Egg Transfer day and everything afterwards!

Hello!

I know it's been awhile - but when we were in Cancun, we moved to a new hotel we had little to no wi-fi connection - I had a post partially finished  - but then lost it so no updates, but now I am sitting back in my home in Canada and I have been attempting to make this update for over a week now...

Transfer day (December 10, 2012) went wonderfully - MANY tears were shed that day - all happy tears- I didn't get much sleep the night before because I think I was more excited and maybe a little anxious.

My mom joined us this day at the clinic,  as she had arrived in Cancun on Saturday night with my brother, his wife and her family, and we thought we would ask her to join us on this special day for us.

We got a cab from our hotel in Playa Del Carmen and ventured into Cancun, we were a little early, because we were not too sure how long the drive would take or how the traffic would be, we were earlier than we expected though, our cab driver had a brick attached to his foot - haha.

We arrived at the clinic and figured we would just hang out in the waiting room, again hugs and kisses all around, and the girls even welcomed my mother like this! Daniela came and got us and brought us to our waiting room, it was nice and definitely more private than waiting in the general area.
I had decided along with Dr. Gaytan and IPF, to do an acupuncture session prior to the transfer (it was also included in our package), so the acupuncturist came and got me and it was laser acupuncture rather than the traditional needle acupuncture - and I can tell you that the 20 min laser session had me more relaxed than any of the five months worth of traditional acupuncture I had done at home in Edmonton.

I went back into my room and got changed, Dr. Gaytan came in to speak to us and show us the picture of the embroyos being transferred. He was very happy - we were told we had 19 embroyos that they froze that morning (day 5), he was beyond ecstatic how everything had progressed, and felt we would have success. He reviewed my "don't list" for the week and checked if we had any last minute questions. Everything at this point was straight forward for us - and it just became a waiting game.

I had changed and the girls came to "wheel" me away to the OR. Again my DH or mother could not be in there with me - but they had video streamed everything into the room they waited for me in, so it was still like they were a part of it.
I got into OR - got ready and waited for Dr. G
He came into the OR - asked how I was doing and I was ok still and he explained what would happen, I was awake for the egg transfer - so I was able to watch everything on the monitor by my bed (which was so nice - I had a split screen of what the embryologist was doing and of my uterus)
Dr. G swabbed me with hormone (HCG I believe) to help with the implantation - we had to wait four minutes after this before we could do the transfer of the two embryos (which reached blastocyst stage) He had asked me if I had named them - and I laughed and said no - he gave them names but for the life of me I don't remember what they are! We had some quick chit chat - he asked me how my experience at the clinic was and if I was happy or not - I told him words can not express at how happy we were with our decision to proceed with IVF again at his clinic - I told him, that the way everyone had treated us was beyond gold, and then our time was up! I watched as the embryologist "sucked" my two embryos into the catheter - and watched the nurse carry it into the OR - then saw him insert it in me (via monitor) and "push" them out - and there we go that quick and we were done!! I also watched as the embryologist checked to ensure both embryo's came out of the catheter, that's it - it was all done - my 19 day journey at the clinic was done. I was overcome with emotion - Dr. Gaytan came up to me - held my hand, wished us all the best, and said - good things will happen and oh I cried - I thanked him for everything and again told him what an amazing experience for us - and thanked him for being so caring and having such a wonderful staff.
That was it - I was wheeled back into my "recovery" room and relaxed for about 10 minutes - and got to visit the bathroom (had to have a full bladder for the transfer)

We finished up at the clinic, said our goodbyes - got our first ten days of suppository medication to help with possible implantation (hello again progesterone train - aggghh) and off we went - I had another 6 days left in Mexico - total time to relax - I am so glad I had this time and not have to rush to the airport to catch a plane back home.
We had a surprise from the clinic - they had emailed us the next day to say that we had a total of 24 embryos frozen - ummm??? Where did the five come from?? Well we had either misunderstood - or just assumed that we only had 21 left (19 frozen, 2 transferred) but they still had 5 under observation and ended up freezing them - so that's great- we have 24 more to transfer (as they all survive the thawing) so hopefully another 12 chances to expand our family!!!

