At my appointment Dr. V, my RE, told me that I'd have to go off bcps so we could do a full fertility workup on me. I understood that would happen but had a momentary panic thinking that my ovaries would take this opportunity to have a follicle party leading to major trouble. Thanks PCOS! So I went off after the last week of pills and was able to get in to the clinic lab for my CD3 bloodwork, a baseline ultrasound on CD6 and a SIS (saline infusion sonogram) on CD11. All of the testing was done by August 26th and my follow up was scheduled for October 19th.
I met with Dr. V. on the 19th and got great news! I had no worries about the ultrasounds, particularly the results from the SIS. I had the same tech (S) for both and she said that at the SIS the Dr. would be able to give me the results right away. Dr. H, who I like to call Dr. Happy because he just seems that way, called my tubes "beautiful". Thanks, I guess! lol I was a little anxious because with PCOS I've just come to expect something else will be wrong or go wrong with my body. Not this time. Everything appears to be in perfect working order: uterus, lining, ovarian shape, size and volume, and follicles.
At my appointment with Dr. V. I got all the results. She said I have good ovarian reserve. And at 36 I'm relieved to hear that. You never know what is going on inside. Here are my CD3 results:
- DHE-S - 3.24 umol/L
- Prolactin - 13.37 ug/L
- TSH - 0.66 mIU/L (perfect for my hypothyroidism)
- Testosterone - 0.91 nmol/L
- FSH - 5.94 IU/L (super excited about this result!)
- LH - 7.66 IU/L (very happy with this)
I hadn't begun charting with temperature taking that month so I wasn't exactly sure if I had ovulated. I could only take a guess, based on a positive OPK, that I was 7 or 8 days post-ovulation on CD22 when I went in for my post-ovulation progesterone test. The results, 40.80 nmol/L, showed what Dr. V. called a "really nice ovulation". Good to know I guessed the day correctly.
My antral follicle count seems to be a little high according to any reference ranges I've found. My AFC was 33. But Dr. V. didn't seem concerned at all. I mean, we all know I have PCOS, so if my AFC results were a little high that wouldn't exactly be a surprise. I've felt my ovaries come to life since stopping bcps so I'm hoping that as my hormones settle out a bit that my AFC will come down just a little.
And one of my biggest questions was answered: CMV-. This was the result I was most interested in getting because it would determine the number of donors I could consider. In some ways I was a little disappointed because my donor options are really limited. My mom asked, "What? You wanted to be CMV+?" She's a lab technologist so it isn't like she doesn't know what it is. But yes, a + would mean I have more options to choose from. So, after I got the results I had to go into my list and delete a huge number of profiles. Luckily my current 1st choice is CMV-. I still want to give the European donors a fair chance so I'm going to get a few of those profiles so I at least have a backup.
On to next steps. I have to see Dr. G., a psychologist specializing in reproductive psychology at the clinic, to discuss the implications of using a donor. I have an appointment scheduled for November 1st. And I get to order the donor sperm. Dr. V. recommended 2 - 3 vials at once in case I'm interested in doing procedures in back-to-back months. Once I've seen Dr. G. my file will go back to Dr. V.'s nurses and then we'll be ready to roll.
