You are currently browsing the daily archive for September 28th, 2008.
Well…. I caved! I promised myself I wouldn’t do a home pregnancy test, but this morning I broke out the urine test that the clinic gave me.
Last night I was online reading the forums of other mums IVF experiences (again), and found a thread that appeared to have a lot of success stories for those undergoing their first cycle of IVF. Of course, it fed my need to improve my theoretical chances of being pregnant and one woman’s story in particular, had me enthralled. As I read on, I noted that she had done a home pregnancy test on the weekend before she was due to have her blood test… and received a BFP (as they say in the lingo, which means a big fat positive!). I kept reading her story (from Feb 2006, so there was an outcome) and she was definitely pregnant, and later found out… with twins! Now the thought of twins terrifies me, but the thought of NO baby terrifies me more.
So… this morning when I woke up, I didn’t really think too much about it, went to the cupboard and got the test, unwrapped it, and of course, it doesn’t come with instructions, so I filled a small container mid-stream, and held the end in for a few seconds. I saw a definite blue line appear, and another, very, very, very faint, blue line.
Then I decided to google what the results mean (haha nothing like doing things out of order, I still don’t know if I held the stick in the urine for long enough or anything).
My google search tells me:
POSITIVE Result for Pregnancy: Distinct color bands appear on the control and test regions. Presence of both test line and control line indicate that you are pregnant. The color intensity of the test bands may vary since different stages of pregnancy have different concentrations of hCG hormone.
NEGATIVE Result for Pregnancy: Only one color band appears on the control region. No apparent band on the test region. This indicates that no pregnancy has been detected. does not contain a detectable level of hCG and should be interpreted as a negative result.
So, I guess this tells me that I have a 50/50 chance of being pregnant as the test line is very, very, very, very, faint and could go either way.
Which leaves me in the exact same condition that I was in this morning before I took the test… I’m either pregnant… or I’m not.
(But I bet I buy another test when I’m out tomorrow and test again on Tuesday morning to see if that line has gotten any darker!)
Third (and second last) Pregnly injection tonight, and it only hurt a little bit (yup, just after yesterday’s post… but still didn’t bring any tears or anything). Not going in, I’m getting used to that, but this one ached a little in the injection region when I stood up to throw the rubbish from the needles in the bin. Nothing to worry about though, my eyes are still on the bigger prize.
It’s my second Pregnyl injection tonight (well, third if you count the booster shot I needed to have to help the Ovidrel do it’s stuff before my egg retrieval procedure.
Seriously, these injections haven’t really hurt at all – and I have a low pain threshold, and I don’t like needles. I read a lot (and I mean A LOT) of blogs and forum posts and most women talk extensively about how uncomfortable everything is, and how much the injections hurt, and how much the syneral spray gives them headaches, and so on and so on…. and I’ve really not been put out at all.
Gee, I hope this is a sign that I will have a trouble free pregnancy (can’t really hope for a trouble free baby, or a trouble free toddler, or a trouble free teen, so I will stick with hoping for a trouble free pregnancy).
Well, that was quite a simple procedure really, considering it’s importance.
I arrived at the Clinic at 12 noon after drinking a litre of water around 11am and then hold it in my bladder… and I was uncomfortable! I got to the Lab around 12.15pm and then had to wait in the waiting room until about 12.35pm. Then my Doctor called me in, where I saw the Embryologist hovering over what appeared to be a humidi-crib. I asked her how my embryo’s were, and if they had behaved themselves over the weekend. She said they had been great, as I got up on the chair. Above me was a TV screen with fish on it, obviously meant to relax me. Then the Embryologist put the 2 embryos up on the screen, and showed me what they looked like.
She told me that they were clustered and she couldn’t make out how many cells they had, but there were at least 6 to 8, which was perfect.
This procedure itself is straightforward, and only slightly uncomfortable. The embryos are placed in a small amount of fluid inside a catheter, which the Emb handed over to the Doctor once she had opened up my cervix. She then inserted the catheter directly into my cervix, and we waited a moment while the Emby checked the catheter under a microscope to ensure that they were placed. And that was it! Stand up, get dressed, and finally, I get to pee!
I went next door and got myself a urine pregnancy test, along with a pathology blood test form… they gave me two… one to get a blood test on Friday 3 September 2008, which is early… and may not show anything, and one for Tuesday 7 September 2008, which is the day after the public holiday. The Clinic will call me on Friday afternoon to let me know if I need to go back for the second test on the Tuesday.
My period is due on Saturday 4 October 2008, so they say I should test on the Monday 6 October if I don’t get my period. Because that day is a public holiday… I have the good old-fashioned urine test to try at home, but I’ve been pre-warned by the Doctor to not get discouraged if it’s a negative… because the only true test is the blood test.
