PHEW.
28 minutes.
That’s all it took to start getting some answers. To feel like we’re finally moving forward.
At the end of the call, we hung up our land line phones, and Charlie looked at me and said:
I liked him! Seems like a really nice guy. I think it’s great he doesn’t just promote the big bucks IVF treatments. I mean, he doesn’t seem to think that there is that much screwed up with you… then again, that might change once me meets you.
He then burst into laughter. Turd.
🙂
So, the breakdown…
*He thinks that the straight Clomid treatment should be put to rest. (We’ve tried 4 cycles with no success.)
*Because of cost and age, he thinks we don’t need to go straight to IVF – my long cycles are an issue anyway (not good to stim for long, so if I ovulate super late it can “hard boil” the eggs…his words, not mine. Charlie almost puked at that. LOL)
*He thinks we should start stims… depending on the results of the glucose tolerance test he wants done, we’d do either
Also ordered would be:
*CD3 bloodwork (FSH/AMH/E2/LH)
*Other tests needed: TSH, Free T4, Prolactin, CBC, and 2 hr glucose test w/lipids
*CD6 do a baseline ultrasound, HSG, SA (Semen Analysis), and ASAB (Anti-Sperm Antibodies).
*When we’re in Denver doing all of that, we’d also meet with Dr. Surrey again and meet with the nurses to go over the treatment plan.
He also recommends a cystic fibrosis test (which I’m probably declining) b/c we’re both of northern European descent. Has anyone else elected to have this done?
There are a few other things (current pap, blood type test, etc) that I’ll just have done here.
Basically, it’s up to me how quickly we start this. I’m CD10 right now, so my choices are:
(1) start progesterone tomorrow for 10 days and as soon as I get the withdrawal bleed, call to schedule everything, drive up to Denver the next day.
(2) wait until I ovulate to start the progesterone… if I miraculously got pregnant, it won’t hurt the baby, and if I’m not pregnant, I’ll stop the progesterone after 10 days, get a withdrawal bleed, and call to schedule everything, drive up to Denver the next day.
Since I ovulate anywhere between CD19-30, I’m basically deciding between starting all of this testing in two weeks or giving myself a chance to conceive naturally this cycle and waiting 4-5 weeks.
The dilemma – I don’t want to “waste” this cycle, and what’s a couple more weeks at this point, right?
BUT, neither of us are working right now (so travel to Denver is easy), but hopefully by another 4-5 weeks from now, we’ll both be working again (again, hopefully), and that will require us both taking off 6 days of work to hang out in Denver.
See the problem? What would you do?
Finally, I now have my CC.RM Nurse direct contact info, as well as the business office direct contact info, so hopefully on Friday I’ll be talking to the business office to figure out what this is all going to cost us.
Phew.
Either way, I just gotta say, 28 minutes with Dr. Sur.rey and 14 minutes with Nurse Suzie (all just on the phone!) was 100% worth the $250. We have a plan!
Ha! Charlie's hilarious.I'm so happy it went well and you like your doctor! He sounds really pro-active, efficient and thorough.If it were me, I would start the progesterone now, but I'm impatient and want things done yesterday. You're right, in the grand scheme of things a few weeks isn't a big deal, but the job timing just seems to work better.Tough call. Exciting either way!
Wow! That is a lot to take in, but I'm so glad to see things are moving forward with you!!! I opted to not have a CF test done, but my dr. strongly suggested it and, low and behold, I am a CF carrier. Aaron, then, had to have testing to make sure he wasn't a carrier and, luckily, he was not. Good luck with everything!!!
Good luck with everything! I am glad you felt good after the consult. We opted for the CF testing, first on me and I was negative. It was highly suggested by my dr. too.
If it were me, I'd start the progesterone now and get on with things. I know it's hard to "waste" a cycle, but doing things the natural way hasn't really gotten you anywhere yet and you might end up feeling like you wasted 4 weeks anyway.Plus the whole job thing. That's just me though. I'm so glad you liked your doctor!!!
So glad the interview was helpful, hopeful, and informative!!!!! Feeling like you are in good hands is SUCH a blessing and relief. Glad you have plans in place – good luck choosing the right one for you. Neither of them are wrong/bad – just go with the one your gut tells you is best.
Woot!!If it were me, I'd start the progesterone now, especially if it's easier for you and DH to get over to Denver.Once you start the actual IUI process there are a lot of monitoring appointments (aka ultrasounds and bloodwork).SO excited for you!!Have you ever had your TSH, prolactin or glucose ever checked?
