I've learned that my body doesn't want to make babies naturally. Infertility is fairly common, but very few people talk openly about infertility. I am.  

Round 2 PGS Test Results

Typically, the results of PGS testing come in 7-10 business days after the biopsy is sent out. Last time that wait was almost unbearable by the time the second week of waiting rolled around. This time, I was prepared. I knew that I'd receive results by Friday, Dec. 15 and waited semi-patiently until then (it helped that I was insanely busy during that two week wait). Except that the results did not come in on Friday.

When I called the fertility clinic Friday morning to see if the results were available, I was told they weren't in yet, but I should get them soon, especially since the genetic testing place had already charged the credit card. The nurse called me again right before she left the office Friday evening (a half hour after they'd officially closed) to let me know the results still hadn't arrived. That meant a weekend of waiting before I could call the genetic testing place to see if they had any information as to when the results would be released. Luckily, I was mostly able to distract myself those two days because my husband and I were visiting friends in DC and remained busy. At 8:01am Monday morning, I was on the phone with the genetic testing service's customer service (they opened at 8:00). I learned that the results would be released by the end of their business day -- 8pm -- but they couldn't promise they'd be released before my doctor's office closed at 4pm.

Around 3:15pm, I called my doctor's office again to see if they'd received the results. No dice. But, the nurse (the same one I'd spoken with on Friday), told me she'd email the testing place because they were often responsive via email. I didn't hear back from her before 4pm so I assumed that I'd have to wait until Tuesday morning (Day 12, for those of you keeping count) to find out the results. But, around 5:30pm, I received a call from a restricted number. It was the nurse calling me from her cell phone with the test results that had just been released (like many of us, she gets her work emails on her phone). She knew that I was very anxiously awaiting the results and wanted to let me know right away instead of making me wait until morning. That is a fantastic nurse.

Not so fantastic was the news -- this embryo, like the ones from round 1, was abnormal with chromosomal duplicates. So, round 2 is also a bust. I know that my age makes the odds of creating an embryo without any chromosomal abnormalities very unlikely, but I did have higher hopes for this one given the high "grade" rating of the embryo. We still have one pre-paid round of IVF left, but given how many steps there are once we have a normal embryo (and so many chances of something going wrong), I had really, really wanted that last round available as a back-up for when something goes wrong if we ever even get to the implantation and pregnancy stage. The nurse recommended I schedule a phone consult with the doctor to discuss next steps, especially given that this embryo should have been normal given the rating. So, first thing tomorrow morning I'll be on the phone again, hoping I can get that consult in before the doctor takes his holiday vacation. In the meantime, everything is up in the air again.

My Holiday Gift: A Surgery Date

And Then There Was One (Second Hurdle, take two)