How Did We Get Here?

This is going to be long. You might want a bathroom break and maybe grab a snack. I guess to really explain how we got to this point, I have to go back to the beginning.

Many moons ago (2002), I decided that I wanted to go on birth control (BC). I stayed on the same BC until after David and I got married. On our honeymoon, I forgot to take 3 pills in a row and we didn't pack condoms with us. After a long talk, we decided that I would go off my BC. We weren't trying to conceive (TTC), but we weren't trying to avoid (TTA). If it happened, it happened.

Fast Forward 7 Months. After dozens of pregnancy tests and still no Aunt Flo (AF), I knew something was wrong. Not only had AF been M.I.A., but I had gained closed to 60 lbs. That's a lot of weight in 7 months. After what seems like a wasted trip to a shitty OBGYN, I was given Provera to make AF come. She came and she was seriously pissed! The only thing the OBGYN told me was that it was probably because I was coming off BC. Looking back I realize what a quack that MFer was.

AF came when she wanted to. Sometimes it was once a month. Sometimes it was every 3 months. Hell, one time she was really bitchy and came to visit twice in the same month. Let me tell you, that was a FUN month. All this time David and I weren't TTC or TTA. We used the pull-out method sometimes, but other times we went with it. Nothing ever happened and we didn't really worry.

On New Years Eve 2007, we both decided that we were ready to start TTC. We tried our hardest and nothing. AF was still her usual pissed off self. She's like one of those family members that you really don't want to see, but once they get there you're happy they came. And then after a few days, you are pushing them out the door. I didn't want AF to come. I want a big fat positive (BFP) pregnancy test. Those are few and far between though.

2008 was a rough year for us. David had just started a new job and was gone all the time. TTC became an after thought really. He was off working and that meant I was alone all the time. In that year I notice all the changes that had started happening to my body.

Let's make a list...

1. Facial Hair - I became noticing a few hairs on my chin and on my upper lip area. (Nothing a little wax or tweezers can't fix.
2. I was up almost 100 lbs for the weight I was when we got married in 2003. That's A LOT.
3. My hair was falling out like crazy.
4. AF would come when she felt like it.
5. My skin was absolutely HORRIBLE!

I honestly just figured it was hormones. I didn't worry too much.

2009 - David was still gone all the time. When he was home, we tried like crazy. Nothing happened. The day after Thanksgiving, my dad passed away. TTC stopped. Didn't really matter because AF was non-existent for almost a year!

2010 - My New Year's Resolution was to get healthy and figure all this shit out. I searched online for anything that sounded like me. I read about PCOS and thought that maybe that was it, but I wanted to be absolutely sure. I was on a search for a new OBGYN.

I was finally able to get an appointment on March 3, 2010. I was extremely nervous and didn't know what to expect at all. My last OBGYN wasn't interested it helping find an answer, so I prayed that this one wasn't the same. When Dr. S walked into the room, I knew things would be different this time. He greeted me with a smile and asked how he could help me. Ahhh... just what I wanted to hear! I explained to him everything that had been happening with my body (and I mean EVERYTHING). He listened and never said a word until he knew I was finished. He told me that he was 99% sure it was PCOS and wanted to do some tests to find out. I left there we an appointment and a Rx to bring on AF. 18 days later, that bitch was back! During this time, I learned that it was indeed PCOS and on my next visit we would discuss treatment.

May 18, 2010 - I had a follow-up with Dr. S. AF had come twice during that time :) I was excited and so was Dr. S. We discussed me going on a drug called Metformin. We decided that this was the best option. I also learned at that visit that I had high blood pressure (BP). I was given Metformin and a BP med. I was scheduled to come in the next morning for blood work to see if I was ovulating. I was 21 days into my cycle and that's the best time to check.

May 25, 2010 - Blood work results. That was a shitty day. I found out that I am not ovulating. The female body produces a hormones called Progesterone during ovulation. My level of progesterone was 0.8 when it should have been a hell of a lot higher. That explains so much! Dr. S and I talked about the options. He wanted to start me on Clomid right away, but I want to see exactly what this Metformin will do for now.

Right now we are just going with it. I'm on 1000mg of Metformin a day, but that may go up if necessary. David and I both agree that we want to see if this will help some weight come off. Neither one of us what to deal with a sick pregnancy, so getting healthy is what we're striving for. We're praying it will happen naturally, but it might not be that easy.

See, I told you that it would be a good idea for a break.