September 2018 IVF ER

embryoman

@laurenc52 Our clinic freezes day 5-7. Days 5 and 6 are pretty standard. Some clinics won't freeze on Day 7. The embryos are usually of lesser quality but if there isn't much to begin with it's a good idea to freeze it in case. I have seen people get pregnant from them! 

suzycupcake

Update: I'm still waiting for af so not really an update, but I reached out to my RE a little while ago based on seeing some of you get your meds well before your cycle starts. Af should be here any day now so I'm a little confused why I don't have any meds yet. I was told to not stress but shit. Maybe the RE thinks his coordinator has already settled this. Advice?

zamoraspin

@suzycupcake Did you get answers to the other questions you asked? Do you know how your clinic usually runs their cycles?  

Here’s what I mean by that - my clinic is small (2 RE’s) and busy. In order to reserve a cycle clinic costs are due up front, and cycles fill up fast, usually a month or so in advance. They also only start patients on stims on two dates (this cycle is 9/7 and 9/14). They use BCP on patients as needed to line up with those dates - one day difference is ok but they try to keep everyone within a window so that they can manage the embryologist’s work flow.

Some RE’s also use BCP just to quiet your ovaries down before starting. 

Depending on how your clinic works your RE may want you to go on BCP for a week or so, in which case you will have time to order meds. I also learned (after freaking out about my meds) that my clinic keeps meds on hand that I could have used and then replaced. I do think that is common. 

Still - I’d want to know what the plan is. Good luck!

zamoraspin

@funkykey I’m glad you have six fertilized! I hope they grow well!
@wishiwaspreggo The PIO freaks me out a bit - especially because it seems like it’s ongoing! Eek. 

suzycupcake

@zamora_spin Thanks. No, I haven't yet. That email about fertilization rates, etc. was sent 9 days ago. I sent an email right after the one to my RE to the lady who can answer those questions, to follow up. 

I don't like not having a plan either. I haven't even made a payment up front yet. Nobody is telling me what I'm supposed to do and when. I'm gonna call them tomorrow afternoon if I don't hear anything. 

riathewolf

A much better update to give today! Saw my regular RE today and he reassured me that everything is going fine. They upped my meds because my bw had some wiggle room to do so. Today on the US we saw 24 follicles all growing at about the same rate and we are at 11 mm. So all good news! I go back in on Thursday and I am feeling much much better about the process. 

callingthestork

@embryoman, I was curious how long an embryo can be at the morula stage before you know it's not going to make the jump to blast?  Half of my mature eggs have made early blasts, and the other half were discarded on day 6 as morulas I believe.  I am also curious what your take on PGS is--I read recently that at the 6-cell stage, the cells are already not identical.
@SusieCupcake, I hear you, not having a plan drives a person crazy!  Much worse than just waiting.  
@funkykey, I'm hoping my ERA won't be painful.  Praying your little ones stick from now on.
Really exciting to read the great news so many of you have.  And can only imagine how tough those big-number egg retrievals must be to recover from.
AFM, those darn sand hill cranes are just loafing around in the barley field instead of bringing me something wrapped in a white blankie!   

wishiwaspreggo

@riathewolf - excellent news!! It helps when a doctor is forthcoming with the information. Hope those follies keep growing nice and strong!

@zamora_spin - For what it's worth, the PIO shots aren't nearly as bad as I was afraid they'd be. After a few times you start to get used to it the symptoms, however, are more intense than the suppositories IMO. I always get tired and hungry from suppositories but I'm exhausted and ravenous on PIO. Within a couple hours of taking my PIO I'm fast asleep on the couch. I ate a bowl of goat cheese ravioli with alfredo sauce and woke up hungry for a big Cracker Barrel breakfast. I've gotta keep myself under control or I'm gonna gain 50 pounds

