Decisions

So, a month or so ago, we had another one of our talks about birth control. I know this seems like an odd topic for a couple that can't get pregnant, no matter how much they try, but it's an important topic for us. We actually don't want an unplanned pregnancy. To be honest, I am not abstaining from all things that I should when pregnant (*cough* wine *cough*), and we are not at a point in our lives where an unplanned pregnancy would be a good thing (lots of time apart, busy work lives, extensive travel for the next 6 months, a likely job change for me, possible move...etc.). So. We decided that we should do something more than haul out a condom whenever we were enjoying each other's company, so to speak.

We were both tired of the condoms, and the fact that as a monogamous married couple, they seemed kind of...adolescent. I had been on the Pill for years and years and years. Loved what it did for my face...not so sure about the potential side effects of systemic hormones. Not to mention, I'm nearing the age barrier of 35, and I wasn't sure what the doc would say about that choice.

After consultation with my family doc (side note: I looove having a family doc, where I can discuss my father's new diagnosis of arrhythmia, my toenails with the possible fungal infection, and my long-term birth control choices all in the same visit), we decided that the IUD was going to be the best choice for us. Hormonal, yes, but long-term, reliable birth control, with localized hormones as opposed to systemic.

I scheduled the insertion and didn't think anything more of it.

Until I started scheduling my interviews. And realized that insertion came 3 days before interview #4 - the final interview. Gah.

I thought this would probably be no big deal. I'd had an HSG and other diagnostics for the infertility work up. This would be nothing.

Um, yeah. Well, it wasn't so bad the day of. I loaded up on Advil, took myself off to my appointment - after a stop at the office, because, you know, I was *there* - and made it through as a "rock star", per the attending's opinion.

And even over the next two days, it wasn't so bad. But, unfortunately, insertion coincided with the onset of (duh duh duh...) my period. And the cramps have - off and on - been almost incapacitating. I *never* get cramps this bad. And the bleeding has lasted almost a week this time. I knew that I would likely bleed more than usual. I was even prepared for weeks and weeks of off and on bleeding. But the cramps. My goodness. I don't think of myself as a wimp, but I really hope they are on the way out.

***

In other news, I'm trying to make peace with my face. Good grief. It's been *awful*. Philosophy products do NOT work for me. This I now know. My face has never been this bad.

So I woke up the other day, and thought, hm. Throwing all of these products at my face every day - benzoyl peroxide, retinol, salicylic acid - seems to make no difference. So, I decided to give it all up - except for washing my face, using retinol every night, and moisturizer. So far, actually, not so bad. It's certainly not *worse*. I started this on Friday - we'll see how it is in a week and a half.