The doctor just called - yesterday afternoon's bloodwork showed my LH surged prior to the trigger shot. At first, he suggested that we retrieve this afternoon. So I called J and got him on the road up here.
Then the doc called back again - he had spoken with the other doctors and as it turns out - they have a strict policy where they don't retrieve after an LH surge - even if they get the egg - they haven't had very good results. So their thinking - is why put me through the risk of a harvesting for such slim chances. Me? I was all about it...but was outvoted by the doctors. So I had to call J and tell him to make a u-turn and go back to work.
Cycle's over....I'm going home this afternoon and plan to medicate liberally with alcohol.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
labs
my LH was up yesterday afternoon which means i will ovulate before my retrieval tomorrow. we're trying to arrange to do it today....but j is 4 hours away. fuck.
Words of Wisdom (from the last few days)
Compliments of my grandfather:
1. "I hope J doesn't fall in love with jerking off."
2. (As I'm explaining the latest results while my grandfather looks beyond puzzled): "So when does J need to jerk off?" Apparently he's obsessed with the idea of a porn room somewhere in a doctor's office.
3. The sweetest and most sincere: "It just doesn't seem right..." He said with a very long pause which made me think that he was contemplating the idea of a baby being grown in a lab. Then he finished with: "You guys would make dynamite parents." Which led to me crying.
4. "Good luck, sweetheart." He said with more sincerity that I've ever seen as we rushed out the door to my second bloodwork appointment yesterday.
Compliments of my grandmother:
1. "I haven't given anybody a shot in at least 50 years." She said right after giving me my Novarel last night.
2. "You know - they should put adoption agencies right next to fertility clinics." She said this morning as we were standing in like with 5 other women waiting for the fertility clinic to open. Thankfully she said it quietly. Oy.
3. "Just hold my hand, everything's going to be ok." She said as my emotions got the best of me this morning. As usual, she was right.
4. "Can she have a shot of vodka at least?" She said to the nurse this morning after I was told tomorrow's IV would have to be in my arm. Surprisingly, the nurse said "Go ahead honey and have one today...I won't tell anybody."
1. "I hope J doesn't fall in love with jerking off."
2. (As I'm explaining the latest results while my grandfather looks beyond puzzled): "So when does J need to jerk off?" Apparently he's obsessed with the idea of a porn room somewhere in a doctor's office.
3. The sweetest and most sincere: "It just doesn't seem right..." He said with a very long pause which made me think that he was contemplating the idea of a baby being grown in a lab. Then he finished with: "You guys would make dynamite parents." Which led to me crying.
4. "Good luck, sweetheart." He said with more sincerity that I've ever seen as we rushed out the door to my second bloodwork appointment yesterday.
Compliments of my grandmother:
1. "I haven't given anybody a shot in at least 50 years." She said right after giving me my Novarel last night.
2. "You know - they should put adoption agencies right next to fertility clinics." She said this morning as we were standing in like with 5 other women waiting for the fertility clinic to open. Thankfully she said it quietly. Oy.
3. "Just hold my hand, everything's going to be ok." She said as my emotions got the best of me this morning. As usual, she was right.
4. "Can she have a shot of vodka at least?" She said to the nurse this morning after I was told tomorrow's IV would have to be in my arm. Surprisingly, the nurse said "Go ahead honey and have one today...I won't tell anybody."
This morning's appointment
My ultrasound looked good this morning - follicle is measuring at 18.6mm. The bloodwork I had done yesterday afternoon won't be back until around 1 - my bloodwork from this morning should be back at the same time.
As long as there was no LH in yesterday afternoon's b/w, I will most like make it to harvesting tomorrow without ovulating.
In other uncomfortable news: my ass is sore and my veins are shot. They jabbed me 3 times this morning before they got blood. I managed to squit blood across the room when they removed the needle - that's a new one for me. Gross. And OW. The backs of my hands are so sore it hurts to type.
Tomorrow I'm told they have to put the IV in my arm. Honestly, I have phobia of being touched there - a real phobia. My grandmother went with me again this morning and just thought I was being stubborn getting my blood done...until the nurse told me they'd have to get it from my arm and the waterworks started (in my defense, I'm stressed and I'm tired and I'm so ready to go home in addition to just being a wimp). The nurse (finally) realized that the crook of my arm is more than just me being a pain in the ass. (I'm weird, I get it.) So they finally jabbed and jabbed and got blood from my hand. But for tomorrow - it's in the arm. Frickity frick frick frick. At least I'll be on valium prior to the IV. Well, assuming I make it to the IVF.
More later when I hear back from the lab.
I'm so tired...getting up at 4:30 every morning is beyond old.
As long as there was no LH in yesterday afternoon's b/w, I will most like make it to harvesting tomorrow without ovulating.
