May 2018 - FET

kristimh80

@northbeach3 I'd ask what their timeline (calendar-wise) is for FET. My doctor does a 21 day FET timeline. The last 5-6 days before they add in progesterone for transfer. Some times the actual day will depend on if your embryo is a 5 or 6 day. Process itself is pretty easy. They had me come in between days 12 - 15 for a lining check and took blood for progesterone levels. On natural cycles,it seems like people go in more often to check estrogen levels. 

roisis

Hey @northbeach3 - GL with your appointment today As far as I know (and anyone feel free to correct me if I've got this wrong) in a natural FET cycle your don't take estrogen but they monitor you very closely to determine when you ovulate, then once you do you start the progesterone and they arrange the transfer on the most suitable day. With a medicated cycle they basically hijack your cycle by putting you on estrogen - thus preventing natural O. Then they only check your lining around Day12 and can organise the transfer on a day that suits (within reason!). The advantage of medicated is that there are less monitoring appointments and that you don't have to worry about you natural cycle or when you ovulate - plus there is some wiggle room for when you can arrange the transfer, the advantage of natural is no estrogen. I think that's the basic of it??
My cycles are really unpredictable - and I've never been able to figure out when I ovulate so I'm on a medicated cycle. The estrogen sucks - but my doc recommends it in my case - and I trust him.
@ndz2018 Yay - Let Aunt Flo
@greenhillgirl How did you get on?
@tosh24 I'm so sorry about your CP result. It's good that your RE is still so positive

northbeach3

Thanks so much for he clarification, ladies. Then I presume I’m on medicated cycle. I’m okay with that bc my natural cycles are all over the place with PCOS. Appreciate the science behind creating the best possible womb environment. Haha. Now to just worry about last minute wrenches like cysts or fluid!!! 

This will be my first time doing estrogen so I’m curious to see how that impacts my mood. I’m also debating whether to do all the womb prep again like acupuncture and pineapple core. What are y’alls FET rituals?

ndz2018

@northbeach3 Estradriol made me tired af! Took a few days for my body to adjust.
As for rituals my clinic offers laser acupunture so i'll be taking them up on that
I got these awesome pineapple socks off of amazon for me and H( i'm sure he'll love that lol)
Pomegranate Juice
plan on eating pineapple core starting the day before transfer for 5 days 
1/2 avocado starting the day before transfer
Brazilian nuts  
McDonalds fries the day of transfer because why not 
Food and drinks at room temp or warm( thank you @kristimh80 for that one)
Wear socks till beta 
I know half of that stuff probably wouldn't matter one way or another but i'll try anything! 

Anyone else have any suggestions I'll add it to my list lol

madasm0530

there are so many things to remember; pom juice, pineapple, socks, etc. does anybody have a great resources will of the "rituals" to follow before and after transfer? 

greenhillgirl

Thanks @kristimh80 and @tosh24 and for checking in too @roisis

The more I thought about it the more I knew I would have pain so I just took two tylenol and a Tramadol (Opioid pain reliever I'm prescribed by my OBGYN for terrible lower back pain I have a sneaking suspicion is related to endo in my pouch of douglas and bladder area but haven't confirmed). Since I eliminated all dairy from my diet my pain has mostly gone away and I never take it. My husband was laughing at me being slightly high on the subway to the doctor's. Then when we were waiting my doctor walked by looking super relaxed and eating from a giant plate of tacos. It hurt but was mostly mild until he hit the end of my uterus with the catheter and I yelled. It felt like a knife. 

I was okay to eat lunch but when I got home I took more tylenol and later got bad cramps and took another Tramadol. I used to get bad pain from colposcopies and even paps, so I just know my cervix doesn't like to be touched.But it was clear so I'm good to go. Last birth control tonight, baseline Monday, possible transfer 5/1 or 5/8.

Texting my sister:
Me: my doctor ate tacos right before he was in my uterus
I saw him
Less than five minutes
Her: Did he put taco in your uterus
Me: Yes. It burned. 

kristimh80

@northbeach3 Estrogen makes me super happy! Hopefully you'll respond well to it!

