IVF process

dnl92213

hi there. A little background, we have been ttc for approximately 2.5 years now. We have been seeing a specialist for 8 months and fall in the “unexplained” category. I responded well to clomid with 4 mature eggs each round of treatment but for some reason they just won’t stick. 
after 3 failed IUIs the husband and I will be starting the IVF process and I have no idea what to expect in this process. I know everyone is different but just trying to get a feel for what’s to come! Thankyou! 

inthewoods23

@dnl92213 I'm in the same boat - unexplained, 3 failed IUIs and now moving on to IVF. My clinic has us schedule an appointment with them to go over the next steps. I expect that a lot of questions I have will be answered then. Hopefully your clinic does something similar!

mbradfo2

I'm a bit further on the journey than you ladies but we were also unexplained. 3 failed IUIs and then moved onto IVF.

We had an appointment where everything was reviewed and basically got packets of directions on what to do each day (take this pill, do this shot at 1 pm, etc). There were also lots of appts for monitoring to make sure things were progressing properly and bloodwork to check hormone levels. Once the doc felt everything looked good -- lots of nice follicles - he had me do the trigger shot and then come back to the office for the egg retrieval. That was done under twilight sedation and I had maybe a little cramping afterward. We got 9 mature eggs from 14 folli's. Over the next few days, they fertilized them with DH's sperm and monitored the development. We ended up with 2 embryos frozen on day 6 (we didn't do a fresh transfer; our clinic is moving away from them). 

Our transfer the next month resulted in a happy baby girl

My doc believes unexplaineds aren't "unexplained" but that we simply can't diagnose the issue with our current technology. He feels it's usually something going on at the sperm or egg level  or with embryo development and often IVF can provide insight. We found out we didn't get too many eggs and our fertilization rate was very low (only 5 eggs fertilized properly out of the 9 mature ones). That was probably why things weren't working normally.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask! The process is very daunting but there is ALOT of hope!

dnl92213

Thankyou so much! I’m 27 and unfortunately have no one close to me who has had to go through IVF so I don’t really have anyone to talk to about it, or ask questions about the process. It’s definately a lot to take in and a little overwhelming but we are hoping the end result makes all of this stress worth it!! 

inthewoods23

@mbradfo2 I really agree with you on the idea that unexplained DX isn't really unexplained. My DH's SA showed 1% morphology which everyone always considers just a yellow flag, but I'm sure it has something to do with the problem!

@dnl92213 are we twins? Because I also have no one that's been through IVF! I do have 1 friend who is incredibly supportive but she has no idea on any of this stuff. I had to explain what IUI stood for.

I have our consultation appointment tomorrow morning and I'm both excited and anxious!

@mbradfo2 I'm going to be on CD9 tomorrow, do you think they would start the process this cycle or wait for the next one? I know there's usually some time on BC for timing purposes and when I'm not taking letrozole I typically O around CD17-19 so I doubt I'm close in that regard.

dnl92213

@inthewoods23 yes that’s how it is for me! I now have one good friend and my older sister who just began seeing a specialist with in the last few weeks but obviously it’s them coming to me for advise and talks and not the other way around! Everyone is so supportive but it’s hard because they don’t fully understand what the last few months have been like ya know? Makes it insanely lonely I feel like! Good luck with your consult tmw! 

@mbradfo2 this might be an odd question but did you take a month or two off once going from iui to ivf? I’m worried about the mental toll ivf may take on me jumping right in. It’s just been a very stressful process and my husband and I were thinking about taking a little trip in May vs going straight into treatment again, but I’m so unsure of what to do. I don’t want to waste more time but also know the stress isn’t going to help anything! 

mbradfo2

@inthewoods23
My clinic always had a month of BC before starting anything so they were on top of the cycle. It also let them do any last minute testing like a trial transfer (to make sure they can put the catheter with the embryos in easily) etc. I don't think they would want you starting stims off the bat and I would even recommend a little break to let yourself recharge and get started on supplements if you aren't on anything.

@dnl92213
I think a break is an awesome idea so you can go into things with a clear mind. We were planning on a couple month break before starting IVF but it turned into a much longer one because I got a surprise BFP and early m/c the month before we were going to start BC for IVF. So I took about an 8-10 month break between finishing IUI's and starting IVF.

