Walking into that appointment, I was more nervous for the ultrasound than I have been so far this round. I knew that yesterday's count was going to be fairly definitive on how this cycle would turn out. By this point, I have learned, if you aren't seeing the follicles, they probably aren't coming.
The ultrasound showed 2 follicles growing ~7-9mm on the right ovary, and 4 follicles ~5mm each on the left side. Estrogen levels are rising as expected, and instructions were to keep on with the same routine until Wednesday morning's check. The key for Wednesday will be if the left side 4 can catch up a bit better with the right side 2.
As of 7:30 this morning, I'm officially 42 injections into this round 3. Of the 42, 8 have occurred during conference calls, 2 have occurred at a restaurant, and 2 have occurred at an Astros game. Not that we are becoming exhibitionists with our shot routine...just trying to have some semblance of normalcy whilst going through this round.
Most importantly, I feel more relaxed about this round. Regardless of the amount of stress I inflict on myself, the round will likely produce the same result, stressing more just makes the path to the outcome more difficult to bear. Round 3 started off with a "it will be what it will be" mentality, and while I've found myself straying from that path for a few brief tearful bouts with fear and hormones, for the most part I have stayed steady. Going any further toward hopeful still seems foolish and emotionally risky. However, seeing the ultrasound count from yesterday looking more promising than round 2 is definitely making it easier to stick to the low-stress path, but the hopeful high road will have to wait...maybe until we have enough eggs to move toward transfer.
Tomorrow's check will help better forecast when the retrieval might be, though probably not precisely. Right now it could be anywhere from Friday to early next week, depending on the growth of the follicles and stability of my estrogen levels, and we could have anywhere from 2-6 follicles to retrieve.
Follicles can grow anywhere from 0.5-2mm per day on average. Ideally, tomorrow's scan shows my little 4 on the left catching up with the bigger 2 on the right. If the bigger 2 continue to outpace the smaller 4, we might not get all 6 to the right size for the retrieval and be forced to settle for fewer. We want them all to be in the 15-22mm in diameter range (0.6-0.9 inch) to go to retrieval. This size range ensures that the eggs inside of them are mature, fully nourished, and have the best chance for successful fertilization. Before this size, they are likely premature, and beyond this size, they are likely post-mature / too old. My RE is the Goldilocks and my follicles are the porridge...he wants as many of them as possible to be "just right".
No comments:
Post a Comment