OK final beta and "The paper" (TM)
So I went into the clinic this morning for the final beta and while I was there, the DE Coordinator gave me "the paper"!
It looks like this:
ART PREGNANCY MANAGEMENT
Patient: (me)
Calculated last period: June 19, 2006
Ultrasound Due: August 3, 2006
Stop Support Medications: August 29, 2006
EDC (due date): March 26, 2007
Patient should remain on 2 Vivelle patches, changed every other day, and 1cc progesterone daily until above noted date. For any questions or concerns please call (xxx) xxx-xxxx. If ultrasound is performed outside (clinic), please FAX copy of OB ultrasound report to (xxx) xxx-xxxx.
So, I made the ultrasound appointment and also arranged to get my shots while C is out of town the weekend of August 4th. They called at lunchtime with the final number: 1875. YIKES!! I'm still soaking it all in. It's all so very overwhelming.
To tell or not to tell -- That is the question
So let's just say this ends up working. The next big question is whether to tell about the whole donor thing or not. I say no. At least not tell anyone beyond family and very close friends. I'll let my child tell outside the family as they see fit. Really, I don't think it's any more complicated than that.
I'm stunned
Do I actually have an honest-to-goodness real doubling beta?
Today's magic number is:
812
Did I mention that I'm stunned?
Last beta is Friday and I've been told that there are "dates and such" printed for me already and I'll get them Friday morning.
Thankyouthankyouthankyou to all of you guys that left comments and sent me private email. I enabled anonymous comments the other day and today I linked my email address for those that want to send mail without public comments. (Thanks for the suggestion, Julie!)
The numbers don't lie
Today's beta is 348. Unfortunately my favorite beta website is down right now so I can't link to the chart, but I will as soon as the server's back up and running. In the meantime, here's a link to another beta site with some pretty good information. Keep in mind that today's number is:
17 days post hCG 15 days post ovulation (15dpo)
12 days post 3 day transfer (12dp3dt)
10 days post 5 day transfer (10dp5dt)
well, you get the drift.
blog comments
OK by popular demand, I've enabled the anonymous comment configuration of this blog. You guys without a blogspot account... GO NUTS!
Wowsa
- Date: today
- Time: 4:39 AM (is there anyone else on the planet that gets up at this ungodly hour every day?)
- Test: EPT digital (sensitive to >50 mIU/mL)
- Elapsed time: 1 min
- Result: BFP!
I'm freakin' stunned. Beta changed to Monday 'cause I can't count. It'll be 10dp5dt***
* sensitivity to the hCG (pregnancy hormone) in urine
** BIG EFFING POSITIVE
*** 10 days post 5 day transfer (it's been 10 days since they transferred a 5 day embryo)
it's all over but the cryin'
Well, it went really well.
I stayed home from work yesterday. It didn't make sense to go in because I knew I wouldn't be able to focus anyway. C. and I left the house at noon and went to lunch. We got to the clinic at about 1:30 and saw the finance woman to give her some money. After that, it was just waiting until my bladder filled up and time to go for the transfer.
By 2:00 my bladder was comfortably full and they brought me back to the transfer room. The setup is actually kind of cool. There are doors from the transfer room directly to the lab so the embroys have very little distance to travel. By the time things started happening my bladder was getting uncomfortably full. It was 2:20 before we saw the embryologist. She turned on a monitor in the transfer room and told us that she'd show us the petri dish with our embryos in it and would show us that my name and birth date is on the dish. Then she'd turn off the light until the Dr. was ready. Once he was ready, she'd show us (on the monitor) the embryos being loaded into the catheter and then she'd be in for the transfer. She also gave us pictures of the embryos and the embryology report:
Shortly after she left to prepare the embryos, the Dr. came in. He asked if we had any questions, took a look at the pictures of the embryos and told us they're "as good as they get" Wheeeeeee! He said my lining looks great and there's no reason this shouldn't work. Of course, the success rate is ~80% so there's no guarantees but he is very optimistic. We chatted for a few minutes while we waited for the IVF nurse coordinator and finally got started at about 2:30. Tanya came in and did the transabdominal ultrasound to visualize the uterus while the Dr. placed the catheter. If I remember, he said that he tries to get the embryos about 12 mm from the top of the uterus. The embryologist showed me the petri dish with my name and birth date and then we saw them being drawn up into the catheter. A few seconds later, she showed up in the doorway and they did the transfer. She went back to check the catheter under the microscope to verify that the embryos didn't stick to it and called the "all clear!"
They had me stay laying down for 20 minutes and by then I felt like my bladder was going to explode. Naturally (and just my luck), the rest room was occupied. While I waited, the Donor Coordinator came out to talk to us and give us the aftercare instructions:
Meds: Continue 1cc PIO (Progesterone in Oil) daily and 2 Estrogen patches, changing them every other day until directed otherwise. If test is positive, continue these meds for several more weeks.
Activity: Bedrest day of transfer and the following day. May resume normal, no strenuous activity after that. This means no vigorous exercise (walking is fine) or heavy lifting. May return to work.
Pregnancy Test: Quantitative pregnancy blood test on Sunday, July 16. Clinic will call later that day with results.
