Protocol!

We had our IVF Orientation today... two and a half hours and my head was flooded and spinning by the end! But I've had a few hours to let it sink in and I think I can sort through it now.

I had my sonohysterogram and practice transfer when I got there. Apparently, my bladder's fullness was good, but there was room for improvement... which means I'll have to drink more before the real deal. I hate having a full bladder! I had an external ultrasound in March and nearly pissed my pants! But I'll do what I have to do to make this optimal for the embryo transfer.

Then we had our consult with the doctor. He explained the whole process, which I mostly knew about thanks to the awesome ladies on TB & IDOB. It was great for John to hear it though. Then we signed the consents. ::deep breath::

Next we met with my favorite nurse to do our meds lesson. I'll be mixing Follistim and Menopur at first. Then I'll add Cetrotide to the mix to ensure that ovulation doesn't occur. When the time is right, I'll get instructions to trigger at a specific time. I'll do either a Lupron and/or HCG trigger.

Then I'll go in for my egg retrieval. After that, I'll be on Endometrin three times a day (yuck). Then embryo transfer... time for that full bladder and a valium. After that, I'll be on Estrace and then wait... I'll go back to the office two weeks after egg retrieval for a pregnancy test.

My schedule will look something like this (give or take a few days here and there depending on how I respond):

• Tuesday, September 24th - last BCP
• Friday, September 27th - baseline monitoring (blood work & ultrasound)
• Saturday, September 28th - start stims!! Follistim, Menopur & Cetrotide for 7-10 days
• Tuesday, October 8th - egg retrieval
• Saturday, October 12th - embryo transfer

This is all very overwhelming, exciting, insane... the thought that one month from now I could be pregnant... it actually blows my mind. I hope and pray that we get beginner's luck. I want this to work so much!!!!