IVC - Part 1 or what's been going on in my life the last few weeks...

And now the moment you've all been waiting for.... I present to you...The Whole Story-IVC Study

This is from my journal that I started after finding out about the study so each day is who I was feeling that day.

Tuesday, February 21, 2006
The Article - Where it all started...
It all started with this article. I was intrigued and forwarded it to my two friends & thought to myself that I'd talk to Eric about it that evening. A few minutes later I got an e-mail from Eric forwarding me the link to the article. A few minutes after that my friend Danialle replied and told me to find out how to get involved in the study. I called Eric and we talked about it. I made him call the clinic to find out details of how to get involved because I was at work. He called me back and gave me the link for the study details. He said I should look over it, make sure I meet the criteria, then call to make an appointment for a consultation. We met all of the criteria except a few, but I decided to call anyway. I got voicemail, left my information and waited for them to call back.

That afternoon, I got a call back from G. She is the coordinator for this study. We went over a few things like the study criteria, etc. I told her that there were a couple of things we either hadn't had done or where out of date and she said that it was not a big deal, that they would just need them to be done before we could be included. She told me they were taking 15 patients for the study, plus 5 and a waiting list of 5. (This was a bit confusing and still is, but I went with it.) I asked her if essentially I'm #7 on the waiting list and #22 on the actual list. She said yes. This scared me a bit and I knew having 7 drop out of a group of 15 was a long shot, but it was worth it to us. She asked me when we were available for a consultation and we settled on February 28.

Tuesday, February 28, 2006
The Consultation
I took the whole day off work. I had therapy that morning and then we headed to Indy. I was so nervous that I couldn't eat breakfast. I had hot chocolate, then stopped at Star*buck's for a mocha. My stomach was in knots. We realized after we left the house that we left the address and directions at home, but thought we would be ok as we were pretty sure we knew where it was. We stopped at Olive*Garden for lunch, then headed to Indy to find the office. As soon as we found them, we hit the bathrooms, located where we needed to go and then had an hour before our appointment. We drove around the neighborhood as it's a real ritzy one. Finally it was time to head back.

When we got there I checked in at the receptionist. The look on her face had me worried. She asked me if I was a study patient and I told her I talked to G last week and set up this consultation for today. She told me G had to go to the other office for an emergency, but she'd call her. By this time I was getting mad. She asked me how far we had driven and I told her an hour. Finally she got in touch with G, who confirmed my appointment and told her that one of the nurses could go over everything with us. RELIEF! She gave me a bunch of stuff to fill out. I was upset because it asked all these questions that I didn't have the answers to. I had asked G last week if I needed to bring anything and she said no, so I wasn't prepared. I filled them out to the best of my knowledge and figured we could get the other information later. I handed it back in and shortly thereafter the nurse called me.

Nurse A took us back to this little room and we started going over all the criteria. The tests we needed to get done to be included are as follows:

* Day 3 FSH and E2 Blood Work
* Negative Cervical Cultures for Gonorrhea & Chlamydia, which they said I should have done at my March 1 pap
* Semen analysis - By their specific lab because of strict criteria
* Uterine Cavity Assessment by hysteroscopy - Could be done in their office
* Negative Wet Prep or Cervical Culture for Bacterial Vaginosis - Could be done in their office
* Normal Baseline Pelvic Ultrasound - Could be done in their office

We went over the exclusion criteria, which we passed with flying colors. They mentioned that they liked that I was young, making me wonder if I was the youngest person interested. Next was a short explanation of the procedure. It was basically IVF with a twist. The twist was the little device they put inside you for 3 days to allow fertilization rather than fertilizing the egg in a Petri dish. We went over the drugs I'd be on (Gonal-F, Cetrotide, Ovidrel, Crinone 8% Progesterone Gel). Then we chatted briefly about some other things like the opportunity to freeze the left over embryos for future, acupuncture, etc. Finally we got the meet Dr. B.

Dr. B was a nice man, funny even. He joked about our names, of course asking us what we planned on naming our kids. He showed us the device and went over in a little greater detail exactly what the procedure entailed. They retrieve 10 eggs, which are put into the device with sperm & media. They put the device inside you for 3 days then remove it & compare all the embryos and transfer the best 2 back into you. The study started in January and they have performed it on 2 people so far. He said what they are finding is that the embryos are thriving better inside the body as opposed to in a lab. Basically because with them being inside you they are at your body's constant temperature and are exposed to your own body's gases. Then he said something that nearly made my heart stop... They were taking 20 patients and could even get a few more spots later. G had told me last week that they were only taking 15, so I was super excited. Also 2 patients had already been eliminated.

Could we now be within the 20???

