Just Another Manic Monday and....

I start Lupron!

As my IVF Cycle is getting underway I realize the holidays have pretty much flown by already. It is back to work tomorrow in a blizzard no doubt, but such is life. I will be on 10 units of Lupron until my Baseline Ultrasound and E2 with Dr. T on January 3. Speaking of Manic Mondays, I will leave for your viewing pleasure the original Manic Monday by The Bangles, which was written by the one and only musical genius Prince... This song always made my Mondays a little better...

Until Next Time,

New Clinic= New Protocol

I recently received my IVF Protocol from my new clinic and I will be on the Long "Luteal" Lupron Protocol. This will be my first time undergoing this protocol and I am really excited. Here is an example of a Long Lupron Cycle after Birth Control Pills have been taken for 21 days.

Photography Credit

So Mr. Blessed Bud and I have lots to do before our cycle in November. We have to get blood work this weekend and I just ordered my meds. My stimulation will consist of using Follistim, and Luveris. I have no worries and no fear as I know this cycle is in God's hands.

Congrats to the Worry Buds on the birth of their beautiful daughter! Thank you Make-Up Bud for posting about iamtheface.org.

Until Next Time,

Having GREAT friends helps + follie check #1!

I had my first follie monitoring appointment this morning, but before I talk about that, can I just AW my dear dear Bud friends for a minute?! Chef Bud & Obsessive Bud. They are literally so.freakin.awesome. And let me tell you why....

First, Chef Bud - she is such a wonderful, sweet person. We met online on one of our favorite TTC message boards back in late June when Mr. Worry Bud & I started TTC. We have been there to root each other on through failed cycle, after failed cycle, but have both tried to remain positive & hopeful! Since we both started seeing RE's for our TTC issues around the same time, we kept in touch via email to support each other. I checked our mail this morning (forgot to last night...had to run to the grocery store to get some essentials before the crazy winter storm expected to hit our area in a few hours) & look what I got:

Lucky penguin Valentines socks, a very sweet card & a rose quartz heart shaped stone. The note with the rose quartz says "RQ represents love & fertility. It is said to help promote pregnancy & to protect the mother & unborn fetus from miscarriage."

Well, I sent a personal note to CB, but I just want to say publicly that you have no clue how much this gesture means to me. It brought tears to my eyes that someone I have never met IRL cares that much about me to put together something so special & send it to me. It makes me feel so good to know that I have such wonderful people out there thinking of me. My rose quartz heart & penguin socks will definitely be accompanying me to my monitoring & other appts. & procedures! Thank you again & again & again Chef Bud - you are truly a wonderful person, friend & are going to make a wonderful mother. I love you girl!

And then, there's Obessive Bud. She is an awesome friend & shortly after she joined the blog, we became close friends that talk pretty much everyday via text, phone or G-Chat. She has been so positive & has been a wonderful support system for me - cheering me on as I go! I just want to say thank you to you as well OB for always being there & for calming me down when I start freaking & WORRYing about everything I have going on. I love you too & you are an awesome friend. I can't wait to "meet" that precious LO you have growing big & strong inside you. I know that you will be an awesome momma!

And while I'm at it...to all the other Buds, followers, friends that have been thinking of us during our IVF cycle & have commented on my posts, leaving us well wishes & hope & prayers & love...I also want to say, again, to each of you: THANK YOU! It truly warms my heart to know how many other women out there care about my story & are thinking of me. Mr. WB & I want to express how much it means to us, but I honestly don't think I can put how much your support means into words. It has helped me to remain positive, upbeat & hopeful about this cycle! I consider each of you my virtual friends & just want you to know that I think about & pray for each you every day & night as well!

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Okay, sorry for the long prelude to this post, but I felt like I needed to express how much everyone's support has meant & continues to mean to me everyday! So, IDK how many of you live on the east coast, but we are expecting a huge winter storm today - many meteorologists are predicting that this could be one of the worst we have had in nearly 10 years! I mean the one in December dropped almost 2 feet of snow & this is supposed to be worse...eeek! Both that December storm & this one are predicted to be in the top 10 worse winter storms for this area! This photo shows the snow on my back deck form December - it was a lot!

