I am now 2dp5dt (7 dpo)! Translation 2 days past 5 day transfer (7 days past ovulation). One week from tomorrow (Wednesday) we will know if our little embryo burrowed in for the long haul.
Bob is back to work today and Sean and I are having another low key day at home. It was really nice have Bob home yesterday to care for Sean and me. Sean was up early this morning and thus went down for an early nap as well. After his nap we may venture out to the park or something.
In the week to come I am aiming for Sean and me to do things that will allow him to be active, while I stay more low key. This morning we gave him the DVD “Happy Feet” which we ordered awhile ago but had been saving for a rainy day, or in this case a lazy day. He really enjoyed watching it, especially since his maternal grandparents had just taken him to the zoo on Sunday and bought him a stuffed animal penguin (after they saw the penguins there) that reminded Sean of the movie (which we had seen in the theater when it was out)!
Following up on the details of the morning of our Embryo Transfer (ET)… As I mentioned in my post that day, there were a few funny stories that I wanted to recount here, but didn’t have the energy to do on Sunday and felt I should really be resting, rather then posting. To begin with we arrived at our RE’s office right on time at 9:00 a.m. We quickly figured out that they were running behind which wasn’t that big of a deal except that our “Pre-Transfer Instructions” indicated that I was to drink water on the way to our appt. to fill my bladder so it would be nice and full for the transfer (to help the u/s tech show the RE what he needed to see to maneuver the catheter in my uterus to place the embryo). So when we arrived my bladder was VERY full!
Our ET was suppose to start at 10:00am and ultimately didn’t really get going until closer to 10:30 a.m. After we checked in and were taken to our room, one of the nurses came in to go over things with us. The u/s tech also came by to see just how full my bladder was. She told me it looked great and to hold out, rather hold it in, as long as I could, but if I got to the point where I felt like “my teeth were floating” that I could go to the bathroom and let a little out! Bob and I thought the “teeth were floating” comment was funny, as we didn’t at the time (and still don’t really) know what that means, but we did get the gist of what she was saying!
At the time I asked the u/s tech about how much longer I would have to hold it and she said 25-30 minutes. This was probably about 9:30 a.m. when she told us this. So I was determined to hold it and did until 10:00 a.m. when were told it was probably still going to be another 20-30 minutes! At that point I decided that I really did need to let a bit out and they gave me a cup to go in and told me to only fill it to a certain point which they showed me. After I did that I felt a lot better and was pretty sure I could make it until after the transfer!
On my way back to the examining room I ran into our RE in the hallway and said “Hi!” to him. And he said “Hi!” and how glad he was to being doing the ETs today since we his patients (as opposed to one of the other REs, even though we know they would have done a good job too). That made me happy, more excited and confident about the procedure!
Probably about 10:10 a.m. our RE came into our room to go over what was going to happen and tell us how our embryos were doing. He told us told that the “grading” process for embryos was complicated and the best way for him to explain it was in percentages. He said that the blastocyst embryo they would be transferring was about 88% on a scale of 1 – 100. He said it wasn’t perfect, but very good. I said, “So it’s like a B.” And our RE replied, “more like a B+!” I thought that was a cute answer! 🙂 Later when Bob and I were discussing our B+ embryo I said, well I was never really a straight A student, most of the time more of a B or B+ average, so I guess it would make sense that our embryo would be too! 😉 Bob thought that was a funny thing for me to say and cracked up laughing! He said that he was always more of a B average as well! 🙂
Finally, during our brief meeting with our RE, he told us that of the 7 embryos that fertilized on Tuesday (of last week), that 4 of them were still going (3 didn’t make it). Of course one of those 4 was going to be transferred and the other 3 they would watch over the next few days and if they caught up to around the stage and quality the one being transferred, that they would be frozen. I made have said this already in my post on Sunday, but I can call my RE’s office on Thursday or Friday of this week to find out their status.
Another funny thing from the days of the ER and ET is that in the examining rooms there are two doors: one for the RE, nurses, u/s techs and patients to enter and exit from and one for the embryologists to enter and exit from. We joked on Sunday that the door to the Embryology lab was like “The Wizard of Oz” because every so often someone would come in and out of there to collect or deliver sperm, eggs or embryos, but besides that, we never really got to see or know exactly what goes on behind the door! We started joking with the nurses about it and found out that the REs and nurses aren’t even allowed in there because it is so sterile to keep the sperms, eggs and embryos safe.
