January 2019 IVF

laurenc436

@pegs007 Try Freedom Pharmacy. I used both them and Mandells but found freedom cheaper if paying out of pocket. 

pegs007

@daaly & @laurenc436 - Thank you for your suggestions!

yankeebelle77

Hi all! Just finished day 3 of stims in round 2 of ivf... so I'm technically bridging the Jan/Feb 2019 boards. Round 2 is definitely going smoother than round 1 so far. DH and I have a system to better organize ourselves (i.e. we were hot messes with the box full of meds last time), so it's a little less overwhelming this time. I've never been so happy to find little photo boxes that come in a casting case from Michael's! They're a total sanity- saver! Round 2 has me a little more anxious about the outcome, because *TW***we got 9 eggs the first time, 4 developed normally to day 3, we ended up with two blastocysts on day 5, but both came back "not viable" after PGD. I'm 41, with decent- for- my- age levels for everything,  and DH is apparently a rockstar in his category. My age, coupled with generalized anxiety disorder, and a failed first cycle tagging along for the emotional rollercoaster has me all kinds of anxious! This round I'm on 600 units of CoQ10 and 75 units of DHEA, and am trying essential oils because I'm up for trying it all. I was going to go in for acupuncture as well, but after reading the boards I hope I'm not too late to start. My FX for all of us! 

@ah80- Were you on the November 2018 board with me? 

kjh0220

Hi everyone! 
I hope I am not too late to the discussion! I have been trying to have a baby for over 4 years now and have always read these forums. Finally after going through IVF I cant take the wait and figured I'd share my story since I love reading everyone's! 

So...I'm 29 years old and while time seems to be on my side my severe endometriosis has the cards stacked against us, along with Male factor. So after 5 failed IUIs we finally are in the 2 week wait of our first IVF. 

On January 21st we transferred 1 day 5 blast (I only had five mature eggs, three fertilized and only one made it. So I have none to freeze). The anxiety is killing. I have had period like cramps off and on for almost 4 days now and last night I wake up with a strange increase in the pain along with nausea. Its only lasted about 15 mins. Any one else ever feel this way?

This has been such a trying journey and I dont know what I'll do if this doesn't work. Thank you for sharing your stories. Even though my friends and family try to understand they just cant especially when they all have kids or are pregnant. It's nice to have other understand here!

daaly

Period cramps dose not mean anything. It is the porgestrone working on your endometrium . Good luck

daaly

Got the bad news today. Non of my 6 eggs fertilized. I am not sure if I will try again or just take the adoption route

lauralee00

@daaly Same thing happened to me 5 years ago even though we did icsi. It is so hard to understand why?! ((HUGS)) Take some time for yourself to grieve before you make any decisions. Praying for you! 

lauralee00

I'm so anxious for the call in the morning to find out if we have anything to transfer tomorrow or not! The last update we had was that the 1st egg that fertilized normally was only a 2 cell, then we had an egg that they let mature and inseminated the following day and it was a 4 cell. Praying so hard that they grew this weekend and that we will have 1 or both to  transfer! This wait has been so hard 😬

kjh0220

YankeeBelle77 in curious about what essential oils you try. I was actually thinking about reading more into them. Like you said I am up for anything! 

Daaly I am so sorry for your bad news. My husband and I actually have a friend who adopted after failed IVF and I did talk to them about it before. It is such a hard decision to make, keep trying or help a baby get a good home. Some days it feels impossible and if this cycle is not successful for me my husband and I will be having the very same discussion. Continue with another round of IVF or adopt. sending lots of hugs and prayers your way!


leela00 Good luck! I'm sending prayers your way! 

daaly

@leela00 praying that you will hear Good news about your embryos 

ACAC25

@daaly I'm sorry to hear your sad news. Hugs for you and DH as you grieve and discuss what comes next. 

@kjh0220 I bet it is hard in two two for your IVF cycle. It has been a hard wait for me the last few weeks and I finally start my monitoring and stims tomorrow! Hope you find something to keep you busy to keep your mind off the tww!

@leela00 good luck for your news tomorrow! 

somewhereinnyc

@sbhawnani how was your transfer?? Congrats on being ‘pupo’!

@daaly so sorry for that news and thank you for the wishes. 

i had my retrieval this Friday- it wasn’t that bad physically. 10 eggs retrieved, all mature, and 9 fertilized w ICSI (we have a morphology issue). 

I’ve got estrogen patches, progesterone shots, antibiotics, and steroids to keep the party going until the transfer. I find out tomorrow morning whether transfer is tomorrow (short notice right?) or Wednesday. Pretty nervous about all this. But also glad to not be stimming right now. 

