Fibroid Update

Last week Daniel and I went to the appointment with the surgeon and not only was it very informative but also it helped us make our final decision.

To start from the start...

Dr. Schultze was given all my pictures and charts from all our previous appointments but he wanted to do a vaginal ultrasound so that he could see what he was working with with his own eyes.  Before he was able to tell us much about what he was seeing he asked me if there was any way I could be pregnant.  My period had started 6 days earlier, there was no way I was pregnant.  He pointed out an area in my uterus that was filled with fluid.  This is usually an indicator of pregnancy.  He spent a lot of time looking at it for a potential heart beat or a "yolk sack" and finally had me get off the table to take a pregnancy test right then and there.  After he ran my cup to the lab he came in and told me that it was negative but that the fluid he was seeing concerned him.

After more poking and prodding around he came to the decision that not only is anything getting up my cervix (ie sperm), but not everything is coming out with each period either.  This was concerning to him because a "foreign substance" ie fluid, would most likely cause a federalized egg to not attach to the uterus and shed at the end of the month.  Doing IUI was not something that he recommended.  This fobroid needs to come out.

We then talked about the procedure that he would need to do in order to remove it.  Ideally, the whole thing would be done laproscopically- a laparoscopic myomectomy- but because it is so far back in my uterus he's concerned about having enough room to do this and keeping away from my arteries. He plans on discussing this with his "team" and making a decision with them.  If not laparoscopic, he will have to make an incision on top of my c-section scar and take it out this way.

The laparoscopic procedure is naturally what I want.  I will have four very small scars,  recovery time will be about 2 weeks and we could start trying for a baby 3-4 months after that.  The latter would mean potentially 4 weeks of recovery time and 6+ months of waiting to get pregnant.  He is also booked out for 3-4 months.  I was so hoping to have this done ASAP and the thought of waiting 4 months until I can even have the surgery is a bit of a disappointment.  However, I cannot be too disappointed.  Everything is okay with my body.  I can still get pregnant after this- naturally.  In the grand scheme of things, 6-12 months will seem like drop in the bucket.  I can continue running races, chasing after Porter, enjoying a good glass of wine, getting tipsy at a beer festival, eat all the sushi my heart desires, and continue to drop a few lbs (I'm officially UNDER my wedding weight, thank you very much!). I can wear all the clothes in my closet, eat all the unpasturized cheese my heart desires and enjoy a few more months of non-pregnancy rules.

Thanks for all the emails, texts and calls of support over the past few weeks.  I will be sure to keep everyone posted on all things surgery.  Until then, we will have to continue to hear stories and look at pictures of the cutest toddler on the planet.

~ Mama Jess

Secondary infertility

Because I know this blog is read by only my most favorite people, I figure it's time to share with you this newest chapter of my life.

Eleven months ago Daniel and I decided to start trying for baby number two. I figured making another baby would be as easy as (Porter) pie! Wow, could this experience not be any different from how it was 2 1/2 years ago. After not getting pregnant during the fifth month I went to my primary care physician to have my fibroid checked. I  had put in an IUD and after Porter's birth in hopes of it shrinking, but that was not the case.  As it turns out, it grew 2 mm over the past 20 months. Fortunately, my OB did not think this it was playing a role in my not getting pregnant.

I have had several people talk to me about acupuncture and how they found it beneficial in their fertility process. I decided this was the next step that I would take. I scheduled an appointment and for the next two months received acupuncture and drank a lot of really nasty Chinese herbs! I was actually very hopeful that this was going to be the answer to my prayers. Two months ticked by and still nothing. Something in my gut told me to move away from Eastern medicine and began the route of a Western fertility doctor.

Fast forward to the past six weeks. Daniel and I met with a doctor from the Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine. Here she drew up a timetable of the next six weeks. If I was not pregnant that month, I would begin a series of tests that would hopefully lead us to an answer.

Unfortunately, that month my period started and I was devastated. It was really the first month that I felt disappointment. I could not believe that I was actually about to begin this journey. The first test happened during the first few days of my cycle. I went in for a vaginal ultrasound. Here they were looking for blood flow, follicles in my ovaries, as well as taking my blood to test for estrogen levels, and a million other acronyms. The results from these tests came back "good ". All my levels were average and between the range the doctors like to see.

The next procedure I had happened a few days later  is called a HSC. In this procedure they inject my uterus with a dye. The die then travels through my Fallopian tubes and they capture the whole process on film. Nothing was blocked and the die flowed freely. Again, this test came back as normal.

Several tests later led me to one last 3D ultrasound. A few days after this procedure the doctor called me and asked me to come in for a "mock" procedure.  What she concluded was that in actuality my fibroid is blocking cervix- so much so, that she doesn't think any sperm are even making their way past my cervix.  The only way I could get pregnant with the fibroid still in place would be with help of a good ole turkey baster- aka IUI.  She wanted me to come in to do this mock procedure to see if she could even get a tube past the fibroid and into my cervix.

After a successful mock-IUI, she gave us two options: keep the fibroid and do an IUI or get the fibroid removed and get pregnant naturally.  The downside of IUI is it is expensive.  The downside of surgery is surgery (duh), 2 weeks recovery time and 3-4 months before we can even start trying to get pregnant.

We met with a high risk pregnancy doctor last week who assured us that carrying a baby with the fibroid would be a-ok!  There is very little chance that the fibroid would interfere with any part of pregnancy.  Next Wednesday we meet with the surgeon to discuss the pros and cons of surgery and how it relates to pregnancy.

And here we are! No baby, no decision but very very very happy in our lives.  Porter is the most amazing little boy who makes us happier than ever (and sometimes makes us want to pull our hair out!).  School is fantastic! My 24 kids are AMAZING.  They are so eager to please me and to learn.  I can't wait to have an entire year with them,  I feel so lucky after coming off a year like last.  I deserve an amazing year!

I promise to keep you posted on what happens in the next few weeks.  Love you all!

Mama Jess