“I arrived in Greece on Sunday 7th April on my own with my 1st visit to Embryolab bright and early Monday morning!
“My 1st scan showed a simple cyst on my right ovary that we knew about from my initial consultation visit but hoped had resolve on its own…it had not. This meant I would need to have it aspirated under sedation ASAP before I could start my cycle.
Very daunting as I hadn’t planned to be sedated until egg collection when my husband would be with me but I knew it was for the greater good.
“So back I went the next day, having fasted from the previous evening. The procedure was explained to me, everything was very simple, I was taken into the recovery room to sign a consent form, pack my things away and undress from the waist down and pop on a lovely skirt and clogs combo. All the nurses were absolutely lovely and tried to keep me distracted and upbeat but inevitabley I did have a wobble when my cannula was put in but I tried to “stiff upper lip it” like we British do in these situations! Around 20 minutes later I was being awoken and taken back to my bed with some iv fluids. Asides being very sleepy, I felt no pain or discomfort which was great.
“When I was more awake and alert I was given some crackers and had chat with the lovely Doctor. He explained everything went well and discussed my protocol again which is short protocol with antagonist.
“From Tuesday I started 225units of ovaleap at the same time everyday and return for a scan on Friday. Now given i’m a nurse and administer 100s of injections, injecting myself felt very daunting! The injection itself is in a pre loaded cartridge like an epi-pen so I didn’t have to worry about drawing up from vials however working up the courage to inject myself took lots of mental prep. Lots of faffing and nervous giggling to myself and generally feeling quite silly. Finally after much faffing, it was done and I was officially on the stims journey! I’d like to say each day got better but it was still a mental battle to stab myself but I knew it was for the greater good.
“My scan and blood test on Friday showed I had responded well and was informed to start the antagonist injection which was orgalutran. Another pre loaded syringe but a little more uncomfortable than the ovaleap, its normal for the site to be itchy and red for about an hour post administration.
“My husband arrived Saturday and boy was I glad to see him! We did some touristy things, enjoyed the weather and had some lovely food. In the evenings he helped with the injections like the sweetheart he is! The only side affect of the medication has been feeling quite tired and some acne which in the grand scheme of things, not terrible.
“Today’s update has showed the follicles are moving in the right direction but need a couple more days to be at the right size so continue with the injections and I have another scan on Wednesday (hopefully the last ) with potential egg collection on Friday.
“It all feels very surreal and still hasn’t sunk in that our journey has not only started but is well under way and is proceeding so well. We feel so incredibly grateful for the opportunity. Hopefully the 2nd half of the cycle is just as positive as the 1st half!”
Read more from Suki:
www.ivfbabble.com/suki-and-her-husband-embark-on-their-ivf-journey-with-embryolab/
