A Flying Kiss

My foster son fills my heart. Everyday he does something new or better, he's growing up so fast. 

This morning when I dropped him off at daycare, he gave me his FIRST flying kiss!!! So adorable!!! I had to hold back tears (didn't want to cry in front of my daycare provider!). Lol. 

He's been through so much in his short life and he's come so far! I'm so proud of him. I can't put into words the wonderful feelings I have being his mama. He's such a happy little guy & his laugh is just music to my ears. 

He brings me so much joy & has totally stolen my heart. ❤️ So blessed to share these special moments with him. 

HSG Test (CD#10) - Good & Weird Results

Today I had an hysterosalpingogram (HSG). Yeah... long word. Here's an explanation: 

What is a hysterosalpingogram?

• Radiographic contrast (dye) is injected into the uterine cavity through the vagina and cervix 

• The uterine cavity fills with dye and if the fallopian tubes are open, dye fills the tubes and spills into the abdominal cavity

A hysterosalpingogram, or HSG is an important test of female fertility potential. The HSG test is a radiology procedure usually done in the radiology department of a hospital or outpatient radiology facility. This shows whether the fallopian tubes are open or blocked and whether a blockage is at the junction of the tube and uterus (proximal) or at the other end of the tube (distal).

MY TEST

I arrived at the office early and had to fill out some forms. I was actually surprised at all the "releases" I had to complete for this one procedure! Considering I've had a few already and they were like "no big deal". Not for this one! Release-release-release. Hmmmm. That got me a little nervous, I hate going to the doctor in general. All these tests are not easy breezy for me.

I signed all the paperwork and went back into the radiology room. The nurse explains the procedure and what's going to happen. Takes my blood pressure, my temperature. Then the Doctor comes in and he talks me through it as he's doing it.

Turns out, this one was only FIVE minutes. Really - 5 minutes. There was some discomfort during certain portions and I did cramp up when the dye was inserted. Right when it was "uncomfortable" - It was over. Just like that. Easy breezy? Not really - but wasn't as bad as all the release paper work suggested!

My "Outpatient post-op Instructions and Physician Orders":

• Notify your physican if you begin to show signs of infection, such as foul smelling discharge, fever above 101 degrees F, sever lower abdominal or pelvic/pain.. 

• Vaginal bleeding should not last more than 5-7 days. In most cases it is a watery bloody discharge. This is normal. 

• If your physican finds it necessary for you to have to take home medications, you should obtain them from the pharmacy of your choice. 

• Avoid sexual intercourse, swimming and tub baths for 24-48 hours. 

• If a tampon was inserted after your procedure, make sure to remove it 2 hours post procedure. 

After the procedure, we looked at the results.

Good news: my fallopian tubes are open and my uterus is a normal shape. YAY and YAY!

Weird News: My fallopian tubes are in a strange position. The "normal" position is for the fallopian tubes to be to the side of the uterus. Like a T. Mine are more in a "TOUCHDOWN" position like a Y... The Doctor asked me, "Have you had surgery before?" Which, freaked me out!!! I was like "WHY?!!! Is something wrong?!!!" But no, my fallopian tubes are just formed differently. He said it was symmetrical (which is good I think - the symmetrical part of it). I need to go to Google-verse and search for Touchdown shaped fallopian tubes.

Well - good and weird news. I don't think the position of my fallopian tubes will have a big impact on getting pregnant... They're "open" which is what they need to be. I'll know more after my consultation next week. I have SOOOOO many questions, I better write them down before I go.

I just have to say. It is really ODD to see your "insides" on the screens. The uterus and fallopian tubes are really just these small little things. It's crazy how those small organs are so essential to creating life. What a miracle child bearing really is.

UP NEXT...... 

I am OFFICIALLY done with all the pre-testing: Yippee!!!! Woohoo!!! 

• Transvaginal Ultrasound (CD 2, 3 or 4) - DONE 

• Bloodwork (CD 2, 3, or 4) - DONE <one vial retaken on CD 9> 

• Sonohysterogram (before CD 13) - DONE 

• HSG (before CD 13) - DONE 

Not to mention the additional things I had to do: 

• High Risk OB Consult for Diabetes  - DONE

• Psychology Consult - DONE

NOW... for the Follow-Up Consultation with the doctor. That is scheduled for next week on 1/14. We'll go over all the results and see what the next steps are. I'll finally have a clearer idea on where I stand with my fertility factors and hopefully have a "plan" put in place. Figure out what the odds are and if I'll need any fertility treatments or can do the natural IUI (which I'm hoping for). 

I want to get to the fun part: picking out a donor!! Which I'll get to do once I get the results. :) I swear, picking a donor is so strange...! But I'll save that for another post! 

Work Weight Loss Challenge - 10 Weeks

Some of my co-workers are doing a Weight Loss Challenge for the first 10 weeks of the year. It goes like this: 

• Pay in $120 
• Each week, the person with the most percentage of weight loss gets the "pot", which would be $10/person each week. 
• The "winner" after the 10 weeks gets the remainder of the "pot". 

I figure, might as well. My IUI may be delayed until March anyways - with the potential fibroid surgery in February. 

Why not? Maybe it'll help motivate me to keep up with my workout program. 

The challenge begins 1/9 and ends 3/20. It's almost perfect timing, must be a sign to do it. 

Here's to being motivated to workout...! I hope :) 

Sonohysterogram - Fibroids!

