IVF Pregnancy Weeks 8 and 9

Just a little update for you all: 

Week 7-8

I had a "booking in" appointment booked which was a complete disaster as the receptionist only booked a 15 min slot instead of the required hour. The midwife then tried to fob me off with stories of not booking in until 10-12 weeks and the GP should do it - complete rubbish!  She eventually put me on the system but we have to go back to "book in" properly on 17th September once she is back from her holiday (which is also our wedding anniversary).

The sickness really continued this week, but again, this was a good sign things were doing well so I honestly can't complain. 

Weeks 8-9

The sickness started to ease up this week although I still had a few run to the bathroom moments.  I think it is just more manageable now because I have a little routine with food that helps. I have cereal when I get up, then fruit when I get to work, I have a sandwich late morning and then soup at lunchtime, a snack in the afternoon and then my dinner. I am not really eating more than I would I am just spreading it out into little portions. 

I also started to crave marmite sandwiches this week! 

We got the date through for our 12 week scan - 30th September 

I do have a slight bump/podge, which I think is partly due to my ovaries being swollen from the IVF.  I have posted a little pic below taken at 8w2d (sorry for the crap quality).  Once I have a "proper" bump I will get Rick to take better photos to post. 

As usual love and baby dust to all xxx 

IVF Pregnancy - The First Few Weeks

I was a little conscious of posting pregnancy weekly updates until I was sure the scan was ok.  We had this last Friday and so I thought I would do a little update for weeks 4-7 of pregnancy.

Week 4-5

We announced our BFP on Saturday 3rd Aug and the week that followed was insane. I went back to work on the Monday to lots of hugs and love, plus some pretty wicked presents from my amazing girls! I didn't really have sickness as such but was really tired and going to bed at around 9.30 each evening.  I had some twinges and cramping - nothing too concerning but I had to invest in a sleep bra as I had watermelon boobs every morning! 

Weeks 5-6

Nothing major happened this week, the twinges continued a little at the start of the week and by the end of the week I had a little nausea.

Weeks 6-7

The nausea started with a vengeance! I was sick quite a few times at home and work, which wasn't pleasant. But to be honest, even though the symptoms were not nice they were good indicators that things were going in the right direction, so in a way they made me happy. 

We also had our first scan at the fertility clinic on Friday and I measured at exactly 7 weeks, which matched my calculations based on my IVF dates.  My due date is officially 11 April.

The scan was amazing, the baby was just a little blob but it was the most beautiful blob in the world. The heartbeat was a tiny little flicker and was such a wow moment.  I have attached a photo, the big black circle is the sac and the peanut shaped blob to the right (marked by the crosses) is baby Hacker.

I am just so happy right now, it feels more real by the day, after three years of TTC it was bound to take a while to sink in.

I know how fortunate I am that the IVF worked first time for us, and I have so many TTC sisters still battling their own infertility journeys.  I wish each and every one of you that elusive BFP xxxx

I will be 8 weeks on Friday so will aim to post a weekly update each weekend xxx 

The BFP

What a week! 

Most of you will know via Facebook or Instagram that this week something completely and utterly amazing happened.....

..... I finally got my Big Fat Positive! 

I started seeing a faint line on ebay cheap tests last Monday, which was 5 days after my blast transfer (5dp5dt). I was a little overwhelmed but kept it to myself because I wanted to be sure before I told Rick.  I purchased some First Response (FRER) and Clearblue Digitals (CB) which were both showing strong positives and "pregnant 1-2" by Wednesday morning (7dp5dt) so I woke Rick up with the news.  He didn't want to get his hopes up so told me to wait until the weekend to make sure, which was understandable but frustrating when I just wanted to shout it from the rooftops! 

I kept testing all week (which cost me a fortune!) and the FRER lines got stronger and stronger, by Friday (9dp5dt) the CB had gone up to 2-3 so I was pretty confident. 

Friday was also my mum's birthday so I begged Rick to let me tell her, even though our official test date given to us by the hospital was to be Sunday.  

He agreed, so I wrote in her card "love Shelly, Ricky and Baby Hacker". It took a few seconds for her to take it in and then looked at me and said "really??" I nodded and we had a big tearful hug, I then had a massive hug with my sister, which was really emotional. 

I ended up taking my official test on the Saturday morning which immediately came up a strong positive. 

On the Saturday afternoon we visited Rick's parents to give them the good news, which was lovely, before making calls to other family members.

Then came the big Facebook and Instagram announcements.  Within a couple of hours I had so many lovely comments and messages I spent most of the afternoon welling up and being all emotional!  

I have been thoroughly spoilt at work, my girls got me a gorgeous Cath Kidston changing bag, flowers and some mummy to be products.  I am honestly so grateful and overwhelmed by it all xx

Yesterday I made the official calls to the unit and my doctors to advise of my BFP, something I wasn't sure I would ever get to do.

I have a 7 week scanned booked for 23rd August and my midwife booking in appointment is 27th August. 

