Middle of 2nd Trial Cycle – Ultrasound

As we are in our 2^nd trial cycle and are using the actual drugs/calendar system as the REAL DEAL, we are on a strict monitoring basis.  I had doctor’s appointments all week for blood work and ultrasounds to monitor the status of the estrogen intake and how it was affecting my uterus.  For those not familiar, by the midpoint of the cycle, my uterus should be very thick and hopefully has some layers to implant those embryo(s) (hypothetically).  My appt was at 7am on Friday, (this was the 2^nd appt this week).  The ultrasound technician came to retrieve me from the waiting room to take a peek at the progress of my uterus growth.  That previous Wednesday, she explained that the doctor likes to see 8mm with some layers prior to a transfer.  On Wed, I was at 6mm.  Of course I was thinking how can I grow 2mm in 48 hours!  That is nutty!  As she was taking the pictures she needed to pass along to the doctor, she had the biggest smile on her face!  She said you are FANTASTIC!  Everything looks perfect for a transfer if we were to do it right now.  I was at 9mm with FIVE layers to my uterus!!!!  That is above and beyond the goal!  The doctor was VERY pleased to see these results being that my hormones, since I have been 12, have been minimal from the cancer.    Her goal was to get me to do some major growth over the summer and it has happened!!   What a relief!  It is nice to get recognition for all the hard work Pat and I are doing at home.  Of course I am grinning from ear to ear because I have no idea what the hormones I am taking at home are actually doing to me!  As much as a pain they are to take and keep track of everyday, this was amazing to hear!  I just take them and don’t think too much about it…I guess my young age comes in handy!  ;)

We are still in the process of scheduling a time we would consider to do the REAL IVF cycle.  It is tough, because we have to find a convenient time for three people.  Pat, myself, and the donor.  We do have some pretty good ideas of when it will happen and we talked a lot about it for weeks however, as Pat and I begin to think of a possible time that would be good for each of us, we noticed that on the donor’s end there is a lot more work when it comes to time devotion to this process.  She will be monitored daily for two to three weeks to see the progress of her egg stimulation from her drugs that she will be donating to us.    Her availability is huge because of the dedication and devotion she has to put in to coming in for daily doctor appointments.  A lot relies on her availability here.  The time commitment involved is of the utmost importance.  It has a huge impact on our results.  Every medication and procedure must be administered and performed by the hour, not the day.  It is a very precise science.  There is no wiggle room when working with hormones.  If the doctor needs to see you, you MUST see them.  Here I thought coming in for blood work and ultrasounds 2 times a week was rough…not anymore!  Our respect for egg donors has grown so much!  We have to put 100% of our trust into this person we have never met before to do her job.  We will be getting called daily durign her monitoring to make sure she is on course and being a compliant egg donor.

Our appointment with the reproductive lawyer is next week!  Being that I work full-time and Pat is a full-time graduate student and a part-time lab tech at Rush University Medical Center in the city, we both cannot meet with the lawyer in-person.   It is just impossible.  No time!  We will be doing all the work over teleconference.  It is a mandatory step (for obvious reasons) when working with egg donors.  The main reason being that once her eggs are retrieved from her body she will be signing away genetic rights at her retrieval appointment to me.  Seems simple, but Very important!  The lawyer will be working on our case through our cycle whenever we choose to do it.  All I know about the donor is her family history/education/occupation/self medical history application and a few pictures.  I would be able to recognize this individual, but she knows NOTHING about Pat or myself which is reassuring.   We will see how everything goes next week!

Now- Back to the wedding planning!  3 weeks away!!! :)