Okay, so I left off my last post with my diagnosis of PCOS. Like I mentioned before, I wasn't totally freaked out, but I was a little worried about what was going to come next.
I had been seeing one of the Nurse Practitioners at my OB's office (up until now, I was only going in for routine stuff, so I was more than happy to be able to get an appointment that fit my schedule with a wonderfully kind NP). After the blood work came back and she called and told me about the PCOS, she said that I should make an appointment to come in and meet with the actual OB, because at this point we were a little beyond the scope of what the NP was prepared to deal with. Okay, no problem. I had never actually met with my OB before (like I said, only ever in for routine stuff), so I made and appointment and Mr. Right and I went in to meet Dr. P.
The meeting went much better than expected. As soon as I was told PCOS, I went and joined a couple PCOS boards on babycenter. It was encouraging to see people who had successfully conceived with PCOS, but there were others who were much worse off than I was who had doctors that said, "well you haven't tried for a year yet, so I can't do anything to help you out." Stating that it wasn't infertility if it hadn't been more than a year of actively trying. Thankfully Dr. P didn't see it that way. It was clear from my blood work that I wasn't ovulating. Okay, just incase you need a quick reminder of the basic building blocks to human life: the woman's ovary releases an egg and, if conditions are right, the egg will be fertilized by the sperm and BAM human life! Well, since I was clearly missing a piece of the puzzle, a crucial piece, one of two pieces that were most definitely needed, Dr. P. didn't see why Mr. Right and I should have to try for a year (and deal with all the emotions that negative test after negative test would bring) and told us that we could choose between two different medications that often help women with PCOS to conceive and let her know when we had made our decision and she would get us which ever one we had chosen.
One of our options was Metformin. Metformin is actually a drug that is often taken by diabetics to help control insulin levels. The thought behind giving this drug to women with PCOS is that often times, when there is an excess of estrogen (which is one of the signs of PCOS), the body turns it into something similar to insulin. The Metformin is thought to help to control insulin levels and once they are controlled, often times the body will begin to ovulate again. Our other options was Clomid. Clomid is a synthetic from of FSH (folical stimulating hormone) which is the hormone that is responsible for maturing the ovum (egg). If your body is not producing this (or enough of it) then again, no egg, no baby. Clomid is often chosen by women who aren't quite ready to take the step to IUI (Intrauterine Insemination) which typically involves stronger drugs and has a high chance of multiples (but not as high as Invitro). You do have a slightly higher chacne of conceiving twins on Clomid, and there is also a risk for OOS (or OHS) Ovarian Overstimulation (Hyperstimulation) Syndrome - which can cause huge, painful cysts on your ovaries, but they will go away and as long as they are diagnosed right away, they can be controlled and monitored until they resolve themselves.
Okay, so which one do we choose?
Well after prayerful consideration, a little research and asking the opinion of women on the PCOS boards who have been there before, we decided to try the Clomid. We knew there were risks associated with it, but as for the OOS (OHS), I would be starting on a the lowest dose, so unless it took a while, I didn't need to worry about it so much. As for the twins, well, if God decided to bless us with twins then that would be wonderful. (Although, I'm sure I would have been totally freaked out at first!) So we called Dr. P up and said that we had decided on the Clomid. She called in a prescription for us (as well as for the meds that would start my period b/c that still wasn't happening on its own - obviously) and gave us the instructions about when to take the pills and when I needed to come in to have blood work done to see if I had ovulated.
At the same time, I had been reading though Taking Charge of Your Fertility and figuring out how to go about knowing if I was ovulating and what not. So, I started taking my temperature every morning as soon as I woke up and all the other fun stuff involved with that method (if you are interested in knowing more about it then you should totally read the book; I found it fascinating). I also decided I was going to use ovulations test (like pregnancy tests, but they tell you when you are ovulating). And, of course, "doing the dance" at the appropriate time. I am saying "I" a lot, but Mr. Right was just as involved (and I don't just mean for the fun stuff)! He did everything that he could to support me - especially emotionally. He was (and continues to be) absolutely wonderful. I'm sure all of this is not how he pictured making a baby, but he went with the flow and helped me to navigate the bumps that had been put in our path.
So, the time came to go and get the blood work done and I knew I hadn't yet ovulated, but that morning was the first time that it looked like the ovulation tests were starting to change. And honestly, I wasn't totally surprised. I had gone on a job interview early on in my cycle and didn't end up getting the job which caused a lot of stress. Stress can delay ovulation (even when taking fertility drugs). So, I knew that it was not time to worry or be upset just yet. So, they called and confirmed that I hadn't yet ovulated and said that I should come in again in a couple days and they would repeat the test. By that time I knew that I had ovulated. My temperature had spiked and the ovulation tests had given me the same info. They called me back after the second round of blood work and confirmed that I had, indeed, ovulated and that if I didn't get my period by the end of the week that I should take a pregnancy test.
Now the wait...oh the wait. I felt like crap. I was nervous. A little scared. And by the end of the week I was bloated and constipated...ugh...wait a minute...
Bloated?! Constipated?! I believe those are two symptoms of pregnancy! I mean, bloating happens around the time of my period sometimes, too, but this felt different. So, it's the end of the week and I wanted to wait until Saturday morning to take a pregnancy test. Mr. Right and I were trying to take a nap after school that day (he teaches physics and I was subbing at that point). I couldn't sleep even though I desperately wanted to! So Mr. Right finally convinced me to go and take a pregnancy test.
LONGEST 5 MINUTES EVER!!!!
So, time is up and Mr. Right and I walk into the bathroom together to take a look. TWO LINES TWO LINES TWO LINES!!!!!!!! There we were staring at two beautiful, pink and clearly there lines! No trying to figure out if it was a line or not...it was there, they both were. Holy Crap! We were gonna have a baby. I mean, I know this is what we were trying for, but now it was real.
There was a little life growing inside me!
Praise God!
Oh, God!
What did we get ourselves into?! I have never been so happy and terrified all at once! But happy, no, overjoyed. I was, WE were overjoyed. WE WERE HAVING A BABY!
Yay!! :D
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