Monday, July 26, 2010

For My Next Trick

I'm back! I had a great visit with my BFF, and I'm home. I REALLY don't want to go back to work.

*sigh*

Anyhow... we had our follow-up consult with the RE last week. We're changing things up! Once this "resting" cycle is over, we'll be starting injectibles.

Whoa. For realz y'all.

The RE was still confident that Clom.id would eventually do the trick, but also agreed that we would be smart to step up the game. So we're switching to Go.nal-F plus Ovid.rel. He mentioned the increased chances at pregnancy (10% increased to 20%) and the increased chances of multiples (again 10% increased to 20%). It also means a lot more monitoring, so more time out of the office.

And shots. I'm such a wuss. *shudder*

We sat with a nurse and got the run-down on the injections, plus a little practice kit so we could familiarize ourselves with the injector. We played around with the demo pen for while. Seems pretty simple. She also gave us samples of a new alcohol swab from Walgr.eens that has a mild anesthetic in it. Apparently, other patients have been reporting good things about these new swabs. I'm game!

The nurse will sort out the pre-authorizations and order the meds for me. I just have to call the pharmacy this week to arrange for the delivery (and find out how much it will cost).

Anyone else who has used this same protocol out there... what side effects (if any) did you notice?

6 comments:

  1. I haven't done IUIs on Gonal F, but I've used it in both my first IVF and my current IVF cycle. If you can use the Gonal F pen it's super super easy and the needle is tiny -- I barely feel it. It has the least side effects of any of the meds I've used in my 3 years of TTC.

    Ovidrel will be the trigger shot, and it's also very easy -- preloaded pen and fewer side effects than the other kinds that you mix. I used it with IUI cycles but my IVF doc prefers the kinds you mix.

    I use the alcohol wipes with benzocaine, and they work well. If you're really nervous, use ice for 2-3 minutes, then wipe with the alcohol wipe. I typically don't ice now (and I do my own shots -- but my husband did them for a couple of IUI cycles last year).

    Exciting stuff! Good luck!

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  2. Hi there! I'm currently on CD9 of my second cycle of Gonal + Ov. trigger + IUI. I haven't had any side effects except *maybe* fatigue (it's always hard to tell the cause of that though). Best of luck, and let me know if you have questions.

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  3. I did Follistim plus Ovidrel. I am a former needle-phobe to boot. Basically on the 2nd day I did the injection myself. By the third day I was an old pro. By the end I was flipping that injection pen like I was Tom Cruise in Cocktail. Its truly NO BIG DEAL. Also, I know that Gonal-F and Follistim are very similar and I had NO side effects except a mild headache which acupuncture completely fixed for me. Good Luck! I think its a great idea!

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  4. I had no side effects from Gonal-F. I know it's scary when you start injectables, but if they do the trick, it will be soooo worth it.

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  5. I've never used it, but good luck! Starting a new protocol is always a little exciting...in a fucked up kind of way.

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  6. I know the injections are scary at first, but trust me...it's not that bad and gets exponentially easier every time you do it. I agree with Kelly, a new protocol is exciting and I got a weird pleasure out of injecting myself knowing that it was doing "something." Good luck!

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