The new clinic

On Friday we had our first appointment at the clinic in our new city. I picked D up from work and we drove there. I was very nervous driving in the central business area, both because of the traffic and because of the tall buildings (I don't like earthquakes). But we made it in plenty of time and there was lots of easy parking available. I also felt nervous about starting treatment again. I really don't want to go through it all again, but there is enough hope for a different outcome that I am willing to try again. It seems that D has never given up and really doesn't want to stop trying yet.

The clinic was laid out differently and was in an older building. They had two receptionists and a large waiting area. We first met with Dr M. He was young and very nice and was quite happy to get to know us and talk about our past treatments and where we go from here. He recommended IVF again with ICSI, as well as the Heparin injections that Dr P had recommended. He also told us that at this clinic they take the sperm biospy in advance and freeze it, rather than doing it on the same day as the egg collection. We thought that was a bit weird because we'd assumed fresh is best, but apparently it makes no difference. Dr M agreed that there seemed to be no explanation for our lack of success but he was in favour of trying again with a short protocol and Puregon. We checked the dates of my cycle and day 1 is going to be around 11 September, so things will be going ahead fairly soon!

We next met with Nurse L, who talked to us about the blood tests we'd to have before we started (for HIV, hepatitis, syphilis, etc). She also booked D for his sperm biopsy early next week. She will call me in about a week's time to talk about picking up the medications and having an education session. (Although we've done this lots of times before, it's always good to make sure we know what we're doing!) I will have to have the Heparin injections every day from the time of egg collection, but we can do those at home.

Today I went to the local lab to have my blood test. D had his done during the workday yesterday. It was quick and painless! I think I'll be seeing a lot more of the staff there over the next few weeks.