I took it pretty easy for the week - I couldn't swim - so I had tons of lay by the beach and pool time - which was nice - got to really relax, and having the week in Mexico - definitely helped out with our two week waiting (2ww) time - which was actually only 9 days - because of the 5 day transfer (which I was surprised to hear!)

We got back home to Canada on December 16 - and only three days to kill before we were able to take a home pregnancy test (hpt) - we had agreed to not take one and that we were just going to wait for the results from the doctor. Well easier said than done, December 19 came quickly and we couldn't resist. I got up and got my stick - and was prepared for both answers - I put the test upside down and waited three minutes, I made DH look at it- I didn't want to - seemed to be the longest ten seconds of my life!! He went " Well.......it definitely looks like..........YOUR PREGNANT!!!"

OMG OMG OMG - I said really??!!?? I couldn't believe it - after so many negatives, after all these years, we finally had a positive - we shared a few tears and were ecstatic and went about our day, that was it....
We only told DH's sister that day - everyone else I sort of "put off" until we went for our beta test and got our results on the Thursday. It's not that I wanted to make it this big secret - but it is very surreal for me at this point...We had told our families, and some close friends but its not on facebook - and well I just made my announcement here - I am not ashamed of my BFP (Big Fat Positive) I am cautiously optimistic.

I have taken two more hpt since then and they all have both been positive. I have also had three beta tests done - the first test on Dec 19 was 118 - and our second on December 22 was 357. We just had the third one today and so I will probably get those results tomorrow if not Friday. I am still trying to wrap my head with the beta levels, but I am not letting them stress me out - all I know really is I need it to at least double, and well I seem to be right on track for that!!
I am going for an early ultrasound January 11, 2013 - and I am thinking that is when it will hit me and be "real." I could have gone January 04 or 07 but I wanted to go to a u/s facility close to my home and my DH wants to be (and I want him) there also - so Jan 11 @ 9:10 a.m. we go - it will be here before we know it.

Our unofficial due date is August 28, 2013 - and really that will come so so quick - I mean look how quickly 2012 has gone by!

I haven't really had any major symptoms (except for SUPER SORE breasts lol TMI I know, I know) - waves of nausea that seem to have subsided, and I am more tired than usual. I have a very healthy appetite - I eat a good balanced meal and still seem to be hungry!! And milk - I use to barely go through  half a litre of milk in a week- well lets just say I am buying the four litre jugs now!!

Other than that - life is smooth sailing - we have been so busy with Christmas and getting settled back home - we can't wait for a day here soon that we can completely relax - not have to leave the house, or go to a dinner or run some errands, we want to hide from the world for a day - hopefully it happens before we both return to work on Jan 07!!!

Thanks for reading up to this point about our Journey - I will hopefully continue to update this throughout our pregnancy!!

Home sweet home

Well after nearly a month we are finally home. Had poor wifi at the hotel we were at last week so couldn't really access the Internet - once I am settled I will make an update - but I am doing well post ET

Well the day before my big day!!

Well I couldn't stay away!! Thought I'd give a quick update. Things are progressing well and we still have 30 embryos as of this morning, which I'm beyond ecstatic! Tomorrow is my big day - I will have an acupuncture session just before my ET and then at 12:30 it happens!!! I'm very excited but also very emotional ( the tears are welling as I type) I think I've cried five or six times already today, I've hold my DH "I think you need to be prepared for a lot of this over the next couple days"
They are simply tears of joy nothing else.

I received a beautiful email this afternoon from an amazing lady in my life and it brought the biggest smile but also the biggest tears (again not sad ones) and I will quote part of it for you because I loved it so much

"Have an amazing week and we are praying for you guys! Also on another note I opened my bible the other day to Isaiah 54 and I immediately thought of you!
It speaks of a women that was unable to have a child and now is bursting at the seams and has to build an addition to her house because God blessed her with many children!!! That my dear friend is my prayer for you!!!
Love you lots!!!"

I will leave my post at that.
Till next time xo

Post retrieval update

Well it's three days post retrieval and things are going well!!
We had a total relax day which included a massage on Tuesday to prepare for Wednesday and the hardest part on Wednesday was the fasting lol - my retrieval was scheduled for 11 am and I had to be on a complete fast for 8 hours, I was soooo thirsty hahah but I survived!

