Doctor's Appointment- Ultrasound and Blood Drawn

Hello!

First I just want to say that I was using this blog mostly as like a marriage/ life journal. Now that we have been having fertility issues, I want people who are going through what we are going through to know that there is someone out there who knows a little bit how they feel... If that made sense. Everyone's fertility issues are different, but anyone who is having fertility problems probably all hurt in one way or another. I have gotten several compliments from friends about this blog and I want to thank them for that. What I write is personal, and I am afraid people will think I am weird for being so personal...but I want to help people and give and get support. Yes! I also want someone to talk to about this haha. And I know it is not the best written blog out there haha I am sorry about that. 

Well my doctor's appointment was today. I got my blood drawn and had an ultrasound of my uterus and ovaries. My doctor found that I have PCOS :-( He saw 12 little cysts in both of my ovaries and my periods are not regular. So the blood test that I had today will tell us how severe it is. We are praying it is not too bad. There were no  growths or sores in my uterus and everything else looked normal. My blood test will come back in a week and will tell us more. Hopefully it is good news and hopefully Clomid will stop my dang spotting between my periods and hopefully I will get pregnant. I have to get my blood drawn again 8 days after I ovulate to test a certain hormone. So more waiting! Yay! :-S Ugh! 

I was expecting to be diagnosed with PCOS, but I was hoping I would be wrong. Especially because I am not having outward signs of PCOS. I would like to blame my weight gain on it, but really I think that is because I got lazy after we got married and stopped exercising. The only symptom I seemed to be having was slightly irregular periods. I always have a period every month. Never have I missed one, but they start between days 25 and 31. They do not always start on day 28 of my cycle. So I was hoping it was just hormones. But nope! The cysts popped up on the ultrasound and I have PCOS. Now that it is official I have been feeling hopeless about getting pregnant. I have heard that a lot of people with PCOS do not get pregnant with fertility pills, so I am afraid I will be one of those people. I just need to suck it up and have faith in the Lord's timing. Easier said than done haha.

I started Clomid today. I have read terrible things about Clomid. So I am expecting to gain 10 pounds, which is awful since I have been trying to lose the 20 pounds I gained when we got married, and be a very grumpy wife/person who eats chocolate all day long. Hopefully I am not like that and we are praying that it works and I get pregnant. Here are my lovely pictures of my pills. Thanks for reading! I will update as results come in. Have an awesome week!

~Amanda

Fertility Consultation

Hello to all!

Abe and I had our consultation with our fertility specialist today. He went over our family histories with us. He also went over Abe's semen analysis that we had done this last fall, and my testing that I have had done. Abe's testing looked great. No problems with him. So, the next step we all decided was that I will be doing a blood test to make sure that my ovaries are healthy, checking my hormones, and testing my thyroid and any chance that I have diabetes. The specialist said that it does not look like I have diabetes, but he wants us to get pregnant so he is doing tests haha. He wants to make sure that he has checked everything. I will also be getting another ultrasound to recheck my uterus and ovaries. This time they are checking for endometrial polyps, which is a growth in the uterus, because I have been having spotting for two weeks before my period for the past two months. They are also going to check my endometrial lining to make sure it is healthy. And checking my follicles. Thankfully one ultrasound will show all of this and I get those ultrasound results right away. The blood tests will take a week to get the results and I have to wait for both the ultrasound and blood tests until the third day of my next cycle. So more waiting for the time being. When I go in to get my blood test done and my ultrasound, I will be given a prescription for Clomid. The specialist said if I do not have a growth in my uterus my spotting may be happening because I have low estrogen, so Clomid will help boost that estrogen and help me ovulate. If it doesn't help the spotting and I do not have a growth in my uterus, then I will be given estrogen to stop the spotting. Hopefully the ultrasound and blood tests all look good and I can just take the Clomid and get pregnant. In about 2-3 weeks we will have answers to all of these questions and tests and I will be on Clomid. Hopefully this works and I will be able to get pregnant! We will continue to keep this updated. Thanks for reading!

