Ever since yesterday evening, I have had a feeling of generalized anxiety and irritability. I do not think it is related to my hCG trigger injection because it started a few hours before I took it. I found myself having no patience with my older dog who kept scavenging for trash and food (and poo) at the park and just feeling generally edgy. Things MM did which would normally not bother me at all were annoying. The feeling of edginess has persisted into this morning.
It's not clear to me whether this (unpleasant) mood I am in is related in any way to the fertility drugs I've used for this cycle. If you had asked me 24 hours ago if I was experiencing any medication side effects, my answer would have been no.
To be fair, I have been dealing with some work-related concerns for a few weeks, so it is entirely possible that these feelings are related to that situation and have nothing to do with our treatment cycle. But it is a little odd that they just cropped up yesterday when this situation at work has been going on for weeks. And usually a good night's sleep--which I had last night and have most nights--changes my mood for the better.
I mean, it's Friday, the start of the weekend. . . . and a weekend when I'll have plenty of down time and have only fun, low-stress things planned (except for my IUI, of course; that's not fun). It's payday. I am seeing my sister and nephew in a little over a month. I have two follicles. What do I have to be anxious about?
BTW, I have a question for anyone who has "tested out" the hCG trigger. I made a little trip to the Dollar Tree store yesterday to pick up some $1 pregnancy tests so that I could conduct my own little science experiment this cycle and test out my trigger. I used the first test this morning. . . . and it was negative. Even though I took my hCG injection at 11:30 last night.
My one thought is that I tested too soon to detect the hCG in my urine. My injection was at 11:30 p.m., and the urine I used was "FMU" (first morning urine) at around 6:45 a.m. It was 250 mcg of hCG, Ovidrel brand. Maybe 7 hours or so isn't enough time?
So what say you? Too soon to detect it? In my current mood, I am now worried that my hCG shot was somehow defective and that my ovulation time will be screwed up because of it and thus my IUI tomorrow morning will be poorly timed. Just what I needed: something else to make me anxious. I should have known better than to do my own little experiment.
I am going to test again tomorrow morning anyway and see what happens.
Oh, one last little thing I wanted to share. I do not usually shop at Dollar Tree stores, not because there is anything wrong with discount shopping but primarily because there is not a location very close to my home or work. (And most of the locations that are even nearby are in areas of the city which are pretty ghetto.) Knowing that I could get cheap, reasonably accurate HPTs there made it worth a slight detour last night after work.
Because I don't usually go there, I had a hard time finding the HPTs. I checked the "Health & Beauty" aisle and was surprised they were not there. I found maxi pads, tampons, and even douches, but no HPTs. Moving on to the "Baby" aisle, they were not there either. I roamed the other aisles for a while and finally had to break down and ask an employee, explaining that I had already checked what I considered the two most obvious locations.
The employee's response: "Oh, yes, we have pregnancy tests. They are by the registers up front, with the impulse items."
Which made me think "What kind of life are you living if your purchase of a pregnancy test is an impulse buy during your trip to the Dollar Tree store?" Clearly that would be outside my experience. ;-)
My BFF told me that she thinks they keep the HPTs there because they are a frequently shoplifted item. I hope she's right and that there aren't just a bunch of women impulsively buying HPTs along with their discounted groceries and household supplies. That image is not one that makes me happy.
It's not clear to me whether this (unpleasant) mood I am in is related in any way to the fertility drugs I've used for this cycle. If you had asked me 24 hours ago if I was experiencing any medication side effects, my answer would have been no.
To be fair, I have been dealing with some work-related concerns for a few weeks, so it is entirely possible that these feelings are related to that situation and have nothing to do with our treatment cycle. But it is a little odd that they just cropped up yesterday when this situation at work has been going on for weeks. And usually a good night's sleep--which I had last night and have most nights--changes my mood for the better.
I mean, it's Friday, the start of the weekend. . . . and a weekend when I'll have plenty of down time and have only fun, low-stress things planned (except for my IUI, of course; that's not fun). It's payday. I am seeing my sister and nephew in a little over a month. I have two follicles. What do I have to be anxious about?
BTW, I have a question for anyone who has "tested out" the hCG trigger. I made a little trip to the Dollar Tree store yesterday to pick up some $1 pregnancy tests so that I could conduct my own little science experiment this cycle and test out my trigger. I used the first test this morning. . . . and it was negative. Even though I took my hCG injection at 11:30 last night.
My one thought is that I tested too soon to detect the hCG in my urine. My injection was at 11:30 p.m., and the urine I used was "FMU" (first morning urine) at around 6:45 a.m. It was 250 mcg of hCG, Ovidrel brand. Maybe 7 hours or so isn't enough time?
So what say you? Too soon to detect it? In my current mood, I am now worried that my hCG shot was somehow defective and that my ovulation time will be screwed up because of it and thus my IUI tomorrow morning will be poorly timed. Just what I needed: something else to make me anxious. I should have known better than to do my own little experiment.
I am going to test again tomorrow morning anyway and see what happens.
Oh, one last little thing I wanted to share. I do not usually shop at Dollar Tree stores, not because there is anything wrong with discount shopping but primarily because there is not a location very close to my home or work. (And most of the locations that are even nearby are in areas of the city which are pretty ghetto.) Knowing that I could get cheap, reasonably accurate HPTs there made it worth a slight detour last night after work.
Because I don't usually go there, I had a hard time finding the HPTs. I checked the "Health & Beauty" aisle and was surprised they were not there. I found maxi pads, tampons, and even douches, but no HPTs. Moving on to the "Baby" aisle, they were not there either. I roamed the other aisles for a while and finally had to break down and ask an employee, explaining that I had already checked what I considered the two most obvious locations.
The employee's response: "Oh, yes, we have pregnancy tests. They are by the registers up front, with the impulse items."
Which made me think "What kind of life are you living if your purchase of a pregnancy test is an impulse buy during your trip to the Dollar Tree store?" Clearly that would be outside my experience. ;-)
My BFF told me that she thinks they keep the HPTs there because they are a frequently shoplifted item. I hope she's right and that there aren't just a bunch of women impulsively buying HPTs along with their discounted groceries and household supplies. That image is not one that makes me happy.
They are probably shoplifted a lot. a Walmart close to my office has them locked up like they do with the expensive toothbrushes and perfumes. it's weird!
ReplyDeletebest of luck with your iui! fingers and toes crossed for you!
HPT's are like gum and chocolate bars, too weird!
ReplyDeleteAs someone who has only POAS twice during this LONG process, I can't answer your trigger question. My guess is that it may not have been in your system long enough for the test to detect it. I am sure it worked. I hope the IUI itself went/goes well too.
I hate the unexplained irritability too. It happens to me from time to time. I hope it passes quickly.
I will keep you in my thoughts, good luck.
if you are already in a dollar store, where everything is a DOLLAR, what is the point of protecting the HPTs from shoplifting? they aren't FRERs!! LOL.
ReplyDeleteback in 2007 when i was a poasaholic, i used to venture to the dollar store for cheapies...i could never find them in the same place twice in a row! it was so annoying!!
but an "impulse" buy?! that bends my mind.
i like your change up on the blog. a fresh look is always nice!
xoxo