February IVF

Aera11

Congrats @brela11! FX those numbers keep going up!!

@PolythenePam I've had some mild cramping but that's about it. Sore boobs too but they've been sore since mid-stims so I can't really read into them.  I've been really tired though for no reason so that would be my only SS as of now. My beta is still a week away (insert eye roll)

brela11

@krenee124 my beta was 11dp3dt so 14dpo and then again 16dpo and my embabies only made it to day three so I had an update the day after er and then when I got there on day 3

@PolythenePam FX for you too lady! When is your beta? 

krenee124

@brela11 thank you! Mine will be 11dp5dt. Okay I haven't heard anything yet - today is day 3 so we will see! Congrats to you!! 
@Hoping10 good luck! Menopur burned a little but nothing terrible! You've got this! 

Polythene Pam

@brela11 thank you!! Next Wed the 22. I feel good though since we have 4 frozen just in case, still hopeful though how are you feeling right now?? So so excited for you! 

caseyw8784

@Marley629 - my husband is also a firefighter! 24 hour shifts also, but he's allowed to switch shifts with guys that are not on the same shift as he is, so we know that he would be available the day of the ER. in our city, as long as his shift is covered, the department doesn't care too much about it... (heck, there's one guy at his station that i don't think has worked more than one or two shifts in the last 12 months...he just has a lot of IOUs with a lot of the other guys! )

kaseycoco

@brela11 congrats! Let us know the update tomorrow.
@Hoping10 I just started stims for my first IVF cycle last night too  
Good luck to those of you still in the 2ww, I can only imagine how much more stressful the waiting game is during IVF 

stella_700

@brela11 Yeah so exciting to see someone in our month with a positive!

@caseyw8784 Did your meds arrive yet? I'm excited for you and hope that the jury duty doesn't delay anything further.

Had my monitoring appointment this morning. So relieved that I'm responding appropriately. Counted at least 20 follicles this morning, more on my right side, all of them looked to be in the 11-14 size range so we added an extra day in, next appointment Monday, tentative retrieval date shifted to Wednesday. More shots. I hate the ganirelix, I've have a mild skin reaction at the injection site everytime, itches like fury. My doctor did confirm that it would be an abdominal retrieval though, he said there isn't really a difference in recovery time. I'm excited and so ready to see if this works.

caseyw8784

@stella_700 - my meds were delivered to my office this morning! there's so much! The list of storage guidelines said to refridgerate the cetrotide?? i was told to put the gonal-f pens in the fridge right away, but that too? ::shrugs:: luckily the styrofoam box has those ice packs that are still mostly frozen, since the gonal-f took up most of the space in the communal mini-fridge!

Stopping BCPs on thursday Feb 23rd and the baseline ultrasound/bloodwork is on sunday Feb 26th!

stella_700

@caseyw8784 We just have the gonal-f in the fridge at our house. I'm on ganirelix rather than the cetrotide, I know they are similar but my IVF coordinator didn't say anything about refrigerating that one. We sorted things into four different smaller containers. Unopened meds except for the gonal-f (closed box), current meds with the gauze and alcohol wipes (open box), the sharps container, and a trash can. We've put everything by the bed on my side. It seems to save time and frustration, especially in the morning. Try not to feel overwhelmed, you will do great, have you gotten your calendar already? I've found that both glossy boxes and loot crate boxes serve me well, if you do either of those.

Mando15

@stella_700 that sounds like a promising number of follicles! My Follistim and mini hcg shots were okay most of the time but when we added the ganirelix it was always super red and itchy afterwards. Wasn't a fan of that one!

AFM... I got my fertilization report today and it was super good news. Of the 23 eggs collected 22 were mature and all 22 fertilized. After being undecided on paying extra for ICSI I am SO glad we paid the extra money for it. FX that most of them make it to blast!

GL to everyone with their transfers and retrievals this week! 

Gatorgirl2009

Unfortunately we only had 2 of my 9 fertilize. They said they had no idea why, eggs and sperm both looked good. So I had my sad day yesterday but thinking positive and praying hard! Today they told me the looked good and are growing but I don't think we will get another update until Monday which will be our transfer if they are still looking good! It will be a stressful weekend, I appreciate any extra prayers for my two little babies!

