Doctors, Tests, & All the Rest!

[Megg33k]

Going for bloods in an hour and a half! FX'd that she does them!

 

[Megg33k]

I'm back from docs! I love that woman... I really, really do!

So, I'm not diabetic (shocking, right?)... Actually, I knew I wasn't... It was just the "fasting" blood sugar of 140. She told me she was flipping out... "OMG! Is she out there somewhere not knowing that she's diabetic? With blurry vision? Passing out in the mall?" I at her! She also said that my urine test stuff came back fine... so, I asked about all the faintness. She said that my urine isn't "broken"... its just not "like most other people's urine." She said that they don't know why, but some people just don't get the regents absorbed into their urine like most people. The tests are made the way they are because "most people" can use them accurately. I cannot. She basically said not to think of myself as "broken"... because there is no "fix"... I'm "just different and have to accept that." So, that's the story of my pee. Want the best part? She (finally!!!) agreed to do betas for me whenever a situation was unclear!!! I told her I couldn't get anyone to do beta HCG's for me, and she said that she'll make sure I get them in her office whenever I need them!!! I'm SO excited! Especially since I've been accused so many times of not being willing to get blood tests for one reason or another... Its nice that I'll never have to hear it again! I FINALLY have someone who will do HCG for me!

She also said that Illinois is a very different medical community than anywhere else she's been (Indiana, Michigan, etc)... because the doctors in those places consistently want and try to help. Here... They just want to pass you off to someone else! But, she's not passing me off! I was so happy that I could have cried!

She's looking for a doctor who will do certain tests that she can't perform based on her orders. Like, she wants me to get an HSG... She was shocked that I'd not had one! So, that should be in the works. She was shocked that I hadn't had the tests on the list I gave her too! She said most of them should have been done over a year ago!!!

So, while I'm horrified at a lot of the doctors who have failed me... I'm VERY EXCITED that she's working so hard for me! She said she'll do her best to become the doctor I need her to be since no one else wants to help me!

So, I'm down another 7 vials of blood. She didn't do the entire list, as she said it was just too much blood at one time! So, she did the ones she felt were most important first!

I got:

CBC - including ESR
Iron, Ferritin, B12, B6
FSH, LH, E2
Antinuclear antibodies
Cardiolipin antibodies
Lupus anticoagulant
Prolactin

My TSH had just been tested 2 weeks ago. My progesterone WILL be tested at 7dpo (also horrified that everyone had refused to do that one)!

Anyway, those are the ones that she thought were most pertinent at this moment. She said we'd move on to the others if these didn't show anything. She's thinking it could be some sort of autoimmune disease though... Said it would explain it. So, maybe! It would be treatable, which is good! Prednisone through 1st Tri is apparently the way to get around that if I have one.

I don't know what else to say! I'm just hopeful finally!!! I can't believe that she's actually HELPING me! I'm so, so, so happy today! Love to Dr. Lashunda Williams!

 

[goddess25]

Megg your doctor does sound awesome i am so happy for you that you have someone taking you seriously now and can get to the bottom of everything for you. I have never had any tests into why i have had 2 losses but i have not pushed it either. Your right though none of my doctors give a s**t..(sorry) If i manage to get pregnant again I have another loss i will be getting all the tests done and i think you may be my go to gal to find out what i need to get.

Once again I am happy that you are finally getting there.

 

[Megg33k]

Thanks, goddess! I basically just laid it all on the line to her. I've been her patient for a while... and she KNOWS her patients. She knows who I am by face and name... which is nice. I hadn't seen her since before Christmas though. So, I basically just started telling her and ended up in tears. I hate that.. but I couldn't help it. I took her through the OB/GYN's I've seen, through the FS I saw, all of it. She was appalled at the lack of testing. She pretty much said that she gets a lot of patients that everyone else has just pushed aside, passed along, or given up on. She likes the challenge, because it keeps her job interesting. She was so unhappy that no one had bothered to check me for very basic things, apparently.

