Equations

I have always been pretty good at math. It was one of my favorite subjects in school because you either got it right or you got it wrong, there was no interpretation or guessing what the teacher wanted. I think one of the best parts is that if you know the equation and enough parts of it you can figure out what you don't know.

Over the past little while there has been an equation that I have been struggling with. This equation is something that comes really easy for some people, it's kind of a simple addition for them, a+b=c. Then, for others it seems the equation is a little more complicated, to get the same result they have to not only add but multiple and divide and some even need to add in square roots or throw in some exponents, which can make things really complicated. These more complicated equations take a little bit longer and sometimes are never able to be solved. Luckily for me and Brandon we finally solved our equation.

Now, some of you might be wondering what all this about harder equations is when the picture above is so simple. Just imagine that Brandon and I are complex parts of the equation, me being more complex than Brandon. The real equation would look something more like 2(b/s) + a(4n + 5p + 6(5h) + i) = 3. Try solving that one! 

Are you wondering what that equation means? Let me start at the beginning. On April 1st of last year I went to the doctor. At this appointment I found out my body was not ovulating. The doctor said I had one of the easiest forms of infertility to solve. He put me on Clomid, a very common drug used in infertility, to get my body to ovulate. If that didn't work there was another protocol we could try, though it would increase my chances of having multiples (Have you seen the show Kate plus 8? It's the same medication she used at a much lower dose). Just to be sure, we had Brandon tested as well and found no problems on his side.

To make a long story short, we went through 2 doses of Clomid without any results. The 3rd dose worked but we didn't get pregnant. At this point we were hopeful that we'd just need to do one more dose to find success...unfortunately that was not part of the equation. For some reason, after this 3rd dose, my body stopped responding to Clomid. So, we moved on to the next protocol which I was pretty excited about. I really wanted to try something else. 

The next protocol included Clomid, at a slightly lower dose, then a hormone injection to stimulate a follicle in preparation to release an egg. If those two steps worked, then I had to go back in to have another injection to get my body to actually ovulate. Now, this protocol has very precise timing for when all of the medication has to be given, which happened to create an interesting situation for us. We realized the first injection, which came in two doses (needing two needles), was going to be on a Saturday. That's all fine and dandy if the doctor's office is open on Saturday. It's not. So, Brandon had to learn how to mix the medication and then where and how to give me the 2 shots. For someone who really doesn't like getting shots, that was an interesting experience. Luckily, he did great! If his career as a computer programmer totally crashes maybe he can go into nursing...Anyways, in a few days we went back to the doctor and found out I had one really good follicle ready to release an egg. Fingers crossed, I was given the next injection. We also had the option of doing an IUI, which would increase our chances of getting pregnant. What do you think I said? I was determined we would do everything in our power to get pregnant, so of course I said yes. After the IUI it was time to rest and wait an agonizingly long two weeks and two days after which a home pregnancy test would tell us if it all worked. 

I should add that, over the past 2 years of trying, I have been taking my temperature every morning at the same time to see if my body was working right. You can tell a lot about how your body is functioning by tracking these temperatures. One of the things you can tell is if you've achieved pregnancy (18 high temperatures means you did it). Well I continued taking my temperature and after 15 high temps I started to get pretty excited. I took a test a day early and it was positive. Then, just to be sure, I took two the next day. Both were positive, so I called the doctor and he put me on progesterone to help keep me from miscarrying.

We are due with a wee Bickmore July 20th, which means that I have successfully passed through the first trimester. Things could still go wrong, but I'm so relieved we've made it this far.

And now, to finish off the equation: b = Brandon, s = the samples he had to give, which happened twice hence the 2, a = me, there were a total of 4 needles during the entire process = 4n, 5p = the 5 doses of progesterone I had to take to get my body to have a period (with side effects of dizziness and drowsiness), 6(5h) = the 6 doses of 5 days of Clomid including the hot flashes, and i = 1 IUI. There you have it folks, one crazy equation to sum up one great story. Sometimes you have to work for your blessings, but they're worth it.