Trying For a Baby

In September of 2006, my long-term boyfriend and I decided we were stable enough for babies. We threw out the birth control and thought it should only be a couple months.

January 2007 I started to get skeptical. Everyone I know has gotten pregnant on accident. I had two aunts (2 fraternal) and a cousin (maternal) who’ve struggled with infertility, but my mom is 1 of 10 so I thought I was ok.

April 2007 I decide to join the military. I took my non-conception as a sign that I should do a little living and my step-dad said the Navy was fun (LIES! LOL) My aunt also said she loved it so I joined. We continued to try, but still hadn’t done any hardcore searching on ways to do it right. Juan proposed the weekend I was due to ship out in June 2007.

June 2007-October 2007: boot camp and A-school. Juan moved out just in time to begin BD for that month.

November 2007: I found babycenter.com and began reading up on ways to increase our chances. I started temping that cycle but still felt like it should just happen.

April 2008: Still in denial, time to move to San Diego. Started school and added a new toy to the mix: OPKs.

August 2008-November 2008: Deployed to the Gulf of Oman.

December 2008: Start trying to ttc again. With the ship’s schedule, it’s no easy.

May 2009-October 2009: Deployed to the Gulf of Oman. Depression starts to set in from being interrupted.

November 2009: Start TTC again. Again, ship’s schedule makes it hard.

December 2009: Hear about a military fertility clinic. I chalk it up to rumor. There’s no way they do that.

February 7, 2010: BFP! I was so excited that it was finally happening. EDD October 11, 2010.

February 15, 2010: Start bleeding after DTD. I went to the ER and found out I had a substantial Subchorionic hemorrhage. I was given ONE day of bed rest but had to spend that one day verifying with medical. So much for that. They did give me an extra day.

February 17, 2010: Got a call that my beta dropped between my ER visit on the 15th and my medical visit on the 16th. They need a new one when I come in on the 18th. Bleeding is dark brown now.

February 19, 2010: Get the call that my beta went back up. YAY! Later that night I start bleeding heavily and passing clots. After waiting several hours in the ER to be seen and having my beta checked, I ask to go home. They checked the numbers and I was down more than a 1000. I spent the next few days passing the clots. I distinctly remember pulling the sac out of the toilet, just to be sure it was done.

April 2010: I still haven’t transferred back to a ship. I go back to church for the first time on Easter Sunday and rededicate my life to Christ. Later that week, a girl I’ve never met or seen before comes to help out with the cleaning. She asks why I’m at TPU (Temp Personell Unit) and I say I was here for maternity but I miscarried. She asks if I was TTC and I said yes. She started telling me about the fertility clinic and how they’re doing IVF for her soon. She gives me the number and wishes me good luck. I never see her again.

May 2010: First appt with the RE. They take my basic information and tell me what to expect.

June 2010: Lot’s of bloodwork, an HSG and SA. HSG- all normal except for a slow filling tube. Juan has low motility, morphology and count. He needs a repeat SA.

July 2010: I get assigned to USS Carl Vinson. My first day onboard I get sent out to sea for a week. I spend most of the week crying uncontrollably over the thought of not being able to do my fertility treatments. When we pull in for a day, I go to the ER for suicidal ideations. I get admitted and am held for 4 days. They assure me upon my release that I won’t be sent back to the ship without working through my problems. The ship’s doc is not sympathetic at all. My division officer and my department head are. They assure me they will let me continue treatments.

August 2010: I was supposed to do a round of clomid and it got pushed off for ship’s schedule. I go underway again but I handle it much better. My RE assures me we will do an aggressive treatment upon my return.

September 2010: We pull in just in time and I am able to work out with my supervisors the schedule so I can get all my treatment appointments in.

Sep 2 CD1

CD3-7 Clomid 100MG

CD9 Double dose of Gonal-F

CD11 Follicle U/S: 3 small follicles

CD13 Follicle U/S: 3 small follicles, given a shot of Menupur to speed things up

CD14 Follicle U/S: 24mm, 22mm, 19mm follicles. Given Ovidrel and a next day appointment for IUI.

CD15 Juan gives sample post-wash count 5million. IUI

9DPIUI Faintest of faint BFP’s on an FRER. I have to fight the urge to test again.

9DPIUI Tested again anyway. Still super faint.

10DPIUI Tested with FMU, Super faint, but I can definitely see it. I tell DH, he’s skeptical. Blood drawn at RE after HPT confirmation with medical. Beta=22?

My numbers continued to rise. FINALLY! After a lot of tears and heartache, I’m on my way to my first baby!