My first baby to need surgery. Man, this was a hard pill to swallow. If you read about Livy bean's fractured finger, then you might have an idea as to why our girl had to have surgery yesterday. After a follow-up appointment with her pediatric orthopedic doctor, x-rays showed that Olivia's alignment in her fractured pinky finger was way off. It was actually worse than the initial visit for the fractured pinky. The biggest concern with the alignment being off (the bone was pushed down as well) is the loss of motion range in her pinky and that is what started us on the discussion of surgery with her doctor. I'll admit, I bawled so bad when surgery was brought up. I mean, I was already emotional about the entire ordeal, to begin with... but Justin and I both thought that she'd be in a splint for a few weeks and that would be the end. Of course, we didn't have to opt into the surgery but I couldn't live with myself knowing that we didn't do all we could for the sake of our own feelings.

So, surgery. I collected all the information, Justin and I weighed the pros/cons, and then I researched the snot out of the pediatric surgery facility. Let. Me. Tell. You. The reviews were mostly bad. There was even a review in there specifically warning service members to stay away. SO MANY TEARS. Not only was my baby getting surgery, but the facility the physician uses was completely terrible. I remember calling Justin at work to talk about it and he was so dang calm. He said, "Babe. Then we will find another facility. We will find another doctor if we have to." Justin always manages to ease my mind and defuse a stressful situation. 

After collecting myself I called the ortho office and left a message for the doctor's PA. Instead, I received a call back from the doctor. He talked to me about the procedure, the need, and the facility in amazing detail. Just getting all the information from a physician that we had deemed credible.. I don't know, it definitely changed my attitude. I ended up calling the pediatric surgery facility to go over each of my concerns and I was met with honest answers and acknowledgment about their reviews. After thinking about it over the weekend, we filled out the pre-registration information on Monday and got a pre-op call shortly after.

I appreciated how thorough and prompt the staff was. So far so good. Tuesday morning came and our family was out the door by 5AM. We were required to be present at 6am for her surgery to happen at 7am. When we arrived, there were three other families there too. I couldn't believe how small these babies were. It shocked me. I initially had this idea that we were the worst parents on the planet and surely it wasn’t normal for your child to need surgery.. or general anesthesia this early in life... WRONG. I can still be extremely naive. Once we got into the office, we filled out the necessary forms, had a short wait, and then we headed back to get Olivia prepped. 

The nurses were so sweet and kind with our girl. Putting in her favorite movie - Moana. And dishing out the sweetest compliments on how adorable she was. Olivia did great with all of the vitals they needed, not giving a single fuss about anything. I appreciated how much feedback the nurses gave on the staff that would be present during Olivia's procedure in the OR. It seemed like we got the best, most knowledgeable bunch possible. I instantly got a wave of calm. The anesthesiologist, nurse that would be in the OR, and her physician all talked to us a great deal. Everything was explained - numbers, times, options, etc. They left me without a single question. Justin had to take Ava to school (forty minutes away), so he left just right before Olivia was taken back to the OR. 

They did give our babe some "giggle juice" beforehand to calm her before she had to leave us. Because we had explained to Olivia that we were there to fix her finger, I don't think she felt as nervous when the nurse carried her away. I told her I loved her, she said she loved me, we hugged/kissed/she hugged brother, and then I went back to the waiting room. I really loved that we were able to bring Olivia's personal items from home during this process too. I mean, I felt like she had a sense of familiarity with her even though I couldn't be there. I brought one of her favorite blankets and a Moana doll that was gifted to her after her fracture happened. I'm so glad we did that.

Over an hour passed before a nurse came to grab both Justin and I for an update with the pediatric ortho. Everything had gone successfully and he had taken a little more time to ensure that he did his best work. He didn't have to cut into her finger (THANK YOU JESUS) and was able to get that bone back on alignment. The doctor also put Olivia in a hard cast for the next four weeks (it is going to make life interesting), but we are 100% okay with this. The splint situation was not going to work for our adventurous, active girl. About 20 minutes later we were reunited with our sleeping beauty and again, the nurses on the "other side" of her surgery were just as amazing. So attentive and completely sweet. 

Olivia was still pretty out of it when we walked back into the room, but her first word was "Daddy" and she looked at him right in the face before dozing off again. They gave her more time to sleep off some of the gases from the anesthesia, and we stood by her bedside while she slept. She was so peaceful, snuggled up in her blanket. A little while later our girl was becoming more aware and instantly started talking about the IV in her foot and that she wanted it out. The nurse took out the IV, brought Olivia some water and a popsicle, and we helped her sit up so she could indulge.

I still can't believe how calm Olivia was. Her resiliency just amazes me. She didn't have any lingering effects from the anesthesia and immediately started eating food when we got in the car. I packed her applesauce, a granola bar, and a banana - all of which was gone by the time we got home.

As much as I gripe about the state of Texas, I am so dang grateful for all of the skilled and knowledgeable people that took care of my girl. Who knows if we'd have been afforded the same situation anywhere else. The next few weeks are going to be challenging, as far as getting Olivia to slow down a bit, but I'd take that challenge over any other option.

Our baby is healthy, healing, and safe. I could not ask for more.

