IVF: SHOTS SHOTS SHOTS

Barren Betty had a LOT of anxiety about the shots leading up to our IVF cycle. My protocol was pretty “aggressive” due to me being half tortoise as far as response to IVF meds is concerned, 300 iu Gonal F, 150 iu Menopur and then added Cetrotide starting around stim day 9. I wanted to share with you all what I learned about the whole SHOTs process.

1.     The shots do not (really) hurt!

I had nightmares leading up to stim day 1 where needles would float towards me in the night and jab me . . . but it was obviously far less terrifying than that. My stim drugs were all subcutaneous, the needles were pretty short and I found that my stomach was easier than thigh. Trigger was my only IM and I didn’t feel it AT ALL (shot out to Hot Nuts for all of his practice on oranges and  . . .rotten potatoes beforehand)!

2.     Take some time to figure out all of your meds

We had a GIANT shipment arrive from Mendell’s Pharmacy and I would be lying if I said I was not extremely overwhelmed at first. I tried to organize them in a way that made sense (see cover photo of my gorgeous med hanger thing), the first thing you will want to do is be certain which meds you need to refrigerate and which you don’t. For me, it was mandatory to keep the Cetrotide in the fridge. I also kept the Gonal F pens in the fridge, but you can apparently leave them at room temperature for a certain amount of time. The Menopur and Pregnyl did not need to be refrigerated.

3.     Have a shot buddy!

Hot Nuts stood by me for each shot and would cheer me on. He would also set his cell timer for 10 seconds once I injected the meds as our clinic  suggested  after you inject to wait for 10 seconds before pulling out the needle.

4.     GO SLOWLY

I found that I had much less pain from the needle if I inserted VERY slowly in and also removed the needle VERY slowly.

5.     ICE ICE Baby

I would ice before every single injection for at least ten minutes. I know some people say that they are not a fan of ice, for me it was mandatory.

6.     Mind over Matter

I was terrified to actually poke myself. I had to just go for it like the thousands of other IVF warriors before Barren Betty who have done the same. You can also have someone else do your injections for you if the thought of it is too much! Hot Nuts was itching to give me my trigger shot and he did amazing!

7.     Timing is key

As I’m sure you all know, the shots are all relatively time-sensitive each day. For me the Cetrotide and of course the trigger shots were especially time sensitive.

8.     Just chillllll

Don’t fret if you don’t get ALL of the liquid when you are mixing - I found it impossible to get every last drop and would obsess over trying to suck up every last one into my syringe. 

9.     IT BURNS

Menopur burns, there is no way around it. I did find if I iced and injected slowly that it burned less.

10.  No pain, no gain

Some days the shots were more difficult and stressful than others. Stay focused on the end goal of a precious baby, try to be as resilient as possible so that you can push through the 8-10 days of stims like the IVF warriors you all are!

BB- what tips and tricks have you all learned with the shots?

XOXO, 

BB