IVF#2: scheduled

Thank-you for all your advice yesterday.

I called the clinic today and spoke with a lovely midwife. She said The Professor had very recently put a big note on my file saying that he must meet with us before we proceed with our next cycle. My husband suspects that The Professor wants to talk to us about my thin endometrium and suggest some further tweaks to our protocol.

However, I managed to convince her to let me start BCPs before the consultation, and schedule me to put me into the system to start injections a few days after the consultation. So this is my tentative calendar:

November 16: Start BCPs
December 23: Consultation with The Professor
December 27: Start suppression with decapeptyl
January 6: Start Gonal-F stimulation
January 24: Tentative transfer
February 4: Tentative beta

I am so happy that I can ring in the New Year while in the midst of an IVF cycle, full of hope and excitement for the year ahead.

Nasal pulverization

I started my suppression today. How exciting. I went to sleep last night like it was the day before my birthday. Then I managed to sleep through my alarm for my first dose.

I will not be taking one shot of Lupron in the belly each night. I will be squirting Suprefact (buserelin) four times a day up my nose (7am, noon, 5pm 10pm). Over here in Europe, they love their nasal sprays. Lupron and Suprefact are both gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnR) agonists that interact with the GnR receptor. As they both act on the pituitary gland, I suppose that it has a shorter distance to travel if it starts in my nostrils. This will be especially fun at work, when I have to sneak into the bathroom with my handbag several times a day and secretly sniff up my drugs. I hope no-one thinks that I’ve developed a cocain habit.

I don’t even know if I’m doing it right - It feels so weird to inhale it, but at least it’s not another daily injection. Though by the end of this, I wonder if I will prefer one small jab to multiple daily puffs.

Here we go...

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.