Crinone - My New Best Friend...

So my big cardboard box of drugs arrived today. The first time I experienced this, I opened the box and was so overwhelmed by the array of needles, syringes and little glass vials that I just wanted to cry.  This time it was just a matter of going through the checklist to make sure that it was all there.  It really is amazing how much less scary that big box was since I have dealt with it all before.  And in fact, I actually think mixing my own "drug cocktail" is kind of fun, even though it is a little tricky to do correctly.  But the really, really big news about this box of drugs is that it contained CRINONE, instead of injectable progesterone-in-oil (or the spawn of the devil, you choose...)  And Crinone is going to be my new best friend!  Let me explain why:  when a woman releases an egg  from her ovary naturally, the lining of the follicle where the egg was (called the corpus luteum) begins to produce progesterone.  That progesterone acts as a chemical signal to the body saying, "Hey! Possible chance for a pregnancy here...don't have a period!" And as long as enough progesterone is being produced, the sloughing off of the uterine lining (or a period) will not take place.  And if an embryo manages to implant, the placenta takes over producing the progesterone.   So this progesterone is very, very important!  But in IVF cases, the process of egg retrieval also removes the corpus luteum, so no progesterone is being produced.  As a result, it MUST be   manually introduced into the picture.  And in the past, the only reliable source for doing this was daily intramuscular progesterone-in-oil (PIO) shots.  But let me just tell you, those injections may be reliable, but they are just plain awful!!!  The oil is very thick, and actually difficult to inject. (Although I learned at the very end that warming the vial up in hot water in the sink first to make the oil "thinner" really helped!)  Then because the long needles are going into muscle, and a shot must be given everyday, my whole body got so achy and sore.  It felt like how I feel after the first day of a new snowboarding season -- where it hurts to move at all and I just want to  lie in a warm bath all day -- only it never goes away. So for THREE SOLID MONTHS I am pretty darn miserable.  But now enter CRINONE!!!  Crinone is a vaginal gel that delivers the progesterone right where it is needed.  And in tests it has been proven to be every bit as effective as the PIO shots.  So my doctor has officially switched to Crinone!  (Apparently a lot of whitish discharge must be dealt with, but I will gladly stock up on pantyliners rather than deal with the PIO shots...)  When I found this out I was so happy I almost cried.  The news that the absolute worst part of the whole entire process was just gone did wonders to improve my attitude about the whole thing. :)  (And for any of you doing an IVF cycle, ask your doctor if you can use Crinone instead.  And if not, the PIO shots are awful, but hang in there....the end result is so worth it!)

My box of Meds and Supplies

This is the main "stimulation" drug.  Each little vial costs $49.75!  And on some days I will inject five or six vials at once...