Based on our last conversation with Dr. Brabec, we knew going into the retrieval that I didn't have very many eggs. Her expectation was that we would end up with 4 or 5 eggs. Obviously when you are going through the IVF process, you want to end up with as many eggs as possible. The ultimate goal is that you end up with lots of healthy eggs, some of which you can freeze and use in the future if the first transfer isn't successful.
Although we didn't expect our egg count to be very high, we relied on the fact that it only takes one egg to make a baby. I kept repeating this thought in my head on the morning of the egg retrieval and I was managing to stay pretty positive.
We woke up early, got ready and headed to the hospital. Our fertility clinic is actually attached to a hospital, so we knew where we were going. Once we arrived and got all checked in, we headed to the fertility clinic's surgery center. Adam waited in the waiting room with me until they called my name. Then I was on my own. Adam had the important task of going to the fertility clinic and providing some sperm. It was a bit nerve-raking to be on my own, but all the nurses were the sweetest, kindest, warmest people. So I knew I was in very good hands.
Once I was called back, I got into my gown and a nurse got to work getting my iv put in. It was freezing cold in there and my veins weren't cooperating at first, so they put this heater thing in my gown and had me put my arms inside my gown so I could warm up the veins on my arms. Eventually I got warmed up and she was able to locate a vein. It only took her one stick, which I was very thankful for. They started me on some saline, which helped make me less thirsty. I hadn't been allowed to eat or drink anything since the previous evening. Several different nurses, the anesthesiologist and the doctor doing the retrieval all stopped by. Due to a scheduling conflict, Dr. Brabec wouldn't be able to do the retrieval. Dr. Phipps ended up doing the retrieval. He was a man of few words, and kind of stood off to the side of things during all the preparation. I remember trying to figure out if he had steady hands when he shook mine since he looked a little on the old side. It turns out he did a wonderful job and I didn't need to worry at all.
Several different people asked me to tell them why I was there, which I guess is just protocol. I remember trying to be very pleasant and polite, but all I really wanted to do was cry. I was getting nervous!
Eventually I was wheeled back to the room where they would do the retrieval. I moved onto the operating table and they got me all situated. They wrapped my top half up like a burrito and took off my glasses. The anesthesiologist said she was going to inject the medicine to put me to sleep and that I might feel a warming sensation and then....
...I woke up in another room with a male nurse typing on a computer in front of me. I had my glasses back on. It seemed as if only a second had passed. I asked the nurse if he knew how many eggs they were able to retrieve and he said 5. Which was great news!! There was a chance that there would be fewer or possibly even no eggs, so I was very happy to hear we had 5!
The nurse asked me how I was feeling and if I had any pain. I said I was okay and only felt a little bit of cramping. He asked if I wanted anything for the pain and I said no. After laying there for a few minutes, I got my wits about me. I realized my eggs were no longer in me, so I could have some pain medication if I wanted. I wouldn't have to worry about how it was affecting my eggs, so I said that I would take some pain medication after all. The nurse injected in some medicine into my iv and in just a couple minutes the cramping stopped.
From there I was moved to another area called recovery. The new nurse with me was actually one of the nurses from when I had my polypectomy. For some reason it made me feel better to see her familiar face. Adam came back a few minutes later and I was very happy to see him. I made sure to tell him that Dr. Phipps had retrieved 5 eggs! After a few more minutes, the nurse asked if I was feeling like I was ready to get dressed. I was, so she took out my iv and I got dressed.
I wasn't in any pain, but was still a little groggy. From there, a hospital volunteer wheeled me out to the front doors while Adam brought the car around. On the ride home, I remember feeling relieved that the retrieval was over. I felt like the scariest, most invasive parts of the IVF process were over.
Now we just had lots of waiting and hoping to do. We would hear from Rodney the embryologist the next morning. He would let us know how many of the eggs fertilized.
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