Go Wild and Have a Party

Today I went to the doctor for a baseline ultrasound and an injection lesson. For the ultrasound, they had one of the junior doctors do it, with the guidance of my regular doctor. Her technique was kind of weird, and so it was hard to see what was going on. My regular doctor is very predictable, and does it the same every time, so it's always easy to tell what you're looking at. My left ovary had a bunch of antral follicles, but because of the jumbo one on my right last time, there wasn't much going on on the right side this time. The right ovary really looked more like a gray pile of mush to me. So the left will likely be the star performer this time, but who knows, since I haven't started stims yet. I start stims tonight. I'll be using the Follistim Pen. I will do 75IU for two days, then 50IU for one day, then on Friday I will go in for E2 levels, and another ultrasound so they can tell what dosage to give me for Friday and the weekend. I knew that because of the PCOS, the doctor would want to be careful on the dosing, but this morning the exact words that came out of her mouth were, "We're going to take this slow, and go with a low dosage, because you're 25, and your ovaries are scary. We don't want them to go wild and have a party." She has often remarked that I have enough antral follicles to supply the entire office.

After the ultrasound I got an injection lesson, where I practiced injecting a lump of fat-like material. It was easy, but pretty gross. On the first try, I forgot to quit pinching the "fat" before I pulled the needle out, and the fake meds squirted out of the "fat" all the way across the room, out the door, and across the hall. The nurse and I laughed until we cried. It was so hilarious. The Follistim Pen seems fairly easy to use. I don't forsee any problems. The pharmacy that the meds came from was the Apothecary Shop in Phoenix, AZ. The meds were packaged well, and arrived exactly when they said they would, and there was no charge for the overnight shipping, sharps container, or alcohol pads. The only charges were my insurance copays for the actual drugs. They were fast and friendly when I talked to them on the phone, and I would highly recommend them to anyone else.

Well, I'm off to watch election coverage. I voted last week, and I am anxious for all of this election crap to be done with. If you haven't voted, do so. There's still a little time, depending on your location.

A Whirlwind Day

We went to the initial consult at the fertility clinic today. It was storming and traffic on MoPac was at a standstill. I was only 10 minutes late, and I got chastised by the doctor for it, because she and her other patients do *not* like to be kept waiting. She will from here on be known as Dr. Punctual (unless she does something to merit a different name). There wasn't a soul in the waiting room, and when I tried to call to let them know that I was on my way, but running a little behind, of course I couldn't get a real human to answer the phone. She either needs to give lessons to other doctors in punctuality, or pull the stick out of her ass. I'm so used to waiting for long periods of time in doctor's offices that I didn't think it would be a problem. So anyway, we did the interview/consult, and here is the tenative plan of action: I have to get Brad in to the doctor for a checkup on his diabetes, cholesterol, and blood pressure. He will also have to have a semen analysis, and he will have to quit smoking. Dr. Punctual wanted me to have a couple of labs drawn, to start with, and to make sure I am not pregnant already. Then I will start taking Provera to start my cycle, then 100mg of Clomid, since we already tried 50mg with Dr. Adonis. She will monitor me for a good response, and if the response is not satisfactory, I will immediately start Provera again, and move to 150mg of Clomid. If the response is good with either dosage, we get ovulation predictor kits, and make like rabbits. If the response is just mediocre, we consider higher dosages or extended dosing times. If there is no response, we move on to injectable stims. It sounds like a reasonable course of action, with acceptable expediency. Speed is definitely a factor, since I will be off during the summer, but when school starts again, it will be much harder to do all of this.
After we got through with the appointment, we went to St. David's for the lab work. We had to wander all over to get to the lab, but once we got to the lab, I was in and out within 10 minutes or less, and the service was exceptional and friendly.
Then went to the Social Security Administration, at 9th and San Jacinto. I was so proud of myself to have remembered where it was. We walked in the door, only to find out that the SSA moved about three years ago, and is no longer at 9th and San Jacinto. How annoying. It moved up near I-35 and St. John's. I will say one thing, the new building is a huge improvement from the old one. Gone are the two little service windows and wall fans to try to blow away the odor from the crush of humanity. Instead, there are 24 service booths (with chairs, even) to serve your needs. There is modern air conditioning, adequate seating, and color television, all topped off with a pleasant feeling of cleanliness. I still had to wait for 45 minutes, but that's better than 3-4 hours in the old location. I officially got my name changed (almost 2 months after the wedding), and I didn't have to argue with a single person. The man doing the change was even friendly.
After that we went to the building supply place that once was Calcasieu and got a quote for the materials to replace the fascia boards on the outside of the house before we paint. They were mostly knowledgeable, and completely friendly. The quote was for $600. Then we went to the bank and got a check for $600, with which to purchase said materials. The bank was efficient as well.
Then we went to DPS and I changed my name and address on my driver's license. I even got fast, friendly service there.
Last, we went to my bank and deposited some money in my account. Hopefully my employer will deposit some money in my account tomorrow, and then the government will deposit some more money in said account on Friday.
Overall, we had a whirlwind day, in which we accomplished much, received exceptional service from all parties involved, and nobody pissed me off. Talk about a success. About the only thing that would make it any better would be for the fertility clinic to call and say, "Stacy, all of that was for nothing. According to the lab, you're already knocked up. Go ahead and schedule an appointment with your regular OB/Gyn." Wouldn't that be nice? But knowing my luck, I'll just have to settle for the pint of Blue Bell in the freezer.