Abraham and Amanda

HSG Test!

I had my HSG test done today! I was a bit nervous for it, like I am for every single doctors appointment. Abe had to work :-( , so my sweet mother came down to go with me and drive me around. They gave me a muscle relaxer to help me calm down and relax before the test. That was the best thing ever. I need one every time I go to the doctor. I have read in many blogs and websites that the HSG test is extremely painful and horrible. I was ready for the most painful and awful experience of my life... It was so so much better than I was expecting! It was a bit uncomfortable and the fertility specialist had trouble getting the catheter through my cervix, which did hurt and pinch quite a bit, and he only had trouble because I have never had a baby before, but other than that it was totally fine. When he inserted the dye, I could feel it go in, but it did not hurt at all. I had slight cramping for a few minutes after the whole procedure, but it was totally worth it. I got my results right away! I do NOT have blocked fallopian tubes! It was such a great relief. Abe and I are so happy :-). The dye went in perfectly and I am completely open. The doctor said that if anything is wrong then it is probably because I am not ovulating the same time every month or maybe hormones can be messed up (that's what I think since I haven't had my blood checked). I have a consultation next week that Abe and I will be going to with the main fertility specialist (not the same guy who did the test, but hopefully just as nice). Hopefully we can talk and maybe get some more answers and helpful advice then. For now we are just so happy and relieved to know that my tubes are open and look good. It really is so nice to be getting some answers and help from nice doctors who actually give me time and let me ask questions about what they are doing and what I can do. I am very glad that I am going to a specialist rather than just doing exactly what my OB/GYN said and taking the Clomid without doing testing. I now feel comfortable taking Clomid knowing that my tubes are fine. We really are so happy and relieved. I am excited for the consultation next week and I will keep updating as we go through this experience! We hope everyone has a great week and enjoy the warm weather!

Amanda

Lots of Updates

Well Abe and I want to say hello to all!
We have been super busy the past three months. This last semester of school was crazy. Abe had two classes that were at night, and I was at school almost every day from 9 to 3. Then we had work at night. It was a busy semester, but a lot of fun. I was able to make lesson plans for the children's school at WSU. Abe is finished with his minor in ESL. I graduate in December! Finally! I am also doing student teaching in the fall. I am very excited! I will be student teaching at Weber State's children's school. I will be student teaching the preschool class. It is going to be so fun. I am very excited! We are so glad it is summer break. We can actually relax and have dinner together.

Abe got a summer job at a place called Focus. They do inbound customer service calls for CenturyLink and Direct TV. He has been in training for the past week. He says it seems like a good job and he has been enjoying himself. He plays ping pong with everyone there and has one every game except one. He is very proud of himself haha :-) I had found a job at a daycare, but it was at a Methodist church, and they were trying to get me to sign things that said I recognize that theirs is the true church, and I believe that the LDS church is the true church, so I decided to stop pursuing that job. I felt very uncomfortable there, but they were very nice people and I respect them! So now I am on a job hunt. Finding a place to work where they do not make you work on Sundays is extremely difficult here. So I have been able to apply to one place, that is Seagull Book. I am praying I get  the open position there so that we can put all of the money I make into savings.

