Entry 6: Egg Preparation

This is the waiting game portion of the egg freezing cycle.  Depending on when you go for your initial blood work and orientation, you may have a few weeks before the cycle and all of the injections start.  And if you’re like me, that’s a useful few weeks to try and sober those little guys (or gals) up.

I’m doing my best to be healthy and detox a bit. I’m not making any drastic changes – I wouldn’t want to send my eggs into shock, after all. But I am making one big concession: I’ve cut out alcohol completely until I’m done with the cycle. Essentially, it’s a dry January and probably two weeks of February. After that, I’ll likely go back to being a lush, but who knows? No alcohol may agree with me (it’s not bad so far).

You don’t necessarily have to stop drinking entirely, but I drank more during the holidays than most people drink in a lifetime, so I thought I would take it easy. I want healthy, happy eggs, not shriveled up, hung-over eggs.

I’m going to eat well, sleep well, and drink a lot of water. I’m also exercising even more excessively than usual, to compensate for the couple of weeks where they don’t want you exercising. With all of the stimulation, the ovaries swell to an abnormal size, and can actually twist and fall over from their own weight, which sounds kind of funny, but it’s actually a medical emergency. Sorry Barry, sorry Nike+ friends, we’re going to have to part ways for a little while. I do not want my ovaries twisted up in a knot!

I’m also cutting back on caffeine – I’ve heard mixed things on whether or not you actually have to stop drinking caffeine, but for now, I’m cutting back, and when I start the injections, I’ll probably cut it out entirely.

Prescription drugs and over-the-counter drugs should be taken minimally.  My doctor didn’t say absolutely no Xanax, but she did advise that I take as few drugs as possible.  So, I’m weaning myself off and by the time I begin injections, I’ll be Xanax free. And even though I’m battling a cold, I’m avoiding NyQuil, Theraflu and all other over-the-counters  that would make me feel better.

Last, I’m going to go to acupuncture with a different purpose than usual. I typically see my amazing acupuncturist, Peter, for repair. Specifically, to help get rid of my alcohol induced headaches. Now I’m going for overall wellness, and the hope that acupuncture actually can help with fertility. I’ve already found that my appointments with him are so much more pleasant when I’m not hung-over.

I’m not sure if any of this will ultimately make a difference, but this is a big investment, so I’m not taking any chances!

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