Egg retrieval went well. I was in at 11.45 am and out by 2 pm. I was lucky in the sense that I wasn’t in pain. I had read some horror stories online before this process and was thus slightly apprehensive. The only thing that got to me was being told that I could not have a fresh transfer as I was at risk of Ovarian Hyperstimulation( OHSS).
I felt fine! I felt like my world was crushing. It seemed like the wait for a FET( Frozen Embryo Transfer) would never end. I had to find extra funds to cater for this( FET- as explained in an earlier post). I would have to regularly take time off work (within a short period of time) which I was not looking forward to. I am also sure my employer would not be 100% okay with this. I had this all planned out. I decided to pursue the IVF route at that time as, I’d a month’s leave off work. I’d hoped this whole process would be over before I resumed work. I guess life had other plans. It took me three days to accept this reality.
I feel ok now to an extent, especially since there is not much I can do about it but wait until my body is ready for the FET (Frozen Embryo Transfer). I’m not exactly sure how long I’ll have to wait; I guess between 1 to 5 months.
So far out of the 14 eggs that were collected- 7 were fertilised- 4 survived to day 2- and only 2 to day 3. One of the ones that made it to day 3 was frozen and the other one has been left in the culture to see if it makes it to day 5 (blastocyst). At this stage, an embryo will have between 70 to 100 cells
After realizing that the NHS did not offer much assistance, my partner and I turned to IVF. My borough does not support IVF through the NHS if one of the partners has children. So, we took the private route. If only I’d lived a few kilometres to the East, then my fate would have been different, I guess. It didn’t matter how much I had contributed towards National Insurance.
We chose a clinic that offered affordable IVF. This however quickly changed after the first consultation. I had polycystic ovaries, a condition commonly referred to as polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). Polycystic ovaries contain a large number of harmless follicles that are up to 8mm (approximately 0.3in) in size. The follicles are underdeveloped sacs in which eggs develop. In PCOS, these sacs are often unable to release an egg, which means ovulation does not take place. My ovulation was irregular and was difficult to time precisely.
It was suggested that I might need a frozen cycle (FET) as I might develop ovarian hyperstimulation (OHSS) after my ovaries have been stimulated by fertility medication. The following is a breakdown of how much this process cost us. Our initial estimate was £2500 (including medication). Others are lucky and they do not have many complications so it’s affordable for them.
Rubella and TSH blood test each at £20 ………………………………………… – £40
At first, all these names seemed strange but alas ‘Dr Google’ did not disappoint. I’d done so much research and was partially my own medical consultant. By the time I sought private treatment, I had suffered for more than 8 years. When I finally found a doctor who could listen to me, I tried to get as much information as I could as a result of my experience with the NHS-long waiting periods between treatments and rarely seeing a specialist. The doctor at this clinic explained that what I had was a polyp and not haemorrhoids. The polyp was not cancerous, thus getting rid of it would cause no pain. The fissure on the other hand was a delicate situation and which probably explained why the other doctors (NHS) had not made much progress as each one wanted to heal the fissure first- this is considered standard practice.
Back story
I’ve had what I thought were haemorrhoids since 2012. I first noticed a lump outside my bottom area. It was sore and as a result, I was unable to walk. I remember the pain. Excruciating pain. To make matters more difficult, I could not discuss this with my then-roommate. I sought a doctor’s help and they immediately suggested surgery. I had never had surgery before. The thought of being hospitalised in a foreign country, with no immediate family or close friends nearby scared the living daylights out of me. My saviour was an army guy who suggested sliding that circular ball back in, “Soldiers do it all the time, especially when they are out camping as they have no time to see doctors, “he said. That did it! I was well again. I could walk with no pain. Well, except when I had to have a bowel movement.
