The steroid junkies' perfectly unscientific medical trial

[filipenko32]

Hi ladies, does anyone know which fish oil and how much of it is supposed to be good for supressing the immune system? Thanks!

 

[petitpas]

Sorry, I don't know. My doctor (the one who ran the immunology tests and put me on steroids) just told me he wanted me to take pregnacare plus omega 3.

 

[Hope39]

I am taking Omega 3 Fish Oil (1000mg)

 

[petitpas]

I guess that's the one then
To be honest, I didn't know it had an effect on the immune system... I must do more research

 

[Hope39]

I didn't know it had an effect on the immune system either

I had seem someone else was taking it so thought i would try that

I'll try anything if it means i can sustain a pregnancy

x

 

[Gingersnaps]

Hello,
I am new with a few questions
Are there specific immunilogical issues that steroids are helpful for?
I have two known autoimmune issues - hypothyroidism and Celiacs disease as well as endo.
I will be going to see a Re soon and wonder if I should bring up steroids.
My losses have all been around 4/5 weeks except for a blighted ovum that stopped growing around 4.5 weeks but miscarried at 10.
I have not had NK cells tested but have heard they fluxuate with stress levels.
My losses except for a chemical in May were all prior to my autoimmune discoveries.
Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[petitpas]

Hi ginger, I have read that thyroid issues, if uncontrolled, can cause recurrent miscarriage. Once you are on the right meds that should be fine, though.

Endo can be a problem with conception and put you at risk of ectopics but is not normally a cause of miscarriages.

I don't know how coeliac disease affects pregnancies.

However, the fact that you have a number of things going on could be a sign of a generally aggressive immune system according to Dr Beer's book, and might warrant nk cell testing. It is probably worth discussing with your RE.

It could very well be that by fixing your thyroid problem you have found the issue and go on to have your healthy baby.

My sister has IBS and hypothyroidism. She fell pregnant immediately once her meds were at the right dose and had a wonderfully uncomplicated pregnancy. Oh how jealous I am of her

Let us know how you get on with your RE. I really hope everything works out well for you

 

[filipenko32]

Hi Petitpas, how have your scans & hcg levels been going? I hope everything's goinf perfectly for you. I went out to get some Pregnacare Plus yesterday with the Omega oil so I am taking this now instead of my sanatogen prenatal.

 

[petitpas]

I'm doing ok. I've had three scans with everything measuring perfectly on track. No bloods needed.
With me, things usually go one of two ways: Either I start bleeding around six weeks and pass everything naturally (I suppose this is my body getting rid of a genetic problem) - I seem to be past that stage. Or, I get to 8 weeks with everything on track but at my 9 week scan there is a 8.5 week baby with no heartbeat in there (I had the last one tested and he was genetically normal).
I'm now not having a scan until my ninth week when we will see whether we have broken the pattern. As you can imagine, the next ten days are going to be a bit worrisome but I am going to chill out and rest as much as possible. Tomorrow is my last day at work as I was made redundant , which has the benefit of me being able to stay in bed for the most part of next week!

 

[filipenko32]

I really hope everything works out for you this time and the steroids work. It really sounds as though it is an immune problem doesn't it, with the fetus testing normal for chromosome problems but i would think that doesn't make things any easier at all for you. So if you got to a 9 week scan this time with everything still perfect, this would be the furthest you've ever got? I'm really hopeful that this is going to work out for you now! I am on leave from work as i had a really stressful long hours job and couldn't cope with that and all the mc's. Never had a sick day in 8 years and now this! My husband works from home so he looks after me, I am lucky but I do miss working and just want everything to be back to normal again with a baby! But i also think that it's best to give yourself every possible chance to make these babies work and lack of stress + more rest can only be a good thing can't it? Will be thinking of you in the next ten days, can't be easy for you but i bet you're a bit excited too! x

 

[petitpas]

Thanks, filipenko. Yes, 8.5 weeks is the furthest I have been with a heartbeat. I went to 11.5 weeks with my first pregnancy but only because I didn't have an earlier scan.
I'm sorry, I'm not excited right now I'm fearful of the pain and loss of hope I will have to go through if this treatment fails.
I have a plan B and plan C up my sleeve so I am not ready to give up yet. I don't mean to put a downer on anyone but myself so ignore my negative tone if you can.
There is hope, I'm just finding it hard to grasp at the moment.

 

[filipenko32]

Thanks, filipenko. Yes, 8.5 weeks is the furthest I have been with a heartbeat. I went to 11.5 weeks with my first pregnancy but only because I didn't have an earlier scan.
I'm sorry, I'm not excited right now I'm fearful of the pain and loss of hope I will have to go through if this treatment fails.
I have a plan B and plan C up my sleeve so I am not ready to give up yet. I don't mean to put a downer on anyone but myself so ignore my negative tone if you can.
There is hope, I'm just finding it hard to grasp at the moment.