@greenhillgirl Ouch! I swear some times men doctor's aren't as graceful. I thought about yelling too right before ER when the man in the office did my sonogram. Super your after - lunch convo's!!

northbeach3

Got my calendar and protocol today. Go off BCP next thursday. Baseline on April 24th. As I remembered, estradiol .3 shot x2 per week, lining check on May 8th then FET on May 14. Fx for no uterine hiccups between now and then. Stay away cysts!! XXX  

Now where’s that spreadsheet?

roisis

@greenhillgirl I'm sorry that was so tough - that does sound rough But at least your through it now. Onwards and Upwards! I literally lol'd when I read your text exchange
@northbeach3 Yay for your plan! I really can't remember how the estradiol made me feel last year - I think mostly sleepy and maybe grumpy/angry but whatever it was I got through it. I'll definitely be doing accu again once I start my cycle. I'm actually really lucky in that my bf does acu and is also an experienced RN - and since I started ivf she insists on doing it for free. I tried sneaking her money last time and she was having none of it - she said she'd take payment when I had my baby! She's amazing because she didn't have any experience with doing acu for IF but looked up loads of info on it - so while she may not be an expert she is definitely taking a personal interest.
Spreadsheet is in my siggy below
ndz2018 Thanks for the list! I'm not normally superstitious and having lots of little things makes me stress even more - but I do love the idea of pineapple socks Plus I never allow myself McDs - seems like a good reason! What's laser acupuncture? I'm thinking lasers instead of needles - but that can't be right ????

ndz2018

YOU GUYS!! CD 1 HERE! Looking like FET will be early May!! I’ll call it in later and I’m sure baseline will be Sunday. My guesstimate will be 5/5ish!!! Hoping I’ll get an email or phone call today with the date!

@northbeach3  YAY for the timeline!!!

@roisis Not quite sure how laser acupuncture works last month while getting my paper work for the FET I had seen it offered so I say why not? I usually will do the needle acupuncture. As for all the other stuff I feel like if anything it will keep my mind occupied. And here are the pineapple socks I ordered for myself off of amazon 

roisis

@ndz2018 Yay for Day 1 That's fantastic - you're on your way And I luuuuurve the socks - must see if I can get myself and DH a pair

ndz2018

Amazon baby!! These are the ones I got for my H

mrsyng

@northbeach3 @ndz2018 good luck!!

ASabelko

@ndz2018  - Woohoo! And those socks are awesome

ndz2018

First morning monitoring went well.. starting with 1 Estradriol twice a day and back in for BW and US Thurs morning! I’m gonna say FET will be 5/6..only Bc i think my Dr wants to do the transfer personally. I looked at the scheduled and that’s her day for transfers! 

northbeach3

So exciting to see you get started @ndz2018.

since this is my first FEt, I was wondering if anyone knew how the different formats of estradiol compared. Seems like most women are prescribed the pill or patch. My doc uses shots. I also have much less monitoring which is a bit disappointing. I def had thinner linings when I was on clomid. Hoping the E2 helps. 

roisis

@northbeach3 I've only taken tablets before (and that's what I'll be on again) so I can't offer much advice I'm afraid.
 @ndz2018 woo hoo for getting started
AFM, I'm going in to get this cyst drained tomorrow and I'm actually getting pretty nervous about it at this stage. I'm not sure if I'm scared of the procedure, or scared that something else will go wrong - or even that it won't be able to go ahead for some reason. I had friends around for dinner on Saturday evening and they had a sick baby (vomiting bug) at home - and being rather selfish I'm quite worried that they were contagious!!! We were very fastidious about had-washing - but it's in my head now!!! Ugh, I just want to be through this bit....

J1006

Lurking...

@northbeach3 my doctor also uses shots. When I got my protocol I thought to myself Of course I get the doctor that wants to add one more shot to the mix. It’s not bad. I only do mine twice a week and it is a small dose. The oil it’s in is thicker than my PIO but a much smaller dose. She said she likes it better because sometimes the patches don’t adhere well or come off due to lotions or sweat. And something about the pills having to be absorbed through the digestive tract. Anyway...she said she sees better results with shots so here I am. I also felt like I wasn’t getting a lot of monitoring one CD 3 ultrasound and then two others before my transfer. Roughly once a week. 

kristimh80

@roisis Sending good vibes for your cyst drainage tomorrow!! I'm sure you'll be good and everything will go well! I'm sure your doctor would have already warned you if it would affect anything.

AFM Looks like I'll be joining the May board. I won't get to see my doctor until next Monday, so AF will prob be here before then, so will throw me till next cycle. So may technically land the 1st week of June. But you never know...

northbeach3

@J1006 oh thanks for the info. Darn, didn’t realize the estradiol was also in oil. I’m pretty sure I asked my nurse and she made it seem like it wasn’t as bad as the PIO. I only say that bc I’ll be traveling alone one of the days I’ll have to administer it. Guess I’ll need to do some video refreshers. My husband swears I wouldn’t be able to do PIO alone bc it’s so hard to plunge the oils and there’s so much of it. 

