Suppression Check

Today was my suppression check appointment. Basically the Doctor does an ultrasound to check to make sure all my insides are suppressed and working to their liking for the big drugs to start working. They also do blood work to confirm that my estrogen is suppressed enough. My appointment was at 9:45 my good friend Shanae put the kids on the bus for me so I could get there on time. The traffic was crazy, but I made it. I was so nervous for some reason, thinking my body might not have responded like they hoped.... I said a prayer in the van before I went in and took a few deep breaths. (those vaginal ultrasounds are NEVER fun).
In the waiting room it was the most packed I'd ever seen it.. there was about 6-8 women waiting.... All in different levels of the process, there was a couple filling out paperwork for their first appointment, and a women in her pjs apparently going in to get her eggs harvested that day. There was an older couple who sat close together whispering. I felt very blessed to be able to be apart of such an amazing clinic who does such a good job. ORM is awesome and in the top 10 fertility clinics in the US!
So when it was my turn everything went smoothly.. infact so smooth I was in and out in about 45 minutes!
All my questions were answered by my personal nurse Genevieve. She's amazing. I'll be able to color my hair tonight ( I was worried about that!) She also gave me some light exercise ideas I can do. I'll be walking a bunch :) All my tests came out perfect. I'm suppressed just where I should be and I'm on track to start the big drugs to stimulate all the eggs to grow on friday!
We changed my appointment days to correlate better with my drugs calendar. My next appointment is Sunday at 8 in the morning before church. It's so crazy that the clinic is open on the weekends.
Here's to a good day :)

Doxycyline

So today Aaron and I have taken our very last Antibiotics.. these help to make sure we have no infections/bacteria for the big day of retrieval. So glad to be off of them for a while.. make my tummy hurt. I have some left over for me to take after the retrieval for just-in-case stuff too.
Feeling pretty good today. Got all the laundry done and ran a few errands. Yeah for another day checked off the calendar!

Aunt Flo

Today it started.. yup that dreaded period.. the good news is it could very possibly be my last one for a long long time :) So, I'm gonna milk it for all it's worth! Ha!
So because I can't exercise for a while I decided to pump up the tunes and clean house today. It got my heart rate up just a bit and I now have a clean house (for the moment). It's been nice to have the kids gone and finally get some stuff done! So overall today is a good day.
Wednesday is the Suppression check.... blood work and ultra sound. fun fun...

bleh...

Today had been a difficult day. It was my very last Zumba class for a long while. I'm not supposed to exercise twist, invert, jump or get my heart rate over 140 anytime after my suppression check appointment on wednesday.. so my Zumba class is only on fridays..(I do my own routines on mondays and wednesdays) so today was my last class. *Tear* I actually taught a routine I choreographed today too. Zumba helps me feel good about myself and gives me the endorphins to be happy... going without zumba/exercise will be one of the hardest parts of this process..... well except for maybe going under anesthesia and the waiting! :)
I've been feeling super icky.. sore, groggy, and in an emotional fog... I think, no, I know I've gained wait since being on birth control. That doesn't help either I'm sure.
So now I'm done venting... just wanted to share my feelings of the day. :)

Birth Control

Today is my last day on birth control.. boy am I glad of it. I think I've gained some weight because of it, and I've been ultra emotional. So, I will be expecting my period in just a few days... if all goes well this will be my very last period for a very long time :)
I've been tired, headachey and sluggish..... here's hoping tomorrow's a better day.

April 3

So, I've been on the meds now for 3 days. Let me tell you, it's been interesting.
I'm not one of those people who takes a lot of meds... in fact I only dose up with some ibuprofen that one day a month when it's necessary, (ladies you know what I mean) so to have aspirin, birth control, prenatal s, antibiotics, suppression shots and steroids in my system all the time... I can FEEL it. My body is ultra tired.. it feels kind of like right before you get sick and your body is fighting off something. I'm tired, anxious and fidgety. I'm not doing too good at focusing or getting much done. Of course it doesn't help that it's spring break and the kids are home. :)
I was worried about Aaron and his endless allergies to most all medications, but he doesn't have any effects to the antibiotics he's taking. Thank heavens!  I get a little nauseous when I take them in the am.
I've been torturing myself today... I watched half an episode of the Baby Story on TLC... I stopped watching that several years ago, it just got too hard to watch. Now, though, I'm interested in seeing it again, and seeing what women are going through. I've also looked at the few maternity clothes on ebay and old navy... want to use my birthday gift cards... but It's definitely too early to be shopping for that stuff.  In fact I've told myself that I will buy NOTHING baby or maternity until I get a positive pregnancy test.... Here's hopin... come on May~

It Starts Today!

With Anxiety and excitement I started the meds today.  Last night Aaron and I sat together planning the exact times I'll be taking each medication and setting timers and reminders on my phone to make sure nothing gets forgotton. Here is a picture of my medication calandar. Each line on each day represents a different drug.

I woke up at 7 am to start the antibiotics... I now know I need to make sure I have food with them.. boy was my tummy upset! Aaron has to take these too. They are to help make sure there is no infection/bacteria in our bodies (for both of our donations) when the time comes for the retrieval and implantation.

I cannot have any milk products within 2 hours of taking the antibiotics, so I wait this morning to take have a bowl of cereal. I am then able to take birth control, (I've been on these for about 2 weeks already, this is to help control my cycle) And then I took my prenatals, (also been taking these for a long while). At this point I take the asprin as well. These are for help with discomfort.. its a low dose, but something I have to take everyday. 

Tonight after the kids go to bed I'll be giving myself my first shot of Lupron. Lupron prevents the usual hormone exchange that causes follicle prodution and ovulation.  This helps my doctors control exactly when I will ovulate. I'll also take my night time dose of the antibiotic too (aaron too).

At bedtime I'll be taking Dexamethasone, its a low dose steroid that suppresses the productions of androgen hormones and has beneficial effects on egg quality.

I'll be following this plan for the next few days. On thursday, I'll stop the birth control and wait for my period. 

Here is a picture of all the drugs to be taken over the next month or so. It's so daunting, but such a miracle! Let me tell you, the price tag for just these drugs was huge. I'm so grateful for the gift from someone so kind, and from our Heavenly Father to make this possible.

Today we get to listen to the General Conference. My joy is full and am so happy for this opportunity.