Spring 2009 DE babies join here!

(186 posts)(20 voices)
  1. Let's gather together all the folks due sometime in the spring with DE babies.

    i\'ll introduce myself- pilma- i am 46 and have two sons- one 18 years old and away at college and one 15 months old from DE. i am pg from an FET and due April 18.

    Some of our August cycle buddies got postponed to sept, but i want to keep in touch, so our due dates are pretty broad here.

    hope you'll join me


  2. Hi pilma--

    I\'d like to join in. I'm holding off on telling most people that I'm pregnant (except DH and here of course ) until I hit the first trimester b/c I still realize that things might not work out. With the exception of the spotting (which seems to have stopped) I feel pretty good-- which of course, is pretty lucky. I'll be glad to get back to my usual routine however b/c I was on bed rest most of last week.

    Anyway not much time right now but I wanted to say "hello"

  3. I'de love to join. I am "older" as well, 45 years, and am due on March 6th but will deliver the end of February since I will have a c-section. I have 5 year old b/g twins who are de, but this baby is de/ds. We did two other cycles before this cycle to get pregnant with de and my dh's sperm. The last bfn, the doctor said he think we might have a sperm issue as well. Since this was going to be our last cycle, we did de/ds to increase our chances of success and we succeeded. We did a shared de cycle (21 year old donor) and our sperm donor was 20 as well. We had 7 "beautiful" blasts on our 5 day transfer and only transferred one and now have 6 blasts in the freezer (trying to figure out what to do with these). My children are so happy that we are having another baby, my dd is constantly rubbing my belly and talking to the baby. We did our nuchual fold sonogram and chance of downs was 1 in 8500. I know pilma you had said since you did donor you didn't need this but my ob (high risk), told me to do it. We have our anatomy u/s Oct. 1st at around 18 weeks. How is everyone feeling. I feel like sh*t most of the time. I usually (OK, every waking moment), LOVE food and nothing now tastes good. I have this constant sick, nausea feeling and feel headache-ish often. My doctor, who is out of an excellent NYC hospital and is high risk, said she would do a VBAC if I choose to. Does anyone have any opinions about this option? Part of me says to just do the c-section again but then I remember that feeling of being chopped in half!!! I actually do not like taking medication, so after my c-section, I only took motrin. Some of the nurses thought I was nuts. Sorry for rambling on. Nice to meet you all. Linda

  4. Hi, Toby and welcome, Linda. Linda, i feel like cr@p almost all the time- and it is a challenge w/ a 15 month old around. dh seems to suffer from compassion fatigue- he'll ask- what does it feel like? and i'll say it's like having a stomach virus and fatigue all the time- and for a couple days, he'll pick up some slack, then he'll forget. i had a cold over the weekend- boy did that make it even worse that's mostly better, so dh thinks i'm recovered. men!

    we are considering getting an au pair, and having her start before the baby is born- maybe feb- so B is used to her and i can get some help during those ponderous times. but i'll probably take 6 mos maternity leave and will feel guilty paying an au pair that whole time.... definitely feeling my age here.

    i have had 2 vag births, so can't say much about c secs, but i was amazed at the easy recovery both times. first time, i was 28, and i felt 100% the next day. second time definitely slower and i had to take some motrin, but feeling like myself within a few days or so. with B, he was breech up until 37 weeks and it was looking like a c sec for me, and i actually went to a chiropractor (scared to death!) to get him to turn vertex so i could have a vag del. which he did (turn that is) and i did (vag, that is). so if it were me, i'd definitely give it a go.

    have a great day, ladies. if you're bored, go read the vicious threads on politics under parents off topic. ouch


  5. Hi pilma and Linda

    Re: pregnancy symptoms: I considered myself somewhat lucky b/c I've had no m/s and really only minimal side effects but I feel a bit fatigued-- like I have the beginning of cold or something. This could also have to do w/ the fact that for some odd reason (what the h-ll was I thinking?!!) I agreed to write a paper so I've been spending some late nights up until 2am. I also find myself a it short-tempered. I don't know if that's just me being grouchy, b/c of the hormones or what. I just find that lately I have a low tolerance for bs and I just want to be at home and do non-work related stuff.

    Linda-- you had twins. I am at 7 weeks today and last week at the first ultrasound they said that there were 2 embryos. One was ~50% smaller than the other so the doc wasn't sure if the small one would make it. Anyway, (and this is going to sound really lame) but being that despite years of trying to get pregnant and having absolutely no success whatsoever I was a bit surprised that both embryos took. I guess after so many BFNs I was doubtful that things would work even on this cycle. Anyway it kind of scares me a bit b/c I don't have any experience with even having 1 baby-- let alone 2. I don't want to mess things up! So, long story short, I am fabulously excited and happy about being pregnant but I feel a little bit like I went from 0 (over a period of 3 years) to 120 (within 1 week) in terms of getting pregnant.

