Archive for category egg donation
A Little More Hopeful
Posted by genescramble in baby, egg donation, egg donor, embryos, FET, follistim, frosties, hCG, infertility, insurance, IVF, miscarriage, PNW Fertility on March 8, 2012
Today I got up around 8:45am and my phone rang about 20 minutes later. When my Dr. office calls it says “UNKNOWN” so I always know its them. I answered it expecting to be talking to the nurse but it was Dr. Lamb, who has been my infertility physician since last June. She was calling to check up on me and make sure I had good support through all this and just make sure I’m doing okay. She had no real words of wisdom for why any of this happened and she is sad for us and was very hopeful when our numbers were so good the first blood test last week. There’s no way to know why this happened, it just did and now we move on and try again. She said it is okay for us to take a month off and feel things out but there is a chance that we could just roll right into another cycle right away. Once my period starts I will go in and we will do a blood test and ultrasound and see where my hCG levels are and if there is any scar tissue from this miscarriage. If everything looks okay I think we will probably just start follistim again and roll with the punches! If not we will probably have to wait til June because we have a trip to Europe coming up early May (to celebrate our two year wedding anniversary coming up!) and I would most likely need to be around for tests, etc. at that time. Part of me wants to continue on with this right away and part of me wants to wait because wouldn’t it be nice to be able to eat brie and drink wine in Paris? It could also be a nice celebration if we get preggo though. I guess I’m game either way.
I also called Premera today because our healthcare starts over April 1 and there is a new plan that we can choose to participate in. I found out they offer 15k lifetime in infertility benefits which is great because our current plan offers 10k lifetime and we have almost used that up with all the months of trying to get my lining thick. There will be more out of pocket costs with this new plan but its so wonderful that we can start over with coverage, plus now we seem to know how to thicken my lining so it shouldn’t (knock on wood) take so long next time.
We’ve started having discussions on what to do next if this next transfer doesn’t work but really I think we should be continuing with positive thoughts that the next one WILL work and when the time comes, if we decide to have more children, when we decide to have more, then we will figure out what to do then. I think we are a little discouraged about using the same clinic but there are ups and downs everywhere you go and I really like the care I’ve been getting so we’ll just have to see what happens. To be continued…
-H
Updates and Frosties
Posted by genescramble in Acupuncture, baby, blastocysts, egg donation, egg donor, embryos, frosties, infertility, IVF, Lupron, PNW Fertility on November 30, 2011
Well, it’s been a while but since I last posted a lot has happened. Since 11/4 I have been doing my shot of lupron in the stomach every day, have been putting 4 progesterone patches on my stomach every other day and have had a few ultra sounds. Two weeks ago at my ultrasound my Dr. discovered that my uterine lining was not as thick as she would like so I was put on Estrace (estrogen). Then a week or so later I had another ultrasound only to discover that my lining was still not as thick as it should be for transferring embryos. The lining needs to be about 7.5mm or larger but mine was only 6.5-7mm. Almost there but not quite right. This was horrible news because the transfer was supposed to be TODAY and the egg donor was ready for egg retrieval last week and can’t just sit around and wait for my body to be ready.
So on Thanksgiving our egg donor had the egg retrieval and my hubby went in for his collection. The egg donor gave us 32 eggs!! Seems like a lot, and it is, but out of all of those only 10 were mature. Day 3 we got a report that all 10 had made it to that stage, which was positive news. Today was Day 5, the day that they freeze any that are now blastocysts and have made it to the stage where they should be transferred into the uterus to implant. Because my body is not ready quite yet we have to freeze what we can and wait for me to get ready either by next week if my lining looks good this Thursday or we scrap this cycle and start all over after a period and hope for an early January transfer. So we got good news today that we have 3 frozen embryos for sure and 3 more embryos are sitting in culture tonight and we find out tomorrow if they will make it to freeze. We have 3-6 good blastocysts to transfer—we can now call these our frosties. I’m really hoping that at least one more makes it tomorrow so we can have 2 to transfer on our first try and if we still want more kids we could have two more to transfer the next time.
