TTC #1- Looking for buddies!

[SunnyBe]

Ah shit! So sorry Tb, I really hoped the timing would just be perfect this month How are you feeling? Treat yourself to something nice today!

Dream, beautiful temp rise When is your appointment with that awful doctor? I hope all will be well.

Wow Steph, a goodwill message! What a beautiful opportunity. I can understand struggling with what to write and how to word it. I would love to know what you end up writing, but would understand if you'd rather keep it private. Good luck!

Yes, it sucks not knowing exactly when we'll be going. As for work, we both plan on working while in Europe (lack of vacation days). We mostly work remotely anyway and our bosses don't care as long as we deliver. Definitely one of the biggest advantages of our jobs!

 

[tbfromlv]

You should see the line on that test. I still can’t believe it! I’m alright, like Dream said we knew it was a long shot this cycle but there’s always that hope.

Have you girls heard of mini IVF? My mom sent me a link today about it and it seems pretty interesting. Basically it’s less stimulation so less medication (which for us in the US means a lot less $) Depending on what we discover this cycle that is being monitored, we might look into it. It costs about the same as doing IUI twice. I figure that’s not too shabby

 

[SunnyBe]

Mini IVF could be very interesting, especially considering the cost of meds!

The only downside is that the number of follicles they'll be able to retrieve will of course be less. This means that there is an increased chance that there won't be any embryos left over after day 3 or day 5, which would require starting all over.

Once you get to the transfer stage, the success rates are similar to regular IVF though.

 

[steph1607]

Thanks for your support as always girls, means a lot.

TB, sorry this wasn't your month love. I haven't heard of mini IVF before- how much cheaper is it in comparison to standard IVF over in your part of the world?

Okay, so hubby is working late today so I'm a loner as usual (the life of a policeman's wife!), so I'll leave it out for him to vet when he comes in but let me know what you think. They are supposed to short, but there is another bit where I can write a description of myself as a person. The goodwill message can only be accessed by the child if they decide they want to find out about the donor when they reach the age of 18. The recipients won't get it.

Goodwill message:

We decided that we wanted to donate because we know how devastating it feels to be told that you might never have the children you have always wanted. We feel so glad that your parents have been able to fulfill their dream of having you, and we wish you a long lifetime of health and happiness with your family.

 

[SunnyBe]

Ahh tearing up a bit. Beautiful Steph!

 

[AmberR]

Aww man so sorry tb! Hugs!
I haven't heard of mini IVF but sounds like it would be worth looking into!

Dream your temps are looking good!

That is such a lovely letter Steph. So sweet.

That is so nice that you and DH have such flexible jobs Sunny!

Afm, I have been having spotting for the last week. It sure seems like it is taking a long time for my body to get it together. It has been a little over 8 weeks since my miscarriage. I guess I imagined things would be back to normal by now. I'm trying it be patient. Will get HCG checked again on Thursday next week and I sure hope it is <1.

 

[Dream143r]

I'll schedule my appointment with the awful doctor after my 8dpo bloodwork on Monday. To get the results of my Sono and DH's SA.

Sunny that's amazing that you're able to work remotely!

Awww I love it Steph, so sweet.

Amber - Praying your HGC is down to zero next Thursday!

 

[tbfromlv]

Well from what I&#8217;ve found St Louis is the closest place that offers it and it ranges from $2000-$4000 for the entire thing. Regular IVF is $12000-$17000, so it&#8217;s pretty significant difference. I&#8217;m not really ready to look that direction yet, but like I said, mom sent me a link and I did a little looking.

I have a baseline ultrasound scheduled for first thing tomorrow morning for this monitored cycle.

Amber- I hope HCG is gone!! And maybe the spotting is leading to official AF so your cycle can start!

Sunny- that is so nice that you can work remotely.

 

[tbfromlv]

I just got back from my baseline scan and talking to new doctor. I have 19 follicles on my right ovary and 25+ on my left.. but I also have TWO endometrioma cysts growing on my left ovary.. the same ovary they removed the large endometrioma from in June! They are 2.5 cm so not as big as the previous one but they cancelled this monitored cycle because of it. She said if I don&#8217;t start my own cycle in 5 weeks, I will take provera to induce one, then do a repeat scan. If they haven&#8217;t grown or changed much, we can move forward. Ugh

 

[AmberR]

So sorry tb, that must be so frustrating. Is there a chance the cysts will go away on their own? Hope they don't change much or shrink so that you can move ahead with the next cycle.

