Everything including the kitchen sink.

I thought I'd start the blog with a pic of us from Prague. This was taken in our first few days there - sometime around the first week of June.

As usual, my mind is on baby making. I got my period 31 days after my miscarriage (I am usually a 25 or 26 day cycle). So I was happy that it didn't take forever for my HCG to drop back down. I took a HPT (home pregnancy test) just to confirm that it was negative because I refused to pay the $150 to have my blood tested. It is not as accurate as it is only sensitive to 25 mUI but with the return of the period I feel pretty sure it has dropped. I met with my OB and let my RE in Prague know we were going to try one more cycle here while we are waiting until I can go back to Prague. 

I took Femara on CD 3-9. By taking Femara, we are hoping to produce more follicles in the hopes that we can do this the natural way. In addition, I had acupuncture this cycle and my acupuncturist suggested that I see the local voodoo doc (he is actually a chiropractor). He deal is muscle testing so we tested all sorts of food, allergens and other things like fungus and bacteria. He put me on a strict diet - no nightshades, no caffeine (including chocolate, ACK!!!), no sugar including honey and maple syrup (stevia is ok), no vinegar, soy sauce, miso, yeast or cheese (other dairy is ok), no corn, no pork, no avocado and no beets. And of course, no alcohol. Boo! I do get to eat grains (yay!!)  but not bread because of the yeast. I also tested for fungus and virus so I have 2 supplements that I am taking - 2 pills of Woad 3 times a day and 3 pills of Undecyn 3 times a day - that is 15 pills a day!! I have no idea what exactly those are targeting but I will try anything!! I am 10 days into the voodoo doctors protocol. I see him on Friday and hopefully I can eat bacon and chocolate again. 

There are a few other over the counter drugs that women often take and I am trying them all! I took Mucinex leading up to ovulation - it is suppose to help thin your cervical mucus to help Jason's swimmers get where they need to go. I am also taking my temperature every morning to help pinpoint ovulation as well as ovulation predictor strips. Usually they say to use one a day to detect LH surge but in the past I have never gotten a positive so I decided to use 4 a day around when I though I might ovulate. It is like a HPT where you pee on a stick and wait to see the line appear except for OPK's need to be the same color as the control line. I actually got a positive on CD13 at 3pm! See pic below. 

The other over the counter drugs I am taking are Claritin once a day, Pepcid 2x a day and Benadryl at night. The thought is that women with unexplained losses take this cocktail of meds to help dampen down the immune system a bit around implantation - so you start taking it around 3-4DPO (days past ovulation). In the cycle that I got pregnant, I was on predinsone (which can be substituted for the benadryl)  but my RE doesn't want me to take it until we are doing the donor cycle. Today I am 3DPO so I am starting that protocol today. I also am going to start nightly guided meditations where I picture myself pregnant with a huge belly. Also, I am keeping my feet warm and the pineapple eating will commence on 5DPO. I am also taking a baby aspirin a day to help with any clotting problems as well as my prenatal and DHA.

Writing it all out makes me feel like a crazy person. I guess I am but I don't really care. I really want to have a child and why not give it everything we've got before I head back over to Prague for our donor cycle. The donor cycle will likely take place around the first half of March. So if we don't get pregnant naturally this cycle then I will book my tickets for Prague sometime at the end of the month. Hopefully I will hear something about the donor sometime soon. 

Emotionally, I still have my moments of hysterical crying. Usually is is a pic on FaceBook or a song that sets me off. Last week after hearing of another friends pregnancy, I made an infertility playlist most of the songs are sad but there are a few hopeful ones in there too. I play it when I need a good cry. It seems to do the job. Any suggestions for my playlist?

xo - katherine