Hello all, I'm so excited to FINALLY be able to write my own story, after three years lurking and reading your emotional stories. I must say, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for sites like this one, thanks to all of you and your successes I tried once again.
We started TTC by the beginning of 2016, and we were very excited. I thought it would take 2-3 months maximum, as my doctor never said I had problems whatsoever. I grew impatient after 6 months, I started to wonder if something was wrong after a year of trying. I went to my doctor and he deferred me to a fertility specialist who ran some tests. Everything was apparently fine, and she recommended us to keep trying. However (and this was KEY), I felt something was not right with me and two years after we started this adventure, I decided to switch specialists. I found an amazing doctor who ran some more tests, and my gut was right: something was not right. Two days after changing doctors I found out that I needed two remove a couple of uterine cysts, that I had endometriosis (grade IV, so severe, and with a low AMH) and I needed a laparoscopy ASAP; and that it would be nearly impossible to conceive naturally. I was desolated, but I proceed with all their recommendations.
My laparoscopy was a success (one tube was removed, too), and as I was healing quickly, my doctor recommended to start IVF. The first round was on July 2018, not a great one as I overreacted to the meds and only got two viable 3-day embryo. That cycle (FET because I was risking OHSS) was negative, but we were right to continue. We started our second cycle on September, and it was even worse than the first one: just one day 3 embryo survived. We decided to go ahead with the transfer, knowing it was our last chance (it was draining us economically, too), it was also a FET (again, risk of OHSS), but for some reason, this one decided to stick with us. I'll never forget my face when I saw that second line for the first time. I was pregnant, at last. This little one's decided to tell us that 2019 is gonna be magical. We couldn't be happier, three years later, here we are. With this, I just want to tell all of you that I've been there, with the tears and the "why is it not me". But here I am, and it's a miracle.
I always write everything down, so here I go with my "symptons", which I didn't really have :D but I know how important they are when someone is as anxious as us.
FET day - 3 dpFET: Nothing special, bloated because of the meds and very light cramps here and there. Normal.
8 dpo (4 dpFET): cramps and a runny nose in the morning, nothing special as my DH was down with the flu (seriously, he was sick on Christmas Day!)
9dpo (5 dpFET): cramps, sore breasts (but def because of the meds)
10 dpo (6 dpFET): sore breasts, very dry throat when I wake up
11 dpo (7 dpFET): sore breasts
12 dpo (8 dpFET): sore breasts
13 dpo (9 dpFET): VERY hungry, light cramps at night
14 dpo (10 dpFET): cramps in the morning, hungry, frequent urination, dry throat (there I thought I was starting with the flu)
15 dpo (11 dpFET): NOTHING, but I decide to test late afternoon with diluted urine (OPK, as I didn't have any FRER) and it's positive. I start wondering something's up.
16 dpo (12 dpFET): Beta day, but can't wait and do a One Step with very diluted urine by lunch time just to confirm I was out. It comes positive within seconds, even with that kind of urine. My beta is also positive.
Thinking back, I did some different things this cycle that I think helped:
* Cut caffeine (apart from green tea)
* Drink herbal infusions with ginger on it.
* I threw away all my supplements, vitamins etc (apart from the ones prescribed by my doctor: Folic Acid, Iodine and B12) and tried to follow an anti-inflammatory diet as much as I could, as I thought it would keep the endo in check. It's worked. No salt, sugar or dairy products (almond milk on ocassion); and emphasizing on fruits, vegetables, lean protein (mainly white-meat poultry, beans and eggs), nuts, seeds, and healthy fats.
* Drink water and sports drinks such as Powerade Zero (I did my own mix at home)
* Have lots of work (I seriously didn't have time to Google anything, which is always a plus!)
And that's basically it. It's a dream come true, just in time for the New Year. It seemed impossible, but here we are, knowing that WE CAN.
Lots of baby dust to all of you, and good luck! xx
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