The Storks Journey

This blog will attempt to be an honest, humble and real story of our life as we go through infertility. So far it's been a really rough ride and especially a tough year as we try to navigate through the doctor appointments, treatments, emotions, and all that comes with the uncertainty of not knowing if all of our dreams will soon crumble at our feet. So here is a road map of where our stork (apparently drunk out of his mind) has taken us so far:

September 2012 - Decide to get off birth control. This should be pretty simple right? We're both healthy and at that point where we are ready!! Let the FUN begin!

October 2012 - Period right on time.  30 days from the end of BC (Birth Control). We weren't really expecting for it to happen the first month so lets try again!

November 2012 - Period right on time. 30 days on the dot.

December 2012 -  Period is late! I'm on a cruise with family and pretty excited to get home so I can take a test. I'm thinking, "Wow that was easy!' Negative. Ok. Period is late. What next? Wait? Ok.

January 2013 - 14 pregnancy tests later - nothing and still no period. Hmmm? Research compulsively online....

February 2013 - Make my yearly at my OBGYN. Tell her no period for 2 months and spotting every 2 weeks for 6 weeks. Diagnosed with PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome-follow link for further explanation). Dum Dum Dum! I had seen this online and suspected I might have it. Not sure what was happening but knew it wasn't good and cried all the way home. Dr. strongly suggests my husband get tested because, "If he has issues that is much more serious and will take much longer for you to get pregnant" (Those words are scorched in my mind forever)

March 2013 - Try Clomid (a pill that will help me ovulate). Detour! Huge cyst on right ovary and double the size the Dr. would like. What does this mean? I'm so confused? Obsessively research online. Convince husband I will ovulate any minute.

May 2013 - Meet with a Reproductive Endocrinologist (RE) that will be the answer to our prayers and instantly help me conceive. Right? WRONG. RE says husband needs to get tested. Suggests to try an IUI (Intrauterine Insemination).

June 2013 - After much nagging my husband donates his sample. Whoa! Detour!!! Low count, low motility, low morphology. whoa! What? What does all this mean? Continue obsessive research online. Dr. says all is ok because we are putting the sperm right where they need to be. Whew! IUI = fail. Devastated to say the least.

July 2013 - Try another IUI. After all, it usually doesn't happen on the first time. Fail. Detour. Stork is smashed! He definitely has a problem and needs to get his crap together. It's been over 6 months already!

August 2013 - Take a break. Husband is taking supplements to help all parameters of his sperm. Whoa! I ovulated on my own! The stork was still drinking so it was a fail.  Supplements actually made it worse. Detour!

September 2013 - New approach. Injectibles - Dum dum dum. I get nice and jacked up on expensive fertility meds and husband gives me shots. Stork delivers 4 perfect follicles that should produce 4 ripe eggs. This is going to work!!!! NOT. Fail. Detour. Husband is diagnosed with a varicocele. Detour again! Must get surgery.

October 2013 - Break. Let's figure out when/if we need surgery. More tests on husband by urologist and we find out the DNA of his sperm is so fragmented not even IVF will help us at this point. DEV-A-STATED. How do we pick up from here? Our Stork definitely is lost/drunk/ridiculous! Surgery and new supplements should help. Should! Come on Stork pull yourself together!!

November 2013 - Break from meds.Surgery is scheduled for my husband. We have one of the best urologist in the country but they can't guarantee any results. Praying for the best. Whoa I ovulated without meds again!! (The Metformin I'm taking for my PCOS must be helping)

December 2013 - Still a break. Husband recovering from surgery and made an appointment to start treatments again in March 2014.

March 2014 - Femara only 7.5 mg/IUI - Fail. Quick reality check. The stork told us not to try to exit there and we did anyways. We decide to wait a few months until we can get a 6 month post op check. However, we did find out that J's counts tripled. Now 19 million/ml.

April - June 2014 - Natural cycles. Fail. 6 month post op we have improvement ladies and gents! 36 million swimmers per ml! That is fantastic news! I've also been ovulating on my own. Hooray!

July 2014 - Femara 7.5mg/150 IU Gonal-f (the expensive stuff..ouch) - 3 good eggs, best count ever, no cigar. Had one of the worst break downs and hit a small bump of depression for a while. This one hit REAL hard.

August - Femara 7.5mg/150 IU Gonal-f - Even better counts! 2, maybe 3 eggs. Fail. We also met with a new doctor at a new clinic because we weren't happy with how Dr. Dunn was not dealing with my lining issues and we were beginning to feel like a number. We LOVE the new doctor, Dr. Williams, and he immediately suggested a hysteroscopy to make sure my lining is ok. He said he wants to do it before he will treat me at all.


So here we are. Waiting. Hopeful. Guarded. Hopeful. Sad. And guarded. Did I say guarded? As you can see our Stork is still in denial he has a major drinking problem. He cannot seem to find his way to the maternity ward. We are hopeful he will one day. I realize some of you will be "infertility amateurs" so google any of the words/phrases that you are not familiar with or comment and I'll be sure to elaborate.