Friday, June 30, 2006

Starting Clomid next month

So I had my appointment at Georgetown University Hospital yesterday with the same doctor who saw me after my chemical pregnancy. I really liked him and I knew he was covered by my insurance so I wanted to see if there was anything he could do before I poured tons of money into fertility treatments (not that I have the money anyway).

His name is Dr. Udwin and he's a young and very upbeat guy so I was looking forward to the appointment. As soon as he saw me he asked me: "Are you getting depressed by all the pregnant women out in the lobby? I know it can get really tough." He totally understood how I feel and told me that I basically have 3 options. I can go the fertility treatment way, but he did not recommend that yet because he said at 29 I still have time to conceive naturally so it's worth trying. Or, I could get a test (forgot the exact name) where they put dye in my tubes and check for blockage. He said the test is pretty painful and there is a very small chance that my tubes are blocked because I did conceive at least once before (my chemical) but most women start with that test.
Or, the third option, is to start taking Clomid for a few cycles and see how that goes, and if nothing happens after 3-4 months I could do the test then. He warned me that there is a risk of ovarian cancer associated with Clomid but it's usually for women who take it for over 12 months and he said he would not recommend me taking it for that long. He left the decision to me and I decided to go with Clomid for 3 cycles and see how it goes. He told me there is a 5%-9% risk of multiple pregnancies with that but I'm ready to take the risk if it works. I'm a little scared about the side effects though because the few times I had takes birth control pills in the past I've had some very strong headaches and bouts of nausea but I really have no choice. So he gave me a prescription for Clomid and asked me to call him after I'm done with the first cycle to report how I'm doing. You take the pills for 5 days starting on the 5th day of your period and, according to the doctor, we're supposed to have sex like crazy for a few days as soon as I'm done with the pills.

I told him that sex is not nearly as fun anymore and he was very understanding. He said this is called medical sex and most couples who are TTC are going through this. Basically, just sex on demand. He told me not to worry and drink some wine before sex to get in the mood if I have to (I don't really drink wine but a strong bloody mary will do :) He knew it's pretty tough on both partners to have sex under pressure but what can you do...At least he didn't tell me to just relax and it will happen, which I'm tired of hearing.

So I got my prescription for Clomid now and I'm waiting for my period. It's due on Tuesday, July 4. I don't think I'm pregnant this month because I have no symptoms and we really only had sex once during ovulation so I'm not thinking about it much. It's actually kind of liberating, not thinking whether you're pregnant and going crazy checking your symptoms. I'm a little worried about the Clomid and wondering how other people have felt while taking it. Will have to check the boards for stories and keep my finders crossed that everything goes well.