Things are so real now that it just amazes me! My IVF nurse just called to walk me through the HUGE packet of information that she sent me. I thought the packet was big that I got before, but this is serious business. I have to fill out a bunch of papers and have them notarized as soon as possible to give our consent to doing this and also to freeze our embryos that survive. :) On the top of the packet was a colored copy of my updated medication schedule. Some of my medicines have changed since the first calendar she sent me. I love how everything is color coded that way I am not going to mess up a dose or anything like that. I think the lady learned pretty quick that I am very organized and like having everything planned out.
She went through step by step what is going to happen in May. May 12th is when my real fun starts and I get to start my first injectable drug called Lupron. She said that this drug is a suppressant and that it is going to get my body ready for IVF by suppressing my pituitary gland. I haven't taken this drug before so I guess we will see if there are any reactions with it. I will also be taking a steroid called Dexamethasone that I have taken before. I take those in conjunction with my usual medications for a while. Then on the 18th I have to have my Estrodial checked and we are hoping for a low number as I should be on my period or getting ready to have a period. Then depending on a couple of factors, I might have to go to St. Louis for a baseline ultrasound, but we won't know that until the 22nd. I am hoping that I don't. Then on the 25th more fun with taking Gonal F on top of everything else. This is a new drug to me, but she says that it is like the Follistim that I took before that will increase my hormones and follicle growth. Does anyone agree or disagree with this that has taken this? On the 30th, I get to take Luveris which is another drug I haven't taken to mature the follicles that I have produced. Thoughts? Then on the 31st, I have my Estrodial checked that morning in St. Louis and then the ultrasound to check my follicles after that. Depending on what they see depends on what they do the next few days. They will either tell me to stay in St. Louis or go home and come back in a few days. Everything is up in the air which sucks as I am a planner, but it will be ok. Meanwhile I will keep dosing up on medicine to keep my follicles growing as we want them as mature as we can get them. :) Somewhere around then I will take an Ovidrel injection to cause all of the follicles to ovulate. 36 hours after injection is when I will have surgery.
I was told that my egg retrieval will probably be that Friday or Saturday just depending on how they mature. She said that everything is done in the office and they have various rooms for the surgery and recovery. She said that the sedation isn't a full few hours sedation, but more like 15 minutes to come out of it. She said that I will be groggy most of the day, but I will be able to walk around just not do too much. After that the next day they will call me to let me know how our little embryo's are developing. Hearing that is exciting as that will really give us hope with this whole process. Meanwhile I will be doing medications still, but not sure which ones yet. On day 5 the best two embryo's will be transferred back in (she said to drink water before hand) and I guess we get to watch it. :) Then after that is 24 hours of bedrest. Then cross the fingers and hope for a miracle or miracles.
This is all feeling really real. I know that we have the greatest support system in the world that is going to get us through this next month. Meanwhile I am going to keep thinking positive, working out, and trying to eat healthy. I just have to keep telling myself that I am Superwoman and I can do anything with the love and support of God and my family and friends. I am very blessed to have them in my life.
My blog is to help me deal with the highs and lows of my infertility treatments on the path to motherhood! However, right now I am pregnant with TWINS after our first IVF cycle in May/June 2011!
Showing posts with label Dr. Ahlering. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dr. Ahlering. Show all posts
Friday, April 15, 2011
Friday, April 1, 2011
APRIL 1st!
I can't believe that today is April 1st! Are we seriously doing IVF next month!? I think the nerves and excitement has really started to set in. This has really felt like a dream, but not now we are actually doing this. (SMILE) We are doing so much to get ready for this. We both are trying to eat healthier and cheaper, working out, and thinking positive. I can really tell a difference with my body already and with Chris's. This is going to work for us, I just know it. I have already met two women on facebook that are a part of my group that are doing IVF May into June. It will be so nice to know other people that are going to be thinking and feeling the same thing as I. :) I really think it will make a difference. I should be getting a call soon from my IVF Coordinator and this ball will get rolling. When you really think about it, one month from tomorrow is the day all of our money is due. That will be a sad day, but it will be fine (it was nice to be debt free for a while). I am hoping by that time I will be feeling better too as I am still feeling like crap from the birth control they put me on and flare ups with my IBS. I guess getting sick each night is just dropping more weight for me. LOL, bot seriously it isn't fun. Any how we are excited. I am actually going to go to my support group meeting on Tuesday as I need all of the support and prayers we can get. We are honestly about to get back on this roller coaster and I am hoping it will be nice and smooth this time and less bumpy.
Monday, March 21, 2011
GREAT NEWS!
Today I finally found out my blood tests that I had done last Tuesday. I wasn't to patient as these tests would really determine how my IVF cycle would work out as it would give us an actual indicator if I had true PCOS.
