IUI Timeline Question

wifeinraleigh28

I have a question about the IUI timeline and scheduling of appointments with the RE before and after the procedure.  My first ever IUI is scheduled for next month, but I'm a little concerned because my husband and I have a vacation planned in December.  Based on how my cycles go, it looks like day 1 of my cycle is going to be on Nov 13th or 14th.  I know that for the first half of my cycle while I'm taking the medication I will have a lot of appointments with my RE until they go ahead and do the actual procedure.  I'm guessing the procedure will be done sometime between Nov 24-27.  We will be on vacation from Dec 4-13.  Will our trip get in the way of any follow up care I will need to receive?  I'm so new to this process so I'm extremely worried that it might not be a good idea for us to start this next month.  But I am impatient and really want to get started!  Any advice?  Thanks in advance!

suchaglencoco

Your entire time line depends on you, your cycle, your RE and their schedule and their protocol for the process.
I suggest contacting their office to discuss it and figure out if you need to delay your iui.

KLake42

I've had several IUIs (just had my 7th).

There are several appointments leading up to it.  My IUIs tend to be somewhere between CD 11 and CD 14.  If you have PCOS, you're more likely to have an IUI around CD 14-18.

From the timing you note, you will probably have the IUI before you leave on vacation. 

Once I have the IUI, I don't go back to the doctor.  A lot of people go in for a beta around the 2 week mark, but I have no insurance coverage for fertility, so to keep costs down, my doctor instructs me to pee on a stick at 14 dpiui.  If negative, I stop taking progesterone, and wait for AF. 

But my point is, I have no doctor appointments after the IUI, until my new cycle has started and I'm going in for a baseline to try again.  So you should be fine.  But obviously, talk to your doctor to know for sure.

Edited to add-- It is possible, if you already have irregular and anovulatory cycles, and have PCOS and are going to be taking medication to stimulate ovulation because you rarely ovulate on your own, for stimming to take quite a bit longer than I experience.  So if you're in that camp, definitely talk to your doctor.

wifeinraleigh28

Thank you for your responses!  I'm feeling hopeful that we can go ahead and get started with the process.  I'm also hoping that being on vacation will help with the 2WW agony!  Either that or it could ruin my vacation... but hopefully it won't! 

bsckgb7

Some doctors do a Progesterone draw at 7dpo (week after the IUI), but then after that its just the Beta.  Which you can obviously just POAS for,  

BrightenMySky

bsckgb7 said:

Some doctors do a Progesterone draw at 7dpo (week after the IUI), but then after that its just the Beta.  Which you can obviously just POAS for,  

This was my experience with my first IUI, and what we'll do again this cycle.  A week after the IUI (although I came in a day early, RE nurse said it was not a problem) to look at progesterone levels to make sure that you ovulated and get an idea of uterine lining thickness.  

wifeinraleigh28

Hmmm... I guess if the RE decides to put me on progesterone then it will be cutting it close to my vacation, but it could still work.  Sounds like there are a lot of factors here, and I just need to see what happens and what the recommendations are.  Thanks for all your responses!