****Weekly IVF Checkin****

Pintobean39

This weekly check-in is for 3T regulars to fill us in on their IVF cycle.
If you'd like to join please provide the following...

1. Where are you in the IVF process (prepping, stimming, ER/ET date, etc)
2. What cycle? 
3. Test/beta day?

QOTW:  What is your favorite vacation spot?


BFP 

adadeart
jaztaz1
jaytee16

runawaylaurel

Currently going though IVF or preparing. 

Caterinac - preparing for IVF #1

christieH917 - Stimming?

gsancho - Waiting on FET?

hoping4LO - (((HUGE HUGS)))

jencity9 - BCP for IVF#1

jessiml06 - BCP

jszy10 - BCP

krsimmons3 - BCP How did seminar go?

kt416 - Stimming

lillovebug79 - BCP and start Lupron this week?

mozarrella13 - I've been stalking you (((HUGS))) FX for you

pintobean39 - Waiting on phone call for genetic testing
purpledaisey923 - Waiting for WTF appt
sigh202 - IVF prepping
stacylh24 - BCP Do you have your calendar yet?
Good Luck Everyone!!!

Pintobean39

I've got to figure out this formatting thing.  The bump hates me.

I'm just waiting on the call from the nurse to see if we have any genetically normal embryos.  I have a phone attached to my hand.  I'm starting bcp thursday to prepare for FET just in case I have a good embryo.  If we do FET will be the week of August 14-21st.

**Losses mentioned**

The wait this week is killing me.  I lost it yesterday and had a complete breakdown.  This is just a bad week for me.  1 yr ago today I found out I lost my first little girl and my EDD for my second little girl is friday along with my mom's bday that died 14 yrs ago.  I'm just on emotional overload.  Of course my husband is working all week so he's not here with me but last night when he finally got home from work at 9 and I was still crying he poured me wine and actually didn't talk to me like a Dr and not his patient.  We had a good talk and I feel better this morning.  Now I really could use some good news this week.

ETA:  I always forget the QOTW:  I think my favorite so far was when we went to Acapulco.  We went the week of our first anniversary and our guide set up a dinner the night of our anniversary overlooking Acapulco bay.  It was beautiful!!   Also some of the best margaritas in my life and they were so cheap.  

KT416

@pintobean39- thanks for posting the check in and sending thoughts (and hugs) your way.

I am still stimming.... Day 10....

ETA QOTD: I'm not sure if I have a favorite vaca spot... we like to do a different spot every year. I would love to have a gigantic lakehouse or something though and just read on the balcony all summer... sigh.

Pintobean39

@kt416 are they giving you any idea on when ER is going to be?

ChristieH917

Unfortunately, I am currently sitting on the bench.  I had an ok response to the Follistim, but my estrogen level didn't keep up with the follicles.  I am benched until August. 

QOTW:  We get the most out of our vacation time by camping.  We take lots of long weekends so that we can go 6 or 7 times a year.  We have a favorite little hole-in-the-wall campground that we love!

Pintobean39

@ChristieH917‌ I'm sorry about your canceled cycle. After I posted this I remembered you mentioned it on the check in but just didn't catch it. Good luck in august. FX your estrogen catches up next time.

KT416

I'm not sure about my ER date yet. I had an u/s today and I had about 10-12 follicles above 10, which makes me happy because my last two u/s I was just around 10 both times. I go back for an u/s tomorrow and hopefully I will find out tomorrow when I can trigger. I'm hoping soon, because I'm worried that my 5-day Transfer will fall on July 4th, which doesn't seem fun.

gsancho

Not much going on here.  I'm anxious to get my calendar Friday...I'm hoping we have FET in early or mid August, just b/c we have some vacations planned, and I'd hate to be in 2ww while I'm on vacation.  

We've had some great vacations in Puerto Rico and California wine country.  But honestly our favorite regular vacation is when we rent a house on the river with friends in the Texas hill country.  We have a place we always go to - we can float the river, there's small wineries all around, good BBQ.  It's always the perfect mix of letting loose and relaxing.  

Pintobean39

@gsancho Hopefully we are going to be cycle buddies again.

Mozzarella13

I think we need a ((group hug)) here!!
@Pintobean39‌ I'm sorry you're struggling but glad it gave you and DH a chance to have a good talk and that it gave you some relief! I'm praying hard for your embies and have my FX hard for you!!
@ChristieH917‌ ((hugs)) on a brighter note, DH and I also like camping--do you guys like the national parks?
@KT416 I have my FX for your follies!
@gsancho‌ I think you need to give me suggestions for our next vacay because yours always sound amazing in out gtky questions!!
@CaterinaC‌ I'm glad you've got a plan and some answers!

