Long Term TTC & Assisted Conception - June 2007 #5

I just wanted to pop in and say thank you for all of your kind words and support.
Just a quick update. DH was moved out of ICU at lunch time today. Whenever another doctor/nurse/anaesthetist walked past his bed, they asked what he was doing in there as he looked too well for the ICU! He was really enjoying all of the attention though! lol He had a nurse looking after him (and only him!) so that made me feel a lot better to know that someone was always there. The nurse sat at the end of his bed the entire night. I cannot speak highly enough of the ICU nurses there, they were fantastic and happily put up with my phone calls at all hours of the night!
He's still on morphine, but hasn't been of bed yet. The main thing is though, that he looks like he is going to be ok.
He reminded me today that I can't forget to take the pill. Thats when I asked him if he still wanted to go through with this cycle or wait a bit. He doesn't want to put it off any longer, and is certain he will be ok. Egg pick up is still 4 weeks away. Synarely isn't due to start until next Monday so I guess we will know more by then.

aahhh Megan your DH is a real smootch. i am hoping he pulls through as quickly as he has been so far and that you are both holding a little bundle in 10 mths xx

Megan - i'm so glad to hear your DH is doing a lot better today - he sounds like a real sweetie not letting you forget to take the pill!! you still have time to make decisions - and taking a pill a day til you do won't do you any damage

take care of you both

BG

Megan's DH is definitely an uber tough unit.

Hi Megan,

So happy to hear that Hubby is on the road to recovery. What an ordeal to go through. Just goes to show you that where there's a will, there's a way. He's already out of ICU & thats fantastic. Hubby sounds like a tough cookie and amongst it all, he's thinking of where you're at. Ahhhhh Love is a splendid thing. How blessed will your bubs be when they come, to have parents that are tight together. Its a beautiful thing to witness. Hope he's doing well and that your heads not running a hundred miles an hour with your cycle. Just take things a day at a time. He sounds like he's in very good hands which takes a bit of stress off. If pickup is four weeks away, you guys have plenty of time.

Its not the mountain thats hard to climb, its the rocks in your shoe. Keep climbing honey, Hubby's right beside you.

Tracey

Hi everyone, is it ok if I join your merry band??? We've just discovered after a year or more of trying that my tubes are so damaged that our sperm and eggs have never met!!! :wall: No one knows why it's happened, there's no evidence it was due to the usual culprits, and now IVF is our only option. We have our first appointment on the 25th of July and we're so nervous ...

Just interested in knowing what sort of questions should we ask at our first meeting???

G'day Diva,

Welcome aboard. Try not to be too nervous, from my experience and the experiences of everyone else on here it seems that poor fertility specialists (FS) are hard to come by - they all seem great. Therefore, they will make your journey a hell of a lot easier.

I guess one question you will need to ask is whether your bloke has ok sperm. Has he had a semen analysis (SA) done yet? If he is fine and the only problem you are having is your tubes it would seem that on the face of it you would be a fairly straight forward IVF case and have a high chance of success. Have they done tests on your yet to determine if you are ovulating etc? These are all things which need to be known.

My wife and I are starting IVF very soon and now that we're over the shock of having to do it, we're both pretty comfortable with it and looking forward to the opportunity of having a baby!

Anyway, the girls on here know pretty much everything about assisted conception so if there is anything you are unsure about they, (and me) will be able to help I'm sure.

Hi Diva n Dan,

A Big Welcome! I am new here too (1 week) and its been very healing for me. Not only do I get to write down what's going on (which gets it out of my head), but reading the other threads are very healing. The ladies here totally understand the highs & lows which makes that support net more sturdier. I am so grateful for their hearts.

I have blocked tubes also. One was because my appendix was inflammed and leaking onto my tube which the fluid sat on the top of the tube and squashed it and the other, I had a tumour removed off the tube and it damaged it. I then had an ectopic after Insemination and the tube was removed. Obviously, one wasnt totally closed! So I understand about the not meeting.

