We started Bravelle on Sunday night. I thought the shots would hurt more, but surprisingly it was just a little pinch. This morning, I felt it a little more. I guess the tummy area will be more sore as the days progress. I'm doing shots in the am and in the pm (Bravelle in am/Menopur in pm starting Wed). Is this a pretty normal for antagonistic protocol?
This weekend, I also caught a few episodes of "Pregnant in Heels" on Bravo. First, I can't figure out her accent (did you see the Saturday Night Live skit, so funny!), but I still find myself listening really closely to pin point it. When I first saw this show advertised, I thought oh no, another show about pregnant women - that's the last thing I want to watch. However, when Rosie started to share her struggles with IVF, I was (of course) transfixed. IVF is really all over the place - lots of people do it. I'm starting to realize that more and more.
A little more about me: I'm 35. I've been married for almost six years. My husband and I have been together for 14 years! We met in college, moved in together after college, moved to New Orleans for his job, and then we got married. I'm a bit of a commitment-phobe. The day we got married I had a panic attack in the bathroom with most of my female wedding guests watching. Nice, right?
Right after we got married, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and changed our lives forever. And just for good measure, I found out I had uterine fibroids and my husband developed panic disorder. So for three solid years after our marriage, we dealt with the Hurricane aftermath, my surgery (to remove the fibroids - everything looks good now!), and my husband's panic issues. It was probably the worst time of my life - more than a few times I thought I didn't want to be married anymore. Eventually, we moved to North Carolina and started fresh. It took about a year for us to heal from all the turmoil in our lives, but we came back together better than ever.
I started thinking about getting pregnant when we moved to North Carolina. I was 33. My husband wasn't ready and I didn't feel like I was in a big hurry either. Then probably just because I was happy, my thyroid went crazy and I started having all kinds of heavy bleeding. One doctor told me I needed a hysterectomy (!!!), but I knew that wasn't right and went for a second opinion. I have hypothyroidism and now take a pill everyday. Turns out everything returned to normal after that. Whew! Another scare!
So, when I was 34 I told my husband we had better get on it. He agreed. We started trying and I figured that I would be pregnant pretty quickly because everyone in my family and my friend's got pregnant super easily. Turns out I'm not in that category. I have diminished ovarian reserve (AMH .4) and my husband's sperm is lazy. We tried Femara, Femara with IUI, Injections, Injections with IUI - all BFN.
So right now, we're on Day 2 of IVF #1. It's taken us a long time to get here. And although I know this sounds weird, I'm glad to be here. Deciding to do it was a huge step, but now that we're doing it I feel good.
I'm new to this community, but am curious about everyone else's story too. Have you gone to a support group? And if so, was it helpful? Do you have any IVF tips for me?
Thanks for reading my blog - it helps to know there are other people out there going through the same thing!
Best of luck with your IVF cycle!!! I don't have a lot of great tips since I'm just on my first. But a few I would share:
ReplyDelete1. Being organized is key with all of the meds. I had a ton, and added in different ones over different times of the process.
2. A big one on t.hyroidism: Make sure that you take your t.hyroid medicine with a two hour window before and after having any food or taking any other medication (especially prenatals). I learned this from my general endocrinologist, who is a specialist in t.hyroid disorders. Also, check with your RE about increasing your t.hyroid dose if you go on any form of e.strace, such as e.stradiol. The e.strace (or any estrogen supplement) can block the thyroid medication (also from my thyroid specialist). Also, both my RE and t.hyroid specialist have said that during pregnancy, t.hyroid patients have to increase their medication. T.hyroid health is essential for fetal development and the maintenance of pregnancy, so I would have it as carefully monitored as possible. I would have it checked now if you haven't in the past 6 weeks, and then based on that finding, ask about how much to increase it following your transfer.
3. Be as consistent as possible with the timing of your meds. Because of having to work around my t.hyroid medication, I have a very clear cut schedule, and I make sure to abide by it. I set my alarm five times a day for my various meds.
4. Don't ice your injection spots. It's a common practice but my RE is very adamant that we don't. Icing can actually hinder the absorption of the meds. Try heating pads instead once you get to the PIO. The Follis.tim and Me.nopur sting but it usually goes away quickly, so rubbing it is fine. Also, once the needle is in, the injection itself doesn't hurt... just the stinging of the meds sometimes, so I don't know that the benefits of icing really outweigh the potential interference with med absorption. That said, some women that have had successful IVFs swear by icing!
Wishing you the very best of luck! How exciting to be underway!!!
I hope you have much success with the first try. I was one of the lucky ones who got it right the first time IVF-ing.
ReplyDeleteI iced my injection spots and had no problems, mjust an FYI. I guess all docs have their methods. Please feel free to rad my blog for the IVF low down. I pretty much did the menopur bravelle thing (mixed in with follistim--I was using as many free meds as possible).
Good luck!