Finance Gets Personal

After a year (on and off) of trying and two cycles of charting, I am finally pregnant!

I personally think that taking 50 mg of vitamin B6 to lengthen my luteal phase is what pushed things over the edge for us, but I can’t say for certain. Either way, I am 4 weeks and 5 days pregnant (you get two weeks “extra credit” for the time between your last period and ovulation). My due date is April 10.

While we’re ecstatic and relieved that things occurred naturally, I didn’t realize that my fears about being unable to conceive were about to be replaced by a bigger fear: fear of miscarriage.

Approximately 25% of known pregnancies end in miscarriage, which is most common in the first trimester (especially the first part of the first trimester). Knowing this, we haven’t told anyone except my stepson about the pregnancy, and I’m regretting doing even that.

I’m feeling a little bit better these past few days though because I asked my regular doctor to give me a blood workup to check my progesterone levels (low progesterone is often a cause of short luteal phases, and can result in miscarriage if you don’t get progesterone supplements early in pregnancy). Luckily, all my levels are good so far. We go in for my first prenatal appointment next Thursday, and hopefully we will be able to see the heartbeat on an early ultrasound. If so, I’ll feel more comfortable telling our families at that point (plus, I can’t expect a 10-year-old to keep a secret very long!).

I also need to wrestle with the decision of whether to continue taking my antidepressant during pregnancy, and am already working hard on kicking my caffeine habit.

My symptoms so far include extreme fatigue (which could also be related to sudden lack of caffeine), tender and larger breasts, increased sense of smell, more frequent urination and backache. I haven’t had any food aversions or nausea, but those symptoms become more common in week 6.

For those of you who have been pregnant before, how did you keep yourself from becoming anxious about miscarrying (or were you able to)? And, random question, if I am 4 weeks and 5 days pregnant, am I already considered 5 weeks (because I’m in the fifth week), or am I considered 5 weeks at the end of the fifth week?

Here is my chart from the successful cycle. You’ll notice there is a temperature drop today, which is freaking me out a little - I might have to stop temping at some point, just to avoid the anxiety

Well, we tried our hardest, but there was no BFP (big fat positive) pregnancy test to be had at the end of my first cycle of charting.

I did learn some interesting things about my body through recording my basal body temperature and other fertility signs though. For instance, I ovulated on day 16 of my cycle - slightly later than the day 14 average. And, more importantly, my luteal phase between ovulation and menstruation was only 9 days, for a total cycle length of 25 days. That is bad news, girlies (and boys who haven’t already clicked the “back” button)!

The average luteal phase is between 12-16 days, and 9 days is not long enough for an embryo to implant in the utereus before the lining starts to shed. A short luteal phase can be a sign of low progesterone, the hormone that takes over once you ovulate. Low progesterone can also lead to early miscarriages in those who do achieve pregnancy.

Luckily, this problem is usually easily treated - I just need to go see my OB/GYN and have some tests run.

But wouldn’t you know it, there’s a small problem: My insurance doesn’t cover infertility treatment!!!!!!

Now, I’m not (quite) freaking out yet, because I want to see what my cycle does this month. Although your luteal phase doesn’t usually change from month to month, I want to make sure the first time wasn’t an anomaly. Meanwhile, I’m taking 50 mg of vitamin B6, which is supposed to be a natural way of lengthening your luteal phase.

But the lack of insurance coverage ticks me off, and I’m also ticked at myself for not thinking about it sooner. You see, I only use my employer’s health insurance plan because it’s about $100 less per year than being added to my husband’s insurance, which does cover infertility, and also has a slightly lower co-pay. I can switch to my husband’s insurance plan, but without a major life event (like, ahem, having a baby) I won’t be able to do so until January 1. And since we’ve already used all of our health care flex savings for the year, I’m not very flush with medical money at the moment.

So, my current plan is to take my vitamins, have well-timed sex and try not to think too much about it until that bitchy old hag makes her next visit.

If you’ve listened to the Dave Ramsey Show for any amount of time, you know he is constantly recommending Identity Theft Protection from Zander Insurance. Every time the subject of identity theft comes up, he gives a little spiel about how he’s purchased it for everyone on his team. But why would he recommend this product?

Obviously, Zander Insurance is a paid advertiser of the Dave Ramsey Show. That’s clear from his website (though not always clear on the show). But Dave says he only endorses products he truly believes in, so we’ll assume that he actually feels this product is beneficial to his listeners.

Zander Insurance’s website says the company provides the following services to its Identity Theft Protection Customers:

Protection

• A personalized protection test to see how vulnerable you are to identity theft (Sample question: “Do you use a crosscut paper shredder on credit card bills/offers, bank checks/statements, and other documents with personal information (e.g., Social Security, credit card, and driver’s license numbers) before throwing them away?”)
• Monthly newsletters and scam alerts
• Links to the Opt-Out/Pre-Screen and Do Not Call Registries, and information about how to place a fraud alert (visit AnnualCreditReport.com and click on “Fraud Alert”) or credit freeze (send a written request with a copy of your ID to each of the three credit reporting agencies: Equifax Security Freeze, P.O. Box 105788, Atlanta, Georgia 30348; Experian, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, Texas 75013; TransUnion, Fraud Victim Assistance Department, P.O. Box 6790 Fullerton, CA 92834)

Recovery

• If your identity is stolen, a Personal Recovery Advocate to develop a damage assessment and recovery plan, handle any creditor dispute resolutions, continue to monitor credit bureau activity, work to remove any criminal or civil judgments, and provide information to the FTC and other government agencies

Reimbursement

• Reimbursement for lost income and expenses associated with an identity theft (i.e., legal expenses, long distance fees, overnight charges, etc.), up to $20,000

Here is the statistic Dave uses to justify purchasing a policy: According to the Identity Theft Resource Center’s (ITRC) “Identity Theft: The Aftermath 2006″ study, victims spend an average of 600 hours recovering from this crime.

Wow, how horrible. But I looked up the ITRC’s study, and here’s what the press release about it says:

In The Aftermath 2006, victims spent an average of 97 hours repairing the damage done by identity theft to an existing account used or taken over by the thief.

In cases where a new account was created, respondents in the 2006 study reported an average of 231 hours to clean up the mess. In some cases, respondents used such expressions “eight years and still working on it,” “too many to count” or “endless.”

Hmm, not exactly 600 hours, is it?

Why would Dave tell people trying to get out of debt to make their own meals, fix their own roof, mow their own lawn, etc., but then turn around and tell them to pay a company $72 per year to clean up a mess that hasn’t occurred yet?

Frankly, it’s beyond me.

If you’d like more information about why buying identity theft insurance is a dumb idea, please read Single Ma’s post, Is Identity Theft Insurance Worth the Cost?, at Fabulous Financials.

Now if you’d excuse me, I’ve got to go shred some papers (don’t you just love the way it smells when you grind up eight sheets at a time?).

*I mean, “Protection”
This is not an insurance product.
This is an administrative services contract, with restoration and ancillary reimbursement benefits, issued by Identity Safeguards, Inc. and in connection with Zander Insurance Group providing enrollment and preventative database management services.