Anyways, I say all this to describe my RE office visit this morning. I went in for my first follie monitoring appointment this morning & it was PACKED at my RE's office. I found out that they moved all of their Saturday monitoring appointments to this morning to avoid the craziness that is sure to take over my area in just a few short hours. Despite the office being a bit more packed than usual, I still got in & out in about 30 min. I got my blood drawn (only 1 vial again!), then emptied my bladder & walked back to the ultrasound waiting area. Once I was called in, my RE checked out my lining & ovaries with the "vag cam". He said my lining was getting thicker, just like it should & then he checked out both ovaries after 3 days of stimming with Gonal-F & Menopur. On my left ovary, he said he observed "12 less than 10mm" & on the right I have "10 less than 10mm". He said I appear to be right on track & that after they get my blood results back, then my nurse will give me call with directions on either adjusting or keeping my meds dosages the same. I asked if it started getting bad outside would they possibly not call with directions & they said they'd make every single call before leaving for the night! I love my RE's office staff - everyone is so nice from the financial coordinator - to the girl who draws blood - to all the nurses - and especially my RE. He's a great man & I have have such respect for him & confidence in him that he is doing anything he can to help us get pregnant. It definitely helps me stay positive when I feel so confident in the staff working with us!

While waiting to be called in for my u/s, I got a chance to chat with several other women cycling right now, one was doing an IUI, a couple doing frozen cycles, and one other doing fresh. It always makes me feel better to talk with someone else in a similar situation, or who has gone through the same thing I am going through now. We talked about how everything was going so far. I asked them if any of them were using Menopur & a couple had - we talked about how much that shot stings! It's hard to describe, but the best thing I can think of is that it feels kind of like fire being shot inside of you. Nothing I can't handle, but it definitely doesn't feel that great! So far, that has been the most difficult shot for me. Despite that, I am still remaining positive & hopeful and feeling pretty good so far! I do feel a bit uncomfortable in my ovaries b/c they are getting bigger with all the follies, but that was something I expected to feel, so again, nothing I can't handle! So, that's my update - sorry for such a LONG post, but I had so much to say! Thanks as always for continuing to pray for & think of us...I think about all of you everyday too!

And if you are in the storm area, stay safe this weekend! It just started coming down here!

Lupron Evaluation - Done!

This morning I went in for my Lupron Evaluation, which consists of a blood draw & vaginal ultrasound. I got my blood drawn first & the girl doing it was really nice - it was quick & painless (only 1 vial)! Then, they had me empty my bladder & sit down and wait to be called in for the u/s. I have now had a couple vaginal ultrasounds, so this one was no biggie. My RE did this one & I love it when he does them b/c he shows me what's going on & talks to me while he's doing the check.

He checked my lining first & said it was nice & thin, which is good at this stage. Then he checked my ovaries & said they both looked awesome - no cysts or anything. When he looked at each ovary he said there were about "7 less than 10" on one side & "about 7" on the other ovary. I didn't ask, but I assumed he was referring to the number of antral follicles he observed. He said everything looked great & I should be all ready to get started stimming!! After I got dressed, I met with one of the IVF nurses & she gave me an updated IVF calendar. So, tonight I start stimming with 112.5 IU of Gonal-F & 37.5 IU of Menopur, and then continue the Lupron each morning, but reduce the dosage from 20 units to 5 each morning. I was told to await the call from my nurse after they get the b/w results, but that I should be good to get started with this meds administration schedule. I am so happy that I finally get to start stimming, but time is flying way quicker than I ever expected! I have a follow up appointment on Friday to monitor the follicle development. I'm staying positive & hopeful & continuing to pray that my body continues to cooperate & respond as it should to the drugs. Please Lord, let this be it for us. As always, I want to thank anyone thinking of or praying for us during this time!

