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| Landon one year ago |
GOD is AMAZING!
Praising GOD for his many blessings tonight....
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| Landon in his highchair - such a big boy! |
Showing posts with label Embryo Transfer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Embryo Transfer. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
One Year Ago Today
GOD is AMAZING!
Praising GOD for his many blessings tonight....
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
I Heart Bedpans
Yes, you read right, I do indeed heart bedpans. Read on to find out why, but before that, read about our embryo transfer #2....
Woke up bright and early (7:15), got dressed, got my progesterone injection and headed down for a free breakfast in the hotel. With breakfast I had to take my drug cocktail: Valium, Albuterol, 3 Advil, and Estrace. Next, the drive to the National Embryo Donation Center.
Since we were one of their first appointments, we were taken back right away to the recovery room where I got my bed, gown and shower cap type thing. I changed, got in bed and we waited to see Dr. Keenan and the embryologist, Carol, to tell us about our embryos.
Our embryos: This time around the embryos we chose were frozen at the 2PN stage (PN=Pro-nuclear) and were frozen in straws of 5. This meant all 5 had to be thawed which meant if all survived (and could not be re-frozen) we could have had 5 embryos transferred! Bittersweet moment - while all 5 embryos were viable, only 4 of them divided. Of those 4, 3 divided they way they should have after two days of being un-thawed. After two days, the embryos should have divided into 6-8 cells. The embryos were graded the following: 8c/G1, 7c/G1, and 6c/G1. The c stands for cells. The G is the grade, 1 being the best up to 5 being the worse. Needless to say, we had 3 excellent embryos! This means we have a great chance for a pregnancy with a 10% of triplets :) The other 2 embryos will be observed in culture for 14 days. After 14 days they will know whether or not they can be refrozen or if they need to be discarded.
*Warning: Some may find this part containing TMI!
After talking with Dr. Keenan and Carol, I walked back to the operating room. Unfortunately, the transfer was not without complications. First, they checked my bladder to see whether or not it is full enough so they can distinguish it between my uterus. They could not. They then begin to prep me for a catheter so they can fill my bladder and for the transfer. Next, a speculum is inserted followed by the catheter which is followed by a pinch. A saline-water solution is added by the bottle full until they put approximately 64 ounces of liquid into my bladder. I feel like I am going to pee all over Dr. Keenan and that my bladder is going to burst - luckily neither happened! My bladder and uterus can now clearly be detected by ultrasound. A new catheter is inserted into my cervix or rather it is attempted. It is too big. A second, smaller catheter is opened. Attempt #2 is successful in that it goes into my cervix, but due to my tilted uterus, it cannot be positioned corrected and gets destroyed during the process. It is removed, Dr. Keenan puts on his 3rd pair of gloves, the 3rd catheter is opened and attempt number 3 is attempted. Apparently, for me, the 3rd time is a charm. With the catheter in the correct position, the embryos are loaded into a syringe and deposited into my uterus. An amazing sight on the ultrasound! Catheter and speculum are removed, I am transferred to a bed and taken back to the recovery room more than twenty minutes after I should have been.
Here is where my love of bedpans comes into place. I am on bed rest for the next hour. I also have a bladder that is fuller than full. Hello bedpan!! No need to say anymore about this :) Todd sits next to me and we talk, he reads, I rest and the next thing we know the hour is up. I change, we get my discharge instructions and are off. *No extra charges this time around - huge blessing as last time the 3 sets of embryos we chose had over $1200 of fees associated with them. Fees can be for storage, shipping charges (the embryos come from all over the U.S.) and for any of the tests required for them to donate the embryos that are not covered by their insurance.
I am to rest for 24 hours so we stopped for a quick lunch and ate it in the car. Got back to the hotel around 1 and slept until 630! We just got back from an excellent dinner at Puleo's, went to Target for some snacks and are now back in the hotel for the rest of the night (unless I can get Todd to go out for a strawberry milkshake from McDonald's in a bit!). While I do have restrictions for the next two weeks, I can pretty much got back to my regular routine.
So, like last time, according to some I am pregnant with triplets, and to others I won't be pregnant until a positive pregnancy test. Either way, GOD is good! After the complications, we ended up having a successful transfer with 3 excellent embryos!
We will continue with the progesterone injections 2x daily until we are told to stop. If the pregnancy test is negative, we will stop that day. If positive, we will continue the shots through the first trimester.
The two week wait begins....Thanks for being on this journey with us!
Woke up bright and early (7:15), got dressed, got my progesterone injection and headed down for a free breakfast in the hotel. With breakfast I had to take my drug cocktail: Valium, Albuterol, 3 Advil, and Estrace. Next, the drive to the National Embryo Donation Center.
