I've been a bad 'Saur....

I know. I haven't updated at all. I am sorry if you missed me!

Well, obviously, I am not KU from last cycle. DH and I decided to go ahead and get his follow up SA done. We got the results back yesterday, and DH's morphology went from 1 % in April to 6% this time around. An improvement, but not enough to be considered 'normal.'

My OB-GYN referred us to an RE. This RE happens to be the doctor who delivered Bellesaur 26 years ago when he was just beginning his career! LOL. I have a good feeling about the fertility clinic, and we have our first appointment with Dr. K on September 8th. I will keep y'all posted.

In the meantime, I probably will not have much to post, since I will no longer be analyzing my chart everyday. I am still temping, but I have no expectations of getting KU on my own.

On to Cycle # 6 I go...

AF arrived this afternoon. I am not terribly upset, since I have been mentally preparing myself for BFN's every month, but still a little morose.


I am giving it one more month before DH gets his next SA. Until then, I plan to continue acucpuncture and wear a medal of Rita of Cascia, the patron saint of infertility. Hey, at this point, I don't see the harm.

It's a beautiful morning...

Why you ask? Because yesterday, I got my first + OPK this cycle!! I really was starting to give up hope (as you can tell from my previous posts) that I would O this cycle, but I am really hoping this is it! I think our timing is good, and hopefully, DH is producing good sperm now! 2 WW here I come!

Dear body,

Dear body,

I give you exhibit A:




WTF??? You have been doing so well and responding to acupuncture treatments. Why are you doing this to me? I need you to effing ovulate already. Enough is enough. It is CD 23 and it is time to get a move on here.

I have had waterey CM for what seems like years, and I am ready to ovulate! I realize I had food poisoning last week, but that is behind us now, and I need you to give me a + OPK now! Mr. Bellesaur and I are getting tired and need a bit of a break for the 2 WW already!!


With anger,

Bellesaur

Frustration!!!

I am done with my OvWatch! Here we are, CD 20, with my OvWatch 'detecting ovulation' on CD 16, and still no + OPK, still no temp rise. Nothing. Congrats, body, you have successfully tricked the OvWatch.

Maybe I am just not regular enough yet for the watch to do any good. Maybe my body will always gear up for O then chicken out, thus rendering the OVWatch useless. Either way, if anyone is interested in buying it from me, let me know. I can get you a good deal, ha.

Last cycle, I O'ed on CD 21. I am hoping I will get a + OPK today or tomorrow. We'll see!

What's up with OvWatch?

So, much to my surprise, I awoke on CD 12 to my OVWatch alerting me that my fertile period has begun! Seriously?

I am wondering if this can possibly be correct. I am excited to think it might be! If OvWatch is correct, that means I am expected to ovulate between CD 16-17! Could I seriously be approaching a cycle with on average normal ovulation time!??!?

I have been asked before: which do you hate more, Bellesaur, the weeks before O or the 2 WW? I must say it is the weeks before O, since I am still adjusting to life without BCP. I am still never certain as to when I will O, and I am anxious to get my timing right! As far as the 2 WW, I have come to just accept AF is coming, so no anxiety there.

Well, wish me luck! I think Mr. Bellesaur and I are going to try the every other day approach again, and see what happens.

Acupuncture decision

I have decided to go ahead and go to acupuncture this cycle. I am too afraid that my cycle will get screwed up if I do not continue to use the herbs prescribed to me. I know that may be crazy, but all I know is acupuncture has worked for me, and it is some sort of a security blanket in TTC for me that I am unwilling to let go of at this point.

To compromise, I will be only going once a week to ease up on the financial constraints. I will keep you posted on my progress this month. My next appointment is tomorrow.

To acupuncture or not acupuncture; that is the question...

So, as I have mentioned before, I have been seeing an acupuncturist since March 2009 to treat my long cycles. My cycles have gone from 54 days to 32 days in a matter of 4 months. I do believe acupuncture aided in this, and I am a huge advocate.

