60 Second Update

Embie we didn't transfer didn't make it. They left a message on my phone and I didn't feel the need to call back. It didn't upset me - not one bit - totally expected.

Tomorrow I go in for my check up appointment. I've been a little worried because I am still cramping, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised since I'm prone to infection AND I didn't take my doxycycline the night before my transfer like I was supposed to. Told the nurse on the day of transfer (when she asked about it). Completely slipped my mind to take it even though I told myself probably 20 times (and my husband at least 5)! Had to take it after dinner and dinner was after the reminder alarm went off. Damn you ADD. Oh well. I guess if I had to forget one medication -that was the one to forget.

G.C. says she is doing great except for a sore bum. LOL. I feel so bad for her. She told me that the night of the first shot that she kept procrastinating when her husband tried to give it to her. Made him keep practicing on the orange an hour past the time she was planning on taking it. Then when she finally got the shot she couldn't believe that she had been so worried over it that whole time. That it was nothing compared to what she had built up in her mind. Still, too many shots will give anyone sore spots. There wasn't an unbruised spot in my prime belly-shooting area by the time I was done. Hurt to wear pants. Sans pants (or skirt) probably isn't good for the office. Now that I think about it - why didn't I wear a dress???

That's it for now. Tomorrow is checkup for me and Sunday is prego test for G.C. Some moments I don't think of it at all and other times I wonder how wise it is troll craigslist for my dream crib. Well "troll" as in window shop, not as in act all douche-y. Why am I explaining myself? You all knew what I meant. I starting to ramble which means I need to hurry up and get to bed. Still a ton to do.

Night all!

Slacker, Community Peeps, 10 Second Rant, & ICLW

I confess. Super Slacker on the post reads today. Mostly because I didn't get home from a meeting with some local community folks (and then dinner) until almost 10pm.

The short of it involves them asking us to be a "named plaintiff" against a big box store that wants to move in right next to me. They need someone who lives close and I don't think you can get much closer than we are. Did we acquiesce? Damn straight. My quality of life goes down the tubes if the stupid mass retailer moves in. So much for me liking my privacy (both as a named plaintiff and/or if they move in.) Le sigh.

It probably doesn't help that I missed taking my supplements most of last week and now that I am taking them again, I have to deal with side effects. Rage Balls with your side of DHEA anyone? Hopefully it will pass quickly. While I have that going on, I'm going to use it as an excuse to go into a 10 second rant on something that drove me bonkers last week. 

10 Second Rant:
I am not a grammar Nazi. I swear I'm not. If you want to know the truth, I'm fully aware that my own grammar isn't that fabulous most of the time. But I hate - really, really hate - when someone's is awful. (If someone is disabled, from another country, uneducated, or similar then they totally get a pass.) There are blogs I can't read anymore because of the writing. Not minor things, but things that make you want to poke your eyes out.

I want to read the story, not try and decipher the jumbled up mess. Maybe it's because of my ADD, but when it's a jumbled mess, it's HARD for me to read. In the end, I just don't read them; it's too frustrating.

And I'm willing to bet, at least a quarter bet, that I am not the only one. That actually makes me a pretty crappy and judgmental person, but I can't help myself at times. I wish I could. This is the part where if I was smart I would erase this whooooolllleeeee section. 

End Rant

If you are visiting from ICLW then
A.) Sorry you had to see that rant. I'm not normally like that I swear. Ok, maybe sometimes.
B.) What took you so long? (LOL Just kidding) and
C.) You might want to start HERE instead for a tiny blurb about me and better posts to read. Except you are at the end of this one already so you might as well stay here.

Today's Readings:

1. (Still) Trying to Conceive: Languages
2. Hobbit-ish Thoughts and Ramblings: Sunday Night Chit-Chat Recovery Mode
3. Crazycatladywantsbaby: I Must be Stupid - TMI Post
4. Bébé Suisse: What does a girl have to do to buy a Doppler around these parts?
5. Follow Every Rainbow (nope - need permission. :-(  )
6. Team Harries Beat Infertility: Willingness to Wait
7. Tesseract: Eighteen Years
8. Thought Provoking Moments: Well, Well, Well
9. Genuine Greavu: the "A" Word
10. the misadventures of missohkay: When World's Collide
11. My Fertility Blog: And Then There's Good News

You have questions...We have answers

Actually I need your answers, so if any of this sounds familiar please post your experience/knowledge in the comment section.

On Tuesday night, I attended a seminar at my old clinic ACRM, here in Atlanta. I described some of it here and also pinky-swear promised to post the questions I posed to the new doctor during the Q&A session. (Ok, I didn't really pinky-swear, but I wrote I would, which is almost like the same thing.)

So here are the questions I asked.

1.) Can endometriosis affect the outcome of an IVF cycle if the woman is using a surrogate?
A.) Yes it is possible. [Sadly I have forgotten the reason behind it. I believe she did mention that there could be an effect on the eggs in a follicle and thus less eggs retrieved, but for the life of me I can't remember if she said certain things or if I am confusing it with stuff I have read.]

