Inconceivable: Surviving IVF shots

So we recently started our journey into in-vitro fertilization and with that comes a ton of shots. We did do some shots - Gonal-F and Ovidrel trigger for IUI - but this IVF stuff is no joke. They break out the super drugs to make those follicles plump up and shoot out giant eggs.

My doctor put me on Menopur and Centrotide. I was worried about the cost because the clinic warned that they could be around $3,000. We were pleasantly surprised when our meds came to around $1,500. Because we are doing Invocell IVF, Menopur was discounted (yes!!) since the maker has a deal with the drug companies.

The Menopur injections required mixing one cc of saline solution with four vials of powder. Once again, the inventor of the Q-Cap is a genius. It made mixing the meds so much easier! While I did get the hang of the mixing, I never got used to the burning I had with every injection. I tried using ice to numb my stomach, but it never really helped.

When the doctor added in my Centrotide injection, I had no idea that the Menopur would end up being my "favorite" of the two. Centrotide is used to prevent you from ovulating too early. It also give those borderline follicles a chance to get larger and mature. The shots have to be done less than 24 hours before the last one. So if you take it at 10 a.m. today, tomorrow it has to be taken at like 9:30 a.m. Every day you back up a bit.

My doctor warned that Centrotide can cause itchiness after it is injected. She was right! I did these injections and then immediately had to ice the spot to reduce the itchiness and swelling.

I also had another problem with the Centrotide - the needle to mix the solution was huge and I had a problem removing the cap. Every time I pulled the cap off, I would slice my fingers with the needle causing a bloody mess. Once I even hit a vein under the skin of my middle finger leaving a nasty bruise under the skin.

​Every day on these shots I felt a little more bloated.

I felt like a chicken, walking around with all these eggs growing inside of me. That's probably why chickens walk the way they do, because I found myself walking pretty funny by egg retrieval day.  I also felt really, really full - like I had just eaten an entire Thanksgiving dinner full.

I did Menopur for about six days before they added in Centrotide. I did shots for about 11 or 12 days total before I was ready for my trigger shot! But that wasn't as easy as I thought.

While ultrasounds showed good results, my blood work was showing high levels of estrogen, indicating a possible risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS). My doctor had me order an emergency Lupron trigger shot to use instead of the HCG one I already had. Lupron triggers are used when you are at risk for OHSS. Lupron triggers can eliminated the OHSS issue, but also mean that you can't have a fresh embryo transfer once the eggs are incubated. All eggs are frozen and then thawed out when transfer is arranged.

The Lupron trigger had to be compounded and shipped from a pharmacy in New Jersey, so it took a few phone calls to get it all squared away and sent to us. It also has a short shelf life so it's not like I can keep it for the future. It ended up costing around $150 for this shot that we might never use, but I'm glad we had it just in case.

The idea of not doing a fresh embryo transfer disappointed me. I wanted to get these eggs retrieved, fertilized, incubated and then transferred. I wanted to be pregnant now! I had waited long enough and I was not happy about the idea of things being pushed back. I put my faith in God and my trust in the doctors.

My doctor let me go one extra day on Menopur and Centrotide and then checked my blood work. Things leveled off and she approved me for an HCG trigger shot - a fresh transfer was still on track. I just had to get through the egg retrieval.

Kathy is a mom of one and Out & About editor for WRAL.com. She writes for Go Ask Mom about her experience with secondary infertility.