Waking up to a sunny day in Mexico is par for the course, and despite knowing it’s coming, it still raises my spirits immensely in the morning. I had spent Tuesday night after our first appointment having fitful dreams about hormone injections and at-home pregnancy tests gone awry. Stepping out onto the balcony and feeling the fresh warm breeze was the perfect antidote for my anxieties.

We didn’t have an appointment on Wednesday, but after A*’s period surprised us a few days early, we were asked to pop into the clinic to learn how to do the stimulating hormone injections (stims). We had a picnic lunch packed and had made plans to adventure up and down the coast on Wednesday, and we stopped by the clinic briefly to get the process started before setting forth.

The nurse had explained on our first visit what the injections would be: Gonal F, which is a follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), and Merapur, which contains both FSH and luteinizing hormone (LH). Basically, during IVF they often are used together to stimulate the development of multiple eggs and to protect the health of the ovaries during egg production. The doses for each were determined based on the results from the bloodwork we had done before coming to Mexico, and we were prescribed 225 IUs for the Gonal F and 75 IUs for the Merapur. Gonal F is already prepared in a pen type applicator where you twist the top to the proper dosage, add the needle to the other end and inject into the belly fat close to the belly button. The Merapur was prepared by the nurse in a small vile, and is drawn out with a syringe for the injection. Both are administered subcutaneously each evening on opposite sides of the belly button.

A* is clearly the leading lady in all of this, but this tutorial/appointment was directed towards me. I will be administering the injections for A* and so far this was my only contribution to the process medically. I’ve read many accounts from women about being the “other mother” and how you can feel left out of the process and so it was nice and I felt important to have a role to play at this stage. Of course A* could do the injections herself but since we’re in this together it is important to both of us that we take every opportunity to share that role, however small.

The class was quick and the nurse administered the first injections whilst explaining everything in great detail. After the injections, we collected the prescriptions to take with us. It was lucky we had packed that picnic because the prescriptions would need to travel on ice, and be stored in the fridge. They don’t necessarily have to be kept cold, but they can’t get above room temperature and “room temperature” in Mexico is well above the upper limit set. We put our plans for the day aside and returned to our condo to store the prescriptions safely. Once there, we decided to take it easy for a few hours and make plans with some friends for that evening instead of picnicking on the coast.

Not long before coming to Mexico, we saw a Facebook post from a friend who lives in the UK and who was planning a trip to Cancún during the same period we would be there. Although it was totally unplanned, we definitely intended to take advantage of being in the same city for much needed hang outs. T* and her friends were staying on an island off the coast of Cancún, and so we planned to pick them up at the ferry terminal and take in the sights and sounds of the hotel zone that night. We shared a great dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe and wandered around the bustling bars before all heading back to the condo late that night.

On Thursday, we went back with them to their tiny island home, Isla Mujeres. We planned to see the island, spend some quality time on the beach and go back to visit the boat they had been staying on for their trip. We had a great time taking in the vibrancy of the island, but when it came time to go back to the boat A* began to feel the first of the side effects from the hormone injections. She got wildly sea sick and couldn’t even sit up on the boat. The hormones are known to cause nausea, but admittedly – so are boats. Since A* spent much of her early years around various boats in the Navy, we didn’t reckon the sea sickness was the culprit and so we called it a night and set back for the mainland. This wasn’t a bad idea anyway, since we had to be back at the clinic Friday morning for more bloodwork.

Bright and early Friday morning, we reported to the clinic for our bloodwork appointment. This was to check A*’s hormone levels after a few days of the injections to make sure the levels were on track. We were told the results would be back within an hour and the clinic would call us with any news. At this point, we also picked up another Gonal F prescription just in case we had to up the dosage over the weekend. The clinic isn’t open over the weekend, and they wanted to make sure we were all set to continue the injections regardless of the estradiol result. We set off back to the condo to have (another) lazy day and to await the doctor’s call. It was about two hours later that we were informed that A*’s levels looked good, and we would keep going with the current doses. A* began feeling a few more side effects during our lounge fest at the condo: bloating, lethargy and no shortage of crying during Intervention (A* is generally not a crier) but we were ultimately happy that we stayed in for the day. We had more plans with T* and L* (an American friend of T*’s) to drive to Chichén Itzá on Saturday and we decided we’d appreciate the rest before the big adventure. We trekked to our second World Wonder as planned, and got to take in some of the Carnaval atmosphere in the small towns that dot the highway between Cancún and the archeological site. We ate what can only be described as “hole in the wall tacos”, and sat in a few fragrant squares and watched as parade floats and locals gathered. We’ve experienced Carnevale in Italy, and it was wonderful to experience it through a totally different set of eyes in Mexico. Our friends depart for home soon, and so we had a quiet evening in the pool back at the condo and plan to track down some more Carnaval events in Cancún today. It seems to be a well kept secret that is mostly for the enjoyment of the local residents, and not really a tourist attraction. We’ll do our best to blend in (hint: we won’t).

Our next appointment is tomorrow morning (March 4), for another trans-vaginal ultrasound. This time, the doctor is checking the growth of A*’s follicles. We’ve got our fingers crossed ‘til then hoping for both lots of growth, and a good report from the doctor on our progress thus far.