Since we were one of their first appointments, we were taken back right away to the recovery room where I got my bed, gown and shower cap type thing. I changed, got in bed and we waited to see Dr. Keenan and the embryologist, Carol, to tell us about our embryos.
Our embryos: This time around the embryos we chose were frozen at the 2PN stage (PN=Pro-nuclear) and were frozen in straws of 5. This meant all 5 had to be thawed which meant if all survived (and could not be re-frozen) we could have had 5 embryos transferred! Bittersweet moment - while all 5 embryos were viable, only 4 of them divided. Of those 4, 3 divided they way they should have after two days of being un-thawed. After two days, the embryos should have divided into 6-8 cells. The embryos were graded the following: 8c/G1, 7c/G1, and 6c/G1. The c stands for cells. The G is the grade, 1 being the best up to 5 being the worse. Needless to say, we had 3 excellent embryos! This means we have a great chance for a pregnancy with a 10% of triplets :) The other 2 embryos will be observed in culture for 14 days. After 14 days they will know whether or not they can be refrozen or if they need to be discarded.
*Warning: Some may find this part containing TMI!
After talking with Dr. Keenan and Carol, I walked back to the operating room. Unfortunately, the transfer was not without complications. First, they checked my bladder to see whether or not it is full enough so they can distinguish it between my uterus. They could not. They then begin to prep me for a catheter so they can fill my bladder and for the transfer. Next, a speculum is inserted followed by the catheter which is followed by a pinch. A saline-water solution is added by the bottle full until they put approximately 64 ounces of liquid into my bladder. I feel like I am going to pee all over Dr. Keenan and that my bladder is going to burst - luckily neither happened! My bladder and uterus can now clearly be detected by ultrasound. A new catheter is inserted into my cervix or rather it is attempted. It is too big. A second, smaller catheter is opened. Attempt #2 is successful in that it goes into my cervix, but due to my tilted uterus, it cannot be positioned corrected and gets destroyed during the process. It is removed, Dr. Keenan puts on his 3rd pair of gloves, the 3rd catheter is opened and attempt number 3 is attempted. Apparently, for me, the 3rd time is a charm. With the catheter in the correct position, the embryos are loaded into a syringe and deposited into my uterus. An amazing sight on the ultrasound! Catheter and speculum are removed, I am transferred to a bed and taken back to the recovery room more than twenty minutes after I should have been.
Here is where my love of bedpans comes into place. I am on bed rest for the next hour. I also have a bladder that is fuller than full. Hello bedpan!! No need to say anymore about this :) Todd sits next to me and we talk, he reads, I rest and the next thing we know the hour is up. I change, we get my discharge instructions and are off. *No extra charges this time around - huge blessing as last time the 3 sets of embryos we chose had over $1200 of fees associated with them. Fees can be for storage, shipping charges (the embryos come from all over the U.S.) and for any of the tests required for them to donate the embryos that are not covered by their insurance.
I am to rest for 24 hours so we stopped for a quick lunch and ate it in the car. Got back to the hotel around 1 and slept until 630! We just got back from an excellent dinner at Puleo's, went to Target for some snacks and are now back in the hotel for the rest of the night (unless I can get Todd to go out for a strawberry milkshake from McDonald's in a bit!). While I do have restrictions for the next two weeks, I can pretty much got back to my regular routine.
So, like last time, according to some I am pregnant with triplets, and to others I won't be pregnant until a positive pregnancy test. Either way, GOD is good! After the complications, we ended up having a successful transfer with 3 excellent embryos!
We will continue with the progesterone injections 2x daily until we are told to stop. If the pregnancy test is negative, we will stop that day. If positive, we will continue the shots through the first trimester.
The two week wait begins....Thanks for being on this journey with us!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Bittersweet
**For the background on this blog check out: May Transfer is ON!**
About a week ago I started feeling very anxious about traveling the 10 hours to Michigan a mere two days after the transfer and attending all of the wedding festivities that were planned that weekend. Not to mention the 10 hour drive back and all within a few days. We had to be back by Monday, May 31 to be back in time to take my mom to the airport on Tuesday. We were too far along with our protocol; or rather had spent too much money on this transfer to stop now.
The last thing I wanted to do was not go to the wedding especially since they worked around our schedules with their new date. I didn't even mention it, however, Todd did. I told him before I would even consider it I wanted him to talk to his family about it. I didn't want Travis and Amy's marriage to start off with a family conflict because I didn't attend their wedding. Todd talked to them and they were all very understanding and supportive of it. Huge sigh of relief! So, the 'bitter' part of this bittersweet moment is that I am not going to be attending the wedding :(
The 'sweet' part, I will get to spend some quality time with my mom. Before my dad's Parkinson's disease had progressed (to where he couldn't be left alone), my mom and I used to do all sorts of stuff together, and now that I will not be attending the wedding, we will have four days to just hang out, go out to eat and shop. All things we both love doing!
