Warning, some medical terminology!
Let me just first start off saying this…at times, I feel like this is a full time babysitting job. As a nurse, I should say that all medical personnel are smart, wonderful, and perfect, but it isn’t true. Most of us try our best, and for the most part I am pleased with the way things are going. As a patient though, I’m learning to be in charge of my own care…nurses hate patients like me So, between keeping track of the laboratory, the physicians’ orders, the nurses plans, the scheduling department, the insurance company, the pharmacy, and my own family’s calendar…it’s a full-time job some days! I’m not complaining….just appreciating the fact that I’m a little OCD and like to keep every one in line. The nurses create a color-coded calendar for each patient to follow for the process until they do a pregnancy test (for me that will be mid-November). Let’s just say there’s about 15 different colors telling me when to take certain meds, when to stop one and start another, when to have a test, and when to have my blood drawn, etc. It’s a good thing I have a calendar!
Almost two weeks ago I went in for my first blood draw and ultrasound. The insurance will pay for some of the blood work if I go to a LabCorp draw station instead of having it drawn at the hospital. It’s a pain, but I want to let them pay for what they will. The Dr had a list of 8 labs to run; several hormone levels, a Rubella and a Cystic Fibrosis screening. Then I headed to the U for the ultrasound. I was five minutes early, paid my fee, waited about three minutes, and the nurse took me back to the room. Shortest wait time ever! There are three physicians at the clinic. My primary physician is Dr Peterson. There is also Dr Johnstone and Dr Hammoud. I met with Dr Erika Johnstone and she was lovely…short, petite, and friendly. She had a medical student with her who looked terrified to be there. The ultrasound was quick, showed happy ovaries, that I was ready to begin the meds that day. That night I started the birth control pills and will take them through the first of October. Birth control seems a little backwards, but the purpose is to keep the hormones regulated for a while so science can do its thing. Basically the combination of InVitro meds is used to suppress the natural hormones and override them with additional hormones in order to produce the best quality of eggs at the right time and give the little embryos they create the best chance at survival. It’s a complicated process…hence the calendar
Five days later, I went back for another ultrasound and ‘trial transfer.’ This time Jerry was able to be with me. We again waited only a few minutes before being placed in a room. So far I’ve been impressed with their timing! We met Dr Hammoud and he too was pleasant and seemed very competent. He appears to be from India or some middle-eastern country. The three physicians work on a rotation basis and meet weekly to discuss the progress of each patient. So, although I have a primary physician, each will play a role in my care through out the process. The trial transfer is done to locate the exact place they wish to place the embryos after they’ve grown in the Petri dish for a few days. That won’t happen ‘till the end of October, but they want to have exact measurements and a plan. The ultrasound was a sonohystogram and is used to map the shape, size, and quality of the uterus to be sure it can support a baby. Apparently they thought it would be uncomfortable and gave me an 800mg dose of Ibuprofen right before, but in the end it was no big deal. Once again, things were healthy and fine…the story of our lives. We are so “normal” that we can’t have a baby…don’t get it. Anyway, we were in and out in 45 minutes. Jerry and I then enjoyed a nice breakfast in SLC together!
This past week I received my first injectable medications in the mail. If I get my meds from the University Hospital, I get a 10% discount…impressive…and they will also be able to send them to me in the mail if I can’t pick them up. I’ve been impressed with the pharmacy so far. The first injections are a medication called Lupron and I start it on September 25th. So, a few more days of just pill popping, then I start the 6 weeks of pills/shots. I feel like a druggie just thinking about it. I’ve warned everyone…if I become really grouchy in the next little while, it’s just the meds!
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