    Sorry but can't help you w/ any info re: c-sections vs VBAC. Hmmmm re: your comment of c-section being similar to being cut in half-- I can understand that. There are a lot of things that they have to get through to do a c-section. I seem to have had a lot of friends who were in labor 24-36 hours of labor. My ob/gyn once said me to something about me having a hard time (I guess b/c my bone structure isn't quite optimum). Anyway, I just try to forget things like that. Quite frankly I'm just dealing w/ today and now b/c the thought of all of that stuff scares the sh-t out of me. One thing at a time..... (that's what got me through 3 years of IF hell....)

    pilma-- from what I've heard, an au-pair or a night time nurse is the way to go. I had a friend who had post-partum depression and one thing that she said that really helped her was to make sure that she got at least 5 hours of sleep each night. Once she did that, she felt immediately better almost immediately.

    Cheers girls!

  6. Hi, Toby and Linda- got back from my u/s this afternoon- all is well- measuring 2 days behind, which they say is fine- and better than i think it was 4 days behind last week. hb was a strong 168. i discharged myself from the RE. they seemed taken aback, but it is quite a schlep for me, so takes a lot of time, and we changed insurance so i suspect after the dust has cleared we'll be paying for a bunch of this followup care oop. which i could get for free at my OB- if i would stop procrastinating and actually pick one- which i haven't done. also, i'm of the mindset that why do all these u/ss? whatever will happen will happen- there isn't anything they can do about it. they didn't like me saying that med people like to feel powerful, don't they?

    Lori, i didn't mean to say that i didn't do nuchal cause it wasn't needed. more that it was unlikely there was a problem and i don't want to spend a bunch of weeks all freaked out over a false positive. i'm sure i'll do the 18 week long sonogram- i did with Ben.

    sooo... i'm in a big dilemma about ob versus midwife. finally did find a midwife group that delivers at a hosp where you can get your drugs if you want them. but.... it's a ways away- probably 30 minutes- which gets to be a lot of schlepping if you are going weekly or even biweekly- which i was the last few weeks of my last pg. but- aah midwives would be a breath of fresh air. but... if i go to the hosp i delivered Ben at- i get free gym membership for a year (and it's a great gym- and i go just about every day)- and it's only 5 min away. i think i can pick somewhat better OBs than last time. what to do, what to do?? the rREs office seemed a little uncomfortable discharging me w/o an OB to refer to. i had to swear on a stack of bibles that i'd get prenatal care! not really.

    only 2 more PIO shots for me!! whoo hoo!! i donated all my extra syringes and needles to the RE today- a huge grocery bag full. there were hundreds. i am officially done wiht IVF (at least i think i am!!).

    my pants are tight in the waist, even though i've lost about 3 lbs. hmmm

    have a great day, ladies!


  7. Toby and pilma,
    Sorry I've been MIA for a few days, my dd/ds started full day kindergarden yesterday and it's been hectic. I can't believe what a job it is getting them out in the morning (clothes, lunches, snacks, breakfast). I totally did not take into consideration the time it was going to take in the a.m. They both go on the bus and have been doing great, I'm so proud of them.

    Is anyone taking prenatals? I think that is what is making my stomach feel like there is a knife in it, they are really hard on the stomach. I haven't been vomiting but I gag on occassion, oh, it's really an attractive sound. Nothing I eat tastes good and yes, I am grouchier then usual.

    pilma- I know I may sound ignorant but don't know much about midwives. I know the birth is suppose to be more calming. I thought midwives delivered mostly from home or birth centers. Will a hospital allow a midwife to deliver? I know doule's are popular around here in NY area. I know the hospital that I am delivering in NYC will not even let a doule be present during the birth. I know you said that you wanted medication during your birth, I'm assuming a epidural, won't you need an anesthesiologist there to administer an epidural? I work in a health department in NJ and I know a woman in town who had 3 home births. I'm assuming a midwife came and delivered the children. It's an interesting concept, but I couldn't do it because I'm too neurotic (LOL). I totally agree with you about having a lot of u/s's. I wasn't even going to do the nuchal fold, but OB kind of talk me into it (even 20 year olds can have babies with downs). I am going to get the 18 week anatomy scan and then maybe just one at the end before delivery. I think the number of u/s's they do is ridiculous, especially the RE's, they were charging my ins. co. over $500 for an u/s (that took approx 4 minutes). And yes, if something doesn't look right, doing a u/s every 5 days is not going to change anything. I only let my re do 2 u/s's. I have a confession, I stopped my PIO 3 days before the RE told me to and the week before missed a few shots. I know that might sound stupid to some, but I couldn't handle those shots anymore, and my levels were fine when they took them. I think I was around 10-11 weeks when I stopped them.