Gatorgirl2009

Congrats @Mando15, those numbers are awesome!

famiylgrl86

@gatorgirl2009 Sending prayers your way for your little babies!!

Gatorgirl2009

@famiylgrl86 thank you so much!

Mando15

Thanks @Gatorgirl2009! I am rooting for your two! Remember it only takes one! Are you doing a fresh transfer?

Gatorgirl2009

Thanks @Mando15, yes planning on doing fresh transfer on Monday if all goes well!

Polythene Pam

@gatorgirl2009 sending prayers for those 2, they'll be the strongest ones I'm sure of it! Keep us posted.

@Mando15 amazing number! Will you do fresh transfer? (Sorry if I missed you saying that!) I'm so glad they let you do this cycle as it was a great success! 

stbollinger

The waiting game is horrible! Good luck to everyone still waiting and good lucky with jury selection he could probably get out of it!

famiylgrl86

Hey ladies, I had a quick question for those of you that took menopur. How long was the needle you injected with? From watching the youtube videos everyone seems to use a half inch, but my pharmacy sent me 1 inch. Not going to love the extra half inch, but I can deal with it as long as it's not going to mess anything up lol. 

Mando15

@PolythenePam thank you! I am so relieved they let me continue as well! We decided to do a freeze all to give my body a little time to heal. I am pretty busy right now doing everything I can to avoid OHSS. Still feeling pretty uncomfortable but I was able to work today. GL at your beta next week! Sending lots of positive vibes your way!

Gatorgirl2009

For anyone who has experienced OHSS, I'm two days after ER and have been bloated and uncomfortable but today my lower back started giving me really bad pains and my stomach is looking even more bloated. I've been drinking a ton of Gatorade and resting a lot. Is this all normal or should I call the nurse to check??

Gatorgirl2009

@famiylgrl86 mine was a 5/8 inch one for Menopur, I would just give your nurse a call if you have any concerns. Menopur really wasn't bad, stick yourself fast is my best advice. I went slow the first couple times before realizing this!

Marley629

@caseyw8784  we have a lot in common! Thankfully His leave day for 2/28 was approved so I'm just praying i respond like they think I will and that my ER happens before 3/4 which would be his next shift. I have a love/hate relationship with his work schedule. Hes just been on a year so we are still adjusting lol  

CD1 for me today so I go in for my baseline and bloodwork on Sunday morning and start stims that night.  I'll be on 300 menopur and 150 gonal-F & then add cetrotide in eventually. 

Marley629

@Gatorgirl2009 I think they say if you have gained more than 5lbs overnight you need to be checked. If you are in pain and it's not going away, I would definitely call to be on the safe side 

krenee124

@Gatorgirl2009 good luck to you & your two embies! Keep busy this weekend and Monday will be here before you know it! 
@Mando15 22 fertilized! That's amazing! I'm so glad you did ICSI! Great success rate so far! Fingers crossed!

update on my numbers - persistence is key I've learned my clinic might hate me but they gave me a day 3 update today! All 9 that fertilized are still doing well! 7 are at 8 cell grade 1, 1 is an 8 cell grade 2, and 1 is a 7 cell grade 1! Nurse said all of that is excellent and we are on track! I have filled my day tomorrow in hopes of speeding it up! EGg transfer Sunday am at 8! Good luck to everyone still in their TWW and starting stims! This is a long and draining process but will be so worth it in the end!

HopeSIN

Hello ladies.
My day 3 report showed that all 11 fertilized are still growing: 7 are "average quality", 3 are "below average" and 1 with "poor quality". We'll be doing a freeze all and frozen transfer next month since I caught a rather bad case of OHSS.

to be honest, I'm a bit shocked that none of the embryos are "good quality" but only average and above average. Is that still "okay"? How many of your 3 day embryos made it to day 5 freeze?

thanks so much in advance!

liljoy-2

@HopeSIN I'm not from this month's IVF but what I can say is that things can turn around after day 3 when sperm DNA kicks in (they say what happens in the first 3 days is mainly due to egg quality). Mine were all poor quality at day 3 and then by day 5/6 I had more than half make it. However, unfortunately, out of these a lot were PGS abnormal. 

