STIMS and Egg Retrieval

Stims- “Ovarian Stimulation” using fertility drugs to induce a woman’s ovaries to produce a significant number of egg-containing follicles.

Basically a LOT of injections, the box of medications is overwhelming! Also lets not forget that we are still in a pandemic and haven’t even met our doctor face to face, so we will be learning to mix and inject all these drugs from online videos. The first night was really scary we double checked everything about 100x but you get the hang of it quick. The injections didn’t really bother me, Dave gave me ONE injection and was fired immediately. Maybe it’s just me but the injections hurt way more when someone else does it and honestly I don’t need another reason to yell at that man. It’s the hormones, I promise. Bless him.

2/18/2021- 3 days after I stopped the birth control pills I called to start my cycle. I was instructed to come in the next day for bloodwork and ultrasound for the green light to start stims.

I want to post my chart just in case someone is starting IVF and is curious what to expect. Remember this varies for everyone. Over the next 10 days I had 4 monitoring bloodwork/ultrasound appointments. Later in the afternoon I would get a call to adjust my medications for that night. Here is the flowsheet of how the next 10 days went and the medication for MY protocol. I will also attach ultrasounds:

I was hesitant to share these charts only because I don’t want anyone to read this and compare cycles. I say this because that’s exactly what I did. After my first ultrasound I was told I had 4 follicles which instantly discouraged me, even though that’s good sometimes you see people in the group post about how they had 30+ follicles and it puts you in a tail spin. What I quickly learned is you have to trust your team and don’t be afraid to ask questions. You can’t compare your journey to anyone else’s.

2/28/2021- Last ultrasound looked good, we are up to 15 measurable follicles. I got the call this afternoon to take my “trigger shots” @ 11:30pm, this helps release those mature eggs as part of ovulation. 36 hours later will be my egg retrieval procedure. So this is great news, we are FINALLY here but I would be lying if I told you I was celebrating. I’m guessing it’s all the hormones but shortly after that phone call all I did was cry, don’t ask me why I just couldn’t stop. When I got home Dave asked me if something happened at brunch with the girls, I couldn’t explain it to him. All the feelings are happening. I am excited, scared, and anxious.

3/2/2021- EGG RETRIEVAL DAY. Our appointment was scheduled for 10:30, Dave would be able to walk me in only because he needed to supply a semen sample. This was the first time we were able to walk in together. We headed to registration and were instantly sent in different directions. I wouldn’t be able to see him again until discharge. My nerves were at an all time high, the nurse called me in and we signed a bunch of forms. Next thing I know I’m changing into a hospital gown and hairnet. They proceeded to start an IV and shortly after the doctor and anesthesiologist came in to go over the procedure. Around 12pm it was go time, I walked over to the procedure room and was strapped to the table. This is my first time EVER having surgery so my inner “Greys” fan girl was thinking some crazy shit (if you know you know). The anesthesiologist told me I would feel dizzy and that was the last thing I remember. Procedure was quick, I woke up around 12:30 high on life and wheeled into recovery. The nurse came in and delivered the news that they retrieved 15 eggs, I was thrilled with that number because not every follicle will contain an egg. I must have asked the nurse 10x how many eggs because well…drugs. She eventually wrote the number down for me (guessing this happens often). I will have to wait until tomorrow to find out how many are mature and how many fertilized. I was able to get picked up at 1pm and I felt great, I soon realized that those were just the meds still in my system. Around 4pm the fun I was warned about started, so it was an ibuprofen, stool softener, and heating pad kind of night. The pain felt like really bad menstrual cramps and lots of bloating, I took full advantage of “nurse Dave” for the next 48 hours.

3/3/2021- We received the call that 10 of our eggs are mature and 10 of them fertilized. We were told on average only 30 to 50 percent of our embryos would make it to the blastocyst stage (day 5). This chart helped me better understand this process:

So this is what I’ve been going back and forth about sharing, transfer dates. After 4 years of negatives and a loss, its tough to imagine good news. Unfortunately there is no guarantee in IVF and regardless of what the next months bring I know we can only grow stronger. I share to normalize open conversations about infertility even when its uncomfortable.

Next step is meeting with the embryologist and hopefully transfer. I will keep you all updated when we know more…