IF Testing and Treatment w/o 5/13

jennifer_louise

Hey peeps! I used to be a regular around these parts until the stress of TTC/IF became too much to deal with and I took an extended break from TB (and Insta) but now here I am. I can't say I'm happy to be making my inaugural post on this thread, but I do feel exceptionally fond of you all and this place in particular. I'm not completely ready to jump back into the dailies and such yet, but this feels like a nice way to dip my toes back in. 💜

First off @inthewoods23 majorly excited about your new adorable pic and for your IVF journey! I'm thinking the best of thoughts for you!

@emmasemm 11 lbs is an awesome accomplishment and you should be so proud!! Your FET is coming up so soo!!

@begging4abump was thinking about you on my hiatus and I sincerely hope that the ol power wash was exactly what your ute needed.

@madcouplewithabox Ireland sounds great!! Where are you visiting? You'll have to update us!

@PrettyPalomino welcome!! TW***LC mentioned*** TFAS is a great place for navigating TTC with another kid since it's the only place for freely mentioning LOs on this board, and +1 here for secondary IF. Feel free to PM me because I'm navigating that too with the same age kiddo. End TW****

Lots of other friends here too @chichiphin @littleredm @keikilove hiiiiiiii! (this will teach me to wait until Thursday to post and miss so much action).

Hokay. AFM-

Diagnosis: first cycle testing. My CD 3 blood work came back as all normal. Just got word on my hubby's SA and all looks good there EXCEPT for "slight agglutination". Still waiting to hear if that's an issue or needs possible treatment. Discussing his SA is my hubby's least favorite conversation topic so... Maybe that's why I need you ladies... (:

Status: WTO

What are you doing this cycle: old fashioned HIO. I'll do my progesterone test 7-9 days after a +OPK and likely HSG/ultrasound next cycle.

How are things going? My mental state changes by the minute. Mostly just trying to emotionally prepare myself for ***TW*** FOUR LITERAL BABY SHOWERS IN THE NEXT MONTH ****end TW****

Any questions: anybody know anything about agglutination? 😂

GTKY: like @nitnat007, just as many outdoor things as possible! Our first camping trip of the summer is next weekend!

inthewoods23

Hi @jennifer_louise! Missed you! I only googled it, but it sounds like it means his sperm sticks together. I have no idea what would help that!

begging4abump

Ahhhhhhh @jennifer_louise you’re back!!! I was hoping to find you when I lurk the other side, so I’m sorry to see you here, but glad that I get to stalk/support you again. I hope the break helped. I can totally relate to having all sorts of changing emotions about this process. We’ve got a few common factors, so if you ever need to talk to someone without worrying about tw, I’m just a message away! Plus, I hear you on the SA discussion front. I’m STILL waiting on mh to set that up. I hate having to keep bringing it up with him, so I’d imagine seeing less than perfect results would be much tougher. And I’m so sorry about all the showers! That’s crazy. I hope you’re not planning to attend all those! Sending some creepy internet hugs!

jennifer_louise

@inthewoods23 that was exactly my approach too! But then I realized I should probably browse Google on my personal computer instead of at work lol. Oh well! I'll keep you updated if I learn anything.

@begging4abump MH was so weird about the SA. He didn't even tell me he had done it, and so I nagged him about it, he said oh I already did that and I was like 'wut? '. I get that it's a weird and awkward process for males but let's be adults here. And thanks for the hugs, friend. Right back at ya!! ❤️

b_1029

I missed you @jennifer_louise!! Sorry to see you on this thread ❤️❤️

chichiphin

Hiii @jennifer_louise hopefully you get more answers on the sperm quality issue. My RE swears proper vitamins can enhance quality over about 3 months, hopefully this is one of those things! 

jennifer_louise

@b_1029 I missed you too friend! I hope I will jump back into the other threads soon too.

