First Injection Done!

Our first time doing the injections went really well last night. Last week I had Todd practice giving shots to a lemon so he could work on his technique--which now looks really good! And before we did the real expensive injection last night, we did pretend saline injections for more practice. He actually gave himself a shot first to see what it felt like, and then did a practice one on me! Then he did the real shot and did it perfectly. It only stung for a few seconds and didn't bleed...I can't even see where he did it on my stomach now!

Even though I mix meds and give shots at work all the time, I was a little nervous last night. It was really nice not to have to mix the medications myself or give myself the shot. Todd did a fabulous job!

So there you go! We're actually doing injections! It is so crazy but I guess you just have to do what you have to do.

We'll continue to do these shots once a day in the evening until our doctor tells us that my follicles have grown enough. Our Thursday u/s will be the first time we get to see if my follicles are responding to this medication.

Thanks for your well wishes.

Love,
Julie

Today is CD3...

That means we get to start our injections tonight! :)

We had an appointment yesterday (yes, they do have appointments on Sundays!) and it went very well. They checked my estrodiol level which was "great," and did an u/s to make sure that my lining was thin (which it was), that I didn't have any cysts (which I didn't) and to count the # of follicles that were present in each ovary (>15).

Since I have so many follicles, they wanted me to wait one more day to start injections..So instead of cd2 like I originally thought, we'll start today, cd3!

It's so nice to have some action!

So today will be my first day of injections, and then on Thursday I'll go in for another u/s to see how my follicles are responding. We're hoping for some follicles to respond--but not ALL of them! (More info on side effects from earlier post labeled "First Injectables Appointment").

Also on Thursday, I'll be having a HSG (Hysterosalpingogram) which is an X-ray of the uterus and fallopian tubes which allows visualization of the inside of the uterus and tubes. The picture will reveal any abnormalities of the uterus as well as tubal problems such as blockage and dilation. It is not supposed to hurt much although I've heard stories of it hurting quite a bit. Hopefully everything will go well during this procedure.

They like to do this procedure to make sure that everything else looks good, because if we find out that my tubes aren't patent or something else like that, then we may just need to go to IVF. So hopefully it will show that everything looks good. One of the other added benefits to this test is that there's a period of increased fertility for a few months after the test. They don't really do the test as treatment though--it's only used diagnositically, but just as this added bonus!

The only caveat to this procedure is that AF has to stop before then...So I know I've asked for positive AF vibes earlier this week, but now I need "AF stopping" vibes! :) If I still have AF, then we have to cancel the procedure.

I'll keep you updated as we move along the next couple of weeks. It should be fairly busy and hopefully we'll be doing an IUI cd10-14 or so.

Thanks for checking in on us! We will definately need lots of positive & calming thoughts over the next 2 weeks.

Much love,
Julie & Todd

Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Finally! CD1 is here! Thanks everyone for your positive AF vibes!

So tomorrow I go in for an ultrasound & blood work at 9:15 am, and as long as everything looks good we'll be starting our injectables tomorrow night. Fun, fun, fun!

I'll post pretty frequently during the next couple weeks keeping you updated on our progress.

I'm so excited to get started, but I also want to stay calm and take things as they come.

Thanks for your positive energy!

Love,
Julie

Waiting for AF

Just an update to let you all know that we're still waiting for AF to show up. I finished my provera 9 days ago and expect my period to start at any time now. And once it comes, the games begin!

I'd appreciate it if you could send me some positive AF vibes so that she'll hurry up and get here. I'm anxious to get started!

Thanks!

Love,
Julie

So this is what $500 worth of meds looks like...

I really shouldn't complain. $500 is WAY cheaper than I thought we'd be paying for our injectable medications! Thank you ivfmeds.com! It is so unbelievable how much less expensive it is to buy meds from London & have them shipped here to the states than it is to buy the meds here. Wow.

So yesterday I made it to cd35! And I talked to my RE again to clarify if she wanted me to wait until cd42, but she said it was fine to start my provera on cd35! Hurray! So I started that yesterday and will take it through Saturday. Then I wait for AF and hope that she comes within a reasonable amount of time (less than a week, please?!). Once she comes, the cycle begins!