We are still not pregnant. We have officially hit the year mark of trying. I thought I would go to the doctor and because we have hit a year she would say that I am infertile. Thankfully that was not the case. If I do not get pregnant this month then I am going to get what is called an HSG test. It is going to cost us 2/3 of our savings, but we feel like it is the right thing to do. Pretty much they shoot dye into my uterus and fallopian tubes and make sure that my tubes are open and make sure my uterus is not misshapen. I really do not want to pay for or go through testing, but it really looks like I am going to have to and we both really want to get pregnant. Abe and I have decided that test should be done before I take Clomid because there is really no reason for messing with hormones and forcing me to ovulate if my tubes are blocked. So we are preparing for that fertility test. We are praying that everything is fine because we cannot afford to do any surgeries. I really thought I was pregnant last month. I was not having any signs of my period and so I took a pregnancy test on the day I was supposed to start, and it was negative. My period was 4 days late. I am at most 2 days late, so that was really awful. At that point I had lost all hope that I was ever going to get pregnant. I was upset for days. I was really sick of being disappointed every month. I wondered what was wrong with me and why  God wouldn't bless us with a baby of our own. I did not feeling like that. Not one bit. I felt bitter and angry. So I decided to just let it go and pray and read my scriptures and find happy thoughts online. Since doing that, I have felt better about the past year. It has been a growing experience and it has taught us a lot about our marriage and our strengths and weaknesses. Abe is so patient and loving. He really is amazing and is always willing to give me a blessing when I am feeling upset and impatient. This is really a trial for me and I am so thankful to have such an amazing husband to help me through this.

We are so happy that its summer! We are going to camp and hike a bit this summer. We hope to make it up to Yellowstone for a weekend. We love all of our family and friends and hope that you all are doing well!

-Amanda and Abraham

Extremely Late Happy Holidays and updates!

Hello All!

Happy Holidays! Yes it is late and I have not written in ages! For Thanksgiving Abe and I went to Rexburg and had Thanksgiving with his family! It was a lot of fun! We played a lot of games and ate a lot! As is customary for Thanksgiving! We were able to go see my parents and sisters a couple of times while we were up. We did not do Black Friday (or Thursday now). Shame. We plan on doing it next year though! Abe's parents have an exchange student from Italy staying with them until June! It was fun to see her reactions to Abe's whole family there and trying new food. She also introduced us to yummy Italian snacks and cakes! It was great to see Abe's whole family together. We truly enjoyed it.

School ended two weeks after Thanksgiving break. We passed all of our classes with very good grades! Abe's older brother Isaac graduated from Weber State. I am sure he is happy to be done! I got like 8 inches cut off of my hair. It only took me a year to actually do it. But I love it and it is so much easier to take care of short hair! Abe and I were able to visit Temple Square before we went to Rexburg for Christmas break. We really enjoyed it, like we always do! It is so beautiful and the Temple just looks gorgeous with Christmas lights surrounding it.

Since we work for Weber State we got a whole month off of school and work. We have been saving up for months to be able to afford that long break, and we did it! We are pretty proud of that. We stayed in Rexburg the whole month that we were off. Our poor parents got to deal with us, our cat, and hamster for that month since we stayed with them. We switched in between houses during that month.

Christmas was wonderful! We spent it with my family this  year. We did go to Abe's parents house Christmas Evening. We got a lot of awesome presents! We got a coffee table from my parents! Which we forgot in Rexburg when we came back to Ogden. I am pretty disappointed about that. We were able to see Amber and Joe and Allie. It was great to have everyone there for Christmas. I am sure my parents truly enjoyed it (not being sarcastic)!  We were able to spend New Year's Eve with my family and we played with nerf guns, hide and seek, and board games. I get homesick, so being there was the best. Spending a month in Rexburg was really awesome. We loved our time there and we were so sad to go home.

School started up Monday. So far it has been good. We are only two days in though. I have two classes with labs this semester. So that is going to be a lot. Abe has a class called Horror and Superstition. Sounds pretty cool! He is excited for it!

We are still not yet pregnant. I went to my doctor again and she just checked to make sure I was ovulating again, which I was, and gave me a prescription for Clomid. I have been putting off taking it so that if I do happen to get pregnant on it, I will be graduated by the time I give birth. So I will most likely start it in March or April. We are praying that it works, because frankly trying to get pregnant is hard and gets depressing when it takes a long time. It has almost been a year of trying now and I get more depressed every month. I feel like Wendy from What to Expect When You're Expecting. She is the one that has her phone tell her when she is ovulating. Yeah I have totally done that. I have Crazy Ovulating Lady Syndrome. November and December I tried relaxing a bit and chilled out. I will keep trying to do that until March. We hope for the best!