Had a Sonohysterogram done today. Sonohysterogram uses ultrasound to look at the inside of your uterus. A salt (saline) solution is put in the uterus for a clearer image.

The test is to look at the lining of the uterus and make sure there are no fibroids, that can interfere with an egg implanting. 

It was almost like a Pap smear & is similar to what they do when they perform the IUI. It was a bit uncomfortable, but wasn't too bad. I was trying to relax, but it's hard! 

Some bad news! I have 1, maybe 2 fibroids!! Ugh. Doctor is recommending surgery to have them removed since it can lower my chances of getting pregnant... Or I can try and then if I don't get pregnant, get them removed later. 

Doing some research, fibroids have some risks of miscarriage and can lead to Higher risk of C-Section.  

The fibroid is 3mm on the right hand side. There looked like there was potential for another one at the back of my uterus that was a little smaller. 

Recommendation is surgery to remove them, which would delay my first IUI cycle by a month. Meaning not starting until March... 

I have to admit I was a little upset with this news. I didn't think I would run into this type of issue and I wasn't even concerned about this specific test. 

Luckily it's fixable with surgery... Which would be non-evasive. They go in through the cervix and use a scope to remove them. I have to be put on anesthesia though... Which doesn't sound fun to me at all.....!!!! I've only been under once, when I had my wisdom tooth pulled because it was impacted. That was a horrible experience waking up from. 

Now, I have to make this decision on which path to take: surgery or no surgery? That is the question. 

I'm going to wait to make a decision until I have my consultation with all my test results. 

I also had blood drawn again....! Not much, just one vial - but still. I hate needles!  

Not the best of news & surgery sounds scary... But got to roll with it if I'm going to have this baby! 

Bad Doctor?

I chose my fertility clinic based on searches, reviews, and results. I didn't really know what to look for or how to find it at the time. A friend of mine made a comment that she DID NOT recommend my doctor for fertility treatments. It was a random post on a Facebook group that we are members of. I asked her why (she doesn't know I'm pursuing AI). Turns out she had a horrible experience with him, said he was in it for the money, etc.

This prompted me to look up more specific reviews and I came across mixed results. Some absolutely LOVE this doctor - others absolutely HATE this doctor. Most of the ones that had negative reviews all made similar comments that my friend did.

Interesting...

It made me think if I was with the right fertility clinic...! With all the $$ and time I'm dedicating to this, I want to be at the right place.

My conclusion (for now) - I have had an amazing experience with them so far. They have always been prompt, informative of my insurance benefits, and explaining the process/results. Yes, it's a bit pricey... even with the insurance coverage. However, I am also "high risk" with my weight, irregular periods, and diabetes - so all the extra tests and screening are necessary for me.

However, I am keeping this in the back of my mind -- just in case my viewpoint or experience changes.

Bloodwork Abnormal

Received a phone call from the Fertility Clinic. Looks like my bloodwork I had done last week came back a bit "abnormal".... EEK! I swear, I freaked out when I heard that message. I called the nurse back to get a better explanation. She said that the bloodwork came back abnormal, but it may have been due to me being dehydrated.

Hmmm... who knew that dehydration can cause abnormalities in blood results? Well, now I know -- DRINK YOUR WATER!!

They're going to re-do my bloodwork on Wednesday when I go in for my other test... They want to make sure it WAS in deed due to dehydration and that I'm not anemic or something...

Praying that the second blood test comes back normal and that it was indeed just me needing to drink more water....

You bet - I'm going to be drinking MORE WATER from now on.

Back to the Gym - ZUMBA

I haven't been back to the gym for over a year!!!! I used to be REALLY good about going to the gym and watching my weight. One of the issues with having a baby is that I am overweight. If I can drop my weight, my period will normalize on its own (which will help me get pregnant), it'll be better of my diabetes management, and I'll be healthier overall.

<sigh> So, WHY haven't I been to the gym in over a year you may wonder...

Truth is, being a single foster parent is time consuming. My little guy had so many specialists appointments early on. I would use my lunch break from work to take him. My lunch break is when I used to go to the gym...

There can be arguments that you can "find the time" - go after work and such. But after work was my time to bond and spend time with my little guy and I didn't want to trade that. Not to mention, I had other commitments that I was participating in - which just meant I had a time issue.

Well, those are my "excuses"! I know that there are many people out there that will argue about making excuses. I used to be one of them, believe me. The truth of the matter is, I was overextended with my commitments and something had to give for my sanity & time management. That just happened to be the gym.

I never cancelled my gym membership because I always intended to go back. I absolutely LOVE Zumba class and didn't want to give it up.

Today, I went BACK to the gym and I went to Zumba class!!! YAY ME! It kicked my behind... but I enjoyed it. What was really nice is, some of the ladies in the class came up to me and "welcomed" me back :) I forgot how much of a community I build with some of these random stranger ladies in Zumba class. LOL. It felt good and I'm glad I went.

My schedule and time commitments haven't changed... What's changed is - I'm going to go WHEN I can. That's not going to be 5-6x's a week...! But that's OK. I'm going when I have time in my schedule to go. That's going to have to be good enough. For example, I can't go to Zumba this Wednesday because of a work meeting. That's OK. I'll go WHEN work/schedule allows me to go.

I'm also going to work in other stuff like circuit training. I'm just not going to stress when time is short and I can't go. I'm going to do what I can, which is better than not doing anything at all.