blackhottamales

@funkykey Yay for your 6 fertilized!!
@Bonniebonsall Yeah i found it easier to just do the shots myself.  
@wishingiwaspreggo I'm glad to hear the PIO isn't as bad as you thought, i'm nervous for that but I still have many step before i would need to do those shots.  Not sure i'm flexible enough to do it myself though.  
@laurenc52 wow so many embryos is amazing! 
@mkr_0128 my paperwork from yesterday's ER said your next cycle should start anytime from 4-14 days after ER.  If that helps.  I hope this week is going quickly for you and fx for Thursday!
@suzycupcake so frustrating--i'm definitely a planner so i would be annoyed not having a calendar already.  I had my calendar when i went in for training around the 10th of August I believe. I would definitely follow up and request a calendar.  it's hard not to stress when you don't have information.  at a minimum a more specific  timeline.  
@zamora_spin I find the way your clinic works really interesting! I like the idea that people have the same start dates, i feel like it would help keeps things more organized.  
@riathewolf glad to hear you got to meet with your RE and your were reassured about your questions.  

AFM
30 Eggs Retrieved 
24 Mature
22 Fertizlied

next update will be Sunday afternoon.  The embryologist said 30-40% make it to blastocyst so if i'm average maybe we could have 6 that go into freeze?  The waiting begins.  

wishiwaspreggo

@blackhottamales - That's an excellent report! 6 5-day blasts would be awesome Waiting sure does suck though. I'm constantly wondering what my embryos are doing in the INVOcell capsule. How many are still alive, how many are going to continue to grow vs. arrest... Thursday morning can't come soon enough.

riathewolf

@blackhottamales Those are great numbers!! I will be crossing my fingers for you while you wait.

@wishiwaspreggo I really can't imagine having them all in a capsule! I had never even heard of that until this thread. It so fascinating! 

mkr_0128

@blackhottamales that does help, thank you!! My AF actually started today, so that puts me about 5 days post retrieval. I left a message for the nurse because they said to call with the first day of flow and I should be starting back up on my birth control tomorrow or Thursday. 

Holy cow 22 fertilized is amazing!! Congrats

suzycupcake

Okay, I'm trying to not have a conniption fit. The doctor got back to answer these questions:

My questions.

1. She says you want to do PGS testing which costs an extra $4K. I understand why you are recommending this. We would like to have control over the decision to discard any embryos. Is this okay?

2. What is the reason you want to do ICSI?

3. What is your fertilization % rate?

4. What is the % of embryos that make it to 5 days?

5. Based on what you know about me, how many eggs do you expect we will get?

6. How many do you think will make it to blast?

7. Your website says that you do a baseline ultrasound when the patient's period is expected. Is that what you are going to do?

His answers.

1. Yes it is ok. You decide what you do with your embryos.

2. PCO patients have eggs with hard "shells" and ICSI will improve fertilization rate. 

3. Average 75%

4. 30% but it is variable and dependent on age etc..

5. 15

6. We shall see

7. Not needed for you 

I take issue with his answer to #2 because he said I don't have PCOS, that I was misdiagnosed.

His answer to #4, is that a low percentage? I'm worried about that. That's like 4 embryos out of 15 we are talking about here.

For #5........15, that means he is thinking I have 15 afc, but the coordinator told me I had 17 when they checked in August at the beginning of this current cycle. 

#7, I take issue with this since I have a history of cysts. Is it normal to not do a baseline ultrasound?

Am I grasping at straws here?

ETA: @blackhottamales Thanks. I called and requested a new coordinator. She is sending me a calendar and getting my meds ordered. 

suzycupcake

Also, is pgs really really necessary? I'm so worried about having to fork over another $4K  

blackhottamales

@suzycupcake
im so sorry you’re having a challenging time. I can’t help with the PGS testing decision—we decided to do CCS (chromosome) testing and it costed $1,950  I have a Down syndrome brother and it’s worth it for me to know. 
My embryologist gave the same statistic for day 5 30-40% as the normal. 

IVF is hard and expensive-I think you’re just trying to make sure you’re covering your bases. 