Plus, the office is really laid back and funny. So, we had a good laugh or 3! She's around my age, which is nice. She can sort of relate!

Definitely let me know whatever I can provide you with. I'll give you any info I have! Some of the testing can be passed off as not necessarily being fertility related. I mean, she totally knew why I wanted them... but I think they could be done without 3 losses. Especially the auto-immune stuff. She said that most people who think there's something wrong... do have something wrong... its just up to her to figure out what it is! I have real hope for the first time in ages!

 

[nefis]

Megg, I'm so happy for you!! I still haven't found the doctor I could rely on

 

[heatherv2]

I'm so glad for you! I know it will be a real relief to find out what could be wrong!

 

[Megg33k]

Come to Illinois!

Yes, definitely! Just hoping we find something rather than an "all clear" sort of thing!

 

[kimini26]

I'm so happy you've got such a helpful doctor. I'm hoping thats how mine turns out to be. My high risk OB scheduled me for a 6 week miscarriage follow up (although they forgot to tell me) but still its nice. It probly has something to do with my GP more or less forcing me to go for a stress echo that I've been putting off and sending him the results of my labs. I have no idea what she ordered, but everything looked fine. So he's probably wondering why I've been so sick-so am I! So now I just have to force myself to make a one hour drive to do the miscarriage lab routine, no idea whats involved, just told to drink lots of water beforehand. My appointment is on CD 21 so hopefully they can check things out again. Stress echo was all clear. I have A-Fib which comes with an increased risk of stroke due to small clots forming when the heart starts beating all wrong. I'm wondering if these small clots are possible messing things up when I get pregnant since my A-Fib is worse during pregnancy. Its not a clotting disorder and can't really be seen on a blood test. Blood thinners are the routine treatment for it after you hit a certain age, I'm going to ask my OB about taking baby aspirin or something in the meantime.

How much blood have you donated now Megg? We are seriously going to have to meet up at some point. We're too close not to imo. I'm tired of only hanging out with my pregnant sister in law, she just looks too pregnant for me to not get upset now. And all hubby does is gaming most of the time! I do too, but after every loss I take a 2 month break from wow.

 

[Megg33k]

Hmmm... Might have to look into the A-Fib thing! See if there's something to it that could cause RM. I hope they can figure out something for you so that you don't ever have to suffer another loss!

I've donated 17 vials in 2 weeks! Its starting to take a toll on me, even with the iron supplement. I've had dizzy spells for 2 days now. Its scary. But, I think I'll back to normal very soon! If not, I'll definitely consult my doc when I go in to talk about my results!

We definitely should meet up! I'm a-okay with that idea! We'll have to figure out on Yahoo when might be good... and also where! I'm always up for meeting new people IRL. We game too... Except we go for Fallout 3 instead of WoW!

 

[groovygrl]

hello ladies!

it's been cool to catch up with this thread and hear of all the positive steps, groovy Dr's and educated dialogue towards getting some answers!

my test results have been trickling in and it looks like I'll be getting some answers soon!

great news is that my results in the reproductive hormones are reallly bl***y good for an old chick (41yrs)

FSH - 7.2 IU/L
LH - 5.0 IU/L
Oestradiol - 34.54 pg/ml

the not so great news but... possibly an answer is that I have tested positive for antinuclear antibodies (speckled pattern) I have yet to speak to my dr. but from all the reading I've been doing it appears that I will have to undergo further tests to rule out: lupus, Sjogren's syndrome, connective tissue diease, etc. This could be a reason for MC and fertility challenges - treatment could range from taking prednisone in early pregnancy to taking aspirin and/or heparin.Interesting to hear that you might be looking at this too Megg?

another thing to ask about is my high level of B12 - 766 pmol/L (should be between 170 - 600) Folate is also high at 38. 0 nmol/L (should be greater than 10) don't know if this is really a problem yet but... stay tuned.

