Today’s blog is more of a medical update (aren’t you excited!?), so, in the interest of full disclosure, I will be talking about certain “female problems” and anatomy. 😂
The words “period”, “uterus”, and “cervix” WILL be mentioned. If that weirds you out, you can steer clear from here on. (I mainly mention this for the plethora of brothers I have...although I have serious doubts that they even read this blog. That’s brothers for ya, 🤦🏻♀️, am I right?! 😂.)
Alrighty, let’s get into the good (and weird) stuff!
So, we were nominated for, and won, a fundraiser for people struggling with infertility (see my previous post). A week later I had found a fertility clinic I thought might work well for us and I called them up.
They were super nice and explained what day of my cycle I needed to come in on so that they could do an ultrasound and look at my ovaries. (Cycle days 2-4). So I scheduled an appointment (surprisingly they had one available the next week!) thinking I was on track with that.
Afterwards I realized I had counted wrong and, if my period started on time, I would be at the appointment on cycle day 6-7 🤦🏻♀️.
So, I started praying that my period would hold off and not start. And it did! It started the exact day I needed it to and I went to the fertility center on cycle day 3!
Overall, John and I really liked our fertility specialist. He was kind and personable and seems extremely knowledgeable about everything. He was pleasantly surprised by my own level of knowledge in regards to fertility treatments, PCOS, and supplements/meds (you certainly don’t get to 10 years of infertility without learning a thing or two 😂).
He performed an ultrasound, reconfirmed my PCOS diagnosis, and we came up with a game plan.
Step One: Perform a plethora of tests on both John and I
-Transvaginal Ultrasound
-Hysterosalpingogram (HSG - dye test)
-Ovarian Reserve Panel (blood test)
-Preconception Panel (blood test)
-12 Hr Fasting Panel (blood test)
-Infectious Disease Panel (blood test)
-Genetic Panel (blood test)
-Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) Panel (blood test)
-Hysteroscopy
And those were just MY tests! 🤪
Step Two: Attempt to fix anything they might find. And then get on a fun cocktail of medications to induce ovulation and then conceive via IUI (intrauterine insemination).
Step Three: Do up to 3 rounds of IUI (which include lots of meds, lots of ultrasounds, trigger shots, and insemination) and then reassess.
Bing, bang, boom! We had a plan!
They performed the ultrasound the first day I went to their office and then scheduled the blood work and HSG for the end of that same week. Explaining that I needed to be off my period in order to perform the HSG.
Now, I’m not gonna lie,I had my doubts, my periods almost always last longer than 5 days. In fact, I cannot remember the last time my period only lasted 5 days.
So lots of prayers, again, and my period stopped just in time for all my tests that Friday. (🤯)
The HSG test ( hysterosalpingogram is an x-ray procedure used to see whether the fallopian tubes are patent (open) and if the inside of the uterus (uterine cavity) is normal) went well. The dye showed that there were no blocks in my Fallopian tubes (yay!) and my uterus looked good.
They took lots of blood for all the tests and then scheduled my for the hysteroscopy the following Monday (the final test!).
By Monday my test results were in and showed a couple of great things:
-my egg count and quality are great!
-my cortisol and testosterone levels were normal! (They’re often elevated with PCOS, and when I was originally diagnosed, many years ago, my testosterone levels were SUPER high)
The hysteroscopy (a procedure that allows your doctor to look inside your uterus is done using a hysteroscope, a thin, lighted tube that is inserted into the vagina to examine the cervix and inside of the uterus.) also went well. They did, however, find some uterine polyps.
Uterine polyps are noncancerous (usually) growths attached to the inner wall of the uterus. They can often effect fertility and can also cause miscarriages.
Soooo, they gotta go.
My fertility specialist sent me to my local obgyn with a recommendation for a polypectomy and said he would see me a month after the procedure.
Amazingly enough (sensing a theme here?), my obgyn had an appointment right away and I was able to see a doctor about the polypectomy.
She was great! I had brought all my tests, scans, and pictures and she walked in and said that I was her most straight forward patient that day!
She explained what the polypectomy entailed (she will use a hysteroscope (again). It's inserted through the vagina into the uterus after dilating the cervix and projects images onto a monitor. Small instruments (scalpels) are inserted through the hysteroscope to remove each polyp.)
She said it was a fairly simple outpatient surgery and the surgery itself would only take about 10 minutes. The anesthesia is what would take up the majority of the time.
She sent me on my way and I was able to schedule the surgery for less than 3 weeks from then. (About 2 weeks from now).
It’s all been amazing, honestly. I kept telling people “It’s starting to freak me out how well things are just working out”. 😂
Every time something needs to happen, it just all works out the way it needs to.
I have been in awe of God’s perfect timing. I have spent years, YEARS guys, waiting on God’s timing in regards to fertility treatments.
There were always obstacles, we didn’t had enough money, we didn’t have a doctor we liked, we felt led in a different direction, etc. Suddenly every single obstacle has been removed. And every step has the Lord’s direction and peace surrounding it.
It. Is. Amazing.
My heart aches for the joy of it.
We no longer only say “if we have a baby”, we’ve been finding ourselves saying “when we have a baby”. I cannot remember a time when hope was this prevalent, the past 7 1/2 years have worn us..
Truly hoping again has become a miracle in itself.
Faith may move mountains, but hope thinks it’s possible first.
Our hope is in the Lord, and regardless of the outcome of these fertility treatments, He will redeem us. We will never be left broken and alone, even if we never had another child. In that we choose to find our true comfort and peace, taking joy in the clear path He has us walking right now.
Thanks for walking it with us! The amount of support (both in prayer, and financially to our Puzzle Fundraiser) has been incredible and so so so appreciated. Our joy is yours as well, and it is so evident that the body of Christ surrounds us as we continue this journey.
P.S. If you're interested in learning more about our puzzle fundraiser (or donating) you can look at (and follow) our Facebook page below:
Cunningham Fertility Fundraiser
Thankfully the original fundraiser should be able to cover the costs of the surgery, so we are raising the funds for the next few steps (mainly IUI).
(This is what the puzzle looks like)
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