So, if you haven't heard, my doctor's appointment is tomorrow. Sorry, I kind of have a one-track mind. It will be my third appointment with my NFP-expert doctor (not a PPVI-trained doctor, but very, very familiar with NaPro) at the wonderful Catholic, pro-life medical center that I am so lucky to live near. He will be checking to see if the metformin has helped my problem with insulin resistance and my LH/FSH ratio. If it has (which I assume we won't know tomorrow), he'll supposedly put me on either Clomid or Femara. If it hasn't, I'm hoping that just means more time on the met, giving it more time to work, and maybe even upping the dosage. As you can probably tell, I'm already trying to convince myself that finding out it hasn't worked yet won't be the worst news in the world.
I've been thinking a lot about questions I need to ask him. This time I am actually going to print out the list, bring it into the doctor's office and read from it, unlike last time when I forgot to write them down and my mind completely blanked.
Here are the questions I have so far. Feel free to offer any insight you may have on any of these!
*I have had some abdominal pain on a pretty regular basis around the end/beginning of my cycles, and it feels a lot like lower G.I. pain. Could it be endometriosis returning?
*Will I need another laparoscopy at some point? How do we know my ovaries aren't re-stuck?
*This cycle I've had a lot of pain near where I assume my left ovary is.
*I often feel a ton of pressure on my bladder, to the point of it being painful, even after I have just peed (yet it doesn't burn like a uti). Should I be concerned?
*I usually go right from red stickers to white stickers. Is that normal?
*I often have a lot of spotting at the end of my cycle and at the end of my period. Should that be treated?
*This cycle I had spotting in the middle of my cycle and in the middle of my luteal phase.
*If my insulin resistance/LH FSH ratio hasn't been helped by the met, can we raise the dose?
*My husband hasn't had any tests done in three years. Should he get tested again?
*Can you explain what it actually means that my ovaries are slow, and if I ovulate, then where's the problem?
*And what exactly is my estrogen and progesterone doing wrong again?
*Oh, and can I have a photo copy of my last hormone series?
I don't want to forget that last one! I want to bring it home and stare at it with all my medical expertise and decipher what is really going on. Kidding, of course. Actually, I really want it so I can post it on this blog for you to all also ponder with all of your medical knowledge. I'll take anything I can get in between doctor's appointments!
Hopefully I'll have some good news to report tomorrow night. At least I'll hopefully have good news that my weight loss on the doctor's scale was more than thirty pounds. Is my extreme focus on my weight tomorrow a sign I'm diverting attention from infertility? Perhaps. I guess, now that I think about it, I'm doing this because it is something I can control. The one thing I can control. Suddenly it all makes sense! The hardly eating this weekend, the trying on of several outfits to see which weighs the less but is also weather appropriate... sorry. A light bulb just went off.
I also wanted to thank everyone for their very kind comments lately. You're all just so sweet! And it makes dealing with this a lot easier.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Questions for the big appointment
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hi K :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind note and your prayers. I really appreciate them.
I think making a list of questions is a great idea! My husband encouraged me to make a list of questions on both my visits to my new Napro tech doctor. The doctor liked it that I brought a list of questions and on both visits he took the time to sit down and write answers to all my questions, which was amazing to me.
Also I would like to let you know that I share the following symptoms with you:
*I have had some abdominal pain on a pretty regular basis around the end/beginning of my cycles, and it feels a lot like lower G.I. pain. Could it be endometriosis returning?
*Will I need another laparoscopy at some point? How do we know my ovaries aren't re-stuck?
*This cycle I've had a lot of pain near where I assume my left ovary is.
*I often feel a ton of pressure on my bladder, to the point of it being painful, even after I have just peed (yet it doesn't burn like a uti). Should I be concerned?
The same thing happens to me and yes, I do think that these are all symptoms of having endometriosis.
K, you are NOT alone!
Another thing, I have all the notes, print outs, ect. the doctor has given me in a special binder along with my Creighton charts. When I am home I look these over frequently trying to analyze everything. I also look up stuff on the internet a lot too. I've been told by a few people that I'm trying too hard.
I am really trying to improve my diet, exercise, take the supplements, the medicines, and do everything my new doctor is recommending. I am trying to do what I can and let God do the rest. However sometimes it's really difficult for me to let go and let God. I especially get so disappointed when despite all the trying, my time of the month still comes like clock work. It always comes. Today is cycle day one for me.
I am hoping and praying that now that they have discovered I'm low on progesterone and have luteal phase insufficiency (12-14 days, but low progesterone) and we start the progestrone this cycle, that it will help us to be able to get pregnant!! The doctor did tell me though that my chances of achieving a pregnancy are low though. However when I told him about my devotion to St. Gianna (I need to send the prayer cards out to you and the others - sorry, I'm so late!) he smiled and changed my chances to "good".
K, you probably have a much higher chance of being able to get pregnant and having a baby then me. You and your husband are in my prayers.
I know how you feel. You want so much to be a Mom and you are trying so hard like me, but every month you are disappointed and have a good cry. I know, me too. You are not alone. You have many people here who care about you and are praying for you!!
http://hailmaryfullofgrace-mt.blogspot.com/
my email is: prayrosary4life@aol.com
*Hugs to you my friend*
Maria In Mass
prayers for you, dear one!
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping that you get all your questions answered and God is with you...
You'll be in my thoughts and prayers today. I can't wait to read the post when you get home!
ReplyDeleteOh, and you should be SO PROUD of your weight-loss! Losing 30 lbs is such a huge deal... most people (myself included) couldn't do that if we tried our hardest! I totally think it makes sense that you have focused so hard on it. Obviously you will do anything within your control to improve your health and fertility. At one my point my doc suggested a low-estrogen diet for me, but I could never quite follow it. Although in my case, he wasn't sure if it would really have an effect or not - so I didn't feel very motivated to stick with it. Did you know that fat cells produce and store estrogen? I never knew that... so apparently the less fat you have, the lower your estrogen will be. (Hence the reason that some women who are too skinny cannot conceive.)
May God bless your day with His grace and peace that passes all understanding...