Thursday, November 13, 2008

Egg Retrieval Is Over!

Just a quick update, as I'm still a little woozy, nauseous, and tired after a tough morning.

This morning Dr. Schoolcraft (who I still haven’t met) got back in town today and did my surgury. And the verdict is....

28 Eggs!!! WOO-HOO!

We can't believe it, especially since my Antral Follicle count was only 13, and Dr. Schoolcraft predicted no more than 15. I think he must have been trying to keep my expectations low, because HOLY COW!! We thought this cycle we would end up with our lowest eggs retreived, but we were so wrong. Our first IVF we had 17 retrieved, and our second IVF we had 18. This completely exceeds ANY expectations we had, and all I can say is that those whopper doses of stims did thier job! and not only that but yesterday after my trigger shot, my levels came back as follows:

E2 -- 2784
P4 -- 7.79
HCG -- 334

It's very surprising to us that we ended up with my lowest E2 level ever on surgury day, after growing so many eggs. Dr. Schoolcraft sure did a great job of growing those follicles while keeping my e2 in check and making sure I don't hyperstimulate. I'm SO impressed!

We are so excited, but trying to stay level headed. Some of those eggs will be immature and some will be post mature, therefore unusable. But we will find out exactly how many were mature tomorrow, and the even bigger news of exactly how many fertilized. We're nervous because in the past we have only had around a 50% fertilization rate, but we spoke to the embriologist today after surgury (I barely remember it, except that he was really nice!) and he assured me they are on the case!

They are going to use ICSI to fertilize the eggs -- which means inject the sperm right into the egg, rather than let them fertilize on their own in the dish. And he also mentioned that they might use laser ICSI (which I didn't even know existed), in order to help with fertilization of any harder eggs -- which has been a problem for us in the past. He confirmed that he is also going to use High Mag resolution to try to get the absolute best sperm for injection, combined with a special sperm selection process called PICSI -- where the sperm are sorted and divided in a special dish by binding to a hyaluron strip as a way to select the best.

We are cautiously optimistic for our fertilization report tomorrow.

But for now, we are just celebrating our 28 eggs! And going to have a good sleep this afternoon while I recover.

17 comments:

DAVs said...

Wow what a difference CCRM is making for you! Glad you made it through, and hope you have a good report tomorrow. I HATED waiting for that phone call! But know this: you will DEFINITELY have a better report than me :)

Nikki said...

Wow! That is awesome!!!! I am so happy for you Lisa!

Good luck for the fert report tomorrow! Can't wait to hear about it! Get some rest and take it easy! You did great!

Big hugs!

Emily said...

WOW! You are an egg factory! That is wonderful news!!

Rest well, drink your gatorade and enjoy being nursed back to health by DH.

Looking forward to a fantastic fert report!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

I've been checking for updates, and am so happy to hear that this step went well. Will keep you in my thoughts for days to come. Rest up.

Polly Gamwich said...

Wow, that is awesome! I can't believe they got so many eggs from 13 AFC.

Wow, wow, wow!!

A said...

Holy eggs! Even with a 50% fert rate you'd still have 14! woah.
Rest well, and long. Can't wait to hear about The Call.
Congrats on the ER being OVER!

Linda said...

Great job! Can't wait to hear your fert report!! :)

tintedsky said...

wow. this is really good. btw, you wrote a wonderful prayer a few entries back. bfp to u

babydust81 said...

Hi lisa,

You still look good with all that wires around you and after the Egg Retrieval. 28 eggs is a wonderful number. So don't think about it. I believe most of them will fertilised ok.

For now, you rest well and be ready for your transfer...

Lost in Space said...

Wow, Lisa!!! What a great batch of eggs!!! How did that happen from an AFC of 13?!? You have me really excited over here!!! (:

I hope you are recovering well. I already know that Dave is taking extra great care of you based on his other post. (;

I can't wait to hear your fert. report. Lots of positive thoughts coming your way!!!

Tomatoes From Canada said...

I'm so happy for you! All my love, Uncle John

Anonymous said...

28?????? That's AMAZING! Way to go, Lisa! Now, time to rest, eat your superfoods, stay calm and serene, and get ready for transfer. So far, so good!

Your internet cheerleader in Seattle

Anonymous said...

Yay! I'm so happy for you and Dave. Sounds like CCRM really knows what they are doing. I'm sort of depressed I didn't know about them before I cycled! Best wishes on the fert report.

BTW, thanks for your comments on my blog, it means a lot especially knowing how much is going on in *your* lives right now!

Sue said...

Great ER! Dr. S rocks! My DH saw that picture of you and was like, I think you were in the same recovery room! That's cool! Take it easy, lots of fluids, you know all that. And, be happy, no more shots!!! Can't wait to hear your fert report. I am sure it will be great.

Josée Martens said...

COngratulations!!! You must be over the moon. Rest up. :-) Can't wait to hear that fert. report.

GailY said...

I just wanted to pop in and wish you all the best and also to thank you for your comment on my journal about The Secret. I should have burned my copy, too! Rest up and good luck on your upcoming report.

Jill said...

Holy cow! 28 eggs is amazing! Congratulations! Crossing fingers for a good fertilization report today!!