Ouch!

Wow, I never anticipated being in this much pain. They kept on telling me they really had to push to get to my left ovary so I would be feeling a lot of pain, they weren't kidding. I was anticipating going back to work today but instead I am laying on the couch. So, here is my egg retrieval experience for those of you that haven't had one yet and want to know what to expect.



I woke up yesterday morning already feeling pretty awful, I felt terribly bloated and was in some pain. We arrived at the clinic at about 8:40 a.m. and they called us back at exactly 9:00. They led us back to a room that looked just like a recovery room in a hospital. It had several beds and curtains. They led us to our area which happened to be number one. They gave me a gown, paper booties, and a hair thing and told me to strip down and put everything on and climb into bed. I got dressed in the hot sexy outfit and got into the stretcher which was not very comfortable. Then the anesthesiologist came in and introduced himself and started an IV of what he called Gatorade (like I haven't had enough of that stuff!) I met the nurses and the doctor who would be doing the procedure who was not my usual RE. About ten minutes before we were to begin the procedure they sent me to the bathroom to empty my bladder. Then I went back to my area where they came and got me and told me it was time to go to the OR. I gave Dh a tearful hug and a kiss and told him I loved him and followed the anesthesiologist into the OR which was actually the door almost directly across from my recovery area. The OR was really cold and there were about 3 other people in there. They had me sit on the table and I met the embryologist who verified my name and social. The anesthesiologist came over and put something in my IV which made me feel drunk. Then they told me to lay back and put my legs into the stirrups which were not like your standard RE stirrups that you put your feet into but they actually went underneath your knees. The last thing I remember is them strapping my right arm down and then I was out. I don't remember actually waking up, I just remember Dh already being there sitting next to me. Dh says that he had to keep me from falling back asleep because my eyes kept on rolling in the back of my head. The doctor came in and told me that the left side was very difficult and that they had to do a lot of pushing and that I could expect to be in some pain. I was only in a slight amount of pain at that point but within the next couple minutes I was in a lot of pain. I got some pain meds in my IV which only barely took the edge off of the pain. They said they could give me more but I didn't want to get sick so I said no. The doctor came back in and told us she got 16 eggs and also drained 4ccs of free fluid which could indicate pre-hyper stimulation and that we should watch for symptoms. Dh went down to the pharmacy to pick up my prescription for pain medication and came back up to get me and help me dress. My whole lower pelvis hurts and I am having some strange cramps in my upper stomach and my upper stomach is sore, almost like I did some crunches or something. I was definitely not expecting it to hurt this much. I actually think it hurts worse then when I had my gallbladder removed. Hopefully today's rest will help me feel better. I really admire those of you who have done this more than once! I had no idea how much this whole experience would affect my body.



So now I wait for the fertilization report. I have to admit I am nervous but optimistic because out of 16 eggs you would think some would fertilize right?