Immune/NK issues - aka Pred Thread no.20!

moonbeard bahahaa :-)

Oh I'm so glad you have your scan booked Sheepy, hopefully your instinct is wrong this time and you are all clear and ready to start the healing process. Hope the christening goes well, you certainly seem to be an incredibly tough cookie even if you don't feel it right now 🍪

Drttc, great to hear how you turned the weight gain around! I would like to think it doesn't matter as long as baby is growing but it does really, for health and recovery reasons etc, you've given me hope :)
3 days until scan 🤞🏻⭐️

Tee, massages and woodland walks sound perfect! I'm not sure if it's a med induced moon-beard, but hopefully you won't suffer with it! Although, it's actually been a source of amusement for me amid all the REAL concerns I have lol

Luna! With Halloween on its way, I don't even need to get dressed up! The way you just described it, I'll look like teen wolf or Texas chain saw massacre 😂❤️

We will

Glad you are feeling a little better Sheepy, and that you are avoiding infection at least.... Enjoy the christening and time with your hubby :-)

Scan is booked for tomorrow, not in so much pain but I am now on amoxicillin as a precaution for infection.
I am ok and think my body might be gearing up to o but I am not tracking this month and will start when AF rears her head..
off to a christening Sunday so I am focusing on that. It's just me and dh for 2 nights as dd is with her boyfriend until she goes to work on Saturday.

So fat hairy moonfaces we shall be :-) What a sight to encounter in the woods on a darkening autumn evening (may the country folk of Surrey beware...) - although... we will look cute in our leggings/dungarees and oversized shirts

Drttc glad you are OK.... and playing hang-ups with the GP - poor little poppet, I feel ya

Luna- Thanks for thinking of us! You're right in the prime fertile window- exciting! Hope you can catch that golden eggy this month! I'm just laying low I guess with the scan day approaching - 3 days! I rang the GP today to say I was pregnant (because last time I couldn't get my NHS 12 Week scan and had to go private)... But as it was ringing I started thinking about how awful it would be to have to tell them if I miscarry, so I hung up! Pretty much sums up my headspace at the moment. Confused!

Harriet- I agree that the pred makes you feel gross. I put on so much weight at the start with DS. 9 lbs first trimester, 21 by the end up the second trimester! BUT at around 20 weeks I decided to get healthy for baby and turned my eating around. I ended up only gaining 5 more lbs (so 25 lbs total) which is bang within the guidelines. So I just gained most my extra padding at the start :-P I stopped excercising in the 1st trimester (despite being active) due to a SCH. But then at about halfway I made sure to walk 3 miles a day everyday right up until I gave birth. I felt fit as a fiddle straight until the end and think it contributed to my smooth labour. This time around I've continued running as my body is accustomed to it, but will be amending things if/when necessary. I reckon you'd be fine with some regular walking and it'll really boost your confidence.

Justla that made me LOL 😆👨🏼✂️
I just use the one step cheapy opks. They seem to do the trick, I generally get a strong line on roughly the same day each cycle. I used to temp which would confirm OD but I sacked that off a long time ago when my pattern was established.
Totally agree with you re. woody walks. We spent a week in Scotland and the peaceful surrounds definitely flicked a switch for me. Will make a point to schedule in more here on the weekends. Have booked a massage for tomorrow, yay!! 💆🏼 x

Oh Poppy, I'm sorry- that's a bummer x But you have a great ovarian reserve which feels like it should be connected to good quality eggs, so when it does happen it should be a nice strong pregnancy now you have the meds helping you along. I'm glad you're starting to anticipate your next try already :)
Putting good vibes out to the cosmos sl that your DP makes it home for the next cycle and that you don't have much longer to wait until you're on the crazy preg train!

Tee, how exciting! Are you using the ovulation testing kits with the smiley faces? They worked great for me 😊 Good luck with the trying #BonkingForBabies 🙌🏼

Harriet, the fatigue is extreme isn't it? I presume it's just that all your energy is going into making a new person, I mean it's a pretty complicated thing. I have been going on gentle walks in the county side when I can. I really feel like a good walk amongst nature provides calming and strengthening energy, it always helps ground me a bit. There's been some great studies on cortisol levels dropping after walking in the forest for a couple of hours so gentle exercise plus stress management all in one :) When I was at your stage, I couldn't walk far without feeling uncomfortable pressure/pulling in my pelvis and dizziness too so I took it really easy. I personally think at this stage if you're feeling delicate, take it easy but remember to move around to keep the blood flowing. Just my thoughts, mr S would probably tell you to swim the channel if you want lol

Stuck, so the next scan you get is 12 weeks, 3 weeks away? Seems like a long time to wait but some prefer not to keep having scans so it depends on what suits you. How are you feeling about it all?

I'm feeling ok thanks Luna, more settled than I was before week 9 but still insanely worried. Glad you're excited about some more premeditated intercourse this month 😂 Wooot! I actually reached a new low this week and had to trim my moon face fluff! DH couldn't ignore it, just kept staring at my glistening golden flowing handlebar! I caved- took my body trimmer and trimmed that crap down ✂️

Xxx

Harriet, glad to hear all is well apart from the annoying symptoms and weight gain.

How do you feel about swimming? Lovely and relaxing and extremely good for weight management and toning.

