Making Progress! Surgery and IVF Timeline.

     What a busy week it has been in the Hempel household! Between all the doctor appointments and everyday life, I'm ready to binge watch some Netflix for a few days. I had my 5th surgery a week ago (the 13th) and it went as good as can be expected. My doctor was able to remove the cyst from my right ovary without having to take any of my ovary! That was a huge plus. He also said that the D&C went well and that my uterus looks good. The only somewhat of a difficulty is that my colon is sitting on top of my left ovary. There's not really anything he can do about it because that's just the way my body healed itself after having so many surgeries and things removed. He did say that it could cause some difficulty when it comes to retrieving eggs for IVF because of them being so close together and making sure not to puncture my colon with the needle. Just lots of prayers that it doesn't give us to many complications!

I had the greatest little nurse! She gave lots of cuddles and never left my side.

You would think after multiple surgeries I'd be over my fear of needles. Definitely not. 

     Yesterday afternoon Brett and I had our first appointment at HRC Fertility in Oceanside with Dr. Coffler. It went SO so well! Everyone that works there was so friendly and welcoming. They didn't treat us like we were just another dollar sign walking through the door, which was very comforting! Dr. Coffler and his nurse were very in depth with their plan for us after going through my history and talking to us. We each have to do some blood work to check for diseases like HIV and Hepatitis along with some other testing to check my uterus just to make sure we're both healthy! But as soon as I start my menstrual cycle in March I will be starting on birth control for a couple weeks followed by hormone injections. We're looking at the beginning/middle of April to do the egg retrieval and then six days after retrevial we do the embryo transfer!  It's all so exciting to know that we are finally on this road to hopefully start our family! Lots and lots of prayers for everything to keep going smoothly! 

Xoxo 

I'm Baaaack!

     After what has seemed like the longest 7 month break, I'm glad to be back to blogging! I decided to take a little bit of a break from here because our lives just became SO busy! Brett received orders to Camp Pendleton in California from 29 Palms which was quite the move for us, I went back home to Minnesota for a few months to finish up last minute wedding details and plans for the big day which was this past October 4th! It was hands down the best day and I wish we could relive it all over again. I started nannying a two year old little boy named Wyatt in October who has brought so much joy and happiness into my life. Brett and I also went to our first USMC Birthday ball together in November and celebrated our first Christmas together after spending the last two apart. 2014 definitely was a busy and exciting year for us!





Our wedding on October 4, 2014!

     2015 has been a wonderful year so far with a few little bumps in the road but nothing that neither one of us cannot overcome! On January 20th, I ended up back in the emergency room 8 hours for yet again another cyst on my right ovary. Some days I feel like I'm never going to catch a break from those darn things. The cyst measured at 1.9cm and the doctor informed me that I needed to make an appointment to be seen by an OBGYN. I was able to schedule an appointment for the following Tuesday, January 27th. I met with the doctor and we discussed my extensive history of cysts and surgeries and agreed that I would come back a week later to have an ultrasound done to see if the cyst was getting any larger and determine from there whether or not I would be needing surgery again.

     On February 2nd, I went in for an ultrasound and a follow up with my doctor. In just 13 short days, my cyst went from 1.9cm to 2.5cm! That's quite the growth if you ask me. They also noticed that I have an abnormally thick lining inside my uterus. My doctor also said that the cyst is either filled with old blood or endometriosis but cannot be determine unless he were to do surgery. After discussing everything with him, he decided that the best thing to do would be to do surgery to remove the cyst along with a D&C (scrapping of the uterus) to remove the thick lining. The doctor also told me that if Brett and I were planning on trying to have children through IVF that we needed to start the process ASAP. That my body is working against me and pretty soon we will not have the opportunity to try and have a family of our own.

     It has been a rollercoaster of emotions the last few weeks knowing that yet again I'll be having surgery for the same issue. It definitely gets beyond frustrating for both of us because it just seems like it is a never ending battle that we are not going to win. But all in all we keep a positive mindset through it along with a smile on our face knowing that everything happens for a reason and that we will get through this together. Surgery number 5 is scheduled for Friday, February 13th. Happy Valentines Day to us! ;) We then have an appointment with a second fertility specialist on February 19th to discuss our treatment and plan to start IVF!

Thank you all so much for the outpouring love and support we have been receiving! We honestly could not do it without each and everyone of you.

xoxo