I just realized it has been over a month since I last posted. What a month it has been. Brian and I went on our trip to NYC from 11/5-11/8. It was a very bittersweet trip because I saw my most beloved Aunt for the last time that weekend. Aunt Connie (my Dad's only sibling) and Uncle Ted have lived in New York City forever, and they are the reason that New York City is one of my most favorite places in the world. Aunt Connie battled fallopian tube cancer (pretty much the same as ovarian cancer) for the last two years, and declined pretty rapidly over the last month. I went to see her on the Saturday we were in NYC, and she didn't even know who I was. That shattered my heart in a million pieces. I gave her a bath and a foot massage, and said goodbye to her. It was incredibly painful, but I will always be glad that I had a chance to say goodbye. She passed away the following Wednesday (11/10). Brian and I flew back to NYC the following weekend for the funeral. Twelve days after Aunt Connie passed, Uncle Ted joined her. He had been battling some health problems, but I also believe that he died of a broken heart. They were each other's whole world, and they had spent over half their lives together. I am terribly sad for my cousin, Lauren, who is an only child and had to bury both of her parents within two weeks. My family spent every Thanksgiving (in Ohio) and Christmas (in NYC) for my entire childhood with Aunt Connie, Uncle Ted, and Lauren. Needless to say, this holiday season is very sad for my family and me.
Back to fertility stuff ... my period started on 11/8, and I started my daily Follistim injections on 11/10. Since 11/10, I have gone to Dr. Schmidt's office for 5 ultrasounds (the internal, not-very-fun kind) and blood draws. Each ultrasound showed the progression of my follicles maturing, and the blood work showed my estrogen level. My Follistim dose had to be increased after each ultrasound and blood draw, because my estrogen wasn't high enough and my follicles weren't big enough. The injections weren't too bad ... I have bruises all over my belly and general abdominal soreness, but that's about it. I went in for my last ultrasound this past Friday (11/26). That was also the day of my last Follistim injection. The ultrasound showed one large follicle and a few other smaller ones. Dr. Schmidt told me to take my HCG injection on Saturday night at 9PM, which would have me ovulate this morning at 9AM. I had to work last night, so I met Brian at Dr. Schmidt's office at 7:45 this morning. He went to the lab and provided a sample :), and we were told to be back at the office at 9AM for insemination. When we got back to the office at 9AM, there were about 8 other couples there. Surprisingly, we were still on our way home by 10AM. The insemination was pretty harmless. Dr. Schmidt came into the exam room with a very small vial of "baby making gold". Haha. He said that the lab took Brian's sample and washed away everything but 36 million of the fastest, strongest sperm. It's amazing that they are able to do that. I got on the exam table (yep, stirrups and all!), and he inserted a speculum (just like in an annual GYN exam). Then, he inserted a thin catheter into my cervix, all the way to the top of my uterus, and injected the sperm into my uterus. I had to lay there for 10 minutes, and then we were on our way!
I have to have my progesterone blood draw next Monday (12/6), to confirm that I ovulated. After the blood draw, I will give myself an HCG booster shot (half the dose that I used to induce ovulation). This will help prolong the luteal phase (period of time between ovulation and menstruation), which in turn supports the pregnancy (if it has occurred). Then, I will take a pregnancy test on 12/16. Gosh, that seems like a LONG time away!!! I am trying so hard not to get my hopes up, but I desperately hope that this will work. What a beautiful Christmas present that would be ...
