I had my lining check on 10/12, and everything looks great – 11mm like last time, which is great! I go back into the RE office on 10/19 for another ultrasound to check my lining, as well as a blood test to make sure that my estrogen still at a good level. If everything goes well, I start the PIO shots on 10/20. I am actually toying with the idea of filming one of these to document the truly fun part of this experience. I know that this is probably a weird idea, but I figure that there are way grosser things online than a shot in the ass so who knows!
Most importantly – my transfer is scheduled for 10/25. I dont have a specific time yet, but it will be at our clinic again, so no long trek for us to the place in Redondo.
For this cycle, I decided that I am going to do every single ridiculous ‘wives tale’ to help increase our chances of getting pregnant. So I thought it would be fun to list the ones that we will be doing, along with an explanation.
- Massage before treatment
This should be an easy explanation – to RELAX. When you are stressed, you create the hormone cortisol. There are a number of studies that show that higher amounts of cortisol can cause issues with implantation.
- Pineapple core
Inside the pineapple core, there is a high concentration of bromelain. This is a natural blood thinner which helps to drive blood flow to the uterus, encouraging implantation and reducing the chances of miscarriage. The idea is to eat the pineapple before, during, and after bed rest, around the time that you would be implanting.
- Only lukewarm/hot beverages
This is where things start to get a little ‘out there’, but I am open-minded and willing to try anything. No harm in it, right? The theory here is that we need to think of ourselves as incubators. Cold food and drink takes more energy and blood flow to digest, which means less blood flowing to your uterus.
- Happy movies only
There was a study done in Israel where they had “medical clowns” in the room for IVF patients. Patients who had visited with the clowns had higher success rates! Now obviously, this would have the opposite effect if it were me, as clowns are not something I can enjoy. However, laughter has been been medically proven to reduce stress (and its hormones like cortisol), so this study actually has ‘some’ scientific backing to it.
In anticipation of my two days of bed rest, I am filling my Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime queues with happy shows, cartoons, and movies. This is honestly the hardest part of this whole protocol, because most funny sitcoms deal with pregnancy or will have a serious episode about pregnancy loss, and that’s not something positive that I am looking for.
- Positive affirmations
This is closely linked to relaxation, and honestly, probably the least likely to help, but let’s leave no stone unturned. Experience has taught me that no matter if you are positive, negative, or complacent, pregnancy can occur. Using positive affirmations is a way to protect my emotional well being not blame myself if/when we have another cycle failure.
Examples: I am worthy of love, life and happiness, My womb is a healthy place that will nourish my baby, etc.
Everyone cross their fingers and keep positive for us. Maybe third times a charm?!
Xoxo,
Jen