Bills, Bills, Bills!!!

I.AM.DROWNING.IN.BILLS!!!

Lately, it feels like the bills just keep on coming. I just want to whinge, although I know that's just how life is. I'll deal with it. I just want to come up for air now.

Day 4 Update

While yesterday's update was specific and thorough, today's is a bit vague. And the scientist's call came a bit early too, I had just woken up. Haha!

Good news again! She said that 4 of the embryos have developed further than yesterday. So they're now at the level they want them to be. I'm guessing the morula stage since that's what the booklet says. But then again, each embryo's development is different. So I'm just trusting their judgement on these things. As for the other 4, they have developed a few more cells than yesterday -- just not on the same level. They're not ruling them out yet. I'm hoping and praying the 4 slower embies do catch up by tomorrow. For all of these, we praise and we thank you, Lord! :)

My ET (embryo transfer) is scheduled for 10am tomorrow. I'm a bit nervous but more excited. No more updates from the scientists. Hehe.

I've also booked acupuncture sessions for tonight and tomorrow night. I've been reading and researching about IVF and acupuncture lately. Some girls said it really helped them so I decided to give it a go. I figured it wouldn't hurt to try. Tonight is my first EVER acupuncture session. I'm hoping it'll help me relax and feel more prepared for tomorrow's transfer. My acupuncturist is a lovely man from Castle Hill. I'm so thankful that he was able to accommodate me at such short notice -- I only rang him yesterday. :)

I'm trying something else that I've read about -- positive visualisation. Couldn't hurt, right? And it's free! Positive thoughts all 'round! :)  

Day 3 Update

I just got the call from the scientist about today's update. Can I just say, the scientist went all scientific on me! Haha! I guess she can't help it, she's a scientist after all.

On to today's great news (if I may say so, although I still need to do some research about some of the things she said). So yesterday, all 8 embryos were between 2-4 cells, right? Today's update is a bit complicated so I'll just do it in bullets. :)

• One of the embryos is a bit slower in developing than the rest. Yesterday it had 2 cells, now it has 4 cells which is not that bad at all. The scientist said it might still catch up/develop further so they'll keep it with the rest.
• One embryo has 6 cells, two embryos are at the 7-cell stage and another one has 8 cells.
• Even more fantastic (her words, not mine :D), we now have three embryos at the early morula stage! According to the booklet, the embryos should be at morula stage on Day 4, which is tomorrow. So this is indeed fantastic news! Again, we praise and we thank you, Lord. :) 

I got this statement off the booklet: 
The average number of eggs collected is 9 and from those, on average, we see three healthy embryos develop.
In total, we still have eight embryos on Day 3 for which I am really thankful for. Hopefully some, if not all of them reach blastocyst on Day 5.

Now, time for some IVF lessons. Hehe.

- morula : a solid mass of cells, somewhat like a mulberry in shape, formed by cleavage of an ovum in the early stages of embryonic development (taken from this site)

- blastocyst : the term for an embryo five days after fertilisation which has now developed a special shape with different parts identifiable and a fluid-filled cavity (taken from the IVFAustralia booklet, Your pathway of care) 

I know heaps of people are praying with us, and for that I'm really grateful. :)

We've only just begun and I hope you continue praying with us as we go along this journey.

Day 1 and Day 2 Updates

It's been two days since my EC and as such I have had 2 phone calls from the scientists, one for each day. I would just like to say that it's very nerve wracking waiting for update calls. I'm anxious and hoping for the best but don't I know how I would react if it's not good news.

Anyway, yesterday was Day 1. I received the call around 11am. Two of the eggs weren't mature enough so they didn't bother injecting them at all. Good news is the rest of them, all 8 eggs, fertilised normally overnight. So we now have 8 nice little embryos. We praise and we thank you, Lord! We're over the moon with this news but it's still early stages.

I got the call today, Day 2, a little before 11am. Another good news from the scientist! All 8 embryos are growing nicely. They now have between 2-4 cells which is what she said is normal. We praise and we thank you, Lord!

I just noticed, the scientists tend to use the word 'normal' a lot. Hmmm, I wonder why. So on to Day 3. According to the booklet they gave us, embryos at Day 3 should have 8 cells. But then again everyone is different. I remain hopeful and optimistic. As what I've told my mum through SMS this morning, we must have faith that everything happens according to God's plan. :)

Done with EC

I had my EC this morning at the North Shore Specialist Day Surgery. By God's grace, we've overcome another hurdle. Our journey has just begun and we're taking it one step at a time.

I was a bit worried going into theatre this morning. My last ultrasound on Friday showed only 2 large follicles so I was pleasantly surprised when I woke up in recovery and saw 10 on my left palm! We praise and we thank God! I'm feeling fine, though a bit sore. But I can still manage even without pain reliever. Hopefully the pain eases a bit tomorrow. Before we left the surgery, we spoke with the scientist. She said that of my 10 oocytes (or eggs), 8 would surely be injected (with sperm) while they have to wait if the other 2 will progress further. I sure hope all of them develop into nice embryos. But as they say, all it takes is 1 -- so 1 strong one will be perfectly fine. :)

We were told that we will be given a daily update on our embryos' progress. I'm a bit anxious about getting the first update tomorrow. Praying that it's going to be a good update. If all things go according to plan, my embryo transfer is scheduled on Saturday, 7 May.