First hurdle

So we went to Shrewsbury today for the first scan since I started to inject the drugs. 

It was only at the weekend that it dawned on me that they may not be working - and the treatment may have to stop! 

But thankfully, the scan showed that everything was fine. The drugs are doing their job nicely. Phew. 

Then tonight, I got home and made some  scones. This being at home lark is great - especially as I was headache free this evening. We had a cuppa and a home made scone, warm out of the oven - delicious :) 

Just as I was about to go for a soak, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to find Helen Platt standing there with abunch of flowers, a card and two of my favourite cupcakes from Tesco for me and Ric. It was something so simple but it really made my day. I'm glad that I've confided in several close friends who can be there for support. It means the world. 

Increased injections

So, we're on to day six ... and I now have a morning injection as well as evening ones for the next nine days. 

We decided on 7am as it's feasible to do it before heading out to work. So the alarm was set for a 6:45 wake up call !!! 

Headed down in a sleep state, and Ric took charge of the mixing :) 

I followed the instructions and put the needle in my tummy! It was not as scary as I thought it was gonna be. 

We headed back upstairs in the hope of going back to sleep! Managed a half hour sleep and got up and made breakfast. 

Had to visit Mum's grave with some flowers for her birthday and we went for a walk around Alyn Waters Country Park. I've felt tired all week - but I'm also missing my exercise regime so gettingout in the fresh air for a stroll was great. Quality time with Ric was great too. 

Then home for a lazy afternoon of watching TV and a visit from my friend Helen to check up on how I was doinv. 

Apart from the headaches and an upset tummy, the treatment has been okay so far. Just need to get past the checkup scan tomorrow. Hope that the drugs are doing their job!!! 

And we're off

So, we're on the IVF rollercoaster. 

We attended Shrewsbury on Tuesday morning for a baseline scan (which they were pleased with) and then we had a chat with the nurse about preparing the injections! That's when it all became real. We headed off to call for a blood test on the way out. 

No call from the clinic - so all okay to proceed with injections. 

We decided on 9pm as our injecting time. I had a stonking headache and Ric was watching the Birmingham v Villa game! So I headed off upstairsto have a bath - and cried! The nerves were real now and I was so scared! Ric came up and gave me a hug and we headed downstairs to prepare. 

Ric was great and took charge. He'd already laid out the ampoules and needles etc. He sat down and started mixing the syringes! Oh yeah - because of the dosage, I need to take two injections !!! 

I took a deep breath and plunged the needle in to my leg! I didn't feel a thing! It hurt more putting the fluid in. One down, one to go!

Once both injections were in, I hugged Ric, had a cry and then we made a brew and enjoyed a cupcake ( I had to have some reward for injecting )! 

The following day hasn't been too bad really. I slept fine and felt a biz woozy in the morning - and had upset tummy. But by the afternoon I had a raging headache! I even went for a walk in the pouring rain, just to try and clear my head. I came back, had a lovely chat with my Sister-In-Law and then showered before tea ... and injection number two. 

And so, the time has come

After a long hard slog of trying to conceive combined with trying to lose several stone in weight, we are now 48 hours away from starting our treatment. 

The drugs were delivered weeks ago, our appointment is set for Tuesday morning for the baseline scan and I will be taking my first injection in around 48 hours! 

To say that I'm scared is an understatement. So many emotions, so many fears .... I won't go through them all - but I've certainly experienced them. 

I've finished my gym classes for the time being to allow my body to rest. Only those closest to me know what is about to commence.

We both have work on Monday then we have both taken the whole day off on Tuesday. I have a blood test first thing followed by a baseline scan then an appointment with the nurses to talk us through the injections - then it's up to us !!!!

The drugs have arrived

So, we waited in all morning for an 8am to 1pm slot for the delivery of the IVF drugs. Typically, it arrived at 12.50pm. Anyway, exciting times. The next stage of the process !!! It felt quite strange and very real as we sat on the floor in the dining room opening the box and finding pessaries and syringes.

As I am not yet able to proceed due to availability at Shrewsbury, we are just sitting tight waiting for the next set of instructions.

Hopefully, this will just give us time to adjust to what we're about to embark on and prepare/read up on the upcoming procedures of preparing injections etc. 

The ball is starting to roll

So ... following our trip to Shrewsbury when we were advised that we would be treated, we have since attended a Group Information session with Ros and we attended a one to one meeting with Gwen to sign all the legal paperwork and stuff .... and of course, I've been sticking within my target.

The end of June saw us celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary with a break away to Cornwall. It was just what we needed to de-stress, relax and just spend some quality time with each other. We got to travel around and see lots of the sights such as Land's End, Minack Theatre, Polperro, Port Isaac, Falmouth ... the list goes on.

