Queer Conceptions - June 2011 - Page 2

[MoonWillow]

Let me have a look see.....

ETA: Should be all set with the missing post!

Sorry for the confusion!

It's Huddler's fault 

[Cananny]

we will keep trying..so in a few weeks.. waiting for O now.. we are going back and forth about taking a break.. if we take june off.. we can see a new OB/RE in July when DP new health ins kicks in.. we are also debating using frozen IUI ready and having midwives or dr ( not sure ) do an IUI along with fresh .. Not sure.. We are a bit down this moth more than others ... for sure.. I had hoped switching to a donor that has amazing counts and high success rates would do the trick.. and it still may.. 

On a plus side.. we are going to attend Maia Midwifery class next sunday called Timing is everything .( Brill was a co founder of this place and we are so fortunate to live very close to them. I know Brill is no longer there but the woman who does run it sounds equally as amazing)

Best of luck to everyone else in TWW .. we really need some BFP here!!!!!
 

Originally Posted by mami2mami 

Cananny-Sorry about AF!..So when or will you try again?

[mami2mami]

Ad Astra-That happened to our very first post back in Jan .but every other post worked ok..Your post should show up soon.

Edited by mami2mami - 6/3/11 at 7:21pm

[CrystalPerez]

I'm so sorry to hear about all the recent BFNs lately. My computer is broken so I have just been following along on my phone (which wont let me post anything!)

But I would like to add a BFP to the group! I found out last Thursday that I am in fact pregnant.

After the initial happiness I have been just a nervous wreck (chemical pregnancy in March mc at 4w6d) but I was thrilled to make it to 5 weeks only to start spotting on Wednesday. I went to the ER and had all the usual tests done. I had a closed cervix, beta of 1633 (the day just before that I had beta taken and it was 989, is that a safe rise??? I know it is usually checked 48-72hrs and this was about 30 hours), the transvag ultrasound showed a gestational sac and (I thought) a fetal pole, but no yolk sac. The technician pointed to the little black dot and said it looked too small for 5 weeks and there was no yolk sac but when she zoomed in a lot she said there might be the beginning of one but it just might be because she zoomed in so much the resolution changed. When I got my paper work when I was leaving it said no fetal pole no yolk sac no heartbeat. I dont know if that was a mistake or what because she only said no yolk sac to me. After leaving I realized that according to O I was 4w5d so I'm really not sure what to think here. I have an appointment next thursday to try and find a heartbeat (according to LMP i'd be 6w1d, according to O 5w6d so I think finding a heartbeat is a long shot but I am KMFX that no more spotting and that everything is developing. Also at the ER I was told I have a "heart shaped uterus" which makes my pregnancies high risk, especially since I have already had a loss. I dont know how no one else never noticed that. Since the first incident of spotting (or spot I guess, it was only about a teaspoon) I havent had anymore. Well I am looking forward to any advice/thoughts I have missed them (especially Krista!)

[indigoscot]

congrats and GOOD LUCK crystal!!!  i have fx for you.  :)  do you know if they said it was a bicornuate uterus or an arcuate uterus?  i have an arcuate uterus that was initially misdiagnosed as bicornuate...and i was able to carry ds1 to term w/o any issues.

according to babymed hcg calculator, you hcg is doubling every 41.47 hours, so that looks great to me!!!!

keep us posted!

g

[rainbowvalleymama]

good luck crystal!  and so sorry cananny...

welcome ad astra, and welcome back bunny!  much luck and baby vibes to you both 

i don't quite remember what had been going on at the end of the may thread, so i'll have to do some personals later.  for now i'm just dropping in to say hello and for a quick update.

12dpo today and i haven't tested at all.  i feel pms-y, was cramping all day yesterday, headache, etc.  i keep feeling like af has arrived...but not yet.  i'm planning not to test unless af hasn't come by next tuesday or so--because it's so much harder for me to see tha "not pregnant" than just to bleed.  

i'm thinking of you all.

