IVF Stuff

Estradiol(blood tests):  I got 613 on Friday and 2816 on Monday, which won't mean much to most of us(including me.) All I know is that it is supposed to be rising, but not too much. Dr. Richards says it looks good.

Ultrasound: On Saturday, we got to see the growing follicles. They look like clusters of bubbles. I have about 6 that are really good size, and a bunch more that may be catching up. Tomorrow morning I will drive up to Logan for 1 more ultrasound. After this one, the Doctors will decide(based on growth rates) whether to do the retrieval on Friday or Saturday.

Symptoms have not been too bad. I've been tired, but not a lot more than usual. I've been a little more emotional and sometimes grumpy. My brain feels kind of muddy sometimes, especially when I'm tired.(I hope that is just a symptom of the hormone injections.)

I sobbed when our neighbor's old Bassett hound, Dash, died last week.  But, I really did feel like he was partly our dog since he used to come and visit us almost every night looking for treats or a belly scratch. I told Hans I thought Dash was going to be there to comfort me if things didn't work out. Maybe he just won't need to.

I've started going for walks every night, which seems to help the moods and the energy. I am definitely bloated, which is normal when you are growing a bunch of egg follicles. No big deal, just not wearing my "skinny" jeans much.

I'm feeling positive about everything. I really feel like it is all going to work out, and maybe we will even have twins. I don't talk much about the alternative. I don't think much about the alternative. Maybe I should. "They" say you're supposed to prepare for that possibility. But, I don't see the point. And, if I ever do start talking about it, friends usually steer me quickly back to positive. And I'm good with that.

IVF Schedule

E2 is an Estradiol blood test. U/S is an ultrasound where we check the growth of the egg follicles. You might have to click on the image to be able to read it, but the highlights are:

June 1st will be my first trip up to Logan for a final ultrasound. That ultrasound will tell us when we do the egg retrieval. Egg retrieval will be June 4, give or take a day. Three to five days after that we will transfer(implant) 2 or 3 embryos. Then, the hard part...waiting until the pregnancy test on June 21st.

IVF Continued

The Routine:

2 Shots in the Morning

1 at Night

IVF Adventure: Part I

Note: I am writing this blog partly as a therapy and personal/family history, and partly as a way to keep my family and dear friends informed. I didn't want it as public as Facebook, but if I am sharing this with you, just know that you have permission to share with anyone who might be interested or who you think may benefit.

Since my last post, I've found my Top Ten Guy(see previous post). I feel so very blessed and lucky to have married Hans Branch. When we first started dating, he asked if the fact that he had four kids was a concern for me. I told him no, as long as he was open to having more. He said he would be and he meant it. He said he wanted to have the experience of parenthood from the beginning with me. He said he could see how I light up when I hold a baby and how much I want to be a mother and he wants me to have that opportunity. He left no doubt about his commitment when he underwent a painful surgery(vasectomy reversal) a few months before we married.

Several months after our marriage,  the doctor started me on a round of Clomid. Since we were both 39, we didn't feel that we could wait and hope for a full year before taking any action. This lasted about 4 months, with no success. I had also been tracking my temperature every morning and taking ovulation tests. So, just after our 1 year anniversary in March, we decided to take the plunge and use up everything I had saved to pay off my student loan debts to instead pursue IVF.

All of our tests have been good/normal: my HSG(x-ray of uterus and fallopian tubes), and blood tests, his semen analysis. This is good, because it means that there is no major concern to make us poor candidates for the IVF, but frustrating because we still don't know why we haven't been able to get pregnant naturally.

A friend of Hans's referred us to Dr. Richards, who was their IVF doctor. They traveled to CA for the procedure. Lucky for us Dr. Richards now practices in Utah, so we only have to travel to Logan.

The PROCESS

I have been taking Prenatal Vitamins with Zinc and Folate since we decided to pursue this. On April 27, I started taking Birth Control pills- only the red ones, no sugar pills, until the Doctor told me to stop on the 17th. Hans and I both had to take a week of an antibiotic, which I hated to do, but it is standard for all IVF couples, so I decided to trust the doctors and go ahead with it. I have also been drinking Kefir and eating raw sauerkraut to try and replace the probiotics.

On May 12, I started giving myself an injection every morning, which really hasn't been too bad. The tiny needle doesn't hurt at all, but I learned not too push the med in too quickly after bruising myself badly from the first one.

On Friday, I had an Estradiol blood test and on Saturday I had my first vaginal Ultrasound. Dr. Richards said the blood level(less than 25) was right where it should be. He also said that it looks as though I have a good number of eggs in there that we can work on growing over the next couple of weeks.

On Monday I will be adding two more injections to stimulate the growth of the egg follicles. Then, I'll have another Estradiol test and ultrasound this weekend.

If you have any questions about all of this, please feel free to comment or ask. I'll be updating once or twice a week until the end of June, after I take the pregnancy test.

We would be grateful for your prayers on our behalf.