One of the first blood test was to check my insulin levels. PCOS has a lot to do with insulin and with diabetes running in my family it is definitely something that I wanted to know and need to monitor the rest of my life. My insulin level was a 12 and doctors want it under an 18. She said that is on the higher end, but no concern just want to monitor it.
The next test that they did was to check my glucose levels as this also effects PCOS. My glucose level was a 94 and it needs to be under a 99 so that is good. She also said that since I had to fast for hours before it that something still could have been in my system making the number higher. I told Chris that we didn't need ice cream that night, but he didn't want to listen to me being the voice of reason. I am hoping that next time he will actually listen to me.
She did say on my charts that Dr. A had written down to consider metformin as a drug for me to take if I did have PCOS, but when he thought about it and the side effects that I had, not really necessary. Can you say this made my day! :) However, he does still has to review my results, but this girl doesn’t have PCOS based off of my blood tests and scans! WOO HOO! I am more than convinced that I was just slapped with that label years ago based on my irregular periods, hard cramps, and diabetes running in my family. It is nice to know that I don't and it just reassures me that I am at the right doctor. Once again I can't thank you enough Stef for getting me hooked up with Dr. A for this. I think my dreams are going to come true.
I then of course asked where do we go from here as I have no clue on how to get meds, who to get them from, and how this will all work. She then said that we have an IVF Coordinator named Sharon who will be calling me soon and then again in April to set up our May calendar and ordering all of our drugs. She said that based on my insurance coverage is how they choose what companies to order from. She said that we both will have a z-pak to take before we start. Then on course there will lots of fertility drugs and a steroid again. Once I talk to Sharon for the first time, this is all going to feel and seem so real. To be honest April is just around the corner. :)
So...I guess this is where we sit right now and I couldn't have been happier with all of the good news. I am sure Dr. A will either call or email me to confirm all of this, but that is just more validation on this whole process. Now I just have 2 months to keep working out, eating healthy, and doing everything else to help contribute to this working. I am getting excited now!!! Knowing these results today just makes me feel better about the whole process. We will keep praying and praying for all of our friends that are in the same boat. May 2011 be a magical year for all of my friends dealing with infertility!
One of the first blood test was to check my insulin levels. PCOS has a lot to do with insulin and with diabetes running in my family it is definitely something that I wanted to know and need to monitor the rest of my life. My insulin level was a 12 and doctors want it under an 18. She said that is on the higher end, but no concern just want to monitor it.
The next test that they did was to check my glucose levels as this also effects PCOS. My glucose level was a 94 and it needs to be under a 99 so that is good. She also said that since I had to fast for hours before it that something still could have been in my system making the number higher. I told Chris that we didn't need ice cream that night, but he didn't want to listen to me being the voice of reason. I am hoping that next time he will actually listen to me.
She did say on my charts that Dr. A had written down to consider metformin as a drug for me to take if I did have PCOS, but when he thought about it and the side effects that I had, not really necessary. Can you say this made my day! :) However, he does still has to review my results, but this girl doesn’t have PCOS based off of my blood tests and scans! WOO HOO! I am more than convinced that I was just slapped with that label years ago based on my irregular periods, hard cramps, and diabetes running in my family. It is nice to know that I don't and it just reassures me that I am at the right doctor. Once again I can't thank you enough Stef for getting me hooked up with Dr. A for this. I think my dreams are going to come true.
I then of course asked where do we go from here as I have no clue on how to get meds, who to get them from, and how this will all work. She then said that we have an IVF Coordinator named Sharon who will be calling me soon and then again in April to set up our May calendar and ordering all of our drugs. She said that based on my insurance coverage is how they choose what companies to order from. She said that we both will have a z-pak to take before we start. Then on course there will lots of fertility drugs and a steroid again. Once I talk to Sharon for the first time, this is all going to feel and seem so real. To be honest April is just around the corner. :)
So...I guess this is where we sit right now and I couldn't have been happier with all of the good news. I am sure Dr. A will either call or email me to confirm all of this, but that is just more validation on this whole process. Now I just have 2 months to keep working out, eating healthy, and doing everything else to help contribute to this working. I am getting excited now!!! Knowing these results today just makes me feel better about the whole process. We will keep praying and praying for all of our friends that are in the same boat. May 2011 be a magical year for all of my friends dealing with infertility!
Friday, March 4, 2011
Better News
Today was much better news from Dr. Ahlering! He immediately started off by saying that all of my bloodwork supports that there is lots of follicles and eggs in me still! WOO HOO! He didn't give me exact numbers, but he was more than pleased with my bloodwork and really thinks this is going to work. He said it again, he thinks it is going to work. I asked him if this bloodwork shows if my eggs are good or bad based on my FSH levels. He said that you really can't truly tell if they are good eggs or bad eggs until they harvest them for the IVF cycle. It is then you will see the eggs develop into embryos or fizzle out. He said that you can have good batches and bad batches of eggs it just depends on the eggs. There is no blood test or unltrasound that can determine quality of the eggs.
