Eh, ivf seems so very technical to me, I admire women who decide to go through this. I think I couldn’t.
Good luck to you!
Thanks everyone! 
I’ve been wavering between being very positive and getting very anxious about this for the last four or five days. It’s the waiting game. Waiting for appointments, waiting for numbers, waiting to take a needle, waiting for phone calls. It’s hard to focus on the rest of your life when you are always in a state of ‘waiting’.
I didn’t think I could either - but when it was one of the only ways we could become parents, it became easier to consider. What also helped me was not to think about the whole process in one go, which would have been too overwhelming. Like a marathon, it was about taking it one step at a time and not thinking about the next step until we got there.
Glad to hear things are going well EmAnJ, I’ve got everything crossed for you!
Exactly. For one, good such opportunity exists, right? but…
Somehow I am unable to get use to thought of medicalization/technicalization the whole process. Sexuality is somehow too delicate for that.
Plus it’s so sad people are being done on so very natural need to have a child/children as EmAnJ wrote, they are broke now. Awful.
I didn’t think I could ever do this either, until it became our only choice if we want a biological child. I find the whole process very interesting, and have done a lot of research to try to understand it, mostly because understanding the process seems to make it easier for me.
At the same time, too much information can be a bad thing. I waver between wanting to know EVERYTHING (what does my blood work mean, are my numbers good, how many follicles do I have?) and not wanting to know anything and just trusting the RE.
Anyway, I got (a horribly painful) AF at about three this morning. Hopefully it’s the last one I have for a year or so!
usually helps, sure
Ah, how strong instinct can be, isn’t it? Going through pain, and then pain again -labour I mean :-), I’m with you!- hope you will succeed.
Gawd, I must be such_a_ putdown for you, sorry; don’t pay attention. I’m easily fascinated by thingzzzzzz.
I think that’s only natural, and you just have to go with how you feel at the time. Interestingly, the first time we did a cycle, I was obsessed with numbers, and reviewing how things were going. The second time, I just sort of went with the flow, and trusted that someone else knew what was going on and I could just trust them. I’m not sure either way was better, but the second time, the whole process didn’t intrude as much into my life. It got to a point that I had to get my husband to remind me to do injections in the evening, as sometimes I would forget (although that might have had more to do with the toddler that was demanding attention :))
Once you start stims, you’ll really feel like you are doing something and getting somewhere. It’s actually quite exciting, if you can get past how anxiety inducing the whole thing is.
BTW, not to hijack too much, but I had my 12 week scan today, and got to see how much our wee bunch of cells had changed. Little arms waving, might have even caught it sucking its thumb. I really hope you’ll be looking at something similar in a few months!
Thanks Neeps! I’m trying to stay positive about it all, but not let it take over. I’ve been trying to keep myself busy.
Congratulations on now having more then a bunch of little cells! Haha!
And the other bunch of cells is currently sitting next to me, playing with the remote control and generally being rather sweet. It’s really amazing, when I start *really *thinking about what we went through to get those cells to be created in the first place, and how many people it took, and the twists and turns along the way. For most people pregnancy starts when they get a positive result. For people like us, so much time, effort, money, emotion and thought go into even getting that far.
I really so much want for you to be in the same place in a few years as all of us on here who have had success through science. It’s a remarkable club to join (parenting after infertility). I think it gives you just a little bit of a different slant on the whole parenting thing. You don’t love your kids any more than others, but every so often you stop and reflect on the other path your life could have taken had things gone differently.
Congratulations Neeps
I have two daughters, 9 and 11, resulting from IVF with donor egg (chosen because of wife’s advanced age…and because she’s nuts). It’s an odd concept: mom gives birth, but dad’s the biological parent. Anyway, they are the lights of my life: gifted, sweet and considerate (<crosses fingers/>not the type to ever put dad into a nursing home <crosses fingers/>). I wish you all the luck in the world with your IVF…it can be frustrating and time consuming, but when it works, it’s worth the effort.
And it starts! Derek had his semen analysis last Thursday, and I had my baseline ultrasound and blood work first thing this morning. All looks good. I will be starting with 150 UI of Gonal-F and 75 UI of Luveris, and continuing the Suprefact to prevent ovulation, but dropping from five sprays a day to three.
The Gonal-F is a pen looks like this. My pens are 350 UI each (with a bit of extra, just in case), so I will use one pen in three days at this point. I change needles each day, obviously, and just dial in the dose.
The Luveris is a bit more complicated. It’s two vials, one with saline, one with powder. Using the syringe and some tool of which I can’t remember the name of, I mix them up myself.
Both injections go in the stomach. I asked to take them at 6 pm so I can be home from work and also so my husband can help me if he’s home as well.
Both of us also start antibiotics today as well. Since they will be pushing the collector tube through the walls of my vagina, and going right in to my ovaries, I take it to prevent infection. Derek takes it just in case he has an infection that will present in his sperm.
