Suppression Check Update!!

I am beyond happy to report that my suppression check went great on Friday! There were no cysts, my endometrium was thin, and my estradiol was at a 51 (supposed to be anywhere under a 100).  Anthony was able to come to my appointment and witness the vagina violation first hand…I think he left feeling thankful that he’s not a woman. 

We had already planned a weekend trip to the beach, but the good news made the trip so much more enjoyable!  I can’t get my body temperature too hot while doing IVF, so I spent my time reading under an umbrella, or in the water!  The beaches are so beautiful here; Anthony and I talked a lot about how we hope to bring our kids here often for family vacations.

We’re back at home now, and we just finished injections for my first night of stimulation medicine!  I had anxiety all weekend about these dang meds!  For stims, I am taking two different medicines: Follistim, and Menopur.  Some people inject them in two different shots, but my doctor said they could be mixed, so that it’s only one injection.  The mixing was a little confusing, and we questioned what we were doing a million times, but we finally did it!  I have heard that the Menopur stings really bad, but it didn’t burn at all.  Maybe the mixing helped?!  I am also still taking Lupron, but the dosage is now half of what it was before.  With two shots a day, I’m hoping that I don’t run out of places on my tummy to inject!

My next appointment is this Friday.  We will be checking to see how many follicles I have, and how big they are.  I am expecting to be very bloated over the next 10 days, as my ovaries are going to be housing so many (hopefully) growing follicles. 

I’ll keep you updated; thank you for your continued prayers! xo

Progestrone Results Are In!!

Anthony got to come with me to my appointment yesterday, and it turned out that I only had to give blood.  I think we were in clinic for a total of five minutes!  I was just happy that the ladies in the office didn’t have to wonder if my husband was imaginary anymore!  Anthony’s little sister, Alicia, is visiting so we made the hour and half drive to the doctor worthwhile by shopping and getting lunch before we headed back home. 

After each appointment, the nurse will either call, or leave a message on my patient voicemail with the test results, and next steps.  I think I checked my patient voicemail a hundred times yesterday, and finally heard “You have one new message” around five o’clock yesterday evening.  My heart started beating really fast as I prepared to hear bad news, but instead I got great news!!  My progesterone was just above eight, and they needed it to be six or higher!  

So, I started Lupron again last night!  The anxiety of injections started all over again.  The shot ended up being pretty easy; I looked away while Anthony pricked me, and barely felt the needle go in.  The strange thing was that immediately afterward, I had a big knot inside my tummy where the injection was.  Swelling is a side effect, but one I didn’t have last time.  With the last round of Lupron I would get one small bump on the surface of my skin, like a mosquito bite, and it would itch for a half hour or so.   The bump from last night is now gone, but the area is still tender, and I’m sure a bruise will appear soon.  At least I won’t forget where the last shot was, so I know not to inject in the same spot!

I go in for my suppression check (when my cycle got cancelled last time) next Friday, June 24^th.  I am going to try not to get my hopes up, but remain positive at the same time.  If everything is okay at my suppression check, then I will start my stimulation meds on Sunday, June 26^th. 

Please continue to keep us in your prayers; we need them more than ever!! We appreciate and love you all so much!

 

Baseline Check Appointment

Hi Loves, I forgot to post an update after my last appointment!!  Everything went ok at my baseline check.  My estradiol and FSH were where they expected them to be at that point of my cycle, and my antral follicle count was somewhere around 22.  These are the resting follicles that have the potential to produce mature eggs with the stimulation drugs. 

My next appointment is on June 16^th; they will be checking my progesterone levels to ensure I’m at the right point in my menstrual cycle.  It’s called the Mid-Luteal phase.  If am, then I will start Lupron again that evening.  Lupron is the medication that shuts down your ovaries, and puts them at rest.  Please pray that I am able to start meds, and that they actually suppress my ovaries this time!!

I know this wasn’t the most exciting post, but thanks for reading, and for thinking about us!  I’ll update you again after my next appointment. 

Aunt Flow Has Arrived!!

Aunt Flow has arrived, and I can definitely say that I've never been so happy to see her! I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow morning to have an ultrasound and blood work done.   Wish me luck; I’ll update you guys tomorrow after my appointment!

IVF Cycle Cancelled :(

I ended up having my appointment yesterday instead of today, only to receive bad news one day sooner than I would have.  My ultrasound showed two functional cysts in my right ovary, and one very small one in my left ovary.  Last week they thought there had only been one in each ovary, but the two in my right ovary were overlapping and it was hard to see.  Because the cysts are giving off estrogen, my IVF cycle has been cancelled. 

For lack of better words, this sucks! It is already so frustrating that we have to pursue IVF when there are women who throw their newborns in the garbage, and crackheads that get pregnant every time they have sex.  The fact that we’re up against more setbacks and issues, really makes me wonder “why us?!” Why can’t we be the couple that gets pregnant the first month they try? Why do we have to pay thousands and thousands of dollars, and still have no guarantee that we will have a baby at the end of the emotional rollercoaster? I’m sick of being patient; I’m sick of hearing it will all work out, and I’m sick of people telling me that it will be worth it in the end.  WHEN is the happy ending?!