1 down, lots to go...

This morning Mr. Worry Bud & I administered my very first injection for this IVF cycle. I'm on a protocol my RE refers to as a Luteal Lupron Protocol, so that starts with BCPs for 21 days & in the last 3 days of BCPS, I begin Lupron injections. So, that's what we did this morning. Mr. WB works from home on Tuesdays & I leave for work pretty early - around 6am. So, I woke Mr. WB up around 5:50am so that he could "wake up" & not be groggy when giving me the shot. Then, I prepared the needle for the injection, following the instructions we learned in our injection training + the handy how to guide my fertility center provides. Lupron is an injection that should be administered subcutaneously (under the skin). My nurse directed me to do the shot in 1 of 3 places: 1) towards the back (fatty) part of the upper arm, 2) the outer (also fatty) part of the thigh, or 3) in the belly. We selected to do it in the arm b/c I figured that would make it more like getting a flu shot & I get those annually, so it should be no big deal, right? Edit: Originally I wrote that the Lupron injection was a subQ shot like the flu shot, but the flu shot is not subQ, it is an intramuscular injection (thanks DB!)...we did the Lupron more towards the back of the arm.

Photo Credit

Well, I'm happy to report - we did it & honestly, I psyched myself up - woke up several times last night & early this morning a little anxious about the shot...it was not that bad at all. Felt much like a normal flu shot would. I did have a small bump of swelling at the injection site & some redness like a few minutes after the injection, but I massaged the area gently & by the time I arrived at my office, it was all better. Whew! I also started 1 baby (low dose) aspirin this morning - it helps to make your lining ready for implantation.

Last night, I made a Google calendar of all the approximate dates & medications/dosing for this cycle. It'll obviously be changing as I am monitored & I plan on updating it as necessary. So, tonight I will continue my BCPs - I have 3 more doses of this & should finish on Thursday. I will also continue to take my prenatal vitamin in the evenings. Each morning over the next week or two, I'll do the Lupron injection + baby aspirin, and wait on my period to arrive. Once it does (approximately 2/1-2/2), I am to call my nurse so that I can schedule my Lupron evaluation (1st of my monitoring appts.) & shortly thereafter, I will begin stimming. It's hard to believe that we are actually getting this cycle started!! I am continuing to pray several times a day that all of this will bring us the child we have been praying for. I see my IF Counselor tomorrow & I am looking forward to it - she is a good support system. Thanks again for all the support & prayers!

The meds giveth, the meds taketh away....

I was SO happy! FINALLY, after 5 weeks, these ridiculous boobs were starting to feel a little better. They're still larger than life but at least the pain is going away. I was starting to feel a LITTLE more like myself. Still overwhelmingly emotional, but not the lethargic slug that i've been. Just a little more tired than usual.

So happy that I was able to stop taking the BCPs on thanksgiving.

But now... hello Lupron side effects. It's your turn.

The migraine that I attributed to my first BCP period (i forgot that i was going to get one) is now CLEARLY not from my period or the BCPs. I've had migraines now every day for the past 3 days. I haven't had a migraine in almost 3 years. That combined with the dizziness and the crazy dreams I've been getting every time the headaches come tells me it's Lupron's turn.

I've taken some tylenol here and there. I've actually added the tiniest bit of caffeine back into my diet because caffeine can help with headaches. And it IS helping (i'm putting maybe 2-3 oz of caffeinated coffee in my decaf once a day).

Mr. DB keeps saying he hopes we have multiples so I don't have to go through this again. Too bad for him, i keep telling him that being pregnant once might not be enough for me.

I don't know why he keeps laughing.

Meanwhile - 2nd med teaching tomorrow afternoon. I'll post the rest of my protocol when I get home. Monitoring appointment with bloodwork and vagcam on Friday at 7am. Stims start sunday... with us luck and stay tuned...

Until then, follicle wishes and thick lining dreams.