Best of luck—keep asking questions and I hope we can help. 

northbeach3

hi @suzycupcake,

i've done one IVF retrieval, one fresh and one frozen transfer -- *TW* -- both ending in MC. after substantive testing, i don't have the blood clotting issues, so it's most probably that the embryos were abnormal.  i have four untested and i'm not looking forward to more BFP/MC cycles. Genetic testing is not a cure-all, but it certainly would help reduce the number of "false starts" and heartache associated with loss.  In hindsight, I wish I would have shelled out the additional money.

The percentages your RE gave you are very realistic and I take no issue with them. I've been following women on the boards since January and see very comparable numbers.  15% of your starting eggs retrieved seems reasonable IF you do PGS.  

If you don't do PGS, you could end up with a greater percentage of day 5 embryos to freeze, but like in my case, you could have to transfer a lot of bad before you get to the good one.  

My IVF numbers were antral follicle count of 14, 9 retrieved, 7 mature/fertilized, 6 made to day 5/6 and frozen untested. If i had done PGS, i'm sure my "normal" number would be lower than six.  I feel like the average number most women get after PGS is 3 embryos to freeze.  Some women will be significantly higher, but there will be many more who only get one or two. 

My RE does ICSI always, even if you don't have PCOS.  Seems like your best case scenario to get as many fertilized as possible (vs. leaving it up to the sperm to do).  I have heard of women requesting that half of their retrieved eggs be fertilized "naturally" and half fertilized with ICSI.  I think it's a game day decision once you know how many mature eggs they retrieved.

In terms of your starting AFC, it's just a guide... it's unlikely that all will grow greater than the minimum size of 10 mm.  Even if they are able to retrieve eggs from all those follicles, the might not all be mature -- that's why they use 10 mm as a guide / indicator to possibly being mature.

Bonniebonsall

@wishiwaspreggo I love that you delegated cleaning and aiming duties. Definitely going to do that with HCG and PIO! They have to pull their weight somehow! And I feel you on the goat cheese ravioli with alfredo sauce — that sounds right up my alley! I’m already ravenously hungry trying to lower my carb intake, and now I have to look forward to the PIO making me even hungrier! 

@laurenc52 Thank you for the tip on mixing and letting it sit! That combined with the ice seemed to do the trick. And congrats on the 12 embies! The more the merrier!

@riathewolf Thank you! I figured that was the case but watching it go in so slowly is torture! I guess it’s better that way than with giant needles though! And I’ll definitely try letting it sit for 15-20 tomorrow. Today was much easier and I let it sit for 5, but there was still a bit of a sting so I’m hoping the extra time does the trick. Yay for your 24 follicles all growing at the same pace! That’s fantastic!

@blackhottamales Wow congrats on so many fertilized! Hoping that as many as possible make it to blast! 

@suzycupcakes Ugh that is so frustrating. I can’t believe he knows you were
misdiagnosed with PCOS, and then is suggesting ICSI because of PCOS. So bizarre and really disconcerting. I’m not super familiar with fertilization rates but 30% doesn’t sound unreasonable to me? I’m sure someone else has more info on that. And regarding the baseline — I definitely had one and was not aware that you would start a cycle without one, especially if you’re prone to cysts. Maybe ask for some clarification on that. And personally I’m not doing PGS testing because of the prohibitive price, but I completely understand why many people do. If our fresh cycle doesn’t work, we might do it on our frozen embryos (if we’re lucky enough to get some!). 

A quick little update on me. Went in for blood work and ultrasound today. I have 30 follicles, 15 on each ovary, but they’re all small right now (the ultrasound tech said just 3 were measuring - but I don’t know how big they were). I think I’m on a pretty low dosage of stims because of the concern for OHSS, so I guess they’re just growing slowly! Going back in for more blood work tomorrow.

somewhereinnyc

@suzycupcake I think PGS is helpful if you have a history of miscarriages or are older. Also has the benefit of knowing the sex of the embryos if you care about that. If you’re on the younger side with no history of miscarriages, I don’t think they necessarily recommend it?