The most exciting part of the phone call was hearing that Dr. A, doesn't think that I have PCOS based on my blood tests either! BIGGER WOO HOO! He said that there is nothing to indicate this except for the fact that my ovaries had a lot of eggs on the ultrasound that we did last week. He said yes that I have irregular cycles and lots of follicles, but nothing else indicates that I have true PCOS. He isn't 100% sure at this time if I have to take Metformin or not, but he doesn’t think that will help me with an IVF cycle especially with the side effects that I experience with this drug. He said in the old days people thought that Metformin improved eggs, but that doesn’t pan out in his eyes with all of the research that has been done since that time. He said a true PCOS patient has lots of irregularities on the labwork and my bloodwork doesn't show that. I asked him if I still had to do those other 2 blood tests and he said no not at this time, but he is going to recheck my files to double check. He did tell me to let him know when I start this month so I can start on birth control to get my body more stable and ready for IVF. I can't believe that in about two months we are going to be starting this process! Unreal!
I have dates for everything now too! Here is what he said about how the whole thing will work. He did say that I need to read on his blog about IVF at a distance to figure out how we are going to make this work. It isn't going to be easy with it being the end of the school year and packing up my classroom, but I can do it, I am superwoman!
Not sure on what day I start medications, but it is usually day 1. Based on my blood tests, I am going to have to do minimal amount of drug which means lower costs! WOO HOO! I am thinking more like 2 grand instead of 3 to 6 grand like it said on the financial sheet.
May 31: Day 9 of my Cycle (Appointment Day) Chris and I will go to St. Louis to have my eggs measured and see how the drugs are working. This will establish a lot of information on how the rest of the week will work.
5 to 7 days from there is when they harvest the eggs, but that all depends on how my eggs grow and how many eggs I have. We want at least 20 eggs for a good chance of IVF working. I am not too concerned as last week I had over 20 eggs and that was without drugs.
Gap of 5 days after that is when they implant them back in. He said that he implants 2 eggs or embryos back in. He chooses the best 2 embryos that were harvested and puts them back in which is very similar to how they do the IUI procedure which I had done numerous times. It isn't fun, but it is tolerable. Then a couple of days of relaxation in which they will hopefully implant in.
Then the worst part...waiting two weeks to find out if it worked. I am so excited and nervous all at the same time. Now it is time to try to save up as much as we can and charge the rest of the costs. After thinking about it, this is more than worth it and I know it is going to work as God has led us on this road and I have the greatest support group made up of amazing friends and family. Nothing but happy thoughts these next two months. I still can't believe we are doing this!
The most exciting part of the phone call was hearing that Dr. A, doesn't think that I have PCOS based on my blood tests either! BIGGER WOO HOO! He said that there is nothing to indicate this except for the fact that my ovaries had a lot of eggs on the ultrasound that we did last week. He said yes that I have irregular cycles and lots of follicles, but nothing else indicates that I have true PCOS. He isn't 100% sure at this time if I have to take Metformin or not, but he doesn’t think that will help me with an IVF cycle especially with the side effects that I experience with this drug. He said in the old days people thought that Metformin improved eggs, but that doesn’t pan out in his eyes with all of the research that has been done since that time. He said a true PCOS patient has lots of irregularities on the labwork and my bloodwork doesn't show that. I asked him if I still had to do those other 2 blood tests and he said no not at this time, but he is going to recheck my files to double check. He did tell me to let him know when I start this month so I can start on birth control to get my body more stable and ready for IVF. I can't believe that in about two months we are going to be starting this process! Unreal!
I have dates for everything now too! Here is what he said about how the whole thing will work. He did say that I need to read on his blog about IVF at a distance to figure out how we are going to make this work. It isn't going to be easy with it being the end of the school year and packing up my classroom, but I can do it, I am superwoman!
Not sure on what day I start medications, but it is usually day 1. Based on my blood tests, I am going to have to do minimal amount of drug which means lower costs! WOO HOO! I am thinking more like 2 grand instead of 3 to 6 grand like it said on the financial sheet.
May 31: Day 9 of my Cycle (Appointment Day) Chris and I will go to St. Louis to have my eggs measured and see how the drugs are working. This will establish a lot of information on how the rest of the week will work.
5 to 7 days from there is when they harvest the eggs, but that all depends on how my eggs grow and how many eggs I have. We want at least 20 eggs for a good chance of IVF working. I am not too concerned as last week I had over 20 eggs and that was without drugs.