 

[tbfromlv]

Well, with them being endometrioma instead of functional cysts, I&#8217;m not sure if they go away on their own or not. It&#8217;s so frustrating. Hopefully they don&#8217;t grow or anything. They just want to make sure that the cysts are &#8220;stable&#8221; before they stimulate my ovaries. Trying to avoid making them burst which would be very painful and could cause internal bleeding. Obviously two things I would like to avoid. But the waiting game sucks

 

[SunnyBe]

So sorry Tb! The waiting sucks Is this what they call a "chocolate cyst"? If they stay the same size, will they just let them be or do you still have to undergo surgery to remove them? Did they give you some sort of cutoff as to the size they should stay under? Our bodies are our worst enemies sometimes

Amber, glad that your body is at least doing something, but still no full flow?

 

[tbfromlv]

Yeah those are the chocolate cysts. same kind I had last time. They didn&#8217;t say anything about size limits this time, but I had read (prior to my surgery) that anything bigger than 5cm should be removed. Mine was 6.5. These two are 2.5 and 2. But that still seems pretty quick for just having surgery. At this point, they don&#8217;t want it to grow at all. As long as it doesn&#8217;t grow, I can continue and just ignore them. Just sucks

 

[steph1607]

Eurgh sorry TB, must be gutting and frustrating to hear. Especially so soon after having those other ones removed. Do they know why certain people are prone to getting these?

Hope AF comes properly for you now Amber, and you can finally start to relax knowing your body is behaving itself

Had my appointment yesterday afternoon. OMG the pain of the pipelle procedure!! The doctor told hubby to come behind the curtain and be near my head so he could look at the scan on the screen, obviously know idea what he was looking at, but then I can't say it was too clear for me either! I don't think he was prepared for seeing me in that level of discomfort though. The doctors said to me 'oh wow, most women are screaming by now' and I was lying there thinking 'I'm going to pull that thing out of my vag soon if you don't hurry up!'. I think years of rugby have helped my pain threshold

In terms of dates, I stop taking the pill on the 5th, then go in on the 10th (providing that's CD3 to start my injections). I'm starting on a low dose so I may not respond at first. They looked flabbergasted as always at my crazy AMH level!

 

[SunnyBe]

Tb, hope it doesn't grow! With them being this small, is there any effect on your fertility at this point?

Steph, ahh that bad huh! Glad it's over now. It's yet another thing preparing you for the pain of labor What dose will you be on? I'll be on 150 of Gonal-F.

Have a great weekend ladies!

 

[tbfromlv]

Steph- yikes! I&#8217;m glad you powered through it and glad it&#8217;s done! I can&#8217;t believe it&#8217;s game time now! What will your dose be?

sunny- I&#8217;m not sure exacty on the effects of fertility. I think it depends on how much ovarian tissue it takes over and if it attaches to other organs too. I read that they don&#8217;t go away and generally just keep growing. Ugh I hope it wasn&#8217;t credible lol when will your protocol start? Is this after you head to Prague?

 

[steph1607]

Haha Sunny that's a good point, but at least if I was in labour I would 1, definitely be getting something good at the end of it, and 2, I could kind of move around and push etc. I think the worst bit of Friday was just having to lie still and get over it. But it's all a means to an end I suppose!

The doctor wrote on the form that I will be starting on 150mg, the nurse was a bit surprised that I was starting so low, but it's because I'm at such risk of over stimulating. To be honest, there was such an information overload on Friday that I feel half of it has gone over my head! I go back on the 10th for another scan and to get all my medications though. The doctor was telling us about what's good to eat during, what's not so good, how much water to drink... so hubby went out and spent a fortune on organic versions of everything I eat! My diet is very healthy so I don't have to make any real changes. BUT IF HE TELLS ME ONE MORE TIME TO GO AND GET SOME WATER, OR ASKS 'DO YOU NEED ME TO GIVE YOU TIPS ON HOW TO GET MORE WATER?' I MAY KILL HIM! I drink sooo much water, no I do not need tips, go and focus on getting your sperm in tip top condition Such a funny man. Goodness knows how OTT he would be if this actually works

 

[Dream143r]

Soooo much excitement right now in our little group. A lot to look forward to. Wishing you ladies the best experienced ever.

I'm 8dpo. Sitting in the lab waiting for my turn for my blood draw. I'm going to start testing tomorrow. I know it's early but I can't wait anymore. I had to slap myself on the wrist to resist testing this morning.

When I get to work I'll book my follow up/results appointment with Dr. Loser for the results of my so no and the SA.

 

[steph1607]

There certainly is a lot going on in here at the moment, Dream!

When will you get the results of your blood test??

 

[Dream143r]

Lab results are usually posted online for me to login and check by next day. So I'll be sure to give you ladies the scoop so you can help me analyze.