Pregnant with IGM?

[nynena86]

I have been diagnosed with IGM as of March 2017. Several biopsies, drainages and started on pred about 4 months ago. I am now tapering down on the pred since I am 12 weeks pregnant. I am on 5mg and a bump has come up and is pushing on the surface. Doctor is gone this whole month and I am not sure what to do. I know that the pred cannot be continue so I guess wait for the bump to develop to abscess and drain it again? I am so frustrated as I thought I was on the clear and once I lower the pred it came back and now that I am pregnant.

[Meri0227]

Hi nynena86! Congrats on your pregnancy! I was only diagnosed a few months ago (although it feels like a lifetime already). My doctor does not want to prescribe steroids and has been very conservative in her treatment approach. I have only been on the antibiotic Doxycycline (due to its anti-inflammatory effect i believe) - she told me to take it for 2 months only. Luckily, I have not developed any abscesses. My advice would be, if you cannot continue on the predisone while pregnant, is to explore as many homeopathic remedies as possible (that are safe while pregnant of course). I have been drinking aloe vera juice, taking turmeric supplements, fish oil, and multi-vitamins. I have been getting acupuncture done every 1-2 weeks, to get the blood moving/lymphatic system going in the breast. This has been amazing! She has also given me chinese herbs to take that are cooling and reduce inflammation. I am also on a probiotic pill since I am taking antibiotics for so long. I was told to put warm compresses on the affected breast to get the fluid moving so it will be absorbed by the body or expelled out through the skin (in my case, the fluid has been draining out where I got a skin biopsy done to confirm diagnosis). I have been taking hot baths, as well as doing castor oil packs with a hot water bottle. This has worked wonders - and the mass/inflammation has been very much reduced at this point. The worst part now are the areas of redness/lesions on my breast skin that are really red, dry and kind of itchy - almost like a scab. Have you had this?

I was happy to see someone post a question on this forum, since it looks like it has not been too active in a long time. Hopefully, this will spark more people to chime in! I am so sorry that you are going through this while pregnant! Please keep us updated on how things progress for you. It's so nice to know we're not alone in dealing with this.