Cattle class

Today we had an appointment at the clinic for a blood test and ultrasound scan. It is day seven and I have had five injections of Gonal-f so far, so it's time to see how my ovaries are coping under this hormonal assault!


We met with a nurse first for the blood test and then we saw a doctor whose name I didn't get for the scan. That seemed to be the way with this appointment - people didn't introduce themselves and they gave the impression of being busy and impatient. I found that I wasn't understanding the information given to us because it was often presented as if we already knew it. Maybe we should be studying more closely the huge booklet we received at the beginning of this process. But it definitely felt like information was being drip-fed to us and we were expected to be able to join the dots. D and I were able to discuss the appointment afterwards and make sense of everything, which helped a lot. I wish we didn't see different people all the time. The clinic's literature calls this their "team approach" but I find it confusing.

Another strange thing was that the doctor asked me if I wanted to insert the ultrasound probe myself! I had never been asked that before. I thought it would have felt far too strange so I declined, but I wonder if it was just this doctor's habit to ask or if there was another reason. The scan itself was fine, though, and showed three follicles on each ovary. I could see them quite clearly. The doctor counted and measured them and said she was happy with the result.

Before we left the clinic, we saw the nurse again. She explained that I will need to have an Orgalutran injection as well as a Gonal-f injection for the next three nights. I had thought that the Orgalutran was a one-off but it seems not! So we have been given another Gonal-f pen and another two single-use Orgalutran syringes, as well as a big stack of alcohol wipes, and I need to go back in on Monday morning for another blood test and scan. In my understanding, the hormones are being ramped up to make the follicles mature and then a trigger injection will make them produce eggs ready for collection.

By the way, I was sick last Monday morning and also this morning. I assume it had something to do with the extra hormones (I hope it doesn't mean I'm going to be partial to morning sickness!) and I'm not too worried about it. But I mentioned it to the doctor this morning just in case and she said it was nothing of concern. I hope Monday's appointment is better than this one, though it is also scheduled for first thing in the morning so perhaps they will be just as busy.