Fast forward to 2018, I had been shoving that cannonball in after each bowel movement for seven years, nothing could stop me. However, it kept getting more painful. Each bowel pass was followed by 12 hours of agonizing pain (even after pushing it back in). I was referred to the hospital (NHS) by my GP and the surgeon offered to look at the area under anaesthesia as it would have been too painful otherwise. The surgeon could not see the haemorrhoids (now I know it was no haemorrhoid but a rectal polyp) even while I was sedated ( I had given him prodding permission) he could have poked and looked for it. I did not understand how he could not see that thing (calling it a thing as I was unable to name it). It came out each time I had a number 2. I even took pictures to show him. He did look at the pictures but was not moved. I guess I was grateful he did. The first NHS doctor I was referred to did not want to see the pictures I had taken of my bum. I get that it might not have been a pleasant sight but I expected a doctor to behave differently. I am sure he had seen more than his share of internal protruding body parts. To make matters worse. He said that no doctor could touch that no matter where I looked. The nerve of him!
Anyway this new (NHS) doctor during surgery injected botox (for the fissure) and prescribed emla cream to help numb the area after each bowel movement. Oh, I forgot to mention that during my 7 years of suffering, at one of my doctor’s visits, I was prescribed Rectogesic- it helped the first day, but the second time I used it, it gave me severe migraines that prevented me from taking it. This is what prompted another GP visit and the above-mentioned referral to a surgeon. After the botox injection (this was meant to relax the anal muscles to allow for the fissure to heal), I got some sort of relief- it only lasted a week. After that, everything reverted to normal; 12 hours of pain after each bowel movement.
As I type this, it is August 2022 and I have not received any communication from the surgeon since the surgery which took place in June 2021. This year, my partner and I decided to try IVF. Knowing the complications with pregnancy- constipation and haemorrhoids- we decided to seek private treatment and sort out the haemorrhoid problem before we started the IVF process. The first clinic I visited, I paid £50 for a consultation. They could not help with the haemorrhoid (we now know this was a polyp) and the specialist was booked up until the 25th of August (I could not wait this long as I only had a month before I was back to work). On my way home from the clinic, I called a different clinic and was booked in for the next day for a consultation for £250- this was the best decision I’d made that week. The doctor who saw me was amazing. For the first time, at a consultation, the doctor was able to analyse the area and got a chance to look at the haemorrhoid (without anaesthesia). He was the one who explained that it was not a haemorrhoid but a polyp which he could easily get rid of under anaesthesia.
The doctor went out of his way to ensure that if he performed the surgery it would not interfere with the IVF process. He called the IVF clinic and confirmed this; it was not an easy process getting through to the IVF doctor. Just like that, after 8 years I was on my way to removing the thing (now known as a polyp- my partner and I like using this name, thing sounded like something from a cartoon show) that kept coming out each time I had a bowel movement and hopefully a fissurectomy to start the healing process for the fissure.
After surgery
Day 1– It was a day surgery, took place at 6.30 pm and I was back home by 9.30 pm. I’d been given a numbing injection that would last up to 6 hours; sat quite well in the taxi. The first night was fine. I was also given metronidazole, paracetamol and brufen and co-codamol (did not use this- was worried about being constipated as it’s one of the side effects).
Day 2– Started feeling nauseated, tired and sweaty (had to have a towel in bed), which I later found out were side effects of metronidazole, which is an antibiotic. Pain from the surgery was still manageable as I was taking painkillers 3 times a day. At midnight, I had my first bowel movement. The pain. I thought I was dying, so I asked God to make it quick (😉). I am glad he didn’t. I must have lost consciousness while on the toilet seat, as I woke up two hours later. Managed to clean myself up (portable bidet) and trudged to bed. I lost consciousness again and woke up 3 hours later. Got some painkillers and managed to call my partner (he’d gone to work that evening after I’d assured him that I’d be fine, as I had had a whole night and day and I was managing just fine).
Day 3-Up until now- the pain has gone down with each day. I have an unsightly open wound that was heavily weeping from day 3 to 7 but it seems to be subsiding. As I sit typing this (day 13 and also completed 10 days of IVF injections), I have gone to the toilet twice since morning. It’s 5.30pm the morning one was followed by some pain that subsided after taking some paracetamol. The second one was half an hour ago. No pain, I must be getting better.
Everything about everything. 