I went in to have my blood drawn this morning, accompanied by my Maddie. Received that wonderful call a few hours later by the nurse. I was told that everything looks great and my first beta level is 599. This is the level of HCG in my body and all I know is, it's a good number and we'll take it!
About an hour later, the doctor called to say, "For the love of peanut butter, keep taking the meds!" Needless to say, he is very well pleased.
This Friday we hope to see the beta levels double then next Friday we find out how many we will be blessed with. Yikes!
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Monday, July 23, 2012
Surreal
So here we are close to the end of our IVF cycle #2 and I'm seriously wishing I'd started the blog entry from day one. I was so very unsure about doing a second cycle that it kind of just snuck up on me. Then before I knew it, I was back to getting shots, changing patches and poppin' pills. And still not feeling the urge to blog about it just yet.
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I cannot say what helped us finally decide to do it again. A lot of talking, a lot of prayer and a lot of faith. We talked about our future, our finances, my health and everything else we could think of to keep us up at nights. It just made sense to try it one more time. We went in to see the doctor a couple of weeks after the unsuccessful first attempt. He was baffled, but quite confident that eventually it would work. Perfect embryos, perfect hormone level, perfect transfer. However, he did not volunteer to do if for free so that was a chance we had to take.
We started the medication on June 22nd and it's been mostly uneventful since. Same medications, same staff, same perfect transfer, same goofy conversations under anesthesia. But oddly enough, this cycle has been very different in many ways.
I knew what to expect physically. I knew that the bloating and weight gain was inevitable so I did not fret over this on a daily basis like I did last time. I just pulled out my big jeans again and quit analyzing my growth in the mirror. (I managed to lose 10 pounds in that short time in between cycles and, not knowing whether or not to pursue IVF again, was able to put those jeans away for a very short bit.)
I was also not really into what I was eating. To lose the weight, I ate very good but then once I picked the Estrogen and Progesterone pounds back on, I didn't even think about it. Maybe that was my way of not stressing over things. I ate when I was hungry and I ate what I wanted. It was wonderful!
After the transfer I felt different "things." Instead of ovary cramping, I was experiencing very brief twinges (is that even a word?) and sharpness in the central area. Uterus maybe? And a burning almost like it was sunburned on the inside. I know, I'm a freak.
Mike seemed to be a little more laid back too. And more hopeful that this time would work. We didn't talk about it a lot but let the time tick away. I did some more forum perusing, looking for women experiencing my same uterus manifestations. I even found out that there are several women in my ward that have been battling infertility. Although I don't wish this on anyone, it was nice to know others know my frustrations. Reading on the forums didn't really help or hurt.
One of my favorite new things is that Mike finally gave me my shot for the first time! He did a great job and didn't pass out. He has been giving them to me ever since and I'm so happy that he is making that sacrifice to support me. It is totally and completely out of his comfort zone, but he is managing and I love him so for it!
The biggest different of all....
I had already decided to take a pregnancy test at home before confirming it with blood work in the doctor's office. I was determined to walk into that office this coming Wednesday with a little more control than last time. I wanted to have an idea before the nurse had to break the news over the phone. With a little persuasion, Mike agreed and this morning at 7am, I peed on a stick.
.JPG)
Holy cow!! I think I'm unofficially officially pregnant. We'll confirm Wednesday then it will be another 2 week wait to hear the hearbeat(s). I look forward to it so much. Then after that I think I might be able to slow down and enjoy the ride.
Surreal.
.JPG)
We started the medication on June 22nd and it's been mostly uneventful since. Same medications, same staff, same perfect transfer, same goofy conversations under anesthesia. But oddly enough, this cycle has been very different in many ways.
I knew what to expect physically. I knew that the bloating and weight gain was inevitable so I did not fret over this on a daily basis like I did last time. I just pulled out my big jeans again and quit analyzing my growth in the mirror. (I managed to lose 10 pounds in that short time in between cycles and, not knowing whether or not to pursue IVF again, was able to put those jeans away for a very short bit.)
I was also not really into what I was eating. To lose the weight, I ate very good but then once I picked the Estrogen and Progesterone pounds back on, I didn't even think about it. Maybe that was my way of not stressing over things. I ate when I was hungry and I ate what I wanted. It was wonderful!
After the transfer I felt different "things." Instead of ovary cramping, I was experiencing very brief twinges (is that even a word?) and sharpness in the central area. Uterus maybe? And a burning almost like it was sunburned on the inside. I know, I'm a freak.
Mike seemed to be a little more laid back too. And more hopeful that this time would work. We didn't talk about it a lot but let the time tick away. I did some more forum perusing, looking for women experiencing my same uterus manifestations. I even found out that there are several women in my ward that have been battling infertility. Although I don't wish this on anyone, it was nice to know others know my frustrations. Reading on the forums didn't really help or hurt.
One of my favorite new things is that Mike finally gave me my shot for the first time! He did a great job and didn't pass out. He has been giving them to me ever since and I'm so happy that he is making that sacrifice to support me. It is totally and completely out of his comfort zone, but he is managing and I love him so for it!
The biggest different of all....
I had already decided to take a pregnancy test at home before confirming it with blood work in the doctor's office. I was determined to walk into that office this coming Wednesday with a little more control than last time. I wanted to have an idea before the nurse had to break the news over the phone. With a little persuasion, Mike agreed and this morning at 7am, I peed on a stick.
.JPG)
Surreal.
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