Immune/NK issues - aka Pred Thread no. 23!

[Chickjen]

A quick introduction to this thread.. it has been running for many years and is a group of women who have experienced recurrent miscarriage and are now exploring immune issues as a cause. We have members at all stages, from waiting for first appointments, mid treatment, to take home babies. Please join us if you are experiencing this too, loads of friendly advice here and somewhere to share your hopes and fears.
@KittyKatSmile @DaniMERL @Megan234 @Wishing5tar @ginandtonicformeplease @Pop1234 @Belarita @Naticle @EmsIMO @MrsMargot @kdd1980 @MairMum18 @Wewin @zoe16 @fnej01 @Hopeful07 @Cream123 @Anatrina @summertimehere @Lau2019 @PoppyJ1 @WeeGi @RedPandaFluff @Chilliandlime @Thumbellini @AcornHill @Maranello4 @Sunshineblonde1 @Nixwix @HappyApple05 @Widdendream77 @Zest11 @mezgaski

@Chickjen @KittyKatSmile I know the pred masked symptoms for you but did you have cramps in the first few weeks? I'm starting to have mild cramps on/off and I know this could be normal but I just can't stop myself from worrying.

@zoe16 yes I think I did, very mild though, a bit less than AF, and they did come and go until I had a small bleed and after that I think it stopped. (but they did prescribe something to stop the bleeding which would also have stopped cramping)
Are you still testing? I know it can drive people mad but I found it helped, for a few minutes a day anyway!❤️

@ginandtonicformeplease hooray! It feels like you have been waiting for that FET for forever, I'm so pleased for you that it worked 🍀

@Belarita great news! I had a chemical, then a bfn, then this one. I hope it's a good sign for you too🤞

@Chickjen Yes still testing because my doc didn't want to track hcg levels this time. He said testing can cause anxiety and I should just wait for my scan. I complied because my hcg levels are always considered normal and promising. It always comes down to the scan. I hate this part so much.

@zoe16 when is your scan? Hang on in there. I found that wait far worse than any TWW. Courage friend x

Thanks @KittyKatSmile I’m trying. Scan is on Saturday so not too far away, but I agree this is worse than the tww!

Hi @Chickjen thank you for setting this up and sorry for coming on here so late!

If you rmb me I had ivf and then was monitored by Dr S for my thyroid antibodies (immune issues). So did Pred and Clexane and aspirin. I had one miscarriage that ended at 8 weeks and an ectopic pregnancy that left me with one tube hence the ivf to avoid the Fallopian tubes altogether.

I was due on 6th October but baby boy came early on 25th September at 38+ 3, normal delivery.

I am 2 weeks post partum and doing quite alright. Going to stay on here as I plan to have next baby in a year's time and also would like to conceive naturally.

Would love to hear from all. I can see that familiar posters @DaniMERL and @KittyKatSmile are well far into their pregnancies. How is everyone else doing?

Xxx

@Nixwix it's so lovely to hear from you ❤️ @KittyKatSmile and I have been hoping for an update! I'm so glad all is well. Congratulations on your boy! When did you find out, did your husband keep the secret till the end?
I am having a boy too 🤞it's 19 weeks today but I am still as anxious as ever ☹️ I have a scan on Friday so that should help for a bit.
Please do stick with us, it's nice to hear from someone over the finishing line to keep us all going 💐

@Nixwix so great to hear from you! Congratulations on your little one, hope you're both doing well.
I'm 26 weeks today and getting tired again, sadly at a time when work is totally smashing me :-)

2 months* postpartum I meant.
Haha! You remember that it was a surprise! @Chickjen But my husband couldn't keep it from me for too long and blurted it out to me one day! 🤣

Awww amazing @Chickjen so so happy for you!!!! 19 weeks! And baby boy! ❤️❤️ I really have missed out on a lot! Congratulations!!

And wow congratulations to you too @KittyKatSmile ! The finish line is really not that far! Do you know the gender? How are you both feeling?

Yes I will definitely stick around. Happy to help with any delivery/labour related queries too.

Good luck to everyone here! Love and light

@Nixwix, I'm staying team yellow/grey in reality as those are the clothes I've bought...! I've got a strong feeling it's a girl based on the fact I look like a whale so it will be a real shock if it turns out to be a boy! But I'll be delighted all the same! Can you share the name of your little boy with us? And no labour stories just yet thank you

Ok so AF didn't arrive today (my test at 10dpo came back negative), have just done a clearblue digital test and it says pregnant 1-2 weeks. I'm in total shock, as I did it because I'm a POAS addict and didn't actually think I'd be pregnant. I'm concerned that this isn't right and could be a false positive. Has anyone experience a false positive on a digital before?

I'm going to start back on the pred anyway just in case, and then will go and load up on more pregnancy tests.

