TTC/ pregnancy on Prednisolone or similar part 3

Name/absolute count/activation
Arianhod 471 and 0.83
eurochick 412 and 0.92
Suemays 334.3 and 1.9
ColeyOz 132 and 2.40
scooter 200 and 2.7

Don't have all my figures written down anywhere but above are the figures I was told over the phone (taken at 4weeks pregnant in Oct). Out of interest I looked up my July readings, count 170, activation level 1.37. I then had them taken again at ovulation in Oct when they had increased to an activation level of 2 (can't remember count) but I have listed my readings when pregnant because that was most recent. I think a few of us (PQ and kittens?) tipped from high to very high recently.

I hope my last post doesn't sound uncharitable. I know lots of our friends and family are brilliant and understanding so I'm not generalising. Nor do I want to appear ungrateful for the support we all do get. It's just that I guess the lack of empathy from those supposedly closest to us is often more hurtful because they are close to us.

Hope that makes sense.

Interesting point about how our bodies behave re getting pg and recovering. I think the short answer is we will never know unless we had blood tests every other day or something for all the hormones. Yeah right...

Choccy we should get Duggs to do a fact sheet. She will be whipping out her little notebook to jot everything down!

Don't worry about the top post I just scroll past and ignore.

We nearly need a new thread anyway. I'd still have a "title" post so others/lurkers can easily see where we all are. Yes there's a lot to scroll past but it gets me to the chat which is far more important to me!

And - families eh?! Grr.... Maybe someone should produce a fact sheet for distribution to family upon Pred mc re all the emotional side and the time it takes just weaning off Pred. Or a pro forms email so we don't all have to write it all out to tell them in words of less than one syllable that it is not like flicking a switch nor is it "boring" that we're still not ourselves after a couple of weeks. And caveats re last minute cancelling of babysitting arrangements. Just by way of a couple of examples :)

Ari glad you don't take too much notice of it! Let's hope no-one else does either.

Coley I did consider stopping the preds but I would blame myself if I lost another baby but everyone is different. Maybe our bodies were acting abnormally by getting pregnant so quickly and now that we are on the steroids we are acting normally. Bearing in mind most 'normal' people take a few months to get pregnant. Do you think our expectation of getting pregnant straight away is unrealistic? I don't think I OVd last month so being on the superovulation plan will change that. My 1st cycle on the preds was around 6 days late too so I was sure I was pregnant! It's such a headf*ck!
Are you sure you are not due a late BFP as you could have ovulated late?

Altered a little:

Name/absolute count/activation
Arianhod ?? and 1.83 / 471 and 0.83 with 40mg pred
eurochick 412 and 0.92
Suemays 334.3 and 1.9
ColeyOz 132 and 2.40

I thought that might be your concern, sue. I think only MNHQ can edit posts.

Sorry - added to list below:

Name/absolute count/activation
Arianhod 471 and 0.83
eurochick 412 and 0.92
Suemays 334.3 and 1.9
ColeyOz 132 and 2.40

It was the first post of the thread - I'm not sure it can be edited? But if it could, only free could do it ... however, I know I cannot edit posts I've made (otherwise there wouldn't be so many bloomin' typos in my posts!!), so I'm not sure it can be changed? TBH I tend not to read that first post anyway, I just skip past it.

Battery - just wondering how you are hun? Have you received your blood results?

sue - I've decided to stop taking the pred altogether and try my luck without. They are just having such a bad impact on my cycles and my ability to get pregnant. I'm still waiting for my period 6 days after stopping which is ridiculous. They are completely redundant if I can't get pregnant on them! I might consider taking from BFP but will see. I'll still have the intralipids.

I may consider this superovulation plan in the future if I'm still not pregnant in a few months:)

For the stats:
ColeyOz/132/2.40

Name/absolute count/activation
Arianhod 471 and 0.83
eurochick 412 and 0.92
Suemays 334.3 and 1.9

Euro I am guessing its when the post was restarted by Free. There are ladies showing there in the first trimester that miscarried recently so just thought it was better to change it! I know I wouldnt want the reminder at the start of every page.

scooter it is an odd reaction. As Arian said, it is a bereavement and people need to let you deal with it.

Sue I don't think you can because it is part of the OP. Maybe email MNHQ?

Arian it is good that the pred seems to have lowered your activation level.

Does anyone know how to delete the info TTC/preg box at the top of each page as it is out of date??? Free I think it is one that you posted??

Free fantastic news on the scan - one day out is nothing to worry about!

Battery have you had any news yet on the HCG? Worrying time for you but hopefully the little bean will hold.

Comedy are you going to find out the sex?? How exciting!!

Scooter I cant believe your sister - normally siblings are a bit more understanding so I am really shocked. Nobody seems to realise that miscarriages cause you to grieve like any other death. You can't just 'get over it' in a few weeks! Unbelievable!

