3rd Time's A Charm

Well, today I went in for my 3rd suppression check, and the 3rd time was truly a charm.

First off, I ran into one of my very dear friends, Raquel, who was in there for an appointment. Just seeing her made me feel so blessed.

Dr.B was out of the office, so I had a nurse practitioner who was also extremely nice. She did an ultrasound and I had NO cyst this time!! Also, I had 5 small resting follicles on the right and 6 on the left, which were very good numbers for me. I also had blood work and everything came back normal.

Starting tomorrow, I'll begin my shots again: Follistim, Menopur, and Omnitrope growth hormone this time. They know I'm a poor responder, so they have me on the strongest protocol possible. I'll go back in on Monday for an appointment and see how it's going. Please pray for my body to do better this time!

Kiddo Rooms

Hey everyone, I have no updates yet. I'll probably have something in the next day or two. In the meantime, I thought I'd share some design concepts I put together for some very cute little girls recently.

Click on links below the collages if you'd like to see where all the goodies came from.

Emily by Jennymruth on Polyvore.com

Evelyn by Jennymruth on Polyvore.com

The Waiting Game

Phewww! Just catching my breath today. I've been working at a home show booth the last few days and it really wears me out. It's been good to be busy though and not think about infertility too much. I haven't updated in a while because frankly, I've been dreading this blog entry. It's just so blah!! I went to the doctor for my second suppression check Friday, February 18th. I was all excited to move forward with the process since I had to wait a couple of weeks and see if my body was doing better. They did an ultrasound and everything looked great on the right, then they moved to the left and there was a cyst. It was about
1 1/2" in diameter (big for being so new). The doctor said that moving forward would not be a good thing at this time. It's not an optimal environment because the cyst could be giving off hormones. He said we should wait a month and see if it goes away on its own. 2 out of 3 women get them and they just go away. I had blood work done and my hormones looked normal, so hopefully that's a good sign. My next appointment will be around March 18th, so I'll find out if it's gone and I'm ready to move forward. I've heard from several people who are reading this and praying for us. I so appreciate your love and support. I realize there's a lot more pain and heartache in the world that is more important. Thanks for following along on this little journey!

Quickie Update

Just a quick update... for those of you who are medically minded, the docs are going to be adding in a growth hormone called Omnitrope in two weeks when I start stimming again. Also, they'll be replacing Lupron with Gonarelex (sp?) which will help me not to ovulate before they want me to, but it won't suppress me as much as before. For now, I'm just waiting, waiting, waiting. I put all my medicine away so I can get my mind off of it. I probably won't blog again till I'm up and running. Have a great two weeks!

Banzai

So I went in for my blood/ ultrasound today hoping for really great news. I've been poking myself like a maniac and I'm on the highest protocol the clinic offers. Unfortunately, my body has not responded as hoped. My follicle count was really low--2 on the right and 4 on the left. (A normal response would be a least double or triple this amount). Dr. B suggested that we stop right now and start over again next month after I get a cycle in hopes that maybe I could produce more follicles. This could be a bad month. He said if I don't get more, we would just press on and hope for the best. When there are so few eggs, it just doesn't give them a lot to work with. The term for my status is "diminished ovarian reserve" which seems to be more and more common. I actually know three other women experiencing something similar.

Breaking news...just got a phone call from the nurse with my estrodial, which was 134. Also, they have discussed my case and come up with something a little different. They want me to take the Menopur (one of the stims) for 2 more days so my eggs keep growing, then do a trigger shot on Feb.5th. This will give them more control over when I ovulate so they know when to start me out on medicine next month.

While all of this is super frustrating, all I can do is try to trust the Lord in His perfect timing. I don't put a lot of stock in numbers because it only takes one good egg. It's just the waiting that kills me sometimes. I hope this is building LOTS of character in me. I think of myself as a banzai tree getting clipped into an interesting little shape right now. When you're getting pruned, it is no fun being the tree, but it's worth it in the end! Here's the passage that comes to mind...

John 15:
1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

IVF Update

My suppression check was on Thursday the 27th. Everything went smoothly. The lining was thin and I had just a couple of small visible follicles. There were no cysts or polyps, thank goodness. I had blood drawn and later got a call that my estrogen was 15, which is nice and low. They gave me the ok to start the stimulating hormones. I'm on the highest dose because they want to make sure I get a good response this time. When I did IVF two years ago, my doses were lower and my results were below average (and no baby obviously). I'll do 2 vials of Menopur in the mornings and 300 IU's of Follistim in the evenings. I'll continue on Lupron as well, but they have reduced my dose to 5 units down from 10.

Thanks so much to those of you who have sent me messages. I have really appreciated so much support and enthusiasm about this new adventure!

Tropical Moments



Just checking in...everything is running smoothly so far. I'm finished with the 3 weeks of b/c pills and have been doing Lupron shots the last week along with aspirin, prenatals, doxycycline and dexamethasone. The Lupron is administered in tiny little shots in my belly each night--nothing painful or scary. I have Bryan give them to me while I close my eyes though just in case. My suppression check is on Thursday the 27th and then I'll be starting the stimulating hormones if all looks well. The only side effects so far are major "tropical moments" as the next generation up from me likes to call them! I have woken up in a sweat on more than one occasion in the past week. Maybe if I'm really creative, I can imagine myself on this fabulous white sand beach. ahhh!