Finally the meeting was over. Nurse A told me G would be calling me the next day, Wednesday, to go over a few more things with me. They would schedule the semen analysis and the UTA, culture, and U/S. Then all we would be waiting on would be the Day 3 FSH & E2.

We left there on cloud 9! We had such a positive feeling from the whole appointment. It's still a waiting game, but we feel like we are much closer. We sort of feel like if all our tests come back and we are included then we'll be just that, included, as opposed to being on the waiting list.


Wednesday, March 1, 2006
Phone Call to G
Nurse A had told me that if I hadn't heard from G by the afternoon to call the office. So about 1:45, I couldn't wait any longer and I called. Apparently G had to stay in the other office an additional day and wouldn’t be back in the Indy office until Thursday. I said that was fine, that I understood and that I would just wait for her call on Thursday. No big deal.

The Pap
Ironically enough I had this scheduled before the study happened and it worked out perfectly. I got right in to see Dr. S without waiting too long. The nurse took my weight and blood pressure and asked me if there was anything more I need to discuss with the doctor. I promptly said I needed to get the Gonorrhea & Chlamydia test and a culture for Bacterial Vaginosis. I'm sure her first thought was that I had been "exposed", so I told her that I was involved in a study and that they needed this done. She just said ok, told me to get undressed and the doctor would be right in. She was right. I didn't sit on the table, but maybe 2 minutes before Dr. S was in. (I knew I liked this doctor!) He asked me the reasoning for those additional tests and I explained what was going on. He said doing them was fine. He asked if this was the study with Dr. B and I immediately grew excited because he knew about it. Woohoo! He seemed to think it was a good thing. I also told him that I would be calling when my period starts again to schedule the Day 3 FSH & E2 tests needed. He did my pap and the tests and said the culture looked fine and I was on my way.

Phone Call with G
The home phone rang shortly after 8 pm. I was on my cell phone. I hear Eric talking and I assume it's a family member, but then he comes in and says it's Dr. B's office. I end my cell phone call and grab the phone. G said that she got the impression that I was expecting a call from her today, Wednesday. I explained that yes, Nurse A had said she would call, but that when I called and found out she was still at the other office, I just figured she'd call on Thursday. It was not a big deal. She proceeded to go over everything with me. First things first, Eric needed to get a semen analysis from their specific lab because they have strict criteria. I told her he would call first thing Thursday morning and schedule it for Monday or Tuesday of next week because we hadn't had intercourse recently. As we were going over the other stuff I mentioned my laparoscopy that I had done last April. She wants me to call Thursday morning and find out if they checked inside my uterus as well as this is common in most laps. If they did check it then I need to get that information faxed to their office. If they didn't, then after Eric's semen analysis comes back ok we need to schedule a hysteroscopy next week to check. They would basically shoot fluid into my uterus and do an ultrasound to make sure I'm fine. Prior to the hysteroscopy we would need to use protection when we have intercourse. I nearly fell over when she said this. In 2 1/2 years I've never been told to use protection! ha ha ha I obliged though. After that then we wait for my period to show. As soon as my period shows I call their office, go in for blood work on Day 2 to check my FSH & E2 and if those come back fine I would start the drugs on Day 3. I sorta freaked at this point. I said "So we are in if Eric's analysis comes back fine and my uterus is fine?" She said yes, that they were now taking 20 and I was on the list. Holy crap! This means I could be starting as early as the end of MARCH! We are already in the month of MARCH! She said that if I go in on Day 2 and my FSH isn't where they want it to be then I still have another chance when I start my period at the end of April. Oh My God! She said she'd talk to me tomorrow after I found out about the lab and my uterus and we'd go from there.

Then the phone rang again. It was G. She said she forgot to ask me the most important thing... "Why were we doing this?" I sat there speechless thinking isn't the reason obvious? We want to get pregnant! She must have sensed it because she said what she meant was if there was a reason for us not getting pregnant in the past. Oh! I said no, that we were considered "unexplained" that they had done some testing on us and did find mild endometriosis, but otherwise there was no reason why we weren't getting pregnant. She said good and told me she'd talk to me tomorrow.

After I got off the phone I freaked. I was so excited, yet guardedly optimistic. We still have a few tests to go through before we are actually IN, but we are even closer now! I think things will be on our side and allow us to go through this. Even if we don't get pregnant we are part of a HUGE clinical trial that is so amazing in itself. Of course I do want a child out of this, don't get me wrong.

Thursday, March 02, 2006
Collecting Information and Making Appointments
Eric called and got his semen analysis set up for Monday, March 6 at 9:00 am.

I called Dr. S's office to find out when they did my laparoscopy last April if they also checked the inside of my uterus (hysteroscopy). I was fairly certain they hadn't, but needed to confirm. As I suspected they had not checked the inside.