We got to the clinic and again hugs and kisses all around!!! Growing up in a polish home I don't find this awkward at all because this is how we greet also, except we do a kiss on each cheek whereas here its only one cheek.

They wasted no time getting me into my private room - which had a bed, a recliner rocker for DH, TV with satellite and a private bathroom. I got changed into my gown, and the nurse came into the room to get my IV started, they refer to her as magic hands and it's totally appropriate - I didn't even feel the needle and took her one try. With my previous IVF it took two nurses and four attempts to get my IV in - my poor hands were bruised for weeks! I have the tiniest one this time, and its not even a bruise, its more tender than anything.

Next I met Carlos the embryologist - nice guy, cracked a few jokes, definitely made me comfortable in the OR as DH could not be in there with me (in Canada he sat next to me the whole retrieval) here they video streamed the whole procedure into our room and he watched on the TV which was nice that he could still be "involved" in the whole process!!!

Well next came the drugs - first the good pain killer and then Carlos asked me if I felt like I was on a wine high or if it feels like tequila - I said wine - and he gave me more drugs lol, then I felt the tequila - hahaha. Dr. Gaytan came in quickly to tell me everything will be fine and that is the last thing that I remember.

Woke up in recovery, remember a little bit - but I guess I was awake when they wheeled me in - and transferred beds, the nurses and DH helped me move -but I don't remember any of this, I also do not remember telling DH to take pictures, and yet telling him to raise the camera to ensure he got the whole room - hahaha - DH told me at dinner on Wednesday night - I did not believe him, because I didn't remember that at all - well there are pictures to prove it!

I think we were in there for about an hour - finished my juice and kept it down, so we were free to go - another difference from in Canada - I walked myself out of the clinic - my DH in August had to hold me up to get to the car - I was so out of it then, I couldn't even walk to the pharmacy in Edmonton to get my prescription - and it was only a partial sedation back then  - and I was in pain with my first IVF  - here I was still a little tender - but it was manageable - we had a follicle count before we left the clinic - and we had 54 follicles retrieved! They were still sorting them when we had left so we did not find out till Thursday how many were mature.

Got back to the hotel and I headed straight for the buffet - I was STARVING - yet again another difference with my IVF in Canada - there I went straight to bed and barely ate for three days - here I have totally gone about my days like normal and my appetite is quite "healthy" lol.

I haven't really experienced any "pain" I have taken a few tylenol to help, as the recommended Advil was doing nothing for the tenderness, I still walk a little slow - but my tender tummy is definitely improving drastically each day - I actually walked a "normal" pace with my DH on Friday night.
We have been taking it easy - just lounging on the beach and enjoying the sun - we have had some of the nicest days we have ever experienced in Cancun the last three or four days, so its been great for the tan - lol.

I didn't sleep much Wednesday or Thursday - anxiety of updates from the clinic I guess you could say was the cause. As you know we did not have good results in Edmonton, so waiting to hear what was happening here brought me slight anxiety, I was checking my email Thursday morning what felt like every two minutes, lets say my phone was at about 50% battery life by the time I got the email at 2 p.m.
We were lounging on the beach, and as soon as I read it - tears, and tears, of JOY - from the 54 follicles retrieved, we had 48 mature eggs, and from that 44 had fertilized!!!!!! AMAZING - I was beyond over the moon!!! To hear such success after we had nothing fertilize in Edmonton - brought very intense joy for DH and I. We had a great afternoon, and in the evening at dinner I celebrated with the smallest glass of wine (I vowed off ALL alcohol since started our injections, not that I ever drank much to begin with)

Then Friday - again checking the email constantly - DH couldn't take it either so he emailed the clinic looking for an update lol - and they got back to us - we had 40 embryos still!! Amazing - again we were beyond the moon - but we had something that had stumped us - We had ICSI counts, and IVF counts. We could not figure out what this meant - we were under the impression all follicles were given ICSI......So after pondering all afternoon - I was just happy we still have 40 embryos, but DH couldn't take the unknown and "confusion" of the email and he finally called the nurse.
Well the phone call lead to us learning that the embryologist made the decision not to perform ICSI on all the follicles because we had some very strong eggs - so he did traditional IVF and ICSI - we are still waiting to hear how many of each - because currently we have 11 embryos that ICSI was performed on and 29 that IVF was performed on.

