Wow, has it really been almost 2 months since I last updated? How time flies these days!!

(Please note, I am trying to be open and honest about all that is going on with our infertility and adoption journey, so please excuse anything that is TMI for you. I try to be discreet, and hope nothing will cause offence.)

A few "old" updates....

....June 29th I saw my GYN, Dr Banach, to follow up on all my test results and to (hopefully!) get the letter we've been waiting on so long. There was a lot of confusion on my ovulation results - the first nurse (Dr Banach's regular nurse) took one look at them and said I wasn't ovulating properly. However, in further discussion with another nurse (who I saw with Dr Banach shortly after Nurse #1 left), we concluded I AM ovulating fine, or at least did so 2 out of 3 months.

...At the appointment, I made sure to bring up the letter, seeing as Dr Banach said if everything looked good, he would be happy to write the letter. I reminded him of what he had said about doing all the testing, then including the results from the tests in the letter, then asked if he would be willing to do the letter. He kinda "umm-ed" about it then said he wanted me to do three months on Clomid (a fertility drug) to "regulate ovulation and my cycles" and then when I came back he would gladly provide the letter. I was SO frustrated to hear this, because he had told me the same thing three months ago, in March!

...At this point, I began doing my own research. Many other women I know who battle infertility have told me of the importance of seeing a Reproductive Endocrinologist if you haven't conceived on your own after a year. This, along with my frustration with Dr Banach, fueled me to seek out an RE for further treatment/testing.

...I also discovered that just putting people on Clomid without any monitoring can be very hazardous; in some rare cases, fluid can build up in the ovaries and then leak into the heart and/or lungs. It's vital that monitoring take place, both for the safety of the patient and to be sure that the medicine is doing what it's supposed to before beginning another cycle.

...I ended up "re-finding" a doctor up in Birmingham who started a fertility clinic that has a wonderful reputation. I say "re-finding" because I had actually looked up info on this clinic shortly after we decided to do embryo adoption, as I thought it looked to be a good place to have the actual transfer of the embryos done. Funny that God brought things full circle and here I was looking at the same information again!

Anyway, that about brings us up to date. My appointment with the RE, Dr Kathryn Honea (pronounced Hone-ee), was this morning at 8am. Because the clinic is a bit over 3 hours away from home, we decided it would be best for me to drive up the night before and stay in a hotel nearby. That plan definitely worked better than waking up at 2 or 3 to drive up!

Here's the basic run-down of the visit:

- Dr Honea is very supportive of our desire to adopt. This is such a blessing because Dr Banach definitely wasn't.

- Dr Honea said even though I didn't ovulate one of the months I tested (Mar-Jun), that was most likely stress-related and thus isn't cause for concern. Also, she said that even though I never detected a positive this month, it is likely that I DID get a positive but the strip didn't pick it up. I was so relieved to hear that!

- While she supports our plans for adoption, and is going to be doing tests related to us getting the letter, she will also be continuing our infertility care to ascertain what the problem is. Right now our goal is mostly for a diagnosis, unless the issue poses a problem to our adoption.

- There will be LOTS of tests going on this month: bloodwork to determine if everything looks good for another round of Clomid, comprehensive metabolic profile (CMP), lipid profile, insulin test, ultrasound with sonar inflation study (SIS), progesterone testing, and several other misc tests. We are hoping for the sake of keeping costs low and Caleb being able to do the tests he needs to that some of these tests can be done at the Montgomery office, but we will travel to Birmingham if needed.

- My progesterone was low last time it was checked (Jan/Feb). If after they get the results back, I am still low, they will prescribe it in some form (injection, pill or suppository).

- Hopefully, after getting all the results back, Dr Honea will be able to provide our adoption letter. I'm pretty sure she said today that once we have the SIS done and have checked one thing with our adoption agency, she will be glad to write the letter. Words cannot express how happy this makes me!

I know a lot of people think, "Boy, your adoption is taking forever!" Well, trust me when I say we know. :) But, at the same time, I'm really glad to know that (to this point) just about everything has looked healthy and that I am able to carry a baby. And, it is good to know that we're not crazy and there is something going on that is preventing us from having a baby.

Points for prayer:
- that all would go smoothly for Caleb to be able to attend the appointments he needs to be at (at least 2)
- that the UTI (urinary tract infection) I have would go away
- that all the scheduling for me to get back and forth to Birmingham and/or Montgomery would work out, even with us sharing a car.

Thanks so much for your support!