For those of you who have been wondering why I haven’t been talking about my fertility treatments…

It’s because

I’m PREGNANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a picture of our baby at 7 weeks 4 days. We got to HEAR and SEE the heartbeat on this day (December 17). Today, I am 9 weeks 1 day. My due date is August 1st. We waited to announce it to everyone because we wanted to at least get to see the heartbeat. We were talking about waiting until the 2nd trimester, but we decided we wanted everyone to know! We are several weeks past the point of our previous miscarriages and are feeling very good about this baby. If you are wondering, this did happen on the cycle where we had "taken a month off". ;) I wasn't on the clomid. We are very excited about that! I know the Lord has chosen this baby for David and I and I am SO grateful to Him and Him alone for the privilege He's given me to try to be a good Mommy. We appreciate your prayers for us up until this point and hope you will continue to pray with us through this journey we are now on. There are many months before we will be able to hold this baby in our arms, but we know it will go by fast and look forward to that time. If you have any questions, please ask. I am an open book about it, so I don't mind!

"God has a reason in every NO"

The blog below talks about what I am trying to live out day to day in my life in all areas. The area most on my mind where this is concerned is of course, fertility. I hope you are encouraged by what is said in this blog today. It definitely encouraged me to remember that God is in control and therefore I can trust in Him that His answers are perfect for my life!

This is compliments of my dear friend, Angela, who is such a wonderful friend and is always encouraging me. Words cannot express how thankful I am that God chose to give me her as a friend (and I got the bonus of 5 beautiful kids that are the most encouraging, loving and fun-loving kids I know). Thank you, Lord, for such a wonderful blessing!

http://onesoblessed.blogspot.com/2008/10/he-keeps-all-promises.html

On to another cycle...

Well, my period started yesterday. Sorry I haven't blogged about it until now. Yesterday was a very, very hard day. I really had gotten my hopes up more this month than I have in previous months. I called the doctor and the latest they could get me in was Wednesday. That would mean I would have had to go home 4 days early (today). I talked to the nurse and she said that maybe it was a good idea to enjoy the vacation and try to de-stress a little bit and just skip treatment this month. So, my options were either to have no help TTC this month or go back home to Statesville very early. Of course, I would love to see my husband, but I also am enjoying being with my family. After many tears and much discussion with my husband yesterday, we decided that it would be good for us to sit a month out. Last month was really stressful, so maybe this is just what we need. SO, the plan is for us to meet at the Alabama game on Saturday and I will go back with him then. OH, on top of all that, this is my 2nd cycle with a combination of metformin, clomid & an hcg shot. The first cycle worked great, but this cycle did not work! The nurse told me that when I called yesterday. I just can't believe it! Why would it not work the 2nd time? Why did I get pregnant on my own 2 times and miscarry and now I can't even get pregnant again? This all just doesn't make any sense!!! So, the next time I do go in, she will be upping my dose of clomid again. I think that means that I will be taking 150mg now. We'll just have to see how it goes. But, for now, David and I will try to enjoy this month without trying to perfectly time everything and being told exactly when to "have fun" with each other. That will be a relief. I am praying that it will not be on our minds much this month. That's a hard feat, but I know the Lord can help make this happen. Thanks for listening! Today definitely was a better day, but I am still emotional. I suppose that is to be expected since it is "that time of the month". I hope you all are having a great day in the Lord!

A Little Disappointed

I will say that today was a little disappointing. I just got back from the RE. She did an ultrasound on Wednesday and today to see if my follicles had matured like they were supposed to to release an egg. Neither Wednesday nor today were they where they were supposed to be. Last month I had a follicle mature like it was supposed to and everything happened right (except for the actual conception part) and this month, the same treatment seems to not have worked. Obviously, they have faith that it is going to mature like it is supposed to because they went ahead and gave me the HcG shot to make the egg release. I don't know. If I were to get pg this month, I would find out while I am visiting my family without David. The other thing about that is if my period comes while I am there instead, I will have to cut my trip home short to come back and have an ultrasound to check for cysts so I can start the clomid again. Anyway, it is just crazy and there are so many unknowns involved in my trip, but I am looking forward to seeing my family and hoping and praying I don't have to come back early!!!

