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Eggs Retrieved!!

Originally posted on my Tumblr Blog on Nov 16, 2010 10:48pm

I am sitting on the couch with a makeshift heating pad on my abdomen, courtesy of my husband. We have quite a few heating pads in the house, none of which we can find or have the energy or will to search for. John's solution: he microwaved a damp kitchen towel, put it in a Ziploc bag, and wrapped it in another (dry) towel. Makeshift or not, it has been doing a good job at placating some of the pain I have been in today.
In a TV show or movie (think: The Hangover), this is where the camera would pan out into the horizon and the words would appear, "Fourteen hours earlier . . ."
We woke up this morning at about 5:30 a.m. to get ready for our 6:30 a.m. appointment. Ok, John woke up at 5:30 and I bargained my way to getting up at 5:50 (one of the perks of now having short hair). We left a little after 6:00 a.m. and got to PRC in Irvine at exactly 6:30 a.m. We were surprised to find a few other people in the lobby and even more surprised to see the sign up sheet showing some of the appointments as early as 5:30 a.m. I swear, this process has been God's way of teaching me patience because we waited in the lobby without having even been acknowledged until right past 7:00 a.m. when John finally knocked on the door and notified the nurses that we had, in fact, signed in at 6:30 a.m. and had been anxiously waiting all that time. One of the nurses from John's appointment yesterday came out a few moments later with (another surprise) paperwork for me to fill out. I'm not gonna lie: this kind of annoyed me as I wondered how much more information about me they needed since I had submitted this long ago and oh, I don't know, they have looked inside my cavity several times already.
But I digress. They finally got me in the prep area a little after 7:35 a.m. and did not waste time having me change into my glamorous hospital gown, rubber-soled socks, and blue hair cap. They gave me a hospital bed to lie in and hooked me up to breathing and heart monitoring machines, and few moments after John was allowed into the prep area, the anesthesiologist came. They had some problems trying to find a vein that would work, as I had been poked and prodded so many times last week that both of my forearms are sore and bruised like a heroin addict. They eventually found one that they could use, right on the back of my hand. The anesthesiologist injected the spot with lidocane to numb it from the burn of the regular anesthesia going in. Ironically, the lidocane burned pretty bad going in, and a few moments later he inserted the needle for the IV drip and anesthesia. A few more moments later, John gave me a kiss as the anesthesiologist and two nurses led me into the operating room (and it was FREEEEZING!). The anesthesiologist notified me that he was starting to administer the medicine. I remember responding, telling him that yes, I was starting to feel heavy, and at that moment I was GONE.
I woke up later with an oxygen mask on my face and pain in my pelvis. It took me a moment of two to realize where I was and what had just transpired. I was in and out of consciousness, remembering a moment when a nurse came to remove the oxygen mask and later when they told me they would get John to come in. Most importantly, I remember asking one of the nurses how it went and she told me that it went beautifully and that 11 eggs were harvested (the average is 10). I joked a little bit with them that without even being fertilized, my "kids" are already like me -- overachievers. Later on, Dr. Abdallah came in and happily confirmed the news that indeed, there were 11 eggs, and that he already told my husband who was waiting in the waiting area. 
Throughout all these moments broken apart, the one thing that stayed constant was the cramps on my front side and pain in my butt (like being constipated). 
As I had done during both hysteroscopies, as soon as I was coming to, I fought hard for consciousness and alertness as I know that I want to really sleep, and being at home and in our bed is the only place I can really do so. After a few minutes, I was told I could get dressed and was directed to the restroom where they had carefully laid out my clothes on the supply racks. I remember stumbling a little bit while getting dressed, due to a combination of the drugs wearing off and the cramps and pain I was experiencing. We were given the last set of instructions for today such as no heavy lifting, stay in bed, and to stay on a high protein diet these next few days. They told us they would be calling us tomorrow (Wednesday) to let us know how many out of the 11 eggs were fertilized.
After getting dressed, they put me on a wheelchair and wheeled me out to the car. We went home, and John went to my work to pick up my check, then deposited it, and then picked up my "high protein" breakfast choice -- steak and eggs. I ate, but was completely cold and shivering (an effect of the anesthesia wearing off, I'm told) and was sent back to bed after we ate. I slept from that point (about 10 a.m.) until 1 p.m. when I woke up completely DRENCHED in sweat. 
The rest of the afternoon, I had tried to no avail to poop. I feel completely so constipated that everything hurts. This is amplified by the cramps I am feeling as well. I am told this is normal, but oh boy is it unbearable. I took a couple of laxatives at about 4 p.m. and to this moment, 10:42 p.m., no results. 
On the hormone front, we have started the first of our progesterone shots today. As we learned towards the end of Menopur and for the hCG shot last Sunday, it really does help to ice the area right before the injection. Despite using a larger (and potentially more painful) needle than that of Lupron / Gonal-F / Menopur and this shot being intramuscular instead of subcutaneous like the previous shots, I actually do not feel the shot at all. Funny enough, this liquid is much thicker than the others as well and thankfully, at least so far, no pain. 
Although I am in pain, I have plenty of thoughts to keep me distracted. I am excited and anxious and nervous for the results tomorrow. Thank goodness I got a note from one of the nurses to stay home tomorrow as well, so I can just rest and await the results.
As a recap, the egg transfer day is (at least for now) scheduled for this Sunday. We will find out the final appointment details in the next few days. After that, I will take the first of the two pregnancy tests on Monday the 29th (the Monday right after Thanksgiving) and then the second test will be on Wednesday, December 1st, and that is when they will confirm if there is a pregnancy or not.
I feel it . . . I feel that the magic is happening now. As I type this, microscopic little sperm are fertilizing (hopefully all) 11 eggs and LIFE IS BEING MADE!! God is creating little miracles right this second! Please continue to pray for us and with us.
xoA

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