So I am finally pregnant and going to be a momma!  It is slowly sinking in. 

Rick has been amazing and keeps kissing my tummy and saying hi to "Emby" 

Thank you so much for following my story so far, the journey is not yet over so I hope you will stick with me xx 

The Embryo Transfer

It has taken me a couple of days to get my head around posting an update.

When I posted last Saturday, I had just found out that 12 out of 14 of my eggs had fertilised overnight.  

The embryologist called me on Monday to say they were still doing well so she wanted to let them go to day 5 and transfer them on Wednesday. 

There isn't a standard timeframe for embryo transfers, it literally is a numbers game and depends on the quality of the embryos.  If you have up to 3 embryos they usually will arrange transfer for day 2 or 3 as embryos do better once they are back in their nature environment.  The only benefit of taking the embryos to day 5 is that it will give the embryologist a better look at choosing the strongest embryo to put back, but they only aim for day 5 if you have enough embryos to start with (as some will not survive that far). 

So on Wednesday we went back to Oxford for transfer.  I had to have a full bladder for the procedure as this allows the ultrasound to show the uterus better (apparently a full bladder makes the scan image travel through like a window).  I was a little worried about peeing on them when they did the procedure - apparently this has happened before! Thankfully I didn't though. 

Luckily we didn't have to wait too long to go in. The room is sterile so we weren't allowed to wear shoes, so Rick got to wear some wicked blue shoe covers and looked like something off CSI hehehe.    

Before we started the embryologist came in to talk to me about the embryos.  We had two really strong ones suitable for transfer, but she only recommended transferring one as whilst the chance of pregnancy would increase by 5-10% the risk of twins was too high and lowers the chances of getting to a healthy birth, which is what we are aiming for. We agreed with this so our other strong embryo would go in the freezer for us to use later if we need to - I call this my snow baby. (The other embryos were watched for another 24hrs but were not high enough quality to freeze as they wouldn't survive the thaw process).  

She gave us a 50-55% chance of success, which is really good as the generic average chance we were told at open evening based on our age alone was 42%. 

I had to lay on a standard ultrasound bed that was fitted with stirrups for my legs to go in.  There was three ladies involved in the procedure, one holding the ultrasound probe over my uterus so another could direct a fine catheter through my cervix into the right place using the image on the screen.  The third was getting the embryo ready in a tube that was then put through the catheter.  We were able to see a little white flash on the screen when the embryo went through the tube, once they removed the catheter we could see a little white blob which was the embryo (and liquid they transferred it with) in my uterus.  They flushed the tube to ensure the embryo was not still in it, which was clear.  

It was really amazing and completely overwhelming.  

Afterwards the lady who had completed the transfer sat with me and explained some do's and don'ts - basically only light exercise, no baths, no hot water bottles, eat as if you were already pregnant to avoid the risk of food poisoning etc.  She also gave me an official test date for a couple of weeks time and a test kit.

The test kit is really funny it has a little pipette that you have to drop the pee onto the test with. It is like being back in science class! 

After she left I got dressed and had a little hug with hubby. We were both a bit dazed as all the treatment went so quickly it didn't feel real that we had already got to transfer stage. The thought that I "could" be pregnant was a bit overwhelming. 

So three days later, I have been chilling and enjoying a few days off before going back to work next week.  I am really glad I decided to take the whole week off as, although not physically required, it gave me the headspace to deal with everything without being stressed out at work. 

So now we wait!....... Please send me baby dust! 

I would just like to say I am so grateful for all the support I have revived during my treatment (and last three years). I honestly couldn't have done it without everyone cheering me on.  I know you will all be there no matter which outcome. 

I have made so many TTC friends during this journey so far, some have had their dreams come true already and some are still trying to make it happen.  TTC sisters can understand each other like no one else can and we all deserve it so much.  I really hope it happens for us all xxxxx. 

IVF - Egg Collection & Fertilisation

As you will know, I had my first egg collection yesterday!

It was certainly an experience, but not for the reasons I expected.

I had my collection booked for 11am so had to be at the unit for 10am.  We arrived at about 9.40am and were called in just before 10am. 

I was shown to a little recovery room with a bed (the ones they can move you around in), given a hospital gown to change into and told the doctor would come in shortly to do my consent. 

I changed into the gown and waited literally a minute for the doctor, he sat on the bed with me to check my details and then said to me to sign the form, which basically advised of the very, very rare risk of piercing my bladder or bowel.

Once he had gone the theatre nurse came to take me through to the theatre - I was really surprised as I had anticipated having to wait until 11am and by this point we had only been in the room about 10 mins.

Once in theatre I had to lay on an identical bed to the one from my room and put my legs into padded stirrups which then covered my feet. Almost like wearing padded boots, I am not sure what these were for? Maybe to stop me kicking the doctor once sedated?.

The  anaesthesiologist put a cannula in my hand and I asked him if I would be asleep, he joked and said not to worry he is very liberal with the drugs.  The cannula didn't really hurt, just felt like a blood test. 

