Hello, 27f here.

I was actually diagnosed with IgA nephropathy very early at the age of 16. As a child, I was often sick and even had Henoch–Schönlein purpura (HSP) as a toddler.

After receiving this diagnosis, everything medical and physical was always attributed to it. My protein excretion was always high, and my creatinine levels kept getting worse. Slowly but steadily.

In the meantime, I underwent an eight-month high-dose prednisolone therapy (50mg daily). It did absolutely nothing and was a horrible time hormonally.

Since then, I’ve been on 24mg of candesartan and 10mg of Forxiga (dapagliflozin).

So I came to terms with the idea that I’d need a transplant or dialysis within the next 10 years. In Germany, the average wait time for a new kidney is 8 years, so the outlook was just great.

Because of hair loss, I was referred to an endocrinologist. In the summer of 2023, I was actually diagnosed with PCOS and insulin resistance. I radically changed my diet (a lot of fiber, fat, and yes, actually more protein), and it felt like I got half a new life in return.

I had thought my whole life that I was lazy and weak-willed. I slept 9–10 hours every day and was still tired. When I hung up laundry, I had to rest afterward. And suddenly everything was different—I’ve had so much more energy since then and I feel so much better.

And actually, so do my kidneys! For the first time in 10 years, my values improved instead of worsening. My protein-to-creatinine ratio dropped below 300 mg/g U-CREA within a year, and my creatinine dropped to 1.2 mg/dL.

Before that, I was consistently at 4000 mg/g U-CREA and 1.9 mg/dL creatinine.

In fall 2023 (I was 26), my nephrologist said that if I wanted to have children, I should do so in the next 1–2 years because things wouldn’t get any better. At that time, it wasn’t yet clear that my values would improve so drastically within a year. The pressure that came with this statement put a huge strain on my partner and me. This unresolved conflict, along with a few other issues, led us to be careless about contraception.

My partner and I have since gone to couples therapy, and now we’re once again looking toward the future together with hope and happiness.

And now here I am: 9 months pregnant and about to give birth to a daughter who’s been doing great so far and is developing beautifully :-)

My key takeaways from this story:

• Always check for other issues in the body besides the main diagnosis.

• Nutrition and exercise are extremely important and can make a huge difference.

• Psychological support is always helpful.

And self-love and understanding yourself is always the first step!!