    Toby-congrats on your pregnancy, I know after trying for so long it's hard to believe sometimes. If you don't mind me asking, is this the first time you tried de? I had 4 m/c and no live births by the time I was 39, tried 3 ivf's with my own eggs and then decided enough was enough. My 5 year old twins are de and my little bean is de/ds. We did 2 failed de cycles before the de/ds cycle and just decided to increase our chances with our last cycle and went de/ds (both donors were 20 years old). That's great that you might have twins, it was hard but so worth it. I've heard of a lot of people having only 1 embryo or an embryo that doesn't look perfect, but then they go back in a week or so and they are both right on track. When is your next u/s? I know we go from the 2ww to the u/s waiting, to the beta number waiting, it's constantly worrying about the next test. Hope you are one of the lucky ones and don't get m/s.

    Hope everyone has a great Friday, Linda

    PS, pilma, just read the clarification about your midwife dilemma. If it were me, I would go to the hospital 5 minutes away and get the free membership for a year (what a deal). Maybe you could interview a few OB's and find one who you feel comfortable with. Wow, I don't think any hospitals around here have midwives in them (not with the doctor's ego's that are in this area). I hope you make a decision you are comfortable with.

  8. Hi, Toby and Linda- hope you are doing well. we're getting this hurricane here, but it's very wimpy. made for a very long day with a toddler, though. he is accustomed to lots of outings, we realized, and he spent much of the day pointing toward the door, getting us our shoes, etc etc. but of course it was pouring outside.... he is also teething evidently and has a dreadful rash, so was extraordinarily fussy. he basically boycotts food when he's teething, then is of course very cranky. LONG day.

    Linda, funny about your true confession. i stopped the PIOs two days before i was supposed to - my butt is so sick and tired of them. i'm still using the suppositories till 12 weeks- but i might discontinue those too. i know with B i stopped everything around 9 weeks- maybe 10.

    i made a decision about ob vs midwife- i'm going to go to a different ob practice at the close hopsital where i had Ben. with the # of visits i'm going to have to make, i would just rather drive 7 minutes than 30. and i really want the gym membership (in a few weeks, that is)

    Linda, midwives can definitely deliver in hospitals, but it's very political. research shows that delivering with a midwife is actually safer than with an OB- partly of course cause midwives don't take higher risk pts- but largely, apparently, because they don't do c secs which have higher complication and infection rates. and they are more patient so don't jump right into a lot of medical interventions, that then require more medical interventions, etc etc. but OBs don't want midwives on their territory and there are insurance issues. so they end up getting banned from some hospitals. in our local area, there are two midwife groups that deliver only in birth centers- if a patient needs more medical intervention, they are transferred to the associated hospital, but they are taken over by an OB. but you can't have an epidural at the birth centers, only in the hospital. so it's rare to find a place where you can have both.

    re doulas- that's terrible that they're banned from your hospital. i had one with Ben and i just said she's a support person. for some women, they are totally critical- for me, eh. i probably won't do it again. research shows (sorry to be pedantic) that women who have doulas are much less likely to get c sections or to need lots of meds. cynically, maybe they just want to be able to do more c's- better reimbursement for them and more convenient for the docs. can you tell i have a bee in my bonnet about the medical profession?

    anyhow, that's enough of a rant for one day. how are you guys?


  9. Hi pilma, Lori and Toby!
    Thought I would dip my foot in the water over here. I went for my 7 week u/s on Thursday and saw/heard the heartbeat. Everyone around me who knows is so excited. I am relieved, but I can't seem to let myself get excited yet.
    pilma I am glad I am not feeling as bad as you. You must be miserable. I am exhausted and want to sleep all the time. I am having a hard time staying up now and it's only 7:40. I already took a nap this afternoon. Grocery shopping wore me out. I had thought about going for a swim or a walk today, but that's not going to happen.
    I have knots/welts on my backside from the pio shots. I feel like it's all bruised under there. I had been using an ice pack, which helped numb the area so the actual shot didn't bother me. The nurse told me that could be contributing to the welts since it keeps the oil thick. I have tried the last 2 days to go au naturel with no ice, but now the site itches or burns. 12 weeks! Can we speed up time. I need 12 weeks for peace of mind and for some return to comfort on my back side.

    Lori- this is my first DE/IVF. I am 41. I have tried clomid and had 3 failed IVF cycles. I knew after I hit 40 It would be futile for me to keep throwing money away, beating myself up after any more failures and should I have been successful with my own eggs at some point, I didn't want to have to endure the odds of m/c and other complications that come with older eggs. That being said, I am so torn as to what prenatal tests and screens I am going to have to do. I have never thought I would want to do such testing, freak out about the "odds" they give you or suffer from a false positive.

    Hope to talk to you all some more soon. This is brand new territory for me. I am as much of a worrier as Toby.

