God, Please let this one stick......

We have been trying to test out of my hCG "trigger" shot.  With the FMU (first morning's urine), I tested.  On Sunday February 27, Monday February 28, and Tuesday March 1, 2011 I finally tested out.  What does this mean?  It means there wasn't enough hCG left in my system to register on a HPT (home pregnancy test).  We felt like it was safe to assume that if I actually conceive, we would be able to tell my a positive on a HPT.  Well, Wednesday morning was not unlike any other.  Actually it was.  I was excited that I only had to work 4 hours that morning.  I awoke, took my temp, and then went to the bathroom to POAS (pee on a stick).  Another thing different????  There was actually a faint pink line! 

So here I was at 4:48 AM trying to examine the HPT to see if I was actually seeing something.

Can you see it???  It's pretty faint, but it's definitely there!  One of the other fine ladies on BBC tweeked it for us so that you too may actually see it.



Well... just in case it's not yet clear, I took a digital test too  :)  One of the BBC girls decorated it!

You would think that we would be elated, wouldn't you?  Well, we wanted to be, but we were also worried that maybe, just maybe, it was still the trigger shot showing up.  So what did I do?  I called the OB's office and asked his nurse.  She said:

"Well, that's a good question.  I'll have to talk to him about it and call you back."

So, I waited.  A short while later, the nurse called me back and said:

"He said that you can begin taking home tests two weeks after we gave you the shot.  We gave you the shot on the 17th, so you can test tomorrow." 

 So I said:

"Well, I was wondering because I took a test this morning, and it said Positive."

The nurse got all excited and asked me to come in on Thursday, and of course I said I would!

So Thursday came (today actually) and I went in to the OB's office.  First they had me POAS.  It came back positive but the lab guy said it was pretty faint.  So the OB sent me back to the lab for blood work.  They told me it would take two hours to get the results.  Oh heavens, that seemed like FOREVER!  By my calculations, giving them an extra 15 minutes, I figured I should hear something by 3:00 PM.  Well, 3:30 came and went.  Finally at 3:45, I called them.  The results were on the OB's desk, but he had to okay them before they could give me any information.  They promised me they'd call me as soon as possible.  About 15 minutes later, they did.  So, my quant levels are at 35.  The OB said that what that means is that my baby is about 1 week old (which makes me 3 weeks pregnant according to the 40 week plan because the first 2 weeks are before conception).  So I AM PREGNANT!!!!!

It's VERY, VERY early yet.  My husband and I are cautiously excited.  The OB wants to see me back on March 22nd to check levels again.  So I went from a 2ww, to yet another 2ww.  I just want to know that my baby is growing like he/she should be.  Don't you know I'll be spending a lot of time in prayer over the next few weeks!  LOL

 It's kinda crazy because I came home from work Tuesday night, exhausted.  I had been feeling nauseated off and on all day, and even told my husband how bad it was.  Of course, we're seeing a lot of the stomach virus right now in the ED and I just knew I was trying to come down with it.  Thankfully that's not the case.  I also told my husband that night that I knew AF would be coming because my breasts felt heavy.  I'll take all of this without complaint if it's baby related, that's for sure!

According to Fertility Friend, and based on my Ovulation Date, my estimated due date is November 12, 2011.  That means I am considered 3 weeks and 5 days pregnant. 

So here's some information about hCG... maybe this will help us all understand how this works. 

The hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (better known as hCG) is produced during pregnancy. It is made by cells that form the placenta, which nourishes the egg after it has been fertilized and becomes attached to the uterine wall. Levels can first be detected by a blood test about 11 days after conception and about 12 - 14 days after conception by a urine test. In general the hCG levels will double every 72 hours. The level will reach its peak in the first 8 - 11 weeks of pregnancy and then will decline and level off for the remainder of the pregnancy.

Key things to remember about hCG levels:

• In about 85% of normal pregnancies, the hCG level will double every 48 - 72 hours. As you get further along in pregnancy and the hCG level gets higher, the time it takes to double can increase to about every 96 hours.
• Caution must be used in making too much of hCG numbers. A normal pregnancy may have low hCG levels and result in a perfectly healthy baby. The results from an ultrasound after 5 - 6 weeks gestation are much more accurate than using hCG numbers.
• An hCG level of less than 5mIU/ml is considered negative for pregnancy, and anything above 25mIU/ml is considered positive for pregnancy.
• The hCG hormone is measured in milli-international units per milliliter (mIU/ml).
• A transvaginal ultrasound should be able to show at least a gestational sac once the hCG levels have reached between 1,000 - 2,000mIU/ml. Because levels can differentiate so much and conception dating can be wrong, a diagnosis should not be made by ultrasound findings until the hCG level has reached at least 2,000.
• A single hCG reading is not enough information for most diagnoses. When there is a question regarding the health of the pregnancy, multiple testings of hCG done a couple of days apart give a more accurate assessment of the situation.
• The hCG levels should not be used to date a pregnancy since these numbers can vary so widely.
• There are two common types of hCG tests. A qualitative hCG test detects if hCG is present in the blood. A quantitative hCG test (or beta hCG) measures the amount of hCG actually present in the blood.

Guideline to hCG levels during pregnancy:

hCG levels in weeks from LMP (gestational age)* :

• 3 weeks LMP: 5 - 50 mIU/ml
• 4 weeks LMP: 5 - 426 mIU/ml
• 5 weeks LMP: 18 - 7,340 mIU/ml
• 6 weeks LMP: 1,080 - 56,500 mIU/ml
• 7 - 8 weeks LMP: 7, 650 - 229,000 mIU/ml
• 9 - 12 weeks LMP: 25,700 - 288,000 mIU/ml
• 13 - 16 weeks LMP: 13,300 - 254,000 mIU/ml
• 17 - 24 weeks LMP: 4,060 - 165,400 mIU/ml
• 25 - 40 weeks LMP: 3,640 - 117,000 mIU/ml
• Non-pregnant females: <5.0 mIU/ml
• Postmenopausal females: <9.5 mIU/ml

Well... I hope that helped.  Maybe on March 22nd at my next appointment we can do an ultrasound.  He did during my last pregnancy, so maybe he will for this one.  God, please let this one stick.  Please.