[youngtucker]

Hi all, I just wanted to say, I did the Follistim tonight. I am on 225 and I honestly didn't feel it. I let it warm up for about 5 minutes and then I pinched the skin and no problemo! Maybe it will be as easy for you all!

I take the 225 for the next 2 days, then I go in for labs and that night I do menopur as well. I am gettng so excited.

Today was a weird day for me, I kind of felt seriously overwhelmed and a bit sad and alone. It went away after a few hours, so I'm sure it's the meds, plus this whole experience. COming on here and hearing about all of you sure makes it easier though! Thanks for being my friends!

[youngtucker]

Originally Posted by MrsJB

We are in San Diego so we are at NTC here. We partner either with Reproductive Partners or San Diego Fertility Clinic. We choose Reproductive Partners. Their stats are really good. And I like that the work with a Univesity- so I feel like they are on the cutting edge I guess.

This is my first IVF so I am not sure if what I am doing is standard. But they do have both of us on antibiotics now and I will take them again. They also want me on the baby asprin. I know that I have patches to wear after the transfer. They insist on the shots of progesterone at first. I have another sonogram on Thursday before I get going on the stims.

We were on the wait list FOREVER! As you can see we started trying in 2005, went to the doc in 2006. They had to refer me to OBGYN who did the tube test then put me on clomid. Then I was referred to NTC. I really didn't count but I must have done 7 cycles of injections. Some with IUI, some with timed intercourse. The IVF list had stopped so I had to keep waiting. We decided to stop with treatment until IVF came up. It was just too stressful with no results. So we had about a year off of it.

I do like my doctor and the nurses are wonderful. Keeping my fingers crossed that we did the right thing by waiting and not going out on our own to do it!

I'm not too far from you, in Temecula. All that waiting is going to pay off for you, I just know it. God made you wait until he knew he could come through for you! Good luck!

[MrsJB]

Originally Posted by youngtucker

Hi

Today was a weird day for me, I kind of felt seriously overwhelmed and a bit sad and alone. It went away after a few hours, so I'm sure it's the meds, plus this whole experience. COming on here and hearing about all of you sure makes it easier though! Thanks for being my friends!

Awe! I second that. It is so nice to know that we are not alone!

Thanks to everyone on here for being so open and inviting.

[MrsJB]

Originally Posted by youngtucker

I'm not too far from you, in Temecula. All that waiting is going to pay off for you, I just know it. God made you wait until he knew he could come through for you! Good luck!

Ah- yeah we are down in Linda Vista. Thanks. Being the good military wife I am keeping with the motos of semper gumby and 'prepare for the worst but hope for the best.'

One of these days something has to work!

[2LinesIn09]

PG_Florida-- I just posted the whole story of my annoying weekend and IVF update on my blog, so I'm going to paste here so I don't have to retype. Here ya go:

Yesterday I was not amused when my box of IVF medications did not arrive on my doorstep like my nurse promised. You see, on Friday, my RE's office placed an overnight order for more Menopur and Follistim to get me through until Monday. They didn't want to place the refill order until they had a better idea of a retrieval date. Plus they kept upping my medications, so they wanted to know exactly how much to order before calling Aetna. But at 7:30 am she faxed the order to the insurance company and I heard her call to confirm that the order was recieved. I heard her emphasize that it was time sensitive and must be sent overnight. So when the box did not arrive as expected, I called Aetna Specialty Pharmacy. Imagine my surprise when I was told by the after hours workers that they had received my order and that they would be calling me on MONDAY to schedule delivery. Huh? That's strange considering that I needed the medication for this weekend and Monday. Grrrrrrrr. So I had to scramble and drive out to San Jose. The RE was nice enough to give me an unopened, donated box of Menopur, but I had to go to a fertility pharmacy to buy the Follistim. $375 later I walked out with my medication and empty pockets. Had Aetna filled the prescription overnight for me like they were supposed to, it would have cost exactly $0. Needless to say I was highly annoyed. Tomorrow I need to call Aetna and cancel the whole **** order and figure out why no one filled it on time like they were supposed to.

On my drive back to Fremont, I made the mistake of driving past a Planned Parenthood Clinic. There were a bunch of demonstrators out front with signs protesting the abortions that are performed there. The pictures on the signs were quite disturbing. And the drive by was just one more reminder of how my body has betrayed me and thus far has denied me the one thing I am so desperately seeking. The thought of all the women in the world who carelessly get knocked up without even trying and then so easily throw it all away made me sick to my stomach and I cried the whole way back home, which I am sure is exactly what those protesters wanted. Mission accomplished.