  10. Hi Michelle, Linda and pilma!

    Michelle-- welcome! I hear you about the PIO shots--- that's one thing that I definitely won't miss! Yeah, I ice my bottom and then use a heating pad afterwards. The other night DH did the shot and I got a deep burning sensation 1/2 way down my leg. I suspect he was a little close to the sciatic nerve. Anyway, the next day, I was bruised like heck and couldn't sit on that side. Also, I was kind of gimped up while walking. Oh, and also, every 3 days I'm also doing IM estradiol.

    Interesting discussion re: prenatal testing. I guess if it's non-invasive, I'll probably get it. False +s are an issue though. I guess I'll worry about that when I get there.... BTW DH is funny b/c he's already starting to try to plan for the college fund and telling me that I have to start thinking about child care, furniture, etc. I really don't want to start thinking about that until my 1st trimester is over.

    Next Thursday I will be at 8wk1day and we'll have an ultrasound. We'll still see if there are twins (since one was ~50% behind in size than the other). Right now I'm a little bit freaked out b/c most-- ok pretty much all of my pants don't fit. WTH! I thought that during the 1st trimester you weren't supposed to gain much weight (and from what I've heard, you don't show yet). Well between now and April (when I did my mock cycle), I've put on ~ 12 lbs. 2 months ago, I got slightly larger pants and now those are REALLY tight. Nothing makes you feel unattractive like wearing pants that are too damn tight! Anyway, know this sounds shallow but I always hear how hard it is to get off the weight-- so I don't want to go nuts either way. DH and I went out an when shopping and I got some pants that I can "grow into" a bit (meaning that when I button them, I can still breathe!)

    Linda, you asked about my history. I'm 39 and it all started on all of this ~ 3 years ago. Tried 4 months on my own, saw my ob/gyn did the usual timed intercourse, ovulation predictor kits, bbts, etc, then 2 cycles of clomid, got referred to an RE who felt like things weren't too bad so did 2 cycles of injections w/ IUI. Then transferred to another RE b/c although the 1st RE was nice, there were "little slip ups" that occurred. I then did 1 cycle of IVF w/ my own eggs last Nov. Total disaster-- got 2 eggs neither of which fertilized and basically self-destructed w/in 24 hours therefore no ET. The doc was nice but said that he was 90% sure that my own eggs were never going to work even if I had a "much better" cycle. Not wanting to take his opinion, I saw 3 other leading REs in Colorado, Oregon and San Diego. They all did some testing and then said the same thing-- 5-10% chance w/ my own eggs. I got a BFP on my 1st DE IVF-- thank goodness! I was pretty apprehensive going in b/c despite year and years of effort and pills, injections, etc I never had a BFP even for 1 day-- always nothing so I really was afraid that maybe my uterus was messed up as well. Anyway, so far so good.

    I'm starting to feel a bit low energy-- and on Fridays my job is somewhat physically strenuous b/c we go to nursing care homes to care for patients. It involves a lot of learning over, being in odd positions, etc and boy was I feeling it. I'm lucky b/c so far I haven't had a lot of issues other than the low energy and feeling like I'm on the verge of catching something like a cold.

    pilma-- I find your thoughts on a midwife and doulas very interesting. I'm pretty sure that I'll continue w/ my ob/gyn b/c when things were really terrible for the last 2-3 years, he treated me quite well & was always was an advocate-- referring me to one specialist and then another, ordering many tests that weren't covered if the RE ordered them, etc. When my primary care MD was being snotty and judgmental about ivf (saying that even though I needed care and monitoring re: my thyroid levels that since I was doing ivf at the same time she wouldn't help me b/c she saw it as part of treatment re: IF which essentially meant that I had to pay cash for that too since IF isn't covered by my insurance....). Anyway, he was willing and able to order all of the tests, forward them to the RE and then Rx medication-- even though he didn't get any $$ for his time. One thing that really worries me however is that he trades off call w/ other ob/gyns. Murphy's law being what it is, I don't want some other ob/gyn attending who I don't know and trust. I probably should bring up this concern w/ him sooner than later.

    Anyway, that's all for tonight. Time for bed....

  11. Hi pilma, Toby and Michelle

    Michelle-congrats on your bfp. Try not to worry too much, getting pregnant with young de is a whole different world then getting pregnant when you have if issues. I would definetely try a heating pad after your dh gives you your shot. I used to have strange tingling feelings down my leg after some of the shots. You'll be very happy when those shots are over. When I got pregnant with my twins, I made the RE let me do PIO shots a week or two longer after he wanted me to stop (just for my peace of mind). How many embies did you transfer? When's your big u/s day?