Once I speak to my Dr. AND Naturopath, I'll let you know what I learn (should be this week sometime.)

YAAAY for pushing through the lame responses i.e "once you've had three" or " just one of those things that happen, you've been unlucky" or my favorite, "at your age....blah... blah" I honestly wouldn't have had these tests done if I didn't keep on educating myself and pushing. My Dr. was quite happy to file me away in the 'so sad but better luck next time' cabinet.

Please know that I respect that this is not everyone's path. My intuition has led me here. I wish you all a healthy BFP and pregnancy through "grace and ease" I believe I'm going to get there and it appears that I'll be finding my voice as well.

now, I push further to get details, a treatment plan and another BFP

 

[kimini26]

Are you supplementing with folic acid and a b vitamin? Over 16 is high on folic acid but not usually worrisome unless you have a vitamin B 12 deficiency which you don't. But too much folic acid will give you the runs. I hope you find your answers soon.

 

[Megg33k]

hello ladies!

it's been cool to catch up with this thread and hear of all the positive steps, groovy Dr's and educated dialogue towards getting some answers!

my test results have been trickling in and it looks like I'll be getting some answers soon!

great news is that my results in the reproductive hormones are reallly bl***y good for an old chick (41yrs)

FSH - 7.2 IU/L
LH - 5.0 IU/L
Oestradiol - 34.54 pg/ml

the not so great news but... possibly an answer is that I have tested positive for antinuclear antibodies (speckled pattern) I have yet to speak to my dr. but from all the reading I've been doing it appears that I will have to undergo further tests to rule out: lupus, Sjogren's syndrome, connective tissue diease, etc. This could be a reason for MC and fertility challenges - treatment could range from taking prednisone in early pregnancy to taking aspirin and/or heparin.Interesting to hear that you might be looking at this too Megg?

another thing to ask about is my high level of B12 - 766 pmol/L (should be between 170 - 600) Folate is also high at 38. 0 nmol/L (should be greater than 10) don't know if this is really a problem yet but... stay tuned.

Once I speak to my Dr. AND Naturopath, I'll let you know what I learn (should be this week sometime.)

YAAAY for pushing through the lame responses i.e "once you've had three" or " just one of those things that happen, you've been unlucky" or my favorite, "at your age....blah... blah" I honestly wouldn't have had these tests done if I didn't keep on educating myself and pushing. My Dr. was quite happy to file me away in the 'so sad but better luck next time' cabinet.

Please know that I respect that this is not everyone's path. My intuition has led me here. I wish you all a healthy BFP and pregnancy through "grace and ease" I believe I'm going to get there and it appears that I'll be finding my voice as well.

now, I push further to get details, a treatment plan and another BFP

Thanks for sharing though! The FSH, LH, E2 is one of the tests they just did on me. I'm terrified of POF. So, I'm hoping mine come back as good as yours! I have no reason to believe that I would fall into a POF diagnosis... Its just a very scary one that can't be fixed. So, of course I worry about it. Congrats on those results though!

Definitely ask about the ones that you're unsure on . When I told my GP about the Vit D deficiency and the fact that no one ever mentioned it to me from the OB/GYN's office.. She blatantly told me that if its not a hormone that they care about replacing for fertility purposes, they don't care. She seemed quite okay with me taking a supplement for it though. She said its usually sold together with Calcium and that would be a good route. So, next bottle will be Vit D and Calcium together. I told her my Calcium level was fine... She says "Yeah, until we get your pregnant and that baby starts sucking the life out of you!" I at her! I adore her, I really do!

Very, very interesting that we could possibly be looking at the same diagnosis depending on my ANA results. She did mention Prednisone during 1st Tri... but warned me that it makes for HUGE babies and there's little chance of natural (non-C-section) birth if that's the case. I desperately want a natural birth, but all of my ideals go out the window when it comes to getting a happy, healthy baby. If I can't, I'd rather have a baby in a way I don't want to than to have no baby at all.