Gap of 5 days after that is when they implant them back in. He said that he implants 2 eggs or embryos back in. He chooses the best 2 embryos that were harvested and puts them back in which is very similar to how they do the IUI procedure which I had done numerous times. It isn't fun, but it is tolerable. Then a couple of days of relaxation in which they will hopefully implant in.
Then the worst part...waiting two weeks to find out if it worked. I am so excited and nervous all at the same time. Now it is time to try to save up as much as we can and charge the rest of the costs. After thinking about it, this is more than worth it and I know it is going to work as God has led us on this road and I have the greatest support group made up of amazing friends and family. Nothing but happy thoughts these next two months. I still can't believe we are doing this!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Full Steam Ahead!
I think I have a smile still on my face after our little getaway to St. Louis to see the doctor. I didn't sleep very much last night as I was so nervous about finding out if my dreams were going to be dashed. When we walked into the place, I immediately was welcomed by a nice, clean, and modern office. It was very welcoming and I felt at ease. Chris of course was more on edge, but that is to be expected since he gets to do all of the appointments with me as we both have to travel to St. Louis together. The nurse came and got me and asked me a few questions. I of course, immediately asked if they have my blood results and she said still no. I was to nervous to dwell on that too much, but I did think that was over a week ago and they should have the results. When I was brought into the room for the ultrasound, I couldn't believe how nice it was. The computer ultrasound machine was new and there were other high tech gadgets that my other office didn't have. I know I need to quit comparing the two offices, but I do that all the time. Any how, when Dr. Ahlering came in, which seemed like forever, he immediately put me at ease. To be honest this was my first appt with a male doctor. Chris just sat in the corner and was grossed out. :) Any how, he said that we were going to do a couple of tests. I reminded him that this was day 13 for me and I was more than concerned that my follicles or eggs would be gone already and told him about my first month that I was to do IUI years ago and how my eggs just disappeared. He said that we will just see what we see. He did a test first that involved looking at my cervix and taking a specimen....not fun, but it was easier than it had been in the past it was very similar to IUI and how they will implant the embryos back in. Then came the dreaded ultrasound. I was so nervous just laying there and Chris just kept looking at my face. First thing he looked at was my uterus and it looked great is what he said. Then he said my lining was nice and thick which is good. Then came the part I was dreading. looking at my ovaries to see if I had any follicles. He looked at my right one and I still can't believe what I saw... 10 follicles or eggs!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn't believe it with my own eyes. Here I thought I was only having like 1 or 2 follicles a month and to see this. I had one that was rather large that he thinks I will ovulate later this week. He told me to buy a predictor kit and try on our own later this weekend. :) Then he looked at my other ovary and there were 20 more follicles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Alright the downside to this is now I have to have more bloodwork to see if I have PCOS, but to be honest that isn't a big deal right now other than going on the metformin which will make me sick, but I have EGGS! He said that this is fantastic news as it shows my ovarian reserve may be deplenishing, but it isn't gone just yet and it is still working hard. :) I am so happy! He said that this is the best case scenario as we want to be able to retrieve like 20 eggs for an IVF cycle. The fact that I had almost 30 with no drugs, just means that I won't have to do as much drugs as some people and he thinks that this is going to work and we are going to get the end result that we want. I started to tear up hearing this. Did he just say that he thinks I am going to get pregnant!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just looked at Chris and he was beaming from ear to ear. We really feel like everything is falling into place. I told him that we want to do this and what is next. He said that once I have my next period, I will be on birth control until it is time to start our IVF cycle. In doing this it forces my body to be normal (that was funny to hear) and put me on a regular schedule. It also will get me on the same cycle as the other women who are doing IVF at the same time. Nice. He said that once he has all of my blood tests that we will confer again. I am set for another phone conference with him on March 4th to go over everything and really lay out our plan. This will also give us more idea of what is coming up. I still can't believe we are doing this. I have another phone conference on March 3rd with the IVF consultant to go over the financial side. I did find out that teachers get a discount!! WOO HOO! My day is just getting better with all of this. Right now we are just on cloud 9 and anxious to get more information to get this going. I still can't believe that the doctor said that this is going to work. :) On our long drive home we were talking about names as I have this feeling we are going to end up with multiples and I have a girl name, which I am not sharing, but Chris has a boy name picked out now. It is Gomez. :) We laughed almost the whole way home on that one. (That isn't the real name, but it was funny thinking of how that sounded with our last name.) We are both so happy and I love him more than ever. WE will get through this and be parents in just a short time, I just know it. Thanks for all of the thoughts and prayers as we couldn't do this without you. My sister gave me an Italian prayer card which I am going to read daily to help me get through this and keep my spirits up. This is definitely in God's hands, but it seems to finally be working out in our favor which is about time. Two years ago at this time we were doing IUI and ended up pregnant. It seems forever ago.
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