For once, my being overly anxious has paid off. We were told to check our voice mail messages after 12:00 p.m. today for our last embryo update. So, of course, I planned my morning around dialing up the voice mail box every 30 minutes starting at 8:00 a.m. Sounded like a reasonable plan to me.
I lucked out at 9:00 a.m. and heard those precious words again, "You have one new message". I was just sure I was going to hear that all 6 embryos had divided their hearts out last night and were on the verge of becoming the next Nobel Peace Prize recipients. Unfortunately Shawn the Embryologist wasn't so specific. Here's what he said...
"Good morning Mr. and Mrs. Sanspree. My name is Shawn and I have an embryo update for you this morning. I just wanted to let you know that most of your embryos seem to be developing well...."
There was more after that about when our transfer is scheduled and that we'll get pictures of the embryos on Monday...blah, blah, blah. I knew all that stuff already. I just wanted to know more specifics about the Sanspree 6. Does "most seem to be developing well" mean that we're down to 5 or 4? Or does it mean that 1 is being an over achiever, 2 are headed for mediocrity and the other 3 will probably be slackers in life? Specifics PLEASE!! Is that so much to ask??
OK, I know what you're thinking...I should be more positive. This wasn't really bad news and I realize that. But remember who you're dealing with....definitely not Suzy Sunshine. So I guess I'll do my best by saying that at least they didn't tell me that they all crashed and burned last night. That's the most positivity I can muster at this point.
What's next? A long weekend of waiting and wondering. We won't get another update until we show up for the transfer procedure on Monday at 10:30. So until then, cross your fingers, toes and any other appendages you can manage. Then say a prayer, light a candle or handle some snakes...whatever religious preference you have...I'm not picky at this point.
More on Monday....or sooner if anything noteworthy happens to my psyche between now and then.
Showing posts with label embryos. Show all posts
Showing posts with label embryos. Show all posts
Friday, April 9, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Easter Egg Hunt
Today was a day of reckoning for the IVF process. The egg retrieval is now complete. Everything we have gone through from the beginning has been solely for the purpose of this procedure. Every drug that I've injected has been preparing my body for today. It's not natural for your body to develop as many follicles as possible so that's why I've had to endure the side-effect hell that I've been in.
The egg retrieval went well this morning. Thanks to us staying in Nashville last night, we arrived right on time for our appointment. I was so relieved to find out that I would not be awake for the procedure which involved inserting a very long needle into my ovaries to remove the follicles. After all of the normal outpatient surgery prep (getting IV, donning gorgeous hospital gown and "party hat", etc.), I was wheeled into surgery and, thankfully, don't remember anything else...until I woke up with what felt like someone River Dancing on my abdomen. I woke up to more pain than I expected but the staff was gracious enough to accommodate me with some stellar drugs. (So if my post is a little scattered...you know I'm still "high")
Brandon got to do his "business" while I was in surgery. I'm sure there is a lot of pressure on guys to perform, but I still feel like he gets the better end of the deal.
An embryologist came in to let us know that they retrieved 14 eggs....apparently an average amount (I'm OK with average). They weren't able to tell us how many were actually mature, but let's think positive thoughts. After that we were able to leave.
So what's next?
It's now out of our hands (and my uterus). By now, I'm assuming that they have isolated Brandon's best "boys" and are introducing them to my "girls". We are having a process done called Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). This is where they inject the best sperm into the egg and gives them a better chance for fertilization. We won't get an update until tomorrow. They told me to call my voice mail after noon tomorrow and they will have an update letting us know how many eggs were fertilized.
My job at this point is to start making my uterus a more inviting and plush environment for any embryos that we will hopefully have. It would be nice if it was as simple as ordering some nice furniture from Pottery Barn....but no. I'll let you take a "stab" at what it is I need to do now. You guess it.....more injections. This round of shots, however, can not be done by me. These shots are of progesterone in oil and must be injected in the muscle (IM)....which means my hips and I can't bend that way to do the shots myself. So it's time for Brandon to step up to the plate.
Once again, I'm nervous as hell about these shots. Partly because I can't do them myself (and I've become a pro at it), partly because Brandon has not yet given any shots, and lastly because IM injections are given with a needle the length of a telephone pole. Just take a look at the difference in the needles from my previous injections...
So I'm sure you can understand my hesitation. But the nurses were nice enough to draw on my hips a bulls-eye with a Sharpie to help Brandon with picking the right location. It only provides me with a smidgen of comfort. I'll let you know how the first shot goes...if I survive.
More to come...
The egg retrieval went well this morning. Thanks to us staying in Nashville last night, we arrived right on time for our appointment. I was so relieved to find out that I would not be awake for the procedure which involved inserting a very long needle into my ovaries to remove the follicles. After all of the normal outpatient surgery prep (getting IV, donning gorgeous hospital gown and "party hat", etc.), I was wheeled into surgery and, thankfully, don't remember anything else...until I woke up with what felt like someone River Dancing on my abdomen. I woke up to more pain than I expected but the staff was gracious enough to accommodate me with some stellar drugs. (So if my post is a little scattered...you know I'm still "high")
Brandon got to do his "business" while I was in surgery. I'm sure there is a lot of pressure on guys to perform, but I still feel like he gets the better end of the deal.
An embryologist came in to let us know that they retrieved 14 eggs....apparently an average amount (I'm OK with average). They weren't able to tell us how many were actually mature, but let's think positive thoughts. After that we were able to leave.
So what's next?
It's now out of our hands (and my uterus). By now, I'm assuming that they have isolated Brandon's best "boys" and are introducing them to my "girls". We are having a process done called Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). This is where they inject the best sperm into the egg and gives them a better chance for fertilization. We won't get an update until tomorrow. They told me to call my voice mail after noon tomorrow and they will have an update letting us know how many eggs were fertilized.
My job at this point is to start making my uterus a more inviting and plush environment for any embryos that we will hopefully have. It would be nice if it was as simple as ordering some nice furniture from Pottery Barn....but no. I'll let you take a "stab" at what it is I need to do now. You guess it.....more injections. This round of shots, however, can not be done by me. These shots are of progesterone in oil and must be injected in the muscle (IM)....which means my hips and I can't bend that way to do the shots myself. So it's time for Brandon to step up to the plate.
Once again, I'm nervous as hell about these shots. Partly because I can't do them myself (and I've become a pro at it), partly because Brandon has not yet given any shots, and lastly because IM injections are given with a needle the length of a telephone pole. Just take a look at the difference in the needles from my previous injections...
So I'm sure you can understand my hesitation. But the nurses were nice enough to draw on my hips a bulls-eye with a Sharpie to help Brandon with picking the right location. It only provides me with a smidgen of comfort. I'll let you know how the first shot goes...if I survive.
More to come...
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