I am assuming you had dye run thru your tubes (Hysterosalpingogram) to get this result. Just remember, your womb is most important to carry the bubs. Dont worry about the tubes, thru IVF you will get your meeting.

I always leave the clinic and half an hour later, I have questions. It takes me time to ingest what was said and then I ring them hehehehe. I can become painful, but they are always there for me.

As Rols said, you guys may have to do a few tests. Sperm analysis, mid-cycle ultrasound to check ovulation, blood tests (standard ones) and if they think so a Saline Sonogram (checks uterine for abnormalities). We also had genetic testing to make sure hubby & I were "compatible." We are thank goodness.

After the test results are back and you have spoken to your FS and given your treatment plan, thats when you will be flooded with your own questions. When can I start is usually the first *hehehe*.

Hope you enjoy this thread and it is as healing for you as it is me.

Best of Luck
Tracey

Hi Diva-n-Dan

Welcome to the thread! I can only second what Rols and Tracey have said - the ladies here are fantastic and an absolute wealth of information. As for questions to ask your FS, I am sure there will be quite a few which are specific to your situation (I don't have any known problems so can't really help you there) but I think the most important things to remember are: try not to feel rushed at your appointment - take the time to digest the information and don't be afraid to get him/her to explain something again; and ask every question that pops into your head - no matter how small you may think it is, it is better to ask then and there. Having said that, we asked lots of questions at our first FS appointment but I still felt like I didn't quite understand everything - I found the whole language a bit overwhelming at first! Most of the nurses are pretty good as well and you can phone them with whatever questions you have. Read all of the information/literature they give you - my clinic even gave us a DVD which I have watched many times! And in the end, you can always ask the ladies (and gent - hi Rols!) here - goodness knows I did - they are very patient and supportive and I wouldn't be as sane today without them!!!

So good luck on your journey and hopefully once your egg and your DH's sperm meet up, it all will happen quickly for you!

Take care,
Cheryl xx

Megan, so very happy to hear that your DH is doing better. How very sweet of him making sure you hadn't forgotten your pill.

Welcome diva :)

Not a lot happening here, I still have a nice blocked up nose, my synarel didn't even have a chance to be sniffed this morning as my nose was that blocked that it just ran back out LOL!

Nic

Hi Jo - hoping that your EPU went well today and you didn't have a bad reaction to the anaesthetic. Hope that DH is treating you with lots of TLC!

Ellie - is your FS appointment tomorrow as well?

Megan - glad to hear that DH is pulling through this all quickly. He must be pretty tough!

Nic - re your blocked nose. I seem to recall my nurse told me something about using nasal clearing sprays if you had a cold and what to do. I can't remember the exact details but there was something about a 30min gap in between. If you ring the nurses they might be able to suggest something for you to try! Of course, there is always my mum's favourite - vicks over a steaming bowl of hot water - yuckk! but it works :rolleyes:

Will check in again later,
Cheryl xx

Yeah Cheryl, I went to the chemist the other day and got a nasal decongestant, which they told me to use half an hour after the Synarel. Might have to give the vicks and hot water a go. :)

Nic

Nic - that sounds useless to use the decongestant spray after the synarel, especially if it has already run out of your nose ;). Maybe there is a reaction if you use it the other way around? So, sounds like you are going to be inhaling those yummy vapours - enjoy!!;)
Cherylxx

Thanks for everyone's wonderful replies, I suppose I should tell you the whole sorry tale of woe so you know where we are in this blasted TTC journey ...

My darling Dan and I have been together for 7years. After many years of medical upheaval, we were finally in a position to have children. I have been on Depo Provera for many, many, many years so we knew it would take a bit for it get out of my system, so I stopped taking it in 2005 and started like everyone here in Feb 2006, fully of expectation and promise.

Didn't take too long to realise that this wasn't going to be a walk in the park, even though I had semi regular periods in 2005, the mystical merry wench had found other pastures to graze in 2006, hence I didn't get AF from Feburary 'til our first OB/GYN (who specializes in infertility) in September.

