Like Rabbits

Christy
Jul 10, 2018
COMMENT

Image description: Rabbit carrying two tote bags looks drily to the right at title: “Like Rabbits

These drawings were done during the two year period that my wife, Sarah, and I were trying to get pregnant. So much has changed in my life since then. These doodles sat, almost forgotten, for almost a decade. When I pulled them out of storage, it was a window to a tough time I’d mostly forgotten.

I found the process of trying to get pregnant to be somewhat lonely. So, I’ve gone back and sorted these random sketches into a timeline with captions, in order to tell my version of the story: charting our journey, like rabbits, trying to make a baby.

January - April 2007 Image description: Plastic vile with date 04-09-07 next to a voluptuous Venus of Willendorf fertility goddess. Caption: “We’re doing this. Medical tests for Sarah and known donor. × Legal agreements signed. × Sperm donation through certified sperm bank. × Fertility goddess carved out of ivory soap.

Part One: Intrauterine Insemination Image description: A stork floats a baby bundle above the top cube of a Q-Bert game board Caption: “So far, so good. At every hurdle, we level up. Fertility tests passed by known donor. HIV and STDs tests all clear. Future mom’s doctor says everything looks good. Future grandmas are aglow. Everything is falling into place.

June 2007 Image description: The two rabbits are in their bed. One sleeps soundly and the other is sitting up against the headboard with a thermometer in her mouth, looking tired. Caption: "Temperatures tracked to monitor ovulation." Image description: The rabbits smile at each other, each with one hand on the vile that once held the sperm that was used. They share a thought bubble with an image of insemination. Caption: "First attempt at artificial insemination, via IUI. The vile we’re holding held the donation used. Our clinic would give us the empty vile, which we kept as a sort of keepsake, on the top of a dresser in our bedroom."

July 2007 Image description: In the distance two rabbits occupy a desert island. One looks out to a vile, like a message in a bottle, floating in the ocean. On the side the vile says “This could B.

Image description: A rabbit chills with her eyes closed while listening to an iPod with earbuds. Caption: “We wait and see.. While in-flight to an academic conference from Orange County to Chicago, Sarah gets her period.

August 2007 Image description: Three rabbits sit on a log miming the speak-no-evil, hear-no-evil, see-no-evil positions. Caption: “Third attempt at IUI

September 2007 Image description: A vile sits in the foreground with the same fertility goddess from April on the distant horizon Caption: “Time to re-stock. Second sperm donation from known donor.

Image description: Two rabbits hold a magic lantern with outstretches ears. Their ears are reaching high and rubbing the lantern as a stork genie comes out with a baby bundle hanging from its beak. Caption: “Fourth attempt at IUI. We wait again, hoping this will be the time that takes.

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Image description: Two rabbits lie in bed. One is asleep with relaxed ears. The second is awake and looking tense. Caption: “We wait and see.

Image description: Three rabbits lie fly above a desert highway, two large, one small. Caption: “Sarah flies to Tucson for a job interview. I have a dream of a baby while she’s gone.

Image description: A rabbit kneels, as if in prayer, holding her ears between her hands with her eyes closed. Caption: “Sarah calls in the morning to say she got her period the morning before her job interview.

October 2007 Image description: A rabbit stands in knee deep water holding a vile high. The vile reads, “Enough already.

Image description: A rabbit wears a karate gi and eye mask, deftly balancing on one foot while swinging both arms. There is a hole in the wall behind. Caption: “Sarah successfully defends dissertation.

November 2007 Image description: A rabbit hold a vile that reads, “Maybe this time.

Image description: Two rabbits stand under a rain cloud, though one is clearly getting more wet. The dry bunny reaches a hand to the wet bunny. Caption: “Sarah gets her period the first week of her new job.

January 2008 Image description: A rabbit rides a skateboard on her belly past two traffic cones. Caption: “A new city, new jobs and a new fertility doctor… (We have our sperm shipped from California to Arizona)

Image description: An idyllic cottage has a very large bunny inside, with two ears sticking out the chimney and a large foot out the front door. Caption: “…with a very crowded waiting room.

February 2008 Image description: Two rabbits sit in chairs with a clock on the wall behind them. One listens to headphones. Their postures are upright and they share a concerned glance. Caption: “The wait is one hour in the waiting room.

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Image description: Two rabbits are in silhouette, drawn as scratched lines. In the foreground a vile reads, “Try #7”. Caption: “We give IUI another try, our seventh.

Image description: A rabbit cries, neck deep in a pool of her own tears. Caption: “It doesn’t work.

