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

Acupuncture

Acupuncture has been a big part of my life for a long time.  I'm so happy to be back at it.  I started using acupuncture to help with leg pain after a car accident several years ago.  Then once I started dealing with infertility, it was always an important component to my treatment.  I had my first treatment for this upcoming cycle yesterday.  Part of the magic of acupuncture is it is truly relaxing and I love it.  The other part is that it helps balance hormones, increases blood flow and helps strengthen the lining of the uterus to prepare for our embryo transfer.
The last several years and several previous cycles I was with a different practitioner.  This cycle I decided to switch for several reasons, to a different facility.  Luckily having volunteered for so long in this space, I know most of the people that work in this field in San Diego.  It was an easy decision to start going somewhere else, and while I had never been a patient before, I knew I would be well taken care of.
While the acupuncturist knew me personally and knew of my story, he still needed to be caught up on the details of my treatment plan.  So the session started out with a quick overview of my history, my current supplements, my current medications and travel plans.  Then the actual acupuncture started.
I laid down on a heated bed.  Needles were then
placed in my ear, my stomach and my ankles.  A heat lamp was then placed on my stomach.  All of this to promote blood flow.  Then calming relaxing music filled the room, lights were turned off and I relaxed for the next 15 min or so.  It was delightful.  I can't wait for my next session.

D&C

In following our protocol and wanting to duplicate what we did last time, we opted to do a D&C again.  The last time we did a D&C, our doctor found numerous small polyps that were so small that they were undetectable during any ultrasounds.  We wanted to recheck and see if any polyps had returned as well as see if there were any other lining issues.  Plus since I delivered my son by C-section, our doctor wanted to look at that and see how it healed and just double check that there aren't any issues.  Long story short, everything is fine.  He did however find 2 polyps that were undetected via ultrasound and removed them.  For a brief moment I played around with the idea of not doing it this time because it was about $3,000 out of pocket, but I'm sure glad that I did now.For those more interested in the details, the full story is below.

Like with any surgery, there were eating and drinking restrictions starting the night before.  No eating starting at 10pm.  That's always no problem for me, it's the no drinking after midnight that is a struggle.  Luckily I woke up right before midnight and was able to drink two full glasses of water.  This helped a lot in the morning.

My surgery was at 12:45 with a check in at 11:45.  The plan was for my husband to stay with my son and my Mom to take me.  It was a rare rainy day in San Diego, so we left a it early.  I had my surgery at the Surgical Center of San Diego.  This is the second time I've had surgery there and both times they have been really great.  No complaints really.  Always really professional and very nice.  Took about 15 to call my name and then off I went.

Once they go over all the consents and you sign your life away, you then change into your lovely gear and then time to hook up the IV.  This (if you read my previous post) is absolutely the worst part for me.  I know the drill and I always tell them I'm a fainter and to hid the IV once they get it started.  The extra super bummer this time is that the nurse informed me that scar tissue has now formed all over my 1 good vein because I always insist they take it from that one in my left arm.  All my other veins are so small that as soon as a needle hits it, it collapses.  He said that vein has had a lot of trauma and probably won't be a viable candidate much longer.  This really sucks because if that one fails, then my only choice is to go through my hand and a) that hurts so much more and b) it stay hurting because it bruises and stays sore for awhile. Guess I'll cross that bridge when I get to it, but for now, they were able to start the IV in the left, tucked it under the sheet and I was good to go.  They let my mom com back at that point and we sat and waited for the doctor.

My doctor here in the United States is Dr. Chang from Hanabusa IVF.  It's always so strange to see him.  He was such a huge part of my life for so long, but being back in treatment is so bittersweet.  Anyways we had a lot to catch up on so we chatted for awhile.  Then after catching up it was surgery time.  Then next thing I know it was lights out and when I woke up I was in recovery.  My loving husband was in charge of picking me up.  It's always so great to wake up and see him.  He is always very sweet ad it also means I can go home soon.

The surgery went well.  Dr. Chang found two abnormal things that he biopsied and sent out for testing.  He then checked my c section scar from the inside and tested its strength to make sure it would hold up to a pregnancy, possible of twins again.  Because we are transferring 2 embryos, there will be a chance of two.  Lastly, about 5 years ago, after suffering lots of pain, I had 4 cysts removed from the vaginal wall.  Three of the cysts were the size of oranges.  When they were removed, that surgeon told me there was a chance they could grow back.  About 6 months ago 1 started to grow back and was increasingly painful.  I asked Dr. Chang to drain the cyst since he would already be in there and he did.   A few days later I received the results of the biopsy and it did confirm that both were polyps. Again, we are so glad that we did the surgery.  Having polyps can severely effect your chances of getting pregnant. So now I have a squeaky clean uterus and am building a nice new fresh lining, polyps free and ready to go!

This adorable pup has been by my side through

 so much, I love her!

This surgery left me much more sore than the time I did it before.  I guessing its because there was more stuff to do this time and more poking around.  I also had a lot of bleeding for about 5 days.  Not enough to be medically concerned, just very sore and uncomfortable.  Took about 6 days to fully recovery from this one and feel back to my normal self, but luckily I feel just fine now so on to the next steps, researching medicine prices but I'll save that for another blog post.

Thanks for Reading,
HEATHER

Lab Results are Back

My lab results came back and for being off meds and supplements for so long, overall I am pretty happy about the results.  I still need to go back on several things, but most of my numbers just need simple small tweaks, not anything too drastic.

Here are my results:
TSH - 2.9
Prolactin - 3.2
Reserve T3 - 26.1
Ferritin - 25
Iron Saturation - 17
Vitamin D - 30.7
B12 - 404

So here is my new treatment plan for the next 6 weeks.  Its a combination of what I need based on my lab results, miscarriage prevention, healthy lining and what I was on before.

Daily prenatal vitamin with folate
Iron with vitamin C - 15mg (taken at night only after dinner on a full stomach and with no other supplements)
Methylcobalmin B12 -5mg (taken anytime before dinner)
Vitamin D3 - 10,000  units for 4 weeks, then down to 5,000
Probiotics - lactobacillus helps with implantation and preventing early loss
DHA - 500mg
MTHF folate - 1mg per day
Selenium - 200mcg per day
CoQ10 - 400iu per day
Vitamin E - 400iu x 2 a day
Grape Seed Extract

Thanks for Reading,
HEATHER