My TTC story part two

In March of 2005 I turned 37 years old. Our son turned six months old and we felt like we could officially start trying again. Our doctor had told us that we should try for six months on our own and if it didn't work then we should go straight to IVF because of my age. He kind of winked at us and said "you know these problems have a way of correcting themselves so maybe you won't need the IVF" We his left office with a lot of hope. I bought a brand new thermometer and started thinking about charting again, this time using the online version of Fertility Friend. To be honest I was a little lazy about charting though and just used my temps very generally to pinpoint my potential good days before ovulation. We did have timed intercourse each month though hitting days 10 through 18 as much as possible. It didn't seem to be working right away and after nearly six months of trying we took an appointment in August to schedule our first post baby IVF. That appointment went well and we were on board for a cycle which would culminate with results around November, in just a few short months. We were really happy and I started seeing all of my old IVF cycle buddies doing the same thing, many getting pregnant with twins this time. We couldn't hold our enthusiasm and we talked of nothing but WHEN not IF.

The most surprising thing in all my TTC journey was the spontanious pregnancy I had at this time. It came when we weren't even really trying. We couldn't believe our eyes when we saw the double line. We had done it on our own. It was such a wonderful feeling. I wanted to shout from the rooftops. Then came the crash. At eight weeks I miscarried. By the time I got to the ER all that remained was the sac. There was no baby. That was a really rough time and I started this diary right afterwards to help me get my diet in order before the IVF, which by the way was now going to be delayed until after Christmas.

My doctor called me a few days after the miscarriage. He had learned of my spontaneous pregnancy through the nurse and he was calling to talk to me about it. "You can obviously get pregnant so I'll have to recommend you for IUI now, not IVF" I was totally shocked. I argued with him. "What?!" We were doubly devastated. First the miscarriage and now a demotion. IUIs to us were worthless. We knew this. The spontaneous pregnancy was a once in a million thing. But he was the one allowed to call the shots and the system in France for IVF is all doctor driven. It was him who would decide what we were eligible for. We really had no choice.

It was a long winter. For four months we did three IUIs one right after the other. None of them worked. We were doing them just to get them over with. We were getting them out of the way. Meanwhile the clock was ticking. In May of 2006 we were able to start the IVF. I was 38 years old.

The IVF did not go well. I had a cyst, the local doctor doing my scans went on vacation, I was supressed for too long. A million things went wrong and the cycle dragged out for over seventy days. In the end of June I made it to retreival and had seven eggs of which four fertilized. We transferred three of them on day two and hoped for the best in spite of their bad quality. The results though were negative.

Another two months went by before we could get in for another appointment to schedule our next IVF. By September of 2006 we were ready to go again. My dosage of Gonal-F was upped and the cycle went so smooth it was hard to believe it was my cycle. I got twenty eggs, nineteen of which fertilized and three of which were transferred. We were very happy. Unfortunately I never made it to beta and that one also was negative.

From that cycle we were able to do an FET since two of the embryos made it to blastocyte. We prepped for a first FET but it was cancelled at the last minute because I ovulated too early.

The second FET went well. After the thaw one blastocyte immediately died off and one was lovely. We transferred the lovely one and it stuck. She was born in November of 2007 a healthy 10 pound girl named Charlotte.