Ok so we had a consult with our new RE's office on the 30th & boy was it ever different. It is a center that focuses on both eastern & western medicine. The building is ridiculously gorgeous with fireplaces going & leather couches. But they are not snooty at all & were soooo beyond nice to Adelyn. They brought toys out for her & when we ended up there longer than planned went out of there way to get her crackers that were dairy free. On one side of the building is your typical RE's office (once you leave the plush waiting room). On the other is a whole other world. They have tons of treatment rooms for acupuncture, facials, & massages. They also have a small salon type room for mani/pedis. They also hold support & yoga classes there. While there they had one going on w/mom's & babies. Just a room full of miracles!!! Downstairs they have this amazing cafe too!!! It is wild! If you want check it out at www.cnyfertility.com. You can also read up on some stuff I will talk about in this post.
We ended up meeting w/two nurses as the Dr was out of town. They were both so super friendly & we did the typical intake stuff. After everything, they went over what they do for recurrent pregnancy loss. It's intense to say the least. First they suggest clomid/IUI, which my old RE did as well (hence Adelyn). It has been shown in numerous research that clomid has benefited women suffering from RPL. The IUI is merely to speed up the process. The way we look at it, why wait 2,3,4 months to get pregnant only to loose it. Morbid I know. Not for everyone, I agree. But it worked for us once & I'm hoping it will work for us again. Now the rest of this is where things get a bit different. The first thing they do is something called an Intralipid treatment via an IV for something like an hour. I won't go into super detail about why/what it does but it is supposed to fight antibodies. Those we currently know about & those that may not have been discovered & could be causing miscarriages. If you're interested (& let me tell you it is interesting) check out this link http://www.carefertility.com/ivf/viewtopic.php?t=39200. I've read up & I believe it makes sense & we are going to be doing it the week of ovulation & if we get pregnant 4 wks after the first treatment. They want me on progesterone 2 dpuiu. I'm up in the air with this one. I know it can't hurt but it made me sooo sick. They suggested Crinone (gel) & said it is known to have less side effects. Has anyone taken this? Is it true? They also include lovenox into the protocol. To be honest, I'm not sure if this is just for me as I have MTHFR or they do it for everyone, as they laid it all out as if it were their standard protocol. Currently, I have agreed to do it, but we will see. And lastly, the one I struggle with the most & to be honest haven't researched, so I can't say my opinion is educated. They have RPL patients take HCG shots after confirming a positive pregnancy. I don't know the reasoning behind it but w/everything included it seems a bit much. I also have to say that with the office offering eastern medicine, I am surprised at the level of invasiveness. Part of me thinks, well I just got pregnant with Addy on clomid/IUI, it worked so just stick with it. The other part thinks, what if you lose it & this stuff could've helped??? I do need to stress that in no way are they pushing anything on me. They have informed me of what options I have & said that they will support whatever I decide.
I am on CD 2 & go in Mon for my baseline & bloodwork. I have tons of questions to ask & more research to do. I will also start clomid on Mon as well. IUI looks like it will be around the 17th. In hindsight, I am so very grateful we took the month of Jan off. It was very difficult to do, but I know that we were not ready to take on all this information in addition to working on our marraige & TTC.
We ended up meeting w/two nurses as the Dr was out of town. They were both so super friendly & we did the typical intake stuff. After everything, they went over what they do for recurrent pregnancy loss. It's intense to say the least. First they suggest clomid/IUI, which my old RE did as well (hence Adelyn). It has been shown in numerous research that clomid has benefited women suffering from RPL. The IUI is merely to speed up the process. The way we look at it, why wait 2,3,4 months to get pregnant only to loose it. Morbid I know. Not for everyone, I agree. But it worked for us once & I'm hoping it will work for us again. Now the rest of this is where things get a bit different. The first thing they do is something called an Intralipid treatment via an IV for something like an hour. I won't go into super detail about why/what it does but it is supposed to fight antibodies. Those we currently know about & those that may not have been discovered & could be causing miscarriages. If you're interested (& let me tell you it is interesting) check out this link http://www.carefertility.com/ivf/viewtopic.php?t=39200. I've read up & I believe it makes sense & we are going to be doing it the week of ovulation & if we get pregnant 4 wks after the first treatment. They want me on progesterone 2 dpuiu. I'm up in the air with this one. I know it can't hurt but it made me sooo sick. They suggested Crinone (gel) & said it is known to have less side effects. Has anyone taken this? Is it true? They also include lovenox into the protocol. To be honest, I'm not sure if this is just for me as I have MTHFR or they do it for everyone, as they laid it all out as if it were their standard protocol. Currently, I have agreed to do it, but we will see. And lastly, the one I struggle with the most & to be honest haven't researched, so I can't say my opinion is educated. They have RPL patients take HCG shots after confirming a positive pregnancy. I don't know the reasoning behind it but w/everything included it seems a bit much. I also have to say that with the office offering eastern medicine, I am surprised at the level of invasiveness. Part of me thinks, well I just got pregnant with Addy on clomid/IUI, it worked so just stick with it. The other part thinks, what if you lose it & this stuff could've helped??? I do need to stress that in no way are they pushing anything on me. They have informed me of what options I have & said that they will support whatever I decide.
