IVF (The Process)

Want to know what the in vitro process entails, well here you go! (This is for my process, most are similar to this, but may be plus or minus some things)

Consultation is first, to find the right doctor for you, what you need from the process and the goal you are looking for.

Next, the woman gets blood work and an ultrasound done as a baseline and the man gets a sperm analysis to see how things are on that end. Once all that is done you figure out when you want to start the IVF process and which cycle you choose to be a part of.

Now here is the part where the anxiety kicks in, for me at least. Talking about all of these things and taking the initial tests is one thing but once it is on the calendar and you are working towards that start date things change.

Once you choose the cycle you are going to be a part of you can then start your consultation for your process, since everyone's is slightly different. Unfortunately I also have a blood clotting disorder so I needed my cardiologist and my hematologist to sign off on me continuing and my hematologist noted that I would need to be on blood thinners for 2 months; weeks prior, during and after the IVF process. What that means is 1 extra shot everyday for 2 months (UGH!)

For the normal person you would start your birth control or hormone pills 3 weeks prior to the beginning of the IVf process and have 1 ultrasound during those 3 weeks. After those 3 weeks are up, you discontinue using the pills and then go in for your 1st day of hormone treatments. That day is the same day for everyone going through it that month and you go in for an ultrasound and an injection teaching. This is Day 1 of 14 of your hormone injections, which are 3 times a day, or if you are me 4 injections a day.

The injections go for about 2 weeks. We are beginning on April 2nd and ended around the 14th. During the first week of your treatments you go in for 2 ultrasounds and 2 times for bloodwork. Once the first day and the last day of the week of the first week. Then the harder part comes in, the second week. You are in the office everyday for an ultrasound and bloodtest, all while keeping up with your daily injections and pills. Then at the end of the second week is when you have your egg retrieval procedure. It is an out-patient surgical procedure where the woman has her fertilized eggs removed from her.

That is when the dish baby starts! (sorry, i just need to make jokes on this sometimes) The romance of having a baby is done in a nice white laboratory! The eggs are then taken to the lab and the sperm is injected into the egg and hopefully creates an embryo.

Now a lot of women then get the embryos implanted back into them, but in my case they do not. There are now amazing DNA tests that can actually test for certain genetic defects. Marfan Syndrome is something that you pass on from generation to generation and knowing that it is in my genes, my partner and I have decided we do not want to have a child with Marfan Syndrome. Fortunately I have had a decently mild case, but my offspring might now, so we will be donating our embryos that test positive for the Marfan gene to science. This part of the process is obviously separate for my case, but I wanted to be open an honest through this.

You have to wait a full 14 days for your results to see how many, if any, embryos are made. This time frame is no less or no more. So after my egg retrieval surgery, I will find out 2 weeks later if I will have any embryos without the Marfan Syndrome gene. Unfortunately there is a chance we may end up with none, but we are trying to remain positive and deal with the end result once it happens. And then if we have embryos without the Marfan gene we can keep our embryos frozen and find a surrogate when the time comes!

I will keep you updated on my daily process on the pain, the stories and the honesty of the whole IVF process. More to come.

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