March 2008 Image description: A rabbit wearing a snorkel mask is perched on a diving board above a giant beaker ready to dive in. Caption: “Based on Sarah’s history, he prescribes Clomid, a drug to boost fertility.

Image description: A rabbit walks away from the viewer. Her shoulders are slumped and she’s hanging her head low. In her wake are footprints and two rows of tears. Caption: “Clomid blocks estrogen receptors at the hypothalamus.

Image description: A rabbit lies on her stomach and looks into a deep grave-shaped hole with a ladder at its side. Caption: “We try IUI plus Clomid, our eighth attempt. When this fails, IVF is the next logical step.

Part Two: In Vitro Fertilization Image description: A rabbit falls head first into a hole looking worried. Caption: “IVF. So much more work than it looks like on TV.

April 2008: Week One Image description: A rabbit lies on a bed with six needles in various locations in its body. She’s thinking about a butterfly. Caption: “Acupuncture.

Image description: A rabbit stares at a neatly arranged array of viles, syringes and drugs in various packages. Caption: “Drugs from Canada.

Image description: A rabbit reads the side of a bottle that is taller that she is.

April 2008: Week Two Image description: One rabbit sits on a chair giving the second rabbit a shot in the stomach. Caption: “Lupron shots, directly in the stomach.

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Image description: One rabbit eyes her watch. In her other hand she holds a giant towering spatula over a second rabbit that is a flat, round pancake. Caption: “The goal: Flat line your natural hormone cycle.

April 2008: Week Two Image description: Ripped open packet of a steaming alcohol swab.

April 2008: Weeks Three and Four Image description: Two rabbits cook together at a stove top. One looks confused and is thinking of carrots. The second is crying and thinking about a line of syringes. Caption: “The Lupron is not working yet.

Image description: Two rabbits lie together on a bed. One is crying with a puddle of tears collecting on the floor. The second is staring at the ceiling.

May 2008 Image description: A rabbit is seated at a table with a circle shaped part of her body removed and lying on the table. Caption: “Eighteen months since we started.

Image description: A rabbit carries a cylinder down a flight of stairs. Caption: “I considered myself a patient person.

Image description: A sad rabbit places a jar on the top row of basement set of shelves. All the shelves are lined with similar jars. Caption: “It’s not like I was expecting a miracle.

July 2008 Image description: A rabbit prepares a syringe with her tongue out in concentration and her ears crossed for luck. Caption: “Ready to resume,

Image description: Two rabbits are distracted by a hummingbird feeding at their window. One rabbit is giving the second a shot in the stomach. Caption: “First the Lupron.

Image description: A happy rabbit gives the other rabbit a shot in the ass. The same image repeats three times. Below is a line of three large bandaids. Caption: “Then repronex.

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Image description: An underground cross-section of the rabbit hole shows a network of tunnels and storage areas with viles, swabs, and other medical supplies. At the base of the rabbit hole, two rabbits and a cat sleep peacefully, sharing a dream of a stork with a baby bundle. Caption: “Follicle count shows 11-12 total.

Image description: Two rabbits smile at each other, nose to nose. Centerred in the foreground is a basket of eggs. In the sky behind them, a small sun is shining. Caption: “The doctor gets the eggs. He’s optimistic and so are we. The team fertilizes them and implants them.

Image description: A rabbit prepared a shot of progesterone. Caption: “Progesterone shots.

Image description: A rabbit leans her head on the table crossing her long ears for luck. Caption: “Fingers crossed. This is really our last chance.

August 2008 Image description: Two rabbits hold hands looking up at the sky, where two baby bundles float down from parachutes. Caption: “At home pregnancy test: positive.

Image description: A confident rabbit winks and gives the hang loose sign with one hand. In the other she hold a giant syringe with a sparkling needle tip. Caption: “Still lots more shots.

September 2008 Image description: Two rabbits share a thought bubble containing a pair of baby bunnies in a stroller. One of the adult rabbits is dreamy and happy. The other has her hands on her hips looking up with concern Caption: “Twins! Wait, what!?! Twins? What were we thinking?

It was not an easy road, but in the end, Sarah did get pregnant. In the years since these were originally drawn, we’ve been very busy raising the kids generated by this process. It’s been exhausting­­ — like they say, “All joy, no fun.” Despite all the emotional upheaval, we got our happy ending. I know not all couples are so lucky.

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Christy

Christy is a graphic designer in Orange County, CA who spends most of her time trying to make nice signs so people know where they are and don’t get lost. She’s also the mom to two amazing eleven year olds, who are learning remotely. Follow her on twitter @2clicksmore.

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