Posts by steeljackal8

I used to do that all the time back in the day. Maybe things have changed since then, who knows? Usually, you just shove a camera cable through a massive conduit, crank up the light, and snap the shot!! It took me about an hour tops.
Everything changes eventually!!!
Good luck!!!

I’ve been on corticosteroids for 15 years now. Honestly, I haven't dealt with much besides some high blood pressure—which I manage with pills—and that classic "moon face" look back when I was getting the heavy doses.
If it helps at all, remember that every single one of us on these meds used to be perfectly healthy and didn't need them. Life happens. Things change—sometimes for the better, sometimes they just suck.
There’s zero reason to panic. If things were actually as dire as you think, who knows where I'd be right now... I might not even be around anymore.
Don't spiral into thinking everything is bleak. Just be grateful to God that there’s actually a solution for what you're going through. What would people fighting cancer or AIDS give to have a working treatment for their condition??
We really do need to stay thankful, because before corticosteroids existed, people were dropping dead left and right.

First off, seriously good call getting off those pills🙂. And hey, I'm glad you're feeling okay physically. As for the weight? Don't sweat it too much, it'll drop off on its own once things settle down. You're already on the right track. That was the biggest hurdle, anyway.😉.

Can someone please just spare me the agony and make sense of these results? I am freaking out here😕!
protein/creatinine ratio.................. 1.782
creatinine (dU) ..........................8633 µmol/dL
creatinine coefficient.................... 125 µmol/24/kg
endogenous creatinine clearance....... 0.94ml/s/1.73m2
total protein (dU) .......................719mg /dL
protein/creatinine ....................... 736 mg/g
LAC .......................................3.69 R
Anti-dsDNA ...............................5 u/ml
ENA SCREEN............................... positive

Anti (ss-B/La)(Sm)(Sm/RNF)(Jo-1)(sc1-70)(histoni) and centromere antibodies are within normal limits

Cardiolipin antibody screen ........ negative
Cardiolipin antibody IgG class ....... greater than 100
Cardiolipin antibody IgM class ......5.79
ANF....................................... borderline

How bad is my kidney situation, and what can I actually do to help? I don't eat meat, just fish, but I go heavy on milk and dairy products. Should I switch to lactose-free and cut out the protein from fish too?🙄????
I have SLE and I'm currently on Plavix, Prednisone, and Tarceva.
I just got these labs done back in the States, but I'm living in Sweden now, so I'm stuck waiting another 20 days to see a specialist. Everything is backed up here—apparently, you only get an urgent appointment if you literally can't walk!
Thanks in advance!!!