On an October day in 2007 I was caught speeding down the Northway on my way to IUI#2. The clinic we went to is in the Albany area; about a one hour and 20 minute drive one way. An IUI is an artificial insemination. Sperm is collected from the male and then injected thru a catheter into the female.
Often, S and I drove to our appointments separately so that we could each go about the work day afterward. This particular morning I got out the door a few minutes late. I tried to make up the time but encountered not only traffic but road work. I was paying more attention to the clock than I was to the speedometer. S had been to the clinic at 7 that morning to "donate" and I was scheduled for the 9am "deposit" (yes, very romantic!) The procedure HAS to be done within a certain amount of time and I knew I was pushing it. And so, my lead foot got a little heavy .
I saw the lights behind me, pulled over to the side of the road and thought to myself... when he asks me where I am headed and why I am in such a hurry..... what do I tell him?
I thought if I told him the truth, while it may be a little embarrassing, he might have a good chuckle at the thought of a woman racing to the fertility clinic to "pick up" what her husband had left behind. I thought this might put him in a better mood. Heck, maybe he would even sympathize, put his ticket book away and give me a police escort. Can you imagine... Everyone get out of the way!! This woman is trying to conceive!!
No such luck. When he asked where I was going; I responded honestly. He didn't even flinch. He didn't understand my urgency or even see the humor. Heck, he probably hears it all. He wrote me a ticket for the full speed and sent me on my way. I still made it to the clinic in time for the procedure, but learned to leave the house a little earlier on important mornings such as these.
Going through IUI procedures and hormone treatments that are required can make it hard to make plans.
The summer of 2009 we were again determined and signed up for another round of IUI's. One of my very good friends was getting married and she asked me to take the photos. I was thrilled and agreed! When the wedding day came along we were knee deep in the regimen of injectable medications and ultra-sounds.
It is essential to take these meds around the same time each day. I knew I would need to go up to our hotel room at a certain time to give myself the shot. I kept looking for the best opportunity to take a little break. After the introductions and the first dance, I found the DJ and let him know that I would need be unavailable for at least 15 minutes. He said I was safe to leave.
I ran up to our room, mixed the meds, injected them and came back downstairs. I made no stops along the way. When I returned, I walked through the doors into the room and heard a collective "there she is!" As it turned out they had been looking for me the entire time. They were even announcing this over the sound system! I am not sure if there was some sort of break down in communication between the DJ's. or what but I was mortified to say the least. I just wasn't comfortable telling everyone, "I was just up in our room injecting fertility hormones!" so I let them think I was goofing off somewhere... if they had only known!
That same summer we were invited to a friends house for a Bar-B-Q. Again, we had to bring the meds along. They have to be kept cool, so we packed a small cooler and the sharps container; and we were off.
On the drive we joked that if we walked in with the cooler the hosts might assume it was food or beer and then we would have to explain. To avoid this we literally snuck the cooler in the house (and then immediately out) in what I remember as nothing less than a 007 mission.
No matter what we always had laughter. These situations presented us with the opportunity to laugh at our selves AND the situation. A sense of humor carried us through some really hard times then and it still gets us through today. There is nothing better for heart and soul.
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