Friday, November 22, 2013

Ballooning

So late Friday afternoon we got the call that the retrieval would be on Sunday (last Sunday the 17th).  I had to rush home to give myself the Menopure (which had to be given 2 hours prior to the trigger shot) and it made me SO glad that Handsome has been giving me my shots.  It's not so much that it hurt, it is just really hard to continue pushing a sharp implement into your stomach and then I didn't realize the fluid was so thick and hard to inject!  Handsome came home in time to give me the trigger shot at 7:30pm and our retrieval was set for Sunday at 7:30am.

The retrieval went well and Dr. Behera told Handsome we had 23 eggs!  That is great!  On Monday I only worked a half day because I didn't feel well and I was starting to swell up like a balloon.  Turns out I got OHSS, Ovarian Hyper-Stimulation Syndrome, and was building up fluid in my abdomen.  On Monday they called and said that 14 of the eggs had fertilized and the early embryo and growth looked normal while 6 fertilized but were a little slow in growth.  I was surprised so many had fertilized.  We will hear this weekend how many made it to 4 days and their grading.

Meanwhile I have continued to blow up like a balloon.  Monday night I got sick which could have been the OHSS or the medication (Percoset).  I stayed home Tuesday and went to the doctor where they gave me 2 liters of intravenous fluids.  Wednesday was probably the worst and while I am definitely not back to normal it goes down a little everyday.  The acupuncture should help although I almost thought water would come up from the needles; it didn't but I almost wished it would have to let the pressure off.  My skin is tight, its hard to breathe deep, drink or eat much because there is just no room.  Although it seem counter-intuitive when you swell up with fluids you are supposed to drink more.  I had an ultrasound on Thursday and there were great big patches of fluid in my abdomen.  Ah well - I little bit better each day and hopefully I will be all better soon , fingers crossed.  ttyl

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Feeling Tired and Fat

Hi! Sorry its been longer than I wanted but this cycle is kicking my butt.  My medications haven't changed I am still on the same dosage of Lupron, Menopure and Follistim that I was before.  But before we get into that let me tell you a little about my trip to Colorado...

Every year Handsome and I go on a trip for a anniversary... 6 years!  This year we decided to go to Colorado as that is where we would like to move one day.  We wanted to check out Ft. Collins and Colorado Springs. Originally we had made plans to drive since I didn't know if I would be pregnant or not but when I told Handsome we could fly.  He opted to continue and drive to help save some money.  We drove Friday night to Kayenta, Az where we stayed before our 9 hour trek the next day to Ft. Collins.  We took back roads and byways which are typically much prettier.  We went behind monument valley and got to see some of the formations from a different perspective. 
Driving north into Utah allowed us to visit a brewery in Moab (for Handsome) and cross through the mountains into Colorado - there was already snow and even some ski runs were open!
When we got to Ft. Collins we found that we were staying at the cutest little condo.  It was decorated immaculately (we found out later that it was owned by architects), like something your world traveling quirky Aunt would have.  They had left the lights on for us and it was great!  Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures :(  While in Ft. Collins we walked the Poudre trail, went to several breweries and went to Old Town to visit the shops and restaurants.  We found a great cheese shop where we went for breakfast one day and had a flight of cheeses and meats along with wine and beer.  We also drove around the city and countryside to look at the housing situation if we decided to move there.

Halfway during our vacation we made the trip down to Colorado Springs.  We visited the Cave of Winds where Handsome was sure that I was going to get lost and left behind because I kept stopping to take pictures.  We also visited the Cheyyenne Mountain zoo where we spent quite a bit of time with the giraffes feeding them crackers and lettuce.  We had the chance to catch up with my Aunt and see her terrific new place.  The place we stayed wasn't as nice as the place in Ft. Collins, in fact at first I thought it was kinda creepy because it had bare bones furniture and was super crooked, it felt like it should be haunted.  However my husband took me into the basement and picked up a shovel telling me he would use it to protect us from zombies... for some reason this made me laugh and after that I thought the house had character.
 

 Now on to the IVF stuff.  I have been very tired since I started the medication, typically getting to bed before 9pm and sometimes I take naps during lunch time as well.  At my ultrasound appointment on Saturday they said I had at least 10 follicles on each side and they were about 8mm in size (which is typical).  I went back today and the follicles vary from 10mm to 13mm.  I feel fat and bloated as well as tired and sometimes feel as though I have just inhaled water.  Its all the bloating and it could be the start of OHSS but to help combat that (since I have so many follicles that are growing) they started me on a new medication to help combat OHSS.  They said I had something like 12 follicles on one side and 16 on the other.  I go back tomorrow for a blood tests and then Thursday for both a blood tests and another ultrasound.  Once the follicles get around 16mm I will be in everyday until the retrieval.  Keep your fingers crossed that we get lots of mature eggs!  ttyl



Wednesday, November 6, 2013

IVF Baseline

This will be short, I keep trying to find time to blog but Handsome keeps interrupting.  I typically blog while he is at the gym but have had things to catch up on or he is changing his gym days and it has thrown everything into a tizzy.  He is home now so I can't blog long, see I like to spend time with him when he is here.  We both work so finding quality time throughout the week can sometimes be difficult.  And right now with the days so short (it gets dark here at 6pm) it seems like there is no time at all!

So I will blog longer about our recent trip to Colorado and my wonderful Mom and Daughter's day that I had with my Mom for her birthday.  But I thought I would drop a note about our IVF going forward.

As I mentioned in my last post we are going forward with a new cycle of IVF.  We are going to do the IVF plus option which includes the egg retrieval, egg fertilization, and then two frozen transfers.  I am hoping that we don't end up needing that second transfer.  FTC includes as part of their protocol ICSI, intracytoplasmic sperm injection and assisted hatching.  The total price will be $15,500 - gulp.  Luckily I have some stock through my last employer that I was able to sell for this AND FTC was willing to take late payment so I could sell right after an earnings announcement when the price would go higher. 

I have had my baseline ultrasound which was fast and easy although I did feel some mental discomfort as I was on my cycle and that can be embarrassing.  FTC has a ultrasound specialist rather than random doctors or nurses doing the ultrasounds and it is the same specialist throughout which I like - better consistency.  She said that from an ultrasound prospective I was good to go.  I got a call later from Maggie my IVF coordinator and Dr. Behera says everything looks good to go forward with the current meds.  I've been getting the Lupron shots (in the stomach) for over a week now and even had my Mom give me some when I was visiting her.  Yesterday I started my Follistim shots as well which are given again in the stomach but with a pen like device.  Later this week I will be getting Menopur shots as well, for a total of three - yes three - shots in my stomach each morning.  Tomorrow I have another ultrasound and dosages may be changed going forward.  ttyl

"This old man
He played 3
He played knick knack on my knee
with a knick knack patty wack give a dog a bone
this old man came rolling home!"