am counting down till when I next see Mr S. Am desperate to know what my results show. I don't feel that it is NK cells my gut feels that I have a clotting problem but we will just have to wait and see. Can I be added to the list, in the WTTC am waiting to hear what Mr S says. Plus have no idea where I am in this cycle after the last miscarriage.

I will be honest and say I skimmed the board, so I am not able to do any personal messages but I am sorry I missed the meet up just live too far away.

Ari let's hope it is not an eptopic. The EPU thought my last miscarriage was an eptopic but it turned out to be a complete miscarriage so I think sometimes they double check just to make sure. Fingers crossed it is just your HCG levels mucking around.

Scooter I have been dreading Christmas too as it always seems to be a massive milestone in the TTC calendar for some reason. It would have been lovely to have good news over the festive period but maybe we can draw a line under 2011 and hope that 2012 will be the year for us all. We can all be Bah humbugs together!
I think until you have the dreaded scan, there is still part of you that hopes even with the bleeding etc that a little bean might be there. Afterall we have heard stories of women who have gone on to have babies after bleeding all the way throughout their pregnancy so why can that not be the case with us????

free time does seem to be moving extra slowly at the moment but every day that goes by is a day closer to you getting out of the danger zone.

I will try and take your advice and keep the whole TTC a bit more lighthearted, trouble is my DH works away a lot so I feel like I am chasing him around the house for SWI as soon as he gets in the door! Sounds like a scene from Benny Hill!

Snoopy and PQ77 DH doesn't open up much to friends as is quite private plus he is still grieving from losing his brother suddenly last year so the whole RMC thing is added heartbreak. He saw a counsellor from Cruse for a few months last year and talked about his brothers death and the miscarriages which helped but he is a sensitive soul and hates what this is doing to me. He also said that he worries on the long term effects on my health with the drugs if they are interfering with my immune system as doesn't want to lose me! Snoopy forget the old top for Saturday - a waterproof coat would be better!

PQ77 I had a dodgy mole cut out of my arm when I was preg with my DD 4 years ago (scar looks like a little spider now). Its common for the skin to react in pregnancy apparently. I also had really bad carpal tunnel syndrome so I am wondering if my NK cells were kicking in then? Not sure why her pregnancy worked though - I have spent ages trying to work that one out.

Duggs I think we are all addicted to this board! IVF seems like the easier route at the moment compared to naturally TTC so that I dont have to keep worrying obsessing if I am ovulating or not! If only I could win the lottery to pay for it!

Evening all,

Just wanted to say to all you ladies pregnant/ttc/wttc without these groups we would be so in the dark - even though I found the miscarriage clinic through googling, I just wouldn't have had a clue at first appointment or anything thereafter without the wonderful knowledge of you all.

ari Bummer. Just when you think you can start to move forward, something holds you back again. I hope it's not ectopic and just slow falling hcg xx
scooter I think until someone says officially it is over then there is always hope. Don't worry about the big C. Just cos its christmas we don't have to be pretend to be happy. Go at your own pace xx

Wave to everyone else - just off out the door for acupuncture xx

scooter Really feeling for you, it's a horrible thing to go through even though you know what's coming. Big hugs, look after you, and never you mind that big C word, just let it happen and don't worry about it.

sorry you said you didn't expect a miracle, but I think you know what I mean. having it in black and white is just so final.

oh scooter I really feel for you. I know what you mean about a tiny part of you hoping for a miracle

Just updating this with my testing date and PQ V high count

What are all the extra numbers free? am I having a dosy predhead?

Thurs 6th December


2nd Trimester


Stogan - V high NKC - BFP 9/7/11 cycle#2- 26+5 Due 10/03/12 next scan 30/12

Digitalgirl - High NKC - BFP cycle#2 21+3 Due 16/04/12 MW appt 25/01
Coconutfeet - V High NKC, Factor II gene mutation, underactive thyroid - BFP pre-pred, started at 6 weeks ? 18+2 next scan 14/12

Comedy - V High NKC - BFP cycle#2 ? 15+5 due 26/5/12 next scan 12/12
Iggi - High NKC & Hypothyroidism - BFP cycle#2 - 15+0 anomaly scan Jan

BrownieGecko - High NKC, Hypothyroidism, & Glucose Intolerant. BFP on cycle 3 of Clomid -14 next scan?