Did it really hit anyone else when you guys got the fert report that there are now a bunch of little organisms out there that are half you and half your partner? It was kind of exciting and sweet for us. On the way home from the grocery store today, I could help but tell my husband that I hope all our embabies are doing ok. 

ashcash03

Hello all and welcome new ladies. Just a small update for me. Got a follow up call today and was told that 4 embryos made it to day 6 and were excellent enough to freeze. All good quality which they feel will survive thawing. So I’m enjoying my break from injections and daily headaches and am just waiting on AF to show her ugly head. My next follow up is on the 4th so I’m hoping I will have a tentative transfer date then. 

@sbhawnani how did your transfer go?!?
@daaly so sorry to hear your news and you are in my thoughts!

kjh0220

Somewhereinnyc that is so awesome you had nine fertilize! . You are totally right, I got hit with a surreal feeling knowing the embryos are growing when I tried for so long and now it actually in my grasp! We only had three fertilize and one make it transfer. On they day of transfer they gave me a picture to keep of the day 5 blast. It was really awesome to be able to actually see the embryo! good luck with everything! 

somewhereinnyc

@kjh0220 thank you!! stinks that some didn’t fertilize. I’m guessing no ICSI done for you this round? I hear the pregnancy rate for a 5 day blast transfer is really good, so fingers crossed for you! Congrats on your transfer!!!

kjh0220

Thank you! We did do ICSI actually but I'm praying one is enough! 

sbhawnani

My transfer was yesterday and it went really well. I lay in bed and watched Netflix the entire day and was debating between coming to work or not today. But I got up, dressed up and showed up just because it's nice to get in the groove of things and keep myself distracted until my blood test next Tuesday (feels so far out). I hope I am not testing my luck too much here but I figured if I take it easy and not run around, I should be okay. Does anyone here have thoughts about resting or not after transfer?

@daaly I am so sorry to hear the news. Big hugs for you as you figure out your next steps. I hope you find peace in your decision. 

Tulips29

@sbhawnani congrats on your transfer and being pupo! My RE suggests regular daily activity after transfer, but no workouts. So going to work is fine, but you can't go running on a treadmill or doing Zumba. They also say not to just lay there all day. 

Anyone superstitious and believe in old wives tales of things to do after transfer? I've got the following on my list - eating lots of good fats like avocados, walnuts and brazil nuts; lots of veggies; eating pineapple + core every day starting with transfer day; no bad carbs and no cold drinks. Anyone read or doing anything else? 

somewhereinnyc

@Tulips29 @sbhawnani I heard the same. Some movement might be good for circulation just like walking but don’t go kickboxing or jump on a trampoline lol. 

Tulips, is your transfer soon? My transfer is this wednesday and I’m eating pineapple (I love pineapple) and doing acupuncture before and after. I didn’t know about the others but if this is an excuse to eat more guac, I’m down! I’m also going to try to avoid bad carbs and junk food bc it can take help w things right? Ps I’m also taking baby aspirin now that my doc ok’ed it

Tulips29

@somewhereinnyc I'm doing an FET, so no word on when transfer will be, but my retrieval should be by the end of this week (hopefully!). I've just been reading up and preparing myself so I don't forget anything. With pineapple, I've heard the core is what really helps with implantation. So exciting that your transfer is so soon! 

ellis1983

Hi All! My transfer was today. Out of my 20 eggs retrieved, 14 were mature, 13 were fertilized, and as of this morning (day 5), 11 of the 13 are still dividing. We had 3 at AA quality and they put the best one out of the 3 in me. Freezing other two and they are watching the remaining 8 next few days. Procedure was super easy today and we are hopeful! Pregnancy test is Thursday feb 8th. 

Best of luck to everyone! 

somewhereinnyc

@ellis1983 that’s amazing! Congrats!

sbhawnani

I just heard from the embryology lab and none of the 4 remaining embryos after our transfer made it to freeze. I don't know if I should be worried or not because they obviously transferred the best two out of the ones we had but it is heartbreaking to know that none made it to freeze. I will keep focussing on the ones that were transferred and hope for the best. My test is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb 5. 

Tulips29

@sbhawnani I'm sorry, I know that's not the news you expected. Do you have any others left or the two they transferred were it? Remember, it only takes one! Keep positive and we'll have our fingers crossed for you next Tuesday! 

sbhawnani

@Tulips29 Just the two they transferred. We started with 9, all fertilized, and 6 made it to Day 5. 2 were transferred and the remaining 4 didn't make it to day 6. 
Trying to think positive and hoping that at least one of the two they transferred is going to make it. I will keep you all posted with what I find out on Tuesday. Good luck to everyone and thank you for your support.

lauralee00

I'm in shock! Our 2 embryos were still progressing so we transferred both today 🥰! They were still morulas and not quite blastocysts yet, but they said they looked good! 

sbhawnani

@leela00 so happy for you! I will keep my fingers crossed for them to stick. Good thoughts, good food and lots of rest are your best friends now. We're together on this wait now; I had my transfer yesterday. My test date is 02/05. When do you test?

