Dr. R.... :/

I got up early the day I had my appointment with Dr. R. I was excited to get the ball rolling on trying to figure out what may be wrong. My mind had been spinning the last few weeks with the possible outcomes and solutions that could help. Crazy? Yes. But infertility is not as uncommon as you make think. Having talked with friends in the past few years (as we are all entering that stage of life) it is amazing to hear how many people have trouble conceiving. I myself know at least 3 couples who have all undergone fertility treatments within the last few years.

I got there nice and early to make sure I had enough time to fill out any necessary paperwork. I knew that I would be waiting awhile as well...it's a doctors office. It's expected! Two hours later and only after I questioned when I would be seen.....I was finally seen! The appointment went so fast that my head was spinning! He went through my health history with me and asked me questions that I had already answered in the intake form (annoying!) and when he had me change to do a pap and physical exam....I was left naked with a paper blanket in a cold room for 20 mins!!! I was not impressed considering that I was cold and already stressed out about being there.

I left with a requisition for an ultra sound and blood work...and a collection of new words added to my vocabulary. Some of the information that I was given was a list of medications that I would have to take if I needed to undergo IUI treatments.  I was shocked. One medication alone was just over $300....that's per treatment! CRAZY!

A few weeks later, I still had not heard back from Dr. R's office on the result of the ultrasound and the blood work. I decided to call and follow up. Finally after 3 weeks post-testing, Dr. R's office called me to tell me to come in for a follow up visit (I live in Canada and receive "free" health care..which means they can bill for every visit, but not a phone consultation.) I book my appointment for the following week only for the doctor to tell me my progesterone is low (which I had already told him that at the initial visit) and that the ultra sound came back clear. He wanted me to go for further testing with more advanced technical equipment. He referred me to "the big city" office where they would be able to determine what was going on. The test that I would undergo was called sonohysterography (SHG) and it would help determine what might be going on....... fingers crossed!

It's just the beginning....or is it?

It's been two years since my husband and I have been trying to have a baby. In October 2010 after about a year and half of trying...we thought that it would be a good idea to get checked out. So we booked an appointment with our family doctor to discuss what the next step would be. After reviewing our health history, and having a very positive pep talk...we left the office with a OB/GYN referral and a simple test for my husband to do.

My appointment with the OB was for Jan 2011. I thought that a 3 month wait was a bit long but at the same time...I thought maybe I was just wanting things to be speeding along faster. (Oh how I didn't know). The time of my appointment was scheduled for the middle of the day. I thought that I would take a chance to see if there had been any cancellations closer to the beginning or the end of the day so that I could still work a big chunk of the day. As I explained this to the receptionist...she broke the news to me that we actually had to completely rebook my appointment to another month as "Dr.R" (OB/GYN) was scheduled for surgery and would be off for a few weeks. I was rebooked to the end of March!

March. That would be 5 months from the original referral. I decided not to wait that long. I decided to let Christmas come, enjoy some down time and as well let the holiday madness and the madness at work come back down to normal. My life and my future are the things that are most important and if I want to know what is going on with my health....I need to take charge. The health system and the people who work within it will not. And I should know as I work in it!

Mid January came and I thought I would give Dr.R's office a call to see if there had been any cancellations. To my luck..the end of February was available. I TOOK IT!! I was not taking any chances! Stay tuned for for entry #2 to find out what happened at the appointment!