My RE said it was optional but not necessary (I’m unexplained, 33, never pregnant). I’ll be doing PGS if we have leftover embryos to freeze so I don’t have to go through the stress of worrying about miscarriage or abnormal first trimester tests due to chromosomal issues, and we want more than 1 kid and to pick the sex. 

funkykey

@suzycupcake - honestly, I wish I'd done PGS. Like PP have said, you can end up transferring some duds before you get to a good one. 

In my case, during my first ER, I was 33 and unexplained. We opted out because of the cost, but then we ended spending that on failed transfers, and all those failed transfers took about a year, for whatever reason. If I'd known we had lots of abnormal embryos sooner, I could have made different decisions, saved myself a lot of heartbreak, and moved forward sooner (with a higher AMH).

My experience (and @northbeach3 's) is pretty extreme though. Lots of women have more than 50% PGS normal embryos, especially when you're under 35. Just saying, if I could turn back time, I would have spent the money.

For our first cycle, we also did a combination of IVF and ICSI. My eggs fertilized just with IVF, but for this round, we just did ICSI. I just want the best chance possible, for me. 

As for the #4, that seems about right to me. Even if you get 15 eggs, the odds of them all being mature are pretty low - chances are a few will be immature and won't fertilize. 

I'd probably press him on the baseline, though. Unless he's already given you an U/S?

suzycupcake

Thanks ladies so much. I was having a freak out probably for no reason. A lot was coming at me at once today. My husband and I went to bed angry last night, my mom threw her back out and was in the ER, and I was just up to my ears in stress. ETA All is okay now. It’s so nice to be able to come here and ask questions from people who get it. 

I poured a glass of wine and have been meditating on the phrase big girl panties  

@funkykey He did one during our consult on 8/15. That date just happened to fall on cd3 at the time and I guess afc was 17. So I thought that afc can change as well as cyst formation from cycle to cycle. I will press him on that. The main thing is that I want to make sure I start stims safely. 

The only other thing that seems weird to me is saying pco patients have a hard shell as his reason for doing icsi. If there are no risks to the procedure as the coordinator said, then whatever. 

My main thing about embryos making it to blast or whatever is that he’s the one who chose frozen for us stating that he wants my body to calm down before a transfer. I worry about the discarding of embryos and how embryos are handled because I’m a Christian. A, I’d rather donate than discard and B. When does testing happen in relationship to embryos making it to blast or not? Does the waiting for them to make it to blast mean that a fresh transfer could’ve happened earlier and possibly prevent it not making it to blast?

C. Is there a risk of embryos dying during the thawing process?

These are things I feel I have to consider but I don’t know those answers or if I’m asking moot/meaningless questions because I don’t really understand the process. 

zamoraspin

@suzycupcake That is a lot of information to digest but I’m glad you’re getting answers to help you make decisions. 

On PGS I’m kinda biased like the other pp’ers - *TW I’m only doing IVF for the PGS testing. I don’t have trouble getting pregnant, but after 4 mc’s (one which we know was due to genetic issues, the others suspected) I just need a better chance at a BFP turning into a baby. end TW* There are definitely many people who do not do PGS and have success. Also, I know you said your doc said PCOS was misdiagnosed, but women with PCOS also often have egg quality issues. That said PGS is not a guarantee - sometimes even with PGS an embryo can fail to implant or can result in mc. It’s a very personal decision. 

My clinic requires ICSI to do PGS - otherwise there’s a risk of two sperm fertilizing one egg. I think most US clinics push ICSI pretty hard because the chances of fertilization and therefore the number of embryos you get is generally higher with ICSI. 

On the rates, again, you’re going to see a big drop off at each stage - not every egg will be mature, not every egg will fertilize, not every fertilized egg will make it to blast.

PGS testing is done on embryos that make it to the blastocyst stage of development which can happen on day 5,6, or 7. As discussed in this thread, most clinics let embryos that do not reach blast on day 5 go to day 6, some go to day 7. Clinic’s used to biopsy at day 3 but my understanding is that has fallen out of favor.

