4 - Background - Insemination Prep (Dec 2007)

On December 8th, 2007 we had an intrauterine insemination (iui) at the University of Michigan Reproductive Center. When I started my period (Day 1) two weeks prior, I called the clinic and discussed with my doctor if I should go on a fertility medication to increase my egg production prior to the insemination. She basically said it was my call - I could or I could try up to three iui cycles on my own and then use a fertility drug for future iui tries. My mind could not even contemplate more then three iui cycles, so I opted to go on the medication for the first cycle. She put me on a drug called Femara - the traditional drug for this process is actually Clomid. So I did some research to find out why she put me on Femara instead. Femara is traditionally used as a drug to treat breast cancer and has not yet been approved as a fertility drug, therefore, it IS covered by insurance (Clomid usually isn't and is quite expensive). Although the science behind how it works is different, the end result is the same - more eggs are produced and hopefully released. I took the drug for 5 days - Day 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 of my cycle. I felt a little sick while I was taking it - nausea, headache, and fatigue - nothing unbearable. I started ovulation testing at home (Clear Blue Easy tests) on Day 11 and went in for an ultrasound on Day 13...no positive ovulation test yet. Per the ultrasound, I responded well to the Femara and it looked like 4 eggs could possible release. They gave me a pretty painless shot in the stomach on Day 13 of a hormone that would release the egg with 36 hours and we scheduled the actual insemination for the next day.