IVF.5 (In Which I Use Lots of $ Signs)

Just for reference, I AM posting every day. It's just that Minnesota is a lot further from the sun than most people realize. Sort of like Pluto, and you know how long the days are out there.

Three quick questions before I bore you with IVF stuff:

1. For almost twenty years I lived a care-free existence, safe in the knowledge that my Maybelline Ultra-Lash (waterproof sable brown) eyelashes would not smear, smudge or flake. Then, quite suddenly, they discontinued it and for the past six months I have been literally awash in mascaras that suck. So... I need a good waterproof mascara that can stand up to the steam from a teacup BUT will not make me look like Liza Minelli in "Cabaret". Recommendations, please.

2. How do you get dried rubber cement off of a microfiber chair? The follow up to this question is: why I am such a jackchump that I thought it was a good idea to try to re-use an uncancelled stamp?

3. Is 20 UI really the same thing as 0.2 ml? And is that the same as 0.2 cc? It is almost moot at this point because we decided yesterday that 20 IU of Lupron (Olé!) did indeed equal 0.2 ml on the insulin syringe and shot up accordingly. Of course, there is always tomorrow. And the day after that. And the day after that...

This is less of a quiz than a questionnaire but if you have any thoughts on the above I will be embarrassingly grateful. 

So... the Lupron injections started Sunday morning and they are no big deal. Really. I had my eyes screwed shut and my fingers dug into the mattress waiting for the painful part and it never happened. They actually hurt less than those damn acupuncture needles. Whether this is a ringing endorsement for high gauge needles or a scathing assessment of acupuncture depends on your perspective, I suppose.

Speaking of perspective, I am beginning to discover that there are some serious drawbacks to doing an IVF cycle from a remote location.

Now I know a lady never discusses money in public (of course, a lady doesn't talk about the fact that she and her husband went at it like minks last night either, does she?) but I feel like a little word problem is in order here:

Drugs - $2100

PGD for reciprocal translocation - $3000

Embryo biopsy in order to do PGD - $1500

IVF - $9000

If I was already in DC that $9000 would cover the early cycle monitoring such as ultrasounds and bloodwork. However, I am not there yet so I have to pay the Minnesota clinic to do it for a week. So....

Monitoring (5 visits) - $1900

I asked the nice folks at Rancho IVF DC if they would do itemized billing so that I was not actually paying for monitoring at two locations. They said they could, but that it would wind up being significantly more expensive in the long run. Considering they would use non-insurance negotiated pricing I believe them. It still irks me, though, to pay for anything twice.

Adding it all up, the grand total for our one IVF cycle is $17500. If you may recall, we were also being re-submitted for a program that would let us do up to 6 IVF cycles for $24000. Sounds like a deal, right? Well consider the fact that the drugs, local monitoring and the PGD (except biopsy) costs are not included. So the first cycle actually costs $31000 and if that fails then the total cost for two cycles would be $38000. Therefore we would have to do three cycles before it cost us less to do their sh*red risk program. And you know? I am not convinced that we are willing to do three IVF cycles with them if the first two fail. Not convinced at all.

Hmmm. Really makes you think.

Anyway, gushing money out the bunghole aside, I am supposed to go for my baseline ultrasound and bloodwork on cycle day two or three. This is what the DC clinic told me to do and it sounded perfectly reasonable at the time. The problem is that it seems likely that cycle days 2 and 3 will fall this Saturday and Sunday respectively and, unlike the DC clinic, my local clinic does not do baseline ultrasounds over the weekend. I left my DC nurse a message this afternoon asking what I should do but I have not heard back yet. Day 4? Seems strange. It's a pickle.

Finally, I have to buy airline tickets for the three of us but I cannot because I have no idea when we need to fly. I am hoping that once I start stims I can at least fake some travel dates but at that point I am pretty sure it will be less than seven days notice. Airlines always try to encourage you to just buy your own damn plane under those circumstances.