In terms of discarding I’m sure every clinic is different but I assume they all discard what does not grow and what stops growing - in other words, if there’s no capacity for life. If you do PGS most clinics will not let you transfer abnormal embryos. Some will let you transfer mosaics. Only you can know what you are comfortable with.

northbeach3

Re when embryos are tested:

my understanding is that the embryologist scrapes some cells from the outer ring (trophoblast cells) of the day 5/6 embryo and sends those cells off to test. They immediately freeze the embryos that will it be transferred so that they pause further development. You would need to tell your RE to test prior to your ER bc of timing. They start freezing once embryo makes it to blastocyst. 

Although I have heard of being able to thaw, scrape cells for PGS, then refreeze, it is rare and not recommended due to potential loss during thaw process. I wish this point was made more clear to me when given the option to PGS test. I figured I would do a fresh transfer and could test the frozen ones at a later date. My RE isn’t letting me do this due to risk of refreeze / thaw a second time. I think the biggest issue is that when you thaw, development “unpauses” and there’s greater risk that the development stops if not in optimal environment of your uterus. 

I don’t know if this is an option, but would have been curious to do a fresh (untested) transfer and then tested the rest that would be frozen. 

Another more rare possibility is transferring a day 3 embryo (untested). I’ve seen this method employed for women whose embryos show a pattern of arresting before day 5. The logic is that the embryo has a better chance of survival in the uterine environment compared to the Petri dish. 

suzycupcake

Thanks ladies. I really really appreciate all of you taking the time to respond with your experiences/knowledge. I pressed him on the ultrasound part and he again said no need for it. I'm just gonna forget about it in the name of stress reduction  

ETA I may not even end up having a September ER if af keeps acting like this. 

wishiwaspreggo

@suzycupcake stupid AF, wish she’d hurry up!! I’m sorry you’re still in limbo sounds like a lot of ladies gave you some good advice though.

So tomorrow morning is the moment of truth. I’m getting really nervous now... I have no idea how the embryos are doing. I told my wife I could feel them kicking around in there. She rolled her eyes at me. Anyway, if I could get some thoughts and prayers for at least a couple beautifully expanding blastocysts I’d be very grateful I want all this to be worth it in the end, and it will be if I get a couple chances from this attempt.

suzycupcake

@wishiwaspreggo Tell your wife she is to become a cabana girl during this. She should feed you grapes, fan your face, and validate your experience of embie kicking  

On a serious note, I'm hoping so hard for you friend. All the prays going up for you right now Deep breaths

laurenc52

@wishiwaspreggo thinking about you and sending lots of positive vibes to you for tomorrow! 

Bonniebonsall

@wishiwaspreggo Wishing you the best tomorrow, and sending lots of prayers your way! 

zamoraspin

@wishiwaspreggo GL tomorrow! Sending good vibes for beautiful blasts!

blackhottamales

@wishiwaspreggo sending you all the positive vibes!!

embryoman

@callingthestork Ideally embryos should blast by day 5 and compact/form a morula on day 4. If your embryo is still a morula at Day 6 it is significantly slower and this could indicate there's something wrong with it. I have seen morulas on Day 6 go to blast by Day 7 and it's nice to know some clinics carry embryos to Day 7, although at this point they are generally lower quality. Your clinic knows what's best for them however so go by their standards!

Send me a link to that article. The cells are not identical but the DNA should be (unless a mutation occurs or more likely an error during division). PGS I think is a good thing but only for specific situations. If you are having recurrent miscarraiges then it's good because you'd want to transfer embryos that are normal and less likely to miscarry. If you're older and more likely to have abnormal embryos, PGS. If you have a bunch of embryos and want to know which ones have the highest success then you might want PGS. If you want a certain gender, PGS. If you have a genetic disease, PGD. I'm not really a fan of people just doing PGS all the time. Sometimes I see people with donor eggs doing PGS. Typically donors are prime stock and should have a higher probability of making euploid embryos. But to each their own!

northbeach3

I’ve been following your invocell journey @wishiwaspreggo. I’m sending you good day 5 blasts!

are you doing an immediate transfer or PGS or freeze all? I forgot, how many do you have in there?  

funkykey

@wishiwaspreggo - sending you all my good vibes! FX!