Isn't it weird how through all of this, some of us have had family members act in a very strange way and be insensitive. There's nowt stranger than folk as they say.

Ari interesting that the steroids have had an effect on your count. I did wonder if that would be the case as they say the longer they build up in your body the better.

Coley I am exactly the same as you with the steroids messing up my cycle. I was convinced last month I was preg as had what I thought was a day of implantation bleeding at CD 21 but it turned out to be an early and light AF. Before taking the preds, I would have a regular cycle and fall in the first month. I am now on month no.4 and no sign of a BFP. I am going on the superovulation plan (thanks to Duggs advice) and have an appointment at NLC on wed 21st. Knowing my luck I will get a BFP after paying for the appointment and prescription!

Scooter I know you said you lived near NLC so I am there on the 21st if you are about? Is anyone else there next Wed??? My appt is 3.20pm.

Cant remember if it was Cheerful who had a good scan over the last couple of days but well done if it was you!!

Bugger, I meant "don't have my original absolute count to hand" since I had of course just quoted my original activation count. Finger fatigue!!

Ah yes euro, but that was only after a few weeks on 40mg pred. My non-pred was actually activation count of 1.83 (don't have my original activation count to hand right now). Would be interesting to see what everyone's results though, if peeps are willing? Just in the interests of statistics, I love a good statistic :)

Will post mine properly later when I get home and dig out my original results.

choccy my cycle came back to normal pretty much straight away after the pred - maybe two days behind where it should have been.

Have also had the most horrendous head cold, first cold in about 3 years, so maybe the pred weakened my defences! though as I mentioned before I am one of the lucky ones whose NK cells went up when I was pregnant so I have to go on the 40mg dose + intralipids next time.

Scooter you have my sympathy about family insensitivity and i can't believe you are expected to go to DN's nativity plays - that's beyond the call of family duty!

Arian it is interesting to see your numbers. They are fairly similar to the results I got on Monday (412 absolute count with borderline activation at 0.92). Those results got me the High protocol.

What sorts of results did other people have? I know people have posted as and when they have got their results but it might be worth adding these stats (as we are stats collectors on here). How about something like this?

Name/absolute count/activation
Arianhod 471 and 0.83
eurochick 412 and 0.92

Please add on your own results if you would like to! Once we have a list we could add it to the bottom of our other stats list?

scooter so sorry you're having insensitive family troubles ... you know what they say, you can't choose your relatives! Maybe you have to put your foot down and say "look, I've just had a miscarriage, it's hit me pretty hard, I need time to recover and heal, thank you" ... and see what the reaction is. You'd hope that family would rally round and support you no matter what, wouldn't you - but sometimes that just doesn't happen. Your sister really didn't need to make the comment she did; to family, a miscarriage should never be "old news", a bereavement is a bereavement and deserves to be honoured as such. You rant all you like, you deserve to!

I just thought I'd mention, I'm not sure why but I seem to have no side effects with coming off the pred that I can tell? Maybe they will kick in once I'm completely off them. I'm down to 10mg, 5mg tomorrow (I've been a bit naughty and gone down by 5mg every 2 days instead of every 4; I want to get off them!). I'm hating the weight I've put on since taking the pred and hope to goodness it comes off again :( scooter you have of course been on the pred longer than I was, since I only got to 6 weeks pg before miscarrying (although of course as it turns out there was nothing there, so I'm not sure I actually counted as pregnant in the end?!)., so no doubt it will have taken a greater hold over your system. I hate these drugs, but whatever it takes will be worth it in the end I guess.

I just had the results of my repeated NK cell test taken last Wednesday, to see if the steroids did have an effect on them, and it seems they did. My activation level was originally 1.83 putting me just into the "very high" category; the test taken last week showed activation down to 0.83 which according to Louise makes me then "borderline". However, my absolute count is now 471 (higher than the original figure), which means although my NK cells aren't as aggressive, there are shedloads of them! (Louise said anything over 200 is considered a lot). Not sure whether Mr Shehata will change the "plan", will find out when we see him on the 4th Jan, but at least it does show the steroids have had some effect.

