Pregnancy tests-At some point in most women's lives they find themselves peeing either in a cup or on a stick and then waiting for the little lines, plus sign, color change, etc. They will spend 3-5 minutes waiting for the test to develop with their fingers crossed. Some are hoping against the positive, others for a negative. No matter what outcome you're wanting the clock seems to stop while you stare at the test. This ritual can get very, very old for those hoping and praying for the positive sign. The longer you've been trying to get pregnant the more you want that test to come back positive. This gets even harder to deal with when your period decides to take a few days in showing up. So, this month that is where I was sitting, I patiently counted the days, and lo and behold, nothing. So I test, test, and test again and get negative, negative, and negative again. It is a very good thing that I found a website that has pregnancy tests dirt cheap!! At the local drug store they are 2 for around 10 bucks. I get them online for about $1.50 a piece. So, as you probably guessed, my cycle made a tardy appearance, so we are moving on with a new month in the quest to getting knocked up!
Last post, I mentioned a Reproductive Endocrinologist, or RE for short. The RE is a doctor that went to school and got certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology (OB/Gyn) and then went to further training and education in the study of infertility. This is the doc you'll call when you can't get knocked up on your own. I had been debating seeing one for a couple of months, and finally decided to bite the bullet and make the appointment. It is a very scary step because a lot of health insurance policies do not cover fertility treatments and fertility treatments can get VERY expensive. The top of the line procedure is IVF, In vitro fertilization. Everyone has heard of this one, where you take the sperm and the egg in a dish and let them get together and then implant the resulting embryo, early step in baby, and put it back in the momma's uterus. This procedure costs about ten grand for one cycle, and the results are not at all guaranteed, some clinics have higher pregnancy rates then others. There are of course a lot a other steps on the road to getting knocked up that aren't that extreme. There are also lots of different things to test. Most places will start out with a semen analysis (SA) to determine the sperm are good to go. We've been there, and hubby's boys are champs! So, this means that we have "unexplained infertility" where they kind find a reason, or I'm the problem.
So, we made the appointment and met with the RE, and I was scared to death, I mean, this is a big step, and I'm going to be counting this guy for a lot. The weekend before appointment we went out of town to visit my mom and dad to take my mind off the appointment and celebrate our wedding anniversary. The morning of the appointment comes and we head over to his office. We fill out tons of paperwork, provide proof of insurance coverage and met Beverly, our doctor's nurse. I LOVE HER! She was so kind. It was a much better impression the nurse at our OB's office who we overheard complaining, loudly and rudely about me being 5 minutes late to our appointment. Beverly took down my medical history, discussed what we have done so far, my current point in my cycle, and all that good stuff. Then we met the doctor. Rather then meeting in the exam room where no human has ever been truly comfy, we were invited to our doctor's office to talk. Dr. R is incredible! He talked with us about our history, the statistics of "normal" people getting pregnant, and a plan for getting us pregnant. We have our doctor's pager number and if needed, we can call him anytime. He also has a website where his patients can get information, and get to know him better. I couldn't be happier about the awesome doctor we have. I have a whole new hope now, and feel so much relief.
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