I gave all of my airline miles to Holly and Kevin last year, which is absolutely fine and I would do it again if I could, but the remaining family miles are distributed in such a way as to render it necessary for us to pay the airline $0.01 a mile plus a $25 handling fee in order to use them. It will be worth it if Patrick has enough miles to cover me plus some from Steve but still... irksome to pay for our own accumulated miles.

Sorry. I just read this over and it sounds like I am bitching a lot. I don't feel as annoyed as all this sounds, I swear it. If anything I am relieved that the whole Lupron thing is a non-event and I am hopeful that the addition of more drugs will be equally boring. I still have zero expectations for this cycle, other than the certainty that living with my in-laws for any period of time will cause my freckles to melt.

Lemme know about the mascara et al and I will come back tomorrow (real time) with riddles. Or juggling maybe.   

Comments

[Kim]

Hey Julia - Can't help you with anything except mascara - Clinique Gentle Waterproof Mascara and Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara (my personal favorite, but not waterproof). Clinique has the best, doesn't make you look like Liza but thick enough that it actually looks like you're using mascara.

Take care and best of luck with everything,
Kim

[manogirl]

Well, my help is mascara-related as well. I actually don't use mascara; I get my eyelashes tinted. Aveda (which is headquartered in Minn., I think) makes all-natural vegetable tints, and if you find the right aesthetician, she'll tint your eyelashes. It can be expensive, depending on the salon (it costs me $37, but only every six weeks). But you have a choice of the darkness of the tint, and it looks fantastic. And of course, it doesn't run at all.
All the girls at the salon where I have mine done do them for weddings--that way they can cry all they want and not have black tracks on their faces. I haven't bought a tube of mascara since I started tinting....

[Judy]

I'm no help on any of your questions, but I thought I'd comment anyway :)

Please let us know when Steve informs you that he could have bought his dream car several times over for what IVF is costing. I could see my husband saying "Are you sure about this? We could just buy a.."

[Karen]

.2 cc = .2 ml. Can't remember squat about IUs, sorry.

If you started Lupron on Sunday, you should be getting that lovely Lupron headache by tomorrow or Wednesday. And then your brilliant chatter will just cease as all the estrogen flies out of your body. The Lupron Loopies are not a trifle to be laughed at, just a prequel to menopause...this is a preview of how stupid we might actually become! OK, just speaking for myself here.

Funny Lupron story: I was in touch with a young woman once who was donating eggs. She'd been on Lupron for a while and told me that it had affected her not at all. I told her some of my silliest Lupron moments, and she said that she really didn't think she'd lost any brain function. Just a second later she started telling me the story of how she'd just been boating with some friends that day and dove into the lake with her glasses on. Lost her glasses. No, no stupid moves there! She was so luped out that she couldn't even make the connection. Ah, Lupron. I remember you well.

Rubber cement? Uncancelled stamp? Blame it on the Lupron, baby.

[Cricket]

Yes, mL = cc.

I'm a lab person, but I don't know ART-related measurements. I am unfamiliar with UI - if it was IU, it would be International Units, a different type of measurement completely. If it is actually uL (as in microliters, the Greek micro looking like u but with a big tail on the right side), it would be 200 uL = .20 mL. Obviously, it must be something differently entirely.

I used to sell BeautiControl Cosmetics - incredibly good stuff. I hate waterproof mascara, but I love theirs. Look for a rep at beauticontrol.com

I would bet a low heat iron on a towel over the rubber cement might loosen it up.

Minks are fab to watch, very playful creatures.

[Erica]

As I consistently forget to take out my contacts at night, and hence spend a lot of time rubbing my eyes the next day, I often had Robert Smith-type circles under my eyes, plus the fun of little flaking bits under my lids. Neutrogena Weightless Volume seems to have taken care of both problems.

Good luck on all fronts.

