2010 and Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET)

It's 2010! And it's time to give this another shot. Ed and I will be starting our first Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET) very soon (like tonight). The process is very different that the Fresh Cycle experienced April - May of last year. A few notes first.

Again, if you're a friend or family member then you know how hard 2009 was for us. We remain humbled and are thankful for the experience. As such, the hardest part was telling you all our sad news. The first time was hard; the second time was unbearable. That said, we are keeping this one a little quiet. Only those of you reading this will know what's truly going on in our life these days.

We thought that we might suspend blogging but then I reflect to the reason we started this blog in the first place - to let other women and couples in my/our position know they are not alone in this. So we blog...

Here are the FET highlights:
Tonight we start birth control pills for 21 days. This will allow our doctor to be in full control of my system.
Later this week I will take lab tests to ensure that I'm able to take heparin (blood thinners) injections. If all is good, I will start heparin with the embryo transfer.
On 2/4 we start Lupron injections. Ed will administer these injections directly into my arm or legs every day. This will fully suspend ovulation and put me into a forced menopause (fun).
On 2/16 we start Estradiol injections. Ed will administer these twice a week in to an intramuscular location (like my lower back). Estradiol ensures the uterus has adequate blood flow.
Potential embryo transfer: 3/4. Then we wait 8-10 days for pregnancy tests.

There are a few unknowns/follow up items I need to work with my nurse on. One is when I start intramuscular Progesterone-In-Oil (PIO) injections. They may not start until after the transfer.

There's some scary stuff that can happen like our embryos do not thaw. This would mean that I would have received many injections (especially the painful intramuscular ones) for no reason. That said, I only have space in my brain and heart for positive thoughts.

Updates to come. Goodnight.