Not Perfect, But I'll Take It!

Today's appointment went well and was actually pretty exciting. There were three surprises that I wasn't expecting.

I had my estradiol blood draw first. The person who drew my blood is great at the needle stick - I don't even feel it! I complimented him on his poking prowess and asked for some advice with the needles. He said the key is to go fast and "jab" it in, rather than go slowly, Also, he said to wait until the medication dries off the tip, especially with the more caustic drugs, like Menopur. He said that I could ice it, but that can make the blood clot faster and therefore, more bruising. The nurse also looked at my stomach and was surprised that I didn't have more bruising after almost three weeks of shots. She said that I looked "like a pro," and that one or two bruises are nothing to be concerned with.

The first surprise of the day was how much it hurt when I had the transvaginal ultrasound. I was actually worried because it hurt so much, but she said it is completely normal, especially with what we found in my ovaries. The left ovary has 11 follicles, with a size range from 8.9 to 13.3 mm. The right ovary has 9 follicles, with a size range of 8.3 to 12.2 mm. She thinks that all 20 will mature in time for retrieval. I haven't heard back with estradiol numbers, but she doesn't anticipate a problem with the follicle amount and size.

The second surprise of today is that given where I am for follicle count and size, Dr. M believes that retrieval could possibly be as early as Sunday - two days ahead of schedule. I really have fingers crossed for that, for two reasons: First, a few less days of stims. Secondly, I would have my beta on Christmas Eve. How wonderful would that be? Unless of course, it was a negative, but we aren't even going to examine that possibility right now. One stick at a time!

Dr. M didn't declare me "perfect," this time, but she said that everything looked "just fine." The IVF coordinator said that the size ranges looked "great." Another good day, keep 'em coming!

The third surprise was our discussion revolving around how many embryos to transfer. I had kind of planned that we would decide when we got to Day 5. If we had one good embryo that was already hatching, then I was thinking that we would transfer just one. My thought is that multiples increases the risk of pregnancy loss, which is our problem to begin with. I thought Dr. M was on the same page, but I was wrong.

Dr. M pretty much said that she would only recommend transferring two. She feels that with our history, she wouldn't do anything less. I guess it's just getting my head around the real and true possibility of twins. I love children and we want two, I guess I just love the baby phase so much, that I am sad it will be over so soon. Also, my friends with twins say that the really just "survive" the first year, rather than enjoy it. After all we have taken to get here, I just really want to be able to enjoy that newborn/infant stage. But I also know that if I see two heartbeats, I will fall in love and the extra work won't matter.

So, a few surprises, but all good.