TTC/ pregnancy on Prednisolone or similar

[freelancegirl]

I am not sure there are enough people here to start a thread but have been chatting on one on the pregnancy boards and was wondering if I could find any fellow ttc'ers on Prednisolone or similar?

I have just received a diagnosis of very high NK cells. It was a bit of a shock actually as it turns out I have some of the highest levels - 3.79 when anything over 1.8 is considered 'very high'.

Am trawling through Dr Beer's book and Dr Google and trying to found out more. I have been recommended 25mg prednisoline steroids for two weeks starting with ovulation, increasing to 40mg if/when BFP and then Intralipids Cyclogest too. I still have 13 days until I pop my first Pred.

There now just seem like so many hurdles - actually getting pregnant being the first one. I was prepared for high NK cells as I have high thyroid antibodies but it was shocking to be in the top 5% of people treated at the clinic. I am not sure if that gives me much less of a chance of being successful.

It would be great to hear from anyone else who is undergoing treatment and of course also if you've had successful treatment.

Hooray stogan that's brilliant news!!!! Yes, please do stick around as our beacon of light to guide us to the labour ward.

Lovely news on scans! I am so pleased :)

iggi - Second what the others said about getting a scan via GP - I hate the fact that thses places that are supposed to reassure you - really let you down sometimes.

free - my first af didn't happen as you know - but my second was fine. I hope this is you starting to recover properly though.

God - why can't we ovulate weekly instaed of monthly - whoses idea was that (must have been a mans) - I don't ovulate till next week and already I am bored.

Stogan that is fantastic news, you both must feel amazing! Now you can start planning lovely things. So glad you're staying on this thread as we can all have hope after your story. Xxx Did you ask about sex of baby?

Digi- talking of sex have you felt like it yet?! We haven't had any and not planning on it until week 12! I don't even miss it! My poor husband!

Glad I can be here to support u ladies as uve all helped me soooooo much .

We didn't want to know the sex but asked mr s if he knew and he said no he can normally tell from 16 weeks, then said he doesn't like to tell the sex as he thinks it's a lovely surprise. I think he did know tho x

Oh and georgie today is the first time since we found out we were PG that I am horny as hell god help DH when we get back home lol

georgie erm, haven't really missed it either. Think it's a combination of hormones and the not wanting to start any bleeding off. Although last week we had 'relations' which was nice and I suspect we may do so again this week. We may graduate to the full monty after the dating/nuchal scan (3 weeks away, actually 2 weeks and 6 days away but who's counting?).

I'm loving the good news on this thread!

Great news Stogan!
Just to say I phoned the EPU back again and they have agreed to a 6 week scan (assuming I'm still pg then) followed by an 8 week one. They were much more reasonable this time, which was good as I've spent the whole day stressing about it (great way to get through early pg isn't it?!)

Great news re scans Digi and stogan and good luck tomorrow for yours Georgie. I have nothing but positive vibes right now for the pregnant folk on this thread. I don't know why, but for some reason I think it will all work out well for you all this time. Including you iggi. I wish I was a bit more baby friendly as a few weeks ago I would have had an emotional lump in my throat for you all, but actually this time it just seems, I dunno, expected. That can only be a good thing!!

I have had another busy day filming, which is good as it has kept me away from typing, but also somewhat interrupting my mnetting. At least I have stopped obsessively googling. Just been out for a lovely meal and bottle of wine with my best friend. Ahh, drinking again is so wonderful :)

Still no deluge of period, just dark clots on a tampon (TMI I know!) so thanks for all the info on your first afs post mc as it is helping me realise that anything goes at this point. And am still grateful it's been 33 days after the ERPC, exactly the same as my usual cycle. Otherwise not much to report from me but hope you'er all doing well xx

Hi, as you know I went for my 9 week scan today at hospital but I have had another missed miscarriage. There was no heartbeat. So shocked after seeing a strong hb last week with Mr S. Looking at the size it only stopped about 3 days ago.

I am booked in for an ERPC tomorrow, they know that this is number 5 and were really good with me. I called Louise at Mr S office to tell her.