Now because we have success, I am not overly upset that the clinic did this, but as I have been thinking about it - part of me is - because they knew we had total fertilization failure with traditional IVF in Edmonton, what if it happened again??? Obviously they used WAY more eggs for traditional IVF than for ICSI.
But what can be done at this point? No point getting upset, we have strong embroyo's and we need two more days and then hopefully we have enough to perform our transfer which is still scheduled for Monday - this is sosososososo exciting to think about.

Well tonight my familia arrives in Cancun, this is the week that our previously planned family trip is happening, so it will be so nice to have my parents, and brother and his wife and her whole family here.  We also move hotels today, we are heading off the hotel zone and going to the Mayan Riviera, so we will have a bit of a trek to the clinic on Monday, but that is ok - it is only for one trip!

Well today I get another update from the clinic and confirmation time of our ET - so today is another milestone for us!

Everything is still beyond amazing for us and we have nothing but good things to say about the clinic here - again this is the best decision we have made in our infertility journey and I say it will bring nothing but good results for us.

Well I probably won't update till after ET so till next time!

xo

Sixth and final ultrasound appointment

Well today was "D" day - we had another ultrasound appointment and well - they are READY!!!! All follicles measured 18.3mm+

Dr. Gaytan couldn't even count them all there are so many! I think on my right ovary he stopped counting at 15 or 16 - he counted and than said plus plus plus. He figures we will have at least 30 (darn follicle factory!!!)

So we are set - retrieval day is Wednesday at 11 a.m. - the plan is to do a five day transfer (these helps "weed" out the weaker embryos and hopefully giving us a better chance of success) so as long as our oocytes fertilize and everything goes right - we will be doing that on December 10.

So I have to fast for at least 8 hours prior to my retrieval as I am "put under" for the quick procedure (complete fast, no food, water, gum etc) - I actually prefer this - I was in a partial sedation for my first IVF and because I had so many oocytes - it took twice the time as normal - and so the meds wore off at about the 20/25 min mark and I could start to feel it, because I remember crying and my Dr. asking the anesthesiologist to give me more meds. So being completely asleep will prevent this!!!

Well tomorrow is a complete veg day, maybe sneak in a massage and relax, relax, relax, before our big day Wednesday!!!

We are very excited and can not wait to see what this journey brings us in the next week!!!

Fifth appointment

Well we had another appointment at the clinic yesterday and wow we're they busy!!! About thirty mins behind, at one point it was standing room only in the waiting area, and wow EVERY single staff person apologized and thanked us for being so patient.

Ran into Dr. G in the hallway and he greeted me with a hug and a kiss on the cheek - frick I LOVE this clinic, this is how everyone is!!!! it just makes you feel so welcomed, remembered and comfortable. He knew he was behind and apologized and said he would see me in a bit.

Next we were up! (finally!!) lol

Got changed, hopped (not literally, I'm waaayyyy too tender) onto my chair and in came in Dr. G - well I'm a follicle factory - he figures we have at least thirty- all ranging from 14.0-20.8mm - not quite large enough - so the delay comes. Our retrieval is now bumped to Wednesday, and the plan is to do a five day transfer so that will be on Dec 10, I was kind of expecting this because of the low dose that we have been on. We are ok with this because it's nice that Dr. G was really cautious of not over simulating us, a welcomed changed from our last cycle. He also changed our medication - no more menopur - just the 150IUI of Gonal-f and now we also have added Orgalutron to the mix - so the Gonal-f in the evenings and I take the Orgalutron at noon each day (this medication prevents from the follicles being released) so back for another follow-up on Monday and hopefully our follicles are all of size that we need them to be.

I am hoping they are (our follicles growing that is) - walking and getting up and sitting/laying down is getting pretty painful. My walk has slowed down - DH is a pretty quick walker so I'm definitely slowing him down lol.

We golfed today - I did ok - but I think it's my last time on the course at least until the retrieval is done, so beach days are ahead of me till Wednesday, which we are ok with - maximize our relaxation time before our "big" days coming ahead of us!!!