1st Trimester


Freelance - V High NKC TTC#1 Hydroxchloroquine, Pred, Intralipids. Thyroid/hashimotos. MC 1st cycle. BFP#1 7+2 Scan 13/12

Cheerfulcharlie - V High NKC, MTHFR/TTC 1/ (metformin, intralipids, no pred). LMP17/10(Ov'd 3rd Nov) 7.0 Scan 12 weeks

TTC - 
Waiting to test


Cherrycheeks - V high NKC, TTC#2/ ov 25th-26th Nov 4th cycle of pred

batteryhen - High activation NKC, factor v leiden. TTC#1 Test 10 Dec

eurochick - TTC#1 Awaiting NKC results/period due 12 Dec.

coleyoz - V High NKC. TTC #2 - Test 12 Dec 

Waiting to ovulate

Snoopygirl - V High NKC TTC, #2, testing 17th Dec ish

Havingkittens - Upgraded from High to V High NKC TTC #1

duggs1976 - High/V High NKC - TTC #1 - Superovulation cycle2 

Suemays - V High NKC TTC#2. OV 23 Nov, testing on 7th December, pred cycle no. 3


WTTC


Hopefulfor2nd - High NKC = TTC in New Year

PQ77 - V High NKC TTC #2 again from January (BFP cycle one but mc)

ScooterChaser - V High NKC - TTC#2
ChoccyPud - V High NKC - TTC#1

Arianhod - V High NKC, MTHFR homo, hypothyroid, TTC#2
Breezyweezy - V High NKC - TTC#1 from January

ari sorry for you it's such a pain all this when you just wanted to get this over and done with. What will they do scan you?

free hang on in there must be nervous as hell but try to keep busy. I can't believe you are over 7 weeks, even thought looking at list every day, so yes it's going quick from the outside!

sue feel for you and your hubby. I am lucky it doesn't take DH much to get him in the sack, think he's secretly revelling in it all. saying that I do feel under pressure because of my age and we both decided I didn't want to be past 43 and still ttc, which is next summer. I don't think I'll change the goal posts on that one. It does sound like he could do with talking to someone about it, has he got a close mate that would be sympathetic? Its hard but at least you can vent your frustration on here and on sat. I'll wear an old top if you want to blub on my shoulder! x

ari really hope they will rule out ectopic for you, it's tough being told it's a risk but I think we read and know our bodies so well we would have instincts about it if that were the case. I have had high HcG post-mc as well but it's just been my body taking a while to adjust. It's horrible to have to have more blood tests but hopefully you will get some TLC this time and those veins will play ball. I always find right hand side far better than left for some reason. I'm sorry this is hanging over you and hope you get those results back quick.

Just back from my scan, the verdict 'complete miscarriage' the lesser of two evils they tell me. I never expected a miracle, but closure is also hard. Promptly fell apart as soon as I got in the door and now trying to pull self back together again and face world.... and the dreaded big C all twinkling around.

oh ari what a pain. I really hope your HCG goes down again next test and it's not ectopic. Just when you thought it was all over. Let's hope it is.

free - yes I'm on the aspirin too. Perhaps that's what's all the spotting is about.

Stogan - you are soon going to be the first in the '3rd trimester' category! When does 3rd trimester start officially?

Hi ladies ... Just popping on quickly to /wave and say choccy I hope you're feeling a bit better today, I know you have a heavy workload on at the moment but do take time out to rest and look after yourself.

Well Louise just phoned me, apparently the results for my hCG test taken yesterday have come back too high, 225 where they were expecting around 15, so I have to somehow find the time to go back to NLC tomorrow and repeat the test since they're now wanting to rule out ectopic. My arms are bruised to hell from the balls-up made of it yesterday, and since I started to black out after the last attempt yesterday apparently they have to keep a bit of an eye on me. I did say I don't usually black out when blood is taken, but the shock on my body of three successive stabs of needles (after one earlier on in the day too) was clearly too much!

sigh Just when you think it's all over and you can start to recover ...

kittens wishing you well with what you're facing to go through, but hopefully Mr S will find you some decent answers. I do wonder at the effect of pred on ovulation as well as AF generally, but then I wonder exactly what else pred does to us that no-one's quite sure of. My acupuncturist last night had a 'bible' of what drugs affect in the body, and she said prednisolone is known to deplete the following:

calcium
folate
magnesium
potassium
selenium
Vitamin D
Vitamin C
zinc

Now I know we are all taking supplements with these in, but I did wonder whether the levels we take are enough to effectively counteract what the pred is depleting. I am taking extra zinc, high folate and extra vit d obviously, and my non-pregnancy supplements cover all the rest of these except potassium, but whether high enough or not, I don't know. Anyway, just thought you might be interested to see this.

kittens someone has probably already told you (am reading the thread in haste) but NHS would have probably tested your FSH. AMH is a much newer test and some say accurate test as it doesn't matter when in your cycle you have it done and it tests a completely different hormone- I had it done a couple of weeks ago cos I was curious.

sue you were asking about husbands...mine has got to the stage where he has told some of his friends and colleagues what we are going through. Which is a BIG deal for him. He has been blown away by all the support and similar-ish stories (or at least vague understanding and empathy). I wonder if that might help your DH? As I mentioned elsewhere, we've also been to Relate counselling which is subsidised so not as expensive as you might think(certainly less than a scan or intralipid transfusion).Its website is a link on the miscarriage association website or you could google it and put in your postcode to find someone near you. It has helped the, uh, romantic side of things.

have got new dressing on my arm so have stopped bleeding everywhere...

