Post Transfer Consult

I was scheduled to have a post transfer consult with Dr. Beltsos tomorrow, but instead received a phone call from her tonight. It was so nice to hear from her and be able to discuss the next treatment plan. Dr. Beltsos always starts these conversations by asking how I am doing. It is nice to be working with a doctor that I have known for so long. She has become more than just a doctor, but someone who truly cares and offers support in any way that she can. During our phone call, we planned for a fresh IVF cycle to start right away. She wanted me to have some additional bloodwork done to rule out any circulation problems that might be preventing implantation. We also planned to transfer three embryos versus the usual two. Finally, we discussed preparing for gestational surrogacy if necessary. She referred us to an Infertility Consultant named Mindy Berkson of Lotus Blossom Consulting.

Throughout these fertility treatments, Greg and I have been lucky to have wonderful insurance, as well as a doctor that is keeping our coverage in mind when planning for future treatments. My insurance covers four fresh IVF cycles. Frozen transfers do not count as one of the four. This upcoming cycle in January would be our third fresh cycle. Gestational Surrogacy is something that has come up many times throughout our fertility journey due to the condition of my uterus. If this third cycle was not successful, we would be saving our last cycle to be used with a gestational surrogate.

I felt very optimistic after my phone conversation with Dr. Beltsos. I was confident that we were doing everything possible to ensure success for our next cycle. I also felt good that we were beginning to explore surrogacy as a "plan B".

Pregnancy Test

Today was our pregnancy test to find out if the frozen transfer worked. I went to the FCI Glenview office this morning to have my blood drawn. Then I spent the rest of the day waiting for the phone call in which I would hear if we were pregnant. It was a hard day for me. I really had no feeling one way or the other as to whether or not I was pregnant. I just wanted the phone call to come so that we would know. I slept the day away while waiting for the call. Finally, around 5:00 we heard from the office. I made Greg answer the phone because I was too nervous and didn't want to experience hearing another no. Unfortunately, another no is what we received. We were heartbroken and devastated. I had undergone two more surgeries and transferred a beautiful embryo and we still had no baby.

I am so thankful to have such a supportive husband on these days, as well as family and friends. Greg held me and let me cry. I was able to speak with a few friends and finally decided to pick up my niece, Maggie, from daycare and have her spend the night with us. Seeing her beautiful smiling face always helps me to forget about my pain on these emotionally draining days. I am so blessed to have all of these special people in my life to help me overcome the sadness.

Frozen Embryo Transfer

Throughout the end of November and beginning of December, I began taking estrogen and progesterone to prepare my uterine lining for the transfer of our frozen embryo. Dr. Beltsos was using my natural cycle, in addition to the estrogen and progesterone for additional support. I was also receiving weekly acupuncture treatments at Pulling Down the Moon. After about 2 weeks worth of ultrasounds to monitor my cycle and track the thickness of the uterine lining, we were ready to transfer the embryo on December 9th. Greg and I traveled to the  FCI River North IVF center for the transfer. Everything went very smoothly. My lining looked great. The embryo thawed nicely and was perfect. We were so optimistic that this would be the one. The pregnancy test was scheduled for December 20. Now it was time to wait and pray.

Post Surgery Consult with Dr. Beltsos

Today Greg and I met with Dr. Beltsos to discuss the outcome of my two recent myomectomies and plan for a Frozen Embryo Transfer. We brought my mom and Greg's mom along. It is always nice to have extra sets of ears. My mom had met Dr. Beltsos several times, but I wanted Greg's mom to also meet the doctor that I had been working with for the past five years. Dr. Beltsos was very excited about the results of the surgery, but reminded us that there is always only a certain percentage of success for any of these procedures. We planned to transfer our one frozen embryo in conjunction with my next cycle. Everyone felt very hopeful that this frozen transfer after removing all of the fibroids would bring us our baby.

Surgery #2 Post IVF

I woke up from surgery today to learn that the less invasive procedure was the right course of action. I was so relieved. I also found out that things went beautifully. I had no trouble with fluid absorption. Dr. Topel was able to remove the remaining fibroids and stop the surgery when he was finished. I contacted Dr. Beltsos right away when I got home from the hospital and was able to get an appointment for Friday of this week to discuss plans for a frozen transfer of our one embryo. I am so excited to talk to her. I am also excited to get back to school sooner than I thought. I will be taking the rest of the week off and going back on Monday, which is a lot sooner than I had originally planned. Things seem to be headed in the right direction. :)

Day before Surgery

Tomorrow will be my second myomectomy with Dr. Topel. I am on a clear liquid diet all day. Dr. Topel thinks that he will need to perform an open abdominal procedure to remove the rest of the fibroids. I am a little scared of the recovery after such a big procedure. I will be taking two weeks off of school to recover. While I was home today on the clear liquid diet, Dr. Beltsos called to check in and wish me luck with the procedure. Shortly after her phone call I heard from Dr. Topel, who had some changes in his plans for the surgery. He was rethinking the need to go in abdominally. He said that he would go in hysteroscopically first to see what things looked like since the first surgery and only open me up if necessary. I am anxious to get the surgery over with and hoping that the less invasive procedure will be the right course of action.

Yoga for Fertility

Tonight I went to a yoga for fertility class at Pulling Down the Moon. It was such a great experience. There were 5 of us, all at various stages in the fertility journey. The class started with introductions and sharing the story of our journey. We then learned the moon salutation and other yoga poses that are beneficial for fertility. I signed up for a six-week yoga for fertility class and purchased the PDtM yoga dvd. I found yoga to be really relaxing and helpful in terms of calming my mind as I go through this emotionally draining journey. I am excited to be learning about all of these holistic treatments and eager to focus on trying them as I wait to have my second surgery with Dr. Topel.