Transfer Day: Sticky Baby Dust Needed

Our highly anticipated Transfer Day has come & gone. My appointment was at 9AM at my clinic for blood work & then 10AM at the surgery center for the Transfer. To us earlybirds, that was pure torture! We will both up before 6AM!! So we decided to stop & eat breakfast on our way--in which we still made it to the clinic by 8:30 & the surgery center by 8:45. Yikes! More WAITING!!

This is the procedure I was required to drink lots of water. I didn't do well with the trail run, so I was determined I was going to conquer it this time. I made sure I had a cup full of ice water & 2 more bottles on my bag just for good measure. As soon as we got in the car I started drinking-- so you can imagine how full my bladder was by the time I got there. (We live an hour away) I refused to go to the bathroom once we got there even though I knew I had plenty of time. I felt like I was going to EXPLODE! The nurse finally came in with a cup & told me I could empty part of my bladder & just to make sure it was too full or empty. Have you ever tried to only pee half of your bladder out?! Let me just say not as easy task!

At around 10:30AM in came Dr.K with our precious little embie pictures! This image is our our 2 Grade 4AA (highest quality) embryos that we were implanting in just a few moments. This image is taken inside of the petri dish where they have been over the last month or so. 

Going into this process my husband & I had both decided to transfer 2 embryos from the get go. Even though it wasn't recommend at my age. 25, & with perfect grade embies ((due to possible multiple births)-- we still went with the 2 embyro transfer. As you can see at the bottom of the photo we actually had one that had already started hatching, unassisted. 

((Don't you love his attire)) ☺️😘

&& it was SHOWTIME! Off to the operating room. After them confirming they had the right embies with the correct patients & getting me into position-- Dr.K pushed our little babies up through the catheter. Little did I realize this procedure was far less complicated than I had pictured. Within less than 2 min we could see our little babies on the TV screen & they were officially ON BOARD. I didn't cry but there's no way to explain the emotions running through my mind at this point. Happy ,Sad, Relieved, Disbelief, it was reeally happening. This moment we had been waiting for , for oh so long! This whole procedure was about 10 min long then off to recovery for 30 min where I had to lay horizontal. After my bladder had been screaming at me basically since we had arrived at the clinic I officially get to go-- even though I was scared that I would just pee my babies right out. We all know that wouldn't happen but after all this it definitely crossed my mind. By the way our shirts were a HUGE hit! In recovery the nurses had to all stop by to see what I had made :)

&& Just like that Our Waiting Game begins once again. For now I remain PUPO: (Pregnant Until Proven Otherwise) & will not test until in the clinic on Oct.6th which is our next appointment. 

Yep, you read that right we are PREGGO!

 

High Expectations-- && Lots of Prayers!

Our BIG day is FINALLY almost here! I know its been awhile since I've updated ,but frankly we haven't had much to update with lately. Our little embryos have been freezing away for a little over a month now & its almost time to let them thaw --&& install :)

Today, I had another ultrasound to check everything out & check to make sure all the medicine is getting my body to where it needs to be for the Transfer Day. Ultrasound went Great-- Now on to start more medicine...

For the last 2 weeks I've been taking Estrace. The first week was twice daily & they increased it to three times daily the following week. I will continue with the Estrace tablets but I will also be adding in more medications as the week progresses. Tomorrow night I will begin with Progesterone 75mg into the hip every night alternating sides. ((These I'm afraid of as I've heard they can be painful; of course I'll be updating how that goes for me later)) On Friday I will add in Doxycycline Tablets twice daily for 4 days & also Prednisone Tablets 3 tablets every morning for 4 days. 

Tuesday is our BIG day --TRANSFER DAY-- ((that cannot get here fast enough)) the day we've been looking forward to since the very beginning of our IVF journey. This means they will be transferring 2 of our embryos back into my body that will hopefully develop into our little miracle(s). This is HUGE for all of us & the anxiety, as if it wasn't already there, is settling in to say the least at this point. As always, please keep us in your prayers & esp. on Tuesday-- one of the biggest days of our lives yet!

