Here we go...I think!

Pretty accurate and fun representation of the timeline

Today was the unofficial first day of my first IVF cycle. I believe they consider the actual first day the day you start stimulation meds? However today determined weather or not I can start stimulation meds on time. Oh I also AlMOST had my first emotional stress out due to IVF! The hubs and I spent the last week in Indiana with our families. We booked our flights separately and ended up on different flights home. Adam came home on Saturday with no problems, however Sunday rolled around (Superbowl Sunday...go hawks!) when it was time for me to leave my flight was canceled because the flight crew didn't show up! (I am assuming they all played hooky to watch the game) the ticket agent informed me there was no way for me to fly out of Fort Wayne until Wednesday! I had to be back to work on Monday and my doctor apt today (Tuesday) so they booked me a flight in Indy (about 2.5 hours from Ft Wayne) I drove to Indy the next day only to find out my next flight was delayed...delayed more...then finally canceled because thep plane needed a new engine. So here I am 48 hours from the first flight I tried to get on, with zero flights left to get me to Chicago where my flight to Seattle was waiting. As I stood in line for 2 hours two separate times I started to get overwhelmed with the long day...missing my husband..and realization I was probably not making it back in time it get to my doctors appointment. I know at this point appointments are set to exact times around my body's cycle so I was worried if I missed my suppression check I would have to delay the start to my whole IVF cycle. THANKFULLY an amazing united airlines worker found me the last flight out to Phoenix which could get me to Seattle at midnight Monday. She booked me a ticket on another airline and told me to run to the other side of the airport at which time I was reminded I need to work out more!

This was what they gave me as a ticket, reassuring right!?

So today was my suppression check, they do an internal ultrasound to look at the lining of the uterus and check to make sure there are not follicles or cyst on the ovary to insure there are no surprises on egg retrieval day. Well of course I already have a cyst on my left ovary so they knew that would be there. However they also found a small follicle on my right ovary. Apparently this might throw things off so they took some blood to check my estrogen levels. As long as my estrogen levels are relatively low we will be moving forward on Saturday. I will get the results tomorrow afternoon so fingers crossed! I am so excited that by the end of the month I could be pregnant I will be so disappointed if we have to push back! 

That's my sister the famous yogi!

In the meantime I started doing yoga today. My sister owns a couple yoga studios and really believes in the benefits it's of yoga on your mind body and soul. Can't hurt right!? I also figure this will be a good way to maintain a workout on the days when high impact workouts are forbidden. Hoping the yoga will help me remain calm when I get anxious as I don't like to wait for anything! (Like my blood results from today!) I will update once I know!

Just stick yourself with this needle...it's really easy!

So...we had our injections class today. When I hear class I think of a room full of people, a teacher, and maybe a blackboard. When I was told to sign up for a injections class this is what I pictured. I thought there would be other couples learning the same thing....you know someone else to ask the dumb questions you have so you don't have to. (Like will an air bubble kill me? Or my latest fear...what if I break the needle off inside my skin!) Not so lucky! It was more of a hallway meeting between us and the phlebotomist super quick...wham bam stick yourself thank you mam! 

She had examples of all three injections I will be taking and we practiced each one ONCE in a little rubber block really quickly. Took about 15 minutes.  Although I was in no way looking forward to sticking myself today I thought I would be. I feel like that first prick will be the hardest. I think when the day comes I am going to be sitting there (by myself because the hubs has work that night!) for an hour trying to work up the nerve. I would have much rather gotten over it today in the safety of  a doctors office with the pressure of someone waiting for me to do it. Not to worry I did confirm it would be near impossible to kill myself with an air bubble. I didn't have the nerve to ask about breaking needles off in my own tummy but after seeing the needle I felt it was pretty unlikely I would be able to do that either. But in no way do I feel comfortable purpously sticking a needle in myself yet! 

Here is how we feel about needles....scccccarrrrry! 

On another needle related note....our medications showed up today. They were shipped overnight from the pharmacy. The arrived packaged neatly together and some in a little cooler that we then put into our fridge. They make it pretty easy to figure out what goes together etc. 

Here is a picture of everything we were sent. Hard to believe I need all this for just a couple weeks! 

An update on the process and FINALLY A DATE FOR TRANSFER!

After talking about IVF for almost 2 years we FINALLY have a date for our transfer!! I am a total planner and having an actual date makes it real for me! ( I think Adam is starting to feel it too!)

                 Here is my excited face...Adam gets a little less excited by calendars but loves me anyway!

Once we got the final green light and calendar things started to feel like they were happening really fast. We got the green light on Christmas Eve and couldn't have asked for a better Christmas present! So in the last two weeks this is what has happened...

• We were accepted into the Attain "6 try" program (see my IVF through Attain post for more info)  we signed all contracts with Attain. Payment was due in full up front as well. Once Attain has received the contract and payment they send over the information to your fertility clinic to let them know they can proceed. 
• We were given a full calendar of "events" which lays out your entire treatment plan 
• We had a final meeting with our doctor to sign off on all IVF consents 
• A last blood drawl was done for me just to check hormone levels again
• Seattle Reproductive has sent my prescriptions into a specialized fertility pharmacy for all of the hormone injections I will take leading up to the transfer. All of these medications are not covered by our Attain program and had to be paid up front as well. Our financial adviser at SRM told us these usually run 5-6 thousand. Ours were just under $3,000 so we got lucky there!
• We also paid a $900 freezer fee up front at SRM (this is for them to freeze and store any "extra" eggs after our 1st transfer.) 
• SO for those of you playing at home that is about $34,000 out the door for our baby(ies)! I tell you this not to scare you but because when I was researching and reading blogs I could NEVER find a true estimate of cost. I like to be prepared and this annoyed me! Keep in mind we live in Seattle which has some of the higher cost we have seen (but the best success rates!) and paid for the Attain program also our insurance covers NOTHING so this could be less for lots of you!
• We have scheduled an injection class where we will learn to give me the hormone shots. Right now I have it in my head I can accidentally allow an air bubble into the needle and kill myself...soooo I am hoping they cover that in the class. 
• I have stated prenatal vitamins and am remaining on birth control so they know when my cycle will start.

