Embryo Transfer Day

Well, it finally arrived - the day we find out how our embryos are doing and (hopefully) have them put back where they belong.  I was up very early again this morning, which was annoying as it meant a long wait until it was time to go to the hospital.  I eventually woke hubby up too, and before long it was time to head off for our appointment at 10.50am.

When we arrived there wasn't anyone around except another couple in the waiting room, but we only sat for five minutes before the nurse shouted us through to the recovery room to get ready for theatre.  I only had to do a partial strip today (bottoms, obviously) and because hubby was coming into theatre with me he had to gown up too - and I even managed to sneak a pictured of him!! lol  Then it was the short walk to the theatre, and I saw the same girl who was in for collection at the same time as me and we said hi.  I was pleased to see her as it meant things must have been good for her too.

Hubby all gowned up and ready to go!

Once we were in theatre hubby was shown where to sit at the top of the bed, and I had to confirm my name and date of birth for the doctor and the embryologist.  The doctor also asked how many embryos we wanted to have transferred, and I told her wanted to put two back.  The nurse then helped me onto the bed and told me to stay sitting just now (slightly more dignified!) and the doctor would come and speak to me about how things were looking with the embryos.  A couple of minutes later, after realising the nurse was born and brought up in the village where I live, the doctor came over (it was a different doctor to the one who did the collection) and told us that all 8 embryos had done well and were looking great.  We were having two top grade 8/8 embryos transferred today, and we had 4 top grade 8/8 and two 7/8 embryos to freeze.  I couldn't have been more over the moon when she said that as I'd been worried about getting any embryos at all and here we were with 8 almost perfect ones!!!

After I got positioned on the bed, the doctor started to get ready for the transfer by checking which size catheter she'd need to use before she got the embryos put in it.  Turned out the first one was fine and I even saw it on the ultrasound scan the nurse was doing on my tummy to enable to doctor to position them right.  She then went over to the hatch where the embryologist was and he passed our embryos to her in the catheter and she came back over to me.  They were really good at explaining things to us, and turned the screen so we could see everything that was happening as they were doing it.  She threaded the catheter into my uterus and showed us where she was aiming to get them (right at the top on the right side) and when it was in position she told us that we might see a flash as the embryos and the fluid they were in was put into my uterus, but that there isn't always one so not to worry if we didn't see it.

She then told us she was about to release them - and we saw the flash!!!!  One of the nurses in the room was really funny and shouted "woo hoo - I love it when we get fireworks!!"  at which point I burst into tears!!!  I'd been trying really hard to hold myself together during the whole procedure, and I think seeing what could turn into our baby(ies) being put back where they belong tipped me over the edge.  I managed to say thank you to the doctor and the embryologist before the nurse took me out to the toilet, but then I was gone again and was hanging onto hubby sobbing while the nurse told me I should be happy because I'd done so well.  I was so happy I couldn't believe it, that was why I was crying!!!

After I nipped to the ladies (what a relief after having to have a full bladder!!) I went in to get dressed and the nurse came in with another consent for us to sign (have no idea what it was for as I wasn't able to focus to read it!) and to give me the meds and instructions of what happens next.  I have progesterone pessaries to use twice a day until the official test date, then we go back to the hospital for a blood test to find out if I'm pregnant.

So that's it, I am now pregnant until proven otherwise and there isn't anything more we can do but hope those gorgeous little embryos hang on in there and become the baby(ies) we so desperately want.

S x