[lisedea]

ad astra--WELCOME!

cananny--So sorry about AF.

Crystal--Congrats and good luck!! Keep us updated!

[AmandaHope]

Dropping in to give my best wishes to Crystal.  I really hope this one sticks!  And to rainbow, PrettyIsa, and the others in the tww, fingers crossed!  We did 10 months of IUIs with two different donors...it was really hard.  But my memories of (and emotions about) ttc are already starting to recede.  I hope this board sees lots of BFPs this summer! 

[carmen358]

Congrats, Crystal! I hope you have a happy and healthy pregnancy :)

Afm: 2 or 3 DPO for me. I was just whining over on the ttc while nursing thread that my temp jump is kinda lame. It's definitely higher than pre-O temps but not a nice big jump. Oh well, time will tell. I'm already feeling pms-y today which isn't fun! If AF does show up, it may be as early as 8 DPO so it might end up being a shortish 2WW.

[MidwifeStephPDX]

Hi all!

I haven't checked in too much this week; been trying to lay low and distract myself.

Congrats Crystal!! So excitingl Hopefully yours is the first in a long chain of BFPs in this thread :)

Welcome, Ad Astra! I'm so very sorry to hear about your loss... I can't imagine how you feel. I've had a couple clients experience stillbirths and been witness to the experience, and my thoughts are with you and your DP. :)

AFU, we're enjoying the sunshine today! I have a cold but am pretending I don't. I did follow through on my decision to stop temping, and it feels great! We are on CD9 and haven't really decided the plan for this month. Pretty sure I'll POAS starting tomorrow or the next day, and just go by that. Since I've had so many months of temping showing the ovulation temp rise, I think I feel ok just assuming I'm ovulating. Our KD is so available, we might actually start the insems before getting the + OPK and do them every other day.

Also, it usually takes us 30 min- an hour to insem once we get the goods. Someone suggested doing it sooner would have better results? I always thought that within an hour was fine. What do you all think? I'd rather wait because we have to pick them up (so it's more comfortable to go home and do it there, obviously). Just want to make sure we're not waiting too long.

[BunnyLullabye]

I'm a bit brain dead so I apologize that I probably won't do very well on the personals or being articulate in general lol.

MidwifestephPDX I'm so envious of you having a known donor who is so available and local! *teasing* what does he look like? Want to share? lol. But seriously we love our donor, just hate the logistics! I've read conflicting reports of when is best to insem. Some say ASAP, others say it's good to let it liquify and is then easier to get in a syringe. Here's an idea - could you alternate to get the best of all worlds? Half the time you could use an Instead cup. You could practice with just some preseed or water or something during non-fertile times. I've used them and gotten really good at slipping them in with no spillage. I usually lay on my back with a pillow under my butt, but I've even done it standing up once. I think it should be pretty easy to just wear a skirt or have a blanket over your lap, recline the passenger seat and slip it in. 

Crystal congrats on the BFP!! I'll be thinking of you, and I so much hope everything develops as it's supposed to! Your beta #'s sound great to me. 

Krista I'm SO sorry for your loss!! Thanks so much for your reply. I don't know that much about your situation yet. Do you have any ideas what may be causing the losses? Sound like you're pretty well informed! To answer your questions (assuming I remember them all) - we have extremely severe male factor, to the point that both IVF's the doctor had to stay for several hours to even find enough sperm for ICSI. Our best guess is that we have really bad chromosomal damage or something like that as well. The first time I had 31 follicles, and they retrieved 30 eggs, 20 of which were mature, and 19 of which fertilized. The second time I think they said I had even more follicles, but only 14 mature follies. He actually used 4 sperm he thought could likely be dead, but still 13 fertilized! Both times we did 3 day transfers, the first time 3 embryos and the second time 4! Both times all the ones left in the office fizzled and died before they could be frozen, and both of course were BFNs. That's why I'm strongly suspecting chromosomal/DNA male factor issues. We could get further testing done but haven't followed up yet. Need to find a better fertility specialist urologist as we weren't by any means impressed with his first exam. 