@MairMum18 my feeling is (zero science behind this) that clear blue digitals are less likely to give a false positive because they can only say one thing or the other. Does that make sense? I know that their marketing focuses on that but I actually don't like them because they are so rude and brutal and don't allow any room for line eyes :-)

So I would say 'you're pregnant'. Congratulations. What a bloody month: or not a bloody month at all I suppose x

@KittyKatSmile thanks for reassuring me, I wouldn't normally use the digital ones, but it was my last one left. I'm now a little concerned that I've had that 4 day break from the pred, I really hope it doesn't effect the pregnancy. Xx

@MairMum18 Slightly different timings as it was IVF, but my last pregnancy I tested with a clear blue (not digital) at 11 days past transfer and it was negative. My clinic said to stay on the meds and test again at 14 days and hey presto, it was positive. I immediately sent DH out for a different brand to check as I now don't trust clearblue any more (this may be a slight overreaction 🤔).

So congratulations!

@MairMum18 my feeling is (zero science behind this) that clear blue digitals are less likely to give a false positive because they can only say one thing or the other. Does that make sense? I know that their marketing focuses on that but I actually don't like them because they are so rude and brutal and don't allow any room for line eyes :-)

So I would say 'you're pregnant'. Congratulations. What a bloody month: or not a bloody month at all I suppose x

This is great! Its nice to see more BFPs, congratulations @MairMum18 (I would agree with KittyKatSmile and say the test result is correct and you are pregnant) and @Belarita. @Nixwix congratulations on your baby boy, its great to hear success stories - it helps in allowing to keep positive and that it will happen for us all in the throws of it 🙂🍀

As for me, my pregnancy symptoms have come back and I feel awfully nauseated, sick and exhaustedl!! I've spent the last 2 days feeling sorry for myself lol! I'm hoping its a good sign for scan tomorrow!🤞

Yay @MairMum18 congratulations!
What a roll we are on this month 😍 I am curious if anyone feels they did anything different this time?

Thanks @Chickjen, I'm not going to get my hopes up just in case it doesn't end well, just gonna carry on with life - rattling with enough pills to stock my own pharmacy!

This month I didn't stress, I didn't use OPK's and we DTD once (my poor husband), essentially I was giving myself a month off - how ironic! I also took evening primrose oil from my last period up to estimated ovulation. That's all really. Xx

@MairMum18 Congratulations!! I agree with @KittyKatSmile. I do not think that the digital ones can give a false positive! False negative yes but I would say you are pregnant! 😍😍😍

I am very happy to hear the news of @Nixwix ! It really is so good to hear successful stories. Thank you for coming back!

As for me, I have almost zero symptoms and it is driving me insane. I am with you @zoe16. My first scan is the 9th so a while to go. I have also decided not to test HCGs this time. Last time i had good numbers but it did not end up well so I thought I should avoid the stress.... I keep on thinking @Chickjen and @KittyKatSmile and try to stay positive on my lick of symptoms.

Oh my God!! @Belarita I just saw your message! I am really hoping everything works out for you!! 😍😍😍😍😍😍

And thank you for letting me know about the other doctor. I am happy to see her.

Is there something in the water? So weird so many of us us are suddenly out of the starting blocks. And to those without a BFP yet, I really hope it's some encouragement to keep going. It was actually a pretty stressful month for me and I've been quite down and feeling it would almost certainly never happen. But every time I've got pregnant now it has taken 5 or 6 cycles and this time was no different. Was talking to a lovely woman who's at exactly the same point as me (to the day!) as we got our first lot of intralipids and we were saying that the mental side of all this - managing expectations, hopes and fears - is really hard going. I completely understand the anxiety of everyone waiting for the 6 1/2 week scan. It is worse than TWW. But yes, as @KittyKatSmile has said, all we can do is accept where we are: "today I am pregnant". Immunology Zen my friends! xx

Has anyone else found that they've completely lost their appetite? With the pred I was expecting to put weight on as I did previously as I was starving all the time, but it seems to have suppressed my appetite if anything

I'm getting a bit queasy in the afternoons now - hoping that's a good sign!

@ginandtonicformeplease Oddly I've never been especially hungry on the pred before, probably the opposite. But right now I'm an eating machine. I don't know how much of that is the pred, how much the (very very) early days of pregnancy and how much is just some psychological "feed the beast" thing.

The queasiness is almost certainly having an effect for your appetite. But hey, it means there's stuff going on in there!

@ginandtonicformeplease I wish I had a suppressed appetite, I eating myself out of house and home!

I think it's quite good that you're feeling nauseous too, would like to think its more reassuring. When I had my missed miscarriage at the beginning of year - I knew something wasn't right as my nausea has completely stopped around the time that the baby stopped growing, I'd love to have some sort of symptom that would make me more at ease. I only got my BFP yesterday and I'm already so nervous, and analysing each twinge or pain I get. My scan date can't come any sooner!

@MairMum18 I know what you mean about being nervous - it seems so long until the scan: my clinic scans at 7w. Doing IVF everyone says the two week wait (after transfer, waiting to see if it's a BFP) is the worst, but after two MMC I think it's the time until scans - both times I've seen the heartbeat at 7 weeks, but by the 9 week scan they stopped.

I really wish some more symptoms would kick in - sounds strange but I really wouldn't mind being exhausted all the time!