Girls both DH and I are angry as well as upset. However, we both have said that this was or last chance due to our ages (both 42) and will somehow pick ourselves up again, focus on on DD who will be 4 in December and make the most of what we have. We wont be going back to see Mr S or trying again.

xx

Oh my god georgie I am so so sorry. I don't know what to say (think we would all know given all of our situations but u never do).
I'm just gutted , oh Hun so sorry???x

OMG no Georgie, I'm so very sorry! Huge hugs to you, I don't know what to say other than take good care of you.

Ari xx

oh georgie no ! I'm so so sorry this has happened again. This was not supposed to happen again . I'm devastated for you. Take care and keep cuddling your DD and DH. Thinking of you at this awful time xxx

Georgie I am so, so sorry to hear that. It makes it particularly shocking in the light of you seeing the heartbeat last time. I mean I know we all go in to scans with a certain amount of trepidation but after hearing the heartbeat once I think I would be cautiously optimistic it was going to be ok. I am so, so sorry to hear that it has happened again. You have broken my empathy drought too. I feel awful that this has to happen to you, has to happen to anyone really.

I do hope that having DD is some compensation and I wish you well with moving on. I think in your position I would be doing the same. It might be too early for you to think about this but I hope at some point you manage to think of all the wonderful things you can do and the lovely life you will have with one gorgeous child and also each other.

Please do come here for ERPC support and the aftermath, we all know what you are going through and hope we can be of some support xxxx

georgie I am so so sorry :( The shock is terrible, especially after seeing a HB. Life is crap to us sometimes, and I know words are no comfort at times like this. Be assured we are all thinking of you - please stay with us to rant and cry - or just skulk quietly. I am thinking of you xx

Thank you all for you kind words x

Mr S called me at home today and tried to convince me that we could try again and he would throw everything at me this time to help. However I explained that we had come to the end of our journey.

Xx

Georgie I am so sorry, what a shock for you and what a crushing loss
I had a scan with hb once were everything was fine and then the growth just stopped the next day. The hope makes the loss worse.
Perhaps you should ask for tests from the ERPC, the only time I've had that done it gave me a sort of comfort as there was a trisomy so I knew I could have not affected the outcome at all.

Georgie, Iggi has a good point. See if you can get the tests after the ERPC. I know you have decided to stop trying now but you never know, it might sway you if this one was just one of those miscarriages that can be put down to chromosomal issues. That said, if you have made up your mind and know what you want/don't want to do then that is fair enough too. Like I said, if I were in your position I would probably do the same. It's bloody hard putting your body through all this - the miscarriages and the treatment. I only really know now how the steroids affected me since I have stopped. Before I kind of took them in my stride.

Digi did I read somewhere that you said your face is feeling a bit bloated on the Pred now? I think mine has definitely started to go down and I have lost a couple of pounds. It's nice actually as, as a one-time serious gym goers trying to get back to where I was - a few of my male gym friends have told me they actually prefer me a bit curvier. Not that my whole life is based on what men think of me but it definitely helps when very fit men (who have been brutally honest with me at other times) say they think you look good! Especially when the mind, body and soul has taken a bit of a knocking recently. I am feeling very hungry again today though, might be the AF (of sorts!).

Hope everyone else is ok. It's always a sad day when we have a miscarriage amongst us I know.

Oh georgie, I'm so sorry to read your news. That's just rotten. Time for me to give you a hug now. Time to spoil yourself and have a cozy, cuddly and self indulgent weekend.

Hello ladies, Do you mind if I join? I've had a quick flip through the first few pages of the thread and the last page. It's been really informative reading for me and you all seem really lovely. Just a shame we find ourselves meeting like this. It's great to see some success stories on here, although very sad to know that not everyone has had such happiness.

I'm so sorry to read your news Georgie. I hope today went as well as it could and you're being well looked after back home now. I totally relate to you feeling like it's the end of the road because of your age and what you've been through. I'm 43 and am wondering how close I am to that point myself.