@mkr_0128 - good luck tomorrow!!! FX for you too!! xox

@zamora_spin - good luck at baseline tomorrow!

@blackhottamales - how are you holding up?

How is everyone else doing? 

funkykey

AFM: All my six are still in the running. I'm not so hopeful that we'll have 6 at day 5 - I'm fully expecting a drop off. I'm just wishing and praying for one normal embryo, that's it.

I keep thinking about how different this cycle was than last. Last cycle, I was convinced I would end up with enough embryos to have not one, but two children. I guess that's the thing about being unexplained - without an explanation or any concrete odds, you can kind of let yourself dream a bit.

This cycle, I was going in with my eyes wide open - maybe too wide. I was terrified after all of my failed transfers, freshly diagnosed with my low AMH, and had in the back of my mind: "Wow, this may not work for you." It's super, super, super unfair - I've honestly done everything I could to have a family, and played it all (my life choices, etc), so safe. Yet here I am, childless, on a second round of IVF while the people I knew who weren't sure if they wanted kids, and made all sorts of different choices, are happily surrounded by their healthy babies. And I keep thinking: "Please, just one - ONE! - healthy embryo." 

At the clinic before the ER, we were waiting behind a curtain. There was another couple behind the next curtain, and we could hear them whisper fighting. The man was hissing at the woman: "Look, I am doing EVERYTHING I can to support you here!" so dramatic. DH and I started cracking up, because we'd had that exact same fight several times during IF treatment. On Sunday, we were both feeling pretty chill, but during previous treatments... I think he's actually said that exact phrase to me, and I was so angry (at the time) and pointed out like 4 things he could have done better. I almost wanted to reply for her: "I cannot believe you are making this about you and how hard it is for you right now."

Then the nurse came in and took the woman's blood pressure and it was off the charts. The nurse was like: "Oh, you must be nervous." Which made me laugh harder. I thought: "Nervous? She's livid." and thought about how mad I would have been with DH if he did something that jacked my blood pressure right before the ER. 

I hope it goes well for them, and I'm sure they were probably mortified if they heard us giggle. They just made me feel so normal, you know? Like: "At least we're not the only crazy fools here."

suzycupcake

@funkykey IF is so brutal. You've had a very long journey, full of heartache. Though the last part of your post was full of compassion, humor, and a beautiful marital love, I think that I hear you saying in the first part that this feels like some cruel punishment (re: played life safe and still haven't gotten a take home baby). I get that and it is unfair. One more day. We are all here cheering you on! I hope so hard that they all make it and that the PGS will give you just what you need to finally experience a success. Hugs  

mkr_0128

Thank you @funkykey! I'm hoping I get the call sooner than later to ease my mind!! 

I'm so glad to hear yours are still doing well! I hope this cycle brings you your long awaited healthy baby because you deserve it   

I totally agree that IF is unfair and cruel. Every day, at some point, I think to myself "why me?" Why us?" The IF journey has stopped us from experiencing other joys (primarily because I want to save every penny we have) and has led us to make very different life choices than we would have, had we not been going through IF. It's a hard pill to swallow when you look at it all. If I had a dollar for every time I felt sad, jealous, angry, frustrated, or cried over the course of our IF journey, I surely could have paid for AT LEAST a round of IVF! I know it will be worth it in the end for ALL of us, but the waiting and struggle to get to that point in the meantime can be pretty defeating. Just know you're not alone for feeling crazy!! 