[ash_pdx]

Try making a new small gob of rubber cement by rolling a bit around on your fingers till it dries creating a booger-looking substance. then gently rub the dry "booger" on the spot. This works on paper to pick up dried cement, haven't tried it on microfiber. Good luck!

[Mollie]

I'm sorry, I'm still back on the minks.

You have so much sex. So much! Maybe I could come over and borrow a cup.

[AB]

1. Stila. Learn it, live it, love it.

2. Cotton ball and a tiny bit of Goo Gone (TM).

3. Yes. And, yes.

I am on FIRE! Ask me another.

[Jaine]

I would glady take "Robert Smith-type circles under my eyes," (which I only have by heredity I am also a LIAR) if it meant I could live in Crawley, England eat the soil from his (Robert's) backyard...I could go on and on, and on, but me Jaine: Me freak.
On a bus. trip once, I had forgotten to pack my mascara and once was in a remote, rather crappy part of the United States of Jesus and had to go to the plain ole' drug store which is a-okay but I used to be a Lancome whore, you see. Suffice to say, I found L'Oreal's Waterproof True Brown mascara and fell in love with it. No more Lancome Mascara for me. I was hooked.

Lupron blows...it can make you insane...but it can be worth it. Or so everyone else but me has said/verified.

Rock on!

On with the sexiness and batting of new eyelashes...

[Leigha]

Clinique has the BEST mascara, hands down. I use their Long n' Lovely Lashes (in Black/Brown), and I never smudge or smear, and it never ends up under my eyes when it should still be on my lashes. It's pricey, but so worth it!

[Karla]

I have the BEST mascara recommendation possible: L'Oreal DoubleExtend. It's the one where the tube has mascara on one end, and some kind of lash conditioner on the other end. Don't be put off by the two-step process--the stuff is awesome. You coat your lashes with the conditioner stuff, then right away before the conditioner dries on your lashes, put the mascara on. (I thought at first that you were supposed to let the conditioner dry, but definitely don't do that.) I don't know whether this mascara is billed as being waterproof or not, but trust me when I say it will not smudge, smear, flake, etc. It costs between $7 and $9 depending on where you buy it and whether it's on sale, and it's worth every penny. I am incredibly picky about mascara. My other favorite is a $15 tube of mascara from Lancome (Definicils), but since it's freaking insane to pay $15 for mascara, I started scouting around and found the L'Oreal stuff...and it turns out that L'Oreal is actually the same company as Lancome. By the way, any time you want some great makeup recommendations, check out this site: http://www.cosmeticscop.com/learn/reviews.asp
She makes tests makeup and hair products and gives non-partial reviews. There is more info in her book than on the site, but the site is awesome too.

[tenn]

I have no clue about the waterproof mascara. I prefer the stuff that drips down your face in the shower. We're doing donor egg at Shady Grove and have been granted the privilage to do shared risk. So, that's $22,000 for the shared risk fee, which of course does not include the drugs ($3500), the donor fee ($4000), the donor screening ($2000), the donor insurance ($400), and all my prescreening to date ($1200 out of pocket not covered by ins.) So, lets see.... that comes to $33,100. Yeah, that's a damn nice car.
Shady Grove has great success rates, so I put up with the molasses in January pace of getting to an actual cycle. It's taken almost a year to get to this point and the donor still isn't finished with her screening. I also put up with no information unless I call and harrass someone.

Oh crap... sorry didn't mean to highjack your blog complaining about the Grove. Enjoy the lupron.

I'll send super follicle and sperm vibes your way. I hope it will be worth it for both of us.

[Lauren]

I'm gonna be thinking about minks all day.

[susan]

I second the L'Oreal call, though I didn't know you weren't supposed to let that conditioner stuff dry. I used to sell Lancome and L'Oreal is their sister company. You can usually find a corresponding product in the L'Oreal line for everything on the Lancome line - the names are just slightly different. For example, the Plume Lancome blush is simply Plum in L'Oreal.

And "went at it like minks" eh? Well done.