God has definitely blessed me with two wonderful families! A family who understands my predicament and is supportive of our decision for me not to make the trip to Michigan for the wedding, and another who got on a plane to watch Grace so we could take the next step on our journey :)
GOD is good!
About a week ago I started feeling very anxious about traveling the 10 hours to Michigan a mere two days after the transfer and attending all of the wedding festivities that were planned that weekend. Not to mention the 10 hour drive back and all within a few days. We had to be back by Monday, May 31 to be back in time to take my mom to the airport on Tuesday. We were too far along with our protocol; or rather had spent too much money on this transfer to stop now.
The last thing I wanted to do was not go to the wedding especially since they worked around our schedules with their new date. I didn't even mention it, however, Todd did. I told him before I would even consider it I wanted him to talk to his family about it. I didn't want Travis and Amy's marriage to start off with a family conflict because I didn't attend their wedding. Todd talked to them and they were all very understanding and supportive of it. Huge sigh of relief! So, the 'bitter' part of this bittersweet moment is that I am not going to be attending the wedding :(
The 'sweet' part, I will get to spend some quality time with my mom. Before my dad's Parkinson's disease had progressed (to where he couldn't be left alone), my mom and I used to do all sorts of stuff together, and now that I will not be attending the wedding, we will have four days to just hang out, go out to eat and shop. All things we both love doing!
God has definitely blessed me with two wonderful families! A family who understands my predicament and is supportive of our decision for me not to make the trip to Michigan for the wedding, and another who got on a plane to watch Grace so we could take the next step on our journey :)
GOD is good!
Monday, April 19, 2010
May Transfer is ON!
After many emails between us and NEDC we finally were able to confirm a May 25 embryo transfer. Two months sooner than expected after we found out our first, second, and third choices were taken of the embryos we had to choose from originally. Needless to say we are excited!!!
I called my mom when there was even a possibility of a May transfer to see if she would be able to come down to watch Grace. She can (plane ticket already purchased!), and she is also going to watch Grace when we drive up to Michigan for Travis and Amy's wedding later that same week. This is such a huge blessing for a couple of reasons - we will not have to worry about finding some place to stay at night that accepts dogs, and we will not have to worry about Grace while we are busy with the wedding. I love my mom!
The last week of May is going to be crazy busy for us. Teacher's last day is Monday, May 24. As soon as we get released from school, Todd and I will load up the car and head to Knoxville. Though May 25 is the day of the actual transfer, a three day stay is recommend so we will not head home until Wednesday. Thursday we will be back on the road; this time heading up to Michigan for Travis and Amy's wedding. We will stop half way overnight with the hopes of getting to Sparta late Friday afternoon. Saturday is the wedding. We will be heading back home either Saturday night or early Sunday morning arriving home at the latest on Monday. I am tired just reading our schedule for that week!
Other news: TCAP is this week. For me, this means testing with one student in the morning and another in the afternoon. Fun times :) My brother has an interview with a principal in WCS for a middle school PE position next Monday - prayers appreciated! 2nd grade Business Day on Friday - so fun and so cute! I will post on Friday with a recap of the day and pictures.
I called my mom when there was even a possibility of a May transfer to see if she would be able to come down to watch Grace. She can (plane ticket already purchased!), and she is also going to watch Grace when we drive up to Michigan for Travis and Amy's wedding later that same week. This is such a huge blessing for a couple of reasons - we will not have to worry about finding some place to stay at night that accepts dogs, and we will not have to worry about Grace while we are busy with the wedding. I love my mom!
The last week of May is going to be crazy busy for us. Teacher's last day is Monday, May 24. As soon as we get released from school, Todd and I will load up the car and head to Knoxville. Though May 25 is the day of the actual transfer, a three day stay is recommend so we will not head home until Wednesday. Thursday we will be back on the road; this time heading up to Michigan for Travis and Amy's wedding. We will stop half way overnight with the hopes of getting to Sparta late Friday afternoon. Saturday is the wedding. We will be heading back home either Saturday night or early Sunday morning arriving home at the latest on Monday. I am tired just reading our schedule for that week!
Other news: TCAP is this week. For me, this means testing with one student in the morning and another in the afternoon. Fun times :) My brother has an interview with a principal in WCS for a middle school PE position next Monday - prayers appreciated! 2nd grade Business Day on Friday - so fun and so cute! I will post on Friday with a recap of the day and pictures.
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