I requested to have the IUI procedure done over winter break since I had two weeks off and wouldn’t have to take any personal or sick days off of work for appointments.
I also planned to go to Maui for the holidays, so I was hoping I could have my cake and eat it too. Once the first day of my period came, and I contacted my doctor, the timing allowed me to buy a one-way plane ticket to fly to Maui the next day – the first official day of winter break. This was the great timing because I got to be with my ‘ohana for Christmas, New Years, and the days in-between. As opposed to being home alone on Oahu while John was at work mulling over fertility and going down the rabbit hole of googling.
Once I received the call from my doctor that my hormones were at the level to show that I will be ovulating soon, I booked my flight back to Oahu for the morning of January 2nd.
Upon arrival, I went home to unpack, take a shower, and wear my pineapple earrings that my friend got for me when she discovered that pineapples are widely known as the symbol for infertility. I also wore pineapple panties and pineapple socks for more good vibes. 🙂
We first went to the Reproductive Biology Lab, where John gave his semen sample. Then we went to my doctor’s office while the lab was doing the sperm wash. Sperm wash is a process where the sperm is separated from the semen. This makes the sperm more concentrated and enhances fertility capacity. We had to confirm 4x that the vial of sperm, in fact, belonged to John.
I had to get my blood drawn. I should have asked what they were testing for, but didn’t. Side note: My doctor said she prefers to use a catheter from Australia because it has two openings at the end instead of the American version that only has one.
Finally, the IUI procedure! The only instructions I was given to prepare was to have a full bladder. My doctor had John hold the ultrasound tool called the abdominal transducer on my abdomen (Yay no Wanda!), and we could see that there was fluid behind my very full bladder, which meant that I was ovulating. She filled a syringe with John’s sperm, connected it to the catheter, inserted a speculum into my vagina, carefully inserted the catheter all the way up to the top of my uterus, and transferred the sperm.
I laid there for 20 minutes until I couldn’t handle it and had to pee. Don’t worry, my doctor said the sperm couldn’t go anywhere, and I didn’t actually need to lay there. I did for good measure.
How am I doing? Physically – no different, emotionally – a little excited, but cautious, and mentally – anxious for the 2 week wait to be over so I can find out if I’m pregnant!
Sending positive vibes!