The Saga of Becoming Fruitful

Archive for the ‘IUI’ Category

The 2-Week Wait

So I had my 2nd IUI for this cycle this morning…we started with the ultrasound to see if the follicles ovulated and if so, how many of them did that. Looks like I ovulated 1 on the right and 2 on the left.

But… I have no sonogram because I forgot to remind Dr H to print one. I was telling the medical assistant later as I was checking out and guess what she said “You don’t want those. You want the “real” ones in the next 2 weeks.” I told her “this is real as well”. Hmmmpph!!!

So “worst” case, triplets? For me, 1 is alright, 2 is better, 3 is a stretch but I think still good. Well, we will know in 2 weeks.

Did anyone notice that I did not mention the SA results yesterday? Well, I intentionally did not mention that so as not to pressure DH (who reads this blog) on it. We however talked about it later, so now I can tell you about it.

My DH’s last SA was done late 2005 with good counts (71M) and motility (53%). What was below normal was the 4% morphology. When we asked Dr H last Sunday, she was not very concerned about the morphology and that she was after the motile concentration instead.

The post-wash SA yesterday for the first IUI was not very good with 4M motile concentration only. Perhaps it was because DH was nervous that he was only going to give a few millions. Perhaps because he was a bit sick. Perhaps because of the lack of lubrication. (I learned later that he did use s teeny weeny bit ) Anyway, Dr H said that maybe if we “stage” it better tomorrow.

So today, we used the recommended lubricant “Pre” from the lab that did the SA. The frontdesk person in the clinic actually said any non-spermicidal lubricant can be used. Here’s the front and backside of Pre containers:

… and we “staged” it. “Stage” - interesting word… let your imagination work. And we got way much better post-wash SA today at 19M motile concentration! (The desired level is 10M.)

Dr H was feeling good about my girls ovulation and my DH boys’ improved motility concentration.

So, the 2-Week Wait starts today and hopefully ends positive on August 5. Meanwhile, I will use Progesterone VS starting on 7/25 Thursday.

The time starts now!!! (tapping fingers…). So how do you “occupy” yourself in the 2WW? Any suggestions are welcome!

COST: $530 (180 ultrasound, $170 IUI, $180 SA/wash)

So That Is What An IUI Is…

I’ve always dreaded the thought of “artificial insemination”. Maybe I guess because it sounded like I was a cow.

Maybe that is why all this time, we have always opted for timed BD.

With the more expensive injectibles, we researched and were adviced that the probability of getting pregnant was higher if intra-uterine insemination (IUI) was done, instead of timing it. Also we have been timing that for 4 years, so we needed something more precise and effective because we’re not getting any younger, you know! It was then more prudent to go the IUI route so that we can maximize our chances with the more expensive injectibles.

Its a good thing that I was adviced by some forum posters that it’s not really a big deal so I did not obsess too much about it.

DH submitted the boys for washing early in the morning and I had the IUI appointment later in the morning.

Truly, it lasted shorter than a normal RE consult - done in less than 5 minutes. The waiting after the procedure was even much longer at 10 minutes.

It was like a pap smear in the sense that a speculum is used to create a passage way. Then a very thin plastic catheter (carrying the post-wash boys) is inserted through the cervix and into the uterus. The boys have avoided the harsh environment they would normally have to journey to get to the uterus, so they should be there either trying to meet the girls now or just hanging out and waiting for the girls to come down. They’re having a party inside of me!

Dr H showed me the catheter labeled with our last name and informed me that the labeling was done to make sure that we get what we submitted :). Just imagine an Asian couple like us suddenly getting a child that looks different from us. Not funny at all.

There’s a bit of discomfort but really, it is very tolerable. What I did to help in the discomfort was to relax my pelvis, breathed deeply and huffed open-mouthed a few times. Before my overactive imagination can take over, it was done!

Dr H set the alarm clock for 10 minutes. I was left laying down on my back with my feet planted on the bed. (I read in a website of one of the fertility clinic that there really is no need for this since the boys are in the uterus, above the cervix already, so they won’t flow down. Anyhow, doesn’t hurt to do it. Maybe it can also aid the boys to swim upstream ) 10 minutes passed by fast, then I was up and ready to go.

Anyway, we go back for another IUI tomorrow. (The same website above mentioned that there’s really no medical study conclusively pointing to 2 inseminations to be better than just 1. The key was more of how well-timed the insemination is done versus when ovulation occurred.)

Meanwhile, I still do not have my ultrasound image of the leading follicle because the sonogram procedure was not done today. Will get that tomorrow, promise!

COST: $350 ($180 for the boy’s wash and $170 for the IUI procedure)

CD13: Follistim Day 9 Response (Cycle #2)

The leading follicle last Thursday really grew and it is ripe for the picking!

I don’t have ultrasound image to show today though because in my excitement, I forgot to remind Dr H to print it for me.

Endometrial Lining = 7.1 -> 10.2 -> 10.5
Right Ovary = 10: 7, 6/3, 5/5, 4 -> 6: 11, 10/3, 8, 7 -> 5: 16, 15, 14/2, 10
Left Ovary = 9: 8, 7, 6/4, 5, 4/2 -> 5: 14, 10, 9, 8/2 -> 5: 20, 15, 13, 11/2
Estradiol = 91 -> 380 -> ?

(For those who are new here - You can go to Follistim response in the top tabs to see the tabulation of all my stats summary from both cycles.)

Dr H said she’ll print an ultrasound image tomorrow. Maybe, it will not show up as big anymore though since I injected Ovidrel this afternoon. She also mentioned that the other 3 next biggest would be candidates too. So potentially I will ovulate 1-4 eggs. Yaiikkks -potentially, quadrups?

So… we will be going in for our very first IUI tomorrow !!!

When I asked Dr H about the probability of conception for IUI, I initially got the “it depends on the quality of the egg”. I eventually got some quantity: 20-25%. This is about the same as the IVF success rates (live birth) they have for my age range.

We then asked about what the effect of SA low morphology to this probability and she said that post-count wash count was more important that morphology. The desired level is 10million count. I better go take care of the boys now.

Meanwhile, say a prayer for us!