mkr_0128

So I just got an email from a nurse, that the lab was able to freeze 3 embryos (ER retrieved 16, 16 were mature, and 14 fertilized). I have different emotions right now and I'm not sure what to think. I'm very grateful to have 3 because at one point I started to get worried I would have just one or none. On the other hand I can't help but be a little disappointed and surprised there wasn't more....? Then I'm also kinda glad there is only a few so hopefully those are the good ones that will work and I don't have to do a lot of trial and error through some not so good ones. She said to call or email if I had any questions, so I did call and leave a message. Last week I was told our lab was "very selective" with what they freeze, but she didn't say the quality of the ones left..

zamoraspin

@mkr_0128 I'm excited you have 3 really nice looking blasts but that is very understandable that you feel let down. It's such a rollercoaster. I think it's fair to ask about why there was such a drop-off. I also don't think what you're experiencing is that unusual, unfortunately, sometimes drs learn things through the IVF process about what might have been going wrong all along. 
@funkykey You've had such a long and difficult road. I really hope this cycle yields the embryo that becomes your take home baby. We haven't been at it quite as long as you or gone through IVF yet, but I totally hear you on adjusting expectations of family size. DH and I both really wanted to kids. We both grew up with siblings and long to give our offspring that experience. But we decided to go with an IVF option that makes having one take home baby the most likely outcome. Like, given my age we should pay for multiple cycles and bank, but I'm just so afraid we won't get any PGS normal, or that transfers will fail, so we went with the program that requires us to transfer all before moving to another retrieval but allows up to three retrievals. Realistically we've had to make the goal one baby, and worry about whether we will be able to have another child later, knowing we will be thankful and relieved to have a child at all. It just sucks to know people around you get to choose the family size they want easily. I heard a phrase on a podcast this week that clicked with me, some people have "fertility privilege", and some of us do not. 

AFM had my baseline scan this morning. AFC was 12 and we are good to start stims tomorrow night, pending estrogen level today. I have my meds and I'm glad we are getting going! The good thing is all you amazing ladies on this thread who are so far ahead can give me tips, lol. 

blackhottamales

@funkykey IF is definitely unfair.  And there are so many days I just want to break down and scream.  Thank you for sharing your story of the couple you overheard.  As heartbreaking it is for each of us individually, it is nice to know we are not alone, or crazy.  The fights, the stressors, the money, the hugs, the kisses, the tears...they are all part of our journey as we try to build our families.  FX for your fertilized eggs growing into embryos.  

@mkr_0128 Yay for your strong 3 embryos. thinking about you as we go through this next chapter of waiting.  

@zamora_spin yay! so exciting!

AFM:
I'm doing fine.  Trying to catch up on work because i was so distracted towards the end of last week and didn't really work Monday or Tuesday.  I'm still trying to keep my expectations low for Sunday's embryo report.  And then trying to not be impatient with the next waiting timeframe for CCS results.  

riathewolf

@mkr_0128 Feeling down is completely valid. Three is good though! All you need is one!

@funkykey Oh gosh I probably would have been laughing too. My husband and I keep getting into silly little fights but god he's been a trooper. He's done every shot for me, I'm very happy. And yet we seem to argue lol. I'm pretty sure it's all the hormones. This journey is something else. 

Quick update for me, follies at 15 mm. Adding Centrotide to the regimen today and I go back in for an ultrasound on Saturday. Crossing my fingers there is an end in sight soon. Because I am so bloated. I told my best friend I kinda "feel like a lizard" because I'm making so many eggs, and I think I scared her XD.  

funkykey

Thanks guys! All of this... it's just so scary, you know?

@mkr_0128 - Ah!!! Ok, on the one hand, I'm so happy you had some to freeze! But on the other hand, I'd probably be pretty upset about that too. 14 to 3 is a big drop. Hoping that at least one of them, if not all, are sticky!

@zamora_spin - DH and I are currently disagreeing about banking. He's tired of all of this, and we are broke, but I keep thinking, given my age and my results, maybe we should just do one more and try to bank? Then I think: "Just wait and see if you get an embie first. Don't get greedy." 

That phrase clicked with me too. Thank you for sharing!

@blackhottamales - Sunday is so soon!

@riathewolf - I love the lizard comparison! So smart!