We ran numerous tests (including Dan's first sperm analysis, insulin resistance, FSH/LH evaluation, internal and external u/s of ovaries and uterus) and couldn't find anything sus there, so it was assumed that the Depo had shut down my ovaries and our first round of clomid was precribed ...

This happened for six cycles of Clomid where I would take it from CD2, then I'd go in for an internal u/s around CD12, ovulation time was predicted, we were given "Dr approved BD dates" and then we'd follow up with a progesterone BT on CD 21 to make sure everything was tickety boo ...

And this is where we ran into problems ... everything WAS tickety boo ... Clomid gave me two lovely mature eggs and a lovely thick lining, Dan's sperm analysis had come back normal, so no worries there ... ovulation was bang on the money, progesterone rose at it's normal predictable rate ... But no PG's ... not even a whiff of one ...

So each time we'd go back, for another round ... at first we thought we'd just drew the short straw ... that it was just "bad luck" because all the tests were coming back so normal ... then as the cycles drew on we looked at other things, Dan's genes got tested (karyotype), my antibodies got checked (all cleared) ... but still no luck ...

After the sixth round I went in for lap&dye and there the horrible truth was revealed, my tubes are completely blocked at the uterine end ... it was as devastating to my Dr as it was to me ... he squirted 5 loads of dye as close to the tubes as possible because he just couldn't believe what he was seeing ... but nothing got through ... not a drop ...

So that's where we are now ... staring down the barrel of IVF. We do have the option of tubal microsurgery, but our Dr believes that considering everything else "looks" so good (we don't honestly know as our sperm and eggs have never met) IVF will give us greater success rates than the surgery so we've decided to follow his advice and now have an appointment on the 25th!!!

Phew!!! What a novel ... my appologies for all those that have fallen asleep though that ... lets get onto a few personals ... ;)

Nic - Have you ever been on another nasal spray before??? The membranes in the nose are highly sensitive and can get irritated and close up from the ingredients in nasal sprays ... I know there are other alternatives because I'll need them as I won't be able to use the Synarel because of that exact problem ....

Megan - I read about your darling husband ... I wish him a speedy recovery and I'm amazed at his dedication to this cycle ... what a trooper!!! Here's hoping it all goes well and you're baby gazing in no time flat!!!

welcome diva - your story was far from boring! sounds like you have both been poked and prodded.... good luck with your appt with fs. whenever a question pops in your head just write it down and by the time your appt comes round you should have half a novel! good luck with everything honey

Megan - great to hear DH is doing better, it must be such a releif for you both! i think its wonderful how he wants everything to go ahead. sounds like a wonderful father in the making

nic - i think it sounds strange too that you have the decongestant after the synarel. are you taking synarel once or twice a day?

to everyone else - best wishes wherever you are at!

me- levels were 1020 yesterday, whatever that means. had ANOTHER bt this morning, its day15 now so im hoping my LH is about to surge. apparently it has to be around 20. i dont have a clue where its at right now. oh well i will just be a human pincushion for a while longer....

Hey Everyone :D

Just popping in here to see how Jo went with EPU!!!
Hope you're feeling ok - You need to get on here and tell us all how you went ;) Hope everything went wonderfully!!!

Welcome Diva!!!
I too have issues with my tubes - its all in my TTC journal, as its just a novel to re post anywhere else (And you think your story is long!!! ;) )
I wish you every success with your appointment coming up, I hope it goes well for you xxx

Chez - Got your emails!!! I have the cd ready to post in my bag tomorrow xxx

Nic - Great to have you back in here!!! Hope the nasal congestion isn't giving you too much grief (Like we need anything extra on top of all of the other meds!!) Hope everything is going well otherwise xxx

Megan - Hope DH is doing better.. From your last post, he sounds like he is. Thinking of you guys xxx

Sonya - Not sure about levels either, but hoping they are what you need to get started again soon xxx

:hello: to everyone else!

Will hop on again later to check on Jo ;)

Love Holly
xxx :D

New thread time, everyone.