Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Post FET Consult

It is truly amazing how quickly the weeks go by when you aren't following a calendar day by day. Has it really been almost 2 weeks since I last posted? It is almost a relief to have a little "break" in the ever-continuous cycle & just live life without worrying about "did I already take my aspirin?" or "what time is it? I need to do my injection" or "who is around to give me my PIO shot?"

It has been a great little break & I have been super busy occupying my time these past couple of weeks doing lots of FUN things with my girlfriends! Definitely good for my soul! You can check out what I have been up to here :)

So today was the post failed-FET consult. The hubby unfortunately couldn't get out of work & I hated to cancel the appointment & wait another 2-3 weeks to get in so I went by myself with my list of questions in hand. My RE didn't really say to much about this cycle other than YAY I was able to get pregnant & BOO it was a chemical pregnancy. She said for my age & having DOR it is unfortunately the luck of the draw.

I had asked about our other 2 frosties & what were the chances of them being just as shitty-quality as the others & she said "honestly Heather, I can't tell you that since we didn't do the genetic testing on them. They may not "look" as good as the other four did but that doesn't mean they are chromosomally abnormal. I have definitely seen not so good-looking embryos turn into viable, healthy pregnancies. It basically is the luck of the draw".

There's those words again - "luck of the draw". Ugh - have I told you that I hate gambling? Seems that all these cycles have been a gamble & I am just waiting for that big win!

So then I asked her what the next step would be for us if this FET doesn't work out & if we proceed with ART. Here is what she said:

a) We could do another fresh IVF cycle (#2 with this clinic & #3 overall) & she highly recommended doing PGD screening of all embryos on day 3 to rule out chromosome & genetic disorders. Unfortunately, it also comes with a price tag of $5000 additional to the IVF fees :( But on the plus side we would know for sure which embryo's are viable BEFORE transferring & which are not which would save us the cost of doing a FET of bad embryos along with the emotional turmoil in the future.

b) We could skip a fresh IVF cycle using my own eggs & move right into a cycle using an egg donor.

c) We could decide that this is the end of our IF journey & live life with no biological children & perhaps pursue other options like adoption or living our lives without children.

Our RE felt that we should wait on options b & c. She says that even though I will be 39 yo next month, my FSH was only 9 so I still have some "time" left to do another fresh IVF cycle with my own eggs. Also because they do egg donor cycles on women up to 50 years old. (Wow - can't imagine being in my late 40's doing this!?) She felt that another fresh IVF cycle would give us just as many or possibly more embryos & after doing the PGD screening on them we would know for sure we would be transferring good quality embryos.


So, after all that was discussed I told Dr. B that we want to get started on the FET #2 as soon as we can & if that fails then we will talk about our options & what we want to do. She said the NP will call me with the dates & a calendar so I am hoping it is very soon....as in tomorrow!


So that is where we are at - hope to be starting FET #2 this week & hoping for a "win"!

2 comments:

LCSween said...

I'm rooting for this FET so hard!!! It looks like you have definitely been enjoying your break though! I used to be obsessed with NKOTB and BSB!

Cori said...

Your FSH is better than mine ever was---that's a good sign for your eggs, I think. I only had mine tested at age 28 and 29, but both times it was like 10.4, I think? I support you wholeheartedly in whatever decision you make. You tell me your prayer needs, and that's what I'll pray for. Right now I'll be praying for FET#2. :) Your persistence and strength is so admirable. And armed with those characteristics, you will be a parent, Heather, it's just a matter of how you'll get there. Some way, you and Shane will make this happen. Sending you lots of love, C.