@kristimh80 I was thinking about your possible delay bc your doc was out this week. This is a little radical but what if you stayed on progesterone a little longer to delay your AF and help with timing? I’m always sad/irritated when I have to sit a cycle out bc of the REs schedule. Haha

@roisis fx for simple procedure today and no additional hiccups. 

kristimh80

@northbeach3 I have PIO and don't have enough to get me thru another week. I think I've come to terms with it. The nurse called this morning, still no openings this week but DH leaves tomorrow for the week for work, so wouldn't matter now. So gonna focus on getting back to working out and getting my life back without worrying about everything little thing I do lol

greenhillgirl

northbeach3 I do estradiol in pill form but you can definitely do those and PIO yourself. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise! I've done all my shots myself. You have to really be bold and jam the needle in firmly because the worst thing you can do mentally is get a false start. That will just freak you out. I would mark my preferred spot with eye liner, stand on opposite foot turn around to look at butt in mirror and jam the shot in and give it as quickly as possible, although the oil is slow. I never had any problems aside from bleeding once. I heated and massaged for 30 minutes and didn't get lumps. 

ndz2018

@roisis OH NO! It better not be anything contagious!! How do you feel today? GL with your cycst draining tomorrow!! 

@kristimh80 I hope your AF is delayed a tiny bit so maybe at least CD 3 can be the same day as your appointment this way you can roll right into a new FET! 

@northbeach3 I’ve only ever had the pill form of estrogen but I can Def tell you it worked fine for me. My lining was at 10.3 by CD 14 but unfortunately I had to cancel that transfer. 

@greenhillgirl  and @kristimh80  you ladies are my hero’s giving those shots intermusclarly yourselfs! Thanks for the advice on giving them if I need to! 

greenhillgirl

@roisis good luck tomorrow! I know I would be nervous too but I'm sure it will go smoothly. Can you plan a nice treat for yourself like special food tomorrow night if you're up for it?

I had monitoring this morning and have a good baseline. I start two pills of my estrogen tonight, increase to 3 a day on Friday, and go back for monitoring next Tuesday. Last time my lining developed ok but not as fast as I might have liked and it only got to 8mm or so. I started L-Arginine on Saturday night so I'm hoping maybe that will help. I'd love to do the transfer on 5/1 and not have to wait for 5/8 since estrogen is not my friend.

northbeach3

@greenhillgirl how much L-Arginine do you take?  I have some from last cycle, but never knew the right amount.  I know the bottle says like two a day, but I think I read online it should be six.  Sorry I don't have the bottle in front of me, so I don't remember the mg dosage for each pill.

Has anyone else done baby aspirin? what part of your cycle do you start taking it? one a day? i have a sinking suspicion i may be susceptible to clotting issues but my RE won't test for those yet.  my 23&me data shows that I am compound heterozygous for the MTHFR mutation.  i told my doc about it and he said that the science around it is junk science and that it's not a "thing" anymore.  anyone hear of this? one way or the other?

just trying to cover my bases.

madasm0530

@northbeach3 I have been on baby asprin since we started at our current RE (early 2016) continuously. It is a part of their usual protocol. 

ndz2018

@greenhillgirl Looks like our transfers will be close together! I havent gotten a date yet but i have a feeling my nurse will let me know this week about the details. I think Mine will be 5/6!

@northbeach3 I’ve heard some of the girls with MTHFR take folate instead of folic acid .. not sure the science behind it but it doesnt hurt to check it out. 

greenhillgirl

northbeach3 I can't remember the dosage either but it says to take 6 a day on the bottle I got. I don't want to do that. Its rapid release and I can def feel it in my system after I take it and it's not a great feeling. I guess I will stick at 2 and hope it does something...

It's cool you know stuff about your jeans.  MTHFR did make me laugh tho

roisis

Ehhhhh - so my cyst just went away! Apparently that's a thing that can happen I'm kinda confused - I was really quite scared about this procedure so I'm delighted - but I'm also a tiny bit annoyed that maybe I could have gone ahead last month?? But I suppose there's not point in being upset about that now. They basically said I'm good to go once I get AF, she's due next week but nearly always ~8days late. This is a strange day, I think I'm just going to curl up on the couch and relax for the afternoon.... Thank you to all for the good wishes
@kristimh80 I'm so sorry you have to join this month - but delighted to have you. Is your cycle normally a steady 28 days or is there a chance it could arrive late - in time to meet your RE?

ndz2018

@roisis I’m so happy your cyst is gone!! FX that AF shows up on time! I know when my AF was late I would take the max dose of Vit C, drink Parsley tea(apparently its suppose to work) and sex, lots of sex lol. I don’t know if any of those work but doesn’t hurt to try! 

