This cycle has gone by quickly. Partly because of the holidays and partly because I have the wonderful Max as a distraction and to keep me busily running around changing diapers, cutting up pears and playing trains. We had our retrieval yesterday and got 9 eggs. That is less than we got in our previous 3 cycles (11/14/10) but the nurse was encouraging. We should get a phone call today to tell us how many are progressing and will likely be transferred.
My wonderful mother-in-law, who took Max overnight Monday night so we could stay in the city and have a fun night with my cousin and her husband and have a MUCH shorter drive to the office where they do the procedures, also picked him up for play-school this morning so I could lay on the couch and vegitate. I just finished Elizabeth Edwards’ book Resilience and still have a few minutes to kill before Max gets home.
I have some pain from retrieval, but it isn’t too bad. Mostly I feel super bloated. Partly from the drugs and my enormous ovaries and partly because I have been eating and eating and eating the last few weeks and haven’t been able to run since January 7 when I started the stimulation drugs. They said not to run until at least after the pregnancy test, which is still at least 2 weeks away. I gained a couple pounds over the holidays with all that rich food and less exercise and I have definitely gained a few more over the last couple weeks. I vascillate between looking at my protruding stomach disgustedly in the mirror and telling myself that I need to be gentle and kind to myself and that I’ll work it out (off?) once we find out if this cycle worked. No reason to keep beating myself up about it now since there isn’t much I can do about it, except eat a little better. But the stress of this cycle makes me want junk – ice cream and chocolate and chips and fries and everything that I generally restrict myself from at least somewhat.
Transfer is likely to be Friday, though they will hopefully tell me that today when they call too. My dad and step-mom are going to come into town to help with Max so that I can mostly lay in bed and read and relax. They don’t tell you that you should do bed rest at the office that I go to, but I did with the cycle when I got pregnant with Max, so in order to duplicate that cycle as much as possible I want to lay around as much as I can. Mike will be home most of the weekend too, but it will be nice to have a little extra help and a little extra distraction. I think they are even bringing dinner so I don’t have to worry about that either.
My wonderful girlfriends are taking me to dinner next Monday and out for gelato. We went out in between transfer and the pregnancy tests when I got pregnant with Max and had dinner and gelato – so they think that was the magic thing that I did… They said that we had to do it becuase they can’t be responsible for a failed cycle. : ) They are wonderful for trying to take my mind off of all the stress and always asking how it is going and being super supportive and empathetic. I am very lucky to have them in my life. And a couple of new friends out here in Lombard have been incredibly supportive too, offering to take care of Max whenever I needed so that I could rest. I haven’t taken then up on it yet, but I might – it is nice to know that you have a support network and people (besides my immediate family) that care.
