My Human Caviar.

What can I say? The imagery sticks.

I had my egg retrieval 9/4/12.
Be there at 6:45 am.
Man, that's early!
Hubby woke me up before 6, and we were rolling out the door at 6:15.
...and then we hit traffic. UGH!
Where are all these people going at 6:30 in the morning!?
(Oh yeah....that place called "work.")

So anyway, I was NPO past midnight (nothing by mouth), so I was expecting to be super crabby. Not so much. I was excited and nervous, and ready to get started!

Pics from the morning....

(Nurse Jami with me...looking to go into the procedure area....)

Me & Hubby before I got changed.... Nice hair net for the guy with no hair!
:)

So then what happened?
I changed into the gown. The procedure area is very, very, very cold. We had the tv on. We waited for the anesthesiologist. He came in. Super nice guy. Got my IV. Easy stick. Cold fluids...

Then, Dr.C-P came in. Gave us a run-down and a pep talk. We just LOVE him.
Next, Dr.M came in. Quick hello and let's get started! "It will take about an hour."
And then, Jami came and got me, and it was time. I walked across the hall to the procedure room.

The room: the room is FILLED with machines. Ever see that Monty Python clip about all of the machines? Well, Hubby and I cracked up about that, and I instantly thought of it as I entered the room. I swear the bed was the smallest thing in there! Machines everywhere.

(that's a still image from the Monty Python movie. No, it's not me. My stirrups were bigger and my tummy was smaller, and my hat was blue. I'm just sayin'....)

Stirrups----Ummmm....Big, metal, they put a pillow on each side and then strap your legs down just above the knees. Damn. These stirrups are like the bad-mamma-jammas of the stirrup world. I get covered up with warm blankets. People are moving all about me---in between all of the equipment. Anesthesiologist says he's going to flush my IV and then give me some medicine.

One minute I was talking...then my mouth started tasting funny....and that was it, apparently.
I was out.

When I awoke---I was mid-sentence, I believe. I have no idea about the start of the sentence, but in my mind, I woke up talking.
In reality---when they started waking me up, apparently I was "combative", per Hubby. I was swinging and trying to get up. Not the pleasant experience we were all hoping for. The good news: I have no memory of that. I just remember waking up talking and wondering what I was talking about. I was aware that I was speaking, but about what---I have no idea.

What we learned: 16 eggs retrieved! SIXTEEN! 15 are looking mature enough to try and fertilize and use. That's amazing. According to the andrologist/embryologist, one of my follicles had two eggs in it, and he said that is very rare. Woohooo. See? My body WANTS to have twins. (wink, wink!)

What else?
I was pretty miserable when I woke. I was in pain, especially on the left hand side. Tylenol helped with that. Warm blankets on my belly also helped. But, yes, it hurt. Also, you wake up with a catheter. Jami (our rockstar nurse) came in when I was so miserable, and come to find out---I probably had a kink in my catheter because when she manipulated it, it began draining again, and I felt some relief.

A bit later, it was the traditional discharge drill: eat (crackers), drink (water), urinate on your own, stable vitals, and you're outta here!

We hit Starbucks on the way home and Hubby also picked us up some lunch. PSA: pumpkin spice lattes are now here! Yaaaaaay! The downside: Hubby made me listen to TALK-RADIO. (Ugh. Kill me now. That's why I have satellite radio: so I get to skip all the talking! Duh!)

I spent the day on the couch. (I'm still here on the couch right now!)
I slept most of the afternoon.

What now? New meds at home. They are all pills except---"PIO": progesterone in oil. It's baaaaad. Jessica came over and gave me my first one. They will increase the dose daily. It's baaaaaad. Big needle. Big burn. It's baaaad. That's really all I have to say about that.

We should get a call from the embryologist tomorrow for an update on our embryos. The fertilization took place today (ICSI), so I'm interested in seeing how it all turns out.
:)