On to Cycle #5

I had my ultrasound today.  The technician said I am definitely polycystic (meaning I have PCOS).  My ovaries had so many cysts that she couldn't count them all.  But the way she made it sound, that was a good thing.  Fertile women have lots of cysts, menopausal women have none.  She also noticed a fibroid near the top of my uterus, but nothing to worry about right now.  Other than that, my uterus and ovaries looked fine.  So I'm doing 100mg of Clomid this cycle starting today and going for 7 days (rather than the usual 5 days).  I go back for another ultrasound on April 9 (CD 13) to see how I'm responding to the Clomid.  I'm also doing a Z-pac to clear up any possible infections that could potentially screw up getting pregnant (David gets to take a Z-pac, too, so he can finally get in on this fun that I'm having).  I'm also going to start taking baby aspirin which can help reduce miscarriages and aid in fertility as well.  I can't believe the amount of medication I'm taking.  Today alone I will have taken a prenatal vitamin in the morning, 3 metformin tablets with dinner, 2 clomid pills, and 1 baby aspirin...that's 7 pills!!!!  Anyway, it's all worth it.  Guess it's time for my moodiness and hot flashes.

Dieting

I got my insulin results back and they were 20.  Becky says that normal is below 17.  To help this, I will continue taking Metformin, although I am spreading the pills out during the day.  I am also going to make a good effort at exercising harder and trying a low-carb diet.  The low-carb diet is going to be so hard for me, but I am going to try really hard and attempt to try new foods along the way.  I think if I see myself losing weight, I may be more likely to stick with it.  Becky wants to re-test me again in a few months to see if these things are helping.  I also decided that as part of my exercise, I'm going to start running.  I know I had issues trying to run in high school, but I think with the right shoes and starting at the right pace and times, I can build myself up.  I'm hoping to get David in on this, too!  I'll update again after my ultrasound around March 27 (depends on what AF gets here).

Ending Cycle #4

I just got an email from Becky and she said that the test results showed that I did not ovulate, so I am to start the Prometrium right away. She hasn't received the results back from the insulin test, so I don't know anything about that yet. I do have to say that I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE Becky. She is going to send in a prescription for 60 pills (2 pills a day for 30 days) even though I only need 10 pills (1 pill a day for 10 days). The reason is because my copay of $50 (it's at the highest level) is for a 30 day's supply, so it doesn't matter whether I'm getting 10 pills or 60 pills, it's the same cost. So she is doing the 60 pill prescription and I'll have enough for 6 months making it less than $10 per month. Ideally, though, whatever we do next cycle will cause me to ovulate and I will either get pregnant or get my period on my own, so I won't even need the prometrium, but just in case, she saved me lots of money which I'll need for other fertility stuff. Based on my calendar, I should have my period around March 27.

PARINTS Update

So I had my appointment at PARINTS yesterday. The person I met with was Becky Kubula, who is the executive nurse/owner of PARINTS. She was also the same person that I called and made an appointment with and she will basically be the person I have most of my communication with, although I may have some of the procedures done by the other staff. She is the only full time employee, her staff is only part time to keep costs down. She seems really easy to get ahold of, I have her phone number and she is there from about 7am-7pm and on Saturdays, and I have an email and she responds really quickly to both of those methods. She also reads bloodwork results and responds to the patient within 24 hours.

The first thing she wanted me to do was have a full blood workup. This included some tests for my insulin and glucose levels to see if I'm insulin resistant, chem panel to see if my kidneys/liver are responding ok to the Metformin I've been on, also a pregnancy test and progesterone levels to see if I ovulated. I'm assuming it will come back negative for both of those. Assuming that, I will then get started on the prometrium to get my period. After that, I will have a base ultrasound to see the position or appearance of my uterus, ovaries, etc. I think she will be looking for any obstructions or abnormalities that would cause me not to ovulate with Clomid. If everything checks out with the ultrasound, I will start another round of Clomid 100mg. This time I will be taking it for 7 days which Becky thinks can have a positive effect on PCOS patients. I'm not sure of the specifics but I believe that I will have several more ultrasounds as it gets closer to O time. Becky thinks that the Clomid may not have "worked" because I was getting the bloodwork too soon (because that's what the doctor ordered - remember he wasn't monitoring me?). I don't care if I ovulate "later" than most people as long as I ovulate! She will also give me an HCG trigger shot when it appears my eggs are ready to be released (I suppose that could have been the problem too).

I'm really excited and happy about working with Becky. She is very helpful and supportive. She has also helped us understand our insurance and what it covers (not a lot!). Also because they are not a doctor's office, they are able to offer very cheap prices for their procedures and drugs. Hopefully my insurance will cover some of the more basic tests (bloodwork and ultrasounds) though. I will update tomorrow when I hear more about my bloodwork.

Selfish Behavior

I understand that infertility is rough and it seems like everyone around you is getting pregnant or having a baby. I've even noticed that it seems like it's on tv shows and in the news more, but I'm sure it's just me (and anyone else trying to get pregnant) that notices. It's a slightly different story when it's actual friends and family that are getting pregnant and having babies. I honestly think the way to handle these situations is to suck it up and deal with it. Yes, it may be hard and you might feel sad, jealous, angry, etc, but the right thing to do is be happy for them. By "be happy for them", I mean go to their baby shower, listen to them tell stories, look at the sonagrams, etc. Just remember that someday you will be pregnant and you will want everyone else to share in your joy, too, not be preocuppied by their own selfish problems. I think it's only natural for everyone to have special days and those people around them should allow them to have their special days and not ruin it for them.

I also have to mention that on a personal note, I am not at all offended or hurt when people announce their pregnancy or are having a baby. I've noticed that people who know I'm trying will look at me to see my reaction when I learn about a new pregnancy. Do they honestly think I'm just going to burst into tears??? I am truly happy for those that were able to conceive and raise children, even if they got pregnant on the first try. There's no rule that someone has to try for x amount of times before they are allowed to be happy about a pregnancy. Pregnancy and having children is something that God enabled women to enjoy and why should others take that away?

Obviously it's hard every cycle there's no ovulation and subsequently no pregnancy, but that certainly does not mean I want others to endure this? I wouldn't wish this on anyone. If I had it my way, everyone would get pregnant on their own on the first try...obviously not a reality. Anyway, I'm done ranting, I just wanted people to know how I felt on the issue and that no one around me should feel ashamed or scared to tell me about their upcoming child.

Update on me: Appt is still set for Mar 12...I will update everyone then.