Week of 12/3

[ilovecandy]

Happy December! What is everyone up to this week? Who is celebrating Haunakah?

My h and I just figure out we can leave 2 maybe three days earlier than planned to go see my family in Texas for Christmas. (We are driving.). We have a concert on Friday and then on Saturday we will be watching the Army v navy game ( go army best navy!). I also have my holiday party for work on Saturday.

Other than that nothing unusual planned during the week. Oh my h just bought new tires today because we got a flat on the way home Thanksgiving that wasn't repairable. And since he has 4wd he has to replace all his tires at once. Boo.

[G22]

I'm leaving in a couple days for a girls weekend. I'm so excited cant wait for a fun time! Also, itll be my last race for awhile because my RE wants me to full stop running for 12 weeks prior to my FET.

Speaking of FET, I got my tentative schedule for it. My mock transfer is set for the beginning of Jan.

[seeyalater52]

I’m waiting on all my test results from last week. I’m hoping to get most of my blood work results back this week except the karyotype which I expect will be another few weeks. Started estrogen on Sunday (CD2) for my mock cycle hysteroscopy/ERA. I hate estrogen so much and already feel awful. Tentative biopsy date is 12/21 but I’ll find out for sure later this week.

I took almost all of last week off from work to process the loss, and got approval from HR today to take it as bereavement rather than sick time. I’m glad because I’ve been hoarding my sick time for a hypothetical maternity leave and it just feels so unfair to use it up having multiple miscarriages.

Over the weekend we had a surprise issue with our pipes that is costing almost $4k. When it rains it pours. That was money we were saving for PGS so although we can mostly afford it it still really sucks.

[pickel]

I’m getting ready to start Lupron in a couple of days. I’m really getting nervous about the path I chose and some mixed emotions about using a donor are starting to pop up. I also interviewed for a job that I really really want in my hometown that would require a 700 mile move from where I currently live so there’s a lot going on.

[icedcoffee]

We did a mini Hanukkah celebration on Sunday (my H was raised Jewish). I made brisket and latkes. We're celebrating the last night on Sunday with some friends and I am really looking forward to it.

G22, I'm so jealous of your girl's weekend! I just backed out of one for January in case we need to cycle again. The girls were talking Puerto Rico or Florida and I just can't commit. I could really use some girl time though.

seeyalater52, I'm so glad your HR let you save your sick time!

pickel, I'm sorry about the mixed emotions. I totally understand your feelings. I hope you have great success and get clarity on your thoughts.

I'm just trying to distract myself and not eat every cookie I see so far I'm failing on the cookie front. LOL

[G22]

icedcoffee I really really need this girls weekend. It's coming at just the right time. I'm sorry you had to back out of one though. As if IF isnt frustrating enough, it's just another stab of pain when you have to cancel things due to cycling I get so many thoughts of "it's not fair" when that happens.

[fairfax]

Had a retreival on Saturday so now I’m in anxious “waiting for results” mode.

We’re trying to figure out if/when we can go on vacation - it depends on the results of this cycle so I feel extra pressure right now.

[megstoo]

We have nothing going in terms of TTC. We're going back to visit family for Christmas the beginning of January so we'll start stims when we're back. As much as I don't want to wait I don't want to deal with the added stress so it's just better this way.

I still have SO much to buy yet for Christmas. The only one's who are done are my brother and dad. No clue what to buy for DH and his side of the family is just impossible as always.

I have started doing KETO though and since Thanksgiving I'm down about 6lbs.

[msmerymac]

I had my IVF orientation at my new RE today. There seems to be a lot of onus on me - I need to call my insurance and see which medications they cover, I have to call a bunch of different departments to get set up. I have to get pre-clearance from my doctor that I can have anesthesia and get pregnant, I have to have a PAP within the past year. Thankfully I was able to schedule a gyno visit for next week (TBH, I've been avoiding the gyno because of the new 2 year PAP rec and also I try to avoid bumping into pregnant women) and I thankfully already scheduled a yearly doctor's visit for this week - it was supposed to be tomorrow but got bumped to Thursday, so I can get her to write me the letter for the RE when I'm there.