We hope everyone had an awesome holiday season!

~Abraham and Amanda

Updates: School, New Jobs, Random Stuff, and our One Year Anniversary!

Hello!
It has been awhile! We have been super busy with school and work! Abe and I started school again in August! So we have been back in for over a month now. Our classes are going great! Abe loves his Spanish classes and is even in a class with one of his mission companions! I am enjoying my Early Childhood classes and I am very excited to start this new major! We both are doing very well. Abe has a test over the phone for Spanish comprehension and conversation abilities. He says he is pretty nervous for it, but I know he will be amazing! I just took a test on Early Childhood Education and I got 100% on it, so I am pretty happy!

We quit our jobs at the group home! We were tired of going to work and having extreme anxiety at work. We could get hit and punched at any moment there, and it was exhausting emotionally. So we quit! We are now working for Weber State University at the call center on campus. It is very relaxing and it is awesome! We feel very blessed to be able to work there and to have found new jobs so quickly.

We are still not yet pregnant. I went to the doctor because we have been trying for 6 months and we have been getting very frustrated and sad. Everything looks great for me! My doctor did an ultrasound and I actually got to see the egg I was about to ovulate (sorry if that's too much info!). She gave us a lot of helpful tips so we are hoping for the best!

We had our one year anniversary on Sunday! It was awesome! We spent the weekend at a hotel in Ogden. On Friday we rode the train to Salt Lake City and spent the afternoon there! It was a lot of fun! We went to Temple Square and City Creek mall. It was so fun While we were waiting for the train to take us back to Ogden we got stuck in a crazy thunderstorm! We both got soaked, but it was really cool, and frightening to see the lightning strike over the city. On Saturday we swam at our hotel and went to dinner at Chuck a Rama. Best dinner ever! Their mashed potatoes and gravy are amazing! And their salad bar is huge! It was great! On Sunday we went to church and just relaxed! It was really a great weekend!

We hope everything is going well for all of our family and friends!

Abraham and Amanda

End of Summer Update

Hello Everyone!
It has been a busy summer! Busy and very good! Sadly we are not yet pregnant. Birth control was terrible for me and it has taken awhile for my body to go back to normal. Hopefully soon we will be pregnant! It is hard to be patient. Especially since I am in Primary and I see cute little kids all of the time. It is hard for me not to be kind of depressed and upset that I am not yet pregnant. I see FB posts from girls we graduated with who complain about their babies crying and not napping a full hour, and it is really frustrating. And then I have some people who tell me that they know how I feel, and it only took them one time to get pregnant. Haha not what I want to hear. I never believe them when they say they know how I feel. I appreciate them trying to help though! But really we have it good and I am glad that I have good friends and an incredible husband! I am not sick or anything, so it will happen eventually (hopefully)!

We were able to celebrate both of our birthdays in June! Abe's June 12th and mine June 29thWe are now 22 years old! Kinda weird!

My cousin Chandler left on his mission almost a month ago. He is still at the MTC right now bust soon he will be going to the Cape Verde mission in Africa! We went to his farewell and it was just wonderful. He is an amazing kid! We will miss him for the 2 years he is gone!

We went to California for my Great-Grandpa's funeral. The funeral was sad, but the rest of the trip was really good! I cried when we had to come home. I lived in California until I was 10 and moving to Idaho was traumatic (when I was 10, it isn't anymore). We went swimming a few times and we were able to hang out with my grandparents and cousins. It really was so much fun. We had not seen my family since Christmas so it made me so happy!

Abe and I start school in a few weeks! Whoo! We always tell ourselves that we are gonna go to class every day and do our homework ahead of time... Wish us luck with that. We got grants for school. Thank goodness! And we are applying to become Utah Residents. So hopefully we get instate tuition and no longer have to use loans to pay for school!

Fall is coming soon! We are so excited! Cooler weather, warm clothes, hot chocolate, and pretty leaves! It is going to be awesome! I am so excited! It will be great!

Amanda