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Growth Hormones

November 13, 2007

When we were little, my sister and I raised animals and showed them in 4-H fairs. I have been thinking about that time in our lives a lot lately. I think it started because I'm taking hormones to make me grow more follicles (eggs) so I felt a little like a farm animal being asked to overproduce.

I remember when we bred our rabbits, it was a big deal. We'd wait till we heard them thumping in their cages in the garage, which meant Jessica Rabbit was in heat. Then we'd put them in the yard together on a blanket and watch. It was amazing how many tries it took before we finally got a living litter of bunnies. Most of the time she just wouldn't get pregnant. Twice she gave birth and then ate the babies, not recognizing them as her own for some reason.

Even though we took care of the animals, they weren't pets. The bigger animals, cows and goats, lived on a farm and had to contribute to the farm just like the other animals. My first calf, Crystal, turned out to be infertile. The farmer wasted many expensive batches of good bull semen on her before finally disposing of her. I cried and cried when I went to the farm and couldn't find her. Cows can't produce milk if they can't get pregnant and have calves, so Crystal was basically useless.

This is my first cycle taking Clomid. I didn't notice any side effects really while I was taking it, except that I felt kind of restless and I didn't get tired at night. And I was really, really, really thirsty. That didn't go away when I stopped taking the Clomid.

I grew three follicles but my uterine lining became very thin. The doctor said this can happen to some women when they take Clomid. It can make it difficult for embryos to implant or stay implanted. I also ovulated a lot sooner than usual, so the doctors missed it and did the IUI a little late.

Now that I'm done taking the Clomid, I'm starting to feel some side effects. My face broke out horribly. I look like a pimply teenager again (not a pleasant memory). I've felt bloated and crampy ever since my IUI, like my period is about to come. I'm still so thirsty that I'm drinking all the time. I'm tired all the time, but I think that's from the progesterone suppositories because that's happened every cycle. And I'm hungry all the time, but for weird things...like my snack today of potato chips and MnM cookies. If I eat too much, I feel sick. If I don't eat enough, I'm still hungry!

I don't know if I can blame this all on the Clomid. Regardless, it's all fairly minor and I hope to do it again in a heartbeat if this cycle doesn't work. The Clomid was so hassle-free to take and it gave me three follies instead of my usual one! So I'll take this all happily, thank you very much, if it helps me get pregnant eventually!

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