@chichiphin thanks! Does your RE recommend any vitamins for your H in particular? My Google research said that vit C & D could help.... The weird thing is, when they called MH with results, they said they look for 3 things (count, motility, morphology) and they all look good. They didn't mention agglutination, it just said it on the actual lab results sheet. Maybe they don't mention it because it didn't seem to be impacting those three things? I could be freaking out about nothing, but also, it doesn't seem like it would help to have a "clumping" issue. 

nitnat007

@jennifer_louise Welcome back! You are going camping next weekend already? Jealous! It is still too cold for us up here. Hopefully in another month or so. 
I can absolutely relate on the SA conversations. MH has an acrosome defect, which has led to some very tough conversations over the last eight months. Once he started doing some of his own research it did make it easier, but being able to take the brunt of my venting elsewhere was the key. I hope that in your case, it is not something that will be concerning. 

@chichiphin GL with your recheck today! Let us know how you are holding up. 

@littleredm It was great having him there! And maybe took a little too much pleasure in seeing him hobble a couple days later lol. Hope that you are feeling better and that you were able to figure out your sono and polyp scheduling. Glad to hear that you are moving forward now though. 

@celticknotfire Oohh 6/12 is a great day! Its my dad's birthday, so will be sending you extra special vibes! YH sounds a little like mine. He also likes to start projects and then walk away from them. No need to remind him about it every 6 months, its on his list and will get to it eventually. Right?!

@emmasemm He is a man of many excuses! But I finally just started laying on the guilt and he ran out of excuses. His best one is that I workout too early for him. He isn't a morning person. He likes to have a coffee and scroll through FB for an hour before he moves. I get up and go. Will see if he makes it again. 

@keikilove So sorry to hear that you have been having such a rough time lately. Just know that we are here for you to vent whenever you need an ear. Sending hugs!

@begging4abump Oh just three years! when I teach 3-4 classes a week. As I mentioned above, a man with many excuses! It was a LOT of fun though. I chose tough tracks and he stood right in front of me too. Not sure I would ever be able to convince him to take any type of dance class though. Good on him!

chichiphin

@jennifer_louise he recommended a VERY specific and expensive one, but I found that these have the exact same ingredients.... and sadly I can't figure out how to order them without also ordering the womens: 

https://www.amazon.com/Womens-Pre-Pregnancy-Multivitamin-Couples-Count/dp/B01M9GSQB1/ref=sr_1_8?crid=3HP7SO5QJKOPO&keywords=mens+fertility+supplement&qid=1558107719&s=gateway&sprefix=mens+fer%2Caps%2C169&sr=8-8

chichiphin

afm - haven't o'd yet, but got my first nearly positive opk this morning. I have a 21, 20 and 17 now, lining at 7.8 and a "stellar" post-coital swab. I actually got to see the swimmers on the computer screen lol. My follies will all be smaller than my "normal" when I o, but this is probably because all three are vying for space on my left ovary. HIO session continues today and tmrw!

littleredm

@nasah15 welcome back. I'm sorry to hear about the cyst and the blocked tube. That's really tough. Have you called the RE to try and speed things along?

@PrettyPalomino How did your RE appointment go? Have you scheduled CD 3 testing?

@chichiphin I hope your apt goes well today and that the timing lines up perfect!

@jennifer_louise welcome back, I missed you! I get needing to step away though, it really can get to be too much. I haven't heard of agglutination but I hope that the RE says it's not a problem or if it is, has a way of fixing it.

My SHG is schedule for Monday and all the meds for IVF just arrived today. I've still been sick with a stomach virus/cold and fever so I'm hoping I get better before getting underway with this treatment. I'm also in a wedding next weekend so this week I have all kinds of bridesmaid stuff that I have to participate in so I need to get better.

madcouplewithabox

@jennifer_louise hey there! Sorry you’re here. And holy crap that’s a lot of events! Hopefully you can do whatever you need for your sanity. 

@inthewoods23 I would totally read that blog/book if you made it lol

@chichiphin thanks for the link to that vitamin. I’ll have to see about getting it for DH and maybe get him a “manly” pill box or something. I literally have to hand him the ones he. Should be taking now🙄 

As for DH, we are having a bit Of a disagreement on how we should tackle our issues. He’s in denial that we have any now.