2nd Medicine Delivery

We got our 2nd Medicine Delivery today so here's what we received this time:

•Progesterone(DS) 100mg/mL x2

• Crinone 8% Gel

•Doxycycline Hyclate 100mg Capsules

•Prednisone 20mg Tablets

•Estradiol 2mg Tablets

•Diazepam 10mg Tablet

•18G syringes & needles

•25G needles 

&& So the fun begins again soon! 💉💉

I will post as we begin each of the items & as we know more so stay tuned 😳😣🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

 

The Next Step

 Throughout the past couple of weeks we've gotten asked several times: Where are your embryos--eggs-- now? Well, they are in the freezer. Crazy right?! That's where they will remain over the next couple of weeks until it's time for transfer. We have 8 total which could honestly be 16 if every egg splits😳😳. We do not have to use every egg at once & especially won't considering our doctor will put no more than 2 in at a given time. 

On Sunday, hopefully for the last time or next to the last time for at least 9 months,I started my cycle. Monday morning I called the office to notify them & wait for the returning phone call for our next steps.

• 1st step: My little tiny Advent calendar once again ((Birth Control)) which I started on yesterday morning & will continue to take until Sept. 3rd

•Next, we will have a Baseline Ultrasound on Sept. 7th in which they are checking for No cysts, etc! 

•Next, the following day after the Ultrasound I will start Estrogen in many different forms. ((picture later))

•After 2 wks of estrogen they will do another ultrasound to make sure everything (medicine) looks good & working properly!

It's not a set in stone date yet but we are looking for Transfer Day {putting embryos/eggs back in my body} to be around to be around the last week of September! 😁🤗 This week in particular of the many others we will need lots & lots of prayers everything goes smoothly & works correctly after the process! I can't believe we are finally this close to having a little miracle(s) of our own. 🙏🏼💟💙🍼👶🏼

The Little Embryo's that CAN & WILL

Updates on our little embryos(eggs): 

Unlike egg freezing -- where a woman's eggs are retrieved and left unfertilized until she is ready to use them -- embryo freezing is where the egg has already been fertilized through in vitro fertilization (IVF) with either partner or donor sperm, and has been frozen until the woman is ready to begin pregnancy. ((Ours are embryos because they are already fertilized))

Thursday's Phone Call:

• 10 grade A embryos
• 6 grade D embryos

**Grade A is the best then down from there just like school grades ;) 

Sunday's Phone Call:

• They were placing 6 grade A embryos in the freezer
• Possibly 4 more on Monday if they thought some of the others looked better 

Monday (today's) Phone Call:

• They were adding 2 more grade B embryos to the freezer today

Totaling: We have 8 total embryos in the freezer to be able to use! Keep in mind Dr.K will transfer no more than 2 embryos at a time. This means we can keep to rest for back up either in the case that the 1st transfer doesn't work or later on in the years after the 1st transfer works & we would like more kids; we can use our extra embryos they already have. 

They will not begin to think about transferring any embryos back in to me for another 5 weeks or so. At that time I will be monitored through ultrasound to know when in the best time for our transfer! 

Please keep us in your prayers that our 1st cycle works in receiving our little miracle(s)!

Egg Retrieval Day

'Twas the night before Egg Retrieval; the night where I thought I was going to sleep good considering I had to take a Valium before bed. (Never takin one of those before but being in pharmacy I knew it would calm you down/make you rest) Well, that didn't work for me! I woke up 10x or more with my mind racing with questions: how many eggs will they get? Will they fertilize? Will it hurt? Will I be in pain afterwards? & so on. Same goes for my husband he didn't get much sleep either.

Let's step back a few steps to help y'all understand this a little better. Trust me we still have ongoing questions ourselves about things we don't quite understand to this day so we get it-- it's tough to understand. For Rickeys sperm the best way to describe them is think of them as being drunk. His sperm is good enough but when it gets in there it never reaches my eggs they just spin around & have no clue where to go. Hence why we are doing this treatment because they will inject the sperm directly into my eggs. Which makes it to where we can still use his sperm without having to have a donor. 

