All's Quiet

Thursday was our first baseline ultrasound in our IVF work-up, and thanks to the cycle of birth control, things looked as they should have: quiet, to use the nurse's term. Birth control was used to suppress any activity of my ovaries so that follicle production can be controlled by medication and treatments. The ultrasound and all of my labs looked good -- it was a go for the meds!

The appointment was cake compared to the previous appointment last week. I had been so busy explaining all the emotional turmoil Robby and I were going through that I forgot to complain about how awful the pelvic exam was! They scraped my uterus (on purpose!) causing it to freak out and spasm and cramp--which was pretty much what I was doing in response. I've had some terribly painful experiences throughout all of these labs and procedures, but nothing was as intense as that. Thankfully it didn't last too long, and I recovered quickly. I like to tell myself I'm simply building up my pain tolerance for a future experience.

I began my medications today and did my first injection for our IVF. I had to do these with the IUIs, but the IVF injections are more numerous and more frequent. Two a day for the next week, and that'll use up only half of the boxes in my refrigerator right now.

Next Friday, March 1st, is a critical appointment for us. We'll get a first look at how I'm responding to all of these medications, and if all goes well, within 1 to 3 days we'll get the go for the injection that triggers ovulation. At that point, my eggs will be surgically removed and fertilized. A couple of days after fertilization, our teeny tinies will be placed inside of me. In other words, we will have our IVF completed within two weeks!

All might be quiet on the ultrasound, but all is definitely not quiet around our home. We are excited!!!