And it's begun

Well I've officially started this new round! Although I had the blood work and ultrasound done yesterday it wasn't until I took my shots this evening that it felt real.

One of my good friends was asking me if they have changed my procedure this time around and the short answer is no.

I have already been put onto the largest dose they give, but this will be the first time that I have tried while taking DHEA and Coq10.

So here is exactly what I am taking every day...

At breakfast: 1 low dose Aspirin,  25 mg DHEA, 100mg Ubiquinol (CoQ10)

At lunch: 25 mg DHEA, 100 mg Ubiquinol (CoQ10), 1 prenatal vitamin

At 4:25: 1 injection of 450 IU Gonal f, 1 injection of 150 IU Menopur 

At supper: 25 mg DHEA, 100 mg Ubiquinol (CoQ10)

I do this each day until Monday morning at which time I will go in for more blood work and another ultrasound. Depending on what's happening they will either get me to continue or perhaps adjust my meds. 

Fingers crossed I have lots of follicles this time so we can switch over to IVF!

I've been asked how many shots I have to take... and to be honest I have no idea so I've decided to start a running tally.

Day 1- Shots- 2

Third Time`s the Charm

Third time`s the charm- Used to express the hope that, after twice failing to accomplish something, one may succeed in the third attempt.  

  -Oxford dictionaries

Well here we go again!

After having a 55 day cycle last time, this month was only a 19 day cycle! 

When I started my period yesterday I called in to the period hotline right away, and they called me back a couple of hours later to tell me to go in today to get my baseline ultrasound and blood work. 

I honestly think I was a little bit in shock. After all the waiting it was finally here and I was (am)  filled with an overwhelming mix of emotions.

All ultrasounds and blood work at the Regional Fertility Clinic are on a first come, first served basis starting at 7:30 a.m.  The doors to the Cambrian Centre, however, open at 6:00 a.m. and you can get a number and then go back later. 

This morning I got there at 6:03 and got... the number 8!

Apparently there are some very early risers this round! I have never gotten a number so high before and I was nervous that I would be late for work, but luckily I was able to get everything done and still get to work before 9:00.

Instead of waiting in my car, driving to the Tim Horton`s and working on report cards or reading a book, this time I went for a walk. I really enjoyed it so I think it will be my new norm. 

If you have been following my blog you will know that I typically have a cyst on one of my ovaries and this time was no exception. My right ovary was fine, however, the did see a small 0.9 cyst or left over follicle on my left ovary. The doctor assured me that it was nothing to worry about. It is only if they are 1.5 or above that they worry that it might interfere with the cycle.

Tomorrow I will start my injections. I need to take them between 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.and at the same time each day. I think I am going to take them around 4:00 p.m. Last time they asked me to take them at 1:00, which was fine, but it meant I had to take them at school. I`d rather take them at home in the privacy of my own bathroom if possible. I`ll just have to be careful to make sure I leave work right away so I`m not late taking it.

Here`s hoping that this is lucky number three for us!

Waiting

I thought I should write a quick update of where things stand for us right now.

As per normal we are in the waiting stage...

Honestly I feel as though this is where I spend the majority of my time...

Waiting to see if my period is going to start,
waiting to hear back from the clinic,
waiting to get started on the next cycle,
waiting to see if this is the month I finally get pregnant!

My period finally did come after cycle day 55! Crazy!

I'm currently on day 16 of this new cycle and when my period comes I will call into the Period Hotline to start our new and final cycle. Chris and I weren't

Period Hotline, don't you just love the name?

My nerves have been kicking in, although, I'm trying my best to stay as calm as possible. I actually started watching 'Just for Laughs' and comedians like Wanda Sykes. Her waxing for the first time stand up routine had me laughing so hard I had tears running down my face.

I'll write more often once we actually get started... for now there isn't much to say.

Thankfully I should have report cards finished before the start of the next cycle so at least I won't be trying to both at the same time!

Prometrium

Cycle day 50

As unbelievable as it sounds it has been 50 days since the first day of my last period!

Two negative pregnancy tests later... I just started taking prometrium to kick start my period.

A week after I took the first pregnancy test I called the Calgary Regional Fertility Clinic and told the receptionist what was happening. She called me back the next day and told me my doctor wanted to prescribe prometrium.

