There are ups and downs in all aspects of life, and trying to make a dream reality isn’t always the easiest thing to do…
As I've said previously, we had our first IUI attempt at the beginning of 2010.
We were so disappointed that our first attempt had not been successful. We were certain that since we got pregnant the first time so easily, that it would be the same with the fertility clinic. We decided that we would try again the following month and pray that this time it would work!
Since I have the paper work for the rest of our pregnancy attempts I can be a little more specific on some of the details I share with you. For our first and second attempts Amber did not need to use any medications to stimulate egg growth or ovulation. All that was needed was regular blood tests to check hormone levels and to keep track on when she was ovulating.
Amber needed to have blood tests on the 17/4, 20/4, 23/4, 24/4/2010 to check everything. It can be tiring needing to have so many blood tests but it's necessary to make sure they do the procedure at the correct time. It ended up working out that the insemination day would be Saturday the 25/4/2010 – ANZAC Day in Australia. I went to the Dawn Service in the morning and then at 11:30 that morning we had the insemination. Only reading our file do I know that the sperm count was at 10 million and we found out after a blood test on the 9th May 2010 not one of those sperm made it to where it needed to go – we were not pregnant again!
After two negative results we were getting a little more anxious. We were still living with the hope that since Amber had been pregnant before, it would happen next time for sure. We took the rest of May off for a break and celebrated the second year anniversary for our baby Nevaeh. Celebrating the second year really made us more determined to keep going until we got a positive result.
By now we of course have the bills starting to come in. Thankfully since it was only IUI without drugs, all that we were paying for was the sperm, sperm preparation, the catheter and blood tests. Only around $1000 per attempt. The first few attempts we had, it worked out that the day we got our negative result we also got our bill in the mail! Nothing like another kick in the guts after finding out you aren’t pregnant. Concept has been fantastic though with always sending out nice reminders and never sending out nasty bills.
Our third attempt at Concept began on 24/6 again with Amber having a blood test, other blood test days were 25/6 and 26/6. On Sunday 27/6/10 was insemination day. I was thankful that it worked out I could go along with Amber for the third time in a row! So on the 27th and 11:30 the sperm count was at 17 million and we again went through the same procedure that we were starting to get used to by now. Checking the name and birthdate, Amber having her cervix opened and the sperm put in and then of course the 15 minutes after of laying flat and then letting ourselves out after. This time around the only difference was that Amber had been given the drug Progesterone, the pessaries needed to be inserted each night after insemination. They needed to be placed as close to the cervix as possible to help thicken the lining of her uterus. She needed to lay down without getting up for an hour each night up until pregnancy test day.
I should also mention here, the first two treatment cycles Amber had actually got her period the day of her pregnancy tests, so on those days we weren’t really overly confident. However the first month of being on the Progesterone it didn’t come on the day! We were quietly confident that maybe this was a good sign!
Two weeks after the insemination, on 12/7/10 we unfortunately received another negative result. We didn’t really understand why, Ambers period hadn’t come yet? Something they didn’t tell us, that progesterone actually delays your period!
We were going through quite a lot in our own personal lives over this period too. We had been having our house built since November 2009 and it was finally ready June 2010. We had to pack up everything we owned ready for the big move a few suburbs over into our brand spanking new house that we had a nice fat mortgage on. It was a relief though moving into our own house, in the lead up to the move we had been buying new furniture, paying fertility bills, paying rent and half the mortgage! Not cheap, that’s for sure!
Amber had not been coping at her work either, it wasn’t easy at all for her to have days off, she didn’t get paid for sick days, the pay was rubbish and she couldn’t even have holidays. She ended up leaving and getting a new job as an assistant manager in the retail industry, unfortunately her new boss was an idiot. We talked after her first day and she really didn’t want to go back! Her boss was younger and expressed to Amber that everything was just ‘so gay’. There are only so many times a gay person can hear someone say that and not want to smack the person's face off. Amber never went back for day two.
Thankfully we were getting busy at my work (child care) and were needing some relief workers. After a phone call to my boss (and one of my best friends) she said she would be able to help her with getting some days work but couldn’t give her anything permanent at the moment. That was fine with us because we weren’t sure at the time how we would go working together. We were still a little worried about the mortgage and bills so Amber also said she would do relief at her old job for drivers that needed days off.
Before either of us knew it, Amber was working a lot of days at the day care centre and we were getting ready for our next treatment cycle. My lucky number…. LUCKY NUMBER 4!