Waiting Game

We got the call on Friday that our last embryo did not survive long enough to be frozen for future use. Not a huge surprise to us, as we don't plan on going through any further treatments in the future, this is the end of the road for us if this doesn't work.

As for me, I've been trying to relax and remain positive, but it is just so hard when so much has taken place in the past week. It's hard to believe a week ago tonight is when we lost Kim. My thoughts and prayers are with my brother's family.

I return to work tomorrow and am looking forward to it and hoping it will make my week go by faster.

Embryo Transfer

First off, let me start by saying that my heart has been with my entire family today. I cannot stop thinking about my niece Kimberly. Such a tragic loss to our family. I considered canceling the transfer today, but the doctor said it's not an option, it's now or never. I know Kim was with me in that room today, my thoughts and prayers are with her.

The transfer went picture perfect. We had 5 embryos which made for a very tough decision. I knew going in there today, that freezing any for future use was not an option for me. I cannot go through this process one more time. It is just too emotional and stressful.

That said, we made the difficult decision to transfer 4 embryos. 3 were grade A and 1 was grade B. Below is the ultrasound where you can see them circled in red, and pics of the little kiddos before they were transferred! 

The one we chose not to transfer was a grade C. I really only wanted to transfer 3 as we have done in the past, but if that didn't work, I don't want to ever question why I didn't put that fourth one in since it was good quality.

Now it is time for me to rest and be with my family. Please pray for us over the coming weeks as these babies snuggle in for the long haul!

Fertilization Report

Finally some good news to report. . . . 
ALL 5 ARE GRADE A!

I have a new transfer time tomorrow, I'll be having acupuncture at 10:30 and my transfer will be from 11:30-1:30. Then I will come home and rest and have acupuncture again tomorrow afternoon. We just have to pray that they continue to do well over the next 24-hours!

I am thankful to Jeremy's parents for taking Carson for me this weekend so I could rest up before the big day tomorrow, I've missed him so much and am really looking forward to seeing him today.

I'll update you all tomorrow.

Fertilization Report

Dr. Olive just called me to tell me 5 of the 8 have fertilized. Again we were hoping for a few more, but 5 is still okay. We going to be doing a Tuesday embryo transfer at 8:30 a.m.

I will get another call tomorrow to tell me how the "kids" are doing. I pray that they all continue to do well until then!

Now for me, back to bed, I'm a hurting unit!

Home from the Egg Retrieval

The Retrieval went well and I'm very glad that part is over. They were able to get 8 eggs, we'll find out tomorrow how many fertilized, the waiting is killing me! We were really hoping they'd get 11 eggs, but no such luck, some of them were just too small, so we were a little disappointed with the number.

Now we will just cross our fingers for good quality and that most of them fertilize! I'll know more tomorrow about how they are growing and when the embryo transfer will be, most likely Monday or Tuesday.

Going to acupuncture later for some pain relief and then back home to bed. I am happy to report I feel better today that I have during my past IVF's, so that's the good news.

Thanks for your support on here and through emails!

Egg Retrieval is scheduled!

Finally, I am so excited to be done with the first part of this IVF cycle. The egg retrieval will be on Saturday morning. Tonight at exactly 11 p.m. I am to take two injections of Ovidrel to prepare my body for the retrieval.

Today's doctor visit went really well! My estrogen is at 1177, progesterone at 1.03, and below are the sizes of my follicles:

Left side: 19, 19, 18, 17, 14, 14, 13, 11
Right side: 17, 16, 15

Saturday morning I will start to take Doxycycline (2x per day), Estrace (3x per day) and progesterone (2 shots per day). I believe the retrieval will be around 9:15 in the morning. The entire process will take a couple hours and then I will be released to come home and rest, followed by an acupuncture appointment in the early evening to help reduce some of the pain.

After the eggs have been retrieved, they will be immediately fertilized through a method called ICSI by an embryologist. Over the next few days as the embryos grow we will get daily updates on how they are growing and expanding. Since we don't have as many eggs this time, we will likely do a day 2 or day 3 transfer on Monday or Tuesday.

I'll let you all know how things turn out on Saturday. Until then, please say a few prayers for us!

Slowly but surely. . . it will happen!

Had my appointment this morning. The doctor said that today's the day for the trigger and Friday will be the retrieval. Then I got a call at lunch that they've changed their minds and I will need to continue my meds for one more day and return for another ultrasound and blood draw tomorrow (Thursday). The plan is now to trigger on Thursday and have the egg retrieval on Saturday. This will give the smaller follicles one more chance to get caught up to the others. Let's hope the plan doesn't change again :)

Today's visit went well, my estrogen is at 947 and progesterone is at .92. Below are the follicle sizes that were measured today:

Left side: 16, 16, 15, 15, 14, 13, 12, 12
Right side: 18, 15, 12

Again, they prefer them to be around 18 mm at the time of trigger, so they may not all be mature enough or contain an egg.

Holding my breath that tomorrow I get the thumbs up for an egg retrieval on Saturday!

Almost There!

