Appt with the Reproductive Endocrinologist

Well, we finally did it. After almost 2 years of trying to get pregnant we admitted defeat and consulted with a fertility specialist. When I made the appt 2 months ago I was very reluctant but over the last couple months have warmed up to the idea. Today when I left felt a real sense of peace about it.

Dr. F took us both by surprise with his laid back demeanor. He was very relaxed and personable. He took plenty of time to listen to me ramble (you all know I did) and explained things in a way that we were both able to understand. After taking our history he asked me what I thought the problem was and I told him, "my eggs". He shook his head in agreement and said that I more than likely have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). I have had doctors mention this as a possibility before, but today I received an official diagnosis thanks to an ultrasound that showed my ovaries covered in clusters of immature follicles.

He said that with the PCOS and endometriosis combined we have a very small chance of conceiving on our own. Obviously it is possible because I have been pregnant twice, but after rambling off statistics that I can't remember he said in the last 2 years of trying to conceive we have had maybe 5 actual chances of getting pregnant. Play those numbers out and it could take a very long time to acheive a pregnancy on our own.

With that he suggested that a combination of ovulation induction and IUI (Intrauterine Insemination) would give us the best chances of acheiving a pregnancy at this point. We agreed to give it a try and spent a good 30 minutes with the nurse explaining our treatment protocol.

In a nutshell this is how it looks...

* I started Provera tonight to induce my period.

*On day 2 of my period I will go in for baseline bloodwork.

*On day 2-6 I will take Clomid.

*Sometime between cycle day 6 and 10 I will go in for an HSG test.

*Cycle day 10 I will begin using an Ovulation Predictor Kit.

*Cyle day 12 I will go in for an ultrasound to check follicle numbers and size.

*As soon as I receive an LH surge on the OPK I will call the office and they will schedule the IUI within 24 hours.

*The actual IUI takes less than 30 minutes (5 minutes for the procedure and 15 minutes of lying down afterwards) and then I can resume my normal activities.

*At the time of the IUI they will wash the sperm and do a sperm analysis to rule out any male factor.

*And then we will wait for approximately 2 weeks for a Beta HCG test (blood pregnancy test).

So that about sums it up. Andy and I have put a lot of time, conversation and prayer into this and we really feel good about it. We feel like this is the road that God has put before us and we are excited to journey down it until we are shown differently.

I hesitated for a moment to share the details of our appt with everyone, but 2 things prompted me to do so. The first was a comment that Dr. F made to us. He said, "This is no different than any other medical condition. No one ever tells a person with a cancer to realax and see what happens and we shouldn't view this any differently." The other was a simple check in with the hubby. I asked him if he minded if I shared the details of our appt on my blog and he said, "not at all". I know this is virtually impossible for those who haven't gone through this or something similar to understand but sometimes this feels so isolating. It's somewhat of a taboo topic and according to Dr. F it is because people feel uncomfortable with anything to do with others sex lives so they just don't ask about it. I get that, but it doesn't make it any easier for those going through it. Anyways, I don't want this to sound like a pity party, just wanted to explain a little about why we chose to share so openly about our struggles to conceive another child.

Please keep us in your prayers over the next few months. We are excited but also realistic about what we are getting ourselves in to. My biggest concern is how the meds will affect my body considering how sensitive I am to most medication.

Check back for updates as I will try my best to post as things happen.