As luck would have it, my first HCG cycle occurred in an extremely stressful period. My Creighton instructor took one look at my chart and asked, "Hmm...did something happen?" "Yes, quite a few things," I groaned. Therefore, my Peak day was way later than normal. Still, we stuck to the system and began the injections on P+3, which for me occurred on Cycle Day (CD) 24. My normal Peak Day occurs somewhere around CD 15.
Mark did the first injection straight into the middle of the upper arm, which hurt a bit more than expected. However, after reading Sew's post and subsequent comments on the HCG shots, the next time Mark injected in the back of my arm. BIG difference; I didn't feel a thing and the subsequent 3 shots went just fine. Looks like Mark could have a second career :)
HCG mostly affected my cycle length: a record-setting 34 days. My average cycles for my entire life to this point have been 25-28. Quite a change. Also, my usual PMS symptom of hypersensitivity was squelched majorly. My one complaint about the shots is that it caused more than a week of "pre-cramps" pain. Normally such pain is a signal that the next period is imminent. However, with so many days of this pain, I couldn't tell if it was due to regular period stuff or (a small hope) that we had actually conceived. To make a long story short, AF arrived and a new cycle has begun.
I think this present cycle, which occurs in a more relaxed atmosphere (our vacation to Southern California occurs during this time), will tell more of the HCG's effect. In addition, my doctor has ordered a blood test after the 2nd cycle. Amazingly, my wonderful blood test buddy is ALSO on the shots, so we have been swapping shots stories and the like. At least my fear of needles has begun to subside.
