Happenings

 First, Luke has now gained nearly a pound-and-a-half. We're so excited!

No more Failure to Thrive. More like Thriving Success!

He also turned 10 months today. Go double digits! You can read more about all of his latest milestones (and the newest addition to our family...) over on my other blog.

Second, I went to see Dr. B.

For those of you who weren't around for my journey through infertility, Dr. B is a wonderful Catholic doctor who heads up a Catholic OB/GYN practice about an hour-and-a-half from me, whom I credit with getting me healthy enough to conceive Luke.

Well, after several months of dozing off in the late afternoon/early evening hours (NOT good when you're home alone with two babies), and feeling like I wasn't being taken seriously by my endocrinologist, I decided to go see Dr. B.

What a different experience from the last time I was driving up there. I hadn't been in two years, back when I had surgery to treat what at the time was being called a "mass" or "tumor." Thankfully, it turned out to just be endometriosis (just endometriosis), but it's safe to say I was pretty nervous leading up to that surgery. But fast-forward two years, and here I was making the drive with two babies in the back seat.

Dr. B got to meet Clara and Luke and he was so happy for us. I was glad they could meet him, even though they won't remember.

As for my health, he wants me to do another saliva test to test my adrenals. I had extremely low levels two years ago, took cortisol for about six months, got pregnant, and then stopped taking it (per Dr. Stegman's orders).

He thinks my exhaustion in the late afternoon could be at least partly due to my eating habits. Lately, I don't eat breakfast (I'm just busy in the morning, not very hungry, and I don't like breakfast food), then I eat carbs and a little protein for lunch, carbs for a snack, and carbs and a little protein for dinner.

So... I'm supposed to eat more protein all around, but especially for breakfast and lunch. I'm trying.

You see, the big problem is I having been losing weight so quickly from breastfeeding, that I haven't had any motivation to eat healthy. I get to eat yummy foods and the pounds still come off. Awesome! But now, if it will help my fatigue, then of course I will eat healthier. Like I said, I'm trying.

He also took blood to see how my progesterone and estradiol are doing. He thinks a lot of my other symptoms (slight nausea, irritability, breaking out, weepiness), which I told him happen the second two weeks of my cycle, sound like low progesterone. He said I'm basically PMSing for two weeks. Makes sense! It just really didn't occur to me.

I got my blood test results back today and, sure enough, my progesterone is really low - 4.3 on cycle day 18. Estradiol was normal (123 I think?). And, to my surprise, my thyroid was normal as well (and for those wondering, he looks at all the thyroid numbers he's supposed to... NOT tsh).

So I'm going to start taking prometrium. I meant to start it last week, but we couldn't pick it up because our flex account, which we use to pay for prescriptions, was temporarily deactivated. I can't help thinking what if I would have been pregnant this cycle if not for a measly $40. I hope not.

When he was writing the script for prometrium, Dr. B said "well, expect to get pregnant." Ha! I don't know if I will ever, ever be someone who expects that. But I can't say I'm not hopeful. I would love for low progesterone to be all that's standing in the way this time.

Well Luke just woke up crying (I can't complain - he is taking TWO naps a day!), so I have to end this here. I have to say, though, it was a blast from the past writing about seeing Dr. B, my cycles, and low progesterone! Although this time, praise God, there is no sadness, just hopefulness. I already have more than I could have ever dreamed.