First Day Of Injections

In an effort to keep you all completely informed of the ins and outs of this IVF cycle, I am delighted to share my experiences from my first day of injections. I aim to spare no precious details, my dear readers.

First of all, I must admit that as I suspected, I tossed and turned all night in anticipation of my first injection. I dreamed of dirty needles and being weak from loss of blood, among other unsettling things.

When I awoke, I discovered that I had started my period AGAIN. This basically makes...let's see...17 days STRAIGHT of either bleeding or spotting of some kind. Normally this would have freaked me right out, but I've calmly deduced that this second appearance of my period is probably due to the fact that I stopped the pre-IVF birth control pills on Monday. I guess I didn't expect to have a period after finishing the birth control because, well, I didn't think there was anything left to bleed! If anything, this is probably a good sign. It means my body is on the right cycle and responding well (so far - knock on wood) to the meds. Also, remember, this is the calm, still Hilary you're dealing with now.

I took a quick shower and came downstairs in my robe, all raring to go. I laid out the instructions and methodically set out all my supplies. I drew up the saline, carefully injected it into the dry Repronex and "swirled" the bottle around like the nurse showed me at orientation. However, this activity did produce copious amounts of tiny bubbles so either I swirled too hard or maybe the bubbles are unavoidable. I then drew up the fully mixed Repronex concoction into the syringe, switched needles and set the works down on the counter whilst I sterilized my pinched tummy-fold with an alcohol prep pad. My skin was ready to go. The needle was ready to go. Without hesitation, I went for it.

I was surprised that it hurt like a son-of-a-bitch. It was A LOT more uncomfortable this morning than it was during my "practice" injection at the clinic. I think it's because the real medication actually stings quite a bit; at the clinic I just used saline to practice. But I did it, and shouted a bold "woo-hoo!" so that my husband could hear my song of success from his office at the back of the townhouse. I really was proud of myself.

While walking to work shortly thereafter, I noticed a strange euphorically spacey feeling come over me. Almost like I had a little red-wine buzz going. Perhaps it was due the guided meditation in my iPod, the adrenaline, or perhaps to my relief in having the first injection over with. Maybe I was having my very first medication "mood swing", albeit a positive one. I felt good, confident and happy.

Notably, around 3pm today, I noticed I've developed a bit of irritation at the injection site. I'm not worried about it, I know this can happen. But I do wonder what my abdomen will look like after another week of this! Oooooh stomach acne. That's HOT.