Garage Sale, Acupuncture, Mock Transfer, & 1st Injection

We had so much stuff!

It's been an eventful last week!  On Saturday, we were super excited to raise another $900 at our garage sale. We had a great turn out and almost sold everything.  We still have a handful of items that I will post on Craig's List to continue to pay off our fertility loan.  I still feel like I am recovering from the late night hours of staying up sorting clothes and pricing. THANK YOU to everyone that took the time to sort through their things and donate to us.  I am SO appreciative!

All of my medications

On Wednesday, I was supposed to pick up all of my medication at Shands Hospital's Medical Plaza Pharmacy where they do special orders, etc.  I got really frustrated to hear that they had given away the last vial of Follistim to another patient.  There was a national shortage so they would be unable to get my vial before I needed it on Saturday.  They said I could get my doctor to change the vial dosage but that would require another insurance authorization and the supplier to send the medication in 48hrs.  Of course, being a nurse and patient myself, I know how difficult it normally is to get a rush authorization so I was panicking.  It typically takes them a week to authorize my insulin pump supplies so how could they do this in 2 days?!  Well luckily I got in touch with my nurse Melinda who has a specific insurance contact and they authorized my meds within an hour.  The pharmacy had the different dosage I needed in stock so it all worked out.  God is so good :)

I have a better idea of how much this whole process will cost now that I picked up my medicines.  I just had to write the biggest check ever and I felt like I was signing my life away.  Thankful it is less than $15,000 and insurance paid for some meds and ultrasounds!

Acupuncture needles in my hand

Meds = $1211.10
Acupuncture = $225
IVF c/ ICSI = $10,893
Assisted hatching of eggs + freezing of eggs = $1165
Total = $13,494.10

On Thursday, I started my day with my first acupuncture appointment.  A friend who recently did IVF recommended them to me and our fertility clinic had pamphlets all over the office so I decided why not?  They use a protocol that has been proven through research to increase your chances of a pregnancy through IVF by 12%.  All of these women post online about how they use it to regulate their cycles so I thought maybe it would do some good.  I was shocked that it didn't hurt at all.  I had needles coming out of both ears, my forehead, stomach, hands, legs, everywhere!  My next treatment will be in a few weeks before the embryos are transferred into me and another one a few hours after.  If anything, it just relaxes you a lot!  I was anxious about my upcoming mock transfer appointment and my blood pressure was really low after acupuncture so it must have done something!

Next on the agenda was an appointment at the fertility clinic to do my medication teaching, first pelvic ultrasound, mock transfer, more consents, and labs.  The ultrasound was awkward but cool to see.  I liked how they have the monitor on the wall for you to see everything the doctor does and follow along.  The ultrasound showed the birth control did its job and everything is suppressed enough to start my meds.  No cysts or fibroids noted and my uterine lining was great at 4.5mm!  You can only see the outline of my uterus on the right side of the picture.  They made me have a full bladder for the mock transfer so I was like hurry this up! haha They inserted the catheter they would use to transfer the embryos and took measurements for where they would exactly place them.  Dr. Christman said that it was the easiest mock transfer he had done in years!  I am hoping that is a good sign and that everything will go smoothly in a few weeks.  My labs resulted at estradiol 28 and leutinizing hormone (LH) 1.5.  This means I can proceed with the Follistim and I wont need Menopur just yet because my LH was >1.  I had to make a calendar in order to keep my protocol straight and let's be real- it was just fun! I am so ready to get this started!

1st Ultrasound 5-21-2016

My IVF Calendar

Here's a picture of me doing my first Follistim injection tonight.  Luckily all of my injections are just subcutaneous (in the fat) so it should be really easy for me.  Follistim is a follicle stimulating hormone that helps healthy ovaries develop and release mature eggs.  Side effects are headache, stomach pain, bloating, redness/pain at the injection site, breast tenderness/pain, or dizziness.  It comes in a pen form like some insulins but it is a little different with the way you set it up.  I will continue to take nightly injections until I get labs checked again on Tuesday.                                          

24 Hours of Continuous Glucose Monitoring 5-21-2016

I am interested to see which meds will increase my blood sugar levels.  I had another good day today! No sugars above 140 again!  I am having the hardest time resisting all of these foods they say you can't have when you are pregnant.  I am wanting a soda, feta cheese, and a cold subway sub so bad!  Why do  you always crave things when you can't have them?  I haven't had a subway sub in probably 2 years. My doctor is making me start all of the pregnancy restrictions now.  My appetite has been through the roof so I need to distract myself from eating too much haha.  I think I would have more motivation if I knew I had a baby in my belly.  I also can't lift more than 10 lbs while my ovaries are growing.  This will be a fun few weeks at work!  Prayers for healthy growing eggs and little medication side effects :)

Until next time.....
Christy!