[Brooklyn Girl]

I can't do mascara--no matter what I use it winds up all over my face.

As for the monitoring...since the lupron should be doing its thing to suppress you, waiting until day 4 shouldn't be a problem.

[Molly]

I have always had excellent luck with Mary Kay Signature Endless Performance Mascara. Water-resistant and never makes me look like Liza (Lord knows I don't need David Gest following me around). Removes easily with eye makeup remover.

[Diana]

No clue about mascara or liquid cement but I can speak to the UI question. I feel comfortable that UI in Espanol is IU in English as those wacky Spaniards put the noun ahead of the adjective (unit international).

As I am not an endocrinologist, I rarely prescribe stuff that is dosed in IU unless it is something like vit D. According to Dorland's med dictionary, IU is used to measure biological materials like hormones, enzymes, vits, etc. Analogous to getting a gross of boxes of tissues (number) rather than a stone of flour (weight) or a peck of pickles (volume). Consulting the PDR, .2 cc of USA Lupron is 1 mg (yes, 0.2cc=0.2ml). What you need to know is how many IUs of Lupron are in a cc of Lupron Espanol. You can then convert to dose. Basically, you need 1 mg of the stuff. Does this make any sense??? If I can help, feel free to shoot me an e-mail.

Buena suerta.

[Caroline]

I second the Clinique Gentle Waterproof mascara. It stays on without smudging or running but is easy to remove when you want it off.

[dish]

Well, it doesn't look like Southwest goes anywhere near Minnesota, so that option's out. They are the only airline I know that will not charge the "we're screwing you for buying a ticket at the last minute" fee.

Since three's a charm, I will add the now useless note that cc=ml. For the nerdy trivia aspect of it (in case you didn't know) cc stands for cubic centimeter, and if you make a tiny little box that is 1cm on each side and fill it with water, you'll have exactly one ml of water. That's why those are equal terms.

Yes, it is a slow morning at work.

[tracy]

So, how *do* minks do it? What exactly is minky-style?

I am *so* with you on the suckiness of the package IVF price. My insurance, crappy as it is, would actually have paid for pretty much everything except retrieval, ICSI, transfer, and embryo storage. But when I asked if it could be broken down, they said no, we give you this lower rate because you're paying cash and you're paying all at once. I'd still like to see how much the difference would have been. I mean, the pregnancy test was part of the package - tell me whose insurance doesn't pay for a freaking pregnancy test?

So, this alleged clinic that doesn't do u/s on weekends... they suck. Any clinic that claims to provide fertility treatment MUST be available on weekends.

[Rose]

Max Factor AquaLash.... It won't come off, even after a day at the beach!

[Maria]

Mascara: I'm all about MaxFactor Aqualash, too. The best thing about aqualash is that it comes in several different versions: 2000 Calorie, which is definitely smudgeproof; and Stretch Lash, which is a bit thinner (or would the word be lighter? or less clumpy?) and which I use after I got tired of 2000 Calorie. But I think the #1 best seller of all times is Maybelline's GreatLash, so that might be worth a shot, too. (I have a cousin who is a make-up artist and she swears GL.) The nice thing about any of the above is that you're out about $7 if you hate the brand--and after a kazillion dollars you have to spend in the next few weeks, that's nothin'!

[Amanda]

Yes, 20IU = 0.2mL = 0.2cc. I think the Lupron syringes are marked in both IU and mL. Just pull that sucker down to 20 and go at it. Baseline on cycle day 4 should be fine. Since you're suppressing with Lupron, it does not have to be exact. Cycle day 2, 3, 4, 7, whatever. I'm sure it will be fine. Good luck with the Lupron. I hope it's not a bitch to you.

[Lisa]

Almay One Coat Mascara Black/Brown.

[wix]

wow. i'm just thanking my lucky stars that we somehow managed to get pregnant without needing any assistance. i always suspected that we'd never be able to afford something like IVF, and now i know it to be true. what you're looking at is almost half of our adjusted gross income for 2004.