Now, that I’ve gotten my complaining out of the way, here are the next steps.  I have to wait for my period to arrive and start a new cycle.  I hoping it gets here in the next few weeks, my doctor said it just depends on the person, but usually it won’t be more than a few days late, even after taking Lupron.  As soon as I get my period, I will go in and have new baseline tests done (usually on cycle day 3).  The baseline will include blood tests to check and make sure all my levels are where they should be, and another ultrasound.  After my baseline, I will not do anything again until cycle day 22 when I will go in and have my progesterone levels checked.  This is checked to make sure that I ovulated.  After that appointment (assuming my levels are where they want them), I will officially begin my IVF cycle and begin taking Lupron injections again.  The difference in this past cycle and the next one is that I will not be starting with birth control.  The doctor said that most of the time, this resolves the issue, and I won’t see the functional cysts again.  Here’s to hoping that I can at least make it to the stimulation medication phase on my next cycle. 

Because Anthony will be starting SERE school in a few weeks (survival school where he won’t have any contact with the world for 3 weeks), we’re going to freeze his sperm next week.  He should be done with school by the time we’ll need his sperm, but he won’t be able to continue his HCG injections while he’s gone.  The HCG injections are supposed to improve his sperm, so it’s best that we freeze now, just in case. 

While I’m waiting for Aunt Flow to arrive, Jenn and I are going to Nashville! I am allowing myself a weekend of caffeine and a few alcoholic beverages.  In addition, I may decide to exercise, lay out in the hot sun, or take a steamy bath…all things that I’m not allowed to do during my IVF cycle!

Thanks for listening; Lots of love!!

My Cycle So Far & Lupron Injection Video

My IVF cycle started on 3/31 when I had to use birth control to suppress my body’s natural release of hormones in preparation for the IVF stimulation meds.  I used the Nuvaring, suggested by my doctor instead of birth control pills.  Let me tell you that the Nuvaring is an experience in itself! Let’s just say that putting it in and removing it gave me a little anxiety! J

I began taking Lupron on 4/18, which suppresses my hormones, and makes it so that my there is no follicular development, egg production, and egg release.  Last Wednesday, I went in for my suppression check to make sure that the Lupron was working, and suppressing as it was supposed to.  Well, we hit our first “bump” in the road.  My ultrasound showed that I have two cysts, one in each ovary.  One of them is very small, and the other is two centimeters. I immediately burst into tears, right in the middle of my ultrasound.  Even though I didn’t really know what that meant for me, I was immediately an emotional wreck because I had already been worried going into my appointment that something would go wrong…when does it ever go perfectly?! The nurse explained that cysts are very common, and usually go away each month on their own. They may be very common, but I’ve had so many tests and ultrasounds prior to this one that never showed cysts, so this wasn’t normal to me! I asked her if this meant by cycle was going to be cancelled, but she said I would have to wait until later that afternoon when the nurse from Birmingham called with my blood work results.  The nurse called me later to tell me that the cysts were okay, as long as they stayed under three centimeters, but that my estrogen was at 176, and they’d like it to be below 100.  She said that instead of starting my stimulation medication on Sunday (5/1), that they wanted me to stay on only Lupron for another week.  She said that doing so should bring my estrogen down, and may even shrink or get rid of my cysts.

So, here I am; I’m trying to remain hopeful that this Thursday’s appointment will bring me the good news that I am ready to start my stims and move onto the next phases of my cycle. Trying is the key word in that sentence; I was so disappointed last week when I didn’t hear what I had hoped for, so I’m hesitant in being too positive. I want so badly for my one week delay to be the worst news that I’ll receive, but I know there could be many more bumps in the road ahead.  I will do my best to take it one day at a time.  I am so thankful that I have Jenn here to support me and be at my doctor’s appointments while Anthony has to be at school. 

I have included a video of my daily Lupron injection. This will probably be the easiest of all the shots I will do; it doesn’t hurt (most of the time), and the only side effect I’ve had is headaches. 

Password for the video is: babybaby

Lupron Shot from Tara Gannuscio on Vimeo.

IVF Explained!

Hi friends!! I thought I should start a blog to keep you up to date on our IVF journey.  I want to be able to keep you all informed, but I also know that on the days I receive bad news, I may not be able to tell the story over the phone, or multiple times to each of you.  This whole process is so emotionally draining, but I’m hoping it’s all worth it in the end! 

To start, I wanted you all to have a step by step explanation of the IVF process.  Hopefully by reading the information at the link below, you’ll be able to better understand what I’m talking about in my posts!! J

Step by Step IVF Process

Thanks for reading, and love you all!!