The Beginning

I guess I better start this journal off with our story. Feel free to skim if you've heard it already. It has a lot of squicky female stuff in there, so male readers should proceed with caution.

I was diagnosed with PCOS in June 2007. PCOS stands for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. You can Google it, but what it boils down to for me is that my body doesn't produce the hormones necessary to regulate my reproductive system and cause me to ovulate. No ovulation=no chance of getting pregnant. I've always known in my heart that something was not quite right with all that girly stuff, and I wanted to get the ball rolling so that by the time Luke and I were ready to start trying, it might not take as long. I tend to be impatient, and trying to conceive when you are infertile can be a very long road.

We officially started trying May 2008. I was seeing a Reproductive Endocrinologist (RE) at this point, and I spent the summer taking Clomid, which is a fertility drug. Obviously I didn't get pregnant, and the most it did for me was give me horrendous hot flashes and mood swings like you wouldn't believe. Just ask Luke! :) After 3 rounds of that, with the last one ending in September, it was time to move on to something more.

We took about a month off, then went to see a fertility specialist (Dr. Tatpati), also in Wichita. We decided to take the route of Clomid, plus injectibles. Injectibles are the things that can give you multiples, but not in a Jon and Kate Plus Eight way. 2-3 babies, tops. We started that round on November 15th. 5 days of Clomid followed by a shot of Gonal-F that I had to give myself. Anyone who knows me knows that I have a HUGE problem with needles (even though I've been having routine monthly bloodwork done for how long now?) so this was definitely in the category of Least Favorite Moments in My Life.

I went back to Wichita on the 26th of November so that they could make sure my ovaries weren't overstimulated and that I had some good sized follicles (these being the things that turn into eggs - most women have one every month, but I say it plural because that's what these drugs do.) I had responded well to the Gonal-F and had two good sized follicles and one a little smaller. So we went ahead with the Ovidrel to induce ovulation, did our thing, and waited. My day to do a home pregnancy test was December 13th.

I couldn't wait, and finally tested on December 12th. Immediately positive. No two minute wait there. I had blood work done later that morning to confirm it and I was indeed pregnant. Now we're on the last leg of my time with Dr. Tatpati. They monitor with bloodwork for a couple weeks to make sure that the pregnancy is progressing normally (because so many things can go wrong this early on). When I had more bloodwork done on the 15th, my hCG levels had gone up.

I go back Monday for one more round, and then we'll schedule an ultrasound in Wichita to make sure this little sprout is implanted in my uterus and to count how many there are. That's exactly what the nurse said to me on the phone: count how many. Gulp. We should also be able to hear the heartbeat at this point, which is one of the blessings of having to go through a specialist and having every minute of your early pregnancy monitored. At that point, I think we'll feel comfortable with telling our families. Can't wait for your reaction, Mom! It is killing me not to tell you, because I get the feeling you may be just as excited, if not more excited, than I am.

So that's the story of our little miracle. One round is all it took. You have to understand that this is 100% God that did this, because these things don't happen in a month when you have infertility. And very few couples with infertility get pregnant within seven months of trying. I praise God daily for this.