Trekking on.

Kerissa • January 26, 2016

Hey friends,

Just wanted to share some news—my liver enzymes dropped and are now in the normal range!  My hepatologist thinks I had autoimmune hepatitis which resolved quickly (must be because of all your prayers!  Thank you, Lord!!  He really does hear our prayers!  My magnesium level is still not where we would like it to be, but my hepatologist (he’s my GI dr. for now until my main GI specialist returns from out of the country) added even more magnesium and 2 different types of potassium to my daily IV fluids which I now receive for 3 hours.

He also called me last week and restarted me on prescription zinc because one of the copper blood tests for Wilson’s Disease came back even higher.  He explained that high copper in the body compromises liver mitochondria which is not what I need since I already have a mitochondrial depletion.  He plans to talk to a Wilson’s expert at Yale and possibly a geneticist in Canada regarding treatment because he’s not exactly sure what’s the best way to proceed since my case is so complicated.

Sadly, the CRPS pain in both of my hands and feet has flared up a ton, and I’m not sure why.  My feet are swollen and discolored.  It’s so painful to even stand or sleep because the bed sheets cause burning pain.  That’s how bad CRPS is.  My pain dr. is booked out till March, but thankfully, she had a cancellation.  So I now have an appointment scheduled in 2 weeks (it’s at 7:30 in the morning!!).  I wish it were even sooner. :/  I took more of my as-needed pain medications to calm the CRPS down, but they worsened my GI dysmotility.  Even super soft food gave me horrible abdominal pain all day.

My mom, dad, and I leave for San Diego in exactly 3 weeks!  I’m glad I’ll be seeing my mitochondrial specialist—I need to update him on all that’s happened!

Picture #1: what it’s like to live with mitochondrial disease….these are all my meds and supplements…!

 

October prayer request

By Kerissa Lee • October 19, 2025
Dear friends, At the beginning of October, I started taking a new medication for the autoimmune disease. I thought I was tolerating it just fine, but after several days passed, I began experiencing nausea, loss of appetite, weakness all over, and increased pain. 🙁 It’s like I’m experiencing another “mito crash.” I found out that this specific lupus medication affects mitochondria. That is, it causes an overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS). This, in turn, causes cell damage and oxidative stress. I sure wish the rheumatologists would have known about this before prescribing. But I have to remember that Mitochondrial DNA Depletion Syndrome is rare, and they’re not “mito experts.” Anyways, the last time I felt like this was back in May.. I’m so grateful to God that I haven’t needed to be hospitalized from this, but at the same time, I’m also sad that this happened at all, especially because I had such a nice stretch of stable health. I’d really appreciate your prayers, that this muscle weakness can resolve soon, and that this increased pain all over will get back to my baseline. Every time I have a “mito crash,” it feels like I’m fighting the flu which always sucks. The pain has been hard to bear. And whenever I’m in the thick of it, it’s difficult to remember that this too will eventually pass. 😢 Pray that I will endure and follow Jesus’ example like this passage from Hebrews 12:1-2– “Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross...” Thank you all so much for praying for me. ❤️

Thank you! (+ a prayer request)

By Kerissa Lee • October 4, 2025
"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness." James 1:2-3

Praises & Prayer Requests

By Kerissa Lee • September 3, 2025
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23