So, this morning bright and early I checked into the hospital for my HSG test. We went to the radiology wing and gave all our info. We only waited like 5 minutes, and the nurse (her name was Breezy by the way, and she was really cool) escorted me back to the xray room. She gave me a hospital gown and a robe to wear (the robe was a nice addition, I'm gonna ask for one when I'm in L&D) because I was completely covered up for a change! So, they had me lay on the x-ray table and they took an initial x-ray to see what shape my uterus was. After they did that, they scooted me all the way to the edge of the table and began the procedure.
First used the speculum to open the pathway the catheter would go through (just like a pap smear) then he swabbed my cervix with what looked like iodine to cleanse the area, then he filled a syringe with this yellowish-goo and then attached the syringe to a 12" metal looking tube and inserted it into my cervix. Now when I researched the procedure, everything I read said they used a balloon to hold the cervix open, but this thing had two little spikes that poke into the cervix to hold it open. As soon as he put it in it hurt. Immediately the cramping started, and then as soon as he injected the dye (the yellowish-goo) I was INTENSE pain!! My hubby held my hand and I'm sure his fingers hurt by the end of it. I tried so hard to breath through the pain, but it was very hard to do. I equate it with being in labor. It only took 5 minutes tops, but it felt like much longer.
So, the dye went in and they photgraphed it as they went. As soon as the procedure was done, he quickly removed the catheter and I was done. He let me sit up and pulled the monitor around so I could see the results. As soon as I sat up I felt like I was going to throw up, don't know if it was the pain, the laying down, or the cramping, but it was not a great feeling.
Anyways, on to the results. First thing he told me was that there was scar tissue on my cervix. He says it's probably from my son's birth, or from my D&C 8 months ago. He doesn't think that has anything to do with my reproductive health, it was just something he noticed. Another thing he said was I had a "severely tilted uterus" which means it tilts back more that it should, but again, it can make it a little bit tougher to conceive, it's not an issue, and there's really nothing they can do for it. Other than that, there are no fibroids or polyps in my uterus, my tubes are open and very clear, no scar tissue other than on the cervix (that means my D&C was done right!) so everything looked as it should! It's good to know that nothing is wrong in there. Below is an example of what I saw, This is NOT my scan, but one I found on google, that had the same results as me.
I cramped really badly for about an hour or two after the procedure and have a little bleeding, but it should be done by the end of today. The doc said he was concerned about my cervix if I keep bleeding, since those two spikes might have torn it, and therefore I would need stitches. I hope not!
But anywho...now I'm just waiting to do my retests for my blood work. Then it's on the the next phase. My doctor even suggested clomid already, but I don't know if we're ready for that yet. I'm more worried about finding out how to STAY pregnant.
Well, I've scheduled my HSG test for Thursday morning. I'm a little anxious about it, not in a good anxious though. Also asked the nurse at my Dr.'s office about my bloodwork and she said my Dr. was gonna look at it today and that she'd call me back. So, hopefully we'll hear back on that today.
Had a talk with the hubby last night about TTC and how sick and tired I am of it. I think this cycle we are going to take a break, and what I mean by that is, a break from charting, and counting cycle days and stuff. We are still gonna try to make one, but we are hoping that without the stress of TTC it will help. I plan on keeping my distance from the What to Expect message boards because those tend to make me a little stir crazy as well.
I also start school this month and from the looks of my textbook it is going to be a TON of information in a short amount of time, so hopefully I won't have time to concentrate on when I am ovulating. So, with this cycle, here is what we ARE going to do though:
1. I will continue to take my prenatal vitamins, extra folic acid.
2. Use preseed
3. DH will be taking extra vitamin C
4. Remedy anything they might find in my bloodwork/HSG test.
I will NOT:
1. Test till AF is due. That drove me insane this month. I am ridding my house of all pregnancy tests before the time comes to test.
2. Chart my temps
3. Check my CM
4. Look at a calender to see what CD I am on.
Hopefully, this non-plan-of-attack will catch the eggy by surprise!! LOL
So I went and saw my new OBGYN today. I'd heard great things about him, and that he also has a special interest in fertility. I've wanted to see him for a while, but we just got insurance that he accepts, so I made an appointment as soon as I could! Today was my appointment and I went over my medical history with him, and we lingered on the topic of pregnancy and my 4 miscarriages and he was very surprised that I still had not had any tests done to see what is going on. I told him that my doctor basically would tell me to try to get pregnant and then they would see how my body handled it and he was not thrilled about that.
So he explained to me that new findings show that a 20% of repeat miscarriages are caused by clotting disorders like thrombophilia. Basically a clot forms in the placenta and eventually destroys the pregnancy. He said that since I had a 2nd trimester miscarriage it made it even more likely that this could be a problem for me. So they drew 8 vials of blood today and sent them off to the lab to be tested. If it does happen that I do have a blood clotting disorder, when I do get pregnant I get to take 2 shots a day of a medicine called heparin throughout the entire pregnancy and through postpartum recovery. Not looking forward to that, but if it gets me a baby I'm all for it. And this made me wonder, since I had my son and the only "complication" was mild preeclampsia onset at the end of my pregnancy, why wasn't this possible disorder a problem? He told me that it can not only be genetic, but acquired at later points in life, so I could have acquired it after my son was born, but that gives no explanation to my 2 miscarriages before him. Anyways, we'll know in about 3-5 days the results.
He also told me if I am not pregnant now, than once I start my cycle again to call and schedule an HSG test (Hysterosalpingogram) which is where they inject dye into my uterus and it flows up the fallopian tubes and then they take an x-ray of it. They look for misshapen uterus, blocked tubes, or anything in the uterus like a fibroid, polyp, or scarring that prevents the embryo from properly implanting. He said sometimes the dye that is injected can clear out any blockages in the tubes, remove scar tissue, and basically aid in the process of getting pregnant. I heard it is a little painful and uncomfortable, but the results are usually pretty good- conception wise.
If all those come back normal we'll do a semen analysis, and then he suggests genetic testing to make sure neither of us have any genetic defects that are causing repeat miscarraiges.
Well, HOPEFULLY I am pregnant now, and these things will not be necessary. Well, except for the blood clotting thing, because if they came back positive I'd get on those shots right away.
I am very relieved, even excited at the chance to get some answers. Who knows, they all might come back normal and there's nothing wrong with me, but atleast this will remove any doubt! I am due to test a week from tomorrow and I am going to try with all my might to resist the urge to pee on a stick until then. We shall see! Wish me luck folks!
