Sunday, August 9, 2009

Taking another shot


Taking another shot, originally uploaded by Kodamakitty.

So I went in for a day 12 ultrasound on Thursday (another $150, plus $100 for tests run the time before - yikes!) and my ovaries weren't ready yet. Which is kinda disappointing when you've taken a triple dose of a supposedly powerful and effective drug. Thankfully, this is the week I decided to use up some of my vacation time because I immediately went into sulking mode. Geoffrey was slammed at work, so he wasn't able to help me put things into better perspective until he got home. Which, of course, he did. My reaction to the Clomid could have been so much worse, I've lost a decent amount of weight, and I'm generally eating healthier (though my sleep hygiene does leave a bit of something to be desired).

I had to go back in on Saturday (you guessed it, another $150) and this time, it looks as though there is one "perfectly round... beautiful" follicle of the correct size to merit the shot to stimulate ovulation. Now, when we did this in May, we had to make a decision - inseminate before the shot so the sperm would be waiting, or inseminate after the shot so that the sperm would chase the egg. We decided to do the shot first. This led to a crazy race against the clock to get the injection, go home, have sex (because there shouldn't have been more than three days between ejaculations), come back 24 hours later, have Geoffrey, erm, produce, and then get inseminated two hours later. To say it was exhausting and chaotic was a bit of an understatement, followed by the disappointment of the egg and sperm not meeting up.

This time, the nurse suggested that if Geoffrey was comfortable giving me the shot in the evening at home, ovulation would occur within 36 - 48 hours, meaning that the insemination on Monday morning would have a better chance of coinciding with the release of the egg. My wonderful husband gamely walked through the procedure with the nurse, was handed everything in the photo above plus a square of gauze "in case she bleeds," and then we were ushered out the door with a reminder to have sex that day, none on Sunday and be ready to produce on Monday.

Flashback: when I was in high school, my dad became ill with non-Hodgkin's Disease lymphoma and so he couldn't control his type II Diabetes and his hypertension just with diet and exercise. For a short while, my aunts would come by and administer the insulin he needed. But one night, no one could come, so it fell to me. Why my dad hadn't learned to inject himself is a mystery to me now, but I got my first lesson on giving a shot over the telephone. Up until my junior year, I had thought I would become a nurse, like my mom and most of her family, so I suppose it seem like as good a time as any to learn how to use a hypodermic needle. Thing is, I hate needles. Totally freaked out and scared of them.

This meant that my hands and presence of mind were not too steady giving this shot to my dad. It was not pleasant, and I botched it terribly (the insulin formed a bubble beneath his skin, so it didn't get delivered into the muscle). I cried my eyes out, because my dad was also expressing how much I was hurting him at the same time (I did eventually get proficient at administering insulin and using lancets to check blood sugar - in fact, most nights I would have to be home by 11 in order to help with that). Did I mention I hate, hate, hate needles? Definitely one of the major factors in deciding to major in Psychology instead of Nursing.

So, my brave, brave husband and I discussed the fact that he had never given a shot before. Thankfully, my mom was off this weekend and agreed to supervise. Thankfully, too, the shot is administered to the top outside quandrant of the buttock (either side) and so I cannot see it and it doesn't hurt as much as you might think, especially when my mom, the uber-nurse, looked at it and said, "wow, that's a long one - they really mean for it to be IM" (intra-muscular), and starts measuring it with her thumb. Not reassuring, except that I knew it wasn't that bad once the needle was in.

I am happy to report that Geoffrey did just fine and the shot was administered successfully. My mom talked him through it (I can see why she's a good teacher on the unit) and also had extra alcohol wipes in the house since the nurse only gave us one pad (I mean, really - you have to wipe the bottles AND my butt. One is not enough. But I digress).

Tomorrow we go in for another "deposit" - insemination (another $350). Keep your fingers crossed!

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