Great Day!

I think we hit the optimum phase in my daughter's ITP saga. Steroids are being tapered so the side effects are decreasing. I am not sure where her counts are but she does not have the symptoms of her extremely low counts. Yesterday was the first day in a long time where she was not dragging and fatigued. I am not sure how long it will last but we are enjoying it right now, it was for me the glimpse of the vibrant perky upbeat kid I have not seen in a while!

We need to get her counts done either Friday or Monday (Friday is 2 wks post IVIG and Solu Medrol, Monday is 2 weeks after the last count). I may wait for Monday just because it is more convenient, she will be on the same dose Prednisone both days.

Good news! Prednisone can cause energy levels to rise, but beware of the fatigue that comes with a taper. Some people do fine and some can barely function.

Let us know how the count goes!

When I was in remission I didn't always know my numbers what I knew was I had no symptoms. Sometimes having no symptoms is enough to have a cheer!

So WHOOOHOOO TO her! Here's to seeing high numbers and never seeing symptoms again!

Thanks Sandi. She had many side effects from the steroids, and they were kind of all over. She received mega doses of SoluMedrol back to back on two days with the IVIG in the middle. Overall the biggest complaint that she had was her heart racing and being flushed and hot flashes. These have persisted but are diminished as the doses go down. Initially I would also say she had more of a euphoria about her, talking fast and a little mania. The did bring her dose down fast, which also coincided with the holiday weekend ending and her going back to school. That is when the fatigue hit big time. She would get through school homework and then chores to keep herself awake but by dinner would be so tired it was a struggle to get through and get to bed. Plus she is doing some work at the doctors office that I work at which she really wants to do but it was another added stressor. So it was great to see the fatigue diminish.

She has the moon face also. At first her appetite was down and food had little appeal, but now it has picked up and she is really focused on meals and food. We are trying to focus on healthy choices and portion control, but she gains weight really easily and I know it is going to be hard for her. (Easy weight gain was one of the symptoms that made me think thyroid problems which led to her initial diagnosis). It will be tough, she was already chunky to start with but there were not too many choices. One step at a time... Ironically one of her teeth chipped about 5 days after the IV steroids and high dose prednisone. Coincidence???

Probably coincidence. Prednisone can damage teeth, but usually not that fast.