Chapter 18: Updates from the first TWW

It's Friday today and day 8 of my cycle.

We came to visit my family for the weekend, and its been a good distraction... for the most part. We're still keeping up with the meds, so that's something constantly on our minds.

This cycle has been different, even though we're on pretty much the same protocol as last month. I had sent my nurse a message asking for my treatment schedule the same day that I had called CVS Caremark to order my shots and progesterone. I didn't get a response from a clinic though until the next day. I had made sure to get my meds delivered to me yesterday, even though I was under the impression that I wouldn't have to do any shots until Saturday (going off of last month's schedule). We knew we'd be away for the long weekend, so I wanted to have the meds on hand as to avoid any unnecessary back and forth and potential delay in cycle, which could have nullified this month.

When I got a response from the nurse the next day, she said I had to take my first gonal-f shot Thursday night. I thanked the heavens and God that everything was being delivered on Thursday, otherwise we would have been stuck. I'm not sure if I would have been able to get the medication in time to take it then. It's a good thing we had planned not to be at home, and I had prepared accordingly. Last month, my meds were delivered pretty early in the afternoon. Yesterday though, I spent all day waiting by the door. We had told my mom we would make it in time for dinner. But when the UPS truck still had not showed up by 4 PM, I called her to let her know that we'd get there when we could. By 6 PM, I was stressing and hoping that the meds would just arrive that evening. The tracking kept saying that the truck was in our area. I was able to see a live tracker, so my husband and I even went out to try the hunt the truck down, with no such luck though. We tried for 30 minutes, but then made our way back home to wait at the door. Eventually, about an hour later, the driver finally dropped off the box and went on his way. It was only because I had opened the front door to go to the car and grab my last dose of Letrozole from my purse that I saw the box on the porch. He didn't ring the doorbell or show up on our front camera. I was so annoyed haha.

We stuck the box in the car and drove straight to my mom's. After eating and praying Maghrib, it was time to get shot up for the first time this cycle. I was a little worried; just like children like semblance and set environments, I think adults do well with that too, especially in nerve-wracking scenarios. This was the first time I had to take any of my meds away from home, and it was throwing off our mojo. I think my husband was also being cautious, but maybe too wrapped up in his head. When he went to stick me after I had mixed the medication, he accidentally put too much pressure on the syringe instead of just the plunger, and I had to do everything in my power not to yelp in pain. That is, until I couldn't handle it, and I let out a squeak, asking him to ease up. I bled a little from the injection site, which was normal. But this time, I bruised in the area too. It's not terrible. I kept an ice pack on it afterwards for about an hour and that helped a ton.

Based on last month, we're going for two doses of gonal-f right off the bat. So my second one will be tomorrow night. If all goes according to plan, when I go for my monitoring appointment on Monday morning, I should be able to trigger Monday night. It's going to depend on how the scans looks and how my follicles are doing. I know that my body could react differently to the meds each month, but I'm praying that our outcome this time is better than the last. If we are able to trigger on Monday, then IUI #2 should happen on Wednesday inshallah.

It's crazy to me how fast the first two weeks of the cycle go. Between waiting for AF to finish, the baseline appointments, all the follow-up monitoring appointments, the medication schedules, and everything else in between, the first two weeks of the cycle fly by. Then comes the two week wait after the IUI or after ovulation, and it is always such a drag. Whether it's a medicated cycle or not, the latter half of the cycle always feels like an eternity. Last month, I spent my time actively trying not to do anything. I relaxed and watched Netflix. I barely cooked or did any extra work. It was the epitome of relaxation.

So for this month, I'm trying something different. I'm trying to stick to my usual daily activities. Travel back and forth between MD and VA as I usually do. See my family and friends when I can. Try not to hide away inside my home unless I'm actually in pain and can't move. And just try my best to not stress. Way easier said than done.