Let's get this party started!

Good news! During my last ultrasound, the radiology technician observed 11 antral follicles in each ovary. That's 22, which is great! Antral follicles are small follicles (about 2-8 mm in diameter) that we can see with ultrasound. Antral follicle counts are a good predictor of the number of mature follicles that will be stimulated in a woman's ovaries when the injectable FSH medications are administered for in vitro fertilization (IVF). Each follicle holds an egg, which will be extracted and fertilized. Having 22 antral follicles is classified in the category that has the best overall pregnancy rates for IVF. Thank the Lord!

Today things get serious on the medication front. For the past two weeks, my daily regimen consisted of a prescription prenatal vitamin, a supplement called Folgard to correct an enzyme (MTHFR) deficiency, and Lupron injections. Lupron suppresses my own hormones so that they don't interfere with the IVF process. Tonight I add Follistim and Menopur, both follicle stimulating hormones (FSH). That will make a total of two oral meds and 3 injections each day.

Thankfully I feel pretty comfortable administering injections after almost a year of other infertility treatments. Although I have never mixed or injected Menopur-which is a bit complicated-I have experience with the others. Additionally, Wade and I attended a one-hour medication administration lesson with a nurse at St. Luke's where we practiced giving shots to a styrofoam cup. I must say it's a bit more painful to inject them in my own abdomen every night. As we always said during diving practice in college, "No pain, no gain!"

Things are starting to get interesting. Please pray that my mood would stay level. I've been feeling a bit cranky, and I don't want to be a cranky wife or mommy! Stay tuned...

Thanks for being here!
Ramona