They also say that per PA state regulation, spouses/partners aren't allowed in the surgery center for transfers, which is weird, because my last RE always had the spouse come in while they were doing the transfer, which made it seem very ceremonial, like the Handmaid's Tale or something.

I also don't know my exact protocol yet. I guess I will once I find out which exact medication is covered by my insurance if any. I hope to find out soon and get things ordered. OTOH, my deductible resets in January, so I kind of want to wait. BUT I expect my next cycle to start at the end of December - if it's 12/31 or later, the lab will be open and I can cycle. If it's before that, I'll wait through another cycle until the end of January.

I also found out that, just like my last RE, they prefer to do FET rather than fresh. AND it's possible I'll do a mock transfer. *Sigh* I was really hoping to transfer in January as well.

[chocolatepie]

We have held off on planning any trips, too, due to IVF stuff but we live fairly close to WDW and are passholders so we've just been spending time there. I'm a huge nerd that could go everyday so it's not a hardship We went last night for Candlelight Processional with Neil Patrick Harris and it made my week. We're going back next week for a staycation (4 days) just to see my favorite Christmas stuff.

My surgery is Friday to remove the fibroid and I'm crossing my fingers it goes well so we aren't delayed anymore. I've read that fibroids can return fairly quickly after removal so I'm hoping we can do a FET before that happens.

[seeyalater52]

Apparently I'm going to start on a thyroid medication? So far that's the only thing that has come back questionable (high range of normal.) Looks like the immune testing is all normal, still waiting on Leiden factor 5. Fuck. I was kind of hoping they'd find something, ANYTHING, that truly explained WTF is going on with me.

[ilovecandy]

Dec 4, 2018 12:03:49 GMT -5 fairfax said:

Had a retreival on Saturday so now I’m in anxious “waiting for results” mode.

We’re trying to figure out if/when we can go on vacation - it depends on the results of this cycle so I feel extra pressure right now.

Like so many we have put any trips we potentially want to take on the back burner. There is talk of a family camping trip this spring with h's family but I told him it all depends on the timing.

It also means I have no idea when I am going to be able to go see my family in Texas next year so this Christmas will likely be my last trip there for probably close to a year (typically I got twice a year).

I also wanted to go to a specific place in our state this year. Thebest time to do that is late spring through summer. But h leaves towards the end of summer for two months for a promotion school (yay!) But it is screwing up my timing of everything lol.

So basically next year is a wait and see and will probably be a lot of spontaneous decisions for if we go anywhere.

[ilovecandy]

Dec 4, 2018 12:27:25 GMT -5 megstoo said:

We have nothing going in terms of TTC. We're going back to visit family for Christmas the beginning of January so we'll start stims when we're back. As much as I don't want to wait I don't want to deal with the added stress so it's just better this way.

I still have SO much to buy yet for Christmas. The only one's who are done are my brother and dad. No clue what to buy for DH and his side of the family is just impossible as always.

I have started doing KETO though and since Thanksgiving I'm down about 6lbs.

We are waiting on insurance to process the referral before we can go to the specialist and get a timeline for ivf so I feel you.

I also have bought three presents. My parents, and two of the 8 kids have presents. We don't do sibling gifts and we decided we weren't going to buy for h's parents we have slipped them some money this year for groceries and stuff when there situation was tight. H also has done a crap ton of manual work on getting their house to liveable condition this year so that's our gift.

[ilovecandy]

Dec 4, 2018 8:01:07 GMT -5 pickel said:

I’m getting ready to start Lupron in a couple of days. I’m really getting nervous about the path I chose and some mixed emotions about using a donor are starting to pop up. I also interviewed for a job that I really really want in my hometown that would require a 700 mile move from where I currently live so there’s a lot going on.

Hugs I hope you get things sorted out and are at peace and happy with your decisions.

[shoeless]

icedcoffee when is your beta?

@pickle I don’t know what’s normal or not but I had a lot of mixed emotions up until the day she was born. Now I wouldn’t change a thing.

seeyalater52 (hugs) it’s so very hard not having answers.

AFM lining looked good and I’m set to transfer next week.

[icedcoffee]

shoeless, Monday. My clinic makes you wait foreeeeever.