I respect the hell out of your will to get things done! I only just found mine! A year ago, I never thought I'd be sitting in her office crying because I'd been failed so many times! NEVER! But, that's what it took to get me to this line of tests... and I couldn't be happier!

I'm hoping we can get this worked out together! I should know more in the next few days... "early next week" could be anything up to Wednesday probably!

FX'd for us both!

 

[shaerichelle]

Good Luck on your tests Megg.

I am now looking for a new midwife and not finding any

 

[Megg33k]

Good Luck on your tests Megg.

I am now looking for a new midwife and not finding any

Here ya go! They're all the ones within 20 miles of your zip code pulled from my insurance provider's doctor search! It should at least get you started. It includes names, address, phone numbers, and distance from your zip code!

Beach, Katherine G, NMW
96 Campus Dr
Scarborough, ME 04074
(207) 885-8400
2.4 mi

Bellwood, Lori J, NMW
96 Campus Dr
Scarborough, ME 04074
(207) 885-0946
2.4mi

Hackett, Linda A, NMW
96 Campus Dr
Scarborough, ME 04074
(207) 885-8400
2.4 mi

Vest, Victoria, CNM
96 Campus Dr
Scarborough, ME 04074
(207) 885-8422
2.4 mi

Beach, Katherine G, NMW
100 Brickhill Ave
South Portland, ME 04106
(207) 761-1502
5.5 mi

Harris, Amy A, CNM
66 Bramhall St Ste 2
Portland, ME 04102
(207) 662-5040
8.4 mi

Coplon, Leah, CNM
527 Ocean Ave
Portland, ME 04103
(207) 871-0666
10.7 mi

Gilbert, Jennifer E
527 Ocean Ave
Portland, ME 04103
(207) 871-0666
10.7 mi

Grillo, Eileen P, NMW
527 Ocean Ave
Portland, ME 04103
(207) 871-0666
10.7 mi

Janisch, Laura, CNM
527 Ocean Ave
Portland, ME 04103
(207) 871-0666
10.7 mi

Poirier, Joyce P, CNM
527 Ocean Ave
Portland, ME 04103
(207) 871-0666
10.7 mi

Selbe, Susan, CNM
10 Goodall Dr Ste 100
E Waterboro, ME 04030
(207) 247-6999
17.5 mi

 

[kimini26]

How much vitamin D are you planning on taking in the future? Calcium + D usually only has 400 IU vitamin D which is not nearly enough when fighting a deficiency. My doctor actually told me the vitamin D deficiency could have been responsible for my last two losses and was surprised I wasn't having seizures or hallucinating yet. He has no idea the power of a 3rd shift work schedule.

 

[zeezee]

On the vitamin D thing, I take a multi with 400 IUI, plus 2,000 IUI of straight vitamin D daily. I was taking 1,000 IUI but I was still considered "severely deficient" on that, so added another and now I am normal Although this could not have had anything to do with my m/c b/c I was already at that level.

I got my day 3 labs back, I can't remember them all, but I scrawled down these:

Estrogen: 60 (apparently they want less than 80)
FSH: 7.5 (less than 12 is normal)
TSH: 1.9 (0.4-4.0 is normal)

So I am heartened by these, but also scared, because almost everything has been ruled out as a cause, and if it happens again (m/c that is) then maybe its genetic, and that's terrifying.

Z
xx

 

[kimini26]

I'm supposed to be on 50,000 IU a week, but I read bad things about the prescription version. Instead I take 400 IU with my calcium, 1000 IU in my multivitamin and 5000 IU straight vitamin D each day for a total of 44,800 IU per week, so I figure that's sufficient to raise me up. I just wish they'd check it sooner than 3 months, is that how long it takes to raise them or what?