********CP/possible loss mentioned*******


AFM, just the readers digest version for anyone who didn't read on IF, I started bleeding 6dp5dt, had a faint bfp, had beta yesterday of 11, another beta tomorrow. I'm bleeding like Texas chainsaw massacre so I can't imagine this could be going anywhere good. The bright side is I guess I can get pregnant, the down side is why am I losing it? Unhealthy embryo, or is this my crappy luteal phase striking again? I've bled both IVF 1&2 at 6dp5dt so I think I need 3times daily endometrin, PIO, more progesterone monitoring, or all 3. Today the sadness is hitting me more. IF f@#%ing sucks!!! If we can't have wine, I'm passing the Ben & Jerry's!!!

Pintobean39

(((Hugs))) @mozzarella13 I'm keeping my FX for you.  I have heard tons of stories about women that have bleed and gone onto have a healthy baby.  I also think HCG of 11 is low but it is still possible you are still really early.  I'm really curious about the progesterone issue as my last cp I had my normal period while on it twice a day.  My dr just told me it was embryo quality but I've always wondered if it is really working.  For my IVF he has me on PIO, but I've heard there isn't much of a difference.  

gsancho

@Mozzarella13 My not so hidden secret is we always try to do VRBO or Homeaway instead of staying at hotels.  Once in a while a hotel works out better, but it's a different experience staying in your own condo or house.

And I have FX for your beta tomorrow!  FWIW, my mom had 4 periods before she realized she was pregnant - she says the first was fairly heavy and then the next 3 were really light.  She had a lot of endo and fibroid issues, so 4 periods is a bit much...but it does happen, so you never know.

Sigh202

I agree with @Mozzarella13‌ about the group hug. I'm 11dp3dt with beta Friday. I've been bleeding off and on since day 5 so am an emotional mess this cycle. My favorite place to vacation is adults only all-inclusives in the Caribbean, especially the DR.

ChristieH917

@Pintobean39‌ No worries about not updating that.  There are a lot of June bugs here to keep track of.  

@Mozzarella13‌ we usually camp a small campgrounds.  We stay pretty local so far.  We are really hoping to get out there more in the near future.

I am always up for a group hug.  I will warn you all, I am a cryer!

Mozzarella13

Thanks for all the crossed fingers! The bleeding is still continuing so I'm not hopeful, but I will keep you posted on the results. @Pintobean39‌ I will keep you posted on the progesterone situation. RE said last time the endometrin wouldn't stop a period if I wasn't pregnant and embryo wasn't good quality, but last cycle beta was 0. This time I wonder if he will think differently due to the timing of my bleeding and the beta.

runawaylaurel

I hope you all don't mind if I post on here for another week or so. I'm not comfortable moving to PAIF yet. 

I have moderate OHSS and am miserable, that's pretty much all my life is right now. 

@Mozzarella13 - so sorry you're in beta hell. Good luck on your second one!!!

@ChristieH917 - cycle cancellation sucks. I was cancelled during one of my IUI's and felt so defeated. Hope you get a nice solid plan moving forward.

@pintobean39 This is such a rough week for you! I can't imagine your pain. Take care of yourself, drink lots of wine, and hope you get some amazing news about your embryos. 

QOTW: I will always say our favorite vacation spot was our wedding in New Zealand. It was perfection. 

Pintobean39

@runawaylaurel‌ I don't mind at all Good luck!

@Mozzarella13‌ I'm thinking of you today. Good luck at Betas.

@Sigh202‌ I'm keeping my FX for you.

@gsancho how am I just learning about VRBO this year? I went through them for our condo in destin that were going to in a couple of weeks. I got our condo about $500 cheaper. I will be using them all the time for now on.

ChristieH917

@runawaylaurel  You are always welcome here.  Yes, the cancellation sucks, but I am dealing with it much better now.  I called the RE office on Monday and they do have a new plan all ready to go.  He is adding a month of Estrace to help my estrogen level and prepare my one ovary for a better result and then uping the dosage of Follistim. 

KT416

Good luck at your second beta today @Mozzarella13, thinking of you! FX!

PurpleDaisy923

We are going to be doing IVF in September. They are going to give me Provera at the beginning of July to get the next cycle going and then put me on birth control. My egg retrieval will be between September 17th-22nd and my egg transfer will be between September 23rd-27th. I even scheduled a vacation week in September, so I'm hoping that will help me relax and finally get my baby lol! 

jessimi06

@Mozzarella13‌ thinking of you today!

Still on bcps over here. By the way, do they make anyone else sick? I have horrible nausea from them- I started taking them at night to sleep through most of it, but I still feel like crap most mornings.

QOTW- we have this all inclusive resort in Cancun that's our "go-to" vacation spot. It's small and not very expensive and all the bartenders know us .

StacyLH24

@Mozzarella13‌ - I'm thinking of you today and hoping for a good outcome.

I am on day 16 of 21 of BCPs. I got my calendar last Thursday. Monday is my baseline and I should start stimming on 7/4. I'm starting out with 300 iu of Gonal-F and will also be taking 10 cc of diluted HCG at the same time.

QOTW: Our new favorite vaca spot is Florida. C has friends in various locations. We went to see a few in March and we hope to go down every year now.