I didn't have ultrasounds for any of my clomid cycles so far, but I did have a ruptured hemorrhagic cyst in August (used clomid June and July cycles). I'm not sure if that was related. It was no big deal, though it freaked me out a little. My ovaries do usually feel enlarged on clomid, though not near as much as on the IVF stims. When I had the cyst they checked my lining and said it looked great, really thick, so I don't think that's too much of an issue for me with clomid.

I have unbearbly painful periods, so I've had a lot of testing done for that. I've never shown symptoms of PCOS on my ovaries, have low testosterone and no increased body hair, but I do have insulin resistance.

So the medical issues I've had tested and am getting treated - Hashimoto's hypothyroid with reverse T3 - am now on 125mcg Cytomel. Insulin resistance - 2000 mg Metformin. Low progesterone - 200mg Prometrium from O to AF. Recently diagnosed - Severe Candida - Nystantin 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off, probiotics and need to get digestive enzymes. Severe adrenal fatigue - 10mg Hydrocortisone daily (may increase to 20mg). Very low B and D vitamins - B12 and B6 shots, and compounded Folate and D nasal sprays. I may be forgetting other things, like tests that came back normal including a laproscopy, and a bunch of blood clotting disorder tests and I'm on a bunch of supplements like EPO AF-O and some other stuff.

As usual, my posts are incredibly long winded lol. I hope maybe reading about some of that stuff might be able to help someone else too. If anyone is interested, feel free to ask and I'll give more details on the process.

And my status update - AF is here full force. I'm about to go fill my clomid prescription (Yay!). Please move me to Waiting to O. Thanks!!

[carmen358]

Originally Posted by ad astra 

Carmen358  - enjoy the pineapple... my DP is picking one up for me on the way home :) - good thing i actually like pineapples- do you?  DP and I love BC and visit often.  She has family in North Van, but we also spend fair bit of time off the mainland.   

I don't think I responded to this! DP grew up in North Van and still owns her family home there...we spend a lot of time on the north shore...it's beautiful :) And yes, I love pineapple but after 5 days of eating it I'm usually done ;)

[kgulbransen]

Crystal: OMG! I can't believe it. You and I are proof that people do get pregnant right after a miscarriage. I'm really keeping my fingers crossed for you. You sound way too early to see a fetal pole or heartbeat. You should be able to see a gestational sac at this point, but not always. Unfortunately, only time will tell and you'll continue to have to wait. They would not have seen a fetal pole but no yolk sac. In order of development it's gestational sac, yolk sac, fetal pole, heartbeat. The further down the road, the closer you get to each. Around 6 weeks is when they could see a heartbeat.

I have an arcuate uterus as well. I'm surprised they didn't see anything on you previously. That's what I'm battling right now. Now that I've had two losses they say it makes more sense to have surgery and just "get it taken care of." But arcuate uteruses have not shown any proof that they cause miscarriage. They are in the category of "we just don't know." I'm going to have mine looked at a little more closely to see if there is a septum and if I should operate. The concern is that the embryo implants on the septum and doesn't receive the proper amount of blood flow. But you can operate, have scarring and the same thing can occur. I'm sure it will be fine for you. There are many women that have an arcuate uterus and carry to term.

Insemination times: most sites recommend waiting up to 30 minutes for the sperm to liquefy but we've actually done it both ways. The last two times I got pregnant, we did at least one or two insems in the car right after the pickup (maybe 5-10 minutes after we got it) and then a couple of times waiting until about 45 minutes after. I can't really tell you which way made it work because we've been doing it that way for awhile and I didn't get pregnant each time. I'm almost 99.9% positive that waiting 30-45 minutes is fine. Some docs say even up to an hour. Think of sperm that is donated by husbands in the doctor's office and how much time there is between their donation and the insertion into their wife. I wouldn't worry too much or focus on it but if you want to mix it up, try what we do.

