Thursday, October 18, 2007

Quick and Dirty

I wrote an absolutely groundbreaking post, filled with wittiness and prose the likes of which the blogasphere has never seen before. It was a sight to behold, I'm telling you. You would have been talking about it and my genius for days.

And it got erased.

And I have to leave for work.

So, here it is, the quick and dirty: The IUI is done, although there were several times this morning that I didn't think it would happen. Hubby's sperm count was a little on the low side at 9 million, post wash. But our doctor seems to think that is still good enough to get the job done. Here's hoping that she is better at hedging bets than her bedside manner.

What I did write and don't want to forget to put in this post is how much your comments and good wishes mean to me. I am humbled that so many people take time out of their lives to not only read about mine, but also to support me with commentary. I am so thankful for each and every one of you, and my only hope is that I am able to be there for you as well.


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OH! Somehow, Google Reader (which I still don't know how to use - anyone want to tutor me?) caught my post before the world wide web snatched it away. Thanks to Infertility Just Sucks and K for sending it to me. Now you can see for yourself my literary prowess - which I was actually lying about, by the way, and now am red faced in embarrassment at being caught! But just in case you want the whole story rather than the Reader's Digest Version, here it is in all it's glory!

Whew.

Back from the IUI morning from hell.

I am really hoping that today's events are not a predictor of this entire cycle being a bust.To begin with, we are lucky that we even got in for our appointment. It seems that Seattleites have forgotten how to drive in the RAIN. There is also a lot of talk on the news about a storm coming this afternoon and apparently that is keeping people from being able to focus on the morning commute. There were accidents everywhere and we were bumper to bumper the whole way. A drive which usually takes us no more than an hour took us two hours today. We had left a little margin for error on the timing, but not enough to stick to our original appointment time. When I realized this, I made a teary phone call to the receptionist and had to tangle over when we could reschedule. They had plenty of afternoon appointments, but DH had to be back at work by noon, no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

Finally, we managed to sneak in to a later set of appointments.After what seemed like ages, we got back to the lab for my husband's appointment and. . .well, the only way to put this is that he had performance anxiety. This is not his first time producing a specimen, but for some reason, he was not in the "mood" today. We were finally able to get the job done, but it took tears on my part and a lot of concentration on his. Oh, the memories. . .To further complicate the day, do you remember the plaque that my dearest husband wanted after his great sperm count last month? Well, this month, he had to take his plaque down. His post-wash count was 9 million, which is on the low side. It definitely put a pin in his ego balloon, but the doctor reassured us that it was still a decent enough count to get the job done. After all, his super count from last month didn't seal the deal. It only takes one. But it was still not the greatest of counts and does slightly reduce our chances for success.

My usual doctor was at bat today, the one with no bedside manner whatsoever. She actually started out okay, but fizzled quickly. You can tell that she doesn't read charts before she comes in and had no idea who we were or what our story is. She asked how long we had been trying and how many IUIs we had done. When I told her, she said that we would just have to hope that this was it and we finally got pregnant. I reminded her that we have been pregnant before, and she just looked at me as if I was speaking some foreign language that she didn't understand.We finally got down to business and for some reason, it HURT when she did the IUI. Last month, I didn't feel a thing, just a bit of pressure, but this time, I actually got tears in my eyes from the brief but sharp pain.

We got none of the cute sprinkles of baby dust, just a couple of comments on the weather and then she was out the door. I am still cramping and it has been almost two hours.

BUT.I still have hope. I still believe that this is our cycle. And I am so grateful and so humbled how everyone has made time in their busy lives to follow one girl's silly ramblings. When I saw how many well wishes that I had waiting for me, I was overwhelmed. I hope that I am able to be there for you as you have been there for me. From the bottom of my infertile little heart, thank you, thank you, thank you.

19 comments:

Mrs. Shoes said...

Nine million is fine. Anything over 5 million is statistically significant for higher pregnancy rates. Believe me, I know a lot about sperm. ;)

Hoping for wonderful things for you.

