Holy crap, I am awful at regular updates (duh, Captain Obvious). I don't even have an excuse for not posting - I'm home all the time, our internet connection is *usually* fine, and I even have stuff to write about finally! I'm just terribly lazy about updating, and I really hope to work on posting more frequently (but let's be real, given my track record, it probably won't happen. Sorry).
Anyway, I said there was news, so ...
When I last left off, we were on a treatment break of indefinite length so we could attempt to save money for an IVF cycle, and I was super bummed and disappointed. Since then, things have changed.
A few weeks ago, I called our insurance company to find out how much of our limited infertility coverage we had left after 3 IUIs. (Quick recap: our insurance provided coverage for infertility treatment/procedures with a lifetime limit of $15,000.) In a super rare occurrence, something actually went right for us. Our policy changed in January, and we no longer have an infertility coverage limit - everything is covered, we'll only be responsible for the office visit co-pays. Instead of having to wait for at least a year (probably closer to 2 years), we can move on with IVF at some point in 2014!
I had a phone consult with our RE about next steps two weeks ago, and that went exactly as I thought it would. Dr. H wasn't pushy about moving on to IVF, but she definitely made it clear that she didn't think IUI with injections would be successful. She laid out the basic outlines of how IVF cycles are done at the clinic, gave me the list of the medications I would be using (Lupron, Follistim, and Menopur), and reassured me that given my past responses to medications, she thinks I'll be on lower doses of the meds (which will hopefully result in a slightly lower pharmacy bill).
As it stands now, we still have some saving to do - specialty medications aren't covered under our insurance plan, and they definitely aren't cheap. There are a few discount programs available for out of pocket patients that I've applied for, which would help us get even closer to our IVF cycle. With any luck, we're hoping to start the process around September. B wants to take advantage of our insurance miracle before they change their minds and decide to take away our infertility coverage next year (but hopefully that won't happen). :)
So that's pretty much everything infertility-related that's been happening around here. It sounds kind of crazy, but I'm really looking forward to starting IVF. Mostly I think I'm just happy to see some light in this damn tunnel.