Since I found out that my uterus is not cooperating I did a bunch of research on what makes the uterine lining grow. I’ve started taking chaste tree berry, chinese herbs (prescribed by my acupunturist), red raspberry leaf and baby aspirin. My acupuncturist also stepped up her game yesterday with castor oil on my stomach and a heat lamp and some stims put on my stomach and under my ankles. I hope all of these things help and by Thursday morning when I go in for the next ultrasound we find that my lining has thickened up and we can transfer next week!
H
Week 2 of Shots
Posted by genescramble in egg donation, egg donor, egg donor match, embryos, infertility, IVF, Lupron, PNW Fertility, translocation on November 4, 2011
We are well on our way towards IVF with our egg donor. Today was the 11th shot I’ve given myself in the abdomen and now I get to add progesterone patches to the mix.Yesterday I went to see Dr. Lamb for an ultrasound to make sure my ovaries are “quiet”, plus I had some bloodwork done to make sure my estrogen levels are low. Everything is going according to plan so I put on two patches yesterday afternoon and switch them out for two more tomorrow. They are kind of like putting clear stickers on my tummy and they are very sticky on one side but feel like plastic on the other. I’ve been told they may leave a sticky residue on me and I should use some sort of sugar scrub to get it off (sounds like an excuse to go shopping for something).
My doctor also told me that she is very excited about the egg donor we picked. She said she is the sweetest person in the world and she has been good at getting other couples preggo. I’m keeping my fingers and toes crossed that that is the case for us too. She starts her meds next Friday and only about three more weeks til my DH goes in to give his “collection”. It really is going to come up quick!
We are heading to Portland OR this weekend for a little fun (although my DH may have to work some). I have to bring my lupron and patches and syringes with me so need to figure out a way to keep the lupron cold for the trip. I called the hotel and we do have a fridge in the room so that’s good. I hope it is a relaxing trip.
Happy Weekend,
H
Here We Go…
Posted by genescramble in Acupuncture, baby, balanced translocation, egg donation, egg donor, embryos, infertility, IVF, Lupron, PNW Fertility, translocation on October 25, 2011
Well, today I started my first round of shots. This all didn’t seem real until about last Friday when I got the box of medications, syringes, sharps box, etc. from Walgreens delivered to my door. And today I took the box to my clinic’s office and met with our nurse, Resa. We sat in a little office room at a desk and poured everything out and went through what everything is. The big needles will be saved along with a vile of progesterone for the end of November, which my husband will have to give me every morning (up to the 10th week if we get preggo). So for now I am giving myself a small shot of lupron in the tummy each day. I got to do it right in front of the nurse and it really didn’t hurt at all—the size of these needles are very small. I continue to do this until next Thursday and go in then for my first ultrasound and blood work and get to halve the dose that day. After I get my results back later that day I start progesterone patches on my tummy or lower back and have to replace them every other day, plus add one up to four over time.
Everything doesn’t seem so bad so far. We will see how it goes. I’ve got my 5th acupuncture appointment tomorrow and lunch with a friend who has gone through a lot of this already and is now pregnant. I’m excited to hear how her pregnancy is going and see if she has any tips for me.
-H
We Have Dates!
Posted by genescramble in Acupuncture, baby, balanced translocation, blood choromosome analysis, egg donation, egg donor, egg donor match, embryos, genes, genetics, infertility, IVF, Lupron, parents, PNW Fertility, translocation on October 10, 2011
It’s been a while since I’ve posted on here but since we decided on an egg donor we now have official dates of when we will have embryos transferred! Right now it is looking like either November 30th or December 1st!
