So I've spent like 2 hours catching up on all the threads (and then I had to go and read QP&P because I didn't know what was happening with Carmen, utterly heartbreaking).
I'm apologizing in advanced if I miss people on the personals!
Carmen: I'm so so so so so sorry this is happening. My dear friend and TTC buddy went through the exact same thing a couple of weeks ago (embryo measured small, dipping beta, complete loss of all pregnancy symptoms) and it took her TWO WEEKS to start bleeding (which she did... at work. How fun!). So sad. :( May you find some semblance of peace in all of this. xo
Nos: Congrats on your first IUI!!!! :D That's super exciting! I did a little bum wiggle in my chair when I read about it!
Mrs&Mrs: Yes, you just have to hold out until after AF is due. We've given up on testing before AF is due because it's WAY TOO STRESSFUL!!! :) Wanting to throw out your pillow is a good sign, no? The cycle we were sure DW was pregnant, everything had a metallic taste (BFN, but RMT, ND and Chiro all said her energy felt totally different that month).
RS11: I hope you guys can get 'er done before the money runs out. If we have to move to a clinic, we're going to have to take out a loan. Or someone's gonna have to help us (and considering how desperately my parents want grand babies, I'm kinda hoping they'll offer!).
Stephanie: I don't know where you're based, but we ran into the same issue here (Vancouver, BC). We will have to lie about our relationship if it comes down to it, I don't even think they'd be keen on a "sexual partner" part of it... However, I work in a Neonatal ICU and we have loads of IVF babies, and I inevitably end up chatting with the parents, who repeatedly tell me that the clinics don't seem to give a damn about where everything comes from, as long as you don't open your mouth and say something that they have to make a stance about. I hope you can find someone in the clinic who will tell you how to get around this ridiculous rule.
Happycalm: ahhh, now you have to live up to your screen name, eh???? ;)
Hopeful: I sing to my wife's ovaries and sperm (when applicable) almost every day. Maybe THAT's why we're not pregnant yet???? Her ovaries don't like my singing?? We also make up words about sperm to different tunes, I'm glad to know we're not alone in our musical TTC.
Anna: I hear you about the weather. We got back on the 12th and stepped off the plane and I just wanted to crawl under a heater and not come out until the end of May. It was even SUNNY the day after we got back. All the snow had melted and it had warmed up, but we missed the dismal freezing temperatures and thus were incredibly sensitive to the -1/+2 temperatures and were EXTRA cold (meanwhile everyone else is commenting on how nicely it's warmed up... we're like "WTF? ARE YOU CRAZY, IT'S FREEZING"). Yesterday was lovely: too bad I was at work all day and missed all of it! Poop!!!
AFM: So we've done 3 insems now. Anna was mentioning that it seemed to work better if we just kinda averted our eyes while doing this instead of watching the clock like a vulture, and we kinda took it to the extreme: we're house hunting (first time for both of us)! We'll be moving 45ish minutes away from where we are now, which brutally sucks, but Vancouver is an insanely expensive city to live in (for Anna and Carmen, we're moving from close to UBC to Port Moody/Coquitlam, right around the Evergreen line). It's knocked our stress level up a bit (but not much), but it's also made us MUCH less hyper-vigilant about TTC, since we don't have the time to obsess over it anymore. Maybe that it's also our 8th cycle?? I feel way less stressed over picking a CD to start insems (we've picked CD8), and then we go every other day until temperature rises. There's WAY less head scratching and whining. We don't do 2 days in a row (since KD has a lowish count).
We ran into an issue with our KD this month, he booked a trip for this week (left this morning, back Wednesday) and DW is supposed to ovulate Tuesday. There was much gritted teeth talking and attempting not to wring his neck (and he complained that he never had enough notice, but he made a deal with us to CHECK IN WITH US before he went away ANYWHERE, and since when do ovaries pass out a schedule anyways?). DW is PISSED. I'm frustrated. I'm not very good at negotiating, but this is definitely pushing my buttons. DW is upset with me because she doesn't feel I said enough, I'm upset with myself because I'm always trying to make everyone happy... KD is annoyed that we didn't "let him know early enough" (we e-mailed him from Mexico on CD1, but he had already booked this trip). He's now trying to make it back on Tuesday.
It's made me realize that I'm ready to switch to a clinic whenever DW is. The home insem schedule is exhausting, because inevitably DW ovulates when I'm working (I do shift work, 12 hour days, 4 shifts in a row, 2 days and 2 nights), so I'm intensely sleep deprived at work (which, considering where I work, is NOT A GOOD THING). We got KD a zip car membership so he can come to us now, so that makes things much easier for all parties involved (and he doesn't mind). I was pretty anti-medicated cycles, but if we could time it so we can do this when I'm NOT WORKING, it would be fabulous. We'll see what happens after this cycle, especially since it's a "not supposed to work" cycle.
Anyways, enough mindless rambling. We're going for a late Chinese New Years dinner with my FIL and friends, since we were away for the actual event. Should be fun and full of yummy food!
Cheers!
I totally feel ya there.
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