This is the Day that the Lord has Made

Well, today started off really scary.  I came into work to find out that they had laid-off our entire third shift, and they weren’t finished.  What?!  I had to leave for my doctor appointment at 9:30, and I was in tears when I got to my car.  Before I left and cried in front of anyone, I asked my boss and another co-worker to call/text me as soon as something was announced.  Well, they did.  At 11:30, I got the text and voicemail that I was safe.  Whew!  We did lose a great co-worker, though.  He’s a wonderful man with a lot more seniority than me.  I pray that he’s okay.

On another good note, we made it to the doctor and all of the news was good!  It was basically the first appointment to start IVF.  It’s funny to think about since we’ve been on this journey for 2 years, now.  Seems like it’s moving slow, but it’s really quite a normal pace (fast for some).

Anyway,  3 things happened at this appointment:

1.       Dr. Bundren checked my ovaries to make sure they have been suppressed.  He did this with an internal ultrasound (I don’t know the real name).  Those used to be more uncomfortable, but I think I’m starting to relax with them.  Everything looked fine.  I had 10 follicles, which means that I will have 10 eggs at retrieval at the most.  This isn’t a great number because obviously, you want millions.  J  That’s not possible, though.  Mary Kathryn kept telling me that quality was what we wanted, not quantity.  We won’t know the quality until they are retrieved on May 15.  Ugh!

2.       We finalized a lot of legal mumbo-jumbo paperwork.  There are things you have to consider before embarking upon IVF.  The most important decisions to us were what to do about cryopreservation (freezing embryos).  We are going to go through with the process, assuming we have any extra good embryos to freeze.  However, we had to sign paperwork about what would happen to the frozen embryos if we passed away, divorced, or decided we no longer wanted them.  The only real decision for us here was what to do with embryos we choose not to use.  We have decided we will donate them to another couple.  That’s one of the most satisfying decisions I’ve made in my life, to know we could possibly give the gift of a child to another couple.

3.       We learned to administer my shots.  Now, for those that have gone through the IVF/IUI process or will go through it, I will give you more detail about this.  I think it helps to know what to expect, and if you’ve done it, you like to know how others are doing it.  We only learned how to administer two shots for now, Follistim and Menopur.  We will administer these Sunday through Wednesday of next week at 12-hour increments and in the fatty part of my upper thigh.  I will take 225 IU of Follistim in the morning and 1 CC of Menopur at night.  The Menopur has to be mixed from four vials.  It was a lot of information to learn!  Todd and I both practiced and took notes.  We are ready!  The shots should arrive on Friday sometime.  Yay!  The medicine is coming from two different pharmacies, so I should be getting a call later today for billing and shipping information.  This is the first of our large payments for IVF that won’t be submitted through insurance.  (At some point, I’ll do an entry about how much everything has cost us.  That should be scary to see!)

The next step is obviously to start taking my shots.  Then, next Thursday, May 9, we will go in for another ultrasound and blood work.  They will call me that afternoon to tell me how to continue with the next shots.  I shouldn’t have a whole lot of changes for a few days, but she said I may start feeling a little bloated by next Thursday.  Prayers that I don’t get weepy!!  I’m trying for euphoric!  J

So all in all, today was a blessing for Todd and me.  We are very excited to be starting the actual IVF process.  I can’t wait to be pregnant!