"Prometrium uses: Progesterone is a type of female hormone (progestin). This medication is similar to the progesterone that your body naturally makes and is given to replace the hormone when your body is not making enough of it. In women who are not pregnant and not going through menopause, this medication si used to restore normal menstrual periods that have stopped for several months (amenorrhea)." - WebMd

I was surprised that they didn't send me for blood work first to check my hormone levels so I took another pregnancy test... just to be sure. It was of course negative.

So I started taking the prometrium. I take two pills for 10 days before going to bed and then I should start my period within a week or so after the last pills.

When I finally do start I will call in to the period hotline and then they will start my file again and I will start the following month.

As always I'm trying not to get too down and I'm trying to build myself back up again.

The roller coaster ride continues.

 

 



Frustrated

frus-trat-ed

adjective

• feeling or expressing distress and annoyance, especially because of inability to change or achieve something.
• prevented from progressing, succeeding, or being fulfilled.

Cycle day 38!

 

Yes, that's right! I am on cycle day 38 and still no period.

 

This morning I finally broke down and took a pregnancy test and no surprise... it was negative. I am beyond frustrated at this point. Sometimes I feel as though this is all a cruel joke.

 

I'm going to call the Regional Fertility Clinic tomorrow to see what they suggest. I'm assuming they will want to send me for blood work, but I'm not sure. The blood work would be able to help figure out whether I ovulated or not, but wouldn't tell much more.

 

Of course my mind is reeling with all the different possibilities...

 

am I just stressed?

 

going into early menopause?

 

am I somehow miraculously pregnant, but its just too soon... I know this one's not true!

 

Not sure what's happening and just wish someone could tell me exactly what was happening and why!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Still Waiting...

The reason I haven't written a post about our next round is that I am still waiting to start my period! I am currently on cycle day 34 and other than experiencing my typical back pain there is no sign of my period starting.

Can you say frustrating?!

The last time my period was this late it was the month that I was going in to have my surgery. I was so worried at the time that I was going into early menopause, but the nurse assured me it was probably just stress.

So I'm hoping that I'm just stressed about this last cycle...

It is so funny how I can be so stressed that my body will delay having its period yet I don't 'feel' like I am that worried.

I remember when a friend of mine passed away a few years ago. I thought I was doing ok except for having the bad timing of also getting a stomach flu...

Stomach flu? Ha! Not quite!

Turns out I was so upset I actually made myself physically sick!

So here I sit waiting to start my period when normally it is the last thing I want to happen.

Getting Ready...

Last week I went into the Regional Fertility Clinic to have a follow up

appointment after my surgery and to plan our next steps.

I was happy to find out that my uterus is 'normal'. I do have some uterine fibroids, but they are embedded in my uterine wall which I guess is normal. She did say that I had some scar tissue, but she was able to successfully remove it.

She was unsure how I would have gotten it, but it may have been left over from my miscarriage.

So next month we will begin our third and final round of IUI/IVF. We will start with a medicated IUI with the hopes that I will get enough eggs to be able to switch to IVF. (The reason for doing it this way is so that we don't have to put down as much money up front as we would have to if we started with IVF.)

Our doctor also wrote in our file that we would be interested in adopting an embryo if this round doesn't work out for us. Hopefully we won't have to do this, however, if we do it may help to cut down our wait time.

A few of my friends have been confused by this process so I will try and explain it the best I can.

If Chris and I are unable to conceive on our own we have the option of adopting an embryo from another couple who have successfully had their children through IVF. Often couples will get several embryos when trying IVF. Once they have finished having their children couples can decide what they would like to do with their remaining embryos. Some couples offer to donate them to other couples trying to conceive.

There is no charge for the embryos, however, there are legal fees for the adoption process. It can range from $2000- $5000 plus there is also the cost of having the embryos emplanted.

We would be given three chances to conceive and if we are successful we are only given this opportunity once. We wouldn't be able to try again later to have a second child.

As always I am hoping that we will be able to conceive our own child, however, I do feel good that we have this as a possibility if it doesn't work out for us.

I was in Chapters last week and I saw the cutest onesie. It had a simple picture of a turtle and the caption below read 'Worth the Wait'.

As soon as I saw it I lost my breath and my eyes filled up. It is quite literally the perfect onesie.

So now I am getting ready for our next round... dreaming of being able to one day put that perfect onesie on our perfect little baby.