2.) Besides cost, what are some of the downsides of using ICSI?
A.) There have been studies done of the offspring conceived by ICSI and it was noted that the male children had a higher rate of sperm problems. Whether this is a cause of the ICSI or due to genetics (ie, the father having sperm issues thus ICSI was used) is unknown. 

[This one I already knew the answer to, but I wanted to make sure there wasn't anything else I didn't know about. Primarily because our clinic in India uses ICSI as a default with no extra charge (unlike here in the States).]


3.) How long after a laparoscopy, do you need to wait to start an IVF cycle?
A.) Generally the recovery time is short and we like to do the next cycle as soon as possible. Especially if the woman is older.
[I know they can't do it the same month as IVF, so I'm guessing that means you just have to wait until the next month.]

I'm getting conflicting statements about #1 and I'm a little concerned about it. Everything I read regarding endometriosis and IVF revolves around the woman carrying the baby, there is very little info for women using a surrogate.

My new OB/GYN did not seem to think that endometriosis would be a problem for me (with regards to lowering my IVF success rates) since we weren't using my uterus. In fact he thought there was a low likelihood that I had it since some of my symptoms were relieved with my cryoablation. He advised for me to find out if the cyst I had aspirated during my first IVF cycle was a chocolate cyst. He did mention at the end of our lengthy consultation that he did not specialize in reproductive endocrinology, so I'm guessing that was his out if he was wrong. The only surrogate cases he probably has is if someone walked into his office who IS a surrogate and already pregnant. Also this WAS before they locked me in the bathroom.

Conversely, Dr. GS on SIRM's forum indicated endometriosis could cause a problem in my case, but it was hard to tell if he understood that I would not be CARRYING the child. Even though I definitely mentioned it. (I am awaiting on a response for that clarification.) He mostly pointed me to articles that either talked about the problems in the woman's lining (and toxins activated in it) or in one case a long article he wrote with one tiny sentence that suggested a gestational surrogate would be a better option. That seemed to contradict his reply to me. Anyhow, I've awaiting clarification.  [UPDATE: Dr. GS did reply and state he missed the part about gestational surrogacy. He said that in the case of immunologic implantation dysfunction, it wouldn't apply to me, but an endometriotic cyst would affect egg quality.]

The REASON I'm even asking is because I don't know if I should be tested for it. We have decided to cycle again, but this may be my last one and I want to optimize my chances. If endometriosis can affect my eggs pre-aspiration, then it seems like a good idea to be tested and get any problems fixed. On the FLIP side, scheduling and doing a laparoscopy  plus recovery time could add a couple of months to the process - thus lowering our chances. PLUS some doctors advise against laparoscopic surgery for poor responders as it can further lower your ovarian reserve and raise FSH levels.

What to do, what to do. Time to go have a real one-on-one with our ACRM doctors again.

As I said at the beginning, feel free to chime in. 

Boobies. Let's discuss

image from: http://www.toliveandeatinla.com/2010/boobie-cupcakes/
Great. Now I'm craving boobie boobie cupcakes. And feel weird. 

Seriously. Does anyone else's boobies hurt during/after a cycle? Because mine do. They are super sore and sorry to be so frank, but my nipples get hard in that painful way quite easily. (Sadly, not in the good way.)

After my first cycle in June, a good friend of mine for 17 years exclaimed over lunch how ginormous my boobs had become. Truthfully, my boobs are normally pretty ginormous thanks to former pregnancies and an inexperienced plastic surgeon from 13 years ago that I saw after I couldn't take looking at the droop in the mirror anymore. Apparently he didn't think I was serious when I said I DIDN'T want large boobies. He gave some excuse of them getting so big when I was breast feeding that he had to go with a bigger size to fill, but if that was the case then he should have pushed for a lift instead: BEFORE my after-surgery-surprise. Anyhow, I graceously pointed out to my BFF that HER own boobies are bigger than mine, thank you very much.

Wait what were we talking about? Oh yea! My boobs hurt. And while I'm not sure if their size has increased (it's possible), they actually remind me of how my boobs hurt during my last month or so of pregnancy. Hurting boobies started again with my September cycle.

Is it my imagination? (Note: there is no possible way for me to be pregnant, so banish that thought.)  No, it can't be. My nipples can cut glass at times and my poor husband gets his hands slapped if he tries to go near when this happens. I assure him that it doesn't mean I'm excited to see him (at least not right THEN). My thoughts fly to how I could get away with asking someone at the massage school to "rub my boobies", while maitaining a straight face, preferably not flushed completely red.

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that any manipulation of your girlie parts (NO NOT THAT! - I'm talking about IVF or similar) can have the potential of a boobie reaction. When will it go away though? Is anyone else experiencing this or have you in the past?

If we are lucky enough to have a baby, a part of me considered trying to lactate, but screw that.₁ It may have been 20 years since I breastfed my son, but the boobie soreness is all coming back to me now. There's no way I could deal with this again for a year. And I'm sure my husband couldn't.

_{1 I know that all women don't experience this and/or deal with it better than my sorry butt. Have GOBS of admiration for any women that can induce lactation with pregnancy. Let's just say I have a low boobie pain tolerance and leave it at that.}