Here's my dilemna. Acupuncture is not covered in our insurance, so I have been paying a nice $45 a pop each time I go in, which has added up quickly. Mr. Bellesaur and I feel like perhaps I need to take a break to save money, since we may be TTC for much longer than originally anticipated. Don't get me wrong, we will be ok financially if I continue to go, but it might be wiser to spend that money on other TTC related things, perhaps future treatments for Mr. Bellesaur, since he seems to be the one with the infertility issues.

Plus, we are not even 100% that Mr. Bellesaur is healthy yet, and if he is not, then what is the point? Without healthy sperm, all the acupuncture in the world can't get me KU.

I have fears about quitting acupuncture. What if my cycles go right back to being outrageously long once I quit? What if acupuncture was the only reason I was beginning to be regular again?

I am confused as to what the best thing to do. I would love to hear your opinions on what I should do.

Hello Cycle # 5

Well, I didn't even get the opportunity to test this week. AF came in the wee hours of 12 DPO with a screaming vengeance. I was woken up by my cramps, and was curled in the fetus position begging for relief for about 2 hours.

I am not crushed; as you know from my previous posts, I was expecting this to a degree. I am going to use my OVWatch again this month. I used it in Cycle # 3, but forgot to order a new sensor in time to use for Cycle # 4. Since my cycles seem to be getting closer to normal (32 days total for # 4), I am hoping it won't be off like it was for Cycle # 3. I also will begin taking Red Raspberry Leaf tablets in conjunction with my B-6 and Chinese herbs, to try and further regulate my cycle. Adding these new things each month gives me hope, something to experiment with and look forward to seeing the results.

On one hand, I am trying to stay positive. However, don't be fooled. There is a voice in the back of mind that is saying, what if Mr. Bellesaur is not well? What if his morphology is abnormal still? While I know there was only a 20% chance of getting KU even with well timed intercourse, it is still hard not to wonder if my odds are even slimmer than that. Mr. Bellesaur goes back for his SA next week, and I am terrified. I am afraid to hear the results. I am scared that the morphology will be bad still, and it won't be something we can treat. I have many unfounded fears, but I am trying to keep them at bay.

So, here's to my new cycle. Let's hope my fears are ridiculous and unfounded.

So, here we are

Today, I am 7 DPO. Take a look:

Yes, it is way too early to tell anything from my temps. Also, I have zero symptoms. I did have sore boobs right after ovulation, but that is normal for me, and it disappeared a few days ago. This is somewhat discouraging to me, as I had zero symptoms my last cycle, and obviously no BFP. But on the other hand, Cycle # 2 was chopped full of symptoms, but again, no BFP.

So, who knows? Only time will tell, I keep reminding myself. In the meantime, Mr. Bellesaur and I have taken on a home improvement project to take our minds off of it. We are painting most of the house, and so far, this has proven successful in keeping me away from my wondering. It's the times like now, when I'm not painting, I have time to think too much.

Well, here's to hoping I keep myself from analyzing everything to the point where I end up like this guy:

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Temp rise!

Ok, so FF has not changed my CH to Saturday as I had originally suspected, so I am 5 DPO today. My temp had a pretty big spike this morning, IMO. Check it out:

If my temp goes up again tomorrow morning, it will be the highest temp I have had in all 4 cycles charting. While I know this means nothing at all, I am excited to see this 2 WW looking different than my others- maybe it's promising, maybe not. Only time will tell, but let's just hope those temps continue to go up!

Still confused here...

So, as I suspected in my previous post, FF changed my ovulation date upon the entry of this morning's temp. However, FF changed my ovulation date to Friday, which I was thinking more like Saturday. Either way, I feel like Mr. Bellesaur and I had good timing this cycle, the best that we could.




I know it is early in the 2 WW for me, but I feel strangely calm about the outcome of this cycle. Mr. Bellesaur and I stuck to our original plan, and tried every other day, and I know that it was the best we could do. I also am at peace with the fact that what's done is done for this cycle, and there is nothing I can do at this point, aside from eating some pineapple core to ease my superstitious mind, to change the outcome of this cycle.

