so today is day 1 of the next cycle! wooooot! so excited! i have a good feeling about this cycle! i think we're just so pumped to be able to try again after a month off. day 3 is this saturday so we'll be back in for the ultrasound and blood work to check my thyroid. we'll also be picking up my prescription for 100mg of clomid. days 12, 13, and 14 will be on october 3, 4, and 5, so i'll be taking three half days at school so that we can do this cycle. hope no one asks me anything. ;) i'm also starting the herbal regimen that i purchased and charting my temps.
ahhhhhh! this is it! it's going to work this time!!! =P
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
quick update...
so i've been continuing all the "prep" stuff that i explained in the last post. i'm using the castor oil packs with the massage just about everyday, taking the appropriate pills and herbs, eating wheat and dairy free, eating healthy foods only, exercising moderately, mixing and drinking the ultragreens, drinking red raspberry tea, wearing rose quartz bracelets, and now i've added the "bend, breathe, and conceive" dvd. also, andrea and i are going to start an 8-week tai chi class tomorrow to help with stress, among other things. this weekend is our one-year wedding anniversary, so... the diet is on hiatus for the weekend!
anyways, that's your 1-minute update... more information to come, once we hit the next cycle!! :)
anyways, that's your 1-minute update... more information to come, once we hit the next cycle!! :)
Sunday, September 4, 2011
skipping this cycle
we're skipping this cycle, but we've been spending the time doing everything in our power to make sure that the next cycle works! i've been a bit obsessed with finding out about special diets, massages, and other things that can help you get pregnant. so i ordered the books "the fertility diet" and "the fertile kitchen cookbook" to make sure i'm eating foods that will boost my fertility. i also ordered the "fertility self massage" dvd, which guides you through of series of abdomen massages and acupressure and reflexology points that increase fertility.
then i researched herbs and supplements. I started taking an "ultragreens" supplement, which is basically all kinds of dark green leafy vegetables and fruits that are in a powder form. you can mix the powder with any drink. the drink is to ensure that i have plenty of green vegetables in my diet. it's definitely an acquired taste since the particles don't really dissolve, but i know it's good for me, so i drink it everyday. I also started drinking 2 cups of red raspberry leaf tea, which is supposed to help prepare your body for conception. I also ordered an herbal regimen off this website that i found. the regimen is supposed to be good for people taking clomid. since i will be taking 100mg of clomid this time, these herbs will not interfere with it. the herbs are alfalfa leaf, red raspberry leaf, evening primrose oil, b6, folic acid, and flax seed oil. in addition to taking pre-natal vitamins! each of these herbs has a specific range of days when i have to take it. i did a little of my own research on each herb to make sure that they were all okay to take. I made a few slight adjustments, and so now i'm ready to go with the herbs once i hit day 1 of my next cycle.
I also ordered 30 pregnancy test! don't worry they only cost $28 total! what a steal! our plan is that after the insemination, we are going to test everyday. initially they will be positive from the hcg in the ovidrel shot. then we will get a negative probably around day 10, which tells us that the ovidrel is out of my system. if i get a positive after that, it means that we are pregnant. i'm going to be charting my temperature as well so i purchased 2 digital thermometers. right now i'm taking my temperature every morning, but not really charting it. just trying to get in the habit of waking up every morning.
my most recent order includes castor oil and a flannel pack to be used with the castor oil as well as a heating pad. on my fertility self massage dvd, she explains that it's good to use a castor oil pack before doing the fertility self massage. first you have to put the castor oil on the flannel, lay it across your lower abdomen, place the heating pad on top if it, and then cover it with a towel. you just lay there for about 30 minutes, and then start the massage. the massage and the castor oil and supposed to help prepare your uterus for conception. I also ordered a yoga dvd called "bend, breathe, and conceive". so i'm pretty exited about that! and i just ordered more ultragreens so i don't run out.
so i think it's safe to say that with all these things and the 100mg of clomid, that we have a pretty good shot for the next cycle. we tried to increase the clomid to 150mg to increase our chances of producing multiple follicles, but the nurse said it was too risky to jump from 50mg to 150 mg without trying 100mg in between. however, she also mentioned that if we are not happy with the results of the 100mg of clomid (not enough follicles), then we can cancel the iui and try 150mg for the next cycle. andrea and i have decided that if i still only have one follicle then we are going to cancel. if i have two follicles, they would have to both be over 17mm for us to try. if the follicle are too small, then they are not considered "viable". if we have 3 or more viable follicles, then we will be thrilled!
so we shall see what happens. but i know we're doing everything possible (that i can afford!) to prepare for conception! :)
then i researched herbs and supplements. I started taking an "ultragreens" supplement, which is basically all kinds of dark green leafy vegetables and fruits that are in a powder form. you can mix the powder with any drink. the drink is to ensure that i have plenty of green vegetables in my diet. it's definitely an acquired taste since the particles don't really dissolve, but i know it's good for me, so i drink it everyday. I also started drinking 2 cups of red raspberry leaf tea, which is supposed to help prepare your body for conception. I also ordered an herbal regimen off this website that i found. the regimen is supposed to be good for people taking clomid. since i will be taking 100mg of clomid this time, these herbs will not interfere with it. the herbs are alfalfa leaf, red raspberry leaf, evening primrose oil, b6, folic acid, and flax seed oil. in addition to taking pre-natal vitamins! each of these herbs has a specific range of days when i have to take it. i did a little of my own research on each herb to make sure that they were all okay to take. I made a few slight adjustments, and so now i'm ready to go with the herbs once i hit day 1 of my next cycle.
I also ordered 30 pregnancy test! don't worry they only cost $28 total! what a steal! our plan is that after the insemination, we are going to test everyday. initially they will be positive from the hcg in the ovidrel shot. then we will get a negative probably around day 10, which tells us that the ovidrel is out of my system. if i get a positive after that, it means that we are pregnant. i'm going to be charting my temperature as well so i purchased 2 digital thermometers. right now i'm taking my temperature every morning, but not really charting it. just trying to get in the habit of waking up every morning.
my most recent order includes castor oil and a flannel pack to be used with the castor oil as well as a heating pad. on my fertility self massage dvd, she explains that it's good to use a castor oil pack before doing the fertility self massage. first you have to put the castor oil on the flannel, lay it across your lower abdomen, place the heating pad on top if it, and then cover it with a towel. you just lay there for about 30 minutes, and then start the massage. the massage and the castor oil and supposed to help prepare your uterus for conception. I also ordered a yoga dvd called "bend, breathe, and conceive". so i'm pretty exited about that! and i just ordered more ultragreens so i don't run out.
so i think it's safe to say that with all these things and the 100mg of clomid, that we have a pretty good shot for the next cycle. we tried to increase the clomid to 150mg to increase our chances of producing multiple follicles, but the nurse said it was too risky to jump from 50mg to 150 mg without trying 100mg in between. however, she also mentioned that if we are not happy with the results of the 100mg of clomid (not enough follicles), then we can cancel the iui and try 150mg for the next cycle. andrea and i have decided that if i still only have one follicle then we are going to cancel. if i have two follicles, they would have to both be over 17mm for us to try. if the follicle are too small, then they are not considered "viable". if we have 3 or more viable follicles, then we will be thrilled!
so we shall see what happens. but i know we're doing everything possible (that i can afford!) to prepare for conception! :)
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