That's great to have a plan, don't you feel just a tad bit better? I would also love that he gave you options-that's awesome. We did NOT do the CF test because we already know that DH is a carrier (his cousin has it). It's an expensive test and no matter the results, our decision wouldn't change. Good luck Josey! I hope it all works out.
I checked here earlier and did not see a post about your phone call yet so I was a little worried about you so I am super glad it went well. Having confidence in your RE is a huge part of the ball game. And YAY for a plan! You are heading in the right direction! :)Do what is easiest for your schedule and what you know you want to do and are comfortable with.:)
Congrats on so much progress! I say start now!
Sounds like you guys are on your way! It's amazing what relief you can feel after you turn these problems over to a paid professional.I had the CF test along with several others (Fragile X, HIV, Hepatitis, etc.), because they're part of the SOP for initial blood work at my clinic. Everything came back negative (yay). DH still needs to have extensive genetic testing because he's of Ashkenazi Jewish descent and potentially a carrier for some different things. But since I'm not, he's not feeling much urgency to do so.
Yay for a plan! This is so exciting. Since you have the time to travel now, I say start the little pill that will bring your friend to get your testing done. But I am also incredibly impatient and would have to get started asap.
So happy you have a plan! I would say start now. You might be less stressed if you aren't working around trying to take time off of work? But then again I'm super impatient and easily stressed. 🙂
So freaking happy for you. I say get this party started sooner rather than later. Either way I know it's going to work out for you so you really can't go wrong. 🙂
I'm so excited for you! Don't you feel a renewed burst of energy for TTC now that you have a plan? I know I sure did. I would say get going on your testing since you have the flexibility right now. Yay!!
Thanks so much for your input everyone! I'm seriously leaning towards starting the progesterone today. 🙂 @Melissa – I had TSH and Prolactin tested a year ago and they were within the "normal" range, but my RE wants to redo the tests anyway. This will be a first for the glucose.(Note – PLEASE link an email address to your blogger account – it can be NOT your main address that you then forward to your main one for privacy reasons, but it allows me to respond to comments privately.)
Sounds like it went really well! Didn't you just feel like you were in really good hands b/c of his expertise and reputation?! That's how I've felt the entire time. He doesn't sugarcoat things, but he's more personable than Dr. Schoolcraft. I am impressed that you got to talk to your nurse during your phone consult–I didn't get to do that! : ) I am also impatient and wanted to start things ASAP, so I wouldn't have been patient enough to wait 4-5 weeks. Best of luck with whatever you decide!
that is awesome!! the ONE time i tried to get a phone consult with my at-the-time RE, they would not schedule me one, so i'm extremely jealous! sounds like he has a great plan for you!
YAY, this is awesome news lady! The fact that you guys have the time to do the traveling now is a pretty good reason. But of course that has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that it would mean you coming back up here soon…..did you believe me there?
I'm so glad you have a plan and it's always good to hear that your case isn't hopeless, you know?I wasn't working when I was having all my work done with my RE and it was an absolute blessing to be able to go to the doctor exactly when I needed to without worrying about having to ask off and all that.So my vote is get as much done as possible while you're not working, but I know that you and Charlie will make the best decision for the both of you. Good luck!! 🙂
You have a plan! I am so excited for you, Josey. Did you decide to start the progesterone today or wait? I'm so glad your consult went well with Dr. Surrey and the nurse. Very Best Wishes!
I'm so glad it went well and you have a plan. If it were me I would start the progesterone now to get things moving…you have waited long enough for that baby!
Yay! I'm so happy for you and Charlie! I know what a relief it must be to feel like you're in great hands and have a plan. Are you also going to continue acupuncture at the same time? And did he confirm that you're issue is probably PCOS, or does he have to see the bloodword for that?By the way, I would certainly decline the cystic fibrosis test. That's information that could just muddle your clarity. I mean, would you choose to stop trying to conceive if you knew you had an elevated risk of that? If you would really want to know before a baby's born if that's going to be an issue, you can get prenatal testing done.
happy you like the RE and have a plan! it's awesome to start a cycle and finally have some answers as to what's going on. wishing you the best on your first cycle!
I would recommend the Cystic Fibrosis test — better to rule it out now than be worried later. I am so happy that you are having such a positive experience with CCRM so far! I was hooked after my first consult with Dr. Schoolcraft.
I'm glad your call went well. I slept so well the night of our call. I think I had worked myself up and was really nervous. I had the CF testing and I'm a carrier – my husband is not. My Gyny order the test. I say get to CCRM ASAP. I wish I had started earlier.
[…] 2011: We did our initial phone consult with Dr. Surrey. It cost $250 to do a phone consult, and it was 100% worth it. He and his nurse were SO […]