[Summer]

I'm here to weigh in with the cheapest of mascara recommendations: Cover Girl Triple Aquastay. It's less than $4, and it's the absolute best mascara I've ever used. If you're reusing stamps, surely you'd be interested in a mascara bargain. It creates a nice defined set of lashes, not at all clumpy, and while it will stand up to floods of tears or swimming with a toddler, it washes off easily. I use an eyelash curler, and this is the best mascara I've found for holding the curl. Big, big thumbs up for Cover Girl Triple Aquastay.

About everytbing else, I know nothing. Except that mink is very in this year.

[bunny]

Cheaptickets.com. My son uses them all the time to book flights back and forth to school. Which is halfway across the country. And he finds really really really good deals. Give em a look!

[Pam]

Maybelline Great Lash! Excellent! It comes in waterproof and none and is fabulous. Alure has chosen it for the last decade as the best mascara, regardless of price.

[victoria]

Okay, I'm not infertile (that I know of -- have never tried to get pregnant). But I love love love you and have my fingers crossed that you get (and stay) knocked up.

I was about to weigh in on the virtues of Clinique's waterproof mascara, but reading the other comments, I've become convinced that Clinique is robbing me blind and I need to switch to L'Oreal, or Cover Girl, or Max Factor. I've always been such a makeup snob, I never used drugstore brands even in junior high. See what good you're doing, freeing me from my expensive attachment to the pretty Clinique packaging?

Anyway -- I had NO IDEA that IVF was THAT expensive. One reads about people who've done it more than half a dozen times -- how do they possibly afford it? Did they inherit wealth? Sell their houses?

I'm sorry that things are so expensive. I hope you find your dream mascara and that you get pregnant with a viable embryo right away and get to spend you money on fun stuff after that.

[Liz]

Real Girl did a fantastic and thorough mascara review/testing last month! Catch parts one and two here:

http://realgirlbeauty.blogspot.com/2004/12/mascara-chronicles-part-i.html

http://realgirlbeauty.blogspot.com/2004/12/mascara-chronicles-part-ii.html

[Kimm]

I didn't use mascara until I was 32 and found Kiss Me Mascara:
http://www.blincinc.com/about_kiss_me.htm?source=google
You can also get it at Sephora. It's expensive but the only thing that I've found that actually doesn't smear, smudge, or flake and it comes off with a soaking of plain water and some pressure. Don't know if it's the shape of my eyes or the oils on my lids but none of the Clinique or Lancome products worked for me. Also tried a number of drug store brands with bad results. When I think of all the money I burned on raccoon eyes ... It could have paid for a vial of Lupron!

[corvine]

Any mascara I have ever used has the Liza effect on me. I swear by clear now. My hair is very dark anyway, so all clear mascara does is separate the lashes and it's probably not going to be any good for the blondes. But my 2p anyway.

[B. Mare]

I myself am quite fond of Clinque mascaras, and also Maybelline Great Lash (waterproof), though the latter tends to be clumpier...actually, my main cosmetic obsessions are good foundation and liquid eyeliner, so perhaps I am not qualified to speak.

Minks, eh? Sexy!

[Jamie]

Have you seen the Just for Redheads site? They have mascara in redhead-friendly colors which I've never seen elsewhere. Haven't tried the waterproof but have been quite pleased with what I've used.

[Scully]

Okay, because I'm on the fourth day of a migraine, I'm going to be a bag.

I don't wear mascara because I don't need it. My lashes are so long they dirty my glasses. But I have very light coloured lashes, so maybe think of doing what I do every three months. Have them tinted. I love it - it only costs me $12Cdn (about $8 or $9US) and I don't have to worry about clumping, smudging or running mascara.

Oh, and they naturally curl as well.

Yes, I'm a mean and evil person.

My grandfather used to raise minks and my mother has told me stories of minkings going at it. I have a picture now. And I think it's polite to discuss that in public.

