A week of freak-outs

I'm afraid I've been a bad blogger these last few days.

It's not that there isn't anything going on to write about--it's more that there's been too much going on and not enough hours in the day.  Or maybe my time management skills are just poor?  God knows how I'll ever manage if and when I actually have a baby to take care of.   

In any event, this turned out to be a week of freak-outs for me--some minor, some major. 

Freak-Out #1 - Cycle Postponement:  At the last minute (about a week and a half ago) our nurse had given us a long list of additional tests she wanted us to complete, including a pap smear for me, since I hadn't had one in a while.  Her instructions were clear--I wouldn't be able to start meds as scheduled on the 16th unless all the results were back.

Setting aside my own desire to move forward as quickly as possible, a postponement would wreak havoc with my work schedule.  I'd originally been set to travel in early May, and  rearranging things was a huge pain in the butt.  I'm also pretty sure I pissed some people off by rescheduling a trip that had been on the books for more than 6 months.  Putting off our cycle for another month would have made this all for naught and possibly necessitated the cancellation of yet another trip in June. 

As a result, I spent pretty much all last week trying to make sure we met the nurse's deadline and, in general, stressing out about whether or not that was even possible.

Along the way, I learned a number of things I'm pretty sure I never cared about before last Monday.

For instance, there's no such thing as a "stat" pap smear.  Yes, that's right folks--there are no pap smear emergencies.

Not only are there no pap smear emergencies, it takes a minimum of 3 weeks for pap results to come back from the pathology lab.

Or so my PCP's office tells me.  Call me jaded, but I personally think it was more a matter of no one wanting to go to the extra trouble.

Do you see where this is going?

So, to make a long story short, the pap results didn't come back in time.

Cue major freak-out on my part.

And as it turns out, it didn't matter.  On Thursday the nurse called and said to go ahead and start meds.

So apparently, it wasn't that important to have all the test results back after all.  Go figure.

Freak-Out #2 - First Big Payment Due:  Wrote a check for $12,000.  'Nuff said. 

Freak-Out #3 - Baseline Ultrasound:  The local doctor who diagnosed my immune issues has been nice enough to agree to do my remote monitoring, since staying in Manhattan (at a mere $300/night) for the entire cycle clearly isn't feasible.

But in truth, I've been dreading the whole idea of morning monitoring almost as much as I've been dreading the shots (more on that part in another post).

The major issue is that I'm really, really, not a morning person--as in, I chronically run late for work or almost anywhere else I go in the mornings.  I'm fortunate in that my boss generally turns a blind eye to it (probably because I also stay late) but I really shouldn't be pushing my luck any more than I already do.

With that in mind, my plan was to arrive at my doctor's office no later than 7:30, so I could be out by 8:00, and at my desk by 9:15 or 9:30am (my normal arrival time).  If all went well, I wouldn't even have to tell my boss that I had a doctor's appointment.

Sounds good, right?

Now let's see how this scenario actually played out. 

After sleeping through my alarm, I leave the house at 7:40 (this isn't good--I'm already 40 minutes behind schedule) and promptly hit a major traffic back-up.  Mapquest directions are wrong, resulting in another 10 minutes lost.  I arrive at the doctor's office at 8:20.  The nurse seems surprised to see me--not a good sign (I'm starting to feel a freak-out coming on).  After 30 minutes twiddling my thumbs in the waiting area, I'm finally ushered back and am out the door at 9:20.  By 9:45 I'm at the train station but I'm so late, the parking lot is already full.  Now I have no choice but to race home and try to catch the bus.  Bus arrives at 10:05 and takes me back to the train station, where I wait another 10 minutes for a train.  Arrival time at work?  11:05am.

That worked out well.

Freak-Out #4 - New Parental Arrival Time:  At 11:15am my phone rings.  It's my mother calling to let me know that she and dad are on the road and will be arriving for the weekend around 6:30.   Um, wait--weren't they coming on Friday?  It's only Thursday.  No, my mom is quite sure she told me Thursday.  I'm quite sure she said Friday.  The house is not clean.  Gonal-F still in the fridge.  I won't be home from work until at least 7:00.  A frantic phone call to grumpy DH ensues.  He's off at 3:00 so now he'll be the one to have to clean.  Not good.

Is this cycle over yet?