I have a pretty robust understanding of the reproductive system, from menstrual cycles, to reproductive illnesses and challenges, as well as diagnostic testing and treatments that may be used. Some of this is through my own experience and some comes from the research I do to quell my insatiable appetite for more information about my illness and what I might do to overcome it. Yet, surprisingly, I really didn’t give much thought to antral follicle counts. In fact, I have no idea if a doctor has ever done a count on me, nor do I know what the outcome was if in fact it was done. This is shocking to me. It is being touted as a very good indicator of ovarian reserve, which is probably my biggest fear about my infertility since I have a borderline high FSH level and didn’t respond as well as I would have liked to my last injectible + IUI cycle. I am hopeful that since I am at the beginning of my IVF cycle, the very next time it is appropriate, the doctor will check this and give me the information so I can obsess over it.

See the below chart, I love charts like this where it is clear by looking at a number, what the effect of the information is.




It’s highly possible that I’m the last person in the infertility community to know about this, (as was the case when I found out that an avocado doesn’t go brown as quickly if you leave the pit in it, I loved this tip, but I was the only one on the planet who wasn’t already aware of it.) Just in case any of you were also left in the dark, now you know.

Waiting

Day 5 of IVF cycle. I don’t think the time could possibly pass any more slowly. I’m starting to obsess about how I will keep this cycle a secret from my co-workers. I do NOT want them to know what I’m doing since I’ve only been employed with them for 7 weeks. If I had time on my side, I would have waited a few more months, but the fact is, I’m 35. Unfortunately for women, 35 is the beginning of the end, if not the middle of the end. I need to get on with this while I still have a good chance of being successful. I also want to use this insurance now, just in case they decide to downsize the plan and eliminate infertility coverage.

IVF #1, Ready...Set...Go!

IVF #1, here we come. I am currently on Day 4 of my IVF cycle which means that nothing exciting has happened yet. I’m popping Birth Control Pills and Doxycycline for the next several days. I’m pretty nervous about this cycle. Mostly the butt-shots. I don’t know why I can’t get past those because everyone says they’re nowhere near as bad as they look, but I’m scared. Maybe it’s the thought of TW giving them to me versus an experienced medical professional.

I went back to acupuncture this past weekend as well. I hadn’t been there since I found out I was being laid-off in February. I’m going to a new doctor because it appears my insurance may actually cover both infertility and acupuncture! This is fantastic because at my previous employer, nothing was covered, I mean they paid the bare minimum if that. I worked for a large $(5 Billion dollar) company too, so it’s not like it was a little mom and pop shop. Anyway, thank you God! I feel so incredibly blessed to have this assistance with my expenses.

Other things in the news...TW and I finally tied the knot back in April, so we’re official. No more dirty looks at the Fertility clinic or church or anywhere else where people feel it’s important not to live together. (Yes, maybe some was imagined, but I love that I no longer have to worry).

I'm Back

Stay tuned for my updated posts. I'm back to blog for real this time.

Taxes and Wine

Today I mailed my taxes as an individual and for my corporation. The total was under 10K, and I had saved 15K!!!! I am so happy. I had $2300 on my credit card from all the expenses of moving into a new home (rugs, towels, furniture, plants, ets), so I paid that off and I still have money left. I opened a brokerage account. I am a total amatuer, but I really want to invest in a few companies and even though this is my real money, it feels like free money, since I expected not to have it, so I'm less risk adverse.

On another note, I saw an ad for a 4 winery tour on the Sat of Memorial Day weekend. It's $45 per person, and you get 12 wine tastes, light food at each winery, a bottle of wine and a carrying case. It sounds SO AWESOME. If we are going to be in town that weekend I'm going to beg TW to go with me....assuming I haven't conceived this month. If I have conceived this month, then I'll be excited and planning for other things. Isn't it funny how something as life changing as starting a family is such a mystery to those of us who haven't been blessed with it? It's so weird thinking that in one week, I'll know if my whole life will be different 9 months from now, but right now, I haven't the slightest idea.

I suppose those people who get pregnant easily may have more insight as to the changes that are about to come, but for me, it's really more likely that I won't conceive, so I go on about my life in a cloud of uncertainty. Actually, that sounds dramatic, and in reality, I would adapt quite well to pregnancy and motherhood, so I'm really just protecting myself from disappointment.

Nice wine choice...Kendall Jackson, Meritage California 2004. It needed to breathe, but now that it's been open, it's very smooth, and delicious with my awesome sauce and spaghetti and a wonderful salad.

Cheers!

Baby Info

Just to keep everyone informed, I am on my 7th cycle of not preventing pregnancy. Of course, there were the 54 cycles with my ex-husband also, but for now, we're only counting cycles with my current partner, since it obviously wasn't meant to be with my ex! In fact, it would have been a terrible mess, so maybe God was just looking out for me by not letting me get pregnant with ex and he intends to bless TW and me with a baby soon.

Anyway, I can expect to know whether or not we've been successful by mid-week next week. I refuse to obsess over this like some women who aren't getting pregnant, so I will be happy either way.

I would like to travel to Europe next year, which would be far more fun if I wasn't pregnant and it would be much easier if I wasn't a mom to a newborn.

Catch Up

I have been away for a long time here! OK, last weekend my parents came to visit. It was fun because they haven't yet seen our house here. Just to give you some background, the house we were able to buy as a result of someone else's misfortune was HUGE bang for the buck. We paid probably 75% of it's worth even in the market today, so it easily will be worth double once everything recovers and appreciation begins. In addition, when we moved from our previous home, it was a move out of state and the housing market is just different here, so our money buys us so much more home than it did in our old city. Even we were surprised at how awesome it is. Anyway, needless to say, they were very impressed and happy for us.

We had lots of fun while they were here, we took them to a few of our favorite restaurants, and showed off some of the sights in the area. We were able to go look at the boat, but not take it on the water since it was so windy. They had never seen our boat before, so that was fun too. Anyway, we caught up and had lots of nice chats and experiences and they wandered home on Monday.

The downside to them being here is we drank wine and ate italian/mexican/steaks, etc the whole time, so now I have some new habits to get into. I still had a bunch of the bad food in the house, and I'm not wasting it, so we will just have to work through that intermingled with healthy meals and snacks. In addition, I'm setting a new goal. I want to make sure that at least 2 days every week, I do not drink any wine. I've been getting in the habit of drinking a bit every night and even though it's not a lot, I want to reel it back in to avoid any habitual behavior starting.

Although this is an ongoing goal, I want to really focus on trying to move my body for 30 minutes each day. Yesterday I went for a very tough run (probably 45 minutes). It was great, but now I'm very sore. The day before, I spent 35 minutes on the elliptical machine. Tonight, since I'm sore, but don't want to give up the habit, I'm going to take the dog for a nice 30 minute walk.

On another note, my brother, who moved away a year ago from his home town to a city 800 miles from anyone he knows, has FINALLY found a girlfriend. It may be too soon to say it's serious, but he's bringing her home to meet mom in May, so it's a little serious.

That's it for now. No wine tonight and probably a salmon dinner.