[smilingsara]

Back from Cleveland! Had a wonderful trip and time seeing my parents! This was the best trip up there yet! The kids are opening up to my mom and dad so much, hanging out with them, holding hands, even feeling comfortable with out us near that (its so cute and I can tell my mom loves it so much). My folks are super excited about the baby coming in November and my mom is super looking forward to holding the little peanut!

I found out that the wedding I'm shooting on labor day weekend, I'm making a bunch of money on! So I will surely be able to try this month and next! I'm pumped! I'm using Mr. June ICI this month, because we will be camping and worry about how steril it can be kept there. I'm really excited! I was a bit worried I wouldn't be able to afford it, but I can and I'm thrilled. Insems will happen around the 23rd, not sure when yet. Maybe it'll happen while we are in Chicago and visiting everyone, that'd be super fun! 

I've got everyone moved to where they want to be!

Crystal, I didn't move you, I'm waiting for your word on that! I've got veggies waiting for you! 

[prettyisa]

Bunny—welcome back! It does sound like you’ve lucked out with the one KD finally flaking out completely so you can go with the one who will really come through for you. Clomid hasn’t done anything obvious to me (other than mess with my emotions a bit). This time I had one large and two large-ish follies, the other two times it was one big one only. Hasn’t changed the timing of my cycle at all, either. It did thin out my lining, so they added estrogen and baby aspirin, which fixed that.

Ad Astra—Welcome! I’m so glad you found us! And I can’t imagine what your loss must have been like—I think you’re brave for trying again, and I hope that your next baby comes to you in the very near future. Also, I’m glad we get to be TWW buddies! How long will you wait to test?

CaNanny—So sorry about AF. It’s so hard to decide whether to take a break. In our case, we just kept trying every time we possibly could, so I’d say if it works in June, it works! And if not, in July you’ll still be able to go see the RE. But it all depends on whether you and your DP could use to spend some time not thinking about TTC.

Crystal—Congratulations! I hope that the appointment on Thursday turns up a perfect little heartbeat in your heart-shaped uterus!

Rainbow—any news?

AHope—I kept trying to keep that in mind. TTC is a finite period in our lives. It sucks, and it’s expensive and it’s really emotionally draining, but sooner or later (hopefully sooner!) we’ll have our baby and it will only be a few short months before we’ve been parents for longer than we’ve been TTC. Until we decide to have another kiddo, of course…

Midwife—I’m not sure, but I think within 30 minutes should be fine. Hurray for no more temping!

AFM—nothing interesting, I’m afraid. Finally had my first piece of pineapple—we were out of town for a wedding and didn’t have a chance to get one while we were there. It was the first non-family gay wedding that DP and I have been to (ie: not ours or my mom’s) and it was really sweet to see it from a guest’s perspective. And yesterday we met up with a blog-friend and her wife—today is their baby’s due date! So we rubbed her belly for good luck. She said that her best friend’s baby is exactly 9 months old now, and that the friend passed on ‘the pregnant’ to her, so now she’s passing it on to me. Hopefully it’ll work!

[carmen358]

Originally Posted by MidwifeStephPDX 

Also, it usually takes us 30 min- an hour to insem once we get the goods. Someone suggested doing it sooner would have better results? I always thought that within an hour was fine. What do you all think? I'd rather wait because we have to pick them up (so it's more comfortable to go home and do it there, obviously). Just want to make sure we're not waiting too long.

Except for one time, we have always insem'd within 5-10 minutes. Might be crazy but can you insem in the car??

sara: sounds like a great trip and congrats on scoring a well paying photo gig! Good luck with mr. june :)

Originally Posted by prettyisa 

AFM—nothing interesting, I’m afraid. Finally had my first piece of pineapple—we were out of town for a wedding and didn’t have a chance to get one while we were there. It was the first non-family gay wedding that DP and I have been to (ie: not ours or my mom’s) and it was really sweet to see it from a guest’s perspective. And yesterday we met up with a blog-friend and her wife—today is their baby’s due date! So we rubbed her belly for good luck. She said that her best friend’s baby is exactly 9 months old now, and that the friend passed on ‘the pregnant’ to her, so now she’s passing it on to me. Hopefully it’ll work!

