IVF Cycle: The Home Stretch

IVF Cycle: Day 48 Poke count: 76

The past few weeks have been extremely uneventful as far as our IVF cycle goes.  We went to visit our good friend Kat this past weekend as she starts her new adventure in Toronto. She and her husband, Nate, will be living there for the next couple years due to his job. Brian and I had some excitement on the way up there when we realized we would need to use an actual map to find our way to her apartment after crossing the border. Who knew Verizon shuts everything off when you cross into another country? We pulled out an atlas that I had in my car from a road trip years ago, but unfortunately Canadian maps were not included. We wound up using the map that was frozen on my phone screen just to make sure we were on the right highway. Once we knew we were headed in the right direction, it was smooth sailing! We got to take the train into town, tour downtown Toronto and take a tour of a castle turned haunted house. It was a great little escape while we keep our minds occupied.

I had my last appointment before the embryo transfer on Monday. They performed an ultrasound to measure the lining of my uterus and make sure it was all set to implant an embryo! Brian accompanied me to this appointment and I had a good laugh. We got in the room and the nurse told me to undress from the waist down and the ultrasound tech would be in shortly. Brian looked at me and said "I thought they were just doing an ultrasound today??" maybe I haven't made it clear that all of these ultrasounds have been internal ultrasounds. They aren't the average belly ultrasounds where the only uncomfortable part is getting that gel off of your stomach. These are pretty uncomfortable in every aspect. They don't hurt or anything, they are just awkward.

As we were lying in bed last night we watched the training video for these injections. I told Brian that I needed him to be calm in the morning and act like it was no big deal for him to be stabbing me with a giant needle. He has been pretty freaked out about the whole idea of giving me an injection from day 1 and if he was upset, I would get upset. The little ones in the stomach are like nothing at this point. I even gave myself 2 of them in the car this past weekend and had no problems. The progesterone injections on the other hand are wayyyyyy scarier. The medicine is mixed with sesame oil, so the needle has to be big. It's also injected directly into the butt muscle/hip area which can be pretty painful. .

They have to be done in the morning so I'm not just going to bed and laying down for the next 6-8 hours. I'll have to keep moving to prevent the muscle from developing a bulge from the oil building up....FUN! We stood in the bathroom for about 15 minutes this morning while I stalled. First I had to get the dog a treat, then I had to pee, then the alcohol wasn't dry on my skin, then I just didn't want to do this! Brian did great and acted less nervous and more annoyed with my stalling..yeah, he was totally acting. Once I finally calmed down enough to let him give me the shot, it really was no big deal! It barely hurt at all! I really need to stop listening to what everyone else says. So many articles online are titled "the dreaded progesterone shot" or "tips on surviving your first progesterone injection". If I had known better, I would have avoided these articles altogether. They just made me stress over something that really wasn't even that bad.

I am still taking estrogen multiple times a day along with the progesterone and I am starting to notice some new side effects. In the last week of my Lupron injections, I developed little bruises on either side of my abdomen. I guess my skin was sick of the needles! In fact, my skin is probably in the worst condition ever. I am breaking out all over my neck...yes, my neck. One of the most random places to have a breakout. I'm assuming this is from the estrogen, but I'm not 100% sure. I have also gained some weight. I am not eating any worse, in fact I am eating healthier than I normally do, but I've still gained a few pounds. I guess this is normal, but that doesn't mean I like it! Other than a few extra pounds and a pimple covered neck, I haven't noticed any new side effects lately! 

My last post focused on the big decision of how many embryos to transfer. A few days after that post, we made our final, final decision. We will be transferring ONE embryo. The plan was to transfer 2 embryos from the beginning, so changing our plan was not an easy decision. Brian and I both separately spoke with our nurse and both feel that we should go with one at this point. I had been going back and forth since we found out we only had 4 embryos , however my mind has been at ease with this decision since we set our mind on a single embryo transfer. I am a firm believer in going with your gut, and I think this is the only time my gut feeling has done a complete 180. 