[shoeless]

Dec 5, 2018 7:57:14 GMT -5 icedcoffee said:

shoeless , Monday. My clinic makes you wait foreeeeever.

Nooooo  I feel so invested in others outcomes so I keep checking to see if you have an update yet.  I've got everything crossed for you

[pinkpeony08]

seeyalater52 so sorry. No answers is the worst.

[stellelinds25]

We're just waiting for our appointment with the new RE on 12/17. I'm also starting to question our decision to do PGS...with the previous Dr we had opted for it and did all the paperwork. But I guess with switching, now I'm rethinking that decision. I've read a lot of opinions on both sides. DH will do whatever I want to do, so he's no help lol.

In non-TTC news, I'm trying to get my weight back under control (little background...I had weight loss surgery 2.5 years ago and I've lost over 200 lbs...but the last several months I've let my stress & emotions win and I've put about 25 lbs back on and I'm not happy about it), start eating better, get my butt back to the gym and not let the holidays tempt me.

msmerymac I live in PA too and I've never heard that! Of course, we haven't gotten to a transfer yet, but it's never been mentioned before. I hope my RE allows it, I think it'll go a long way to keeping me calm.

seeyalater52 ugh, not knowing a why has to be the worst...I'm sorry I hope it's something as simple as taking some meds for you!

pickel sending you some ((hugs)) and good luck with the job!

fairfax fingers crossed for a good report!!

[ilovecandy]

Dec 5, 2018 7:57:14 GMT -5 icedcoffee said:

shoeless, Monday. My clinic makes you wait foreeeeever.

Ugh that is forever. Keeping my fingers crossed for you!

Guys I may legitimately be kind of crazy? So as I said in a post I have been really committing to my yoga practice on and off my mat. Which includes meditation. A few weeks ago I bought a mala for meditation off of Etsy. Somehow it got in my mind to look up fertility gemstones today after my meditation cause my mala has some of what is considered fertility gemstones. And now I have bought a stack of bracelets off of Etsy with multiple different gemstones for fertility. So yeh there is that. 🤷☺️

[blt08]

seeyalater52 if it helps at all, I had three losses and when I finally started seeing an RE he said while my thyroid numbers were "normal" they were on the higher end and especially for what he would like to see for TTC. He tripled my dosage for my thyroid med and that seems to have worked for me. I know it's super frustrating not getting a clear answer but hopefully the thyroid stuff works for you too. <3

[icedcoffee]

stellelinds25, My doctor (also at SG) really didn't push PGS unless there was a reason--evidence of genetic issues, history of losses, etc. She actually never even brought it up as an option to us. My H made a joke to her about doing it so we could know the sex and she instantly responded that she doesn't really like to to do it unless she has a medical reason to do it. I think it's good you and your H are discussing the option, but I think ultimately I would weigh cost and how many embryos you have on day 5. One embryo on day 5? I'd just transfer it. 6 embryos on day 5? I might PGS them.

[pooh8402]

seeyalater52, I want to echo what blt08 said re: thyroid. I had mine checked twice by my first RE because the first was on the high end of normal. The second ended up being where she wanted it. But many REs really like a low-normal TSH for fertility purposes as there are better results that way. Mine usually hangs out about 1.5-1.7.

[msmerymac]

seeyalater52, my RE just said I'm on the high range of normal for thyroid too! But he's not planning to treat it now. I've mentioned that he did put me on metformin and my new protocol looks bigger and badder than previous ones (ordered meds today).

Had my doctor's appt today, so that's taken care of. Gyno is next week. I called the finance people at the new RE and the answer that, "We'll submit as soon as you start your cycle" seemed concerning because, duh, what if insurance kicks it back and requires more approvals? Just get it pre-authorized now, thanks. So my H is calling. At least I found out my max OOP costs are $8k for insurance, but that won't cover genetic testing, which is crazy expensive at this place.

[stellelinds25]

Dec 6, 2018 12:57:30 GMT -5 icedcoffee said:

stellelinds25 , My doctor (also at SG) really didn't push PGS unless there was a reason--evidence of genetic issues, history of losses, etc. She actually never even brought it up as an option to us. My H made a joke to her about doing it so we could know the sex and she instantly responded that she doesn't really like to to do it unless she has a medical reason to do it. I think it's good you and your H are discussing the option, but I think ultimately I would weigh cost and how many embryos you have on day 5. One embryo on day 5? I'd just transfer it. 6 embryos on day 5? I might PGS them.