OUCH!!!

I got back from my doctor appointment a little while ago. I had THE most PAINFUL ultrasound I have ever had! The nurse said it was because there are so many follicles in my ovaries right now. She said she wasn't surprised that it was hurting and asked me if I had been having pains in my ovaries even before I came in. I had been having pains and wondering what they were. Now, I know! Anyway, none of the follicles were mature enough for "harvesting", so I have to go back in on Friday for another ultrasound. Needless to say, I was disappointed. The clomid worked so well this last cycle that I really thought it would work even better this cycle. It's not that it's not working, it is just taking more time. The nurse said it's normal for some people to have to come back 2-3 times before the follicle(s) is/are fully mature. So, I will update on Friday when we will find out if my follicles have matured. (It is so weird saying stuff like this. ;) )

A Not So Happy Anniversary

Today marks the 2 year anniversary of the first positive pregnancy test David and I ever got. I miscarried that baby and another one in June 2007. A friend I grew up with is now dealing with the same emotions I had to deal with and I am reminded of how hard it was when I miscarried. My husband would try to encourage me. People would say things like, "God will never give you more than you can handle." I knew that in my head, but I couldn't fathom how He was going to get me through that. Now, after so much time has passed, I see how God has brought me through all of this. Sure, I still hurt and cry at times, but He has shown me that He will, can and did get me through a very tough time! Our journey is not over yet, as those that read this blog well know, but I know that my God will get me through all of this. Even if I never bear a child of my own, I know that God is faithful and He will give me the strength to get through that. Now, I can't even fathom that I could get through that. That is way beyond anything I can conceive, but that's what God's word promises and I must rest on that!

Here we go again...

I went back to the doctor on Monday. I did have a cyst on my right ovary, but it was healing so everything was ok to go ahead and start the clomid again. I started the clomid that night so here we go on this next cycle. My next appt. is Wednesday, Sept. 24th. They will be checking to see if my follicles have matured. It will be pretty much the same thing as this last cycle so you can see the process a few blogs back. Be praying for us in this journey! Our new motto concering all of this is:

It is for OUR good and HIS glory!!!!

Back to the doctor

If you haven't noticed the ticker yet, it's official. My period started today. I will call the doctor on Monday to go in for another ultrasound. I will update once the appointment happens.

Update

We had another appointment yesterday. For those of you that know things about TTC, they were checking to see if the clomid was working. I had one follicle that was maturing (that's what realeases the egg). It wasn't quite mature yet so they couldn't give me the shot they had talked about just yet. It's an HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotropin) shot. It is used to trigger ovulation once the follicle is mature enough. I had that shot this morning, so we know that in the next 36-38 hours, I will ovulate!

I think I have said this before, but I am just very excited with all the monitoring they are doing. I really feel like we are actually getting somewhere for a change!

Appointment Results

David and I went to our RE (see last post) this past Tuesday. I had an ultrasound to check to see if I had any cysts on my ovaries. The nurse (the doc's wife) did our consultation afterwards. She said she was really encouraged by the improvments in my labs and my weight loss (I've lost 20 pounds since I was last at that doctor). She said we were ready to go ahead and start the clomid. I will be going in next Tuesday (the 26th) for another ultrasound for them to see if the clomid is doing its job. We will see how this goes. I hope it goes well. ;) They will then give me some sort of shot to "help things along". :) I am not sure what the shot is or exactly what it does, but I am sure I will find out on Tuesday. I am really excited about all of this. I really feel like we are actually getting somewhere!!!! It's felt like such a slow process up until this point, but with all the monitoring that is going on now, I feel like it's going a bit faster.

In case you are wondering about the medicines I am on, they are called metformin and clomid. Some of you might have heard of metformin before as a drug for diabetics, but it also has great indications for women having trouble with fertility. Below is information on both drugs to give you an idea of why I am on them.

I should also mention that I have been diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome). If you are interested, here is a link for informaiton on it.
http://women.webmd.com/tc/polycystic-ovary-syndrome-pcos-topic-overview

METFORMIN

Metformin is an oral diabetes medicine that helps control blood sugar levels.

