Treatments

So it’s been a while since I’ve been able to post since DH and I are sharing a computer and he’s been busy studying for a big board exam.  I do have an iPad but I prefer not to type much on it.

Currently, I’m in the process of working with both Dr. Check and Dr. Braverman. Dr Check, the FSH guru, has me on an estinyl estradiol protocol which so far has lowered my fsh from 53 (GASP- I know) to 39 (still very high) to we’ll find out tomorrow the new results.  Hopefully I’m somewhere in the mid 20s and then the next week in the single digits.  The idea behind the estinyl is that it will lower my fsh while not showing up on labs.  Thus, in theory it will give my little ovaries and the remaining follicles inside a break, in hopes that their FSH receptors will pop back out, and they’ll actually grow large enough to be seen on an ultrasound and ultimately to be fertilized.  Let’s continue to hope and pray that all goes as planned 🙂

Dr Braverman (Dr. B) is treating me for immune issues.  Under his care, I had a laparoscopy through a NY surgeon and had stage 2 endometriosis removed.  No one ever even suggested that I had endometriosis so it’s crazy that I did!  Dr. B is brilliant like that!  I also have hashimoto’s thyroiditis which means that my body has developed antibodies that attack my thyroid- great 😐  I got my endocrinologist to switch me to Naturethroid which is a natural desiccated thyroid (NDT) hormone instead of the synthetic Levoxyl I’ve taken for the last 10 years. Dr B also has me taking a slew of supplements that are supposed to be good for inflammation from the endo which include Fish Oil, Pycnogenol, Melatonin, Resveratrol, Mitochondrial Optimizer, Calcium, VSL #3, and Vitamin D.  If I take the correct dosage that would be about 16 pills plus my thyroid and estinyl for a total of 18 pills.  I NEVER get all 18 down, even on the days I actually DO take my supplements (which is about 50% of the time).  Dr. B also had me on estradiol for however long it takes me to produce a follicle (which could be months).  I have switched to Dr. Check to switch from estradiol to estinyl as I believe the estinyl will lower my FSH more and not show up in my labs.  So I get weekly labs to check my FSH and estrogen with the hopes that my FSH continues to lower and at some point my estrogen rises.  When I see my estrogen rising that hopefully means that I’ve got a follicle!! Won’t that be a happy day!

Unfortunately, DH says we cannot afford IVF at this time so when that golden follicle arrives, it’s going to have to be (prayerfully) fertilized the old fashioned way! Most of us got here through the old fashioned way so it should work 😉  Besides, DH is perfect in every male way so there shouldn’t be any issues there. Also, Dr B has a host of meds as well so hopefully those will take care of any other issues…

Background

I am a 29 year old female who was diagnosed with POF at the tender age of 20.  Talk about the shock of your life… I was a junior in college and was going through a bout of depression so I considered my sporadic menses to be both a “blessing” and due to the depression.  I happened to mention to my counselor at the time that I was only having periods every 3 months and she strongly encouraged me to see a doctor.  So I did. I’ll never forget the moment that she came into the patient room at her office with a total look of shock on her face as she told me that my labs stated that I was in menopause (I guess I was the first patient she’d encountered with this). Well, this was a “major” midwest capital city but I wanted to hear from the experts, she was shocked after all- maybe someone had made a mistake!  So I went to the Penn Fertility Center since I was spending my summer in Philly and yup, the diagnosis was confirmed.  I had POF (Premature ovarian failure).  Well, Penn was good and all but what about a 3rd opinion!  So I went to Atlanta and got another opinion and yup, the numbers were all showing the same thing — a 20, at that point 21 year old with labs of a 50+ year old! Well, 9 years later I’m still suffering from the effects of this condition… doctor after doctor, prayer after prayer, and day after day, I wait, hoping and praying that something changes for the better.  And by something, I mean that my ovaries decide to function long enough to produce a good enough egg that will become a healthy baby.