Now back to Retrieval Day:

1. We arrived on time 

2. Filled out paperwork

3. Sent Rickey upstairs to ya know (do his business)

4. Sent me back to waiting room for my name to be called

5. Name called-- back to pre op we go!

6. They do the usual BP check, temp, weight, etc 

7. Starting IV 💉 just saline for now

8. They sent my husband back to room to sit with me until they rolled me back for surgery

9. See ya in Recovery Kiss😘💋 

10. Entered the most intimidating room of my life 

11. Anesthesiologist at my head, Dr.K at my feet, & a nurse at my side all poking me & doing their thing

12. Anesthesiologist hooked a syringe to my IV & said you'll be sleepy soon

13. LA LA LAND for me 😴💤💤

14. 45 min-1hr later woke up in recovery

15. They called my husband back to sit with me again

16. Proved I could drink some Sprite 

17. Proved I could pee

18. Sent us on on way home✌🏼️

Now, let's talk about eggs:

•26 eggs were retrieved 

•17 eggs matured

•16 eggs fertilized

 

🙌🏼🙌🏼 Whooo hoooo! Talk about amazing numbers! I had the recovery nurses joke with me yesterday that I was like a chicken 🐔🐣😂 && even the nurse on the phone this morning told me those were great numbers! We will get an update just about everyday on the eggs progress so I will do my best to update the best I can do. 

Now, the after effects:

Day of retrieval: 

Thankfully my recovery nurses were awesome & made sure I would not be in pain for most of the day yesterday (I got 3 doses of Fentanyl there) & sent home with pain pills as well. I had general discomfort & a little bloating but nothing unbearable.

Day #1 Post Op:

Discomfort & bloating increased 

. Sitting up for long periods or bending hurts

Items that have helped me through this:

Pain meds (of course), heating pad, water, Gatorade, Gas-X 

Here are a few pictures from surgery day: 

 

Still starry eyed from being put to sleep⭐️⭐️

 

 
 

Pullin' the Trigger

This is the day we have been anxious for all along. Out of all my shots this one shot in particular counts the MOST! Very time sensitive & after my Dr. visit yesterday (yes they are open on Sundays due to how time sensitive their patients are) We were given strict instructions to give the Trigger Shot at exactly 9:45pm. So I iced the injections site (hip) about 5 min prior to the shot to make the pain a little more at ease. You see my husband smiling as he gives this: He wasn't smiling because he was sticking me necessarily but because we are soo close at this point to what we've been waiting for over a year now. && yes he got to give the injection-- if you remember before post he had to do an injection teaching on this one shot to know exactly how & where to give it when the time came.  At 9:45pm on the dot he gave the injection-- since I iced the area prior I didn't feel a thing honestly. If he injected the needle & pulled back to get blood: He wasn't in the right spot-- therefore to not inject medicine & try again! First try once again he nailed it!

How I'm feeling this morning so far:

• Bloated --as if I didn't already feel bloated enough
• Sore injection site (but nothing unbearable)
• Hungry  

(Remember we did just inject 10,000 units of pregnancy last night at once)

This morning I was told to take a pregnancy test to be sure the medicine went it as it was suppose to correctly. Cha Ching: Positive-- Pregnant!

***Now this doesn't mean we are done.So don't stop reading here. I only wish it was that simple***

This just means the medicine took as it should have. Now tomorrow at 8:45 I will be headed to Memphis Surgery Center for surgery to remove my eggs. Why you ask? 

When we arrive tomorrow morning they will take me back for surgery & my husband will have to give sperm the same day. Once they have my eggs out they will inject them (with his sperm) & freeze. We are doing a frozen transfer since the results are actually higher than with a fresh transfer. They will remain frozen until I have another cycle, then they will take them out to thaw & put them back in me. This surgery will be same day & I will be put to sleep. These are some things I've read to expect post op Egg Retrieval:

• General Discomfort
• Bloating could be minor at first but expect to increase
• Constipation
• Discomfort bending, peeing, or twisting

Today I'm asking for prayers for a safe,easy surgery tomorrow. I have been given a Valium to take tonight before bed so that I get a good night's rest. No eating nor drinking after midnight or until after surgery in the morning as usual. This is also where my bladder is suppose to be full so I will be forcing water down my throat to say the least. Keep those prayers coming. God has heard each & every one of them so far everything has went on schedule & pretty smooth for us--which we hope & pray continues as our journey isn't over yet!