I'm currently having treatment with Mr S, although have done it all a bit back to front as I was already pregnant (just under 6 weeks) when I had my first appointment with him a couple of weeks ago. He did a whole range of tests and started me on pred and cyclogest as a precaution. I was already on aspirin as prescribed by my local RMC. I got a call from Louise a week later saying that my NK tests had come back as "very high" so I've had to up my dose of preg to 40mg and went to Epsom for the intralipids yesterday. I had a scan at my local EPU last week which showed a heartbeat, which feels like a step forward as two of my previous mcs were blighted ovums (the other 3 were too early to have had a scan), but I'm absolutely terrified that this is all going to go wrong, and I feel really annoyed with myself that we didn't hold off on ttc before the appointment. I also feels like I've been suddenly dropped into this treatment programme without really having a chance to digest anything, and I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed and emotional about the whole thing. Finding this thread and knowing that others are going through the same thing was a massive relief to me.

Sorry for the me, me, me thing. Looking forward to getting to know you all.

Hi coconut, of course we dont mind if u join in.
Sounds like ur journey is going well so far. U are totally normal to feel so overwhelmed, it's an awful lot to take in in such a short space of time so dont worry (says me who now goes to the MW weekly to ensure we still have a heartbeat even tho I'm 16 week tomorrow)
Were all here to help each other hunni, good luck with ur journey xxx

Hi coconut, welcome to the thread. We are all very nice indeed :) am on the phone so it's difficult to post properly. I think I remember your name from a few months ago, maybe on a miscarriage thread? So pleased to hear of your pregnancy and that you saw the heartbeat. I think we all find it a bit overwhelming sometimes and i know myself with the treatment I have sometimes thought what the hell I am doing. I know when I went to Epsom for intralipids it felt very odd to be sitting in some random private clinic in Surrey pumping attached to a drip! Unfortunately I miscarried that pregnancy but so many other people do seem to be successful on the treatment so there's every reason for you to be positive.

Do you have children already? Some of here do and some don't. Without having had a successful pregnancy myself the whole thing feels a bit overwhelming at thd moment. The whole getting pregant and staying pregnant for even 12 weeks let alone what happens after that just seems so surreal.

But in the meantime after last months ERPC mr s has told me to have a couple of months break before TTC to give my body a rest from the steroids and I an thoroughly enjoying the lack of mentalling! Oh and the g&ts, wine, cava... :)

But glad to have you on the thread anyway! It's always good to have more of us. So glad it is all going well and I hope we can be of some support.

How is everyone else??

Hello coconutfeet, I remember your name too. Were you on the Recurrent Buns thread?

I'm on a 2 month break from the steroids after 6 months of TTC on Dr S's plan. Latest news from me is that I got a couple of calls this week. One from Epsom & St Helier offering me a cancellation for a September appointment (which I can't go to because I'm away), but I still have my follow up appointment in October which was booked at my initial appointment in March! Because it's on the NHS they said to book a follow up appt and not to worry if it's ages in the future as they would probably give me a phone consultation with my results when they came in, which they did, but I never got around to cancelling the appointment. Just as well really, as Annabel, his NHS secretary returned my call about not being pregnant after 6 months of trying and said she would arrange a follow up appointment so I told her I still had this allotted appointment. So, we are going to keep that appointment to discuss my lack of pregnancy so far. Interesting. I wonder what he will do/suggest.

So, I'm still here in France but they have had to keep my poor mum in for another 10 days as she has an obscure bug that they are giving her intravenous antibiotics for. I will probably come home for a job or two and then fly back again as I need to replenish my bank balance in order to afford to be over here.

Good to hear digi and stogan's scans went well and that iggi has managed to get an early scan sorted out. I was going to say, if you are on Dr S's treatment I'm sure he would've been able to give you some sort of official recommendation to ensure you were given a 6 week scan.

georgie how are you doing love? I hope you're bearing up ok. I'm guessing it's doubly emotional for you this time when you've decided to finally draw a line under TTC. Sending you my love. x

Georgie, thinking of you and hope you are home and safe after yesterday's ordeal. X

Yes, georgie, thinking if you too. Hope you are being looked after.

Kittens I didn't realise you were in france kittens, is that where your mum lives? Sorry to hear things are still so difficult for her. In terms of TTC, when are you going to start trying again? If all goes well with my cycles I was just working out I will be trying mid November.