When it was actually time for the ET, a nurse and u/s tech came in and got me all set up. They put a bunch of sterile towels all over me and once they were in place told me I couldn’t touch them! So we were laughing about where I was suppose to put my arms! The RE put a small catheter in first and made sure he could find the “path” to my uterus and then when he was all set he called for the embryologist to deliver the embryo.
While he was getting the catheter in place he asked me what my plans were for the day. I was perplexed by the question as I wasn’t “supposed” to have any plans for the rest of the day, I knew I was suppose to rest. So I was confused why he was asking me. I said “well, pretty much just lay around and relax.” At that moment the u/s tech looked at me and said “that was a trick question!” The RE was asking me to make sure I had no intentions of do anything active later that day. He said “just making sure you aren’t planning to go to an exercise class or anything!” I joked back that I was a group fitness instructor and had thought about teaching a step class later, but would forgo it because he said so! 😉
As I said in my post the day of the ET, the actual moment when our RE put the embryo into my uterus I got emotional. It was a very awesome moment for Bob and me to watch it happen and to realize that, at least at that moment, we had our little child growing inside of me! The u/s tech told us just where to look on the monitor and explained that as the embryo went in we would be able to see the motion of the embryo (surrounded by a sterile/life-sustaining fluid) being pushed in through the catheter. The RE said that he was very pleased with how smoothly the ET went!
I have read online since then that an ET that goes smoothly can contribute to the success rate as it keeps the embryo intact and more likely to implant. Apparently sometimes when it isn’t as easy for an RE to get the embryo into the uterus it can somewhat damage the embryo and thus it is less likely to implant. After the procedure was over I rested on the examinging table for about 10-15 minutes and then we were allowed to go home.
So that’s the LONG version of our ET experience on Sunday! 😉 I also forgot to mention that my sister and her boyfriend sent us a beautiful bouquet of flowers on Saturday to wish us good luck with the ET on Sunday! It was very nice and generous of them, especially because my sister left for Taiwan on Friday (for 10 days) to visit one of her childhood friends (who currently lives there with her family)! My sister said that even though she we be on the other side of the world that she wanted us know they would be thinking of and praying for us on Sunday and in the week to come while she was gone. So thoughtful! 🙂
Symptom Watch: Just for fun I am going to add this little section to my posts between now and May 2, to keep track of any potential pregnancy symptoms I may be experiencing during this time. That said, between the progesterone in oil (PIO) shots we are doing every night and the estridol patches I am wearing every day, any “symptoms” I notice could very well just be side effects of those two hormones trying to convince my body that I am pregnant, whether or not our embryo actually implants.
Back to my symptoms… Thus far I have felt some twinges and pinching pains in my uterus, off and on since the ET, but mostly last night. I would LOVE to believe that they signify the embryo implanting, but we’ll see. I have felt such twinges many times before during cycles when I wasn’t pregnant, so go figure. But in the spirit of positive thinking, for now I choose to believe they could be a good sign! 😉 I also have had vivid dreams the past two nights (this happened frequently in my previous pregnancies). Other than that, I have been tired, my body temperature seems warmer than usual (rather I am feeling hot more easily), ad sore/heavy breasts, been very bloated, gassy and a bit crampy. All classic pregnancy signs, but also listed as potential side effects of the meds I am on! 😉
As much as I have enjoyed doing home pregnancy tests (hpts) in the past trying to get an early idea if we were expecting during any given cycle, I am pretty determined not to do any during this cycle. After almost three years of trying to expand our family I have learned that I would rather not know early and keep our hope alive that we might be pregnant, then test early and get a negative. I don’t have any HPTs in our house, so I would actually have to go to a store to buy one and thus I think I can contain myself until the Beta blood test on May 2.
I think this definitely holds the record for my longest post on this blog so far… If you are still reading up to this point, an extra thank you for staying with me! 😉 As I have mentioned before, I find it therapeutic to post my thoughts, feelings and experiences here during, our 1st IVF cycle, and it helps me to keep from getting too nervous or anxious as we go through the process and especially the different waiting periods associated with it. We continue to be so thankful for all of your support, encouragement and prayers! Thank you for reading and thinking of us! 🙂
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