I feel hopeful because this is the first cycle Mr. Bellesaur could be healthy. On the other hand, Mr. Bellesaur will have a sperm analysis again later this month to confirm that the infection is gone and was indeed the source of his bad morpholopgy. I know the doctor was certain the morphology would be fine once Mr. Bellesaur got rid of his infection, but I keep having nightmares about the SA returning with the exact same results. I am trying to stay positive- TODAY, I have hope that the Bellesaurs are fertile again as a couple. That's all I can focus on right now.

Well, I will continue to update you on my 2 WW progress this cycle. I joked today that I am right now in the 3 DPO that never ends, and if FF changes my ovulation date to Saturday (as I suspect it will), then I will be 3 DPO for 3 days on there!

Confused!

So, I am a little confused. Check out my chart:


I must admit, I was very shocked when I entered my temp this morning and FF gave me crosshairs. I was under the impression I ovulated Saturday. Now, I guess only the next few day's worth of temps will tell the tale.

What do you think? Opinions, please!

Yipee!!

At last! I got this cycle's first positive OPK this evening! If I do indeed ovulate after this LH surge, then I will be within a day or two of my O day last cycle. Mr. Bellesaur and I have been trying the 'do it every other day' approach this cycle. As you can see from cycle # 2, doing every day did not work out so well, so we decided to try something different.
I must admit though, now that I have gotten a + OPK, I am tempted to try again daily until O is confirmed, but I am going to stick the the every other day plan. At this point, we are not even sure if Mr. Bellesaur's morphology has improved, so why not?

Here's a peek at this month's chart. Please keep your fingers crossed I can confirm O in a few days! I'll keep you posted!

Hello: An Introduction to Bellesaur

I am so excited to be a part of Pregosaur! I am Bellesaur, and I wanted to tell you a little bit about myself and my TTC journey. I am 26 years old, and live in Mobile, AL with my DH (dear husband) and our two sweet pugs.

DH and I decided to begin TTC in December of 2008. I took my last BCP (birth control pills) on January 9th, 2009. Unfortunately, BCP must have done a number on me, because AF (Aunt Flo) did not show up for 54 days. I began charting around day 30 of that cycle, but was still learning about charting. I was able to confirm ovulation on CD (cycle day) 44 for this cycle. Please feel free to check out my FF (Fertility Friend) chart in the link to the right.

I began to get acupuncture to aid in shortening my cycle lengths. I started seeing Zue, my acupuncturist, twice a week. Along with the treatments and herbs Zue gave me, my next cycle went down to 39 days, and was ovulatory on CD 27. I continued to get treatments, and cycle # 3 was 35 days, and ovulatory on CD 23. I do believe Cycle # 4 will be my most normal yet.

However, DH and I face other issues in our TTC journey. We were afraid DH might be infertile because I had been taking a medication that negated my BCP for several years (had just discovered this in October 2008), and decided to get an SA (sperm analysis) for DH. I know many might think it was too soon, but I don't regret the decision, both of us just had a feeling we needed to do this. Well, DH's SA results came back with high white blood count (WBC) and poor morpholopgy (99% abnormal). The results indicated DH had some sort of infection elevating his WBC. We were very alarmed and were lucky enough to get an appointment with a urologist right away.

At the urologist, it was confirmed that DH was suffering from a prostate infection. The urologist prescribed 2 weeks of Levaquin, a strong antibiotic, and then a low dose of Bactrin for 60 days after that. The urologist felt that once the infection was cleared, that DH's morphology would be normal again and we would have a real shot at TTC. He thought there was a chance that DH would be viable again after the 2 weeks of Levaquin; the Bactrin is more of a just in case to ensure no relapse.

Needless to say, we are excited to know that Cycle #4 could actually be a possible BFP (Big Fat Positive) for us. We are ready to be KU (knocked up)!

I promise to keep everyone updated on my treatments, my chart, and all the emotions we all know are tied to this exciting and sometimes trying time!