battery hope your HCG results come back quick today and make things clearer. Faint lines have so much to answer for. Sorry you are finding yourself stressed and confused right from the start, a case of being fired off on the rollercoaster straight away. Hoping for good news x

digi sorry for your family dramas, keep talking to your mum and hopefully she will realise life is too short to hold a grudge. You have done nothing except make a suggestion, hardly a crime! If it helps I am also having family troubles because they all just want me to get on with life now (2 weeks on) and Christmas things and I am still not ready. Just in an everything's pointless phase. Mum asked me to organise DS and his four cousins into a show to perform for Christmas and expecting me to attend my nieces/nephew's nativity plays. I sent an email to tell my family I would feel better cancelling my birthday this year (on Sunday) and only my Dad has acknowledged it at all. How do they imagine it is helpful to completely ignore me! All I wanted is for someone to say, ok that's fine if that's what you need. I get so annoyed because I am pretty good at supporting people at difficult times and yet surrounded by people who are rubbish at it!!!
Another helpful comment from my sis yesterday when I told her DS had been crying about things all morning... Her response "I wonder where he gets that from" I know my fourth miscarriage is old news and boring now for everyone but I am still struggling to find a reason to get up in the morning. Why do people think it is best coping strategy to just carry on regardless? Ok rant over!

comedy lurking for your news today. Everything crossed for a good scan and finding out what you're getting!!

choccy ewcm sounds promising like your body sorting itself out. I am all over the place... still cramping and according to the scan still have more to lose. This is lasting so long, AF is going to turn up on the back of it. How are you doing on the weaning from pred? Im getting the strange buzzing feelings like free described, my lower lip vibrates occasionally - so weird!! And really prone to pins and needles. Also getting loads of headaches. With ironic timing I am also suffering from more of the pred side effects, DH helpfully pointed out a slight case of moon-cheeks and feel like I might be coming down with a cold. Could have done with the immuno-suppressant effect 3 weeks ago!!! Just goes to show that these steroids do take a while to kick in, certainly in my case. I am going to have to invest in my own little book duggs!

Mmm I was thinking that too choccy, we'd both have been in there for intralipids this week. Oh well .. it will happen for us, just will take a little bit longer than we'd wanted. Just out of interest I checked my records to see when I OVd following each of my MCs and it seems to be between 18 and 25 days after, although of course 2 of the three previous MCs were ERPCs, so I'm not sure what will happen this time. I'm going to POAS from about 15 days after I started bleeding, and see what happens - not of course to try to catch the egg this time, but to avoid it! I know exactly what you mean about inclination ... give it time m'dear, you have some recovering to do first! Hope you're not working too hard, and you're giving yourself lots of TLC?

battery sorry to hear about your faint line ... have you managed to speak to the doctor from yesterday yet, about the hCG test? Will they want to repeat it tomorrow, so you can see the levels rising? Those tests are a bugger, I know what you're going through right now. Virtual hugs to you, hang in there.

igg how are you doing now, all settled down and ok?

comedy good luck for your scan today, let us know how it went, add to the good news!

Battery hope you get your hcg number soon and that it tells you where you are. Faint tests are so confusing but a line is a line.

Yay Brownie and Cheerful for scans!! :)

Free how you doing after intralipids? Reminded me I'd have been there too this week... :( for me but for you. I'll get there some day I'm sure.

Free/PQ how long did it take for your cycle to get back on track after mc on Pred? It's 3 wks yesterday since I started spotting and (tmi) am def getting ewcm which was a bit of a surprise. But I guess that's because I'm taking the mc from when it was confirmed by the empty scan last Sat not the actual bleeding another 10 days before the scan.

Not that I feel like doing anything about it nor should I anyway I assume. emotionally never mind the hormonal/Pred fired mess I am atm!

May as well poas when I get home I guess out of interest to see if there's a smiley face.

Waves to everyone else.

Tried to post yesterday but I pressed the wrong button and everything disappeared - need coconut's IT genius son to help out.

digi - if you could bring your spare tests to the Jan meet up that would be great and we can divvy them up then. Thanks! And HR obviously haven't SEEN you lately as there's no hiding that you're pregnant now!

Battery I hate faint tests but if you can bear it try not to think about it until you get the hcg numbers.

kittens i can't even begin to get my head around all your tests and the timing nightmare when you need to be abroad and you don't really have a choice. It's so difficult isn't.

duggs - I know what you mean about people expecting you to be on form. I am still getting over last Christmas when it was commented on that I "didn't seem very happy" (same comment also made by the same loving family member at dad's funeral..hello! Can't be the life and soul of the party all the time). and digi - family dramas really are the last thing you need.

breezy I have exceptionally limited tolerance for my lovely nephews and nieces but can tune out cope with my own DS's demands for hours. Your own children will be a completely different story so don't ever measure your fitness to parent by other peoples offspring!

battery sorry to hear the line is faint. Hopefully you'll be avlble to get hold of those blood test results this morning. Remember your hcg in your urine is a couple of days behind the hcg in your blood. I have my fingers crossed for you.

comedy good luck with your scan

coconut - laughing at your 3 yr old genius son teaching mummy how to use the iPhone!

Have just done another test and still really faint. All my other pregnancies have had big bold lines by now. I don't like this . Will try and get the hcg numbers today. Rubbish .