Three days into the meds, I return to the office for another ultrasound and a round of blood work. Our doctor doesn't expect to see much yet.
Our goal: see a nice group of follicles starting to develop at roughly the same pace.
The ultrasound reveals that my 10 follicles have grown slightly, but not much. Happily, they are developing at the same pace, except for one large follicle that is sitting at around 11 mm. It's amazing. I usually can't really see what the doc sees on the blurry image, but this one stands out loud and clear. It looks like a dark hollow cavity. In reality, it's the fluid building up that will allow us to retrieve the egg.
All is looking good, but the doc suspects that we will want to bump up the meds. I might also need to start cetrotide before I see her next. Cetrotide is a med that prevents me from ovulating, so that the large developing follicles stay put without releasing any eggs.
We've gotten our routing down. Early morning doctor visit, then hang out around the corner at Starbucks while we work and wait for the nurse to call. In the afternoon, I finally hear from Pam. We indeed need to bump up the meds. Tonight, I'll increase to 300iu follistim and 300iu menopur. Tomorrow, we'll add cetrotide.
Friday, we'll head back to the office to see the results. Hoping that we see 10+ nicely developing follicles, and that the added menopur doesn't sting too much!
Tuesday, February 28, 2017
Monday, February 27, 2017
Started the meds!
Three days ago, we stared a regimen of 300iu of follistim and 150iu of menopur, injected nightly. I've never given myself an injection before. It's strange, to be honest.
Step 1: Mixing
First, you must carefully mix the meds, pulling the syringe in and out of each vial until the perfect cocktail is achieved. This bit is kind of fun... a throw back to my inner mad scientist.
Step 2: Mental Game
The injection is all about the mental game. You stand there, heart racing, cold syringe in hand, trying to convince yourself to jab a one inch needle into your stomach. I went back and forth a few times, even piercing the skin once. I finally gave up. It's counter intuitive, and, rather than fighting it, we came up with a new plan.
Rather than jabbing myself with the needle, I let my wife do it. After all, she's has more experience than me. True, it was mostly on animals, but I figured it's more than me.
I turn the needle over to her. It's till a bit of a dance. I pick the spot and pinch my stomach with one hand, while squeezing her shoulder with the other. The right side isn't that bad. The left side stings like crazy. Not looking forward to tomorrow when we have to go back to lefty:/
Step 3: The Dance
I decided that the best way to get through the madness of injections and hormones is to dance it out. It helps release nervous energy and takes my mind off of the left side sting! So... after the injection, we dance it out in the kitchen. My wife is awesome. She always joins in.
Tomorrow we go back to the baby doctor to find out how things are going, adjust meds, etc. Fingers crossed that all is heading in the right direction.
Step 1: Mixing
First, you must carefully mix the meds, pulling the syringe in and out of each vial until the perfect cocktail is achieved. This bit is kind of fun... a throw back to my inner mad scientist.
Step 2: Mental Game
The injection is all about the mental game. You stand there, heart racing, cold syringe in hand, trying to convince yourself to jab a one inch needle into your stomach. I went back and forth a few times, even piercing the skin once. I finally gave up. It's counter intuitive, and, rather than fighting it, we came up with a new plan.
Rather than jabbing myself with the needle, I let my wife do it. After all, she's has more experience than me. True, it was mostly on animals, but I figured it's more than me.
I turn the needle over to her. It's till a bit of a dance. I pick the spot and pinch my stomach with one hand, while squeezing her shoulder with the other. The right side isn't that bad. The left side stings like crazy. Not looking forward to tomorrow when we have to go back to lefty:/
Step 3: The Dance
I decided that the best way to get through the madness of injections and hormones is to dance it out. It helps release nervous energy and takes my mind off of the left side sting! So... after the injection, we dance it out in the kitchen. My wife is awesome. She always joins in.
Tomorrow we go back to the baby doctor to find out how things are going, adjust meds, etc. Fingers crossed that all is heading in the right direction.
