this morning i went in for the hysterosonography, so that the docs could get some pictures of the inside of my uterus. it wasn't too bad. in terms of discomfort, it was about the same as the hysterosalpingogram (the test that made sure my fallopian tubes were open and the ovaries were working correctly), and even a little less weird than that one since there were no balloons involved. they did the procedure in a regular exam room. first the doctor did a regular sonogram to get the lay of the land, and then she used a speculum and a catheter to inject a bunch of iodine-saline solution into my uterus. that felt crampy and weird, but not awful. then she did another sonogram, after the solution made it easier to see the actual surface of the uterus. i tried to watch on the monitor but it made me a little queasy watching the liquid slosh around in there. she snapped some photos and that was that.
now, this was not the fertility doctor that we met with before, just another doctor that i didn't know until today. so i'll cut her a little slack, i guess... but she left just saying that they'd go over the results with me at our "results appointment" that happens once all of the tests and procedures are done. after she was gone, the nurse told me to lie down for a few minutes to make sure i felt okay, and pointed to the monitor to show me the polyp they'd found. why on earth the doctor didn't share that nugget of information with me, i have no idea. i asked the nurse what that meant and she said sometimes they like to take them out, so they might want to do that, but i'd have to wait to see what the doctor said at my follow-up. but heck, at least she mentioned it. she was also super nice and made sure i wasn't dizzy before i sat up. she even smirked a little when she reminded me about the procedures required for my post-coital test this friday, and said she'd see me then. i appreciated that.
so i've done a little reading about polyps and what i know is that the experts don't even know that much about them. they're growths of cells that are attached to the walls of the uterus, caused by an overgrowth of cells in the lining. any time i hear about cells overproducing of course i think cancer, and apparently it's normal to test them and make sure that they're not cancerous. i suppose the endometrial biopsy that i'm having next week will also test for this. it seems that polyps can be caused by hormone issues, usually only occur in women in the 40s and 50s (ha! or... sigh), and may or may not affect fertility. Some studies have shown that removing the polyps has led to increased fertility in some women, so that's a bonus. it seems there are a couple of ways to deal with them and it doesn't sound awful... my guess is that if there's any chance it might help us conceive i'll have it done. details here: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/uterine-polyps/DS00699/DSECTION=tests-and-diagnosis
so now -- with the memory of the fertility doctor talking about the possibility of prematurely aging eggs -- i'm having visions of my prematurely aging body experiencing early menopausal hormonal shifts and rebelling against ever getting pregnant. but i suppose there's not much to do but wait and see once all the results are in and the doctor has a chance to look over everything and come to some conclusions.
oh, and i have to go for more bloodwork. apparently they need some "frozen" samples and the fertility place doesn't do frozen samples, so i have to go to a lab to have it done... another 10 vials. i think i will go on friday after the post-coital exam, since that doesn't seem like it will be anything much and i'm going to be late to work anyway. as for today, i'm now at work so should probably try to ignore the slight cramps and iodine-saline solution discharging from my body and get some stuff done.
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