The Chair

This is one of the chairs in the waiting room of my clinic. It is filled with Gonal-F pens. I have no idea what the story is behind it. Did one lone infertile decide to make a monument to her years of injections? Did she want something tangible for all those cycles of hope and disappointment? Is this a donation from Merck to thank the clinic for all their orders?

I have never seen anyone actually sit in the chair. Perhaps it is a Wishing Chair? Maybe if I sit in it, the chair will sprout wings and take me away from the Land of IF.

12dp IUI

Here's how my first IUI cycle went down:

CD2-CD7: 75 IU Menopur. Despite having my wonderful husband to do the injections, they get slightly more painful every day. I am grateful that Mel's book recommends a warm compress, which is a great comfort to my sore belly. Frustratingly, both the Menopur and Pregnyl here in Europe come in these fragile glass ampules that need to be snapped in half to access the powder or solution. This makes the mixing process even more fiddly and difficult.

CD8: Right ovary: several small follicles around 8mm. Left ovary, one large follicle at 15.5mm. I am very happy that the dominant follicle turned up on the side with my good tube. We continue with 75 IU Menopur. They call me to come in again the next day.

CD9: Left ovary follicle now measures 18.6mm, my endometrium measures 7.6mm. It is still strange to see my uterus clammed shut, so used to seeing open pictures on the web. They call me that afternoon, want me to do the trigger that night and come in the next morning for the IUI, which means that I must have started ovulating too soon. Trigger at 11pm.

CD10: Our IUI is scheduled for noon, but doesn't happen until 12:40. My poor bladder is so close to bursting it is all I can think about. The midwives leave us waiting in the room to the sounds of "Eternal Flame" and "My Heart will go On". I lay there, trying not to pee on myself, while being forced to listen to Celine Dion. It is not a very romantic insemination.

CD21: Today, 12 days into the two week wait, with my blood test having to wait until CD29. Fertility friend gives me a score of 35/100 for early pregnancy signs.


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So, the timing was off, and my endometrium was thin, but at least we will have IUI number 1 under our belts soon. One more 'n' for the clinical trial, either way. If it's negative, then we'll set up the next IUI, and in the mean time I will get my hair dyed and eat lots of soft French cheeses.

IUI #1

Today is Day 2 in our very first IUI cycle.

The lab tests from the laparoscopy came back clear, so I do not have endometriosis. However, with only my left tube completely clear, the odds of pregnancy are slightly lower. The professor estimated that we have a 10-20% chance of success per cycle, with a 40% chance of success over three IUI cycles. Interestingly, he recommends a rest cycle in between each IUI cycle for both psychological and biological reasons.

I have joined the university's head-to-head randomised trial comparing Clomid with Menopur for IUI. Now no matter what the outcome of this cycle, I am increasing scientific knowledge that will help subsequent people with infertility make more informed decisions. They gave me a selection of brown envelopes to choose from, and I chose one that means I will be taking Menopur this cycle. This is my protocol:

CD1:
CD2-CD7: 75 IU Menopur
CD8: Ultrasound and bloodwork - Menopur dose as advised
CD9-17: Possible ultrasounds and bloodwork - Menopur dose as advised

Once the follicles look ripe:

Day -2: Trigger with Pregnyl
Day 0: IUI
Days 0-15: Progesterone suppositories
Day 15: Blood pregnancy test #1
Day 27: Blood pregnancy test #2 and ultrasound, if #1 positive

I am very thankful that I have my dear husband to do my injections. He is an expert at these things, while I can't even bear to watch the instructional video. I am also very glad that I only have one injection per day, it is subcutaneous, and the post-IUI progesterone is not an injection.

The hardest thing will be to try to keep everything in perspective. I am a very goal-oriented person, so if this IUI doesn't end in pregnancy I will feel as if I have personally failed. So my main mission this cycle is to focus on staying happy, to enjoy my time doing the things I love, and to remember that I already have a wonderful life.