Hope "the pregnant" rubbed off on you :)

[ad astra]

Cannany- sorry about the AF, hope you get some good timing tips at Maia

CrystalPerez- still very early... LMP or O dates don;t tell you much about when implantation happened and that's what matters for early development  - so don't give up hope just yet! Fingers crossed for a 

MidwifeStephPDX- I also found not temping liberating.  According to our Dr the shorter the travel/wait time the better.  Any chance your KD can come (no pun intended) to your place?  Our KD agreed to travel to us and we take our dog out for a walk to give him some privacy. 

Prettyisa- we will see how long the "brave" lasts we definitely still want to be parents to a living child but I found TTC our DD to be a stressful process  - it's definitely worse the 2nd time around.  I'm waiting until 12 DPO so June 13th.  How about you?

carmed358- i think we are roughly in the same spot in tww I'm about 5 DPO now

AFM - I'm doing a progesterone blood work tomorrow and will try to wait to test till 12 DPO.

[gellybeangrl]

Argh....after 20 min writing a long post answering personals I lost it...argh...

Let's try it again....

Ad Astra~ to the board and I hope that your stay is short and sweet!

Cananny~ Sorry that AF showed her ugly head and I hope that whatever you and your DP decide for June is exactly what you need to get your BFP!

Isa~ yeah...for getting baby 'mojo' from a preggers momma! 

Crystal~ Congratulations on your BFP and hugs for a sticky little bean!

Midwife~ when we were using our KD we insemed between 45min to an hour...but we never got a BFP...so thak it for what it is worth. Good luck that what ever your timing is perfect!

AFM~ I'v just been relaxing and lurking now and then....enjoying my summer and waiting to begin my 1st IVF cycle in July. Of course 'Murphy's Law' wouldn't let me just enjoy the ride...Monday I learned that my employer has changed our health insurance carrier as of July1st, and of course my RE is no longer "IN NETWORK"...so I have to find a new RE. I have been rEaLlY, ReALlY, rEaLLy stressed out about this, this past week. I have been on the phone with the new insurance carrier and they sent me a 5 pg list of RE's in my area...which the closest is one to two hrs away. So, I have a QOTD for the Chicago land ladies on the board...what RE do you go see? Does anyone use Fertility Centers of Illinois? Reproductive Medical Institute? Hinsdale Center for Reproduction? Sher Fertility Institute? InVia Chicago Fertility Clinic? Advanced IVF Institute? Reproductive Health Specialist, LTD? or Reproductive Medicine Institute? My new insurance is with Personal Care/ Coventry. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

FX for all you all in the TWW!

[AmandaHope]

Gelly: I used Chicago IVF, which I'm pretty sure has merged with Advanced IVF Institute.  I was happy with our small local office but unhappy when I had to go to one of the larger, busier clinics and deal with their staff.  The docs were good (and it worked, after all, though I did IUIs, not IVF), but my local nurses did 95% of the work and were truly fantastic.  I'm sorry everything is so far away, though, and I hope you find a clinic that is covered and that you are comfortable with. 

[carmen358]

Originally Posted by ad astra 

carmed358- i think we are roughly in the same spot in tww I'm about 5 DPO now

AFM - I'm doing a progesterone blood work tomorrow and will try to wait to test till 12 DPO.

Yep, FF says I'm 4dpo but I think I'm only 3dpo. I used to test early...10dpo...but I'm finding that I'm not as anxious to test this time around. Also, my LP has been so short that if I make it to 11dpo I'll be pretty happy no matter what! So, I'll probably test at 11dpo if I make it that far.