In other uncomfortable news: my ass is sore and my veins are shot. They jabbed me 3 times this morning before they got blood. I managed to squit blood across the room when they removed the needle - that's a new one for me. Gross. And OW. The backs of my hands are so sore it hurts to type.
Tomorrow I'm told they have to put the IV in my arm. Honestly, I have phobia of being touched there - a real phobia. My grandmother went with me again this morning and just thought I was being stubborn getting my blood done...until the nurse told me they'd have to get it from my arm and the waterworks started (in my defense, I'm stressed and I'm tired and I'm so ready to go home in addition to just being a wimp). The nurse (finally) realized that the crook of my arm is more than just me being a pain in the ass. (I'm weird, I get it.) So they finally jabbed and jabbed and got blood from my hand. But for tomorrow - it's in the arm. Frickity frick frick frick. At least I'll be on valium prior to the IV. Well, assuming I make it to the IVF.
More later when I hear back from the lab.
I'm so tired...getting up at 4:30 every morning is beyond old.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Shot through the heart (or...um....ass)
My trigger shot is done and overwith (phew!). My grandmother shot me up this go 'round. As soon as she took the needle out, she says: "I haven't done that in 50 years." Really glad she didn't share that information beforehand.
J was a nervous wreck sitting by the phone waiting for me to call him right after. So I got to spend 10 minutes calming him down. He is really having a hard time not being here during this. He's coming tomorrow night - I can't wait to see him.
Off to bed - the Big doctor appointment is tomorrow at 7am.
Go Underdog!
J was a nervous wreck sitting by the phone waiting for me to call him right after. So I got to spend 10 minutes calming him down. He is really having a hard time not being here during this. He's coming tomorrow night - I can't wait to see him.
Off to bed - the Big doctor appointment is tomorrow at 7am.
Go Underdog!
From Zero to Sixty...
It all gets a bit confusing and I'm a little befuddled myself to explain it properly, so I'll try my best:
I got off the phone with the clinic around 1:30 (I was trying to catch a little cat nap and of course they called just as I hit some serious dozing). I was still half asleep and I came downstairs told my grandmother that I had to get back to the clinic. She jumps up from reading her book - tosses it across the room, grabs her purse, her keys and before I'm even able to finish my yawn I hear her start the car in the garage. You've never seen a 70-something lady move that fast.
I didn't mean to sound the hounds THAT quickly, but apparently she's more caught up in this stuff than I thought. Hilarious.
She also has a bit of a lead foot. Not so hilarious. I had to remind her that, you know - I have to be alive for IVF to work. I mean they can grow great-grand babies in the lab...but they haven't perfected that whole 9-months thing yet.
I got there - doc took me right away. My grandmother (who accompanied me to my appointment this morning) is fascinated - and equally baffled - by this whole process. The doctor was very sweet and pointed out everything on the ultrasound for her. She was enthralled - and on the way home regaled me with stories from her youth when she was training to be a nurse. In fact, she gave pointers to the nurse who came to take my blood. She has no idea what LH is, but she was in her element. She'll be giving me my trigger shot tonight.
Trigger shot, you say? Oh, did I skip that part of the story?
Here's the technicals:
They took more blood this afternoon - but because they have to send their blood to the lab, they won't have the results back until the morning. My morning bloodwork showed my LH to be at 14. How it works is, LH (Leutenizing hormone) gives the final maturity to the egg and it also surges at a certain point in your cycle and triggers ovulation. So the first few days of your cycle, it hovers around 4 or 5. Then it will pop up to 10 to 12 and chill there, then very quickly it hits around 50. So when my morning hormones came back at 14, the doc called me back in. I'm on the high side of LH - and it looks like I'm about to surge.
If your LH surges prior to your Novarel injection (aka "The Trigger Shot"), then you're screwed. So what you're trying to do is get as close to that surge as possible and trigger (the shot) before your body does. Once you trigger (either by injection, or naturally), then you ovulate approximately 36 hours later. So the idea is, if you trigger via injection, then they go in for the egg after 34 hours and get it. It's entirely a timing thing. A game of chicken - get as close to the surge as you can so the egg is mature, trigger manually so you can time it OR wait too long, your body triggers, you have no control, egg ovulates prematurely, I go home and drink.
Based on the fact that my LH is a tad on the high side, I will be taking my trigger shot tonight at 9:30. My egg harvesting is scheduled for Wednesday at 7:30am. Now the screwy part is - since I had blood taken this afternoon I won't get those results back tomorrow morning. If my LH comes back high....then we'll know that I triggered too late and yes...I go home and drink. If my LH results come back and are still around 14, then it will appear that my triggering tonight was good timing.
In a sense, as I sit here typing, this cycle has already been determined. Either my bloodwork from about 3:30 this afternoon will show a surge or it won't. I'll find out tomorrow morning at 7am.
