Day 236 - Ultrasound #2

Yawn. I'm such a Garfield. I wasn't meant for early mornings. A late night & an early morning appointment left me sleeping paranoid that I was going to miss my alarm & then the ultrasound. I woke up at 0430 thinking I'd overslept. I was surprisingly alert, but quickly came to my senses & went back to bed. When the alarm did finally go off at 0600, I certainly wasn't ready for it! I hit snooze until 0640 (yes, I did) & then rolled out of bed, rushing around. 


I left for the city just as the rain began to fall. It poured & spit & quit & then repeated itself on the way in. I managed to find a 2 hour free parking spot near the clinic. Oh the small things in life! I met with the Psychologist first. I'm thinking I shocked her out of her morning routine, as I was the first patient she saw. I think most of her patients are couples with emotional issues about infertility. Husband blames wife, wife blames husband, baggage from the past, etc, etc. In I waltz. Cancer. Husband from another country. No job. Living with Mom. Chemo on the horizon. And who said I didn't like to stir the pot??!! :o) We had a wonderful visit & she was very friendly & comforting. We talked a lot about Italy. Glad I'm not alone in my love of Italia!


Next up was a bit of blood work. I've been taking baby Aspirin to help thin my blood & it's definitely working. My arm looks like it never has before from the needle. Nice purple spot. (My injection sites are also looking a little 'funkier' than usual) 


I sat in the waiting room for awhile again & after it had been about a 1/2 hour, I thought I better check again. The receptionist said she'd check & see what was going on & I hadn't even sunk my butt into the chair when they called my name! Impressive! Apparently the ultrasound machine was giving them some hassles today.


I'm pleased to report that I have 9 follicles. Always dreaming of being an Overachiever, I was hoping for 12, but 9 is fine. I have no idea if they look good or not, but I guess we won't really know for a few more days. I am to return in 2 days time & take an additional shot in the evenings for the next 2 nights. 


The nurse came in to talk to me about my new prescription & it turns out her daughter just joined the Island Princess as a Dancer! How fun! I did my best to reassure Mom that her daughter would be fine & in good hands... She'll have the time of her life! It brings me great joy when I hear of young people venturing abroad at a young age to experience more of life than just university & marriage & mortgage & kids... I believe that travel is the best education money can buy. Don't get me wrong, I think it's fantastic to earn a degree & become educated in a field you love. But what if that field you love is in the south of France & full of lavender? :o) 


I picked up a Jugo Juice & a zebra print shower curtain & headed for home. I was planning on heading straight to bed, well, after a quick detour to see if the wigs were here. They weren't. But, I did get a lovely letter from a collection agency. Are you kidding me? I declared bankruptcy! I've been discharged! The cheeky sods at the Royal Bank have only NOW sent my 'account' to a collection agency. I didn't hear a peep from them while I was in bankruptcy... a friend reckons they are trying to double dip & get more from me! Good luck! I called the collection agency & the guy was pretty aggressive. When I told him to contact Meyers Norris Penny, he said it wasn't up to him to contact them & I 'better get used to a lot of phone calls'! Ha! I'll email MNP tomorrow... 


I was headed for bed & the phone rang twice. I just got nestled under the covers & it rang again. 10 minutes of sleep. Another ring. Argh! Okay, fine! I'll get up & deal with a few things. 


I never did make it back to bed before midnight. I worked on my Oncology notes & questions for Thursday's appointment, filled out a 9 page questionnaire for my Naturopath appointment tomorrow, completed my 3rd shot of the day and played with the dogs for a bit. I was supposed to edit Mom's day planner, but her computer was on vacation. 


My evening shot was a bit of a drama. I pulled out the supplies & the directions. As I'm reading, it says to administer the injection in your stomach. Nothing about the thighs. I'm not a belly shot kinda girl (just ask my photog friends for THAT story!), so I was pretty worried. I called the Health Link number & the gal on the other end couldn't really say. I called the Medicine/Herbal/Poison Control Centre. After being on hold for 10 minutes, I hung up. I was supposed to do the shot at 2000, it's now 2015. I call the IVF number & of course, they are closed. But their message says to call Foothills switchboard & have the Fertility Doctor paged, if it's an emergency. Well, I'm not really an emergency, but is there a nurse available? Nope. Next thing I know, Dr. Wong calls me back! He said I was fine to do the shot in my legs, as long as I get it in somehow! Phew! Good stuff! I apologize for troubling him & head to the loo to do the shot. If these shots were tequila, I'd be plastered by the end of the day!!! :o)


I'm not sure what I did this time, but again, I got a nice big lump at my injection site. I'm just not meant to give myself needles... Anyhow, it's done & dusted & only a few more days of these needles. Then it's back to the big one! Yikes!


I'm off to bed... Have a peaceful sleep...
Maria & Valentina
xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

My dog who hates to have her photo taken.

Playing shy

Tolerating a kiss or two...

Day 109 - CT Scan

Oh my. Is it really necessary to wake up this early? Really? Apparently it's time to change the batteries in my alarm clock. It sounded mighty ill this morning. Had I not been paranoid of over sleeping, I may have completely ignored the faint flickering of a beep!


