November 2011: 2nd miscarriage on the books and I realized how much I love my OB because she was not willing to break my heart in order to follow protocol, which requires three miscarriages before a referral to a specialist. She referred me to the leading fertility/reproductive specialist in our region. He has fantastic results and I have three friends that used him to become pregnant with great results. I was thrilled that we go this referral but also very nervous. My OB said, "if he can't get you to your baby, no one can". While that should have given me a boost of confidence, all it did was freak me out in a really glass-half-empty sort of way. We weren't allowed to schedule an appointment until I got my period for the first time post-miscarriage so we sat around and waited for Aunt Flo...
December 2011: We will call this "Insurance Bill" month. We spent this entire month under a microscope. We met with the specialist and he reviewed our information. He sat back and asked me what else I thought he needed to know that the forms didn't cover and I loved that. I had theories and I wanted him to hear them out and he did. He told me off the bat what the most likely causes were and what some far-fetched possibilities were as well. When he reviewed one of those possibilities, I asked "So in order to know if it's that, I would have to lose a third baby?". He put his pen down and looked me square in the eye and said, "Unless it is a chromosomal issue, we will not let you lose another child". I sobbed an ugly sob right there across the desk from him. And then the testing began. I gave 23 vials of blood in one sitting on one day, 5 on another, then 3, then 1, then 1, then 1, then 1....and so on. They tested for hormone levels, the way my blood clots, sugar regulation, insulin levels, bacteria, infection and a host of a thousand other things. I had ultrasounds to see the structure of my uterus and to check for ovulation. I had a test where they shot water up my wahoo with a camera tube to watch it flow through my insides to make sure there were no blockages. I had more ultrasounds to watch how I looked DURING and AFTER ovulation. Then they tried to poke a catheter into my uterus to draw a sample of some uterine fluids. That was probably one of the worst experiences of my life. I have a tilted uterus, which means that when you poke at it, it retreats (very afraid of confrontation, my uterus is!). They stabbed me with this thing about 60 times, then tried it with a sharper object 30 more times and then went back to the original one 40 more times before watching the tears run down my face and they gave up. Yes, my husband did some tests of his own but this is not HIS blog. He can start one if he'd like to share! And then the results rolled in...
January 2012: I have really wonky progesterone levels, MTHFR (which looks like motherfucker to me so that's what I call it) and Factor IV Leiden. My progesterone starts normal, rises and then suddenly drops, which is the exact opposite of what you want it to do. MTHFR and Factor IV Leiden both affect how blood clots and possibly creates clots between the placenta and uterine wall, which inhibits growth and causes loss. They also cause problems absorbing folic acid, which can cause poor CNS development which can cause loss. All of this is not good news for a growing embryo. They can't explain how I was able to have Eva without any assistance, which is why I snuggle her a lot closer these days!
February 2012: So now what? I get to take prescription strength folic acid (1200mgs a day), a baby aspirin daily for the blood clotting and when we muster the courage to try again and do conceive, we get to see what Jane is like on hormones!
So that's the long and short of it. And now we work on the courage to try again part...
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