We had our egg retrieval today. This is where they sedate you and remove the eggs. I had 26 follicles on Monday (not every follicles contains an egg, but you expect about 1/2 to do so). I felt most of the procedure and they continue to pump meds through me. Out of the 26 follies I had on Monday, they only found 9 that were mature. Out of the 9, 3 were cysts, 1 was mature, and the other 5 weren't mature. So, they went ahead and did ICSI (sperm injection). They now know EXACTLY why I can't get pregnant. It was so disheartening. They now know I will forever need IVF w/ICSI to get pregnant. It all just came as a shock. They said I am a cyst-producer and not an egg-producer. They find that in PCOS, but it's not real common just a characteristic. As for the procedure, it hurt, and I was awake (sedated, but awake) during most of it. They kept pumping drugs through me to try and calm me, but it didn't work. My mom and Charley were both allowed back there. My mom, of course, thought it was SO neat to see how they do all that and Charley actually sat there, which surprised me. I don't remember the u/s screen (well, at least what was on it.) Now, I just feel like someone has punched me in my gut. They went ahead and gave me extra doses of Xanax to calm me down. They want me to stay as calm as possible through all this to give the embies some hope. They are letting the embies grow a little today and then they will ICSI them all in hopes they will make it. At this point, whatever fertilizes and matures, they will transfer back. Even if it's 6. I'm totally bummed and at the mercy of God. It is all in His hands now and only He will be able to give us our Christmas miracle.

Hope that covers it. Because of the state of the embryos, most likely, they will transfer them back to my uterus on Saturday sometime.

Say some prayers for us. We certainly need them.