Friday, February 24, 2017
Baseline
Today's baseline tells us if this will be the magic month for egg retrieval. I'm not going to lie.. this week has been nerve wracking! When it comes to upping your chances, it's all about egg quality.
For the past two years, I've been on vitamins and supplements to help increase egg quality. We added even more to the mix about a month ago. Our nightstand looks like a pharmacy. At 39, you'll do whatever you can to improve your chances.
To add to the edginess, I've also been on a regimen of birth control this week. It's all about controlling your system so that it will do what we want -- produce a bunch of eggs at once! A few days ago, I started spotting and today I seemed to start a light period. I went in to the doc's office convinced that this wasn't normal. Turns out that it totally is! When you stop taking the pill and the hormones drop, it causes a period. Menses 101... but it's strange since I just had a period 2 weeks ago. Weird.
Before starting the hormones, the doctor basically wants four things to happen: calm ovaries with a nice group of follicles developing, thin uterine lining, a little bleeding, and the right estrogen level.
The ultrasound reveals calm ovaries and thin lining. We have around 10 follicles measuring 5mm+ and a few more slightly smaller ones that might join the party. We already know about the bleeding. Now just need to see about the estrogen levels. A little blood draw and we are out of the office and heading to the fertility pharmacy.
A few hours later, we get the call -- good to go!!! Tomorrow, I'll start three meds: an antibiotic as a precautionary; follistim (300iu); and menopur (150iu). The follistim and menopur will be mixed up into a little cocktail and injected into my lower abdomen - ouch! I hear it's not as bad as it seems. We will see:)
For the past two years, I've been on vitamins and supplements to help increase egg quality. We added even more to the mix about a month ago. Our nightstand looks like a pharmacy. At 39, you'll do whatever you can to improve your chances.
To add to the edginess, I've also been on a regimen of birth control this week. It's all about controlling your system so that it will do what we want -- produce a bunch of eggs at once! A few days ago, I started spotting and today I seemed to start a light period. I went in to the doc's office convinced that this wasn't normal. Turns out that it totally is! When you stop taking the pill and the hormones drop, it causes a period. Menses 101... but it's strange since I just had a period 2 weeks ago. Weird.
Before starting the hormones, the doctor basically wants four things to happen: calm ovaries with a nice group of follicles developing, thin uterine lining, a little bleeding, and the right estrogen level.
The ultrasound reveals calm ovaries and thin lining. We have around 10 follicles measuring 5mm+ and a few more slightly smaller ones that might join the party. We already know about the bleeding. Now just need to see about the estrogen levels. A little blood draw and we are out of the office and heading to the fertility pharmacy.
A few hours later, we get the call -- good to go!!! Tomorrow, I'll start three meds: an antibiotic as a precautionary; follistim (300iu); and menopur (150iu). The follistim and menopur will be mixed up into a little cocktail and injected into my lower abdomen - ouch! I hear it's not as bad as it seems. We will see:)
Go time!!!
The rails are off! Things are moving quickly now. Three weeks ago, we went in to hear the results from our initial appointment and discuss next steps. Everything looks great and we were cleared to start the ivf process.
I travel -- A LOT! For work. volunteer. fun. It sometimes consumes my life and always consumes planning. I went in with a travel calendar, mapped to my cycle, to try to understand which windows of opportunity might be available.
To add one more tiny complication... the lab periodically closes for cleaning, so we also need to factor in that schedule. The ivf nurse is amazing. Like a wizard with her wand, she somehow magically pinpoints the best window. She gives a grin and says that we'll be busy, but we can start this month if we want to!
Our baseline ultrasound is scheduled for Feb 24. We immediately put things into action. To do list:
I travel -- A LOT! For work. volunteer. fun. It sometimes consumes my life and always consumes planning. I went in with a travel calendar, mapped to my cycle, to try to understand which windows of opportunity might be available.