I came home and hung out on the couch for the rest of the day. I'm back on the couch today and will do my usual Saturday chores tomorrow.
The clinic called a few minutes ago -- they were able to freeze 5. WE'VE GOT 5 TOTSICLES!!! This is getting really surreal.
Here's a blurb about blastocyst quality grading:
The number refers to the degree of expansion of the blastocyst (1 is the least expanded, 6 is the most expanded). The first letter (A,B, or C) refers to the quality of the inner cell mass (the part of the blastocyst that is going to be the baby) and the second letter (A, B, or C) refers to the quality of the trophectoderm (the part of the blastocyst that is going to be the placenta).
It's finally Friday
Well, the clinic didn't call me this morning to tell me not to bother coming in so there must be at least one surviving embryo. C. and I are leaving shortly for lunch and then we'll head to the clinic from there.
On another note, my mom called me yesterday morning to tell me that my Nana died Wednesday morning. It was pretty sudden. Well as sudden as death happens for someone who's in their nineties. Mom says that there's no service or visiting hours -- just a mass and cremation. Who knew that catholics don't go to hell anymore for being cremated? I sure didn't.
Well either way, RIP Nana. I'll never forget standing on the stool at the counter making Jell-O and getting "Hoodsies" for special treats only at your house. You were a hard-working special lady. I know you didn't like my hair this long and for that, I'm sorry. Unfortunately, my husband does like this long and I'm married to him and not you.
More later today or tomorrow.
The more things change...
The more they stay the same. And today, that's a good thing!
Latest update: 12 embryos still growing! I'm to show up Friday at 2:00 full of water in my bladder and valium in my brain. The full bladder is supposed to push my uterus forward so they can do a transabdominal ultrasound to guide the embryos when they transfer. The valium is to minimize uterine cramping. And to make me feel better :-)
Weeeeeeeee!!
We've got a dozen!
Fertilization report is in: 15 eggs were mature enough to ICSI and 12 fertilized. They'll call me Wednesday with a time on Friday for ET and the number of embryos surviving to day 3.
It's getting closer and I'm getting more and more nervous. I'm hoping it goes away by Friday.
Sweet 16
Well, that's the magic number. The clinic called today to tell me that they retrieved 16 mature eggs from my donor. They'll call with the fertilization report tomorrow sometime. If we use the 80% rule that means that... 13 will fertilize... 8 will make it to day 3 ... and 4 will make it to blast. Not horrible. She had 6 make it to blast her first cycle. Either way, it's out of my hands. One day at a time, as they say!
I'm off to render first aid to Jack. He's our German Shepherd Dog, for you uninitiated ones out there. We took him, Stella (our Rottweiler) and the neighbor's Lab out for a walk today and he put a pretty nasty cut in one of his pads. Fortunately it happened toward the end of the walk. He's pushing 100 pounds. I wasn't about to carry him... although it crossed my mind to walk him like a wheelbarrow.
Drown a cold
I picked up a nasty bug somewhere. I can't be certain where and it really doesn't matter but about 8 people are taking responsibiliy for it. Everyone from K's kids to people at work and the DE coordinator at my RE's office. It's mostly cold with a tractor-trailer full of congestion in my sinuses. This, of course, means a horrible hacking phlemy cough. That's the worst part.
I started feeling bad last Sunday night and was feeling better by Tuesday. I really thought I was out of the woods and was on the downhill side. HA. Not so much. By yesterday morning, I couldn't talk because my throat was so shredded. It was so bad that I got kicked out of my office by my cow-orkers. At my company..that's BAD. The good news is that I'm feeling OK -- it's just the cough and congestion that's making me miserable. Oh yeah, and the raging headache that goes with it. By and large, Tylenol and Sudafed are taking care of it during the day and TylenolPM is taking care of it at night. At least I'm getting some sleep.
In the meantime, I've been drinking water and juice like it's going out of style. I never remember if you're supposed to "starve a cold and feed a fever" or "feed a cold and starve a fever" because I've never subscribed to either one. I've always drowned everything. It's something I picked up from my mom. And she should know -- she's a trained nurse. It always seemed that her answer to every ailment is "are you drinking plenty of fluids?"
On the cycling front... tomorrow is my donor's retrieval. C. has to be there at 7:45 am. I guess there's no rest for the wicked. Since I'm so sick, he's willing to "take matters into his own hands" so I don't have to go. He's such a wanker. Get it? AHAHAHAHAHAHA
So the ongoing schedule looks something like this:
Donor triggered last night for Sunday morning retrieval -- >15 follicles -- PERFECT :-)
I'll get the egg count tomorrow sometime
Last Lupron tonight
Continue 4 Vivelle patches for tonight's change and then Monday change to 2 new ones -- continue on 2 patches every other day until directed otherwise
PIO begins Sunday MORNING: 1/2 cc - Increase to 1 cc Tuesday and continue 1cc daily until directed otherwise
C. has to be at the clinic at 7:45 tomorrow morning
Monday we'll get a fertilization report and we'll know then if we're going to try to go to blast for Friday transfer. If not, we'll have a Wednesday (day 3) transfer
Wish us luck.
