The Kidney Question

In the midst of everything that has been going on a question arose, “what about my kidneys?”.

Last August the symptoms that led to my original diagnosis of minimal change disease came back. As soon as I spotted the signs I quickly scurried to the doctor and begin taking the prednisone again. I was disappointed with the news but knew there was nothing I could do about it.

Fast forward a month and we were celebrating the joyous news of our baby. I was quick to Google the effects of prednisone of an unborn baby and was surprised to learn that despite the possibility of a cleft palate, things looked safe. I started seeing a specialist at Maternal and Fetal Medicine as well as my high-risk OB and continued seeing my nephrologist.

Despite the annoyance of continually having appointments, things were going well. She was on pace with her growth and I was doing well. My kidneys were not leaking protein and my blood pressure was in the normal range. So, you can imagine our shock when we received the news the doctors could not find her heartbeat. Up until that appointment we were passing every test with flying colors and there were no causes for concern.

Obviously the doctors were concerned with the effect the pregnancy could have on my kidneys, so they took what seemed like a hundred tubes of blood at the hospital. Everything looked good for me. My kidneys continued to show healthy results.

I just had my first appointment with the nephrologist since everything happened. After talking about everything it was quickly determined that my “relapse” was actually the pregnancy. I’m thankful for the silver lining this brings because it means that my kidneys have continued to do their job. Of course, I wonder if the treatment had anything to do with the loss of Emerson, but I cannot allow myself to go down that “what if” path. 

So where does that leave us now? Some of you may have seen my tweet:

I've had a lot of anxiety about this. Prednisone (the steroid I'm on) can have lasting effects on the body, not to mention it completely stops ovulation. TMI? To be blunt, I do not like being on it. I am thankful for the way it helped me after the original diagnosis, but it's been very taxing on me. Also, if we ever hope to have another baby I cannot be on it. 

I went into my appointment fearful of what she would say to my request. Imagine my surprise when she mentioned her plans to have me taper off completely! I was overjoyed to hear this news! It will take about two months to completely remove it from my daily medicine rotation, but at least it will be gone. 

I continue to ask for your prayers as this happens. Prayers for the taper to go well and for my kidneys to respond healthily. Prayers that my body remains on the path to permanent health.

Many thanks.