Supplements my clinic recommended were DHEA, CoQ10, prenatal vitamins with DHA, Vitamin D (if you're low). Some people also like to add in acupuncture or massage; I think anything that helps you relax is good! My clinic offered free massages during the process and the therapist said I was incredibly tense haha. Just check with your doc re things like yoga -- mine didn't want me doing any hot yoga or strenuous stuff. 

hanna1987

Hi dnl92213 and hi everyone!
I will be doing my first IVF cycle starting stims May 7th (hopefully!). We have been trying for two years. We tried clomid this summer with my gyno with no luck. I had my RE consult in November and found out at my preliminary ultrasound that I have an endometrioma on my right ovary and potentially have silent endometriosis. I'm going in this week to have an endometrioma drained. I started birth control last week and have my initial planning appointment next week. I just keep crossing my fingers that this in vitro fertilization will be a go and that we will have some good news in the next couple months.
@dnl92213 I was also recommended prenatal vitamins with DHA, Vitamin D, but now it's such a nothing, compared to what awaits me.

Best of luck to you going through the process to all of you!

inthewoods23

@dnl92213 now that I've had my IVF consultation here's my understanding of my timeline. Yours might differ slightly, but I think the process tends to be the same.

Call clinic on CD1 (so my next period in April)
Blood work is done
Take BC starting on CD5 for 3 weeks
Stims for 10-12 days
Retrieval (sometime in May)
ICSI (due to DH's 1% morph) and PGD testing of embryos
Freeze the good embryos
FET sometime in July

My clinic basically is having us do everything in order to increase the chance of success - making sure the best embryos are transferred with using ICSI, testing, and transferring frozen instead of fresh.

somewhereinnyc

@inthewoods23 just referring to your earlier post, agree how odd things are about morphology! My insurance categorized us as “severe male factor infertility” due to morphology but my clinic said unexplained. After IVF long story but I ended up getting a laparoscopy and they said I have mild endometriosis so now they think that’s what’s going on. ICSI is apparently good for eggs from endo girls tho bc theory is that eggs from endo girls have harder ‘shells’ if you will. Either way, doc thinks egg and sperm never came together before IVF. I ended up getting pregnant on fresh transfer and miscarrying a chromosomally abnormal embryo (we aren’t doing testing). 

Re: IVF cycle logistics, most have a month of birth control first but mine did not... so I had 10-12 days of stim shots and monitoring, egg retrieval, then Progesterone shots and estrogen patches after retrieval until either negative test or like 7 wks pregnant. The embryo transfer was on day 5 and not bad at all. 

inthewoods23

@somewhereinnyc that's my biggest worry is that his sperm can't penetrate my eggs. Guess we won't have to worry about that with ICSI though! My RE didn't indicate needing any additional testing so I'm pretty sure it's only a waiting game at this point. Doing the 3 weeks of BC actually makes our timing better since we're out of town the last week in April!

dnl92213

Believe it or not I had some spotting day 27, and it went away by evening. Im now at day 30 and zero bleeding again so now I’m questioning! I def thought it was the beginning of my period (i even have had non stop mild cramping) but now I’m not to sure 🤷🏻‍♀️. Still can’t test for 4 more days due to hcg booster. my dr said if there’s no more bleeding to come in Monday for a test so fingers crossed, however I’m not getting my hopes up! 

mbradfo2

@dnl92213
I had some spotting before my BFP....just maybe! We can get our hopes up for you

knottiecbbc8d089ec107bb

Hello Ladies!

New here and new to fertility treatments. We haven’t nailed down a timeline yet but my thoughts and prayers is that it will most likely be an early May ER. I’ve learned very quickly that there is a lot of waiting therefore a lot of patience required for this process.

*About me* 
I am 36 and my husband is 43 we have been TTC for almost 3 years now. DX is MFI. DH has had 2 SA and bloodwork.  He’s now taking 9 supplements +  clomid to try and improve his sperm count and testosterone levels.  They have recommended IVF with ICSI for us. I have my SHG test, trial transfer and a follicular ultrasound scheduled for April 1st.

I am just looking for support as I go through my first cycle and any advice would be great. Also what to expect.