I'll leave now.

[Christine]

I can only speak to #3. I think you mentioned insulin syringes, which are marked in units. I'm note sure that's the same thing as IU - I thought they were different, but I could be wrong. Upshot: 20 units = .2 cc = .2 ml. You are shooting yourself up correctly.

Holy Christ, woman, you actually put on makeup? During the day?!? I suppose this means you comb your hair, too. You may just be my new hero.

Oh - another note: We actually do need some yard work done, and I was thinking that Steve might really work out. We don't have XBox.

[Kate]

Maybelline Full & Soft (Waterproof) is awesome.

[Shamhat]

I'd go for the baseline Friday. All you need is to be sure that you don't have a cyst left over from your last stim cycle that might interfere with your response. Then go to Quest on CD 2--there's always one open somewhere.

[grumpygirl]

i can only help with mascara: almay, in the white tube, not the greay one, in a shade called brown/black (we redheads have to keep an eye out for the others!)

[mellie]

Um, yeah, I am flashing back on my conversations with the financial coordinator reviewing all the programs and treatment options, which basically sounded like: blah blah blah blah $25,000....blah blah blah blah $25,000. At the end of the day, who knows if we won't just end up with that adorable bundle of invoices to kiss and snuggle. However, for you, I as optimistic as you'll allow people to be!

[Sarah]

They send insulin syringes with Lupron. With insulin 1 unit equals 0.01 cc so 20 units equals 0.2 cc or 0.2 ml or 1 mg of Lupron. My clinic told me how many units to shoot up each day so it was easier to draw up. I wonder how many women have been over suppressed by giving themselves a ten-fold overdose?!

[Jen/VintageUterus]

take this tidbit from an ol' art major: rubber cement remover. You can get it at art supplies stores.

Good luck, sister.

[giddy]

In the past I had good luck with several Almay mascaras, all in silver tubes, but they discontinued my favorite one and the last one I bought seemed to smudge more than the old one. So after reading all this I want to try the Loreal double extender, and for that matter, the Maybelline Great Lash. Good luck with the IVF process!

[Expat]

1mL= 1000uL (that should be a mu, but the keyboard won't let me do it - sign for micro)= 1cc.

Depends on the concentration of your Lupron, which should be mentioned on the package insert. My follistim/puregon insert says quite explicitly "100IU= 100uL" (mu again), which is, of course 0.1mL.

IU is a shorthand way of writing some odd number for things with big molecular weights, like vitamins and hormones. It's a similar concept to a mole. One IU will be a certain number of grams of the active ingredient, and depending on the concentration, may be 1uL, or 5uL, or 100uL. Depends on what the factory decides. (and do you think I can find the packet insert on the net?). It's just like making up any solution - you decide the concentration, and then the volume you need to deliver a certain weight of the active ingredient depends on the concentration.

Hopefully, the lupron people are nice and helpful like the follistim people, and chose a nice dilution factor so that the calculations are easier for you. But you could easily be an order of magnitude out (as injecting 20uL is NOT going to be accurate).

You should check the insert and ring the clinic to confirm what it is for the exact brand you are using.

(see - this is why you yanks should get taught proper measurements at school and not all those pecks and furlongs and gallons and things)

[Expat]

OK, if you search for lupron at www.fda.com (produced by TAP pharm), it says it's 1mg/200uL. Not IU. Bugger.

I can't find any conversion from IU to mg anywhere.

[me again]

FYI, if you google shady grove lupron, you're number three and four on the list...

[Amber]

Wondered to your blog from Julie's...or maybe tertia's..can't remember now. Just wanted to wish you good luck with your cycle. I have a DS from IVF (shared risk program) and am trying for #2 (SHARED RISK AGAIN)...cycle #7 overall. Think I might be addicted, but at least I feel like I am getting my money's worth. Feels silly now that I even debated whether or not to do Shared Risk for #2. who was I kidding! May success find you quickly!
Amber in Maryland