Plenty of Eggs!

I passed the ovarian reserve test with flying colors. Yay! Most clinics say anything under 10 is good, and most clinics won't consider doing ivf if it's 20 or higher. The grey area is between 10-20 in terms of where the cut off is. Some for example won't do ivf if you are above 13. When you hit menopause your level is usually 20-30. When I was tested 5 years ago my level was 5.2. Yesterday it was 6.5. It makes sense that it's gone up a little as I have fewer eggs now than I did when I was 31. The lowest possible level is a 3. However anything under 10 means you should be easy to stimulate, and that has certainly always been true for me in the past whether I was on Clomid or injections. I have leaned strongly towards overstimulation rather than being a "poor responder." Some clinics go so far as to break down the ideal levels. I saw one that said <6 was excellent (which I was in 2004), 6-8 is good (that's where I'm at now), 9 is fair, and 10-13 is diminished reserve. I'll take "good" considering I turn 37 next month. :-) I wasn't really worried. I wanted to skip this fsh testing as I was certain my number would be acceptable, but they insisted I be tested before going on to ivf. It's not a big deal except I could have just had one AF prior to starting stimming whereas now I have to have another AF prior to starting stimming on April 17.

The other level they tested yesterday was Estradiol (E2). The range at this stage in the cycle is 25-75. The lower you are the more easily you will be to stimulate. I came in at 31.4 which is definitely at the lower end of that spectrum. The next time my E2 is tested (April 16), I predict it will be under 25. The whole point of the bcp + Lupron shots is to supress your body (put it in sort of a temporary menopause). Mine was 8.8 at the start of the FET and 22.9 at the start of the fresh ivf cycle in 2007.

I've been more sensitive to age comments lately in light of ttc now. A couple of weeks ago at choir someone said I didn't look like I was 40 years old. They said that because my number in choir (for music) is 40, and I said "I'm 40." I was glad to hear I don't look 40 although I doubt I'll look vastly different in 3 years than I do now, LOL. Then on the other hand on a recent trip to the grocery store a woman was talking to me about her grandbabies (in light of seeing Nadia), and she said to me that her son was SO old to have children so young. She said he was 40 years old and had a 1 year old and 3 year old as he didn't get married until he was 37. She joked that he's going to be in the nursing home before his kids graduate from high school. I didn't know what to say because if this ivf works then on my 40th bday I'll have a 2 year old and almost 4 year old. Last night at choir rehearsal there was a 7 week old baby boy (his parents both sing in the choir). I wanted to hold that sweet little baby so badly! Seeing that little one again made me realize how badly I want another baby. Of course you don't pay $8,200 for ivf unless you really want another baby, LOL. Even though I am very glad to be getting more sleep than his parents are getting right now, I do miss the wonderful feeling of holding such a tiny baby in my arms. I hope and pray I am very sleep deprived in 2010. :-)