What's to come (Dates can change based on my cycle and how I react to the hormone shots)

• Feb 1st- Adam will take a high dose of antibiotics to make sure his little swimmers are nice and healthy on transfer day.
• Feb 4th Suppression Check- they will check my uterine lining and ovaries to be sure they are doing what they normally should after a cycle. 
• Feb 8th I will start stimulation injections 
• Feb 12th I will have blood work done to verify I am progressing with the hormones
• Feb 15th more blood work and another ultrasound to verify progression and egg growth
• Feb 18th (this was weird to me) I take a pregnancy test..which should show positive as they have pumped me so full of hormones by body thinks its growing a human. If positive...
• Feb 19th EGG RETRIEVAL DAY! They will also drain my cyst this day as long as it is accessible while extracting the eggs. Adam will also give his contribution which will be mixed to make some very cute babies!
• Feb 24th TRANSFER DAY! The fertilized egg or eggs will be transferred back in then we will all cross our fingers hoping for it to cling on!!! 
• March 5th will be my blood test to verify if I am pregnant or not. 

Its all very exciting! I will be posting along the way to keep everyone updated. Please feel free to let me know if I become crazy at any point. (Adam is starting to get nervous!) 

IVF through Attain Fertility

The cost of IVF can become quite costly. National success rates vary between 25-80 percent. After examining our history and current medical conditions our doctor estimated we have an 75 percent chance of success. After a successful "attachment" there is still a higher chance of miscarriage for IVF patients. So total odd of a live birth for us on our first IVF round is about 50 percent. Our insurance company covers none of the cost of fertility treatments.

Attain fertility is like a 3rd party insurance company that offers you multiple tries at a successful IVF round for a discounted price.

At our clinic a single round of IVF cost about 14,000.00 if unsuccessful we would need to pay that again for a second attempt and so on.
With Attain they offer the chance for multiple rounds with a guarantee that you will bring home a baby.
We had the following options to apply for through Attain

2 rounds of IVF for 22,000 with no guarantee
OR
4 Rounds of IVF (2 with Live Egg removal and 2 using frozen embryos ) for 24,000 if unsuccessful you receive 50% of your money back
OR
6 Rounds of IVF (3 with live egg removal and 3 using frozen embryos)  for 29,000. If unsuccessful you receive 100% of your money back

I truly do believe that this first round will work. I don't stress much, have a great relationship with my husband and know my body pretty well. For some reason I truly believe that one that little eggy is in there she/he will stick!  However I also have no idea what this next two months holds. My husband keeps assuring me that once I am pumped full of all the hormones I will be certifiably bat crap crazy! So we decided that although I KNOW it will work first round, we may need an extra round.

We felt the 6 rounds with 100% guarantee was the best for us. Having the 100% guarantee allows us to go through the process with no expectations and no risk. If for some reason IVF did not work we would have that money to move forward with adoption.

Clearly if we have a baby on the first try we will not be disappointed that we spent the extra money when we didn't need more than one try.

For anyone looking for more information on Attain here is their website.

http://attainivf.attainfertility.com/attain-ivf-programs

Starting at the beginning...

I don't know how far back to go, or where our fertility journey started. What I can tell you is that I ALWAYS knew I wanted to be a mom, and I always kinda knew it would be not be easy. Somehow knowing that...knowing getting pregnant was not going to be "easy" is what has made it easier for me. So far our journey has not been one of heartache or pain, it's been one purely of love.

How we came to IVF
     At age 19 after a 4 wheeling accident my doctors randomly found a large tumor attached to my left Fallopian tube. It was the size of a cantaloupe and they were pretty sure it was non cancerous. This was my first surgery. When they went in to remove the tumor it was wrapped around my left ovary they ended up taking about 95% of my ovary out with the tumor. Along with a couple ovarian cyst. It was non cancerous and my doctors were sure that I could easily get pregnant with my right ovary and good right Fallopian tube. I recovered quickly and was back to normal within the week

     One month after my surgery I was back in the hospital in excruciating pain in my stomach and shoulder. In the ER they did a ton of test and started me on morphine. I remember at one point telling my dad "I don't know what your appendix is but mine burst" after getting all the test back they decided the pain was from another ovarian cyst. I was scheduled for surgery later that night when it came time for surgery the obgyn surgeon was called to deliver a baby. My surgery was rescheduled...this happen three more times in the course of three days. When they finally went in for surgery they found that my appendix HAD burst three days earlier. Scaring most of my abdomen.

       9 years and 5 more ovarian cyst surgeries later when my husband and I were ready to start having babies. I would come to find out not only was that scaring causing all of my ovarian cyst but my "good Fallopian tube" was also scared shut...no open tube no way for the egg to get to the uterus. No other option but IVF or adoption. This is why I say our journey has been "easy" we did not go thru years of trying naturally...we didn't have any miscarriages, we didn't have to go thru years of fertility drugs and hormones only to find out at 35 or 40 that IVF was now our only option.  I am hoping that the rest of this IVF journey is just as easy for us :)