Right now it still doesn’t seem real but I start my shots in just 15 days from today. I have a calendar our nurse sent us which tells me what type of medication to do each day. I start on October 25th with a shot of Lupron in my stomach, which I will have to go into the doctor’s office to learn how to give myself. I also continue my birth control pills at this time for 5 days. I continue the Lupron shots and then on November 3rd I have to go in for an ultrasound and blood work. I guess if everything looks good at that time I start to halve the amount of Lupron each day and then start Progesterone Patches that are replaced every other day, and sometimes you add one…so I start out with two but by the time I’m finished with them I do 4 patches every other day. I head back to the doctor Nov. 17th for another ultrasound and blood work. Then I continue with Lupron and the 4 progesterone patches every other day until the donor is ready for retrieval. And then comes the nasty progesterone shots I’ve heard about which my hubby will have to give to me. 5 days after the egg donor goes in for retrieval and my husband give his sample we get one or two embryos transferred. It’s very exciting and I so hope it works.
I’ve also started acupuncture over the past few weeks for fertility. So many of my friends have done this in the past and who knows if it really helps in the long run but I have to believe it can’t hurt so I’m doing it. I’ve been going in once a week and tomorrow is my 3rd appointment. I also decided not to do the mayan abdominal massage for now. It is expensive and I talked to my acupuncturist and she didn’t really see any reason for me to do it since I haven’t had adhesions or endometriosis.
Sometimes I still can’t believe this is all happening and we have to endure so much to have a family but I’m sure it will all be worth it one day. I’ve asked my parents to get tested for the chromosomal translocation that I have. They’ve both agreed to do it but just may take some time. My mom doesn’t have a doctor she goes to regularly so she just needs to find a place she likes and get an appointment. My dad is doing some blood work for his diabetes this month anyways so hopefully he can get tested at the same time. There’s no real medical reason for them to get tested other than it might complete part of my puzzle — I think it would answer if I became this way because one of them carried these genetics or it just happened (which they call de novo). I would just like to know either way.
-H
One or Two Embryos?
Posted by genescramble in Acupuncture, baby, egg donation, egg donor, egg donor match, embryos, infertility, IVF, Lupron, Mayan Abdominal Massage, miscarriage, PNW Fertility on September 21, 2011
We still have a while to go before we will be transferring embryos, but I’m sure the time will go fast. It turns out the woman we chose as our match is currently in a cycle with another couple. So we have to wait til her period starts and then another 6 weeks after that. It sounds like we will be transferring embryos around the 2nd or 3rd week of November. Meanwhile I am taking BC pills and will not be taking the non-active pills so I can be ready to go at any time— I have to be on active pills at least 15 days before we can start the Progesterone Patches and Lupron shots which get my body ready to carry this baby (or babies).
While we wait for November to roll around we have a couple of things to figure out…well, really one big thing to figure out. Do we transfer 1 or 2 embryos? My doctor seems to think that we should only do 1 because I am on the petite side and not sure how I would handle having two kiddos in my belly. My understanding is if we transfer two that there is a 70% chance of having twins. Our Egg Donor Coordinator actually said we might as well name them! But, I am kind of in the mindset that if we transfer two and get twins than maybe we’ll be done creating our family. I do know it would be a hard couple of years with a lot of diapers, crying, feeding and no sleep, but it could be worth it since I’m not getting any younger.
Other things I’m starting to think about is starting acupuncture for fertility and possibly doing Mayan Abdominal Massage. I have a friend who went to Ruby Moon Wellness for the Ab Massage and then got pregnant so maybe it works? I’m going to talk to the masseuse about it tomorrow. I do start acupuncture with Susan Darling in Seattle next Thursday. I also found this article on Livestrong.com which tells me basically to watch my weight, eat right, don’t drink caffeine or alcohol, and stay hydrated; basically things you should do anyways. I’ve also heard before embryo transfer that I should start exercising less vigorously but for now it’s okay to exercise normally.
I’m looking forward to the end of September/early October when we find out more information on our timing. The rest of this year is going to get a bit crazy, but in a good way (I hope!)
-H