Wheeee! I'm Writing My Own Content Instead of Providing Links!

I continue to be displeased by Dr. Ego and his clinic. Since Dr. Owlish left the practice, there has been a huge turnover among all the support staff as well (nurses, ultrasound techs, receptionists). Now, not only do I dislike my doctor, I also sense a general air of incompetence at the whole clinic.

A week ago Thursday, I showed up for day 3 blood tests and ultrasound. I had asked for an early appointment, because I teach at a homeschool co-op on Thursday mornings now. However, what normally takes 15-20 minutes took over an hour that day. First, I had to wait a while to be seen. Then, the nurse didn't have my charts and didn't know what to do. When she figured it out and started to prep my arm to have blood drawn, I asked if they were running all the extra panels Dr. Ego had suggested (Factor V Leiden, MTHFR, various antibody checks). Blank look. Eventually, I had to give them my copy of Dr. Ego's notes (which thankfully I still had in my purse) so that they knew what to do. After the nurse painstakingly coded all 5 vials of my blood, I waited again for an ultrasound. Finally, I was free to leave - at exactly the time I should have been starting my first co-op class.

That circus of an appointment cleared me to do the Clomid challenge test (a test to determine appropriate medication dosages for IVF). After five days on a high dose of Clomid (who knows what that has done to me, since I come close to overstimming on the lowest dose of Clomid!), I revisited the clinic for bloodwork. As I settled into the chair and rolled up my sleeve, the nurse (different than the previous one) said, "I have to draw about 6 vials today; do you want to lay down?" I asked what tests were being run. "Factor V Leiden, MTHFR, various antibody screening panels." I told her those had been drawn the previous week. She went back to check my charts and then returned to say there were no records of those tests being done. So it was all done again. Hmph. (I don't have results yet.)

Now I'm supposed to have a e-tegrity test done at the end of this cycle, to examine the enzymes in my endometrial lining. This test is not covered by insurance, so Aaron and I have been debating whether we want it done or not. However, it may be a moot point, because a precondition of the test is that I use OPKs (ovulation predictor kit) and call when the line darkens to indicate my LH surge. I've been testing every morning for the past four days, and the line is getting fainter, not darker. I tend to ovulate early (day 11-13), so I'm guessing the high dose of Clomid caused me to ovulate even earlier. I'll call the clinic later today and see what they want to do if that's the case.

In the meantime, I finally called another doctor yesterday. I had gotten a recommendation from a friend, but I haven't had the time or inclination to go through the hassle of setting up an appointment and getting a new referral. However, when I called this potential new doctor and my insurance company, I found out that my referral is global, not tied to a specific specialist. So I can see any RE I want (in the network) without having a re-issued referral. I can't believe how easy it is! My consultation is set for Oct. 20; I'll find out then if this other doctor will work with our preferences about IVF or not. Please pray that he will!

national what day?

Carolyn McCulley has a fun post up today.

(She's also written some thoughtful posts recently on politics and the economy.)

Fertile People Are Talking about Us Everywhere!

If you're not already following along, Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer has been running a series called, "What I'd Like For You To Know;" as Shannon says, "the idea behind this series is to allow women to share something about a specific life challenge or circumstance, addressing some of the misconceptions and (most importantly) telling us all how we can reach out better."

This week's edition of the series is about infertility, written by a woman who has experienced primary and secondary infertility as well as pregnancy loss.

A Mother of None on a Mother of Six on a Mother of Five

As an infertile, married woman who works outside the home, I've struggled off and on over the past few years with feeling like a second-class citizen of the church. It's not that the church intentionally belittles me and my position; far from it. But in the rush to uplift the crowd of stay-at-home moms with small children, sometimes those in other seasons of life get unintentionally trampled. In the effort to counteract cultural criticism of stay-at-home moms, the church at large uses superlative language to praise stay-at-home moms that inadvertently leaves those Christian women who aren't in that season, for whatever reason, feeling like they don't measure up, don't matter as much. I know that moms staying home with young children do hard work and need encouragement. I know that the church has a responsibility to minister to that significant population within their bodies. But single women, barren women, elderly women, working women - they all need encouragement, too. So I was very refreshed, a little over a week ago, to read the words of a stay-at-home mother of six on this very topic. She of Amy's Humble Musings has written an insightful post on the issue of a woman's highest calling (it's a response to the selection of Sarah Palin as vice president on the Republican ticket, but it's not a political post). I'd encourage you to read the whole thing, but here's an excerpt:

I am a wife and mother. It is what God has called me to do. However, this is not true for all women. All women should NOT aspire to be a wife and mother. Instead, all women should aspire to present their bodies a living sacrifice to the Lord. God is glorified in us when we are satisfied with His will for our lives. This is why some marry, some stay single, some have children, and some are barren. Glorify God in your present circumstance, the one you are in right now, not in a future marriage that may or may not happen.

Any other gospel that makes the widow, the abandoned, the orphan, the poor, the single, or the barren unable to attain high favor (or a high calling with God, if you will) because of their circumstance is really no good news at all. The Lord is honored by our love and obedience to His Word, not in our ambition to serve in the “highest calling” as a wife and mother one day [emphasis added].

When Short on Time, Link

Many bloggers have reflected today on the events of seven years ago. I really appreciated this post from GirlTalk (excerpting an article by CJ Mahaney).

I'm Ready for a Dietary Change. The Bread of Anxious Toil Tastes Stale.

Since I last blogged, I've been baffling plumbers, buying a car, and burdened by busyness. I've been battling anxiety (mostly failing). I'm behind on everything.

But, God provided some space to breathe over the past couple of days. Perhaps soon I can return to regular blogging.

Thanks for bearing with me.