First Follicle Scan

Yesterday was such a long day for us. 12 hours of sitting in a car while my husband drove. We took his car which is a manual and since I don't know how to drive them, he was stuck doing it all and I was stuck hanging onto the oh-shit handle above the passenger door and telling him how to drive. Then we had to throw poor Oso in the kennel as soon as we got to Fayetteville because they close at 6pm. He wasn't happy. I'm sure the whole time we were driving he thought we were going to the dog park or something and then he gets a 2-week stay in a kennel. At least we'll be able to visit him.

My first follicle scan was this morning (stim day 5) and it went okay. I'm starting to feel the heaviness in my body that are the fluid-filled ovaries. I thought for sure there were more follicles today than we saw at our last IVF. I was wrong. They found 15 follicles measuring from 5-8mm as well as some smaller ones that might grow over the next few days. During our last IVF they found 18 follicles from 7-11mm on the same day. I was a little disappointed because I (foolishly) thought that taking all these vitamins and supplements for the past 3 months would help in the egg department. Still, there's a possibility that these eggs might be higher quality than the last batch. I suppose our bodies can still respond differently to each cycle, even when the protocol stays the exact same. I wondered for a second whether age had something to do with my slower response but surely it can't be when my last IVF was just 8 months ago...right? Either way, I don't go back in for another scan until Thursday.

**TMI Alert**

On a different subject...I have a hemorrhoid. It's my first and I'm not sure how I got it, though I suspect that the Metformin is to blame because it's been giving me a stomachache for a while. It's pretty painful and couldn't have come at a worse time. After all, that's the general area where the doc is going to be working over the next two weeks. Why couldn't I have gotten a cold sore or athlete's foot or something? I tried finding some medication for it but all they had at the grocery store was Preparation H and since the nurse said that isn't approved for pregnant people, I probably shouldn't take it either while I'm stimming. Tuck's was on the "approved" list so I've been on the lookout for that instead.

Other than that, things are going well. I feel like I could sleep all day long but I know I shouldn't. I seem to be the only IVF girl staying at the Fisher House. Nurse D said there's about 25 girls in the cycle this month so I guess most of them must be local. That sucks because last time there were about 5 girls staying here and we had a great time together. I hope I get to meet some of the ladies who are in the cycle as well. Oh, and don't forget that today is the last day to enter my giveaway for the Fearlessly Frugal Budget Prize Pack!

**Update** Nurse D called with my estrogen levels, they are 310. I also forgot to mention that the u/s tech noticed a fluid-filled area outside my ovary which she wasn't too concerned about but recommended that I start drinking more Gatorade. I've been drinking 32 oz a day, though I admit that yesterday I didn't have any during our trip. Is this not enough? How much do they realistically expect me to drink? I'm not a camel.