Bright and early, at 7:15 this morning I paid a visit to my RE's office. Thankfully my veins cooperated and the blood draw was uneventful. Next, the ultrasound revealed 13 follies. Nine of them are now over 15 in size. I go back tomorrow for another ultrasound and estradiol check. My estradiol went up to 964, which they are happy about. The bad news is that they see some suspicious fluid in there which they are not so happy about and they are now watching me for OHSS. I was under the impression that it would take a lot more follies than 13 and a higher estradiol level than that to cause OHSS, but apparently not. Let's just pray that everything looks good in the morning. I will keep my fingers, toes and everything crossed until then. It still looks like the retrieval will be Wednesday, but the final decision will be made when my bloodwork comes back tomorrow afternoon. Tonight could be my last night of stim medications! YAY!!!

[MrsJB]

2Lines how frustrating!!!!!!

That which does not kill us will make us stronger, right? At least that is what I tell myself all the time about this!

Will they reimburse you as they made the mistake? Not sure how that works.

[2LinesIn09]

Originally Posted by youngtucker

Okay everyone, talk me down, talk me down. I just got my progesterone via FedEx, and the needles are HUGE and they are scary, and I actually threw up. I am not scared of needles, but are you kidding?

Someone tell me that it's not unbearable, and that I won't puncture an organ. Could be the Lupron talking, but I am super nervous.

The PIO injections are not nearly as bad as I built them up to be in my head before my first cycle. You get used to them very quickly. I laid down for them and had DH give them to me. They are much easier to draw into the syringe if you warm up the oil beforehand. I actually used a heating pad to warm the vial and it drew up much better than at room temperature. Also, as soon as DH gave me my shots, he massaged the area for about 5 minutes. I never got any lumps and had minimal discomfort. Make sure you alternate sides each night. Trust me, the needle looks scary, but you'll be a pro in no time.

[2LinesIn09]

Originally Posted by MrsJB

2Lines how frustrating!!!!!!

That which does not kill us will make us stronger, right? At least that is what I tell myself all the time about this!

Will they reimburse you as they made the mistake? Not sure how that works.

Nope. No reimbursement for me. The meds are only covered if I get them from Aetna Specialty. So frustrating!!!

[WinniePoo]

Ok so I started Stims last night! 150 each of Follistim and Repronex. Follistim, no biggie...no burning at all. Repronex burns like hades on a hot summer day, but it only last about 60 seconds. The stupid welt that shows up the next morning is what kills me! It's about the size of a half dollar! I know I have a lot of stomach and all, but at this rate after 10 days I won't have any more unwelted stomach to inject into!!!! So far that is the only stupid thing that is bothering me about the stims. I go for my next u/s and b/w on Wednesday morning. I just hope all 21 of my follies are responding!!!

[athena3]

Hi Ladies,

Just wanted to share my adventure:
Friday I had my bw/us and I have a pretty large cyst and I would have to wait for my bloodwork to determine if I could move forward. After my RE appt I had to wait a few hours to meet w/ the anethesiologist, so I sat in my car and cried because I just couldn't go through this emotional roller coaster. You know what I mean.....

Anyway, I pulled myself together, meet with the anethesiologist and go on my way. In the afternoon the nurse called me and said I can my forward, my estrogen was low . So I had to start 10 units of Lupron right away.

Okay, I wait for DH to come home, pull out my box of syringes, bags of needles and everything. DH comes in and says where are the needles, you don't have the right ones. What?!?

They never sent me the tiny insulin needles for the lupron. Don't panic, I read of the boards that I can just go to CVS and get the needles........

Pennsylvania state law requires a prescription for the insulin needles!!!!!AAACKKKK, at this time it's past 5pm and my office is closed. I'm in a full panic. I had to put an emergency call into the Dr to prescribe the needles. I felt like such an idiot bothering him on a Friday night!

Lesson learned to all newbies: Check for the smaller insulin needles because they are measured in units and you cannot use the big syringes.

I didn't know what meds/needles I needed.

Anyway, I started 10 units of Lupron twice a day, and started Follistim on Saturday...300 units twice a day. I'm doing the microdose lupron cycle. I'm having burning issues w/ Lupron, I think I just can't find the right spot.

They didn't give me an ER/ET date yet so I guess I have to just wait until wednesday for my next followup.

As always, thanks for listening ladies......

[mi11]

Originally Posted by WinniePoo

Ok so I started Stims last night! 150 each of Follistim and Repronex. Follistim, no biggie...no burning at all. Repronex burns like hades on a hot summer day, but it only last about 60 seconds. The stupid welt that shows up the next morning is what kills me! It's about the size of a half dollar! I know I have a lot of stomach and all, but at this rate after 10 days I won't have any more unwelted stomach to inject into!!!! So far that is the only stupid thing that is bothering me about the stims. I go for my next u/s and b/w on Wednesday morning. I just hope all 21 of my follies are responding!!!

hi winniepoo-
hang in there! .. don't worry about the welts .. they usually subside in 24-36 hours .. iam so excited about ur 21 follies... best of luck for ur u/s and b/w wednesday and keep us posted ... will keep u in my prayers

[WinniePoo]

mi11: Unfortunately for some reason my welts stay around for more like 5 or 6 days. Or at least they did with my first IVF. I just have to get creative with the pattern in which my injections move across my stomach. The only real reason they bother me is because it gets uncomfortable to wear pants/underwear cause of fabric rubbing on my belly. Nothing I can't handle though. Just complaining.