    Try to take it easy at work and get as many zzzz's as you can. I forgot, when you would be going in for your next u/s. When I got pregnant with my twins, I left work (had my ob sign me out when I was 4 months along). I know this is drastic, but I had 4 previous m/c's (all were early and had nothing to do with not being able to carrry), but I just felt that after going through so much I didn't want to risk anything. I layed around the house for the next 4 months and delivered my twins at 36 1/2 weeks.

    Sorry you had such a tough Saturday, isn't a hectic day, so much more harder when your pregnant? My patience and energy are very low these days. I'm glad you made a decision about an ob and hospital. I can totally hear you as far as having a hospital close. I am around 35 minutes from the hospital I go to in NYC and have to go over the GW bridge. If there is ever traffic on the bridge, it could take forever to get there. I'm hoping for a smooth uneventful pregnancy but been having some contractions already and don't remember having any with my twins (I'm only 14 weeks). I was very inactive with my pregnancy with my twins, so I can't really compare. I'll mention it to the ob when I see her on 10/1. Hope you're feeling better soon, and just try to look forward to that gym membership after you give birth.

    As far as prenatal tests, if they are non-invasive, I agree, why not. I didn't even know the nuchal fold test had false positives. I told my ob I did not want to do a lot of u/s's this pregnancy. My last pregnancy, I must of had 20 u/s's, now I think it was too many. We are getting our anatomy scan on 10/1 and after that I think I will just have one near the end of the pregnancy. How does everyone feel about baking cord blood? Does anyone plan on doing it? Since I did de/ds, I think doing this is a no-brainer. I did not do it with my de twins, nobody even mentioned it to me. Hope everyone's having a nice, restful weekend.


  12. Hi I'm new to this board. I am 39 and pg with DE/DS, 11weeks 4 days today, heart the heartbeat again this week so I'm feeling optimistic but cautious. Its been emotionally rocky, never got this far in a pregnancy before and I over-analyze everything, driving hubby nuts... It seems there is always something to worry about. I just want to be happy and enjoy this pregnancy!

    How long did you ladies have to take PIO for? My RE said 15 weeks "don't stop else you will miscarry" and my OB says stop immediately, because the placenta was working at 8 weeks. My mind tells me to keep going with PIO "just to be sure" but now I am concerned that my OB is not that good at his job - he does realize its a DE IVF situation. Should I be worried? The magazines all say that the placenta takes over at around 12 weeks and anyway isn't that why most people wait until after that to start telling people? Any advice?

    I hear what you say re weight gain jcneves - I seem to have "thickened" around my middle!! My pants don't button up so I got one of those bella-bands to hold them up (it works). At what point do you go out and buy maternity clothes? I am dying to go and look but not until after the first trimester no matter how rediculous I look in my tight pants. I'm superstitious too :-)

    Anyway I'm glad I found this spot on the boards. Hope to hear from you all. Isn't it gerat to share with someone?

  13. Hi Susan,

    Welcome. I think 15 weeks is on the high side. I thought the placenta started making progesterone around 8-10 weeks. I stopped the progesterone at around 10 weeks and they checked me 4 days later and said I was fine. My progesterone was never that high. Was only in the low 20's when I was taking progesterone. I know all the waiting is nerve racking, it's just part of it (unfortunately). I did a de/ds cycle and we had great fertilization rates and had 6 embies to freeze (it was also a shared de cycle). Talk to you soon, Linda

  14. Welcome, Michelle and Susan, and hi Linda and Toby. glad our little group is growing. sorry to be MIA for a while- i lurk a bit- but i'm really hit with the m/s - plus i get a little too much typing help if you know who is around.

    anyway, feeling much better today. is it the cooler weather? or 2 days now w/o prenatal vitamins? or that i'm really making an effort to eat and eat protein every few hours? whatever it is, i'll take it.

    Toby, your OB sounds so kind and helpful. i'd go with someone like that, too. it's just that mine weren't anything to write home about- but i did actually sign up with another OB group at the same hospital- i know at least one is a woman that i like. i thought she was in practice with just one other woman, but it turns out they have a group- with three guys- it is nearly impossible to avoid men in this profession. what's that about?

    Susan, i was told to stop the PIO (thank goodness) at 8 weeks but continue with the prometrium vaginal supps until beginning of 12th week. i'll probably stop sooner than that- i know w/ my last, also a DE baby, i didn't have the supps- just the PIO- and i got sick of it and stopped at around 10 weeks- with no ill effects. the placenta does take over at around 8 weeks. i think my RE is overly conservative w/12 weeks- never even heard of 15!

    i am definitely out of my pants now. i pulled out some mat clothes and some that were given to me by a friend. ugh! not my favorite fashion look! but i guess it's better than sweat-shorts which is what i've been wearing around the house. for work, i've been wearing dresses- but i'll have to look into pants when it gets colder- i'm always chilly in a dress.

    i'm actually chilly just sitting here. funny, damp, day- muggy, but not warm. gonna make a cup of tea. have a great day, ladies


  15. Hi Ladies,

    I guess its about time I join this side of the world. :P

    I am currently 7w2d pg with twins. We had DE/IVF + ICSI with eggs from my 33 yr old stepsister. I am also 33 - never been pg - diagnosed with POF and MFI (extremely low morphology). We were given a 5% chance of IVF with my eggs being successful. Historically, we ran through the gammet of tests and did one IUI (no injectibles). It's pretty crazy that we got to this point so quickly.

