Well I think it’s time to start telling you about IVF. I’m sorry but I just haven't feel comfortable
doing live updates throughout the process. It is an intensely difficult
process, both physically and emotionally. But I know it will be 100% worth it
if everything works out well!
We started as soon as
possible after we got the good news that the cancer and all atypical cells were
gone. Most people would start an IVF cycle coordinated with their natural cycle,
but I haven’t had a period since February of 2011 so things went a little
differently for us!
Basically as soon as we got the good news I stopped megace
(finally!) and started back on prenatal vitamins (5/4/12) and progesterone-only
birth control pills (5/5/12). They use birth control pills (ironic) to regulate
your cycle until you start the ovarian stimulation.
I had the mock embryo transfer that I mentioned in the last
post. Turns out my uterus is shaped “normally” or something like that. This
basically just meant that if/when I have embyros transferred it did not need to
be done by ultrasound (or with a full bladder – a plus). We also had a MASSIVE amount of medications
delivered from a pharmacy. If I can figure out how to upload a picture of this,
I will! (success)
Then we started on the first of many injectable medications,
Lupron, and a baby aspirin a day (5/22/12). The plan was to take the Lupron for
9 days (stopping the birth control pills in the middle) and have baseline
bloodwork (hormone levels) and a baseline transvaginal ultrasound at that time.
My husband and I were both nervous to start the injections but he did a
fantastic job. I barely felt the first one and told him that he should have
been a nurse! Apparently aspirin, since
it is a blood thinner, can improve blood flow to the ovaries throughout the IVF
process. Most protocols use aspirin until the day of the pregnancy test.
On May 31 we had our first setback. I went in for my
baseline ultrasound. The doctor (my doctor’s partner) looked at my left ovary
first and said it looked good – there were potential follicles and “no cysts.”
Until he said that I hadn’t really thought about the potential for a cyst
before. Then he moved to the right ovary and was quiet for a minute, measuring
something. Turns out I had a rather large cyst on my right ovary. He said that
there were several options and they depended on my bloodwork. If the cyst was
“functional” or producing estrogen it would show in my bloodwork. If not, then
we could likely continue the cycle. If it was functional then they would
probably recommend birth control pills for a month with the hopes that it would
go away. Apparently cysts are fairly
common when you start Lupron.
Of course, with my luck, it was functional. Like I need any
extra estrogen anyway… The doctors talked and modified the plan for my unique
situation (of needing to get pregnant asap for medical reasons, in addition to
desperately wanting a child like the rest of those going through IVF). The plan
was to increase the dose of Lupron to see if that would “suppress” the cyst. I
would return in a week to see if the cyst had improved and for more hormone
levels.
After another week of Lupron, I went back to the fertility
center for my next ultrasound. I was so nervous that I was shaking in the
waiting room. Unfortunately the cyst was still there and had grown. An
ultrasound tech did this US and then I walked out of the room to talk to the
nurses. The one nurse at the center who is not my favorite (although I do like
her more now) said “Wow! That is a huge cyst!” Not so encouraging. I had my
bloodwork and left feeling totally discouraged. It was a long wait until I
could call for results early that afternoon. Hubby and I were devastated about
another potential longer delay and just not sure what to expect. That morning I
sat on our new deck and tried to distract myself with a good book and a mug of
sister tea (the tea my sisters gave me for my 30th birthday although
I promise that I am STILL NOT 30!).
We got a great surprise that afternoon. My estrogen level
had dropped so the cyst, despite growing, was no longer functional. We were all
set to proceed with the cycle. We were to start the ovarian stimulation
medications that night!
I think that IVF is often filled with ups and downs. We
definitely started out with some.