A'Dell said...

I hate it when technology eats up the fruits of my genius. It's never as good the second time around.

I'm glad that you've got the IUI done. Sounds like you're a bit hesitant but I have faith that all will go as planned. After all, 9M is a lot of wiggly sperm and it only takes one.

Looking forward to the next two weeks with you!

AwkwardMoments said...

9 million is a very fine result .. you only need that 1! welcome to the 2ww

Christy said...

I'm glad it went well for you today. I certainly rooting for you this cycle!

JJ said...

Hoping those 9 mil. swimmers are swimming fast and furious towards a good lookin egg=)
Best of luck to you Katie--Ill be crossing and hoping for you!

moosk said...

sounds like you timed it well! wishing you lots of good luck!!

Anonymous said...

Lots of luck for those 9 million.

elephantscanremember said...

Good luck! I will be anxiously reading your blog for the next couple of weeks.

(And thank you for your support to me.)

Laksh said...

Tons of baby dust to you. You will be in my prayers and thoughts for the next two weeks for sure. Have been checking into your blog since morning hoping for an update.

I hope this is the month for you. Take care!

Geohde said...

Yes, Google reader did snaffle it, :)

I've got both the original and this version of the post :)

I was a good girl and read both.

Man, I'm sorry about the painful IUI and the cramping, that's poor technique.

Hope it works for you,

xx

J

Kim said...

We'll be waiting together soon! I'm excited to have someone to sit and wait with, as bizarre as that sounds considering what we're waiting for. I'm glad it's DONE. Now you can concentrate on waiting to get that BFP!

Kristen said...

I'm sorry it was painful for you. Ouch - can't the be more gentle?! 9 million sounds great to me. I have lots of hope for my cycle buddy. I hope we both get to wear the pregnancy lady costume for Halloween :)

XOXO

AwkwardMoments said...

I think Dr should be required to have bedside manners GEEZ ..sorry that it hurt alil and that hubbies ego is a lil pierced. If it makes him feel any better..my Hubbo has MAJOR anxiety on his performance .. that is why we had to wait so long to do IUI's ..he just COULD NOT handle that

In Search of Morning Sickness said...

I'm sorry about the IUI from hell... Really, but I'm glad it DID get done. That traffic is just bad luck! The day of our embryo transfer we had the same thing happen (a 30 minute trip turned into 1 1/2 hours - but we left early & were only a few minutes late & of course, they won't deny me transfer!).
I really hope for you this will result in a pregnancy that sticks! Anxiously reading in the TWW

Samantha said...

Nothing like having a usually normal procedure turn out to be painful, I understand that! Here's hoping this IUI works out for you!

(And here's to kicking your doctor's ass - have a little kindness, lady!)

Tracy said...

Oh, Katie. I can tell by reading your post that it was an awful morning for you. I HATE doctors like that. My current RE isn't bad...in fact he's wonderful...but when we were going through the IUIs with our last doctor it was brutal, too. You feel like such a nobody.

Anyway, it's over, and 9mill is still plenty of sperm. I hope you're feeling better and that the 2WW isn't toooooo torturous.

xoxo

Polka Dot said...

Both versions were witty *grin*

My iui in Feb pinched, too. My RE said it was because the mucus was starting to thicken and was a bit tougher to get through. But - that was also the cycle I had my only BFP on. So maybe it's a good thing!

Mel said...

The IUIs hurt me so bad every time, too. Most people don't even feel them and think I am crazy, but I HATE them.
I am so excited for you, girl.
Nothing but positive thinking from here on out, ok?
Hugs!

Searching said...

Sounds like a thoroughly mixed day just enough on the crappy side to have worked. It will. I'm sorry it hurt though, can't imagine how awful that was on top of the missed appt, stress of everything else, and the less-than-perfect bedside manner doc. Take care of yourself and enjoy all that post-best rest yummyness!