So I called Dr. B's office to let them know the details of Eric's appointment and schedule a hysteroscopy for me. G said the results usually take 3-5 days, if I haven't heard anything by March 9 then to call her and she'd call to find out the results. If the results are good we could schedule my hysteroscopy for next Saturday, March 11.

Panic sets in with Eric because Dr. B's office said that two couples had already been eliminated due to semen analyses. That's why they are waiting on his results before they do the hysteroscopy on me. I don't think he has anything to worry about though.


Monday, March 6, 2006
The Semen Analysis
9:00 am – Eric went for his semen analysis. We should have the results in 3-5 days & definitely by the end of the week. G told me to call on Thursday if we hadn't heard from her yet, hopefully she'll call on Wednesday though!

Therapeutic Massage
I scheduled a massage in hopes of de-stressing myself a bit and helping to pass the waiting game away. It was great! She really massaged all of my tension spots. So much in fact, that my shoulders were actually sore after my massage. The rest of my body felt great though.

Tuesday, March 7, 2006
Wellness Screening
Had to go for a wellness screening at work at 7:45 pm. Work is offering this wellness screening and health assessment incentive. Just for doing both they send you a $100 check. Same goes for Eric. He had a complete physical last fall for his so we just had to call for the results. We are still waiting. My screening went well. My HDL was right on the line and I can increase that to a "normal" level by exercising a little more and eating more fruits and veggies. I thought I was already doing this, but I guess I'll do more. Overall I'm in good health though. Woohoo!

Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Call from G - The Results
Shortly before 4 pm my cell phone rang and I realized it was Dr. B's office. Wow, a day earlier than I expected! I answered and it was G. They had got Eric's results and everything was fine with him. Next step was to get me in for the hysteroscopy. I told her Saturday, March 11 would work best for us so I wouldn't have to miss work. We had already planned on this day anyway. She said it would be Saturday morning, but she would call tomorrow with a specific time. I'm so excited! This was definitely an early birthday present for me! Yay!

Pedicure
Scheduled a Pedicure again to de-stress me a bit and help pass the waiting game away although since we got good news this afternoon I have a little relief. Now I just have to fret over Saturday's appointment. Now I can have pretty toes when I'm up in stirrups. ha ha ha I don't like feet, so I'd much rather let someone else pretty them up than have to do it myself and during the spring & summer (or in stirrups...) when I'll be showing them off it's even a better reason!

Thursday, March 9, 2006 - My Birthday!
Happy Birthday to Me!
Today I turned 27 years old. I don't feel old, so to speak, just a little older.

Call from G - Time Scheduled
G called late in the afternoon and let us know that we should be there at 10:30 am on Saturday for the hysteroscopy and ultrasound.

Saturday, March 11, 2006
Hysteroscopy & Ultrasound
We arrived at about 10:10 or so. Eric stopped off at the restroom and I stood outside and took deep breaths. I had to have a partially full bladder so no restroom for me. I was so nervous!!! When we got upstairs there was a sign on the receptionist's window that said come on back, so we did. We finally got to meet G in person. She told us to have a seat in the consultation room and she'd be right in. Thankfully she eased my nerves because she came in and we started going over some stuff since she hadn't actually met with us yet. We were a little overwhelmed because there is some out of pocket expense. We knew of only the acupuncture expense. We found out that we have the cryo (freezing of remaining embryos) expense. They do not destroy embryos, which we found to be great news. Of course we'll have a storage fee and we can use them either for ourselves in the future or we can donate them. Also if I produce more than 10 eggs, we have the option of fertilizing those (above the 10 for the device) regularly in a petri dish and freezing the resulted embryos. We went over some stuff I needed to do this week. I have to call my doc and have my recent pap results sent to them with the G/C culture results. Also Eric & I have to get some blood work done to make sure neither of us has HIV or an infectious disease. Not major stuff, just routine I suppose.

Finally we were ready to do the hysteroscopy, which was a b-r-e-e-z-e! It was fast and painless and my ute was perfect. We talked a bit more and G said to call her on CD 1 and we were on our way.

I wasn't really sure what to say when we left. I was so overwhelmed that this is actually happening now. We've spent the last few weeks preparing for this moment, what with all the tests and documents, etc. and now we are basically clear to start the cycle as soon as I start my period! I think I'm going through all of the emotions right now. The money freaked me out and I was scared Eric would say that we just couldn't afford it. It isn't that much, in fact it's less than we would pay for an IUI, but Eric was totally on board though and we are both extremely excited about it.

Monday, March 13, 2006
Call to Dr. S - Records and Blood work
Called Dr. S's office and we get to go in today. I, of course, have to fill out some forms to give consent for them to send my records to Dr. B's office. We are also able to do our blood work there and have that sent over with the other documents. Hopefully that will be a little better for insurance purposes.