How long have you been told to take Pred for? My doc said til 12 weeks at which point hopefully the Pred bloating will subside as the pregnancy weight starts to take hold and the two won't be occurring together! You will be buying bigger clothes soon too which will make a difference to how you feel and see the difference.

Should ovulate on 24th Harriet! Will attempt leg and bikini line maintenance around 17th... and entice husband for 7 day bonk fest from 18th!

I'm fat from comfort eating to prepare for comfort eating... I've decided to dress baggy from now to cover any preg weight and avoid nosey questions at work...

Great Tee, that's what I thought - we are Sisters in Waiting! I'm actually excited to get moonface now - I might shove some cotton wool in my cheeks and practice moonpout, plus pillow up jumper (then be committed by DH who assumes I have totally lost it)

I will wait until 6 months too... or until I feel safe!

Harriet I think gentle exercise is a great idea. I feel the same as you about exercising, I just cancelled my gym membership last month. Ordered an exercise bike instead and will just do some gentle daily pedalling. Long walks are also a nice idea, good for the mind & soul too. Maybe not in this weather though, urgh, is it lashing down for the rest of you too? ☔️

PS Luna I love your 'reveal' plan, you sound like an Instagram dream! Totally want to drop a nonchalant, stylish little pic like that when I have a big bump to show off, wouldn't do anything before about 6 months I think x

Luna remembered you hadn't kicked off with the meds but wondered if you still may have been active during FW 😬 We were on a break last month as I was still going through the testing/results. It was so refreshing to get AF this month and not completely curse it for once! CD10 today, usually ovulate CD13 but have been getting some early signs so will see what opk says later. I'm thinking may be a day early on Friday 🤔 Bring on the moonface, I'm ready for ya 👊🏻🙌🏻🌝💁🏼 x

Tee4me, you're absolutely right! In a couple of days I will be looking forward to our next attempt.

Luna, yeah I thought you were waiting for doc's go ahead before TTC but your comment made me wonder if I'd missed something! Still thinking about your stealth reveal plan and will take to Pinterest for further inspiration and add it to my "cosmic ordering" board (all the things I want to happen.)

Tee, what's your sitch at the mo? You're also waiting to Go aren't you!?

Preggo ladies, Just, Seeking, Drttc, Harriet, Stuck... How are you all doing? Quietly, optimistically insane?

Sheepy hun, how are you doing? Any news on an internal scan?

Did I miss anyone!

Thats sweet girls, but actually I wasn't expecting to be pregnant this month as DS was away last cycle... sorry, my AF comment was confusing!

I'm still a Shahata TTC virgin! Have been waiting to get started since MAY! But medical issues, work commitments and travel have stopped us being able to try...

I'm certainly excited to get cracking this month!

Sorry Poppy & Luna 😞
I don't know about you, but I generally get a surge of positivity and excitement about a new cycle once the initial disappointment passes on CD1. Just focus on all the positive steps you can take to get you closer to a bfp - good nutritious food and perhaps plan something relaxing? A massage is always a nice treat in the run up to FW! x

Commiserations, Luna. It's so disappointing, isn't it? I did have a little cry when it became clear but I cheered up quickly thinking about what a lovely time I had with DP. No tan because it's been rainy season and quite cold, even at the beach! No worries though.

Sorry, Sheepy, my auto correct wrote Sleepy in my comment above!

Sorry to hear that Poppy hun, we are now AF buddies as I got mine today. I hope to be able to take it on the chin as you have if I don't make it next month, and to remain as positive... although I'm sure you've picked yourself up off the floor and are on reserve upbeat mode at the moment 💪

I have no knowledge of the Rhesus issue I'm afraid... ☹️

Hope it's good to be home at least and you have a nice tan ☺️

Hi all,

Sleepy, sorry to hear about all your miscarriages. What a horrific ordeal. You must be much stronger than you think.

Luna, I second your comment about 2018! I will be so glad to see the back of this year for various reasons.

Harriet, agree scan timing sounds perfect, anything earlier and you risk seeing nothing of note and getting into an even more anxious state. I am so disappointed for all of us who cannot just enjoy TTC and pregnancy. People are well-meaning and they say "just relax and stop trying so hard" but we know we need to be on top of everything, especially when we are on strong meds and/or trying to schedule TTC around work schedules.

JustLa, thanks for thinking of me. I am definitely out this month as AF has arrived in full force. At least I know it's the high progesterone giving me all the symptoms every month so now I can just ignore them. I am hoping September could be the month, or even December because I will definitely be with DP for my whole fertile window. Not sure yet about August, October and November.

Is anyone here rhesus negative or knowledgeable about anti-D shots? I have been reading about this and I am Rhesus negative, which tends to not be a problem in a first pregnancy but can in subsequent ones. I wasn't told to have an anti-D shot after my first MC but five weeks into my second pregnancy I was told to. The embryo stopped growing the next day and I read today that women who need anti-D in pregnancy normally take it from 28 weeks. I am really wondering if this was a contributing factor to my second MC, because even though I had bleeding in the days before the injection, my hormones were fine and the embryo was growing.

Just at my hosp you have to attend a loooooong appt for medical history and stuff and then are booked in. They then book 12 w scan and bloods and follow up with midwives and consultants as needed.