Once ready, the nurse knocked on the hatch into the theatre and introduced me to the embryologist who would be dealing with my eggs. They did another data check of my details (they take security very seriously, which is reassuring). 

The anaesthesiologist then put an oxygen mask on me and said he would start with a painkiller that would make me feel lightheaded, while he did that they dimmed the lights. Literally not even 30 seconds later I could feel the drug working, I remember saying wow that works quickly and then nothing.......

....... until I woke up in recovery!

When I came around I asked the guy how long I had been out and he said about 10 mins, I felt like it was only seconds but like I had a really good sleep! 

He checked all my stats and blood pressure etc. He then gave me some tablets to take and a drink (I assume painkillers). He asked me if I wanted a cup of tea, which I did and then wheeled me back to my recovery room. I couldn't believe how quickly I was fully awake after being so deeply sedated. 

I honestly didn't think it would all happen so quickly, it seemed too easy. 

They gave me tea and biscuits, which tasted like the best biscuits ever after not being able to eat all morning. 

Then the nurse came to talk me through the next couple of days and what I should do (rest) and when to take the delightful pessaries. 

She couldn't take the cannula out of my hand until I had been able to walk to the loo and pee. I was able to get dressed and managed that straight away. I didn't really have "pain" as such, just felt really bruised inside. 

Not long after the embryologist came in to tell us we had 14 eggs, which I was delighted with as they had thought 10-11 at my last scan.  Obviously some will not be mature enough to use, she told us usually about 80% are good enough and then they will perform ICSI on them all and watch them overnight to see how many fertilise and would call me the next day.

Not long after this I was allowed to go home.  I felt really good until about 10 mins into the taxi drive to the train station, by which point I was dry heaving and felt really sick.  I was sick twice at the station, once on the train and once in a bush next to the bus stop!  So an eventful and highly embarrassing journey home!  Neither of us drive and I honestly thought I could cope with pain for the train ride, but I didn't count on being so sick.  If we have to do this again I will make sure someone can take us, I honestly didn't think it would be an issue.

When I got home I was sick until about 4pm, I phoned the hospital to check whether this was normal and had to chuck the phone at Rick halfway through the call so I could run to be sick.  As I didn't have any pain or bleeding it was nothing to worry about, simply my reaction to the sedation. 

I managed to eat half a piece of toast and then nap for about an hour. I felt better then so Rick made me some crackers, which I kept down and later some beans on toast. I felt absolutely fine once the sickness stopped. 

Rick was so amazing, he looked after me all day and got me some beautiful flowers and said he was proud of me. It can't have been easy to watch, I love him so much xxx

I woke up at 7am this morning because I was excited for the call, even though they said it would be before 12pm. 

They just called and............12 out of 14 fertilised!

So emotional right now!  They said that all 14 were suitable for use and 12 fertilising is great!

They are going to call me first thing Monday to tell me whether I will go in for transfer the same day or Wednesday. They will make the decision on how many to put back on the day depending on the quality - either 1 or 2.

Xxxxxx 

IVF Days 7-14

Just a quick update, sorry for not posting sooner - hopefully most of you will have seen my updates on Facebook and Instagram. 

The first scan last Wednesday was ok and showed lots of little follicles, unfortunately the second scan on Friday didn't show much change so they had to increase my Gonal F to 150 from 112.5. 

My scans on Monday and yesterday were much improved, so much so that I am going for egg collection tomorrow - eek!

I took my trigger shot last night and didn't have to do any jabs today, which was nice!

Very bloated and uncomfortable, plus a little apprehensive for the collection tomorrow.  They think I may get 10-11 eggs if I am lucky. 

I will post a longer update after collection.

Fingers crossed xxxx 

P.S here is a sneaky pic I took from my last scan as they left the image on the screen when I was getting changed hehe, the back circles are follicles :) xx

IVF The First Few Days

As you know I started IVF (ICSI) short protocol on Friday. I have so far had four injections from my Gonal F pen and two from my Cetrotide "real" syringes. 

It hasn't gone too badly so far and I can now inject quite easily without stressing about it beforehand. 

For the Gonal F injections I wasn't icing my tummy beforehand and they were fine, but I had heard the Cetrotide was horrible to inject so I made sure to ice before doing it.  

It was absolutely fine, I had worried for nothing but I have kept up with the icing for all injections now because it simply makes it easier.

I have put together a photo tutorial for injecting Cetrotide for anyone who is going to do short protocol.  Or for those just a little curious :-)  hopefully the photos will display in the correct order!

The side effects haven't been as bad as I expected so far.  It is hard to tell which are as a result of the drugs and which are because of this hot weather.  I have felt hot and bothered, had headaches for the last two days, bloating on my tummy, hit and miss appetite and just generally felt down and emotional.

I am drinking lots and lots of water as this is recommended to avoid hyper stimulation. 

I have my first scan tomorrow so will update you all then.  Hopefully they will find lots of lovely follicles growing! 

Love to all xx