Mozzarella13

*********holy crap, B--freaking--FP warning???????**************



Oh my goodness...so I'm still bleeding though a lot less, and my beta almost doubled from 11 to 20.4. This can't possibly be real. My progesterone was 367 and estrogen 81, and I'm on estrace 2mg twice daily and endometrin twice daily but in my mind it looks like I need more hormones to support this...going to talk to RE to ask what he thinks. What do my fellow IF-ers think? Holy crap I can't believe this could be happening....

jencity9

@Mozzarella13‌ !!! Did they give you any advice when they called about the second beta? I don't know about the numbers so I don't have any advice but I have my FX!!! And congrats!!!

AFM I just got my schedule today and did the mock transfer! I don't start Lupron until 7/7 and then will do 150 iu of Follistim on 7/17. Does that seem low at all?

Side note: I have been reading that word this while time as Folli - Tism so when they said it today Folli - Stim my mind was blown LOL.

Pintobean39

Holy shit @Mozzarella13‌ that's high progesterone. With my past pregnancy that ended in mc it was 9 and my Dr wanted it over 10. I would think 367 sounds promising because I thought Endometrin doesn't really make it go up on blood test. I'm not sure what your estrogen should be. I also think since your betas are doubling that's a good sign. I've seem where some people do bleed a lot and still go on to have a healthy pregnancy. I really hope and pray this is it for you. I'm keeping everything crossed. Go lay down prop your feet up and drink lots of fluids.

When are you going to hear from the RE?

Pintobean39

@jencity9‌ it all depends on the dosage. I started off on 250 Gonal and 225 Menopur but I was 39 with a FSH of 8.2 so I need more to produce more follicles. Your dr will base your dosage on your particular case and in my experience my dr was always adjusting my meds throughout every cycle.

I had 3 TI cycles before on Gonal and I think I started off on 75 the first upped to 200 the first, second started at 150 upped to 250 and 3rd my best response started out at 200 upped to 275.

Mozzarella13

@Pintobean39‌ apparently at one time they used to shoot for a progesterone of 2000...RE said he thought my levels were probably ok since endometrin wouldn't show up in blood work, but he said adding a shot of progesterone tomorrow and Friday wouldn't hurt anything! So that's what we will do, and then check beta Friday and figure out where to go from there!

jessimi06

jencity9 said:

AFM I just got my schedule today and did the mock transfer! I don't start Lupron until 7/7 and then will do 150 iu of Follistim on 7/17. Does that seem low at all?

It depends on your dx. I started at 150 last cycle, but my ovaries were stubborn so they upped it to 225. They can always make adjustments if needed.

Pintobean39

Mozzarella13 said:

@Pintobean39‌ apparently at one time they used to shoot for a progesterone of 2000...RE said he thought my levels were probably ok since endometrin wouldn't show up in blood work, but he said adding a shot of progesterone tomorrow and Friday wouldn't hurt anything! So that's what we will do, and then check beta Friday and figure out where to go from there!

The measurement has got to be different. I just look at my stuff from IVF and right before I triggered my progesterone was 143 and I know it was low because it was before I ovulated. The number 10 was from my ob. I'm still learning about all this. Anyhow hopefully the PIO help. Good luck!

gsancho

@Pintobean39 Tentative transfer date for me is 8/15.  Did you hear back on your PGD testing?

Mozzarella13

**********loss mentioned********


beta only went to 28, so it was a CP. I'm back on bcps tonight because I have cysts too, and they will follow beta to zero before I can cycle again. Also I got a surprise--3 embies somehow became blasts and are frozen! REs office forgot to call me (throat punch!!) . Quality isn't great but it means I have an option of an FET at some point, also RE sent my info to the head embryologist for him to review so they can make a plan on what to do in the future to hopefully get more mature eggs. So now I'm going to exercise, and drink a beer. Two things I've missed while cycling!

Pintobean39

@Mozzarella13‌ I'm sorry about the cp but that's good you have some frozen. Hopefully the cyst go away soon and you can do a FET soon.

@gsancho‌ I haven't heard back yet :-(. It's been a week of hell walking around with a phone attached to my hand. Assuming I have anything to transfer my transfer date is the week of 8-14.

jessimi06

@Mozzarella13‌ I'm so sorry . Hopefully the cysts reside and you'll be able to cycle again soon.

Mozzarella13

@Pintobean39‌ so sorry they're taking so long!! Having to wait and be patient during IF is probably one of the hardest parts, especially since I know for me patience is not my strong suit!!
ETA: I just wanted to thank you ladies for your support! You all make the terrible bitch named IF much easier to bear!! (((((Hugs))))))

StacyLH24

@Mozzarella13‌ - I am so sorry. I was anxious for your update yesterday. I saw it in the June Bugs check in but didn't think it was appropriate for me to post there. I was hoping so much that you would have a sticky embie. Please take care of yourself.

Mozzarella13

@AlaskaDee23‌ it's nice to see ya friend! You can "butt in" any time you like!! And thanks for the hugs and prayers...I never turn down either of those!