OUCH!

Ouch.
Normally this stuff doesn't hurt quite so bad, but MAN it sucked today.
Had my 2nd appointment for bloodwork and ultrasound...My follicles are looking good - growing as expected. 

TIME OUT:
For those new to the IVF experience, let me detail the process..well, MY process anyway.  It's a little different for everyone.
You go in for initial bloodwork and ultrasound on day 3 of your period.  This is to get a base line of levels and to find out of you have any follicles in your ovaries (it's an internal ultrasound - fun fun fun).  Then they call you to let you know that you need to start your injections.  I take two shots at night and one in the morning.  The Gonal-F makes my follicles grow nice and big.  The eggs are inside the follicles and the follicles get bigger and bigger thanks to the drugs.  In most normal women, there is one follicle that develops and grows and the eggs eventually pops out - that's ovulation.  In me they give me drugs so that lots of follicles develop giving us the best shot at having one that works.  So I take Gonal-F at night and in the morning.  Also at night I take Menapur.  That makes sure that I don't ovulate on my own.

So you go back to the doctor after 3 days and they check again (that's what I did today).  After that you go every other day and then eventually every day.  They keep checking the levels and follicles to be sure that you're taking the right dosage of meds.  Once the follicles get to be at least 18 mm (um, that's huge and I usually have 10-12 of them and feel like I'm will explode) they trigger ovualtion and exactly 36 hours later i go in to get the eggs retrieved.  You'll hear more about that later...in fact let me save the details for then - keep you in suspense!!

OK, so my point is they hurt me today and it sucked.  Ugh.  Plus I have to get 2 more shots later tonight.  I don't mean to be a cry baby but I am.  I think I'm having a mini-pitty-party for myself.  Hmm, could I possibly be moody as hell?  This first surge of hormones is tough.  Oh, wait!  I didn't fully explain why the blood draw hurts so bad.  See when you keep getting blood drawn, the veins start to collapse and scar.  Since this is my 4th attempt and I get my blood drawn approximately 10 times per cycle, my veins are a mess!  And I have all this scar tissue that they have to get through in order to reach my blood.  As a result, it kills!  Just a little bonus, as if being left childless isn't bad enough right?

I feel like such a complainer.  Maybe I have earned the right to complain?