Benefits of Metformin
RESTORATION OF NORMAL MENSTRUAL CYCLE. A number of studies have shown that menstruation can be restored in many women with PCOS. For example, in a study at Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati, 43 women who were not having periods took Glucophage, and 39 of them resumed normal menses.(6) In another study at Jewish Hospital, 11 teenage girls with PCOS were put on metformin and a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet. Ten of the 11 girls resumed regular periods.(7)
IMPROVED CHANCE OF PREGNANCY. A study of 48 women with PCOS and infertility was conducted at the Baylor College of Medicine. They were first given metformin and 19 of them resumed menstruating and showed indications of ovulation. But 10 required clomiphene (a fertility drug) in addition to metformin in order to show evidence of ovulation. Twenty women of the 48 (42%) became pregnant. However, 7 of the 20 miscarried.(8)
REDUCED RISK OF MISCARRIAGE. Another aspect of PCOS-related infertility is the tendency for repeated miscarriages. A study from the Hospital de Clinicas Caracas in Venezuela looked at 65 women who received Glucophage during their pregnancies vs. 31 who did not. The early pregnancy (first trimester) loss rate in the metformin group was 8.8% as compared to a 41.9% loss in the untreated group. Of those women who previously had miscarried, 11.1% of the metformin group miscarried again, while 58.3% of the untreated group again miscarried. (9)
REDUCED RISK OF GESTATIONAL DIABETES. In another study at Jewish Hospital in Cincinatti, gestational diabetes risk was evaluated in two groups of PCOS women. The first group was 33 non-diabletic women who had conceived while taking metformin or took it during their pregnancy. This group was compared to a group of 39 PCOS women who did not take it. Only 3% of the metformin group developed gestational diabetes as compared to 31% in the non-metformin group.(10)
WEIGHT LOSS AND OTHER BENEFITS. Metformin may contribute to weight loss in some diabetics.(11) However, weight loss does not appear to be one of its primary benefits. Glucophage may also be of some value improving success with in vitro fertilization, lowering cholesterol, and improving energy.

CLOMID
This medication is used to treat infertility in women. It works by stimulating an increase in the amount of hormones that support the growth and release of a mature egg (ovulation). This medication is not recommended for women whose ovaries no longer make eggs properly

Our TTC Story - warning...it's very detailed!

I started this blog a long time ago, but I never made a post in it. David and I have been on a TTC journey for a long time and I figured it's time to start keeping track. (TTC means Trying to Conceive for those that don't know). We have been trying to conceive for 1 year, 10 months, 4 weeks and 3 days (as my ticker on a message board I am a member of says). The date the ticker is based off of is in September 2006. It was then that David and I got our first postive pregnancy test. At this point, we weren't TRYING to have a baby, it just happened. I got several negative pregnancy tests in the days following and started bleeding which can indicate either that I was never pregnant and was starting my period or I was pregnant, but was now miscarrying. After much talk with my doctor, we all decided that it was probably a pregnancy and now my first miscarriage. It was really hard, but there were so many questions surrounding it, that I never really new what to think. We decided then that we wanted to start trying to have a baby. 9 months later, on Father's Day (June 17, 2007), we got our 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th positive pregnancy tests. This time, we KNEW we were pregnant. I went to the doctor that Thursday for my first appointment. I got blood test confirmation that we were pregnant that time and it was that same evening that I started bleeding. I miscarried that precious baby over the next couple of weeks. It was very, very, very hard. I don't want to relive that here, so we will leave it at that. I will say, though, that God is so FAITHFUL!!! He promises that He will not give us more than we can handle and even though, at the time, I thought there was no way I could handle this, I sit here now seeing how HE brought me through this and I can rejoice at His hand on my life! So, now it has been 14 months since then and no luck with conceiving a little one just yet. We are seeing a Reproductive Endocrinologist (RE) to see what he can do for us. We have been seeing him for about 4 months now and I am looking forward to what he can do. I have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday so he can start me on a drug called clomid that is supposed to help with all this. I was on it once before and it didn't help, but he started me on something else that I will take in conjunction with the clomid this time. I really hope it works this time! David and I both really want to start our family. ;) I hope that you will be praying for us in this pursuit. Thank you!