To add one more tiny complication... the lab periodically closes for cleaning, so we also need to factor in that schedule. The ivf nurse is amazing. Like a wizard with her wand, she somehow magically pinpoints the best window. She gives a grin and says that we'll be busy, but we can start this month if we want to!
Our baseline ultrasound is scheduled for Feb 24. We immediately put things into action. To do list:
- Travel to Mexico for work and volunteer duties
- Coordinate finances to be prepared for Feb 24 baseline
- Schedule saline sonogram / additional STD testing / injection training
- Research pricing for meds and choose pharmacy
- Review consent packet (no small feat!)
- Consult attorney on reproductive rights
- Finalize sperm donor selection and order sperm
The nurse is right ... the following three weeks are intense. We hit a few bumps, but, with the help of our village, we sail through them. Here's how we fared on the to do list and a few tips to share from our journey for those who might be trying ivf themselves:
Mexico: CHECK!
Pro Tip: If you are traveling to a Zika zone, women should wait at least two weeks before getting pregnant. For men bringing their part to the party, it is much, much longer.... something like 6 months. You can ask your sperm bank their process for screening and testing sperm for Zika.
Finances: CHECK!
Pro Tip: We are financing half, paying for half out of savings. Our doctor gave us a list of financing companies and some feedback on each, along with a pricing sheet. They discount for couples who are doing genetic testing. In the end, ARC Fertility is footing our bill as the lender. Double-check that the financing company's package and your doctor's package match. If we hadn't paid attention to detail, we would have overspent by $1,000+
Saline Sonogram: POSTPONED:/
Pro Tip: Attempted saline sonogram and practice transfer revealed that I have a bit of stenosis in my cervix and need a procedure to correct it before we can go forward. My tip? Do the practice transfer!! You never know what you'll find. This was never mentioned by my previous doctor and was unexpected. Since we are doing genetic testing and previous tests have not raised any concerns, we decided to postpone the test. When I am under anesthesia for egg retrieval, my doc will go for it again.
Additional STD cultures: Check!
Pro Tip: Easy breezy.
Injection training: Check!
Pro Tip: This is a little overwhelming. As the nurse starts to speak, her words blur in and out, like in a movie. Once I do it a few times, I think it will be pretty simple. Going through all of the steps, it's a lot to remember. I am leaning on my wife who has given herself and many animals injections. Maybe not the same thing... but I'll take it!
Choose a Pharmacy: Check!
Pro Tip: You'll need a special fertility pharmacy. Each one offers different discount programs on different brands. Some ship meds; others have pick-up hours. We choose the fertility Walgreens (yes - it's a special one... not just any Walgreens!). We were told to prepare for $4,500 - $6,000 in meds. In the end, we will likely be around $5K (update: new meds added - heading towards $6K).
Review consent packet: Check!
Pro Tip: This takes a while and requires a conversation between both partners. We completed 3 - 5 pages per day over a period of about a week, asked questions about the content during our injection training, and then finished the final signature at the baseline. It took about 2 weeks to complete.
Consult Attorney: Check!
Pro Tip: We looked for an attorney who not only specializes in reproductive law, but also advocates for LGBTQ families: Barbara Katz. Once we are actually pregnant, we'll schedule an appointment to create a host of documents that outline what should happen in case something happens ... to me, the baby, or H.
Order sperm: Check!
Pro Tip: Go with your gut! But get your paperwork in order and start early. Before they will ship, they might need a physician's authorization on file with the bank. It's different for each state. We requested the form at our injection training, so we had it in place for the order. As soon as it's processed, they will ship the little vials all the way to Atlanta where they will hang out in the freezer until it's time. You can rush shipping, but we preferred to save money and go with standard shipping. At the advice of our doctor, we ordered two vials. We really only need one, but just in case something is wrong with one when they defrost it, we decided to have a second one on hand. It's a bit more expensive, but in the grand scheme of things - worth it!
All of this led up to today's baseline!:)
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