Until next time! Xo

Our "history"

As promised I will give a history of what we have done to try to have a family.
We began trying just before our October 2009 wedding. I always had the slightest feeling that it would not be easy for me to get pregnant - but definitely I did not think it would take this long!
AF would always show up on time while on BC but it was another story while off of it. I stayed "regular" for about three months when I stopped taking it - and we got to take our first HPT in February of 2010 but it was a BFN - first heartbreak. Then took another one in March and again April both BFN and all three times AF stayed away. Another no show in July 2010 and another heartbreak of a BFN, again another BFN in Sept 2010 (man by now we should invest in clear blue or buy some stocks haha)
September 2010 we finally got to meet with our fertility at the RAFC in Edmonton, more than a year after being referred (I had a very pro-active family dr who put in the referral before we actually tried for a year due to my PCOS and thyroid issues) and after all this time what does he do? Put me back on BC - excuse me? Well his reasoning - I was waiting for a surgery and he wanted me to have it done before getting pregnant as it would have put me and baby at a higher risk pregnancy if I had gotten pregnant prior to have the surgery done. Also when you have a irregular cycle the best chance of getting pregnant is the first three months you are off BC and he wanted to be able to give us the best chance possible - my surgery was scheduled for January of 2010 and then 6 weeks of recovery - so back on the BC train we went, from Oct 2010 to April 2011.
Next was the Clomid train - we began taking it in May 2011 -we had a positive OPK on June 15, 2011 and had an IUI on the 16th and then AF showed up on the 30th - didn't take and yet another heartbreak for us.
Clomid attempt #2 - July 2011, positive OPK July 23, IUI July 24 and AF showed up Aug 7 - another heartbreak again.
Clomid attempt #3 - August 2011, positive OPK August 24, IUI August 25 and then AF showed up Sept 08 - another BIG heartbreak, we were convinced this time it was going to work.

Oct-Dec 2011 we had a prometrium induced cycle in October. When the clinic called they confirmed we were not pregnant (as we needed to do a pregnancy test before we could take our prometrium) so of course my next question was as soon as I was done the pills and AF appeared if we could start my injectable hormone cycle - the nurse told me no and that I needed to receive my cycle naturally in order to start the treatment, I found this a bit odd, but who was I to question? I didn't have another appointment with the doctor till February of 2012 and my only contact at the clinic was a nurse so I had no one else to turn to. So after the October induced cycle we had two months of no cycles and I figured what was the point to take prometrium if I couldn't start my treatment.

We also took some time to ourselves and had a holiday in Mexico. Upon returning in Dec of 2011 we thought maybe if we were pregnant as I had some very obvious signs of ovulation, I did a pregnancy test when we returned and of course had another BFN, when the clinic called they confirmed we were not pregnant. The nurse told me she would give me a prescription for prometrium and I proceeded to ask her what the point was as I couldn't start treatment if I took it. She asked me what I was talking about and I told her what the nurse back in October had told me. She proceeded to tell me I was given the wrong information and that some women never ovulate and why else would I be at the clinic, that they were there to help us. Well of course I was completely devastated and all I could think was that we were set back another three months, especially with the Christmas season approaching, the clinic was closing for ten days so even if I was to take the prometrium - I would receive AF while they were closed, so can't start till the new year.

We decided to enjoy the Christmas season and take a running start right at the new year.

January 2012 - took the prometrium, AF appeared and we began the Puregon - Jan 14-18 we took 100 IUI, 19-21 125 IUI and 22-29 150 IUI - we had four ultrasounds during those dates to monitor follicle growth, on Jan 30 we took our HCG shot and had an IUI On Jan 31, and then another BFN on February 20 when AF appeared and another heartbreak.

At this point we decided to start all the pre-tests for IVF just in case we got to that point.

February 22, 2012 - first baseline ultrasound and antral follicle count (AFC)

We took March off - again no AF

April 2012 - we stuck to 100 IUI of Puregon from the 05-13, during this time we had three ultrasounds to monitor growth. Our HCG shot was on the 14th and an IUI on the 16th - two week waiting period and on May 03 - AF showed up so another heartbreak.

At this point we decided we were done with this method of trying and our appointment with our doctor we told him that after all these years and attempts we were done and wanted to move onto IVF and he agreed and said that we "earned" our IVF.

June 2012 we had to finish our "pre-IVF" testing - we redid our AFC and also completed our SIS.

Took July off to get ready for our August attempt.

