Trying to play catch up

 I finally chose to create this blog today after months of saying that I was going to create one. I initially wanted to try doing video blogs, but I am way too shy. My husband and I have been trying to conceive our first child for well over one year with no luck. I'm not sad about it at all. I am truly excited about what our future may hold. Here is an informal timeline of some of the things that have happened along the way.

April 2009- Annual pap smear, same problems, cramping and heavy bleeding. After complaining about cramps, I was given a vaginal ultrasound. The doctor stated that I had PCOS.

December 2009- My period decides to stay on for two months so I call the doctor. During the appointment she says "lets just watch it and come back in two weeks". Well I went back and was given a prescription for Prometrium and the bleeding never skipped a beat.

January 2010- After going back to the doctor, I was told to wait another two weeks for the bleeding to subside. After no success, I was given an appointment for a D & C for abnormal uterine bleeding.

February 2010- I had the D & C and shortly after, my period appears to be getting "back to normal". I was given a three month supply of Loestrin 24 birth control to build up the lining.

March 2010- Post-op appointment, everything looked fine.

April, May, June 2010- Normal period, taking birth control during these months.

July 5, 2010- I started my first round of Clomid. I was given the 50 mg to take on days 5-9. While taking the meds, I ovulated on the 19th and 20th day.

August 5, 2010- I took another 50 mg round of Clomid for days 5-9. I can really say that some of the listed side effects are so true.

Somewhere between August 10 and August 30, I came to the realization that I had not had any type of testing done. When I mentioned it to my doctor, she somewhat snubbed me and said "you have age on your side". This made me furious. So I began searching for a new doctor by using the yellow pages and other medical search engines. The doctor that I chose was someone that I heard of by a friend of a friend. I scheduled an appointment and went on August 30, 2010. I love my new OB/GYN. I never thought I could handle going to a male doctor, but its okay. My new doctor even returns his own patient phone calls! During my first visit, I was given a pap smear and the doctor told me that he would call me if the test came back abnormal. Well he did not call.

September 13, 2010- I had an HSG test and it showed that both of my tubes were open. The pain though......OMG! It hurt so bad! I would never recommend researching anything prior to doing it. I cried as I was getting undressed.  By the time the radiologist and gynocologist walked in, I was fine (dry eyes, no more tears). When it was time to lie down, I cried again and kind of pissed the doctor off. I said "if you don't cooperate, I'm going to reschedule you". I instantly came to my senses after thinking about losing my $100.00 copay. The test was over within five minutes and I went to work afterwards.

September 30, 2010- I had my follow up appointment for more detail of the HSG test. He stated again that my tubes were indeed open, but I am suffering from "unexplained infertility". He then went on to say that he will be referring me to a fertility specialist and once pregnancy is achieved, return back to him.

October 13, 2010- I had my first visit with the fertility specialist. The entire office staff were friendly. As for the doctor, I really liked him. He seemed to be VERY knowledgeable and had a great sense of humor. I met with the nurse and had my vitals taken. Then I went over a series of recommended tests for women that are trying to conceive. I accepted to have all the required tests for my race. I declined the chicken pox test. The doctor went over everything with me and spoke with me about my medical history. He they requested a sperm sample from my husband. The look on his face was priceless. I laughed and in the midst of my laughing, the doctor said "while he's getting his sample ready, I am going to examine you". I was so unprepared for a female exam. My cycle was present and I felt so uncomfortable. My husband then came back into the room and appeared to be mortified. The doctor then said, that I needed surgery to figure out what's going on inside of me. I instantly agreed to the surgery because I am willing to do whatever it takes to conceive. Eight vials of blood were filled and it was so draining. My surgery was scheduled for November 5, 2010 at 12:30pm.

October 14, 2010- I received a call from the doctor and he said that my husband's sperm count and motility were low. The count was 7 million and I don't remember right off what the motility was at this time. He was asked to produce another sample prior to my surgery.

October 27, 2010- My DH performed a sperm sample in the privacy of our home and rushed it to the clinic. I wanted him to wait until he arrived at the clinic, but he refused. The results of this test were that the sperm count was 45 million and the motility was at 28%. The doctor then recommeded my DH seeing a urologist and gave us a referral. The first appointment with the urologist is on December 3, 2010.

October 29, 2010- I traveled to the hospital to do post-op testing and registration. My copay was $100.00. Vitals were taken and the nurse discussed how to prep for surgery. Prior to leaving, I was given a sterile wipe to clean my stomach off with one day before surgery. This pad is used to decrease the chances of developing an infection. The wipe was extremely cold.