Scheduled

Big news today - well, not Osama Bin Laden-big, but infertility saga big. I'm scheduled! All the preliminary testing is done and we are officially cycling, gearing up for the big FET.

Here's the rundown, for anyone interested in such things (and for my future reference - I can't even count the number of times I've gone back to posts about our first IVF to remind myself of what happened.)

5/9 - Baseline sonogram & bloodwork. Begin birth control pills and Lovenox injections*. (Done.) The sonogram didn't go quite as expected since we found that I have a large ovarian cyst, but the bcps should shrink it down. We hope.

5/27 - Sonogram. Begin taking Lupron, 20 units a day (sub-q injections.)

5/30 - last birth control pill

6/3 - Sonogram & bloodwork. Begin Estrace (not sure yet if it will be in pill or suppository form,  but the important thing is it's NOT an injection!) Reduce Lupron to 10 units a day.

6/7 - Start doxycycline (antibiotic) 100 mg, 2x day for 15 days. Eric takes it for 10 days.

6/10 - Sonogram & bloodwork. 

6/16 - Sonogram & bloodwork.

6/17 - Begin progesterone. Suppositories, not PIO injections. Hallelujah! With Sawyer I did PIO shots for something like 16 weeks, and I had nerve pain in my butt for a good two years after. I hear the suppositories are messy, but hey, I'm a mom, I can deal with messy.

6/22 - Embryo transfer.

7/1 - Beta test.

The last half of the schedule is extremely tentative and there's almost no chance everything will actually occur on those days, since it all depends on my body's reaction to the drugs. And if there's anything we know by now, it's that my body is unpredictable these days.

I've been on the phone all day scheduling appointments and ordering medications - from two different mail-order pharmacies, since apparently Village is out of Lupron. It was pretty funny talking to the lady at Freedom Drug, which we used for our last IVF in 2004. When she verified my address the one she had was 3 moves ago. It's funny how many things change if you just wait 7 years.



*I've been doing the Lovenox injections for 5 days and I'm already running out of non-bruised skin on my belly. And it really hurts, every time. How did I do this for nine months?