Thursday, March 21, 2013

Happy ICLW Week!

Happy ICLW week! As I said in my last post, I'll be participating in IComLeavWe week hosted by Stirrup Queens.

If you don't know what ICLW is, here's an explanation:
"Welcome back to IComLeavWe. It stands for International Comment Leaving Week, but if you say it aloud, doesn't it sounds like “I come; [but] leave [as a] we”? And that's sort of the point. Blogging is a conversation and comments should be honoured and encouraged. I like to say that comments are the new hug–a way of saying hello, giving comfort, leaving congratulations."
This is my first time participating, and I'm so excited to read new blogs and hopefully make some new friends!

A quick intro:

I'm a Canadian-born Missourian living in Mississippi (for the time being.) My husband and I got married in August of 2012 and exactly one month after our wedding, I was diagnosed with PCOS and insulin resistance. For four months before our wedding, my period had mysteriously vanished. I took test after test to see if I was pregnant, but they all came up negative. I was so involved in final wedding preparations that I wrote the whole thing off and decided to take care of it after the wedding.

At my doctor's appointment in September, Dr. B automatically diagnosed me with PCOS and insulin resistance just by looking at me and my history. The blood tests that I had the day afterwards confirmed the diagnosis. I was put on a daily vitamin and 500 mg of Metformin to try and level out my blood sugar levels. The first three months we were cautioned to not get pregnant, so I was also put on birth control. Dr. B wanted to make sure that my body was healthy before we added on the stress of a pregnancy. Since September, my Metformin dosage has increased to 2000 mg/day which doesn't exactly please my digestive system. The only positive that I'm gained from Metformin is that it's helped me lose almost 25 pounds since September.

In January, we were given the go-ahead to begin trying to conceive and we're currently in the middle of our third cycle. We haven't gotten any BFPs, but I did get my first positive OPK and cross hairs on FertilityFriend on cycle day 18 of last cycle! While a positive OPK was something to celebrate, it unfortunately turned my previously 28 day cycle into a 33 day cycle. I'm nervous that without intervention, I'm going to be stuck with another 4 month cycle. We're currently waiting for the elusive peak fertility window of cycle 3. If this cycle doesn't end up with a positive pregnancy test, we're going to talk to Dr. B about moving on to Clomid.

Besides my extreme interest in what my ovaries are doing, I'm a big nerd. I love Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe and I have the same birthday!) and most nights are spent playing computer games with my husband. We just recently adopted our cat, Mika (pronounced Mee-ka) who thinks she's the queen of our house. We're also letting my husband's best friend live with us for the foreseeable future so baby making has taken a turn for the awkward. Thank goodness his room is on the other side of the house.

I blog because I hope that my story can someday help out another woman who is just starting on her infertility journey. I have gained so much from reading blogs from women who are further in their journeys, so I hope that one day I can do the same for someone else.

Thanks for stopping by!


*As a note: I'm the type of blogger that likes to respond to comments via email instead of replying in the comment section below. If you leave a comment, please make sure that it's attached to an email that I can respond to!*

6 comments:

  1. Hi! from ICLW! I'm Alexis! I'm sorry to hear about your pcos! I am excited to follow along on your journey!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi from ICLW...I have PCOS as well but am not insulin resistant...it plain sucks

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi from ICLW. In 1995 I was diagnosed with PCOS too. Some how I beat it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Greetings from ICLW! When my husband and I first bought our house, his cousin moved in with us to help soften the blow of having our first mortgage. It was a little awkward when it came to TTC. I'll never forget him saying one time, "I'll be right back, I have to go try to make a baby right now." Yeah... awkward.

    ReplyDelete
  5. OH!
    I dont even know how to reply to peoples comments via email - but i notice that everyone replies to mine via email! What the heck. lol!
    & im sending you all sorts of sticky baby thoughts my dear! PCOS sucks! it made me gain weight. and it seriously is just yuck.
    and also hi from iclw, but i knew your blog before :) fun coincidence! heehee, yay!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi from ICLW! I am glad you have an RE that seems to be taking your infertility seriously. Some, just never take it seriously enough, or are too busy with the vast number of patients they have to do so.

    I am also glad to hear you (and your husband) are so invested in your own care. I have read so many stories about people who wait YEARS before finally getting the help they need.

    Fingers crossed for your current cycle. Maybe you will ovulate on cycle day 14 to make the when-to-get-it-on dilemma easier....

    ReplyDelete