Ultrasound #3 (and more bloodwork, too)

My appointment went well.

I was happy for two reasons...1.) The ultrasound tech that I like came back from her vacation! and 2.) She said that I have 8 follies right now plus 5 more small ones!

Left - 12, 12, 11, 10 and 3 <10
Right - 13, 12, 12, 11, and 2<10

It hit me today that about one week from now I will be doing ER. Wow. I'm so glad the day is getting closer!

I go in again on Friday for more bw and another u/s.

Stimming

At this point, I have been on Lupron for 15 days and I have been on Bravelle and Menopur for 5 days. I'm not sure how long I'm going to be stimming for - I guess I'll see how things are progressing at tomorrow's ultrasound.

Friday 2/22 - Everything was suppressed and I started stims.
Monday 2/25 - I had 1 10mm follicle, 3 that were close to 10mm, and maybe a few others that were smaller. (The tech didn't give me too much info on that.)
Wednesday 2/27 - ....we shall see tomorrow. Hopefully I've had some growth!

I'm doing okay. I've had an ongoing headache all day but that's one of the side effects. I went to acupuncture tonight and that seemed to help a bit. I'm also extremely tired and achy - and Steve would say I'm cranky, too!

I'm trying to be optimistic about this whole cycle. A lot of the girls in my buddy groups online have gotten positive betas recently...I keep wondering am I going to be one of them, too?

Hopefully this stimming part will go quickly (or at least feel quick!)

Lupron

I started my Lupron injections on Tuesday night. So far I have done three. They are going really well. I was nervous to start, but it's not a big deal. I haven't had any headaches (yet.) I hear they are pretty common when you take Lupron.

I continue my bcp until Saturday and then I stop that. I think I go in next Friday for bloodwork and an ultrasound. I have to double check my schedule.

I've been doing acupuncture 2x a week. I love it! It helps me feel relaxed and I feel like I'm doing something positive for myself.

I also bought a relaxation cd - I figure if I get anxious about the shots I can use it to calm myself.

Photo of IVF Meds

Here's a picture of all of our IVF meds (I think 2 other boxes were actually in the fridge at the time I took this picture.)

Feeling down

I am really looking forward to trying IVF in March. (Looks like ER and ET will be in early March, not late Feb. as planned.) Really I am. I'm just having a hard time being happy about the whole waiting process and then the whole what-if-it-doesn't-happen part of it.

Days 1-4

I went to the doctor on Saturday (cycle day or "cd" 3.) I had bloodwork and an ultrasound done. The bloodwork came book - my estrogen was at 64.5. I was told that's a good level.

I started birth control pills that night.

On Feb. 12 I will start giving myself Lupron shots. I will continue the pill and add in a baby aspirin.

On Feb 22. I'll have another ultrasound and more bloodwork. I'll start Bravelle 225 (3 vials) and Menopur 75 (1 vial) on that day. Those are more shots.

I'll be back in the office on Feb. 25 for an ultrasound and bloodwork.

Cycle Day 1

I am on Cycle Day (CD) 1 today. I am going in for bloodwork on CD3, Saturday. I will also be starting birth control pills shortly after that. I have to call on Monday and schedule a date for my trial transfer.

The roller coaster ride has begun...

We are heading towards IVF

Well... let me back up a bit. On Tuesday night, we went to an information meeting about adoption. It was with the same agency that we had spoken with before. This meeting was about international and domestic adoption. They gave us a lot of great information. We got to meet 2 families who used the agency for adoption, too.

On Thursday, we had our IVF consult. It went really well. We came home with so much information - our heads were spinning! We'll be doing IVF at the very end of February. This is basically what my protocol will be:

• CD3 Bloodwork and start BCP in January. (Minimum of 2 weeks on them, but up to 6-8 weeks.)
• Trial Transfer and saline sonohystogram - ? not sure when
• Lupron shots in my thigh or stomach - this suppresses your ovaries. (For 10 days by itself.)
• Bravelle/Menopur shots in my thigh/stomach - these stimulate your ovaries (For 10-12 days) and continute Lupron shots at 1/2 the dosage.
• Lots of ultrasounds and bloodwork throughout cycle.
• Ovidrel - 2 shots 36 hours prior to Egg Retrieval.
• More bloodwork.
• Egg Retrieval done under IV sedation.
• Start Progesterone injections in hip every other day and Endomtrin suppositories 3x/day on the off days.
• Egg Transfer 3-5 days later done with valium or IV sedation.
• Estrogen patch along with the progesterone/endometrin.
• Blood pregnancy test.

It's a lot. But we're really excited. And nervous. And scared. But really excited!

We had a bottle of champagne here, so last night we toasted to "2008: The Year of the Baby!" (See, we're being positive!)

Waiting for Cycle 19

I know cycle 19 is just around the corner. I am starting to not feel well, so I know it's only a matter of a few hours.

I'm tired of the waiting. I was hopeful that maybe this cycle, just maybe, it would work out and it would happen for us. Then we wouldn't have to go through IVF. Now I just want to hurry up and have the IVF cycle get here. It's this limbo part that I can't stand. I feel like I'm sitting back doing nothing, you know?

I've been pretty down. I'm feeling lonely, too. I just wish someone would ask how I'm doing with it all without me having to be the one to bring it up. I feel like everyone is probably sick of hearing me talk about it, so I've tried to stop. But I end up keeping it all inside and feeling bad like I do now.

I wish I could go away for a few days. Maybe take a mini vacation. I know the holidays are around the corner, but I have a feeling they won't be very restful.

Saving $$$

I don't really have a lot to post about right now. We have told some of our family that we are moving onto IVF. It definitely makes it feel more real! We've started saving - we are actually competing with each other to see how much we can save! I know - pretty corny - but if it gets us to our goal, that's great, right?

I made Christmas ornaments and I'm selling them at craft shows. I may ask if I can sell them at work, too. I'm going to try to sell some things on Ebay, too. That may help bring in a couple hundred of dollars. It's so hard trying to save money right before Christmas.

We're probably going to another adoption meeting this week. We'll get to meet people who have adopted from other countries. Next month this particular agency, is having a meeting about domestic adoption, too.