Calgary

In July of 2016 we set out for our third round of IVF in Calgary. After our initial meeting in February, the doctor prescribed me a heavier medication cycle in hopes I would have a better response. We had to move to Calgary for a week while they monitored my follicle growth. We rented a hotel suite and toured around Calgary and area whenever we weren’t at appointments. The new medication protocol made me extremely bloated and uncomfortable. When I look back at pictures from that trip, I look like I’m already pregnant.  

My pre-IVF ultrasound showed 20 mature follicles, 10 times what I had with my first two rounds. The egg retrieval was much more painful than the previous. The doctor was able to aspirate 15 eggs from the 20 follicles. I was partially conscious during the procedure, but still very dopy from the IV medication. We went back to the hotel after the surgery and I slept for the rest of the day. When I woke up, I was sore, disoriented, and hungry. Dustin brought me soup and ice cream. That’s all I remember from that day. 

Of the 15 eggs they retrieved, 8 of them fertilized. Of the 8 that fertilized, only 4 made it to day 3 embryos. Three days after the retrieval, we were back at the clinic for the transfer. The clinic decided to transfer 2 embryos; the other 2 would be frozen. The transfer is a fairly easy process. We watched on the ultrasound screen as they transferred the two little embryos. After that, we were free to travel home. 

On the drive home we stopped in Kindersley for supper and ended up with a flat tire.  I had forgot to put my tire iron back in my car so we flagged down a good Samaritan to lend us one. We drove the rest of the way home on the donut at 80 km an hour… as if the trip hadn’t been stressful enough! 

A few days after we got home, we pulled our camper to our family lake. After you do a transfer there are some things you cannot do: drink alcohol (obviously), do excessive exercise, and suntan, to name a few. So, I spent a week at the lake sipping on sparkling water and sitting in the shade. One evening, I laid in our camper, thinking of everything that happened over the last year. I was thinking of my grandma, my Mom, our trip to Calgary. I knew in my heart that this IVF didn’t work. I woke up the next morning to cramping, and then bleeding. I just wanted the whole experience to go away; I wanted to pretend it hadn’t happened. I text my sister to tell her that it hadn’t worked, that I was coming down to the beach, and that I didn’t want to talk about it. 

Dustin and I were physically, emotionally, and mentally drained. For 3 years, we had poured all of our energy into trying to trying to start a family. In the summer of 2016, we decided it was time to take a break. We stepped away from all fertility treatments and decided to just focus on us.