First of all, here is question #7: If you had gotten pregnant that first month you started trying, how would you have been a different parent? What changes have you made to your parenting style (either current or future) in the time you spent trying to conceive?
Honestly, I think it has made me more grateful and patient for when (please) this roller coaster of infertility does end and we become parents. I hope that it will also help me to not sweat the small stuff too much when I am having a rough time in the middle of the night or when things get rough. And this experience has definitely made me more patient. I am very type A and pretty used to making a plan, attacking that plan and achieving the goals I have set for myself. Infertility has taught me a lot about giving up control and exercising patience.
I talked to a woman I work with today who suffered through 4 miscarriages and she now has 3 gorgeous boys, and that was what she said was her biggest learning, she felt like she enjoys her kids so much more in the small and big moments because of how hard it was to get them. And when she sees other moms freaking out about every little thing she figures as long as her kids are healthy and happy (and not hitting themselves or other with sticks), the rest isn’t big enough to agonize over. So I hope that lesson will rub off on me to always be grateful.
And now the update on Stims Day 7:
It is day 7 of stims here, and I am becoming ever more bloated and uncomfortable. I think I might be a touch hormonal as well as I told one of my employees today that people should not fuck with me this week as I was preparing to lose my shit on a colleague that had treated that employee badly earlier in the day. Needless to say, that dickwad colleague felt the full wrath of follitism and hcg in all their glory.
Had the doctor’s appointment for day 7 monitoring this morning as well, all is still going well, the 17 follicles are still growing appropriately (yay, keep going!!). Unfortunately my doctor is going out of town for Thanksgiving (she thinks my retrieval will be Thanksgiving day) but she gave me her cell phone number if I had any concerns or questions, which I thought was super nice. I don’t think I will have anything I need to call her about, at this point we’re either going to get good eggs or not.
Here’s the details of today’s monitoring for anyone playing along at home:
Estradiol: 399
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| Right Ovary |
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my lady bits 
I can actually answer this question from both perspectives. I did get pregnant the first month we tried and carried to 7 months. I did take it for granted. I had a friend who was going through a fertility nightmare but I only understood it in an abstract way, and then it all fell apart for me. I found out I had severe preeclampsia And had to have an emergency c-section at 28 weeks. My baby was severely growth restricted due to a problem with the placenta and only measured 24 weeks. He also had a perforation in his bowel and had 75% of his small intestine removed at 1 day old. He fought to live in the NICU for 3 1/2 months. He never came off the vent and feeding tube and succumbed to sepsis. We lost him. He would be 3 1/2 now. We had to wait a year to even try again because my c-section was dangerous, and then went on to have 3 miscarriages. Hence the IVF with PGD. Dr thinks I have bad eggs. So here we are, 4 years since I was pregnant with my son and still no baby. I still get angry when I see parents freaking out and losing patience with their kids. They have no idea what a bad day as a parent is. They have the luxury of taking their children for granted. I used to wish I was still one of them, but not anymore. I know if we are ever blessed with a pregnancy that lasts and a healthy baby, that I won’t take one minute of that child’s life for granted. It’s awful that we have had to suffer what we’ve had to, but I do believe it will make us better parents. Your numbers are great! I’ll be lucky if I get half the amount of follicles you have! Best of luck!
Oh honey, I had read your story on your blog, but hearing it again just makes my heart hurt. It is amazing to me that you can take learnings away from the devastation to be a better parent in the future. I’ll have my fingers crossed for your follicles as well – I only had 8 last time, and all my eggs were bad (none even had a chance to fertilize) so I definitely feel you on the bad eggs – we are just hoping to get to the point of having something to transfer. Will be following along through your IVF – I think you are only a few days behind me!
Thanks hon. I’m 5 days in. I know what you mean about feeling really bloated! I feel like my ovaries are huge already! We’re trying Human Growth Hormone in combination with the Stims this time. There’s some evidence it helps with egg quality so we’ll see. I see the Dr on Monday. Hoping for more follicles this time too. Fingers crossed for both of us!