It was presented to us because of our ages (I'm 35 and DH is 38), but we don't have any other history to necessitate it. We were kind of in the mindset of it giving us better odds. But the more I read about it, the more I'm not necessarily sure that's true. It's something I'll definitely bring up at our consult though!

[pooh8402]

Dec 6, 2018 13:11:24 GMT -5 stellelinds25 said:

Dec 6, 2018 12:57:30 GMT -5 icedcoffee said:

stellelinds25 , My doctor (also at SG) really didn't push PGS unless there was a reason--evidence of genetic issues, history of losses, etc. She actually never even brought it up as an option to us. My H made a joke to her about doing it so we could know the sex and she instantly responded that she doesn't really like to to do it unless she has a medical reason to do it. I think it's good you and your H are discussing the option, but I think ultimately I would weigh cost and how many embryos you have on day 5. One embryo on day 5? I'd just transfer it. 6 embryos on day 5? I might PGS them.

It was presented to us because of our ages (I'm 35 and DH is 38), but we don't have any other history to necessitate it. We were kind of in the mindset of it giving us better odds. But the more I read about it, the more I'm not necessarily sure that's true. It's something I'll definitely bring up at our consult though!

Our ages are similar to yours (34 and 39) but our RE didn't consider each of those to be old enough to warrant PGS. She doesn't recommend until like 37 for women and 45 for men. And since we have no genetic issues, and it cost $7K at our clinic, we decided against it.

[icedcoffee]

Dec 6, 2018 13:25:10 GMT -5 pooh8402 said:

Dec 6, 2018 13:11:24 GMT -5 stellelinds25 said:

It was presented to us because of our ages (I'm 35 and DH is 38), but we don't have any other history to necessitate it. We were kind of in the mindset of it giving us better odds. But the more I read about it, the more I'm not necessarily sure that's true. It's something I'll definitely bring up at our consult though!

Our ages are similar to yours (34 and 39) but our RE didn't consider each of those to be old enough to warrant PGS. She doesn't recommend until like 37 for women and 45 for men. And since we have no genetic issues, and it cost $7K at our clinic, we decided against it.

Agree.  Your ages don't sound that old to me.  I'm 33 and my H is 36 and my RE often makes comments that we're "young and healthy".  

[stellelinds25]

pooh8402 icedcoffee Ugh...see, this makes me even more annoyed with my Dr and makes me SO glad that we're switching. The more I read and think about it, I'm actually considering not doing it unless we have repeated mc or failed transfers.

[seeyalater52]

I think the PGS question is super hard to answer before actually doing the cycle and transfers. Kind of a hindsight thing. Before we’d ever had any losses or failed transfers we opted not to test the embryos. I was 30 at the retrieval, donor was young with perfect sperm, unexplained infertility for me and no health issues. We got a great number of good looking embryos from that cycle but now 3 transfers and two losses in (one totally failed transfer in between) I’m seriously regretting not doing it. At our clinic it’s about 3.5k and that price would have been worth the peace of mind. I can say pretty confidently that if we’d conceived right away with no losses after paying for the testing we would have been fine with it. In our current situation we now have no further insight into what is causing our losses, and many more embryos to go through still without knowing if that will bring us even more losses. And we aren’t even paying for transfers, which would have made it a much easier financial decision to do the testing (and avoid paying for transfers of abnormal embryos.) This is solely an emotional calculation. I’m tired and sad and grasping at straws and the only option we have is to thaw, test, and re-freeze embryos which we aren’t comfortable with.

[landmermaid]

I had my RPL blood work early last week including an ultrasound. I haven't heard anything back and I figure they'll call when they get results. Am I wrong? Maybe I'll call tomorrow.

I'm seeing two practices right now and would like to consolidate down to the one I feel more aligned with. I feel bad though, the group I'd be leaving got me in for all the labs first 😬 just gonna take my results and run. Are my ultrasound pictures considered my medical records?

I just feel like I should be doing something. How long does the initial info gathering part take?

(Sorry for all the questions)