(In)Fertility Friday

Friday, November 27, 2015

I feel like I could be posting about IVF every day because so much happens in one day! But I'll spare you. ;)

First of all you guys are awesome and so encouraging. I received so many sweet responses about my Costco Pharmacy story. Thank you! I'm just as blown away by God using her to speak to me as you were. :)

So here's where we are. I went to the new fertility clinic and LOVED it! It was seriously so amazing. The technology used there blows my mind and the staff there was so kind.

While I was there for my hysteroscopy the nurses chatted happily with me and I didn't feel like "just another patient." Maybe I was so engrossed in the conversation with them that that's the reason I forgot to take my underwear off for the procedure. Ooops! So embarrassing! I was on the operating table all ready when I sat straight up and declared, "Oh my gosh! I forgot to take off my underwear!" They all giggled and said it happens all the time (but does it really?!). The nurse handed me a glove and I shoved them inside. After that I held out the pocket in my gown and she shoved them in. Good times.

To say I was anxious is a huge understatement. My blood pressure was (drum roll please) 199/105!!! To give you some perspective a couple weeks ago while at the dentist it was 113/75. Holy smokes I am the definition of white coat syndrome. Confession: I'm nervous about this. I've never done it before! I'm so type A and it really shows.

Throughout the procedure the nurse offered to hold my hand. The radio in the O.R. happened to be playing one of my favorite songs, It is Well with my Soul, which calmed me down. The doctor was like a cheerleader telling me how strong I was being. It felt like crazy intense contractions and was pretty painful. I remember watching the TV monitor (because hey it's not every day you see your uterus) but having to close my eyes and concentrate on my breathing. The overall conclusion? My uterus is beautiful. There is absolutely nothing questionable in there and in fact the doctor said it doesn't even look like a baby ever lived there for 8 months! They praised me some more for having such a pretty uterus and then I was on my way to talk medication.

I reviewed the meds with my nurse and then she did an ultrasound to count my follicles. Nine on one side, twelve on the other I think. Everything still looking normal. She advised me that my last day of birth control would be Wednesday (11/25) and that I start antibiotics that very same day.

We had a HUGE snafu getting my meds and had to front $3,500 till they figured out our insurance which dropped the cost down to $450. I hate dealing with insurance so I'm SO glad M takes this on for us. There is no way I could do this without him. He even put gas in my car and got me coffee and a donut before my appointment! Such a love!

On Wednesday we got Matt's genetic tests back and discovered he does NOT have the same recessive trait as I do...woo hoo! Such an answer to prayer. We can now move forward with this whole cycle of IVF without having to wait for a probe to test our embryos. Bullet dodged.

So what's next?

I start giving myself gonal-f and menopur shots on Monday for a few days and then on next Friday they will do a blood draw and ultrasound to check my progress. I'm really toning down my activity level (read: walking) and things I'm committing to. "Just say no" is my new mantra. ;) Sigh. These posts are long, but I want a record of the madness. Thanks for hanging out.

Emotionally I'm still feeling anxious and excited at the same time. I'm continuing to guard my heart for fear that this may not work the first time (or ever?) but at the same time I'm looking forward to trying. We won't know unless we try, right? In the mean time Blair has been SUCH a love. Oh man the snuggles and sweet words are relentless lately and I'm loving it.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and some fun shopping Black Friday!

2 comments:

  1. Good luck! I remember getting those huge boxes of meds. I also remember when Noah would see me giving myself the shots and I didn't love when he knew it became part of the routine. Mommy "doing shots" before bed should be the fun kind ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good Luck!! We just started our journey... very similar had our first no problem and now 3 years later and trying for 2 years we have had 2 miscarriages and I had surgery to remove some fibroids - we are not on the road to IVF as well. We are sending your prayers and hoping this is your time!!

    ReplyDelete

I love reading what you have to say! Leave a comment...it makes my day!