Today's appointment went well. My estrogen is up to 533 and my lining looks good. She didn't measure it, but she said she likes for it to be over 7 at the time of the embryo transfer, so we'll see! Below are the sizes of the follicles I have growing:

Left side:      14, 14, 13, 12, 11 and 9
Right side:   12 and 9

The goal is to do the egg retrieval when the follicles are large enough to produce a mature egg. They prefer to do the trigger shots of Ovidrel when the follicle has reached 18-20 mm. They are assuming that day will be on Wednesday or Thursday since the average follicle grows 1-2 mm per day. I have another appointment on Wednesday to see if they've reached the proper size. When they are large enough, the clinic will call me with an exact time to take the 2 injections of Ovidrel. And then the egg retrieval will be 36 hours later.

Here's to hoping the week flies by for me!! More from me in a few days. . .

Making some progress!

Well today's visit went better. My estrogen and lining are finally starting to improve. I have about 6 follies growing on my left side and only about 2 on my right side. Since I had a slower than normal start, I will have to stim a little longer than usual (likely to be about 13 days), probably until Tuesday or Wednesday. We are planning the egg retrieval for Thursday or Friday. Since I don't have very many follicles growing, the doctor thinks we will be doing a day 2 or day 3 transfer next weekend sometime.

For now, I continue all of my meds and start an additional one on Saturday. I will also continue doing acupuncture every couple days as well. My next doctor appointment will be on Monday. By then we should know when the actual egg retrieval will be.

Until then, we'll cross our fingers and hope for the best!

Slow Start

I had a quick ultrasound and blood work done today at the clinic. I was a little disappointed to her say that I am off to a "slow start" as she suspected I would be. I sure hope everything is going okay. The doctor was in a bit of a hurry as she had to go do a transfer for someone after my visit. She said she saw a few small follicles growing, on my chart she said there were 3 to 4 on the left and 3 to 4 on the right. However, it is still early, so we'll know much more on Thursday's visit. But those words do worry me. . .

So far the migraines have been horrible, and the only thing I can take is Tylenol. I'm looking forward to going back to work tomorrow in hopes it will take my mind off of things.

For now, we just hope they keep growing and more appear so that my entire cycle doesn't get cancelled. We'll know more on Thursday!

Grow Follies Grow!

Well we made it back from a successful trip to Florida, Carson did amazingly well on the plane. It was a wonderful trip, just wish it could have lasted longer! We visited Busch Gardens where we got to meet Elmo, Zoe, Grover, Cookie Monster, Abbie and Big Bird. We also stopped at the Clearwater Aquarium to see Winter, the star of A Dolphin's Tale. They filmed most of the movie at the Aquarium, so it was an exciting place to visit the week of the movie release! We also had some family come to visit us and got to spend time on the beach and at the pool. Overall it was a great trip, below are a couple photos I thought I'd share!

Today was my baseline visit at the fertility clinic. Dr. Pritts did the mock transfer to make sure everything will go okay the day of my actual transfer which will be in a couple weeks. They also did an ultrasound and took some blood work to make sure my estrogen is below 50. Today was also when the payment was due for the IVF which came to $9800. My next doctor appointment will be on Monday for a repeat ultrasound and blood draw.

I started my shots tonight, it's been a few years and I'm on some meds I've never been on before so it was a little confusing since each medication has it's own needle. The 450 IU of follistim was pretty routine, you use only one needle to administer the medication, which will be helping me to grow multiple follicles. Then I had to draw up the Luveris with one needle to mix the medication and use a separate needle to administer, this medication also assists with egg production. I am still taking 9 pills a day as well and on Thursday will most likely start a third shot, Ganirelix.

So for now, it's just pills, shots, acupuncture and eating healthy . . .

They've arrived!

Here's my money shot, literally! This is what $5,000 in meds looks like and to think I'll be putting all of this into my body in the next few weeks. Just a forewarning as to why I may be a bit hormonal!

 

Here is a pic of some of the needles I'll be using, from left to right: Progesterone needle, Luverix needle, and Follistim pen

I'm looking forward to having a week off to go to Florida before officially starting these next Friday. Gald I don't have to try to smuggle all of these on the plane with me! 

I have my baseline doctor appointment next Friday morning at 10 a.m. Hopefully I'll get the "all clear" to start my 3 shots a day (too bad these ones aren't alcoholic)! I'll be starting with Follistim 450 IU and a Luverix shot at night, then will be adding another shot, Ganirelix, after a few days of being on the first two. 

I probably won't have another update for you all until next Friday, so have a great week!

Today's the big day!

I got to start my birth control today, I'm so excited to get this started!

I got a phone call with my total cost for my meds, I was slightly wrong with my estimate of $3,000. They said it is going to total $6,460, YIKES! This is because they've switched my protocol from my last IVFs and are putting me on the highest dosage of Follistim to hopefully increase the quantity of eggs my body will produce. I'm having a little sticker shock right now. I have a call into the doctor office to see if there is another pharmacy that may be a little cheaper. We are hoping to get the meds delivered this Thursday or Friday before I go on my trip to Florida.

So here is my tentative schedule for the next few weeks.