HopeSIN

@bestofjoy thanks so much for your insights - that's very helpful!

@Gatorgirl2009 I had my ER on Tuesday and was at the doc just yesterday for another ultrasound cause my belly is so swollen, it's crazy. Not only the lower abdomen though but also just right below the ribcage. They did find some water pockets but mostly it seems to be gas and of course the still massive ovaries. I had quite a lot of pain and tension, feeling like my belly's gonna explode soon. So what they told me is that if it gets worse from now onwards, that's a problem and then we'd have to drain the water, but if at least every day there's progress, it's gonna be okay. I hope that helps!

i just got a call that now on day 4 there are 4 that have compacted (of "average quality"), 1 x 14-cells, 1x 12-cells, 1x 10-fellas and 2 at 6 cells. So seems like currently it's 5-6 that have a fair chance of becoming Blastocysts.

How is everyone else doing? Happy Saturday :-)

krenee124

@HopeSIN I'm sorry about your OHSS experiences. Just the stress you don't need!! So glad to hear your day 4 babes are growing great!! This is good news! 

I still hate progesterone and am still cramping/twinges lower stomach and girly region!

Polythene Pam

Hey guys! I'm 6pd5dt and did my progesterone this morning (doing the gel insert) and saw brown spotting. When not medicated I spotted for 4-5 days before my period, I know spotting can be normal in IVF but any insight? I don't have my PMS signs (acne generally) but also no pregnancy signs. Ugh can it be Wed yet? Just wondering if anyone else had this  

Mando15

@HopeSIN I'm sorry you're going through that. I'm starting to think I might be in the same boat as you... constant pain and pressure and I am also swollen and bloated all the way through my rib cage. I'm only 2 days post ER now so I'm hoping this doesn't get worse before it gets better... Glad to hear your embabies are coming along!

Sweetdrms182

Hi Ladies,

I was part of the Jan FET thread but we had to cancel due to a medication error (my fault). I had my FET yesterday- we transfered one AC embryo (my one and only since 3 made it to PGS and only one was normal). 

My beta is scheduled for 12dp5dt. Doesn't that seem a bit further out? I'm tempted to have a beta done through my PCP at 10 dpt....it would be fully covered by my insurance. What do you think? For those who also transfered this month, when will you start POAS?

Polythene Pam

@Sweetdrms182 mine does 10dp5dt, I'm new to this so not sure what's normal I'm going to try holding out till the day before (Tuesday for me) to POAS, we'll see haha. 

I called the nurse this morning about my spotting, she said very normal. So in case anyone else has that during their TWW  

krenee124

@PolythenePam I am so glad nurse said it was normal! Do your best to get some r&r!

brela11

@PolythenePam I've had two different t days of spotting and the nurse also told me it's totally normal. 

@Sweetdrms182 that does seem far out! My beta was 11dp3dt. I tested at home the night before. 

@krenee124 I had cramping from er and I still am having some on and off so hopefully it starts a good sign! 

Polythene Pam

@krenee124 thank you!! Had a very low key afternoon, thank you

@brela11 that's so reassuring, thank you I'm glad I called the nurse too just to check. How are you feeling??

hope everyone's having a great weekend! 

Marley629

Just got back from my cd3 bloodwork and baseline ultrasound!  My AFC is 10 (I'm DOR) so I'll take it! Was hoping that a higher number would magically appear though. I'm just waiting on nurse to call with the bloodwork results and give me the OK to start stims tonight 

brela11

I'm feeling pretty good! Beta #2 came back at 230 so it more than doubled. We have our first ultrasound scheduled for Feb 27. I'm so happy but still anxious. IF really messes you up and leaves this fear when it should all be happy and exciting. 

Sweetdrms182

@brela11 - That's great news! Wow, March 27 for your U/S? Is that typical or did you mean February 27th? It's been 6 years since my last IVF cycle so I'm forgetting the typical protocol after pregnancy is obtained.  

brela11

Sweetdrms182 said:

@brela11 - That's great news! Wow, March 27 for your U/S? Is that typical or did you mean February 27th? It's been 6 years since my last IVF cycle so I'm forgetting the typical protocol after pregnancy is obtained.  

Yes February!! Haha I'll go back and edit that!