Day 1

Day 1 has not much to report.  It was a very long travel day.  We started off a bit stressed though.  My dad took us to the airport in our car. We hopped out, grabbed out suitcases and said goodbye.  Made it to the ticket counter and realized we left the car seat in the car.  Emergency phone call to him to come back and we paced outside until he got there.  Hopefully we got our mistake out the way early on this trip because it's always something.  We left San Diego at almost 9pm at night.  I wasn't sure how this would turn out, but it worked great.  Duncan was so excited to be on the plane,  he was having the best time.  I hit up my local Buy Nothing group so he had a few new to him cars and trucks for the flight that kept him busy for a bit.  Then they served dinner pretty quick and that helped.  He also doesn't get any screen time at home and was over the moon excited to watch TV on the plane.  They have a kids channel and on there they had old school Tom & Jerry cartoons.  He kept saying "what are they doing" and laughing really hard.  He then quickly made himself at home on my side and slept the rest of the 10 hour flight. Me not so much because there just isnt enough room for both of us. 

I tried laying on my side, but that just put me on top of a very hard piece of plastic, buy hey at least he slept.  I ended up sitting up and watched the Girl in the Spiders Web, which was awful by the way, but nice to relax and veg out and watch a movie. Ryan slept a lot which was nice for him too.  Duncan only woke when I had to put him back on his side and buckle him up.  So the first long flight was great.  Then we ended up having about a 5 hour layover in London.  This too wasn't bad.  They have a kids lounge in the British Airways lounge that was full of toys to keep him busy.  The last flight had a lot of fussing because he was just exhausted.  He wanted to be held and was mad that he had to sit in his own seat.  A few meltdowns on the short 2 hours to Prague, but nothing terrible.  We booked a hotel right at the airport because we landed at 11pm.  Wanted to just pop over and grab some sleep before we head out in the am. We checked in and that's when the real meltdown happened.  He was just way over tired.  He kept saying he wanted to go home, this bed is weird and he is all done.  Wanted to read books and not sleep.  He didn't end up falling asleep until about 3am.  I'm writing this at 6am wide awake.  He is still asleep.
Today we have a quick stop in Kutna Hora just to break up the drive.  Then on to Zlin for a 2:30pm meeting with my doctor and an ultrasound to check on my lining.  There is always a fear that the small amount of radiation on a plane can collapse your lining so here is to thick numbers. And an uneventful 4 hour drive today to the clinic.

Thanks for Reading,
HEATHER

PS - if you want to communicate with us while we are gone,  I opted not to pay for a plan on my phone, but Ryan has one on his phone.  So you can text him, email either of us, use fb messenger for me or What's App for either of us. Basically just don't text me because I won't see it.

Last Workout Before We Go & IV Vitamin

We leave tonight so I was able to squeeze in one more workout before we go.  The goal of this was overall better health, but specifically to lose weight.  I wanted to go into this one carrying less extra weight than the first time around. The goal was to lose 20 lbs in 4 months.

Well I did it!!!!! Today's weigh in results was that I'm down 21lbs from when I started.  I literally and figuratively worked my butt off!  I feel great and it's always wonderful to accomplish a goal.  I always eat pretty healthy, but portion control and snacking was definitely higher than it should ve so I really cut back.  Then I hired a personal trainer and worked out at least 3 times a week, twice with her and once on my own and added a yoga class or two when I could and some Zumba on Sundays. I am super pleased with my results and happy to start off so positive.

  The very last thing I did before we left was an IV therapy treatment.  I did this last time as well.  I chose what is called a fast bag, specifically the immunity bag.  It's an IV drip full of vitamin C, vitamin b12, vitamin by and vitamin D (I think, but don't

Orange bag is my IV drip

remember for sure). It's at a place in Solana Beach.  You go in a room and they hook you up to the IV.  Takes about 20 min for the whole process.  My iron is still lower than I would have liked so the extra vitamin C will help raise my iron levels because it helps with absorption. 

Thanks for reading,

HEATHER

Labs Are Back

My labs came back.  This was the last set of bloodwork before we leave.  This was mainly to check if my thyroid was working and to see if the dosage needed adjustment, as well as my vitamin levels, specifically Vitamin D and iron.  Overall everything looked pretty good.  Thyroid was back where it should be at 1.4 so I just continue on my current dose.  Iron was in the normal range but on the low side of that so I added another iron pill, so now I take 4 a day.  Vitamin D was perfect so keeping that where it is.  So still on lots of supplements and prescription meds, but nowhere near as many as I took last time so that's great news.