Next time someone updates the list could they please put me down as Very High rather than high? The last mc tipped me over the edge apparently...

duggs you mean my pm re earthquake woes? well to bore everyone else with more dramas, had a thing cut out of my arm yesterday (lets hope the NK cells blasted any pre-cancerous activity) forgot to tell the consultant that I was on aspirin so I had the wound cauterised rather than stitched, and am now sitting at work with blood seeping through the dressing cos it's not scabbing over.

Now that I have made you all vomit (sorry pregnant ladies!), I did think it was worthwhile sharing cos it made me realise how much the aspirin must contribute to spotting as any kind of nudge or bump can set things off.

Really have to do some work today..

Ok- at my desk - cheeky 3rd post of the morning. PQ can't believe your post. Don't know what to say. It does sound like a film! Think I will pm you.

.. Wondering if my weird hormonal rollercoaster mood is down to my new double dose of letrozole - super ov drug or metformin - insulin drug or pred come down !!?* quite a choice considering before 15 sep I barely took a nurofen !!
Def feeling weird. And def addicted to this thread. In fact my life seems to be centred around it. I almost forgot my iPhone this morning and had a panic that I wouldn't be able to see the thread. Perhaps I'll get a drug for that too...

I NEED TO GET A GRIP
Hope all you ladies ok. . free are you alright?

Glad to have you join scooter! kittens I agree with sue I find it difficult to believe that a natural fertility decline could be that quick and severe. Surely it is a steady decline over a number of years? Does sound like it could be expensive but I suppose it is a forward moving direction towards some answers. At least dr s knows history and seems to be able to handle fertility as well as rmc. Does anyone know if you end up with IVF if he does it or has some person he works alongside? I am thinking of 2012 and what the hell I will be throwing at this if I can't get pregnant next year ( or keep mc as I will do CGH to get that damn chromosonally normal embryo in there ).
Morning BTW have woken up in a weird mood. De ja vu of last yr. A difficult time if year creeping up on us. Kind of wish DH and i were headed to a Thai island to escape the festivities. . .

Morning ladies, off work today but work g for DH so will be longer than a normal day lol.

Sue in answer to your question no I haven't had any acupuncture in fact all I have done is go on Mr S plan and that is it just let everything else happen and so far so good. I am going to physic as my carpal tunnel has got so bad at nights and my heartburn is terrible but other than that my ankles have gone down and the itchin has gone and I have more energy than ever so long may it continue for my last few weeks at work !!

Morning to everyone else xxx

ari sorry about the scan, but that is good you don't have to worry about the messy bit. That is definitely one less stress for you.

kittens It must be a relief seeing Dr S and getting his opinion. Can you find a local clinic in France where you can just pop in and get the blood tests done? It might be worth finding out if you can just do that, then you don't have to stress about getting back to the UK in time. Here, things are very easy and I can just walk into a clinic, get the test then results emailed to me in a couple of hours without even seeing a doc. All for about £40 too. Maybe it is similar in France?

It is very frustrating how different docs have different interpretations of results. I can see how on the NHS they will interpret them to result in the cheapest possible treatment or no treatment, but very very frustrating, especially when you feel time is not on your side. I think Duggs had a similar thing with the PCOS diagnosis too. I did too, but my doc over here said it was very bad, while Dr S said it was very mild. I now always ask to see a copy of the results before my appointment and try and do some research (yes I know Google is dangerous, but...) beforehand so I can see if I need to question what the doc's interpretation is. If you can anticipate what they might suggest in advance you can work out what your questions will be.

These holidays sound lovely. A bit of winter sun always lifts the spirits.

Free I am also feeling cold rather than hot. My feet in particular are always cold which is not good in pregnancy, but then they always are anyway.