Surgery: D & C

On very little notice, I had my dilation and curettage surgery this morning. Everything happened so incredibly fast... and as of this moment I actually still feel a bit shaky, cramp-y, and I still can't allow myself to just be. Let me start from the top though because I'm almost positive there are a lot of readers that are confused right now. From Feb 28th up until two weeks ago, I frantically searched for a new reproductive endocrinologist, OBGYN, etc (read previous post to get caught up to speed as to why I needed to find a new baby doc). Well, I found like five or six? The problem was - everyone was taking Spring break vacation during the time I was actually looking to find a provider to perform the surgery. I patiently waited and actually had a sonogram/consult date set up for the 29th with one of the providers I met a couple weeks ago.

THEN, I found an amazingly reviewed and highly recommended REI center just over 30 minutes away from our house - who also had their earliest appointment on the 29th. I decided to keep both appointments scheduled until I thought about the best route for myself. Out of curiosity early this week, I decided to phone the amazingly reviewed and highly recommended REI center to see how soon after a consult I'd be able to get in for surgery... the nurse told me it'd be a month... or a month and a half. I gasped. That was much longer than my new attitude "easy breezy" wanted to wait. I said goodbye and started to think about what decisions needed to be made moving forward. 

That's when I got a call. Another amazingly reviewed doctor's office gave me a call. They remembered I had called in on the 11th trying to make an appointment - but they had none available until the last week of March as well. I decided to just cut my losses with that provider I hadn't even met and stick with what I had. They were calling with an available appointment on Thursday afternoon. I started to get SO excited at the thought of surgery happening sooner. I then asked what the provider's surgical schedule looked like and that's when I was put on hold for the nurse. The nurse was so incredibly warm, cheerful, and informative.

She apologized and said the soonest they would be able to get me in for my procedure would be the 7th of April. I was elated. A guaranteed surgery at the beginning of next month - I took it without thinking twice. I went in for my appointment yesterday and the wait time was longer than I would have liked... but after talking with the provider, I knew why. This woman was personable. She was kind, had amazing bedside manner, and actually listened to all I had to say. When she found out about my mom passing, she got up and hugged me. I could see the sadness pass over her face. She said,"That's just too young. You are too young not to have your mom." I couldn't have agreed more. 

The empathy, knowledge, and understanding with this provider was SO clear from the start of our appointment. She checked her schedule for surgery (they are only done on Fridays) and she realized she had an opening for tomorrow morning. She offered it to me, letting me know that it was okay if it was too soon. After texting Justin and checking his schedule, I was given the green light.

The authorizations were immediately sent out to our insurance and since this was an in office procedure, it was a lot faster than if I were having the procedure at a hospital. I had my surgery around 8am this morning and I was under IV sedation the entire time. It was so quick, I was out of there just after 9am. I was given pictures of what they found. A build up for sure, some polyps, and remnants of my not-so-vascular uterine septum from five years ago. Everything looked great - fallopian tubes are clear and my uterus is now in good shape! 

I am so thankful everything worked out for us this way. Next stop, injections... not sure when we will start (I want to give my body a chance to have a cycle and heal a bit), but knowing that we no longer have a road block.. I could literally shout it off the roof tops! 

♥- Leilani

D & C

Dilation and curettage. Yes, you read that correctly. I will be having this procedure done to mechanically remove the thickened endometrial lining in my uterus. I have tried two methods of progesterone before I came to this decision and my body will just not allow my uterine lining to shed effectively. I took the 10 day pill with prometrium and 5 day pill with provera - and while both pills did create a menstrual... apparently it was breakthrough bleeding rather than a true period. If I told you guys I wasn't nervous I would be lying... Our first pregnancy ended in a miscarriage and even then I didn't have this procedure performed. I have had a million thoughts running through my head and it has been an emotional week to say the least. I have never had an issue with my lining. EVER. I think that's why I'm so confused... but taking the time to think - this makes sense. I have PCOS AND I have also experienced a pregnancy and breastfeeding for almost the last two years combined. 

Breastfeeding suppresses the progesterone production in our bodies, so while estrogen continues to be made - there is no progesterone to shed the uterine lining. Mix that with PCOS (which already creates wonky hormone outage) and you are bound to feel the backlash eventually. To be honest with you guys, I am relieved that this is happening. If we weren't trying to conceive another baby, I'd have no idea that my lining was so thick... and I wouldn't be proactively trying to shed it. Abnormal cells can be made in a thickened lining which can in turn become cancerous... then I'd be facing a much more invasive procedure (hysterectomy) and our family planning dreams would come to an abrupt end. I am trying to keep all the positives in mind as I prep for my Pre-Op at the end of the week. Surgery is scheduled for early next week and I'm ready to start going through the motions.

Once the surgery is performed we can immediately start taking follistim to make a healthy, strong, follicle - and that has always been the end goal for us. Creating a healthy womb, healthy babe, and hopefully conceiving is the reason we sought out a fertility specialist in the first place. I'm so incredibly thankful that Justin will be on vacation for the next couple of weeks. Another perk of USAREC - being able to take vacation every three months instead of the normal twice a year block leave Justin was confined to on the line. If there is any recoop time for me, Justin will be home with the girls. Other than this surgery, this is where we are at with fertility progression. This was definitely unexpected and has set us back with timelines we were expecting... but it is okay. Everything will work out on its on! I'm just excited that we are getting one step closer. 

Here's a little diagram of how the procedure works. 

♥- Leilani