Up & at 'er, I was out the door on time! Yes, ON TIME! Poor ol' Contemplate did not want to start this morning. I don't know what the temperature was, but it was 'Crunchy Car Seat' cold. Away we went. Luckily it wasn't foggy. Until I hit Priddis. What's that? Freezing fog? Great. Here comes Granny! I slowed down to about 80 km/h & I could feel the adrenaline pulsing through my body. I just don't enjoy winter driving! 


I decided to take the long way, rather than the back roads. At least I knew there would be a lot of traffic & help if I needed it. I don't have a cell phone, so if I'm in trouble, I sit & wait. Luckily I made it to High River only 20 minutes late. 


I wasn't allowed to eat 6 hours prior to the test & could only drink clear juices. Luckily there was a vending machine with some apple juice in the entrance to the hospital. I was planning on heading to Jenn's right after the test, so naturally I had Valentina with me. Since it was so cold out, I didn't feel I could leave her in the car. I packed her into her carrier with her little red jacket on & plopped my pink fuzzy blanket over her carrier. No one was any the wiser. She even shook a few times in the carrier, her ears & tail rattling the sides of the carrier, but nobody even glanced our way! Lucky! 


Blech. They made me drink this awful drink named Telebrix. Since they were scanning my abdomen, I needed to drink the contrast in order to make the scan look better. They really ought to consult a few folks with tastebuds before they approve these drugs. First, I'm a water snob. I don't drink chlorinated water, always bottled & mineral water. I don't care what you say about tap water being just as good. Hogwash. Do they monitor everyone's pipes? No. Does every town have the same chemical cocktail? No. Anyhow, this drink is mixed with chlorinated water. Gross. Then the drug itself has a nasty taste. The worst of it is, I have to sip, not gulp, this concoction for the next hour and a half! I think I gagged the last portion of the 1 litre bottle! Then the Nurse offered me more right before the scan! Can't I be the Designated Driver or Scanner or something?!? Enough already! 


I took Valentina out to the car right before the scan. Luckily it didn't take long. About 20 minutes in total from change time to out the door. And she was still in her coat & under the blanket. She climbed into my jacket as soon as I got in the car. She's a great heater!


Anyhow, back to the scan. It wasn't that bad. I have had one before. This time they injected the contrast dye a little slower, which was great. For whatever reason, it makes you feel like you just peed your pants. I am completely serious. You don't, but if feels all warm down there. This time the feeling came on a little slower, which was good! Secondly, the first time they did the test, they made me hold my breath & the contrast dye made my chest feel like it was going to explode. In fact, had they not said 'Breathe', I'm sure they would have scraped bits of me off the ceiling 2 seconds later! But this time, I told them I wouldn't hold my breath any longer than felt comfortable. When I started to exhale, the Doctor got cranky & sternly said, 'DON'T SWALLOW, DON'T BREATHE, DON'T MOVE'. I told him, 'Sorry, but it hurts.' They did one more scan & thankfully that one didn't hurt my chest at all. 


The Nurse that helped me was really nice. She has fun at her job, which makes it that much more enjoyable for the rest of us! They monitored me for 10 minutes to make sure I was okay. Apparently 1 in 25,000 people die from the contrast dye. It can cause serious allergic reactions. Luckily I beat the odds! 


Feeling extremely fatigued & the fog having not lifted, I decided not to visit Jenn :o( & made my way home. I was bummed to miss out on a visit with a friend I've hardly seen in the past ?? years, but I'm glad I went home. The roads were extremely icy & I could NOT stay awake behind the wheel. I barely made it home. I fell asleep 6x. I hit the rumble strips & the snow on the side of the road. I have never been so out of it. I was wide awake one second & the next my head was snapping up. I called the Diagnostics Department as soon as I got home to check the side effects, but they claim diarrhea is the only side effect. Needless to say, I called Jenn to tell her I would have to take a raincheck & headed back to bed. I slept until 1830!


I woke up when Mom got home, only to have her leave 20 minutes later. She had been riding all day & then headed off to her Toastmaster's meeting. I answered a few phone calls, made some dinner &, what's that? Yes, I cooked! I made some pasta with clams & spices... Mom makes it from time to time & I quite like it. Apparently Valentina loves pasta too. She went manic for the penne! 


Anyhow, I headed to bed shortly thereafter, but I couldn't sleep. I am so stinking itchy these days, it's crazy! I put stuff on it & it burns. I itch it & it burns. No matter how I lie in bed, it itches! I try & try to not touch it, but sometimes the itch is so intense I just can't take it! I will be very excited for the treatment to take away the itch!!!


Oh, I also heard from Jaco's Mom. Sadly there place was broken into on the weekend. They only took a TV & no one got hurt, but nonetheless, I can only imagine how scary it would feel to be woken up at 0400 to the alarms going off. It frustrates me that people get away with these petty crimes, let alone the serious crimes. I suggested a big ol' Rottweiler or Doberman to take care of would-be criminals, but she told me they just throw poisoned meat to the dogs & they die! How awful! Anyhow, if you come up with any great ideas to solve crime in SA, let me know! So far my best solution is to feed them the same birth control corn as they do the pigeons in San Marco's Square in Venice, Italy. Any other suggestions?? :o)


Sleep well, stay safe & here's a hug!
Maria & Valentina
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Finished that awful drink & my smuggled dog! I think she has her nose mashed up against the screen!

My friendly scanner!

Hoarfrost

Heavy Hoarfrost

Winter wonderland!