 

[groovygrl]

hi - thanks kimini! Interesting info re: high folate count. I have been supplementing with a multivitamin specific to pregnancy as well as extra folic acid. Multi has only 250 ug of folic so I bumped it up by taking an extra .8 mg every day. I have definately had issues re: diarrhoea. I recently went off the multi and x tra folic acid - approx 10 days) and noticed that things in bottom land have been very 'normal.' I will bring back the multi in a few more days and see how I go.

megg - ya I know those reproductive hormones are scary. I was quietly freaking about those too. I'm looking forward to hearing how fabulous your results are as well Your Dr. sounds really cool!

shaeri - good luck finding a lovely MW! I hope you can find someone you resonate with in the list that Megg gave you fingers cx'd for you hun

zee zee - NICE day 3 results. YAAY! So sorry about your recent loss.

 

[shaerichelle]

Thank you Megg, but those arent homebirth ones. There are only 3 here!

 

[Megg33k]

How much vitamin D are you planning on taking in the future? Calcium + D usually only has 400 IU vitamin D which is not nearly enough when fighting a deficiency. My doctor actually told me the vitamin D deficiency could have been responsible for my last two losses and was surprised I wasn't having seizures or hallucinating yet. He has no idea the power of a 3rd shift work schedule.

I'm currently taking 5000 IU of straight Vit D every day, plus 400 IU in my prenatal. If I get close to normal, I'll probably add the 400 IU with Calcium and maybe drop back to 2000 IU straight Vit D. Hoping I can get to the 50-70 levels sooner than later!

On the vitamin D thing, I take a multi with 400 IUI, plus 2,000 IUI of straight vitamin D daily. I was taking 1,000 IUI but I was still considered "severely deficient" on that, so added another and now I am normal Although this could not have had anything to do with my m/c b/c I was already at that level.

I got my day 3 labs back, I can't remember them all, but I scrawled down these:

Estrogen: 60 (apparently they want less than 80)
FSH: 7.5 (less than 12 is normal)
TSH: 1.9 (0.4-4.0 is normal)

So I am heartened by these, but also scared, because almost everything has been ruled out as a cause, and if it happens again (m/c that is) then maybe its genetic, and that's terrifying.

Z
xx

Those #'s look great! I just hope mine come back like yours! Congrats on that! Although, I know what you mean about worrying it genetic! Thats scary stuff! Hoping not, honey!

I'm supposed to be on 50,000 IU a week, but I read bad things about the prescription version. Instead I take 400 IU with my calcium, 1000 IU in my multivitamin and 5000 IU straight vitamin D each day for a total of 44,800 IU per week, so I figure that's sufficient to raise me up. I just wish they'd check it sooner than 3 months, is that how long it takes to raise them or what?

I know that I was told it would take at least a month to see ANY difference. So, I guess 3 months is probably necessary to know for sure if you're taking enough.

Thank you Megg, but those arent homebirth ones. There are only 3 here!

Oh! Its hard to find a homebirth MW in the US. Just not something we do very often here! Hmm...

hi - thanks kimini! Interesting info re: high folate count. I have been supplementing with a multivitamin specific to pregnancy as well as extra folic acid. Multi has only 250 ug of folic so I bumped it up by taking an extra .8 mg every day. I have definately had issues re: diarrhoea. I recently went off the multi and x tra folic acid - approx 10 days) and noticed that things in bottom land have been very 'normal.' I will bring back the multi in a few more days and see how I go.

megg - ya I know those reproductive hormones are scary. I was quietly freaking about those too. I'm looking forward to hearing how fabulous your results are as well Your Dr. sounds really cool!

shaeri - good luck finding a lovely MW! I hope you can find someone you resonate with in the list that Megg gave you fingers cx'd for you hun

zee zee - NICE day 3 results. YAAY! So sorry about your recent loss.

Thanks, hun! I hope so! I'm really worried about them! I want some sort of a problem, but not that kind!