Tulips29

@leela00 congrats! sending you lots of sticky vibes! 

ACAC25

Good luck to all you ladies who had your transfers recently! Sending lots of good sticky vibes!! Keeping my fingers crossed for positive results on your tests next week! It only takes 1! 😍

lauralee00

@sbhawnani I test on the 6th!

Tulips29

For those of you that did the trigger and retrieval already, did you trigger with Lupron or HCG? My RE told me both are options today, and he recommends Lupron. He said lupron is easier on the body and I won't be as uncomfortable as I would be with HCG. However, with lupron there's a 1% change it won't work and we'll have to start the cycle all over again, which freaked me out. He doesn't think it'll happen, but gave me full disclosure before the trigger. With HCG, he said it's tougher on the body and recovery will be longer than with lupron. I don't even know what to do now. With my first retrieval I wasn't given any options and just triggered with HCG and had a rough recovery. 

somewhereinnyc

@Tulips29 I actually did a dual lupron/ hcg trigger (pretty low dose of hcg) and the recovery was fine. I think it might also depend how at risk you are for OHSS. Like is your E2 is very very high, an HCG trigger is a bad idea. You’re not transferring right after so I’d personally go with whatever would help get the most mature eggs (hcg or dual trigger) as long as e2 isn’t crazy high. But that’s bc I’d rather feel bloated for a few days and potentially get more eggs. 

Tulips29

@somewhereinnyc I'm not 100% sure what my E2 levels are yet, I'm waiting for a call with today's blood work results. But I'm kind of thinking along the same lines as you, I'd rather suffer a bit longer and get the best quality eggs than not. My RE also mentioned a dual trigger with a low dosage of hcg, but said to think about all the options. I'm just afraid to only do lupron and then beat myself up if the eggs aren't mature and we can't use any of them. Thanks for your feedback! 

saidebea

Good luck to all of you going through your transfers!

I had my retrieval yesterday: 9 eggs, 6 were mature enough for ICSI, 4 fertilized. I don't know how to feel, just so nervous about this whole process. Eeeeeeek!

Tulips29

@saidebea that's great! Are you doing an FET?

I'm triggering tonight and retrieval is Thursday. So nervous as well! 

pgdwivf

yankeebelle77  at 42 I am in the same situation (last round) with two blastocysts on day 5, but both came back "not viable" after PGD. Praying for better outcome this time.

My ER was yesterday 23 eggs retrieved ,17 fertilized! Next embryo update in one week on how many were biopsy and sent for PGD/PGS.

Many Blessings to all for all ER and FET!

somewhereinnyc

Transfer done! So out of 10 eggs, 10 mature, 9 fertilized, 1 fresh transfer today, 4 frozen today, and they are watching the remaining 4 to hopefully freeze them tomorrow! Hoping for babies for everyone from this months ivf!

ACAC25

@somewhereinnyc that's great news! Sending lots of good vibes your way! 

@Tulips29 good look on your retrieval tomorrow! 

I'm at Day 3 monitoring tomorrow. The menopur shots are giving me a headache and making me tired in the few hours after the shot. And I've felt super clingy with DH. I guess just hormones lol 

saidebea

@Tulips29 Thanks and good luck tomorrow! I'm getting the ERA test done in Feb so my RE can pinpoint my prime implantation window, we are aiming for the FET to be towards the end of March. How about you?

@pgdwivf Holy smokes, 17 fertilized!!!! Wow! That's amazing, congrats and good luck!

Whats everyone's thoughts on the PGS testing?? We opted to do it but I'm second guessing our decision. I'm finding research that shows sometimes embryos deemed "abnormal" actually go on to become perfectly healthy babies. It freaks me out to think they'll toss out what we have when maybe they would've worked anyway -- ? And doesn't an NIPT test show chromomal abnormalities?? Ugh, I'm confused and stressed and I realize I sound like a crazy person, but it's just such a critical decision. 

Tulips29

@somewhereinnyc that's great! Sending lots of sticky vibes and fx for great progress with the remaining embryos! 

@ACAC25 thank you! 

@saidebea thank you! I'm hoping for an FET within the next month since we're doing PGD testing. To answer your question on PGD, this is my second retrieval and we've opted for PGD twice now. I feel like you take a gamble transferring untested embryos, which can result in a mc or chemical pg or not stick altogether. In my mind, it saves that heartache and lessens the chances of something going wrong. I haven't read or heard anything about abnormal embryos being developed into healthy children, but I'd be curious as to what kind of abnormalities lead to this. I'd think a mission chromosome would lead to serious defects. I don't know what other abnormalities are there though. This is all so fascinating!