I don't think I will ever be excited about a pregnancy again until I am at least 24 weeks. I know you'll get there, I just know it but I completely understand your non-excitement. It's just not fair that this road is so bumpy for some of us but the end result will be the same and i will be excited for you in your place!

 

[filipenko32]

Ladies, I am not 'legal' on this thread anymore as I am not taking steroids and won't be for my next pregnancy, unless I am definitively diagnosed with an immune problem and I don't intend to see a specialist for that JUST yet. However, I wish you all the very best of luck and I will certainly stalk from time to time. The only thing i know about the Prednisolone I was taking is that it drastically improved the heartrate of my last pregnancy so I really hope it works for you all. If I do start on a proper course of steroids, I'll be back to join the experiment & i'll let you know, for now I am sticking to heparin, aspirin, progesterone, a wing and a prayer! x x x

 

[Gingersnaps]

Hi ginger, I have read that thyroid issues, if uncontrolled, can cause recurrent miscarriage. Once you are on the right meds that should be fine, though.

Endo can be a problem with conception and put you at risk of ectopics but is not normally a cause of miscarriages.

I don't know how coeliac disease affects pregnancies.

However, the fact that you have a number of things going on could be a sign of a generally aggressive immune system according to Dr Beer's book, and might warrant nk cell testing. It is probably worth discussing with your RE.

It could very well be that by fixing your thyroid problem you have found the issue and go on to have your healthy baby.

My sister has IBS and hypothyroidism. She fell pregnant immediately once her meds were at the right dose and had a wonderfully uncomplicated pregnancy. Oh how jealous I am of her

Let us know how you get on with your RE. I really hope everything works out well for you

Hi,
Thanks for the reply.
I am familiar with thyroid issues, endo etc and their relationship to miscarriage - problems with conceiving.
I was just wondering what issues women on steroids usually have that they are given steroids for... Ie what particular cases are given steroids - is it only for those who test pos for NK cells? Or is is for immune/immunological issues in general?

 

[petitpas]

As far as I know the steroids are only given for high nk cells or similar (there are various related blood tests) or the suspicion of (not everyone gets tested).
I don't believe steroids are standard treatment for any auto immune issue. For instance, there are a couple of ladies on here with lupus and as far as I know they are not on steroids. I might be wrong, though.
Have you read Dr Beer's book? He mentions that people with endometriosis etc have a higher likelihood of high nk cells, that it is all related. In my opinion the book is a little biased but it makes for an interesting read...

 

[LeeC]

Well I have my steroids at the ready for my next attempt. I am feeling strangely excited about trying again, although I know all the nerves and panic won't take long to set in.
I figure I OV on the 11th Nov, 3 days after my appt with Shehata. I will be bd from about the 7th of the month incase Im early (like to cover every eventuality) and will probs start the steroids on the 12th.

I agree with you all I don't think I'll ever be able to fully enjoy being pg, even after first trimester I reckon I'll still be a bag of nerves, probs even worse. I suppose for now I'm gonna concentrate on that BFP and my imminent appt, then I'm hoping those little pills work their magic

 

[LeeC]

Just a quick note:

Prednisolone suppresses the immune system, which in turn should stop your body rejecting the baby (ie attacked by NK cells).

It is also given to people who have had organ transplants to stop the body from rejecting the organs.

My dog was also given pred recently when she was diagnosed with high liver enzymes and mammary cancer.

The list goes on for this little drug.

 

[Myjourney2011]

As far as I know the steroids are only given for high nk cells or similar (there are various related blood tests) or the suspicion of (not everyone gets tested).
I don't believe steroids are standard treatment for any auto immune issue. For instance, there are a couple of ladies on here with lupus and as far as I know they are not on steroids. I might be wrong, though.
Have you read Dr Beer's book? He mentions that people with endometriosis etc have a higher likelihood of high nk cells, that it is all related. In my opinion the book is a little biased but it makes for an interesting read...

Hello. Am new to this thread and also going through what most of the ladies are. I have lost 4 usually within the 4 to 6 weeks mark due to very high NK cells (2.86 instead of 0.8) and have started the Dr S protocol. I just wanted to know how thigs are for you if thats ok?

 

[petitpas]

Hi myjourney, welcome to the thread!
I saw Mr S today for a scan and it was very emotional as I was surprised to find my ducky still alive! We are not out of the woods yet but I am starting to think that there is a possibility this might work? This next week is absolutely critical for ducky...

Good luck with ttc-ing! Where are you at in your cycle?

 

[filipenko32]

That's just brilliant news Petitpas!! SO pleased for you. I was thinking about you earlier and thinking you must be close to getting to 9 weeks. I know you're not out of the woods yet but it does sound so promising Keeping everything crossed for you