August 2012 - we had our baseline ultrasound on the 2nd and everything looked quiet and ready to start. We started our injections on the 2nd with 375 IUI of menopur and took that dose for 7 days, then dropped it to 275 IUI for three days, we added Orgalutron at 250IUI to prevent ovulation. Between the 2nd and 12th we went for four ultrasounds to monitor everything. On the evening of 12th I took Lupron to get my follicles ready to be "released" we had our egg retrieval on Aug 14 and we had 45 follicles retrieved. A "clinic record" we thought great - awesome number! We did traditional IVF from the 45 retrieved we had 30 mature eggs - which is a great number a lot of women struggle to get four or five with this method. Well our embryologist called the next morning and we had NOTHING fertilize - another huge heartbreak. He proceeded to tell me that they would attempt rescue ICSI - which is a method where they inject the strongest sperm into the egg. Now of course I had to question the success rate of this - he proceeded to tell me 95% which I thought - awesome odds - we should still have some success. The next day he called to let me know we had 16 fertilize - alright awesome that's good!! Well over the next five days - they all began to seize and stop developing - by August 20 we had no embryos - everything had stopped developing. When he called to tell me we had nothing left - I asked what could have caused this and he told me that more than likely it was the rescue ICSI - um what? Last week you told me it was a 95% success rate. Well of course I was beyond heartbroken, I had contacted my IVF coordinator and demanded an appointment with my doctor as when I phoned I couldn't get an appointment till Decemeber - she had gotten me one for the next day.

Basically I had asked what happened and I was told they were sorry, at my pre-IVF meeting i asked "what if this doesn't work?" and I was looked straight in my eye and told I would be pregnant, I didn't take it too seriously as IVF is not guaranteed. But we were given a 60% success rate and 30-40% chance of having twins. They said they were just as surprised as us that we had no embryos that survived. I also asked about the ICSI - one day I'm told it's a 95% success rate and the next week I'm told it didn't work because of it.... Can you see why i was confused? Well little did the embryologist forget to tell me is that success rate he gave me was when they perform ICSI immediately and not 16 hours post retrieval, um thanks for the false hope.

They told me they are compassionate - but didn't want to be held liable or set any precedents - at this point I said well I feel like a ten thousand dollar science experiment and my thought when they said they don't want to be held liable is that a mistake was made and how would I ever know? I don't think they would actually admit, really nothing else was said, they said they would try to find some more answers and that they would be in touch via email and phone calls, well today is December 01 and I haven't heard a word.

We had decided we would wait till the New year to try IVF again. I started researching other clinics in Canada, we had made the decision to proceed with one in Vancouver. We had our appointments set and ready for our consultations. I also joined some online support groups and then started reading about IVF abroad and came across IVF in Mexico - read all about it - filled out an inquiry form and within three days cancelled my appointment in Vancouver and had everything arranged to come and do IVF in Nov/Dec at FCC and well the rest is history!!!

I'm glad I've finally written all this out - it was something I've talked about and am glad I have this now to look back on!!!!

Fourth appointment, Day Seven of stims

Well we had another ultrasound today and all looks well!! Dr. G is very happy with the way things are progressing - we have many follicles anything from 7.8-14.3 mm - so we are slowly getting there!!

Next ultrasound is Saturday, and our tentative retrieval date is still Monday, December 03 - which is going to be here before we know it! It is very exciting!

We are lowering my medication tomorrow night just to ensure that we don't suffer from OHSS, we thought we would have lowered it tonight but my estridol rose to 772 and Dr. G thought it would be higher, so Dr. G wanted one more day at the higher dose, which is "A" ok with us.

DH asked Dr. G if everything is on track and he said he couldn't be happier - so that  is a good sign right?!

One thing that has my mind spinning now - is during my U/S today - Dr. G asked me if I ever considered being a egg donor (because I have sooo many follicles) wow something to think about - I mean with our first IVF attempt - we had 45 oocytes retrieved and I thought that was a lot and it was a "record" for my clinic at that time and from that we had 30 mature eggs - now if things went right and we had even 20 of those fertilize (oh if only) I would NEVER use them all - now I am wondering how many we will get here - Dr. G went on to tell me he has a patient who has no interest in having children but she does egg donation - and she is a regular at giving 85 oocytes!! yes you read that right 85 oocytes at a retrieval and NEVER suffers from OHSS - this boggles my mind - and obviously after hearing something like that it was a hot topic for my DH and I this afternoon.

