Surprise! I bet you thought that you were done hearing from me…ha ha, you were wrong! So, I’m updating here because we’ve got 6ish weeks left over here. If it seems like time has flown by for you as the reader, it has over here too! For my video game nerds – you know how in Zelda: Majora’s Mask, you control the flow of time? Sometimes it feels like someone has played the “inverted song of time” (slow), and other times it feels like we’ve played the “song of double time”. It feels slower (to me) right now because the baby...
Time to get uncomfortable. Ready to feel some feelings? Let’s talk about Mother’s Day. I’ve discussed this with a few other women in my support group who have struggled with infertility and have completed their journey – either through stopping treatment, or achieving success through IVF, adoption, or surrogacy. And a common thread among us is extreme difficulty reconciling your feelings about motherhood when you have closely identified (and lived) as an infertile person for a long time. You mark days like “Mother’s Day” and “Father’s Day” on your calendar and make a mental note about how that will be a day...
On Friday, March 31st – both Dean and I went to the Quest Lab that is closest to our house to do my glucose tolerance test. Also known as the test that searches for gestational diabetes. Or, as Mr. Brimley would say: Now, the reason I selected this particular Quest office was because they offered a 7:15AM appointment time, and when you are pregnant and fasting, a) the sooner you can eat, the better and b) I am still working, so I wanted to make sure I didn’t impact the office with my absence. As always, we came prepared – Dean...
As a quick aside before I update everyone – the pregnancy comparisons to food are super weird. Last week it was a Mango, and now it’s an ear of corn? Okay, app. Whatever you say. I will be 24 weeks this Thursday, the 23rd and have my routine OB appointment the following day. According to both my pregnancy apps, his brain is continuing to develop and his lungs are developing the “branches” of his respiratory tree which will help him breathe in the outside world. Apparently, he is now considered ‘viable’, even though he would need intensive neonatal care. How am...
Okay, okay, I am a bit late in posting this. I’m sorry, it’s been really busy over here. We had our transfer on 10/25, and Dr. Cass was there to perform it! I had my same nurse who performed my ultrasound…again, THE WORST part of the whole thing is needing to pee but not being able to. There was a Nurse in the room who did not introduce herself to me, so as I got into the stirrups, I said, “Hi, I know we don’t know each other, but my name is Jen and this is my vagina.” Everyone laughed,...
I had my lining check on 10/12, and everything looks great – 11mm like last time, which is great! I go back into the RE office on 10/19 for another ultrasound to check my lining, as well as a blood test to make sure that my estrogen still at a good level. If everything goes well, I start the PIO shots on 10/20. I am actually toying with the idea of filming one of these to document the truly fun part of this experience. I know that this is probably a weird idea, but I figure that there are way...
I’m sorry I left you all hanging and in suspense, it has been really busy for me lately and I haven’t had time to update. I had my appointment on Saturday October 1st, and that cyst is GONE. Thank you to everyone who kept me in their thoughts while we waited to hear. This cycle is going to proceed as normal! I have an appointment to check my lining on October 12th, and they will teach me how to give my PIO (progesterone in oil) injections. These are intramuscular injections, instead of subcutaneous. If you’re wondering what that means, it...
Like getting your period! It’s exciting because you can start a new cycle, begin your cycle meds, another chance at pregnancy, etc. But…real talk? It goes more like this: Thank you, Homer. During treatment, I really only have enough space for one feeling at a time, but every unique feeling decides it wants to push its way to the front, and ruin my day. Having a great day? Why not cry about IVF for 45 minutes? Feeling angry? Here’s some grateful feelings for how wonderful your friends and family can be! It’s really confusing to articulate, but it really is messy and...
Today was my Day 21 baseline appointment. This is generally a pretty routine appointment, you get an ultrasound, they count your AFC (Antral Follicle Count), and then you get your protocol that you will begin as soon as your period starts. …..Except, for when they discover a functional cyst. Some of you may remember this post, where I thought I had received my period but I had not. What I had was a functional cyst, as a direct result of stress in my body (stress, illness, professional, etc). This cyst is a direct cause of me not releasing an egg as I should. The...
No, this is not an album title…though now I feel like I should use it (so dont steal it!). This is something that has been on my mind to share for a few days, but it seems appropriate now because well… I had a little bit of a meltdown yesterday. Okay, okay…maybe it was a big, ugly crying breakdown. I have received a lot of compliments about how ‘strong’ I am, or remarks about how much courage it takes to write down our experiences like this. Truthfully, because I am terrible with compliments, I laugh or minimize these comments because...
