Tristan and I had our consultation with the fertility doctor! After the consult, we both felt such a sense of peace in working with him. Going into this appointment, we were both worried that IVF would be heavily pushed on us…but it wasn’t!
Our doctor gave us some reassurance in that we are young and are starting this journey much earlier than a lot of his patients. We have time on our hands! He also gave some reassurance in that he isn’t too concerned about Tristan’s diagnosis. Even though some of Tristan’s sperm is not viable for fertilization, there is more than enough of the good sperm to fertilize an egg! He said that if he were to take a good egg and sperm and put them in a petri dish, that there would be guaranteed fertilization!
So why are we having a hard time getting pregnant? There may be more at play in this…
There are some things that our doctor would like to do in the next 2-4 months. The first one is for me to get some testing done. Fertility testing for women is not as advanced as male fertility testing. I would have three different tests in a span of the first two weeks of my cycle. These tests will be a pretty penny, so we are going to take some time and save up some baby funds!
The first test is a follicle count via ultrasound. The number of follicles visible on ultrasound is indicative of the number of microscopic follicles remaining in the ovary. Each follicle contains an immature egg that can potentially develop and ovulate in the future. When there are only a few follicles visible, there are far fewer eggs remaining as compared to when there are more follicles. As women age, they have less eggs remaining and they have fewer follicles.
The second test is Anti-Mullerian Hormone Test (AMH) via blood test. An AMH test measures levels of the anti-mullerian hormone, which plays a role in developing a baby's reproductive organs in the womb but is also important throughout your life. Both men and women naturally produce this hormone. For women, cells inside the follicles of the ovaries produce AMH. So your AMH levels relate to the number of eggs available for fertilization and like most things, naturally decline as you age.
The third and final test is a Hysterosalpingogram (HSG). The HSG test is a radiology procedure usually done in the radiology department of a hospital or outpatient radiology facility. Radiographic contrast (dye) is injected into the uterine cavity through the vagina and cervix. The uterine cavity fills with dye and if the fallopian tubes are open, dye fills the tubes and spills into the abdominal cavity. This shows whether the fallopian tubes are open or blocked and whether a blockage is at the junction of the tube and uterus or at the other end of the tube. Many women feel some cramping, especially when the dye is injected. Women who have a blocked fallopian tube may feel intense pain.
Some of these tests will definitely be uncomfortable and even painful (so I’ve read), but all of it is worth it to me!
Another thing our doctor would like to see is for me to lose weight. This is something that I have been working on already, so I will be continuing this journey with more help from a weight loss specialist. Our doctor wants to take some time making sure I’m the healthiest I can be to carry and nurture a baby (which made me love our doctor even more). We both also have a new vitamin/supplement routine as well to fit in with our schedules!
After our consult, we both felt really good about our next steps. Our doctor told us that he could either do things by the book or do things practically. By the book means jumping straight to IVF. We have all the signs that point straight to IVF, but because we are only 25/26, he wants to do things more practically (which we love). Doing things more practically just means taking some more time to do tests, try vitamins/supplements and make sure we are the healthiest we can be!
Thank you for joining our journey, supporting us and praying for us! We love you all and I will update you the next time we see a doctor or do any tests!
🤍 Abigayle
Wonderful news! We’ll continue praying for you guys!
Love you guys!🤍🤍