Hi there. This is my very first post on my very first blog. I kind of feel like I'm dipping my toe into a very big lake, but hey, it's a step.

I'm here because I needed a place to write about my new journey. It's not a trip I really wanted to take--in fact, it feels a lot like I somehow took a wrong turn somewhere without knowing it. But here I am, and there's not much I can do about it. Therefore, I'm trying to wrest what little control I can from the situation, and, after viewing some other (magnificent, by the way) blogs on the subject, decided to add my own ranting to the mass of information already on the web. I do not think this blog will add much that is new, entertaining, or insightful. At this point, I don't really care. I just needed a place to write about it, and thought that if on the off chance my writing helps someone else, then that's good too.

Here's the deal. I am 32 years old. My husband and I have been trying to have a baby for 8 months now. Being an avid consumer of internet information, before we started trying I read up on how to calculate ovulation; when to time sexual encounters, and what I should and should not be ingesting now that I wanted to have a baby (prenatal vitamins were good; caffeine, alcohol, smelly cheese, sushi, and lead paint chips were on the no-no list). I have always been healthy and have always had extremely regular cycles (the first and last time my period has *ever* been late was in the fall of 1998, during my first month of graduate school, when I was working approximately 80 hours a week and was still completely buried by the amount of reading I was supposed to accomplish every night). My mother conceived me at age 30 after 3 months of trying. There was every reason to suspect that I would become pregnant swiftly and without undue duress.

Well, the months went by, and nothing was happening. I consulted my gynecologist after 6 months, only to be told, "9 out of 10 couples will be pregnant after 12 months of trying." Which should have been reassuring, but then I read about a German study that had tracked over 300 women during a 12 month period as they were trying to conceive, and found that after 6 months, 80% were pregnant. In the following six months, another 10% would become pregnant.

Hm.

So, of the unlucky 20% of us who were left, only half would become pregnant in the next six months. Not great odds (for me at least--but I'm kind of a pessimist).

Well, we gave it the old college try for the next two months, but after my 8th period rolled around, I decided that I couldn't take it any longer without getting some concrete answers. They say if you are under 35 you should try for a year, but if you are over 35 you should try for 6 months before seeking help. I hate this, because it doesn't say what you should do if you are 32 and rather neurotic and have been waiting to have a baby for 12 years already. So, I invented my own protocol, and called my doctor.

My first blood draw was a few days ago. "Day 3 Hormones", as they are called, appear to be fine. The next step is the luteal phase bloodwork, and then a meeting with the doctor in early April. I'll let you know how it goes.

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