[PG_Florida]

2LinesIn09 - OMG. What a roller coaster. Some loser at Aetna was too lazy to fill your order and it turned you upside down. Poor thing! It's so annoying when we have to pay even once more extra penny towards IVF -- but thankfully the office had an extra unopened box for you. Take care of yourself in case of OHSS... drink LOTS of water (even mix some Gatorade in there), PLENTY of rest and if you feel any discomfort/pain in your mid-section IMMEDIATELY rest. I had mild OHSS from my last IUI (my estrogen was in the 700s, and I had 7 large follies). And that was enough to send me to the sofa for a few days. Let's hope you get to ER very soon. Can't wait for the next update!!!

WinniePoo - I hope your welts subside. What a pain. The things we go through..... you might draw some unusual looks if you're prancing around in a bikini!!!

athena3 - LOL, I had to chuckle reading your post. That is totally something I would do! I didn't look at my box of meds until last night (the night before my first Lupron shot)... but my box of Lupron came with a bunch of needs in the sealed box. I wonder why yours didn't?!

tryingtobestrong - I'll add you to the updated list (when I get around to it later!).

AFM, I had my first Lupron shot this morning. Upon pulling the needle out I had a few drops of blood (a first for me), so I assume I hit a capalary or something. No biggie, just a tiny bruise.

DH is leaving this afternoon for a week... I'll definitely be badgering him to make sure he takes his doxycycline starting on Aug 1. I'm nervous about him taking the meds without me there to micro-manage him. hee hee.

Being home alone for the next week - I'll spend plenty of time on the thread! And I'll be eating cereal for dinner...

[WeWantaBaby]

Originally Posted by PG_Florida

2LinesIn09 - OMG. What a roller coaster. Some loser at Aetna was too lazy to fill your order and it turned you upside down. Poor thing! It's so annoying when we have to pay even once more extra penny towards IVF -- but thankfully the office had an extra unopened box for you. Take care of yourself in case of OHSS... drink LOTS of water (even mix some Gatorade in there), PLENTY of rest and if you feel any discomfort/pain in your mid-section IMMEDIATELY rest. I had mild OHSS from my last IUI (my estrogen was in the 700s, and I had 7 large follies). And that was enough to send me to the sofa for a few days. Let's hope you get to ER very soon. Can't wait for the next update!!!

WinniePoo - I hope your welts subside. What a pain. The things we go through..... you might draw some unusual looks if you're prancing around in a bikini!!!

athena3 - LOL, I had to chuckle reading your post. That is totally something I would do! I didn't look at my box of meds until last night (the night before my first Lupron shot)... but my box of Lupron came with a bunch of needs in the sealed box. I wonder why yours didn't?!

tryingtobestrong - I'll add you to the updated list (when I get around to it later!).

AFM, I had my first Lupron shot this morning. Upon pulling the needle out I had a few drops of blood (a first for me), so I assume I hit a capalary or something. No biggie, just a tiny bruise.

DH is leaving this afternoon for a week... I'll definitely be badgering him to make sure he takes his doxycycline starting on Aug 1. I'm nervous about him taking the meds without me there to micro-manage him. hee hee.

Being home alone for the next week - I'll spend plenty of time on the thread! And I'll be eating cereal for dinner...

i'm laughing so hard about badgering DH to take meds. when i leave before my dh in the am, i leave it on a bright yellow post-it next to his wedding band WITH water and put a note on the door. but, it works....he takes it and is glad he doesn't need to "remember" it

2Lines - on sat i had a monitoring appt and there were protestors that DH and i had to walk through to get in to clinic....it was AWFUL. i had to calm dh down...he was furious, i was sad. i know everyone has a right to express their opinions, but this is a fertility clinic....i get that there may be embryos that are eventually not used, but we are trying to create a life to love. that was the LAST thing i wanted to experience - - being yelled at and criticized as walking in was NOT a pleasant experience. i hope that i don't have to experience that again....UGH!

[MrsJB]

My husband is bad with his pills too! He actually filled out medical sheets at work (the same kind that he gives the little Marine recruits) to remember to take them.

He was home the night before he was supposed to start taking them so I left the bottle right next to his keys on the kitchen counter. I reminded him three times that night and once before he left that morning. He STILL forgot them! So I had to run them over to the base for him and ended up being late for work AND being pulled over on base.

Good thing I have to take the majority of the meds or we would be in big trouble!