Then it was home and back to normality. Whilst I was away, I started my period and therefore started to take the pill. I know ... taking the pill in the hope of having a baby ... go figure. But hey, I'll do whatever it takes ;) So I started the pill and advised the Fertility Clinic of this. They explained that the Doctors would be reviewing my case and would be in touch when they had more information. 

Fast forward a fortnight and I got a missed call on 13th July regarding the delivery of the IVF drugs .... Eeeek, this shit just got real !!! I came home and was just about to relax at the end of a long day and chat about it with Richard .... only to have a call from Yvonne at Shrewsbury. She said that it was not possible to proceed as early as they had liked due to what appointments/availability there was. So I have been advised to finish the pack of contraceptive pill then take a break for a month .... which I am so glad about as it doesn't seem to be agreeing with me at the moment ( weight gain, tiredness, tummy upset ). She advised to take a break and start again in August on the pill, then I have scans booked in for the end of September and egg collection in early October !!! OMG .... This is getting real and scary now.

I won't go through all the emotions ... as I'm not quite sure how I'm feeling right now .... scared, nervous, excited .... the list could go on !!! I just hope and pray that it works for us and we can create a mini Westwood xx

Target achieved

We began trying to conceive around 2007. When nothing appeared to happen, we followed the procedures of going to the Doctors, blood tests etc! They found nothing wrong and put it down to unexplained infertility. 

When we were referred to the hospital for further investigations, the nurse instantly told me that I was overweight and that I wasn't helping matters. 

I proceeded to look in to my diet and managed to lose a stone straight away. Then I got stuck. I joined the gym and found a love of group exercise. I made some great friends and still enjoyed treats  after working out. Gradually more weight came off and I started to look and feel amazing. I even took up running - and even managed to complete 5k, 5mile and 10k events! 

But as my weight plateaued, I struggled and felt like my target would never be hit. In March 2015, we wrote to the Fertility Department at Shrewsbury who had us on a watchful waig list to explain my predicament ... I was changing shape, but couldn't seem to get the scales to show the loss! I spoke with Pat from the hospital who advised me to do anything and everything that I could! 

I spoke with Amanda from my gym and she advised me to cut my carbs and also cut back on exercise and see how I got on. The weight began to fall off - and I felt amazing. 

On May 13th, I finally hit my 5stone loss! I was ecstatic! I posted on Facebook and the support that I got was amazing. I then called up the fertility clinic as Richard was booked in for a check up the following week. I asked if I could just pop along and get weighed as I knew that the scales would differ at the hospital. The nurse I spoke to was lovely and said that she would make a note that I wanted to be weighed when we visited. 

Fast forward to Thursday 21st. I felt fine as I knew I'd done my best and was at the lightest I've been since my journey began. I went to work in the morning and ate nothing and only drank one cuppa to ensure that I wasn't holding a lot of fluid. 

We arrived at the hospital and I felt at ease as I had no expectations for the day. Richard had his appointment and a nurse called Yvonne called me to go and het weighed. I got on the scales and stopd tall as she measured my height and weighed me. She then said I shod look at my BMI. It changed from 30.5 to 30.6. I knew I needed to be around 30 so I was waiting for her to tell me how many more pounds I needed to shift. She left ius in a room while I put my shoes back on and she came back in and said that she had told the Doctor about my progress and she announced he was happy for me to proceed with treatment! I wastaken aback and actually cried! I couldn't speak. 

I'd finally reached my goal. We can proceed with IVF. I honestly was not expecting to be given this news! Yvonne came back and booked us in for a group session on 5th June to find out all about what is involved. She also booked us in for a session just the two of us to discuss what happens next. This session is on 16th June and then we go on holiday to Cornwall on 21st June. Knowing that our IVF is imminent is such a strange but comforting feeling. I also need to take a step back and not assume that this is it ... I know the odds, statistics etc are not good - but at least we have a chance! 

We left the hospital in a state of shock. We'd already arranged to go to a pub on the way to Birmingham. We arrived at The Woodbridge pub at Coalport and the first thing I ordered was a glass of wine. We then ordered a cheeseburger with chips each! It was 3pm and we were starving! I felt like I earned my burger and thoroughly enjoyed it. We stopped off at Ironbrige for a stroll around then we headed to Birmingham. I made Richard keep quiet about the outcome of our visit. I wanted his Mum to find out face to face as she always gets to hear things over the phone. We popped to Tesco and bought a bottle of Prossecco and had to buy a bag of ice as it wasn't chilled (much to Richard's annoyance as he totally disagrees with buying ice). 

Anyway, we celebrated with cheese and crackers and a glass of fizz. 

I told my Dad on the phone and Gareth and Charlie - who cried when I told her which was lovely. 

I've decided to tell several friends that I've been accepted for treatment, but I don't really want to tell anyone when the treatment actually begins as I don't want any pressure. 

For the time being, it's time to keep the pounds at bay and hopefully shed a few more.