    Our first u/s was last Thursday - two great sacs, great crown-rump measurements, and great hbs. Our next u/s is next Wednesday. We're still at the RE, on estrogen patches and PIO until sometime between wks 10-12, when they'll wean me.

    I graduate to my OB at 12 weeks. I've had the same OB for 10+ years. I'm also a nurse, so I'm pretty picky about providers. It sounds like lots of you are going the natural route. Not us. I'm planning on a c-section - especially with twins. As a nurse, I know TOO much and it freaks me out.

    We're due sometime in April. With a singleton we were due 4/27, but now they're talking more like the first week in April. DH & I both have a birthday of 4/18, so we're VERY excited about having April babies.

    I'm very excited about twins, especially since NONE of our eggs made it to freeze. But I'm feeling pretty crummy. I'm SO exhausted this week (and I expect it to get worse at 8-10 wks). I've had symptoms since 3w4d. I've had m/s (so far just bad nausea, no throwing up) since 4.5 wks. It's NO fun right now.

    So, I guess that's about it for me. I'm looking forward to getting to know you guys!


  16. Hi All--

    It's great that we have a bunch of new people here. Welcome Lanie and Susan!

    I've been a bit MIA b/c I been really sick. Monday night I felt really tired and just figured that I overdid it (lectured x 1 hour and then helped out w/ a 6 hour lab). The next morning I had a lot of (gut) cramping & nausea. I figured that this was just run of the mill m/s so went to work to hopefully get my mind off of not feeling so well. Well, it didn't let up and if anything got worse-- much worse --- especially last night. Long story short, based on the acute onset and resolution of GI distress -- this morning I'm 85% back to normal, I think I had a bug. Darn-- I have been lucky up until now but since this is my 1st ever pregnancy, I guess I'm pretty clued out about normal and abnormal symptoms. I have to say-- I was a bit discouraged last night when I said to DH (when I thought that my symptoms were just due to m/s), "I don't know if I can deal w/ feeling this bad continually for another 7 months...." Anyway, I'm back in the saddle. A bit tired and achy but ok.

    pilma-- yeah, I have to say that I used to be (and maybe still am) pretty biased against men ob/gyns but a few interesting things happened around 10 years ago when I was referred to my current ob/gyn. When I first got referred I didn't realize that I was referred to a male. Once I did, I requested a female care provider in the practice. I saw one of his colleagues and darn she really, really hurt me. She had to take a biopsy and I kept on telling her how uncomfortable the procedure was & she just kept on saying "no this shouldn't hurt... just give me another minute" and proceeded to cause more pain than I've ever had before. Well darn it-- the results came back inconclusive. So, I went back (to another female doc w/in the same practice) & this time asked for pain medication before the procedure. Bottom line, she declined giving me anything. Well, again, I got dizzy and got sick to my stomach due to the amount of pain. Anyway, the results came back they suggested that I get re-checked 3 months later. This time however I accidently got scheduled w/ my current ob/gyn. He did the procedure and he was done in 1/2 the time and no pain whatsoever-- the worst I could say I felt was some tightness (probably from me being so darn nervous). It was such a completely different experience that I didn't realize that he had even done it. Since that time he's had to do a few minor procedures and he's always been very empathetic and very gentle. Needless to say, when he ended up leaving the practice and I followed him. (FYI-- 8 years later he told me that he had to leave the practice b/c he got "fired" by his associates b/c they had a different philosophy of care. I had to laugh and said to him said "yeah, b/c you don't like hurting people....") It's kind of funny b/c you would think that women would be more understanding about discomfort and would be more naturally skilled b/c of smaller hands, etc, but at least from my experience the 3 other female practitioners I've worked w/ haven't been nearly as gentle as he has.

    I hear you about the pants situation. Unfortunately I don't have any maternity clothes so last weekend I went out and got 2 additional pairs of pants (4 sizes bigger than my usual size). Hopefully between that and some skirts I'll be covered until the first trimester. I also figure that I can wear these shortly post- pregnancy. I'm in the stage of not wanting to tell anyone about the pregnancy until we are at 12 weeks but I imagine that some are suspicious b/c I've taken to wearing baggy clothes and lab coats all the time... Either that or they just think that I'm chunking up a bit....

