Time to Lose Weight

So, I know I haven't given an update in a while, largely because I didn't really have much to say. But, we met with our fertility doctor today, so I figured it was time.

In July, we went through our third failed cycle of Clomid. Sometimes they'll have people do up to 6 rounds, sometimes even more, but that's generally when the woman has a clearly defined problem with ovulating, which I don't. When the cause of infertility is unknown, they'll often move on after three tries, so that's why we met with my doctor; to reevaluate where we go from here.

My doctor told us that her suggestion for our next step was IVF. However, as I've mentioned before, I truly feel like my weight is at least part of the problem, and if that's true, I wasn't sure I wanted to go straight into IVF when it's so dang expensive. So, we agreed that we'd take a break from treatment for the next three months or so while I work really hard on losing weight. At that point, we'll reevaluate again and decide whether we think it's worth trying Clomid again or if we want to go straight to IVF.

In the meantime, my doctor wrote me a prescription for Metformin. While it's technically a diabetes medication, it's been shown to help women with PCOS and other ovulation problems to have more regulated cycles. And sometimes it also helps them with weight loss. While I don't show the signs of a typical case of PCOS, and therefore wasn't given that diagnosis, the doctor did say she thinks I may have a very mild, atypical form of it. So we're hoping Metformin can help me out and work together with my other efforts to be healthier.

Along those lines, as some of you may know, I cut back on my hours at work a few weeks ago. When I first felt motivated to exercise more, it was good. But, I felt like I didn't have any free time, especially if I was going to also need time to fix healthier meals for us. When the thought came to my mind that I could just reduce my hours at work, I couldn't stop thinking about it and just felt like it was the right decision.

So, I cut back to 30 hours a week instead of 40, which means 6 hour days instead of 8 hour days. And since I no longer have to take a lunch, I get home about three hours earlier than I used to. While I'm still working on getting better at making us healthy meals, it has definitely helped with giving me time to exercise without me feeling like I have no time to myself. Additionally, I no longer have to stress as much about making up time I miss for appointments, which will be especially helpful if we do eventually move on to IVFs.

Because we've decided to put treatments on hold while I lose weight, I've also decided to renew my membership with Weight Watchers with the hopes that I can be successful with it again. I had lost almost 20 pounds the last time I was on it before I let myself slip on how well I followed the program. I'll also be keeping up with using the Wii Fit U game/system to track my steps, etc., and I'm still enjoying my Zumba and Just Dance games as well. I'm also hoping to add in some yoga, time at the local rec center, and some occasional workouts from Pinterest.

So, for the next little while, you can probably expect more updates on my weight loss, but not too much about actual fertility treatments. If any of you have workouts or healthy meals that you just love, feel free to share them with me. And, if I ever try to talk you into going out and getting a treat with me, take me to get a smoothie or something healthier instead. I'll probably complain in the moment, but I'll thank you for it later.