Retrieval Day

Last night, as I sat in our hotel room, having taken a pain pill, thinking non-stop about retrieval day, I wasn't even sure how to put it into words...

So much excitement, so many nerves, and in the midst of it all an operating room, a doctor and nurse who care so much...and fear.

Yep, fear.

You see, as we sat in the waiting room of the Billings Clinic Surgery Center yesterday waiting to be called back, fear came.  It all became so real, so very very real. And what if it didn't work?

Nurse Lisa came to get us.  She was so kind.  I was hoping for kind!  She took us to a staging room, I was instructed to put on a hospital gown and special socks with a rubber sole for walking to the operating room.

I must insert here that the night before I had painted my toe nails Aruba Blue with silver sparkles in preparation for surgery day!  No one saw my toes but me:)

Nurse Lisa asked if I wanted hot air pumped into my gown...why of course!  She told us she was so excited for us.  She loves this part of her job...helping the IVF patients every other month.  We told her part of our story.

She took Joel to his appointment and started my IV.  I do not  like IV's.  She offered me TV and a magazine, I took both.  I thought, why not!  I watched the trivia part of Live with Kelly before Dr. Shomento came to visit me...

She told me she wanted Joel to pray for the team, even though she knew he already was!  He did not get to go to the operating room with us, or say a prayer in her presence, but he was praying!

Then Dr. Warren, the anesthesia guy, came to visit me.  He was so kind.  He explained to me what he would do.

Then another nurse came in, her job was to walk me and my IV down to the operating room...

I was scared!  I felt alone.  On the way the new nurse asked me if i was excited or nervous or both.  I said both!

The operating room was a real live operating room.  It was big and full of people working.  The best moment came when I heard a, "Hi Melissa."  It was Julia!  Julia came!  I was hoping she would be there.  I wanted to hug her but I was instructed to lay down on the table.  I felt a peace knowing Julia was there helping, she was familiar! 

The embryologist came in while they were hooking me to monitors to have me identify our embryo dishes.  A nurse also asked me to identify myself.  They are really careful here!

The last thing I remember was Dr. Warren saying something like he wasn't sure I could feel that he had given me anything, and then I was out.

I woke up slowly, with eyes still closed, to nurse Miranda asking me if she should go get Joel...yes, then she asked if I was in pain, yes, how bad?...a 6.

While my eyes were still closed I remember hearing someone say, "10 eggs" and I remember thinking, that's not me, I had more eggs than that...