My spotting seemed to stop quite quickly. It was bright red, but no cramping. I had an acupuncture appointment scheduled anyway and she did some moxa and some points to calm the uterus and stop the bleeding. To be honest I think it had pretty much stopped before the session anyway. I do have a sore throat and a bit of a cold starting and she said she could feel that my body was fighting something in my lung area. I am slightly paranoid this cold & sore throat has something to do with NK cells especially as I am sure I remember getting a sore throat last time too. She's also suggested I take a homeopathic remedy called sepia. I am reluctant to as I am really cautious about taking any medication whatsoever. It's supposed to be one for pregnancy though. I will see.

Digi - no scan for me today. I have cancelled and going to attempt to get to 12 weeks without one.

Choccy bit worried about you, don't burn out will you. Sounds like you're working really flat out. Hope you managed to have some chill out time with Mr Choccy tonight and not up maniacally ironing on a pred surge or anything! Look after yourself girl x

kittens wow sounds comprehensive, good that he has a plan of action ready for you. So he'll make a referral for the scan on the NHS and then just wait and see how soon it comes in? I guess then you've got to weigh up whether it's worth the wait or the small fortune? He seems to be offering very specific tests tailored to you which is great, do you mind me asking do you think that's because you went private for this appointment? (I have been worried that at my next NHS appointment, I will just be sent away for another bash with the same again and deciding whether it's worth paying to get closer investigations such as anatomy scans). Are you due on while in France or just worried about AF arriving early? Imagine you've booked your flights already so just have to hope your cycle is well-behaved this month, fingers crossed and, 'Hey Pred, no messing!'

duggs snoopy comedy sue and others, at the risk of becoming a serial support group attender I'm going to try to join the Farnham crowd on Saturday. I have contact details for two of you so will keep you posted, don't think it's that far from me, just requires me making a bid for the car.

breezy holiday sounds lovely, where are you going? I have the possibility of a Caribbean trip in Jan and hope it comes off, just need to escape this bone-freezing cold, not to mention the 'cloud' that has just descended over this Christmas.

sue my message got so waffly I pm'd you in the end!

Heaven knows why I am still up tapping away.... normal people are asleep.

We did have this conversation before, didn't we sue? It may well be the preds. I didn't ask him actually and he didn't suggest that as a reason. Unfortunately, you know when you get to sit down in front of him all the questions you thought you had vanish from your mind. They only pop back once you've left! Grrr. Annoying when I was seeing him on NHS, more so at £200 an appointment . I think it was the combination of that and the fact that I've not fallen pregnant in 7 cycles of pred vs 1-2 months 6 times until the end of last year.

I did ask him about the flying (free and others who were asking about that) and he said it shouldn't be a problem at all, especially as the flights are only an hour and a half long. He said traveling on the tube was probably more stressful!

Kittens since going on the preds my periods have become really light, short and irregular too. My last period lasted for about a day with hardly any bleeding. I am convinced its down to the preds so are you sure this is not the case with you? Before this they would last around 4 days with 2 days of heavy bleeding and were regular. I also became pregnant quickly in the past (last one was July this year) so I cant believe it would have declined that fast in a few months.

The other tests are to check whether my fertility has declined for various reasons. Considering how easily I have become pregnant in the past it is remarkable, and I guess reason enough to do some investigations. The blood test I had today (AMH) was to test my ovarian reserve. I thought I'd been tested for this already but apparently the NHS don't do AMH tests so perhaps it was a different test I had for my ovarian reserve. Who knows? The rest is to make sure there has been no damage caused from all the ERPCs I've had. I've had 5 (I think, maybe 6, I actually can't remember!) plus the 2 terminations.

Mr S asked me about my periods, which I told him were very light and short most of the time. I went to the GP concerned about this a few months ago, which was when he did the day 21 tests. I was concerned this could mean one of two things, one was Asherman's and the other was peri-menopause (my mum and grandmother both had theirs at my age). When I mentioned my concern about Asherman's Mr S nodded and said "Exactly, that's why I'd like you to have the HyCoSy scan." He said that if I wasn't ovulating that wasn't necessarily a problem and gave me the info about Superovulation. But I guess if my tubes are blocked or I have scarring or adhesions (or, for that matter, there are sperm issues) then it doesn't matter how many eggs he can get me to produce.

When I went to see his colleague a few weeks ago she told me that if someone in their 30s said they'd been trying the amount of time I had they wouldn't think much of it but someone my age, they tend to investigate so that if there are any problems they can sort them out asap, so I guess that might be why some people just automatically get put on the Superovulation programme and some get more investigations first.

I am still continuing to try naturally and keep taking the steroids and hope that I get pregnant before having to fork out for all of the above! I have a nasty feeling I will come on whilst in France and won't get to the phlebotomist in time for day 3 so will have to wait yet another cycle. If that happens, I will be on my 4th round of pred and by the time I get any results I will be about ready for my 2 month break again. Oh joy....