For the next 10 days I'll be taking:
Birth Control - used to control the timing of the cycle and to temporarily shut down your ovaries

Metformin - to improve my quality and quantity of eggs

Levothryoxine - to get my thyroid levels where they need to be to sustain a pregnancy

DHEA - to improve my quality and quantity of eggs

On Friday, Sept. 23rd:
I'll have my baseline visit at the fertility clinic which includes:
   • Ultrasound - to be sure there are no eggs growing and to
      check that my lining is thin
   • Bloodwork - to check my estrogen levels
   • Mock Embryo Transfer - to be sure there are no surprises
      the big day of the real transfer
   • Payment - because they want there money :)
   • Start taking Follistim and Luveris - to stimulate follicles
      and grow eggs!

From that point on I will have an ultrasound and bloodwork done every few days to monitor how my body is reacting to the medications and to be sure I am not being overstimulated.

Looking forward to going on a vacation before the really important part begins. Thank you all for your support!

Meds are on their way!

Finally.

I am excited to report that I will be getting some of my prescriptions this weekend from a local pharmacy, and some via mail through a fertility pharmacy . . . I finally feel like we may actually be going through with this after all!

I had a chance to talk with the nurse, sounds like my protocol this time will be quite different from those I've been through in the past. I will not be using Lupron this time, which will make things go a little quicker. I am also going to be taking some meds I've never taken before. I haven't seen the bill for the meds yet, but am expecting it to be around $3,000. They are putting me on the highest dosage of Follistim possible, this medication is VERY expensive. If I remember correctly, each injection costs around $300-400 per DAY.

I'll post my protocol when I get it in the mail, and pics of the medications when they arrive. A very exciting day indeed!

I don't know if I've shared this with too many of you before, but I'll put this link up here for good luck. This was the first time we ever got to see Carson's beating heart over 3 years ago. The most amazing time in my life! Copy and paste into your browser. . .

http://s286.photobucket.com/albums/ll119/angelabiermeier/?action=view&current=07-53-49.mp4

Enjoy!

Frustrating . . .

Before going through with our IVF, there were many tests that needed to be done in preparation before we can proceed. Jeremy and I have already completed all of our blood work, additional testing and surgery. I think coordinating these between our Family Practice Doctor, OB, Fertility Doctors and Insurance were the hardest part. You see, when you are labeled as having infertility, EVERY test you have from that point on is questioned as to whether it is fertility-related or not. Insurance will cover nothing if it is at all related to infertility.

As if that part is not frustrating enough, playing phone tag with doctors and nurses is another joy I've been dealing with. I have to get my meds ordered and to me by this weekend in case my cycle starts. I've been trying to get this done since last week and the fertility nurse has dropped the ball yet again. I'm hoping to hear from her tomorrow. I have to be home when the meds are delivered because some of them require refrigeration, which means I need to get them ordered tomorrow for a Thursday delivery. We'll see if it all works out!

Let's just hope I can finally start this IVF, I'm SO excited and hopeful. . . .

Resting after surgery

I had my third hysteroscopy surgery yesterday, let's hope it's the last! During a recent sonohystogram, they thought they found two polyps, but during surgery it turned out to be a bunch of blood clots they removed. I have spent the day resting up and am feeling quite good. Feeling pretty positive about our upcoming IVF which should hopefully start in the next two weeks.

I've already been taking some meds in preparation for our IVF: Metformin (to help with egg quality), DHEA (to improve egg quantity and quality), Levothryoxine (to get my thyroid levels to a point where that can sustain a pregnancy), and prenatal vitamins of course.

I should be getting my meds for my IVF cycle later this week or early week sometime, along with my protocol and schedule from the fertility clinic. I will post some pics when we get those.

Next week I will start my weekly acupuncture appointments again as well. Acupuncture is very important when going through an IVF cycle. It assists with blood flow to the uterus, hormone balance, and also helps to control pain and stress throughout the process. Research shows that it can improve success rate as well.

Another IVF for us!

As some of you may, or may not know, we have been through years of fertility treatments and surgeries in hopes of having a family. Four years ago our journey started with a gamut of tests, resulting in a few surgeries. We went through approximately 7 or 8 IUI's and then moved on to IVF. We were thrilled to find out our first IVF was a success, only to find out at 10 weeks pregnant the babies heart had stopped beating. Devastating - no other way to describe it. A few months later, more surgery. Then we decided to do another IVF which resulted in the birth of our son, the happiest day of our lives! 


In the 2 1/2 years since the birth of our son, we have tried on our own, with no luck. In May we decided to use our 3 remaining frozen embryos from our first two IVF cycles. We were devastated when we found out that we were unsuccessful once again. 


After more tests, we were disheartened to hear that my body is nearing the end of it's fertility (or ovarian reserve). With this news, we've decided it's now or never if we are going to try one more IVF in hopes of a sibling for our son.

IVF is such an overwhelming process and I wanted to have a way of updating all of my friends and family at once. I am not only looking for your support, but also hoping to enlighten you on the entire IVF process. I look forward to your questions, feedback, and strength to get me through these next few months!

Please check back daily/weekly for updates and pictures!