IUI #1

I am currently lying on the exam table at my RE's office, having completed our first IUI. The nurse has instructed me to lie here for 20 minutes before getting up. I'm typing this entry on my BlackBerry.

Overall, the experience was not too bad. MM produced a sample with a post-wash motile count of 40 million, despite his reporting to me before I left home that he thought he "didn't give 'em much." Considering that the minimum recommended count is 5 million, 40 million is great!

Insertion of the speculum was uncomfortable. (I think a larger-than-usual size was used.) Insertion of the catheter into my cervix caused me only mild discomfort, much like a Pap.

Once the sperm in their media started being instilled, I had quite a bit of uterine cramping (and am still having some). The cramping was less intense than with my HSG, but it also lasted longer. The HSG took about a minute, while this took 3-4 minutes.

I'd rate the experience as unpleasant but tolerable. Oh, and I also had a nasty local reaction to my hCG shot. I have an area roughly the size of a half dollar that is slightly raised, red, hot to the touch, and painful.

So now I wait. I will be using vaginal progesterone gel twice a day starting tomorrow night and am supposed to POAS two weeks from today.