tosh24

@roisis Great news!!!!! Glad you avoided the procedure but bummer that you got delayed. Hope AF gets her sh*t together and makes an appearance on time so you can get this party started!!!! 

ndz2018

Emailed my nurse this morning and asked if they scheduled my FET and we are go for 5/8

roisis

Thanks @ndz2018 and @tosh24 I know a certain DH that would be very happy with such remedies Actually DH turns 40 next month (5/23) and it would be soo amazing if we had a result by then - which may be a possibility if AF actually showed on time. Could be the best birthday gift ever
Congrats @ndz2018 on getting scheduled

greenhillgirl

Ugh @roisis that must be hard to have the whole lead up and then not have it happen. It's like you did half the work already. But it's great it disappeared by then. Aww, mine has his bday in May too- May 4. @ndz2018 since my transfer will be either 5/1 or 5/8 it sounds like we could be transfer buddies.

I started the estrogen last night and am ok so far. I made it to the gym at lunch to help lightly work some of the stuff out of my system. I'm asking if I can take both pills (and 3 starting Friday) at night instead of throughout the day cause that seems to have less side effects for me.

I'd love to indulge in some retail therapy but I'm trying to be good. Anyone doing any fun spring/summer shopping? I've been super interested in buying some shorts lately, which is unusual. I'm just determined to show my legs this year

ndz2018

@greenhillgirl That would be awesome if we were Transfer buddies! Maybe we can keep each other sane during our TWW! I was really hoping for a weekend transfer but clearly that’s not happening.
Started my Estradriol on Sunday and I’m already completely exhausted from it. Hopefully my body adjusts soon

greenhillgirl

@ndz2018 Ugh I'm sorry. I find the Estradiol really tough. Having a second cup of coffee if I really need it, getting extra sleep, and not planning anything other than work and home really helped me get through it last time. It also made me sleep a lot more lightly and wake up when my husband moved at all, which messed up my sleep and made me so tired. I find the pills and Tylenol pm at about 9pm a good pairing!

greenhillgirl

Boo and I just heard from my nurse. I have to take the Estradiol in the morning and the night and starting Friday 3x a day spread out like I did last time. I was hoping to front load it at night and drug myself to sleep hahah.

ndz2018

@greenhillgirl I’ll probably be joining you on taking it 3 x a day after monitoring this thurs so I feel you! 

 THESE ADDS ON MY MOBILE ARE DRIVING ME NUTS! 

northbeach3

@roisis woo hoo, glad to hear the cyst resolved on it's own.  my RE benched me for one of my IUI cycles because of a cyst and said to give it a month to see if it resolved on it's own (it did!) otherwise surgery.  seems better that your body did it.  depending on your AF start date, we may be cycle buddies.  i go off BCP on thursday and usually start 4 days later (likely next Monday).  I go in for my first monitoring next Tuesday.

@ndz2018 yes, thanks for the tip about folate... i did know about that one. my doc still proscribes me folic acid, but i ordered prenatals with folate -- supposedly process folate better than folic acid. i'll have to see if I can find the literature on MTHFR and blood clotting... but will put some baby asprin in my amazon cart anyway!   congrats on having your FET date! things are picking up now!

@greenhillgirlyes, there's some pretty funny memes and stickers using the acronym MTHFR

p.s. i thought i was going crazy about the additional adds on the mobile app! the ones at the end came from no where!

roisis

@greenhillgirl Ugh that's a pity about spacing out your tablets. My nurse told me yesterday  that I should take all 4 estradiol tablets in the evening. I'm not exactly sure why but I *think* I remember last year they said they advise to sleep through as many side effects as possible (I'm truly amazed as to how little I remember from my FET protocol last year - it's like I blanked it!!)
@northbeach3 Oh Yay - I'd love to be cycle buddies I'll start taking all the home remedies to get AF here on time!

Ok - these ads. I've started getting them on my laptop too (although not on my desktop at work so far...). These are really seriously upsetting me. They are little videos that start playing immediately in the corner - and they seem to be targeted in the most horrible way for me - I can't turn them off but I thought I could 'Opt Out' of the targeting aspect. I did that yesterday and the ads changed but this morning they seem to be back. It's basically targeting me with ads based on the fact that I'm looking up stuff on pregnancy and I'm in Ireland (there's a referendum coming up - I was going to describe it but actually this is not the place and I don't want to upset anyone else). Can I ask does anyone know if we can contact the mods to get rid of or complain about these ads? Or if there is a way to block them?  If they keep coming up I'm not sure I'm going to be able to handle it