For those of you who have been following our story, you’ve more than likely noticed our lack of posting. But up until now, there hasn’t been anything to share except what we’ve already said.
But at the beginning of January, we started the last steps of “Operation Petri”(dish).
So we thought we’d share a recap of our last year of patiently waiting.
In the spring of 2017, after over a year of trying to get pregnant, we decided to both follow up with our doctors. Through our appointments and tests, it was determined that the most probable reason we’d been unable to conceive was due to something called male factor infertility (MFI). Although there is sperm, it was in very low concentrations with sperm motility issues. Which basically meant that hardly any sperm was reaching the uterus to meet up with an egg. So we were referred to a urology specialist to talk about options to increase the chances of getting pregnant.
After consulting with the Urologist, we decided the best course of action would be in-vitro fertilization or IVF. So then we were referred to the Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (REI) office at Mayo Clinic. We’d met with a doctor there to discuss treatment options and determine if we were good candidates for the process. Long story short, we were great candidates, but there was one little snag.
Last winter, we decided to participate in our church’s service learning trip to Haiti. [You can read more about that here.] If you aren’t familiar with traveling overseas, sometimes you need to update vaccinations or get medications to avoid diseases you might not get here in sub-tropical Minnesota.
In the last few years, Zika virus has made the news because of its ability to transfer from a mother to her baby during pregnancy. The virus which is spread through mosquito bites has also been known to cause certain birth defects. Haiti happens to be a potential location for contracting Zika virus which can stay dormant in your body for up to six months. Since we were planning to travel to Haiti in June, we had to wait until six months after we returned to start any sort of IVF preparations. Our six months was up at the end of December
So now in January, after six long months – we can finally start!
Operation Petri!!
The first week in January, J had a procedure called TESE (testicular sperm extraction) to remove sperm directly. It was a simple procedure, but stress-inducing on both our parts. We were both relieved when they finally found sperm on the test slide. A even got to see the sperm through a microscope!!
The second week of January was our orientation. The REI staff walked us through our final decisions about future embryos and what the plan was for egg retrieval, fertilization, and embryo transplant. Our nurse walked us through the process of prepping and administering stimulation shots. Later that week, A had a baseline ultrasound to make sure they would have a good “before” picture.
Now we are here – week three of January. Last night, was our first round of shots and after all the waiting and anticipation it really wasn’t so bad.
Love,
A & J
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