    Lanie-- what type of nurse are you (do you specialize in a specific pt population)? Oh, and do I hear you about being picky about care providers. Having gone through 3 years of IF, if I don't like someone, I dump them. I don't have time for bad attitudes, incompetence or a lack of bedside manner.

    Susan-- how confusing that your RE is saying to stay on the PIO until 15 weeks and your ob/gyn is saying 8 weeks. What are you going to do? 15 weeks does seem long. My RE said 12 weeks-- but maybe there is something different about your case. Why don't you tell the RE that you are getting mixed messages and ask him to call the other doc to discuss your case? I'm sure that both docs want to just do the right thing. They just need to get their heads together about your situation. No one should be bent out of shape b/c as I said, sometimes one person knows something about a specific case that might be helpful to the other person.

    As of today, I am at 8 weeks . Tomorrow I go in for my 2nd ultrasound. During my last ultrasound I had twins-- although one was 50% behind (in terms of the size of the sac and length) as the other. The doc said that the smaller one might not make it but that it was too soon to tell. Tomorrow we'll know more. Last time (at 6 weeks) we could see a heartbeat on both of them but we couldn't measure it b/c they weren't far enough along.

    Michelle-- hope all is well w/ you.

  17. Toby - Good luck with your 2nd u/s. I'm really hoping you get good news. I am an RN in the Operating Room (circulating nurse). Right now, I'm on lifting restrictions, so I'm working as the unit secretary. My manager has been great, but her boss has been kind of a "b" about it.

  18. Hi Ladies! Wow, so I'm not the only DE/DS girl around here!

    I'm 50 and have a 4yo DE/DS dd....we did FET last fall and got pg, but m/c. Did another fresh DE/DS cycle with the same donors and I'm due with twins 4/4/09.

    I don't have any m/s (sorry pilma - hope you're finding some relief), and I don't have much of an appetite, either. I know I should be eating more, but I'm just not hungry which is unusual for me.

    I had some bleeding last week and went to the OB for an u/s. Both babies were fine and measured 2 days ahead, but they couldn't see a reason for the bleeding. OB put me on bed rest for a couple of days and forbid me to go to a retreat last weekend. She also took me off the baby aspirin and I hope that was the cause. I'm just praying that I don't have to go off work too soon before the babies are due.

    I'm not planning to hire anyone, and the babies will go to daycare at our church when I return to work. Dd starts kindergarten next fall, so I'm hoping things go smoothly. We decided on daycare vs. a nanny so we don't have to deal with sick call-ins, car trouble, being late, etc. Our daycare/preschool is geared for full time working parents. Hoping we don't regret it, but we have no room for a live-in, and the research I'd done awhile ago on aupairs said they need to have their own room. Heck, as it is, all 3 kids will share a bedroom.

    I'm not overly tired or anything....just taking it a lot easier than I did with dd because of the added risks of PTL at this point. Taking the elevator one floor at work, rather than the stairs...and feel like a dork! But, my OB suggested it so I'm doing it.

    Looking forward to having twins at 51!!!

    10w3d ?/?

    (dd says they're a girl and a boy and they WILL be named Hannah Montana and Ryan K!)

  19. Can I join?? Technically I am not due in the Spring but there aren't really any DE boards to chat with people regularily on. My EDD is February 21/09.

    Congrats to everyone who is expecting!

  20. Hope I'm in the right place. I'm 6 weeks pg with DE on our 3 round of IVF. I have my u/s wednesday and am so nervous. I've had 8 miscarriages. It's nice to see so many people go through the same things and worry about the same stuff. Thanks ladies for sharing!

  21. Welcome, unit, whyme, and pupput. and of course hi to Toby and Lanie and Laurie and Susan. we're getting a nice little group going, seems like,

    i don't have anything particular to say. slept SOO badly last night- got up at 2 to pee and really never made it back to sleep the rest of the night. and of course awakened by you know who at 630. tonight's bedtime will be about 7 for me.

    i had just the slightest bit of pinkish/brownish discharge today. i discharged myself from the RE a few weeks back, and my first OB appt isn't till the end of the month, so wasn't sure who to call, if anyone. opted for OB- NP called me back, but of course there isn't much to say. i could come in for an u/s for reassurance- it would be a PITA through my OB, but covered, and probably easy through the RE, but out of network.... i'm too early (9 weeks, 2 days) for a doppler to work. as i had pretty much the exact same amount of bleeding last pg, and am on the prometrium, which i hear irritates the cervix, and as i still feel pg, i'm just going to wait a while and see what happens. i think the nurse thinks i'm crazy, but what exactly would they be able to do for me if there was a problem, anyway? a big fat nothing. i had a miscarriage in the past and it was unmistakeable- symptoms stopped within a few hours.

    anyway, that's my story. i'm supposed to be working, so back to it...


