I have to get weekly allergy shots to manage my allergies. I am allergic to dust mites and mold. Especially in the wintertime, if I do not get my allergy shots, I feel really lousy. So, I have been taking time out of my life weekly for four years to get allergy shots.

Many people think it sounds awful to get shots on a weekly basis, but it does not bother me. The reason for this is because I am so used to having needles poke and prod me thanks to multiple fertility tests and treatments. I learned early on that I was going to have to adjust to having my blood drawn for a variety of reasons. There was no point in fighting it. That is simply part of the process.

I used to have blood drawn to check my hormone levels. I had to have blood tests to determine whether I was pregnant because the progesterone supplements could cause me to have a false positive pregnancy test result, and nobody would be well-served by that happening. I had blood work done to measure the level of progesterone in my body. I had more blood work to measure hormone levels related to ovulation.

And let's not forget the joy of having a shot in the bottom to cause my body to ovulate. The worst time was when I needed the shot on a Saturday, so hub had to be the one to give me the shot. The alternative was for me to give it to myself in my thigh, and I simply could not do it. We had a standoff in which I finally said that we would just have to skip our intrauterine insemination (IUI) that month, so hub finally relented and gave me a shot in the rear end. That is not one of our most fond memories of our marriage.

When I went to a blood drive with a friend who had never given blood before, she was amazed that I did not even flinch when the big needle was put into my arm. I told her that I had turned into a pin cushion long ago thanks to fertility treatments. So, I guess something good came out of being a human pin cushion.

Photo credit: Lynda Bernhardt