In less than one week, we will be in the procedure room ready for the embryo transfer. I thought that the pregnancy test would be done on the 8th day after the transfer, but I was mistaken. It is actually a full 10 days after the embryo transfer, so we should find out on November 11th if I am pregnant. I cannot believe this past 2 months has gone by so quickly. We may be saying goodbye to this long, drawn-out process and welcoming the beginning of a healthy pregnancy. Thinking happy thoughts! 

-Emily

IVF Cycle - Day 34

Day 34: October 12 Poke Count: 62

I have been taking the Lupron Injections for almost 2 weeks now and so far I haven't noticed any side effects. This has been a nice change from the Menopur and Gonal - F. Other than the results of the embryo biopsy, there has been almost nothing going on with our IVF Cycle. Just the injections and a whole lot of waiting around.

There has been one big decision weighing on us since we got the results of the embryo biopsy; "how many embryos do we transfer?!" Since we started this whole process, we have gone back and forth between one embryo or two. In the back of our minds the plan has always been 2. We would be thrilled with twins and it would give us a small increased chance in conceiving. We started questioning our decision to transfer 2 embryos when we got the news that we only have 4 healthy embryo's.

I spoke with our nurse, Ashley, on Monday and she thinks we should start with one embryo. If I do not get pregnant the first time, this would leave us with 3 healthy embryos. This would also decrease the chances of me becoming pregnant with twins. While Twins would be a welcomed blessing, multiple pregnancies come with additional risks for the mother and the babies, There has been an increased number of IVF patients who are choosing elective single embryo transfer (ESET) in recent years. ESET has shown a decrease in multiple births, but has not shown a decrease in live birth rates. My young age and relatively healthy body give me a higher chance of becoming pregnant, so my doctor and nurse think one embryo will be enough for me to become pregnant.

The doctors can give us guidance in how many embryos to transfer, but ultimately it is our decision and we have no idea what we want to do. We have the doctors advising us to transfer one and everyone else telling us we should transfer 2. Everyone wants us to have twins! I am praying for guidance and confidence in whatever decision we make. At this very moment I am leaning towards 1, but that could all change in about 20 minutes.

I started taking estrogen pills today. I will stay on the estrogen for 21 days before the embryo transfer. I have an ultrasound on October 24th and we will need to let them know our decision on the embryo's at that time. That leaves us 12 more days to change our minds over and over again.

-Emily

Embryo Biopsy Results

Brian and I are camping in Pentwater this weekend for Oktoberfest. What was supposed to be a relaxing weekend with family to keep our minds occupied while we wait for results turned into a much better weekend! I woke up this morning to a voicemail from The Fertility Center asking me to call them. I called right away and they gave us the results. Out of the 11 embryos that were tested, 7 of them tested positive for the Epidermolysis Bullosa gene mutation. That means we have 4 healthy unefected embryos that can be transferred back into my uterus. Not all at once of course!

I will stay on my Lupron injections for a few more days. I am currently injecting 20 units every evening. On Monday I will decrease that to 10 units every evening. On Wednesday I will start to take estrogen pills every morning and evening. In the following weeks I will increase that to 3 times daily. The estrogen will help build up the lining of my uterus to allow embryo implantation. I'll have an ultrasound somewhere in the next month to make sure the lining is healthy enough for an embryo transfer.

My embryo transfer is tentatively scheduled for November 1. On that date, they will transfer an embryo back into my uterus and I will officially be pregnant until proven otherwise!! After a little more than a week, I will have a blood test to tell if the embryo implanted and I am truly pregnant. If that test is positive, they will do another blood test the following day to see how my hormones are increasing. During the weeks following the embryo transfer I will be on progesterone injections to help with implantation and embryo growth.

While we were hoping for more embryos, we are thrilled that we have 4! That's 4 opportunities for an embryo transfer and possible pregnancy! We appreciate everyone's love and support while we continue this journey. Prayers for continued success are appreciated!

-Emily