  22. Hi ladies,

    Welcome to all the new pregnant mommies. I have MIA for a while, just busy and still feeling sh*tty. I am 15w3d today and wondering if all this sick feeling is going to go away, I sure hope it doesn't last the whole pregnancy. I never thought I would not look forward to eating food.

    pilma- I totally would not worry about your spotting. I m/c after a IVF and had a gush of blood and cramping etc (sorry tmi). I have heard the suppositories cause irritation as well. Even myself, I haven't had a u/s in a few weeks and don't feel any movement yet, so I say to myself sometimes, "I hope everything is OK in there (belly)". I have my next u/s on Oct. 1.

    Congrats on your twins, I remember "talking" with your months ago about doing another de/ds cycle and your dh wasn't 100% on board, as my dh wasn't wanting to do another cycle as well (I don't know why, we've only done 7 cycles (LOL). Anyway, I'm glad both of our dh's came to their senses. We did de/ds on this cycle as well. I have 5 year old de twins and they are so excited about having a brother or sister. I'm sure your dd will be twice as excited with twins.

    To all the other ladies,
    Nice to meet you all and wishing you a healthy and happy 9 months. Any questions, please ask and will try to answer.


  23. Hi ladies. I know it is still early for some of us but does anybody have any thoughts on the general timeline for setting up the nursery? This is my first child and don't want to do it too early and jinx myself but also don't want to wait too long so that everything can be ready.

  24. Hi All-

    Lanie- Being a nurse is a great profession-- hard work but there are so many different places that you can work. How are you feeling?

    Joan- glad to hear that you're both doing well. I like how your dd is thinking of names (although as popular as she is, I don't know about naming one of the twins Hannah Montana ).

    Why - I haven't even begun to think about anything related to having a baby (other than getting bigger pants for work!). Maybe the veterans of this group can advise you. I'm just terribly nervous about it all. When I don't feel good, I'm worried that something is wrong. When I feel fine, I worry something is wrong. Keep in mind that for the last few weeks, I've had absolutely no problems. Things are going well. I had some bug last week but overall feel pretty good (just a bit tired and get winded easier than usual). Last week my ob/gyn told me to come back in 2-3 weeks. His schedule was really full so the soonest appt I could get was in 3 weeks which puts me at 11 weeks. When I said that I thought I should come back sooner, it was pointed out that if anything goes wrong at this point, there's not much that can be done about it. Also apparently my uterus is pointed in a somewhat tilted direction (not necessarily in a way that would jeopardize the baby) but it might be harder to hear the heart. Arrrgh.

    pilma- How are you? I too heard that prometrium can irritate things and make them more likely to bleed. Sorry to hear that you're having trouble sleeping. I wonder why that is? I find that given the chance, I like to have a small nap in the late afternoon/early evening. I also way more want 8 hours of sleep!

    Linda-- sorry to hear that you're not feeling well.... but I wouldn't mind being in your shoes in terms of being at 15wks!

    Uhh I have a question for the veterans. My next appt isn't for 2 more weeks (when I'll be at 11 weeks). I worry that if the heart stops beating that I won't know. At risk of sounding morbid, how would I know that things aren't ok? Is it normal to go this long (3 weeks total) in between appts? For now, I'm just trying to forget everything and not worry/obsess about it.

    I just realized that I hadn't posted the ultrasound results from last week. We went to the ob/gyn last Thursday and as you may recall, at 6 weeks there were 2 embryos although 1 was 50% behind the other. The ob said that this one might make it. He was right. At 8wk1day 1 twin is starting to fade away and the other is going strong. I have kind of mixed feelings about it. My ob was a bit concerned when I had twins b/c he said that I would have a hard time-- my bone structure is kind of small but he said if we were going to have twins that somehow we would work it out. Anyway, I feel a bit sad that the other twin didn't make it. I also worry that now there is one that if this doesn't work out, I'm done. No pressure here, eh? I really want to get past this first trimester!!!!!! I heard that this miscarriage rate drops significantly after this.



  25. Hello all,
    I guess I'm ready to move on to this board I was waiting for my second beta so a little about me I'm 39, I've done 2 ivf's no result low egg reserve so I moved on to DE and I'm greatfull it worked on my first try. I cycled at Dr. Welden in Tampa, Fl. and Live in Homestead, Fl. My name is Jacki my due date according to what I've been reading is May 22 I'm 4wks and 3 dys today and very excited

    Beta # 1 341
    Beta # 2 1325
    Progestrone 57.0

    They are very happy with my #\'s
    I had my first symptom today I had a nose bleed they say some people get them I guess my luck I'll get everything!

    I go for next beta Monday and have ultrasound scheduled for Oct. 10 I know later than normal but the jewish holidays are all in October so I need to be home.

    I'm off tomorrow I'll try to do some personals. I just got home from work and I'm exausted. I had to give my # since you all have been waiting on me.

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