I am on CD 2 & go in Mon for my baseline & bloodwork. I have tons of questions to ask & more research to do. I will also start clomid on Mon as well. IUI looks like it will be around the 17th. In hindsight, I am so very grateful we took the month of Jan off. It was very difficult to do, but I know that we were not ready to take on all this information in addition to working on our marraige & TTC.
9 comments:
Laura said...
Dang! That's quite the protocol! Does your insurance pay, or would this be out of pocket?
I'm such a minimalist, that I think I would shy away from many of those offers (but I also think that my losses were due to PCOS/hormone imbalance, which seems to be manageable with diet, exercise, and Metformin). I did do Heparin injections when we thought that I might have a Protein C deficiency (another clotting disorder, similar to Lovenox/MTHFR), so I do understand the willingness to put up with the treatments if it will bring you a sibling for Addy. Hang in there!
Melis.sa said...
I used the crinone gel while TTC out in minnesota, it is seriously a nap in a va.gin.al su.ppo.sitory. And it leaks out, so I would wear a liner.
I used Lov.enox too and I also have a blood clotting disorder. I have heard of the IV stuff but I thought that was only for if your body fights a pregnancy like a disease? I haven't read up on it though. I do see that you've had early miscarriages though and if that helps I'd be trying it ;) I hope this next month is the lucky one!
Lisa said...
I understand the "should we or shouldn't we?" questions. With 4 losses, the only abnormality we found was MTHFR but pregnancy #3 was on with Lovenox and that didn't help so my doctor didn't think that was the issue. My little girl came from pregnancy #5 and the only thing we did was starting Prometrium 3dpo and staying on it until the end of my first trimester.
Now we're trying for baby #2. I was hesitant to even try--what if it was just a fluke that it worked with Isla? My wonderful FP told me that as much as doctors want to help, some things are just left up to the Lord above. I'd prayed that if God would just give me one I wouldn't get greedy--am I being greedy to ask for another baby? We've been trying 5 months now (it had been super easy getting pregnant the first 5 times--those were all in 13 months)--does that mean I'm not supposed to have another one? Should I just keep trying the Prometrium a few more months and see what happens?
Sorry, I have no advice...just wanted to let you know I understand some of what you're going through.
Prayers and Hugs...
Ella said...
Wow, that really is a lot to think about - that's a LOT of protocol! It certainly sounds like they are willing to try everything and have well researched techniques. And it's great that it's a facility that considers the whole body and mind. Very interesting things to think about. Can't wait to hear more.
I was on Crinone for 14 weeks with Eliza - it was easy to use and I had absolutely no side effects. The only complicated thing for me was finding a pharmacy that carried it!
Good luck Dawn! I hope you find peace with whatever decision you make.
LuckyOnce said...
Dawn, it sounds like you've found a good place for you. I'm glad that you're comfortable with them, and I hope they can help you to have another baby. I was also on Crinone a while ago, and I remember that I liked the fact that I could put it in and go, instead of having to lie in bed like you do with the suppositories. I can't remember if I had side effects, but I do remember this post vividly... http://whitepicketfence2point5kids.blogspot.com/2009/02/i-dont-know-how-to-pee-on-stick.html
Tracy said...
I had the post ovulation HCG trigger shots. That resulted in Isaac. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. They don't hurt (not compared to the lovonox) and its basically a pregnancy hormone boost until the baby can take over.
cheryllookingforward said...
Lots of love, Dawn. Keep us updated!
I'm also surprised at the amount of stuff you're going to have going on, but I understand wanting to try anything and everything!
CeCe said...
Your new place sounds amazing! I think your plan sounds good to do your research and decide what you are comfortable with.
Best of luck!!!
Shandrea said...
Hey Dawn! Thank you for the update. That is a lot to think about but at least it sounds like they are doing all they can to ensure your chances of a successful pregnancy. You have been in my thoughts and prayers and will continue to be. I pray that God guides you and hubby in your decisions that they will be clear and easy without doubt or strain. HUGS and wishing you all the best ;O)