Two Thousand Twelve

At the start of the year we decided that after a few months of trying again that we would see what Tricare insurance covered in terms of infertility assistance. We made an appointment at the Center of Reproductive Medicine and in February we met with Dr. Thompson at the center. He was very informative and very easy to talk to . At our first appointment Sean has a semen analysis and all came back normal. I went in for blood work and the only issue that came up was a mutant gene which requires me to take a high dosage of folic acid each day. They also did a procedure with a scope to ensure that all my internal parts were in tact and operational. Which all turned out ok. Other than that, we were good to go. All signs pointed to great health and no issues to conceive. Tricare covered all of the testing for me and for Sean, it also covered the ultrasounds and blood work. The next steps would be more expensive and we would have to pay out of pocket for any procedures.

The first steps that the doctor mentioned to help us along would be taking a drug called clomid. Clomiphene is used to induce ovulation (egg production) in women who do not produce ova (eggs) but wish to become pregnant (infertility). Clomiphene is in a class of medications called ovulatory stimulants. It works similarly to estrogen, a female hormone that causes eggs to develop in the ovaries and be released. Apparently, I can produce eggs, but since I am over 30, this drug help produce more follicles to attract/catch the sperm. But there are some side effects of this drug. One of the more annoying side effects to comprehend is that Clomid can decrease the quality of your cervical mucus (which sperm need to make their way to the egg), making conception more difficult. Clomid can also make the lining of your uterus thinner and less ideal for implantation. Along with using Clomid, we decided to jump right in and start the insemination process called IUI. IUI is a fertility treatment that uses a catheter to place a number of washed sperm directly into the uterus. The goal of IUI is to increase the number of sperm that reach the fallopian tubes and subsequently increase the chance of fertilization.The procedure occurs once ovulation has started, or a surge has taken place. To find this out, I started taking ovulation tests to find the close date. We had did our first insemination on March 6th. The process was quite painless, but just a bit uncomfortable. The doctor and nurse said to wait two weeks to take a pregnancy test. Talk about anticipation! I could not wait! Around the tenth day of the two weeks, I decided to take a test. When the extra line did not show up I felt defeated. Saddened. I was so hoping that this procedure would work. But I knew it wasn't the end of the world and that we can always try again. The days dragged on, my period came, and then the whole process started all over again.