When a man and a woman love each other very much…

What I was taught as a child and teenager about how to make a baby, in my experience, couldn’t be further from the truth! Here is my revised version of the modern day birds and the bees…

He gently shakes her shoulder, whispers "wake up, darling" and gives her a light kiss on the cheek. She smiles sleepily as he draws the covers back, revealing her rumpled pajamas.  She curls up in a ball and protests, but he whispers, "shhh". 

Gently he pulls up her pajama top, revealing her taught stomach and lightly brushes her lower belly with his fingers.  He begins to count "1, 2, 3..."

and POW!  He jabs her with a needle.

This is how we make babies.

Just to give you an idea of what I go through on a daily basis, here is my daily delicious cocktail:
7:30am  Menopur - shot in the stomach (hurts like a mutha!)
8:30am  Dr. Chantilis' office - blood work and sonogram
7:30pm  Lupron - shot in the thigh (does not hurt - inner thigh is the best place)
7:31pm  Gonal F - shot in the stomach (takes a while, but doesn't hurt)
Repeat next day for 4 weeks

From L to R:  Gonal F, Lupron, Progesterone (taken after retrieval), Menopur

Not pictured:  Ovadrel

Notice that each medicine has a different syringe and even though you can't tell in the picture, each syringe has a different size needle.  Some are very small, but some are very big...

This is the syringe I'll have to use for my progesterone shots after they remove my eggs from my follicles (sometime in the next week or two).  The progesterone shot will go in my back, near my upper gluts in the muscle.  The nurses don't even try to sugar coat it.  "It's going to hurt!"  is what they tell me. 

Gee, I can't wait...

Let’s talk about “effects”, Babeee

For the past week I have been taking an injection of Lupron once a day in the thigh. As with most medications, Lupron has some fun and wonderful side effects. Here are a few of my favorites so far…

This medication may cause nausea, vomiting (twice in 3 days), hot flashes, night sweats, bone pain (on Saturday in my hips), swelling of feet and ankles, headache (every single day), or difficulty urinating the first few days as your body adjusts to the medication. Notify your doctor if these symptoms continue or become bothersome. This medication may cause reduced sexual desire, rapid heartbeat (occasionally), chest pain, breathing difficulties, fever, chills, painful urination, and persistent irritation at the injection site (mildly every day). Tell your doctor immediately if any of these highly unlikely but very serious side effects occur: severe headache, vision changes (blurry), severe drowsiness (SOO tired), unusual or one-sided weakness.

Don't worry though, I have talked to my nurse and I do not need to be concerned about the side effects I’m experiencing (in red). They are not too bothersome – it's more like I just notice most of them from time to time.

I’ll reduce the amount of Lupron I inject in a few days, but will continue with the shot daily for at least another 15 days. Also in a few days, I’ll be adding 2 more injections to my daily diet of meds. These will be in my stomach and I’m sure will add to the side effects I’m currently enjoying. YAY!    :-|