YouTube Vlog

Hey guys, so as some of you know, I've been vlogging on my YouTube Channel so others can follow along with the journey. I still plan to write here now and then, but in terms of updates and what is happening on day to day, that's the best place to find me. It became a bit too much to do it all super consistently, but I do what I can. You can also find me on Instagram @liv4todayvlog !

Here are my three most recent videos:

Appointment Tomorrow

Wow... so it's happening... things are getting underway again and I'm feeling a bucket of emotions. Excitement to be starting another cycle. Impatience that this cycle will take so long. Apprehension at the drug I'll be taking (Lupron). Anticipation of what to expect with the other drugs along the way. Butterflies at the possibility that this cycle could work. Fear that it won't. It's like a smorgasbord of emotions, most of which aren't pleasant. One of which.... hope... drives it.

So tomorrow I go in for remote monitoring at a clinic here in Texas. They just need to make sure I don't have any cysts and that my bloodwork (hormone levels) looks good before proceeding with Lupron injection. Costs $300 out of pocket for one measly appointment. Boo hiss.

Then once my doc has a look at my results I'll (or Homme InFertile will) administer the injection. And then we wait...

So if all goes well, looks like I'd be starting the meds for this cycle November 30th with transfer slated for December 15th. Fingers crossed all goes according to plan. Who knows how my body will respond. Eek. We just need to decide if I'll do monitoring locally here in Texas, or if I'll go to New York for a few weeks. 

Day 12 (10 of stimms)

Had final BW/US checkup today and all eggies seemed to have grown. Huzzah! I'm ready to trigger tonight. Really nervous to allow Homme InFertile to do it for me but he's up for the task so we're going to give it a go. My last trigger was during my very first IVF round and I believe it was in the stomach and I gave it to myself... This will certainly be a trust building exercise for us.

Today the doc found 22 follicles, though it really seemed like at least 2 of them were re-counts. Fingers crossed those were our genuine numbers. I'm hyper-stimulating unfortunately, so been advised to have lots of fluids and take it very easy. I feel like my ovaries are just going to burst out of my pelvis. No jokes... not fun.

Went to acupuncture which I felt super sensitive to today for whatever reason. I guess lots of hormones in my body and its already all sensitive... anyway, wasn't the most pleasurable going in. Time flew by though and now I'm at home resting up.

Feeling a little dizzy, not sure if its from the cipro or what. Will have to have a nap and set an alarm for my trigger as I'm very VERY sleepy.

So short but sweet post today as I'm not feeling super chatty. Egg retrieval scheduled for Sunday.

Day 11 (day 9 stimms)

Intralipid time...

So today was a gloriously lazy day. Without my friend in town, I turned into the ultimate couch potato.. and unapologetically so. Hubby was super sweet and brought me to my intralipid appointment and hung out with me.

When we got there, the nurse brought me into the room (hubby had to wait outside) to hook me up to the IV. I got super lightheaded when she did it, even though she was super gentle, so I had to spend a bit of time slightly inverted to get blood flow back. Once I was hooked up she brought Homme InFertile in and we set up the laptop to watch a movie.

We rented a documentary for 99c, not because we're cheap but because it intrigued me, it was called Barista and was about 4 individuals headed to national barista championship competition. It was pretty good, and passed the time nicely.

In terms of the intralipid itself, my hand got a little numb/cold from laying it so straight and not moving it for so long.

Also the intralipids made me super sleepy so I really had to struggle to stay awake. All I wanted to do was sleep. Though I'm not sure if that's just me catching up from the busy days with my friend in town. I'm still super sleepy and its only 830pm but I have to wait up until 9pm to do my shots. Oh goodness I'm getting old haha.

Anyways, fingers crossed that the intralipids do the trick and we're successful. I'm back to being super bloated/constipated so I kinda waddle when I walk. Every step feels like a ton of bricks in my ovaries crashing around... not so pleasant. I go back in to the clinic tomorrow for ultrasound and bloodwork to see progress from Wednesday. I feel like theres definite progress, but that could just be the constipation bloat. Who's to say. We'll have to wait and see. I'm super nervous/excited to find out how things are moving along. Part of me doesn't want to trigger tomorrow, because my doc is back at work Monday, and if we trigger Saturday instead then he'll be able to do my retrieval himself. Just would give me more piece of mind, but I'm trying really hard to just have faith. 

Just Another Curveball

So hubs had his urologist appointment last night. We weren't sure it was worth doing, since the concern is morphology possibly caused by varicocele and we're doing IVF anyway (likely with ICSI) but we decided to exhaust all testing just to be sure. So he went.

Based on some research regarding morphology, we were definitely expecting the urologist to mention varicocele. And he did.

But the doc was a little more concerned than we anticipated. See, it turns out that Homme InFertile happens to have some cysts. Are these caused by varicocele? Are these masses that could be cancerous? I wasn't there, and my darling husband didn't seem to ask many questions. My guess is, he was a little overwhelmed. But now I feel left in limbo. Of course I want kids and a family and all that, but my priority in this moment is making sure my husband is healthy and ok. So I'm worried of course.

He had blood tests done, and an ultrasound and is now having to do another sperm analysis and culture. After that is done, he'll go back for a follow up appointment. But that's scheduled for 2 weeks from now, which is a long time to stew in this new information.

Anyways. Not much we can do but continue to wait for more clarity. Luckily I'm really super busy working these next few weeks, so a helpful distraction I guess. Would just love to know that my lovely husband is going to be okay. Where's a crystal ball when you need one!?