In the meantime, I have the pain-in-my-ass injection coming. My grandmother (that nurse's training is coming in handy!) will be shooting me up tonight. J is coming in tomorrow night - unless of course they cancel my cycle in the morning.
There are a gazillion things that have to go right in the next 12 hours, but I'm feeling pretty hopeful. Compared to my cycle in April, my follicle is a little smaller (still at 17mm, compared to 19mm in April). My LH is higher - BUT, my estradiol is lower. Based on the estradiol...I don't think I'll surge before tonight. We'll see though. I'm still feeling action in my abdomen - but nothing too intense yet.
Keep your fingers and toes crossed. Tomorrow is D-Day and boy I'm sick of needles.
I got off the phone with the clinic around 1:30 (I was trying to catch a little cat nap and of course they called just as I hit some serious dozing). I was still half asleep and I came downstairs told my grandmother that I had to get back to the clinic. She jumps up from reading her book - tosses it across the room, grabs her purse, her keys and before I'm even able to finish my yawn I hear her start the car in the garage. You've never seen a 70-something lady move that fast.
I didn't mean to sound the hounds THAT quickly, but apparently she's more caught up in this stuff than I thought. Hilarious.
She also has a bit of a lead foot. Not so hilarious. I had to remind her that, you know - I have to be alive for IVF to work. I mean they can grow great-grand babies in the lab...but they haven't perfected that whole 9-months thing yet.
I got there - doc took me right away. My grandmother (who accompanied me to my appointment this morning) is fascinated - and equally baffled - by this whole process. The doctor was very sweet and pointed out everything on the ultrasound for her. She was enthralled - and on the way home regaled me with stories from her youth when she was training to be a nurse. In fact, she gave pointers to the nurse who came to take my blood. She has no idea what LH is, but she was in her element. She'll be giving me my trigger shot tonight.
Trigger shot, you say? Oh, did I skip that part of the story?
Here's the technicals:
They took more blood this afternoon - but because they have to send their blood to the lab, they won't have the results back until the morning. My morning bloodwork showed my LH to be at 14. How it works is, LH (Leutenizing hormone) gives the final maturity to the egg and it also surges at a certain point in your cycle and triggers ovulation. So the first few days of your cycle, it hovers around 4 or 5. Then it will pop up to 10 to 12 and chill there, then very quickly it hits around 50. So when my morning hormones came back at 14, the doc called me back in. I'm on the high side of LH - and it looks like I'm about to surge.
If your LH surges prior to your Novarel injection (aka "The Trigger Shot"), then you're screwed. So what you're trying to do is get as close to that surge as possible and trigger (the shot) before your body does. Once you trigger (either by injection, or naturally), then you ovulate approximately 36 hours later. So the idea is, if you trigger via injection, then they go in for the egg after 34 hours and get it. It's entirely a timing thing. A game of chicken - get as close to the surge as you can so the egg is mature, trigger manually so you can time it OR wait too long, your body triggers, you have no control, egg ovulates prematurely, I go home and drink.
Based on the fact that my LH is a tad on the high side, I will be taking my trigger shot tonight at 9:30. My egg harvesting is scheduled for Wednesday at 7:30am. Now the screwy part is - since I had blood taken this afternoon I won't get those results back tomorrow morning. If my LH comes back high....then we'll know that I triggered too late and yes...I go home and drink. If my LH results come back and are still around 14, then it will appear that my triggering tonight was good timing.
In a sense, as I sit here typing, this cycle has already been determined. Either my bloodwork from about 3:30 this afternoon will show a surge or it won't. I'll find out tomorrow morning at 7am.
In the meantime, I have the pain-in-my-ass injection coming. My grandmother (that nurse's training is coming in handy!) will be shooting me up tonight. J is coming in tomorrow night - unless of course they cancel my cycle in the morning.
There are a gazillion things that have to go right in the next 12 hours, but I'm feeling pretty hopeful. Compared to my cycle in April, my follicle is a little smaller (still at 17mm, compared to 19mm in April). My LH is higher - BUT, my estradiol is lower. Based on the estradiol...I don't think I'll surge before tonight. We'll see though. I'm still feeling action in my abdomen - but nothing too intense yet.
Keep your fingers and toes crossed. Tomorrow is D-Day and boy I'm sick of needles.
Yikes
The clinic just called and they want me to come back in for another round of bloodwork/ultrasound this afternoon. Apparently my levels shot up super quick and they're afraid I'm going to ovulate.
Follicle was at 17mm this morning. Usually they wait until it's at least 19 before you trigger.
Shit....now things are happening way too fast.
Follicle was at 17mm this morning. Usually they wait until it's at least 19 before you trigger.
Shit....now things are happening way too fast.
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