My period finally made it, albeit two days late. My cycles are like clockwork so I was very frustrated that this time it decided to be delayed. Oh well, onwards and upwards! I cut gluten out of my diet about a month ago and I can't help but wonder if that had an impact on my cycle pushing it from it's normal 26 days to 28. Whether or not it did, cutting it out has made a HUGE difference in the rest of my life. I was sick with "IBS" for 13 years (severe stomach issues.) During this time, I've had all kinds of tests, poking, prodding, procedures, prescription pills, - yet no doctor could ever figure it out. Finally, I read an article about how many people were misdiagnosed with IBS and other stomach ailments when they really had gluten intolerance or Celiacs disease. A lightbulb went off, and I decided to cut gluten out and see how I felt. I seriously cannot believe the difference! I was sick every single day, within 30 minutes of eating a meal I would have serious nausea and need to run to the bathroom (sorry TMI!) But as soon as gluten was gone, I'm normal. I literally sit in awe now at thinking how long I suffered needlessly when this was the answer all along. And the doctors couldn't figure it out and it was this easy. Good riddance, gluten - I feel a million times better without you!
And I'm not sure if I'll ever know, but I've been reading a lot lately about how autoimmune disorders can cause Diminished Ovarian Reserve. Celiacs disease is an autoimmune disorder, and it's wreaked havoc on everything else in my body so it would make sense if there was a link there for me too. What if this gluten business caused my DOR? Who knows? I'll always wonder, that's for sure.
Anyway, back to the cycle preparation. My meds got here and they are sitting in a pretty box in the kitchen. I started birth control pills last night and I will start Lupron injections in two weeks. Then at some point I will add in estradiol and I'm not really sure on the details on the rest. I will get my calendar after the beginning of the new year. I'm a little anxious about the Lupron because I felt like crap on the microdose Lupron (a diluted dose) so I can't even imagine how I will feel on the full dose. But I will do whatever it takes to have a successful FET! I scheduled my saline ultrasound for this Thursday. Fingers crossed that they don't find anything that needs to be removed.
My sister in law flies in from NYC today and I am so excited to see her. The house is decorated beautifully, I have elaborate holiday meals planned and the weather actually feels like Christmas. I feel so hopeful and positive this year as opposed to last. I wasn't sure if I'd ever feel this way again. I'm really afraid of dropping back into a depression if this doesn't work, but I'm trying to stay focused on the positive and tell myself that it will.
I decided to reactivate my Facebook account this morning after a long hiatus from it. I deactivated it because it got way too painful to see pregnancy announcements, children's milestones, baby photos, etc. I even had some friends complaining about their pregnancies publicly on FB and it just got to be too stressful and upsetting. Our close friends know about our difficult infertility journey, but I never talked publicly on Facebook. I have changed so much in the last two years and I think that "coming out" is going to be an important step for me. I want to be an advocate for embryo adoption because it's such a beautiful thing. I "liked" Embryo Adoption Awareness on Facebook for now and I bet a lot of my friends who don't know what we are going through are scratching their head right now. I guess thats me just dipping my feet in the "coming out" waters. :)
I have Celiac, and DOR. I'm thinking the two are likely related. But it's great to hear that going GF has helped you so much!! If you ever have any questions about GF eating, don't hesitate to ask. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm so very excited for you!! <3 I "came out" about our m/c, and I think it was very cathartic for me. *hugs* and good luck!
Wow, I didn't know you were celiac but I did know about the DOR! When and how were you diagnosed? I'm about a month into a GF lifestyle and it's been much easier than I thought especially knowing that the consequence for messing up is massive stomach upset. There are so many good options out there. I'd love to have your tips and pointers for sure. I hope you are having a wonderful Christmas. Email me if you like!
ReplyDeleteGodspeed! :)
ReplyDeleteI was diagnosed with a dairy allergy in December 2011... The doctor said it's a very good possibility that the allergy contributed to our IF (we're unexplained IF). We'll never know for sure either, but like you, we'll always wonder...
ReplyDeleteDH's cousin was diagnosed with celiac last year. After a 10 year struggle with infertility, she is now pregnant... I agree with you that there is probably a connection. I wish more fertility doctors would suggest allergy/food sensitivity testing when couples start treatment.
I'm also very public on FB about our journey now. I wasn't always public; when we started our journey, I was very private and only a few close friends knew. It wasn't until we moved onto EA that we went public. We had several reasons for doing this--one being that we didn't want our future children to be ashamed of how they came to be part of our family. We felt that if we continued to be private about infertility (and embryo adoption) there would be a sense of shame...
I appreciate you sharing your information about facebook. I feel exactly the same way. I don't want there to be any sense of shame around it which appears to come with secrecy. Yet at the same time, I don't want it to be the only thing that defines our child. I'm waiting on it a bit longer and thinking about it a little more. I'm afraid of our FET failing and people not understanding and making it worse with jokes or rude comments. You just never know how people can be. I'll figure out when the time is right, but I definitely will be coming "out" at some point. :) Thanks for the comment.
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