finished 2nd round of Clomid

Today was my last day of my second round of Clomid. I had a lot more hot flashes this time ... they are truly surreal! For about 5-10 minutes, I feel like I am melting from the inside out! I sweat profusely and my face gets very flushed. I can finally relate to what my Mom went through when she would roll down the car windows in the middle of January! ;)

I will go in for an ultrasound next Thursday (9/2), to see how my follicles look. I will update after the ultrasound!

period. :( :( :(

Well, I am sad to report that I started my period today. I am feeling a lot more sad and disappointed than I thought I would. I guess I just wasn't expecting it to start so early, if it was indeed going to start. I called Dr. Schmidt's nurse to let her know that I started, and she asked me if I was sure it was really my period and not just spotting. She said that spotting is somewhat common very early in a pregnancy. I told her I was sure it was my period, and she reassured me that a lot of couples have to do more than one cycle of Clomid before they get pregnant.

I am sad about starting my period and not being pregnant, and now I have to go to work for the next 3 nights. :(

I will be starting the next round of Clomid on Sunday, and the cycle will begin again!

Oh well ... I guess this will make me appreciate it that much more when (if) I do get pregnant ...

post-ovulation progesterone level

Dr. Schmidt's nurse called today with the results of my progesterone bloodwork from Monday. In medically-induced ovulation cycles, progesterone levels on day 7 post-ovulation should be 15 or greater. Mine was 17! This means that I ovulated the way I was supposed to! I've been going crazy wondering if I am pregnant. I have even taken a couple pregnancy tests, knowing full well that they would be negative (they were!). I am going to try not to take another one until Monday (the day I am actually supposed to take it!). We'll see how well that goes! ;)

I will update again on Monday with the results of my pregnancy test! Fingers and toes crossed!!!

lots of good follicles :)

I had my ultrasound today. Dr. Schmit said that my uterus lining had good thickness (Clomid can actually cause thinning of the uterine lining, which is not conducive to embryo implantation), so that is great! He also saw 3 large follicles in my right ovary and 2-3 smaller follicles in my left ovary. This is also great news! I will be giving myself the HCG injection tomorrow night (at work!), so I will ovulate on Monday morning. I am trying not to get my hopes up, but of course I am very hopeful that I will get pregnant this time!

I will have blood drawn next Monday (8/16) to check my mid-luteal progesterone level. This number will confirm that I actually did ovulate. On Monday, 8/23, I will take a home pregnancy test!!! This is going to be a long couple of weeks!!

FSH levels and HSG

Dr. Schmidt's nurse (Patty) called me this afternoon with my FSH results. My FSH is 12.3. Remember that 10 or below is normal or ideal. Patty said that 12.3 is great and completely normal for someone of my *ahem* advancing age (haha), and Dr. Schmidt is pleased with this number. She said that Clomid tends to work very well with this FSH level. I was very happy to hear this. :)

I had my HSG this morning. I was pretty nervous, mainly because of the thought of a catheter being inserted into my cervix! It wasn't bad at all, though. The whole procedure took less than 5 minutes. The catheter insertion was certainly uncomfortable, and I felt some pretty intense cramping when the dye was injected, but the whole thing went very quickly. I also got some great news ... Dr. Schmidt said that my cervix, uterus, and fallopian tubes are "beautiful" and "perfect for making and growing a baby"!!! I am so happy about this news. We still don't know if my ovaries are functioning properly (and he is still suspecting that they were somehow damaged by radiation), but I am hoping that the Clomid will jump start my ovaries and help me produce some good mature eggs. I have read several places online that having the HSG can increase the chances of pregnancy because it opens up the fallopian tubes. I'll take all the help I can get! :)

Tomorrow is my last day of Clomid. I have had a few hot flashes (most common side effect), which has been a bit surreal and a not-so-pleasant sign of things to come in about 10-15 years! Other than the hot flashes, I haven't had any issues with the medicine.

Next Friday (day 13 of my cycle), I will be having an ultrasound to see how many follicles (mature eggs) I have produced, and to figure out when I will ovulate. Dr. Schmidt will tell me that day when I need to give myself an injection of HCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) in my belly. The HCG injection will make me ovulate 36 hours after I take it. It's amazing to me that this can be timed down to the hour!

bloodwork and Clomid

I had blood drawn yesterday (7/27) to check my FSH (follicle stimulating hormone ... this is the main hormone involved in producing mature eggs in the ovaries). In women with fertility issues (we are called "subfertile", as I recently learned), FSH on cycle day 3 (which was 7/27 for me) is an indicator of ovarian reserve ... how well my ovaries are working and how hard they will have to work to produce mature eggs, or follicles. The higher the number, the more infertile a woman is. To put this in perspective, postmenopausal women have the highest FSH levels ... their bodies no longer produce mature eggs so the pituitary gland constantly produces FSH in a futile effort to produce mature eggs. Thus, it makes sense that the older a woman gets (and the closer she gets to reaching menopause), the higher her FSH levels will get. Anyway, each lab varies a bit regarding cutoff values. In general, an FSH of 9 or less is normal or ideal. Over 20 essentially indicates ovarian failure, which means the ovaries are no longer producing good or any mature eggs. I should be getting a phone call from Dr. Schmidt's nurse by the end of the week to let me know my FSH level.

I started my first round of Clomid yesterday. Clomid is in a class of medications called ovulation stimulants, and it is used to induce ovulation in women who do not ovulate on their own. Clomid is the most well-known and commonly used fertility drug. I am taking the lowest dose (50 mg) once a day for 5 days.

On Friday (7/30), I will be having a procedure called a hysterosalpingogram (HSG). This procedure involves inserting a catheter into the cervix, injecting dye, and viewing the dye dispersement on an x-ray screen. This will tell my doctor if I have any anatomical issues with my cervix, uterus, or fallopian tubes. I will post on Friday after the HSG.

period.

The estrogen/progesterone cocktail worked! My period has started, which means I officially have a cycle. This is a very good thing! I will have bloodwork drawn on 7/27, and I will also start the first round of Clomid that day. More on this in my next post ...