I don't think that I would right away donate (and right away I mean this cycle), but obviously freeze any extras (here's to hoping) and then using them and maybe when we think we are done expanding our family then maybe at that point consider donation -but that is so, so far away - can't really make a decision at this point - but still 85 - WOW

Oh the hormones are definitely doing their thing - I can feel my tummy becoming tender I guess - that's the best way to describe it -
And I had a crying spell again - oh my poor DH - the tears just started flowing last night in the lounge of our hotel - no reason - we were just sitting there and the waterworks started - poor guy - damn hormones - but it only lasted a couple minutes and then they were over, he never knows what to do - and if he looks or tries to ask why - I just cry harder - but he did his job - he got me my tissue and that made it all better - oh the simple things to make it stop - lol - but it's all part of our journey and something I hope he has come to accept!!!!

Now we have a couple days to ourselves, we will golf tomorrow and maybe do a tour on Friday - maybe the lagoon boating tour - where you drive these mini boats yourself (I do not do well on boats, especially if we head into the ocean) so I hope I do ok - it's only two hours - so I am hoping I can last - I should do ok in the lagoon area since basically it's like a lake - and I can do lakes back home - but if we head into the ocean to snorkel - we may have a completely different experience - hoping the sun re-appears soon - these overcast days are not so much fun!!

I will probably post again on Saturday or Sunday after our next appointment - and hopefully soon sit down to give you all the down low on our "history"

Till next time!!

Thanks for reading :-)

Third Appointment

Well we had our first ultrasound yesterday and Dr. G is happy - we have lots of little follicles all ranging from 6.2-9.8mm in size - in Canada I needed my follicles to be 18-20mm in size I haven't asked what they need to be here but I am assuming it is the same. Because of my PCOS I have lots so he never gave me an "official" count but I am ok with that - its something I've come to accept with the PCOS. Our estridol levels rose to 347 from I believe they said 42 on Saturday another good sign, still on the same dosage - from the sounds of it Dr. G won't increase it - if anything we will decrease he really wants to prevent OHSS so that we can do a fresh embryo transfer, and that's what we want!

We are back at the clinic tomorrow for another ultrasound and I can definitely feel some "action" happening. It's almost like cramps but not really - hard to explain but that's the "jist" of it (I know that's not a real word!!!!)

Today is a veg day - no sunshine very overcast but super humid - we found a great massage place about a kilometer away from our hotel $30/hour and wow it was amazing we will DEFINITELY be paying them another visit or two while staying in the zone here.

Cheers to day 6 of stims! Keep growing little follicles!!!!!

Second appointment

Well we had appointment #2 today! It was just to check my estridol levels and I am guessing everything is going well as my dosage has not changed.

Back to the clinic Monday for my first ultrasound - hopefully we have some good growing going on!!!

We met a couple at the clinic today from Philadelphia - they are nearing the end of their journey they have their Egg retrieval(ER) on Monday, we wished them much luck, they were sweet, they also had nothing but good things to say about FCC.

Day 3 of stims and I am feeling good - i just need to remember to drink lots of water and start on the Gatorade train to try to prevent OHSS.

Finally Mr. Sunshine made a good appearance today, we hung out at the sister hotel of our resort as my cousin and her bf and some of their friends are also down here so it was nice to spend the afternoon with them!

Had a little cry at dinner my poor DH but I couldn't hold them back!!!! It was nothing bad, we were just discussing how happy we are with our decision and how right everything feels and talked about how great everyone is here and the tears just came - not a full on bawl just happy tears I guess - darn hormones lol!!!!

Well we have tomorrow to ourselves so we are off to golf in the morning, hopefully beach time in the afternoon and then we are off to a steak/lobster house tomorrow night that Dr. Gaytan recommended with my cousin and her entourage of people that are also here so it should be a good day!!!!

