The Two Week Wait
Did it work or didn't it? Whether you're trying the old fashioned way or some more high-tech methods, there's a two weeks waiting period between intercourse or embryo transfer and when you can find out if you're pregnant. During that time, you're waiting to see if implantation occurred. You may have memorized the success rates and analyzed the probabilities better than any bookie, but in the end, all you really know is that you have to wait and see what happens.
Life in Slow Motion
It's a physics mystery, really. How time can literally expand and make a simple fourteen days seem like an eternity. It's hard to explain if you haven't lived through it, but the best way to describe it is as though you are holding your breath for two entire weeks. While you could just sit in a corner and count down the minutes, that may not be the healthiest approach. Instead, try to stick to your normal routine as much as possible. Taking two weeks off of work is not a good idea, unless you work in a very strenuous job and your health care provider has suggested you do so.
Signs and Countersigns
It is a particularly cruel trick that some of the early signs of pregnancy are also side effects of some infertility medications or PMS. From irritability to cramps, to mood swings, every twitch, tic and flutter you feel during the two week wait is frustrating. While you are undoubtedly anxious to attribute it to a growing baby, do your best to acknowledge how your body is reacting and then let it go.
What My World Needs Now
Think now about what you'll need later. If the test is positive, then you won't need any help knowing what to do. But if it isn't, it might be easier if you have a just-in-case plan. For example, letting your mom and best friend know that you'll call them when you're ready to talk may be better than having your mom call every hour while you wait for results. Do you want your partner to be the one who reads the test or who accepts the call from the doctor's office? If so, you may have to give permission at the doctor's office beforehand. A few minutes spent in planning may help you weather rough news.
Plan to Pamper
This is the ideal time to get a haircut, go out with friends to the movies, or any of those other fun things you've been putting off. Plan a couple of events for your calendar that will help you focus on anything other than your uterus. Check the paper for a free or low-cost concert, plan a lunch date with your bestie, or hit the art exhibit you've been dying to see. You don't have to spend an arm and a leg, but you do need to plan some fun ways to take care of yourself.
No Peeking
As you near the end of the two week wait, you know what you want to do. You want to sneak down to the drugstore and buy a couple (dozen) pregnancy tests. Those early predictor tests are especially tempting, and pricey. Don't do it. Wait the 14 days until your health care provider has you test or until you know it's time to check. Early testing is often frustrating and rarely reassuring. Even worse, sometimes early testing can be affected by fertility medications and nothing is worse than a false positive. Go ahead and buy a multi-pack when it's time, though. Whether the test is negative or positive, you're going to want to recheck.
Be Good to Yourself
Order some spinach lasagna, enriched whole grain garlic bread and other goodies chock full of vitamins and minerals (and folic acid) that are good for you and a growing baby. Walk or swim, do everything you would as if you were pregnant. Keep a journal, do something creative, grow something and embrace the fertile side of yourself. Celebrate your beautiful body and all you have to offer.