Some Good News...

[Jack]

Me too. Scary numbers eh?

Along with the I.V. Cyclophosphamide I probably had very little immune system left, but it stopped the disease dead in its tracks.

[Luce]

I had some IV pred when I was admitted too, I guess that could have been 1,000mg although I'm not sure.

[Doug]

Thank you all for your kind words and support - it feels great to have some confidence in my doctors and I understand the reason behind some of their decisions now.

Ashley I started on 60mg of pred, got down to 10mg when I had a flare and have worked my way back from 30mg to 5mg. 5mg is usually a maintenance dose so I will still be taking pred for some time yet but the nasty side effects start to slip away when you get to such low doses.

Regarding freezing eggs, my particular Primary Care Trust's policy is to only freeze already fertilized eggs rather than unfertilized ones. That doesn't sit too well with myself or my partner because should we decide not to use the fertilized eggs, then we are effectively throwing away an already-made life.

Precisely. I don't intend to start a discussion on that topic, but I do want you to know I agree with you on that point.

[Cindy M]

That's great news Luce, I hope the Rituximab works, I had my first IV treatment on August 6th and then my second on the 20th of August. I am hoping that it works, I am currently on 80 mg of preds and 125 mg of cyclo.

[Luce]

Thanks for your support Doug - I can tell you that our religious views are at complete ends of the scale, however I think ethically we can be very similar at times.

I just don't feel its right to take a fertilized egg, leave it in a freezer for a couple of years waiting to start its life - only for us to decide we don't want it anymore and for it to end up poured down the sink.

BIG decision to be made here - I have my mother who is so desperate for grandchildren I'd advise you to keep your baby away from her for fear of her running off with it, and myself and my partner who have only been living together a couple of years and are enjoying the time we spend by ourselves.

I'm sure we will come to a decision, I just don't want to rush it (it doesn't help that kids still irritate us at the moment).

[Sangye]

(I have to admit I did get a chuckle over the image of your mom running off with someone else's kids....)

I can't imagine how difficult it must be to face decisions like this, especially with Wegs going on! All I can suggest is to stay in the moment, never make any decision out of fear or trying to please others, and never talk yourself into doing something. That's my advice for most big decisions, not just for kids. You'll never regret your decisions that way.

When things get cloudy regarding a decision, I have this little test I do. I relax and picture each option. I choose the option that makes me feel that "Birthdays as a kid" kind of feeling-- kind of giddy, giggly anticipation. It doesn't work if you're trying to decide between two necessary but awful things-- like ctx or mtx! But I bet it'll work for this.

[coffeelover]

[QUOTE=Sangye;5134 never make any decision out of fear or trying to please others, and never talk yourself into doing something.

Great advice Sangye! We all learn that too late sometimes!
coffeelover

[Doug]

Thanks for your support Doug - I can tell you that our religious views are at complete ends of the scale, however I think ethically we can be very similar at times.

The decision you make is so personal that I don't think anyone else needs be involved in it, no matter what they believe.

[Sangye]

Very well put, Doug.

[Luce]

Thank you, I need a long hard think about this by myself and I really appreciate that no one has tried to force a decision one way or the other.

I'll let you all know when we've made a firm choice of course