Till next time xo

First appointment

Well we had our first appointment yesterday at Fertility Center Cancun and what a wonderful experience. It started by us being picked up by Sheri of IPF - what a wonderful lady she is - she took us to our appointment. When we got to the clinic we were greeted by Emma who seems to play the role of the office manager - it's amazing to see the cultural difference compared to Canada, I've only ever emailed with all these ladies prior to my arrival and we were greeted with hugs by everyone and made to feel so welcome. Then we met Daniela who is the "head" nurse and seems to be Dr. Gaytan's right hand lady - she took us into our examination room which was comfortably large, there is a sitting area and then you go back a bit and it's the ultrasound area and a big bathroom to change into your gown. I went and got changed and then sat on the examination chair - it was awkward to sit in as your straight up and then it raises and lays you down so you can have the U/S performed and wow do you lay high compared to my u/s in Edmonton - it was surprisingly comfortable. And the technology - WOW - very new compared to the clinic in Edmonton - Dr. Gaytan had his monitor and DH and I had a high def tv to look at the u/s while it was performed - just had a checkup u/s to make sure everything is "quiet" and ready to "endure" the next 10-13 days - and we are good to go! So we started our stim meds last night. We are starting on 225 IUI of Gonal-F and 75 IUI of Menopur.

Dr. Gaytan wow what a doctor - again I've only had email communication with him prior to our arrival and one phone call and when he came in the room what comfort we both felt with him - and he knew his stuff - he actually knew my history!!!!!!! He Knew I had slight OHSS on our previous IVF attempt and my thyroid and PCOS history - so he knows my ovaries need a good "kick start" so I am assuming that is why he gave me both Gonal-F and Menopur - that is one thing I need to ask at my next appointment as I only took Menopur in Edmonton. He performed the u/s and was happy . And that was it! I went to change and DH and Dr. G sat back and chatted about whatever, golf, places to see, eat etc - DH said it was a different and at the same time welcomed.

So we were giving our tutorial on how to give me my shots - needless to say nothing to learn as its the same as what I've done before and then it was all done!

We also did our first "local" experience - we took the local bus to wal-mart to get some things we didn't bring with us - surprisingly easy and it only cost us a dollar each to take which DH thinks we "overpaid" as we used US $$$ as we had no pesos on us.

So now we relax till Saturday when we have our next appointment. We just need these clouds to disappear and see some more sunshine!!

My view from my beach chair before my appointment

Yes I get to listen and view this for two hours before my appointment today

Made it to Cancun!!!

Well we made it! We've settled into our hotel and are taking tonight to ourselves - I did not get much sleep last night - my brain was going a million miles a minute. We are heading to FCC tomorrow afternoon, hopefully AF shows herself tonight or tomorrow so we can get this show on the road tomorrow night!!!

Entry 1

Well this is my first entry - it has been a whirlwind couple of weeks for me as I have been battling the worst cold EVER - but all my tests came back healthy.
For those that know me and my dear husband, we have been trying to start a family since we got married in 2009, but so far no success :-(

Well this is my third time attempting to complete this entry, so here is to hoping that the third time is a charm!!!!

Well as I have typed before haha - on another post I will tell you everything we have tried to try and start a family.

I am very open about our journey and will tell anyone that is willing to listen. We have attempted IVF and had no luck this past summer and again more on that on another post!

For those who know us we are heading to. Mexico for an extended vacation. For those VERY close to us know its more than that - we are actually heading down to attempt IVF again - why Mexico? 1) the cost - it's half of what it is in Canada 2) I feel like a person and not a number at Fertility Center Cancun

So even though we are vacationing its a little more than a vacation for us, it is hopefully the start of our family for us!

I am very excited that our day has finally arrived, I have kept myself so busy since making the decision to go to Cancun I haven't really let it "sink in" until tonight, when I dropped my fur babies off at "grandma and grandpas" and I cried, oh did I cry - but as anyone that's gone through fertility treatments, those damn hormones are catching up, so I am bound to have another good cry in the next day or two and I've already apologized to my dear husband (DH) who knows when or where it will happen but I have a feeling it will!

I've got such a good feeling starting this journey this time - I am not an overly religious person but I've been praying and asking everyone to think of us and keep us in their prayers. I believe everything happens for a reason and the timing of this trip and when I made my decision it was sort of like Devine intervention.

I am very much looking forward to the next couple days and weeks and finally meeting everyone at Fertility Center Cancun and the lovely Sheri at International patient facilitators they all have made this journey stress free so far!!!

My intention is to update daily, so I will see if I do - if not I apologize in advance.