Ladies and gentlemen I am officially done with my first week of STIMS! Moving and grooving, stay busy while also giving my body grace has got me through this week. Also, a lot of praying and love from my husband. Make sure you’re carving time to rest and be kind to your body. Saying ‘no’ to anything that doesn’t serve your peace of mind— IVF is grueling in the mental aspect. Be kind, have faith, you got this! I curated a list of my IVF start essential, check it out by clicking here.

Recap of the last 7 days of my joyous STIMS shot cycle 1:

Let’s go over a quick recap of what happened in these last 7 days of my STIMS cycle:

-- 17 shots administered by my husband into my tummy
-- 3 ultrasounds to monitor & check my ovaries
-- 3 blood tests to check my hormone levels
-- 14k in spent for this process thus far

My fertility Doc, Dr. Erb has given me all good news in the ultra sounds so far.. thank you Jesus! Personally, this news was a MAJOR relief, I was worried there would be more complications from my double D&C uterus infection back in 2020. More specifically, I was afraid there was going to be a big tear in my uterine lining or some other unusual misfortune. Luckily, the uterine lining looks great and she has already found 12 follicles in my ovaries! Praying for a good, full retrieval as you may or may not know about 50% of your eggs end up being abnormal, by permitting the genetic testing, your fertility team can chose to fertilize only the normal embryos. This is key!

Why shouldn’t you use an abnormal embryo for fertilization?

After reading “it starts with the egg” and discussing this very topic with my Dr.— the abnormal eggs more often than not end up in miscarriage. By removing the abnormal eggs from being fertilized in your IVF Cycle you increase your pregnancy chance by 60%! I highly recommend getting the genetic testing even though it is pricey (7k ish) it’s totally worth every dime! Picture this, even if you only have a handful of good eggs, you want to make sure you are using ONLY the normal embryos to increase your chances of a positive IVF pregnancy. Miscarriage does not last 1 day, mentally IVF is challenging enough— peace of mind has been my biggest advocacy through this process so far. Mind & Body baby. To stay as calm and collected as possible while putting my body through the most medication and stress it has ever been through.

things that made me feel happy and calm during my first week of STIMS

• Warm Broths (sip on as drink or meal): During your IVF journey, nurturing your body with warm broths can offer more than just comfort – it can provide essential nourishment. Warm broths are rich in nutrients and easily digestible, which can support your overall health and well-being. The soothing warmth of broths can help to balance hormones, boost immune function, and promote relaxation, creating an optimal environment for conception. Sip on these nourishing elixirs to not only warm your body but also to warm your soul as you embark on this important chapter of your life.
• Fuzzy slippers and big comfy sweaters: staying super comfy and calm literally was the name of my game, bundled up reading, blogging, netflixing, cuddling with my golden… you name it. Allowing my body to feel all the hormones and produce these eggs is a job in itself. Allowing myself to get cozy and relax I truly believe is what is helping with all the positive results from our ultrasounds. 
• BPA free ice packs: before your Menopur shot which is unpleasant AF… ice your tummy. It helped me majorly! Also pinch the skin outwards while giving the shot. These two tips were given to me and they were game changers to get me through this week! Also: switching left side, to right side for the shot area daily. Why BPA free? High levels of BPA increase the risk of miscarriage.
• Morning supplements: Dietary supplements as recommended from “it starts with the egg” a 200mg CoQ10 supplement which enhances energy production inside developing eggs and possibly can prevent chromosomal errors. 200mg preferably taken with breakfast. A daily prenatal that includes methylfolate or natural food folate as soon as possible. linking the exact brands I used if you would like to do your research and order them as well! Its recommended to start this daily dose of vitamins 3 months prior to egg retrieval- but taking them before your egg retrieval, even if just for two week is better than nothing! (These are supplements for a ‘basic plan’ since my fallopian tubes are blocked with scar tissue) There are more advanced supplement plans available in the book “it starts with the egg” for those having other issues getting pregnant ie: multiple miscarriages, polycystic ovary syndrome, irregular ovulation, endometriosis etc. 
• Morning Green Juice: 3 x a week I made and gulped down my anti inflammatory green juice for all the health benefits and a jolt of energy! Also being pumped with all these hormones I can’t imagine is great for your skin so to help with this— a green juice a day, keeps the acne away!
• IVF Mindfulness Journal: 12 week fertility planning, IVF tips, stress management tools and practices. This little gem helped me tap into my emotions, keep me accountable for logging/ drinking daily water intake per fertility recommendations and gave me a full break down of IVF Acronyms to use in my facebook groups. This is the holy grail of IVF Journals/ the perfect gift for a loved one embarking on IVF!
• Medicine Organizer: You receive a lot of medicines but only use a few the first week.. however, with all the different sized syringes, alcohol wipes, bandaides and personal touches this 3 tier kit made taking shots organized and pleasing to look at. Anything to bring a peace of mind.. again I am all for it! 

Tips to reduce the levels of BPA while trying to conceive

--Replace any plastic kitchenware that comes into contact with hot food or drinks
Use stainless steel water bottles
--Minimize canned and highly processed foods
--Prepare more meals at home, using whole, natural ingredients
--Washing your hands when you return home after handling paper receipts— avoid handling receipts touching them directly after their printed is worse than drinking out of the same plastic water bottle for a whole year!

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