8 days past D&C: the next act.

I hesitated over the title of this post. When TTC, everything has an anchor: so many days since cycle day 1, so many days past ovulation, so many days post transfer. Now? I'm floating. Cycle day nothing, as Dr. Stewart once called it.

Thing're okay. I always underestimate how much of my pain and stress is due to being jacked up on hormones. The frisky hormones are nearly gone now; the line on my pee-sticks is almost invisible, a ghost of a line that only a crazy pee-stick-scryer could ever see. My estrogen and progesterone should have plunged, accordingly. I never had a hard bleed after the D&C, just a week or so of desultory spotting, and very little cramping. I've been lucky. I think Dr. Stewart did a very good job with the D&C, and got everything he needed to get.

I feel good about the medical care I got during the whole debacle. So good that I'm having second thoughts about switching clinics.

See, for the past few years, I've had insurance that only covered a very few practices, including Dr. Stewart's one-man show. We'll call it Dr. S's IVF Shack. I think Dr. Stewart is a very good doctor, and I personally like him immensely (as you can tell by the fact that his nickname is inspired by my beloved Jon Stewart). Dr. Stewart is smart, kind, funny, and listens to me. He treats Her Indoors well, and gives a very gentle pelvic. His practice is literally five minutes away from where we work and live. And Dr. Stewart got us Small Boy.

But. But. But. Dr. Stewart really is a one-man show. If Dr. Stewart is running late or has an emergency, then we wait, sometimes for more than an hour. Dr. Stewart's embryology lab is an unknown quantity, and seems to have uneven results. Sometimes they've done well by me, but then there was the time when it took seven vitrified embryos to get to two to transfer (most places have a 90% thaw success rate with vitrified).  Dr. Stewart's ultrasound machine is old and fuzzy. Dr. Stewart does not do ultrasound-guided embryo transfers. All IVF practices have to report success rates to the CDC/SART for public reporting. Dr Stewart's statistics stink. Now, I really believe that this is at least partially because Dr Stewart does not cherrypick patients; I can't imagine him turning anyone away, no matter how hopeless their case. A lot of programs have restrictions so as not to damage their stats; won't treat women over a certain age, weight, FSH... I can believe that Dr. Stewart doesn't care about any of that.

But. But.

About 20 minutes away from me is another practice, let's call it Big Shiny Fertility Factory. As of January 1, my insurance will be one that is accepted by Big Shiny Fertility Factory. Big Shiny Fertility Factory has very good stats. I am sure that Big Shiny Fertility Factory has all the latest equipment. Big Shiny Fertility Factory is a group practice, and a friend who goes there says that it's a smooth-running operation with little wait for appointments or scans.

We have an appointment for a consult at Big Shiny Fertility Factory on January 4. Big Shiny Fertility Factory sent me a big, shiny packet of glossy brochures and welcome information.   Big Shiny Fertility Factory has patient-appointment liaisons who reach out to you to guide you through the harrowing appointment-making process (I am not even kidding). 

I don't know how I feel about all of this.  Sorry to be thinking of leaving Dr. Stewart. Excited about trying something new.  I guess I don't mind  being sucked into the Big Shiny Fertility Factory Machine if I get spat out the other side with a baby.

A strong point in favor of Big Shiny Fertility Factory: I just called Dr. Stewart to make my post-op appointment. I was on hold for a while, and it was awful. The hold music at Dr. Stewart's makes me instantly shaky and nauseated; just thinking of it makes my eyes well up. I've just gotten too much bad news right after hearing that music. The thought of never ever hearing that music again is an uplifting one.