About my last post...

Thanks to those who asked about whether I needed to get a second opinion; fact is, I am getting a litany of bloodwork and other tests done, as this is looking to be something other than just the typical dry skin/eczema issue.

I mentioned a few posts ago that my liver function tests were slightly abnormal; well on repeat they are still elevated and I now get to have a liver ultrasound done, along with some other diagnostic tests. There is a chance that I have something called primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC for short), which despite the last word in its name does not actually mean you have cirrhosis, but that you could develop it at some point. It is an autoimmune disorder, meaning that your own cells "turn against you." There is a very real possibility that if I have this, it is affecting my ability to get pregnant in addition to whatever else it may be doing to my body. It could mean that eventually I will need to have a liver transplant.

There is a fairly reliable marker test for this disorder, which is to test for the presence of anti-mitochondrial antibodies. 95% of people with PBC have positive AMA's, so I requested that test be added onto the others my PCP and the dermatologist have already ordered. I'm waiting for prescriptions to arrive for these blood tests and the liver ultrasound, so there's nothing further I know at this point.

I'm scared about this possible diagnosis; it's kind of overtaken fertility issues in my mind and G's at this point. We still have our appointment with the OB/GYN on 12/20 but at this point I am not sure whether I'll know anything about this diagnosis or whether we should proceed with the Clomid, at all.

So there you have it. G and I were talking and he said "why did we need another thing to worry about, really?" We both wondered about the people in life who never have anything go wrong, or so it seems, and how some people just seem to have bad luck follow them around.

I wish I were one of the former, not the latter.