Infared Sauna Treatments

I started going to infared sauna treatments.  This is another one of those things I'm trying to replicate from my previous  cycle.  My previous acupuncturist had prescribed going.  I had one at the gym I was a member at so I did it for 30 min everyday for two weeks before we left.  Now I'm no longer a member of that gym so I had to find a new location.
Through Yelp I found a local day spa that offered the treatments and it is only 15 minutes from my house.  Due to scheduling and just really running out of time.  I'm doing a series of 5 treatments before we go including the day we leave actually.
The day spa is very cute.  For those local to San Diego, it's called Eco Chateau and it's in Sorrento Valley.
The infrared sauna set up is really no different than a regular dry sauna.  You bake in a small room made of wood with class doors, pictured above. However there is a big difference between a regular sauna and an infared sauna.
Why infared sauna for a FET?  Well two reasons really, an increase in immune support and increase in blood flow.  FETs are all about increasing blood flow.  Thus why I have been doing as much acupuncture as possible.  This heated room definitely fits that bill.  When you walk in, it is set to 140 degrees, but I always turn it down to about 120 - 130.  The infrared works no matter how hot it is, just its just a comfort level issue.  They provide you with a spray bottle of cool water and a bowl with cold water and essential oils and a washcloth for after your treatment.
I usually undress but keep my underwear on, lay down and turn the lights off.  I've never fallen asleep, but I have definitely gone into a deep relaxation.  I just did my 4th treatment tonight and have my 5th on Friday.  I think a lot of what I am doing, whether it medically will help with the transfer or not, it is definitely helping to calm my mind and help with the anxiety of this big step.  And that in turn is definitely helping with the FET, so either way its a win win.

Thanks for Reading,
HEATHER

Fertility Meds Suck

So I  haven't posted in a bit because I'm exhausted,  stressed, not sleeping and super nauseous.  Other than that, no complaints.   Seriously though, I think because I'm out of practice and haven't had these meds in my system for so long, it was a shock to my body and it's taking it the hard way....


I started this post a few days ago and didn't finish because I was tired and didn't feel good.  The good news is I'm starting to get used to them and feeling much better. Acupuncture is really helping in that department.  Still have a headache but no where near as bad and back eating again so that's good.

I now take 200mg of estradiol three times a day along with all the vitamins and supplements.  Tomorrow starts the aspirin,  dexamethasone and the lovenox which is a daily shot.  That one I'll take until my second trimester.  Happy injecting!

Thanks for Reading,
HEATHER

More Acupuncture & Lupron Side Effects

The first few days after the Lupron injection, I felt fine, but man did those side effects start to kick in.  I wake every morning feeling really nauseous and twice now I've actually been so sick that I've thrown up.  I also started getting really bad headaches which is usually the case with Lupron for me.

On the table with needles in my belly and legs

Another week and another acupuncture treatment.  It is so weird to say, but laying on the tables with needles in me, is one of the most relaxing things I can do.  I walked into the treatment room feeling anxious and with a horrible headache.  I left feeling so much more relaxed and my three day long headache was gone.  It did come back the next day, but getting relief for 8 hours was so welcomed.  I'm now going to acupuncture twice a week until we leave.  3 more weeks to go!

Thanks for Reading,
HEATHER

Time for Lupron

I finished my round of birth control pills and now it's time for Lupron, Lupron Depot specifically.  Lupron Depot is basically a 1 month version all-in-one shot instead of daily shots.  Ryan and I once calculated how many shots we did in all our other rounds and the total came out to somewhere around 800.  Yes you read that right, 800!!!!  One would think that would make us pros.  And while we are definitely proficient at this, it certainly never gets any easier.  My anxiety is always sky high.  It takes a lot of faith in your partner, who is not a medical professional, to trust that they can administer the shot with the same skills as a professional.  And I have to say that Ryan hits the mark, pun intended, every time.  Most of the clinics have how to videos online, but he usually finds some good and helpful information on YouTube.  This is definitely one of those times where I am extremely grateful to have a partner that can handle this type of stuff.  Of all the 800+ shots I have received, he has administered every singe one of them so a huge amount of gratitude towards my guy!
Tips and tricks for surviving Lupron injections.

• Ice, ice baby!  Ice the injection spot for 5 minutes a head of time.  This is an intermuscular shot so that means the behind. 
• As soon as the injection is over, massage the injection spot and the area around it.
• Walk, do lunges, do squats, basically do anything to move your glutes and help ease the medicine into your system.  It will feel better in the long run.

The infamous Lupron Depot shot.  This is the shot that originally was going to cost $1,600, 

but luckily insurance did cover a portion of it and our out of pocket was $1,200.

Now we sit and wait for my period to start and then all the other medications will begin.

Thanks For Reading,

HEATHER