I should be on injects for 10 - 13 days. I go in for more blood work on Wednesday, and then blood work and another ultrasound on Saturday to check progress.
Now, if you saw my other post, I seriously injured my knee on Friday. I am pretty sure it’s an MCL injury, though the ER thought it was a knee dislocation. We are worried that I may have to have surgery, and want to talk to the doctor about that possibility. I feel like at this point, if we have to cancel this cycle for a surgery, I’m done, and won’t attempt this again. So, fingers crossed all is well on that front.
Oh man, I remember having to mix my first trigger dose (which needs to be done at an exact time) with a set of glass ampoules and powder, freaking out that I would break one and stuff up the whole cycle. So much better the next time around that my trigger shot was a preprepared syringe.
I never heard about antibiotics though - that’s a new one for me.
Good luck! Hint for the stomach injections is to place an icepack on your tummy for a minute or so while you dial up your dose and load the needle - you’ll pretty much feel nothing (and it’s a really thin needle, so nothing to worry about). Are you going to stick yourself? I found the only time I ever bruised was the one time I let Boy From Mars have a go…
Yes, I’ve been told about icing, especially for the Luveris because it apparently stings! It depends what time Derek is home this evening - I’m planning to inject at 6, and he works until 5:30. He might just make it. I figure I’ve been giving him allergy shots for years, may as well let him get me back! But I’m not worried if I have to do it myself. I’ve been poked and prodded so much the last couple of years that I have no problem with it any more!
I spoke to the nurse about the possibility of knee surgery and she gave us some good advice. We are going to proceed with the cycle and see what the doctor says on Tuesday. If I do need surgery, there are two options - continue and freeze all, or look in to surgery with an epidural rather then general. Epidurals are fine in pregnancy, and will work for lower body surgery, if I need it. Looking around online is making me feel better, however, because it seems like MCL tears (which is what I think I have) very rarely need surgery to fix. I am fine with intensive physical therapy. I will do what I can to not delay this any longer!
Best of luck to you!
Just an update, if anyone is reading!
I had my appointment with the physical therapist yesterday and he’s certain I do not need surgery! What a huge relief! I will need some pretty intensive physical therapy, but he’s sure I can rehabilitiate and will be able to support pregnancy weight (one of my primary concerns). I’m still swollen, but he thinks it’s a partial tear of both the ACL and MCL. I’ll be going in for a private MRI next week once I see my GP.
Also had my first appointment at the fertility clinic since I started injects on Sunday. It was just a blood test to check my estrogen levels (indicative of follicle growth) and they were lower then they’d like them at 130 (they like to see 250 - 500 at this point). So, they’ve increased my dose of Gonal-F from 150 to 225 UI, starting last night. I’m now starting to get some side effects, most especially headaches and tiredness. I am exhausted, even though I’m getting 7 to 8 hours a night.
Next check is on Saturday and it’ll be both blood work and ultrasound.
Glad to hear that you won’t need surgery! Hope things continue to go well.
Another update: I had another monitoring appointment on Saturday and they saw seven follies on the left, all around 10mm, and four on the right, of which two were at 10mm (the other two were closer to 6mm). My estridol levels were at only 501 (in Canadian terms) so they’ve upped my Gonal-F to 375 UI.
The nurse said I may be triggering on Wednesday, for retrieveal on Friday, but we’ll know more at my next appointment tomorrow morning.
On Saturday, I had to do my first non-home injections, and it was…nerve wracking! We travelled to another city (Red Deer) for a cousin’s birthday party and I had to run into the bathroom as soon as we arrived to do my injects (they are very time sensitive - I have to do them at 6 pm, or within about 15 minutes of). Using a small bathroom counter in an unfamiliar house to give myself injections was not my idea of fun! I have heard of other women having to do them in the car while stuck in traffic, or on airplanes if travelling, and I couldn’t imagine!
My primary symptoms so far are headaches in the morning, cramping and a heavy feeling in my ovaries - tender to the touch, even - and gas. Horrible gas! I don’t know if it’s from the meds or what, but it’s horrible even to me!
Man, that sounds awful. 
I hope that you have nine more months of uncomfortable symptoms, though! 
Haha, me too! Thanks!
Another monitoring appointment this morning. Lining is at 8.3 (this is good), and they found two more follicles total today. On the left I now have eight follies, the leads are are 16, 13, 13, and on the right I have five, the leads are 13 and 11.
Two more nights of Gonal-F and Luveris, and another monitoring appointment on Thursday morning. I should be triggering Thursday evening.
Those of you who have done the HCG injection - it seems like a LOT of liquid (compared to everything else I’ve been injecting). Does it hurt more? Did you do it in two spots, or all in one?
I had a horrible headache this morning, but it seems to have gone now. I actually feel pretty good at the moment! 