My Rum Luck: Pre-op

Monday, November 17, 2014

Last night I stayed at my friend Katrina's house so that I would not have to get up super early and drive the 2.5 hours to Orlando this morning for my pre-op appointment. I didn't get there until about 9:00 last night, but it was nice to have a little while before bed to talk and catch up. Getting off the turnpike and driving up 192 made me very nostalgic, and I felt like I was coming home after a long time away. It felt like my normal drive home all over again. I really miss it there.

My appointment went well. I had another ultrasound and everything continues to look great. I had a different doctor today, Dr. Silva, who has done 2 of our inseminations in the past. Dr. Patel wasn't in today but she will be the doctor performing our transfer on Friday. Dr. Silva and I went over everything and then one of the nurses walked me through my instructions for the next few days as well as what will happen on the day of the procedure. I have to make sure I arrive with a full bladder so that the catheter containing the embryos can more easily be directed to the right spot in my uterus. We did a mock transfer over the summer on a full bladder and it was not the most comfortable thing, and let me tell you what a relief it was (literally) when I was allowed to go pee. But it's nothing awful, and I pretty much know exactly what to expect. I think I will actually be hesitant to pee afterwards, because I don't want our little guys to fall out!

I will continue taking my nightly progesterone injections and my estrogen injections every 3 nights until further notice. Since this is a frozen cycle and I did not ovulate, my body will not know to produce either of these (especially the progesterone) in sufficient enough quantities to support a pregnancy. If this works, I will continue taking progesterone through the first trimester until the placenta is formed enough to start producing the progesterone on its own.

After the procedure I will be on semi-bedrest while the embryos are trying to implant. I got a doctor's note to be off work for the days leading up to Thanksgiving Break. I won't be allowed to exercise (not a problem), lift stuff, go grocery shopping, wash dishes, do laundry, etc etc. Luckily I have the best husband in the world who has promised to take care of all of that stuff and does not want me to lift a finger. Whatever you say, sweetness! ;)

So I probably could have made today's appointment for whatever time I wanted, since there was no blood to be drawn, but I purposely made it as early as possible so that I could spend the rest of the day at Disney. I MISS IT SO MUCH! So after my appointment was over I headed to Downtown Disney to do some strolling and browsing and Christmas shopping. All the Christmas stuff is starting to come out, and while I know they won't be in full swing until the day after Thanksgiving, they're almost there! I spent most of the morning there before heading to the Magic Kingdom. Main Street USA looks adorable and Christmasy and I can't wait to come back when it's 100% decorated. I didn't stay for long, though, as today was not the greatest weather in Central Florida. It was overcast and started raining pretty good around 1:00, so I headed out. I have to remember that I no longer have a 15 minute drive home from my favorite place. Good thing I decided to leave right then, because a tornado watch popped up on my weather app. Great, super outta here now! I raced the storm south and east for a while, then eventually the view in my giant rearview mirror became less and less dark gray. Soon it was sunny skies and beautiful weather near the coast.

Oh - forgot to mention, a little note on progesterone injections: same needle as estrogen injections, but MUCH thicker liquid. The progesterone is in oil, and there is a lot of resistance when injecting. It takes a while to get it all out. Definitely ice first, then heat after. The ice really does help numb the skin, and the heat is necessary to help with circulation of the meds. It also makes your sore butt muscle feel a little better. Last night's injection was 0.5 mL, tonight and every night from here on out will be a full 1 mL. Tonight I get to do two butt shots, progesterone and estrogen, yayyyyyy.