Trying IVF again....CoQ10 question

SummerBaby12

Hi ladies,

I was here in 2012 after issues TTC and then finding out I all along had stage 4 Endo!  I was refered to IVF right away and did one cycle that ended in a BFN.  Due to many things that I was doing in life including grad school, I decided I did not want to go through the stress of IVF again and we went right to adoption.  I have a beautiful 2.5 year old daughter now.  It has been 3 years since trying IVF and so we are now ready to try again.  I have less things going on in life and it is a better time to try our 2nd time.

Today I went to my inital appointment and after the internal ultrasound I was told one of my overies was left to nothing due to the Endo, so I only have 1 overy to work with.  On that good overy(really not good) there are only 3ish pockets.  He said he will  not be able to get many eggs out of those.  It was very depressing news.  I already know my slim chance on IVF working with my stage 4 Endo, but to now here that I also have an egg problem, it's just terrible.  He brought up egg donation, but I dont think that is covered with insurance and to me that is pretty much so close to adoption that why not adopt again.  I dont know..a lot to take in.  Anyways, I am off the pill starting tomorrow and the doctor wants me to start taking CoQ10 2x a day to help with eggs..ect.  Never knew this was a thing and was not told abotu it last time.  Looked at articles online and it seems nothing is totally proven with it, but it is proven to not hurt so some doctors thing why not.  I am just surprised because he does not seem like a BS type of doc, but I am going to buy the CoQ10 viatmin gummies and just do as told.

Anyway else take this during their fertility treatment?  They want me to take it until a positive test.

tvh1982

Hi and welcome back.

I haven't heard about the CoQ10, so no stories to tell there.
Sometimes we just have to trust our doctors, as they have a plan, and been doing this for a long time.

Wishing you GL on your journey!

caitiemae

My RE strongly recommended CoQ10 as well. She had me take 400 mg 2x a day. There are some studies showing it may improve egg quality and has been found to decrease the amount of abnormal embryos.

Cmartin6706

@SummerBaby12

CoQ10 improves the energy level an embryo has to implant. It's super important to get UBIQUINOL not the other less  potent type. If the bottle doesn't list it, than don't get it. More expensive but we've found coupons each time. We were on 600 a day for almost 4 months. Also make sure your on high enough vitamin D. Studies show low vitamin D  drastically reduces  Your chances at IVF. 

I suggest you also look into the Ketosis diet. It reduces inflammation and therefore helps with implantation. My wife has been on it for four months. It sucks but works. Our clinic is having high success rate as are other clinics. It worked for us too. BFP as of yesterday on 8dp3pt. 

teamginger13

I was also told by my RE to take CoQ10 daily to help with egg quality. I take the gummys and order them on Amazon. I think it is like $15-$20 per bottle. I have read that it is not necessarily proven but I feel like it can't hurt anything so why not?

Jsmorrissey

@summerbaby12 I have a very low AMH level .27.  Because of this I am on so many vitamins/supplements, etc..right now to help get my egg quality get better.  My RE put me on DHEA 75 mg/day, CoQ10 100mg 3 x day (ubiquinol, as cmartin6706 recommended), Vitamin D-3 1000 IU, Acai Berry 1000 mg/ 1 x day.  My RE also recommended I do acupuncture, which I am currently doing (and I LOVE IT). My acupuncturist put me on 2 types of herbs-Dan Zhi & Qi Bao Mei-3 caps each 2 x day and last but not least, a pre-natal.  About 20 pills a day.  All to help with my egg quality.  I got most of my supplements from Natural Grocer.  DHEA had to be ordered and delivered to me from a different state entirely.

I did 100 mg of clomid, trigger shot of ovidrel and had my first IUI on 2.18.  I am hoping all these things I am taking will help.  I definitely don't mind trying anything that helps!

I would definitely recommend trying the CoQ10!

Angelic789

I used coenzyme Q10 on my own in an effort to improve our fertility potential first then to increase chances for IVF success. It is characterized as a substance that is needed for basic functioning of cells. We all know the chances for pregnancy decline as female age increases after about 30 years old. We know that the decline has a number of causes, but the main problem is a decline in “egg quality”. One major component of it involves the chromosomal status of the egg. Eggs from older women are more likely to be chromosomally abnormal than eggs from young women. My doc says, one theory speculates that part of the problem in older eggs is their decreased mitochondrial energy production. Taking that concept a step further, perhaps eggs could function more effectively and efficiently if something could be done to increase the number or health of the mitochondria in the eggs. Maybe the egg could do a better job of maintaining chromosomal normalcy if it had enough energy reserves. From this came the logic that using dietary supplements of “mitochondrial nutrients” might improve egg quality. On the other hand, there’s no evidence that there is harm from using Co Q10 and it is unlikely that there would be harm since this enzyme is present in every cell in the body and is produced within cells regardless of whether it is present in the diet or not.
 • Even if it doesn’t help, it’s unlikely to hurt – and CoQ10 is not expensive
• Most fertility doctors are fine with their patients taking Co Q10 if they want to
 • Hopefully, a carefully controlled study will be done and published in the medical literature so we will understand more about any potential benefit of Co Q10 for women with fertility problems.
In addition we just do what we're said to boost our chances even though sometimes it makes us hesitate. Good luck X