I'm feeling hopeful and glad that we're finally able to move on to this next step. On the Resolve online chat board that I go to, there's been a lot of talk lately about waiting. For me, I think waiting is the hardest part. Waiting, oh waiting. First I wait for cd35, then I wait for AF, then I wait to start my injectables, then I wait to see if the meds are working, and then (if I'm lucky enough to trigger--which hasn't been the case so far) it's the two week wait (2ww)--where you wait to see if you're pg!

We are such a "I want it now!" society/culture and it's hard to realize that it's not going to happen that way. We also hear that if we try hard enough, work hard enough, that we can accomplish anything. And that's just not the case with IF. So not only does IF make you wait, but it also humbles you--and makes you realize that you don't have control over everything in your life.

I want to be calm during this cycle. I want to know that I'm doing the best that I can do, and my body is doing the best it can do. I want to feel content & safe with this process and not to second guess myself or my doctor. I want to take care of myself, nurture myself, and nurture my relationship with Todd. Part of me is very sad that we're not going to get pg by having sex. That is the most basic of human function. But I am also so grateful that there is advanced reproductive therapy, doctors who care and who will help us get pg. And I'm grateful to have all of you, my family, friends, and new blogging friends, which I didn't anticipate having but am grateful to have!

Please continue to send your positive thoughts our way. We appreciate knowing that you care for us and are thinking of us during this stressful time.

Love,
Julie

First Injectables Appointment

Hi Friends,

So today we met with the Nurse Practitioner to go over the schedule for an ovarian hyperstimulation w/ injectables cycle. It was a good appointment, and we now have a timeline of when we'll be starting medications and doing ultrasounds. Of course, when that timeline begins depends on when AF comes (which will probably have to be induced with my best friend provera).

I'm guessing AF will come sometime between Oct 23 & Nov 1st.

Here's the scoop:
Day 1 = first day of AF
Day 2 or 3 = go in for u/s and b/w; start daily injections in the evening
Day 7 = u/s and b/w
Day 8-12 = Continue daily injections; Depending on how my follicles respond, I return for an u/s & b/w every day or every other day to closely monitor follicular growth.
When I have 1-3 follicles >18mm, I get an HCG shot to induce ovulation. 36 hours later, I'll return to clinic for the IUI (after, of course, Todd goes to clinic to do his business).
Then we cross our fingers and hope it works! :)

A couple of things that may happen:
1. My follicles don't respond to the low dose of medication that they're starting me on.
If this happens, they'll increase my dose of meds to try and get my follicles growing more.
2. My follicles over-respond to the low dose of meds.
If this happens, they'll decrease my dose of meds. If there's WAY too many follicles, the cycle may have to be canceled (too high of a risk to have "high order multiples" i.e. triplets & higher) or we may have the option of converting to an IVF cycle. Since I have PCOS, I have many (>30) follicles in each ovary. The trick is to stimulate some of then to grow, but not all of them.
3. Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome (OHSS). Can be mild or severe, but more often occurs during IVF cycles. Can result in blood clots, kidney damage, ovarian twisting and chest/abdominal fluid collection.

I hope that I don't have any of the 3 above problems during my cycle! Or if I do, that it is (fairly) easily resolved. Please send some positive thoughts that my cycle goes well, without complications!

The other fun part of the appointment (if you can really call any of this fun!) was practicing mixing the medication & injecting it. As a nurse, I feel very comfortable doing those things, but since we've decided that he'll be giving me the shots, he needed to have a chance to learn. He did a really good job drawing up the medication, mixing it, changing the needles, and injecting it. He had such a fun grin on his face when he was practicing it--I think he's going to take some real pleasure in doing the shots! haha :) Maybe nursing will be a second career for him...

Anyhow, for now we're just passing the days, waiting for cd42 to start provera, to induce AF. We'll be getting our meds ordered from London (cheaper than here in the States) and getting our home pharmacy stocked full of needles, syringes & a sharps container. It's just crazy, but you do what you've gotta do.

I'm trying not to get in my head too much, taking time for yoga, and trying other relaxation techniques so that I can stay calm leading up to and during this next cycle.

Thanks for checking in with us. I appreciate that you come here to see how we're doing. You may not always know what to say, or if you should say anything, but we always appreciate a simple "We're thinking of you."

Thank you for your support and understanding.

Much love,
Julie