TW

He thinks that since we got pregnant without help the first time that we just need to give it time and “relax”. Took us two years, a failed medicated cycle and a failed IUI. (we deal with MFI) I personally think the first was a fluke and we will even have a harder time now, especially since that I’m 4 years older than when we started trying last time and I’m getting ever closer to that AMA status. 

Any one else deal with getting DH on board with facing fertility issues?

*edit for grammatical mistakes

celticknotfire

@nitnat007 he's had things on his house to-do list for almost 2 years now and I'm going crazy!

@chichiphin that sounds like lot of good news! FX

@madcouplewithabox I would just be honest with him about how you feel.  We are fortunate not to have any MFI problems but I can imagine some men take it as a blow to their ego.  Would it help to have an appointment with your RE and the both of you?  Maybe if he hears it from a doctor he will have a better understanding of what the issues are and how treatment can help

@nash15 Welcome!  I would try calling your RE and seeing if that speeds things along a little bit

@PrettyPalomino Welcome!  How did you appointment go?

@jennifer_louise welcome back!  From what I know about sperm agglutination it can often be fixed with antibiotics as it is often caused by infection.  Do you know if your RE ordered a sperm antibody test?  That can also be related to the "clumping"

littleredm

@madcouplewithabox That's tough. When we first went to the RE it was still early for somebody my age (even though my OBGYN was like because of your endometriosis you need to be proactive and be seen early) and DH was hesitant to try anything, especially after getting our unexplained dx. My agreement with him was to give it 3 more months naturally and if it didn't work then we'd move to IUI. He's now more on board after seeing those months didn't work and the IUI's didn't work.  

My suggestion would be to sit him down and ask what his concerns are about pursuing fertility treatments. Maybe there's a financial aspect in there that's making him hesitant. It looks like your dx is MFI too which could be a tough emotional thing for him to deal with.  I'd also get him into the RE office so that a doctor can explain that secondary infertility is most definitely something that happens. Sometimes it can help hearing facts straight from the doctor's mouth. I hope that you can both come to an agreement on how to proceed, I know that navigating infertility can be really tough.

rikiteacup

:::lurking:::

@jennifer_louise I was wondering where you were! For male vitamins, I recommend FertilAid. It is now sold at Target. It has all the same vitamins as a multivitamin for men except with higher dosage of the key ones (Zinc - 200%, Vit C - 417%, Vit E - 500%...).
You can read about sperm agglutination here.

jennifer_louise

@chichiphin @rikiteacup @celticknotfire thanks ladies! You all rock my world. (already bought those vites and MH is calling back about his SA, hopefully).

@nitnat007 honestly it's a little early for camping here too but we went Memorial Day last year and survived! (that's a low bar for a successful camping trip, I know).

@madcouplewithabox I totally feel you, my dear. I don't know why men find it so difficult to deal with this stuff. Obviously, it's hard for women too, but I feel like at least we can (usually) cope. I wonder if they just perceive it as an assault on their "manhood" or something like that. I agree with PP, it's hard, but probably worth it just to sit him down for a frank convo about his hangups. 

madcouplewithabox

Thank you guys for all the great responses. I really appreciate all the feedback and support ❤️❤️

inthewoods23

@madcouplewithabox so.... This is going to be a weird and horrible conversation that put DH more on board with IVF but it needs to go in a spoiler for *tw talk of rape*. It's tough to be in this position but I think expressing how supportive you are of going through this journey with him will hopefully help him be okay with what needs to be done to have a baby.

A few weeks ago I had to speak my mind regarding a story from Ohio of the 11 year old that got pregnant by her rapist. My aunt or uncle had posted the article on FB. My cousin (not their kid), who is very religious basically cared more about the unborn child than this 11 year old (who I would assume hadn't even had a period yet) and while I don't voice my political opinions and such on FB I had to tell him to stop trying to control women's bodies and I couldn't find the logic in anything he argued.
Anyway, I mentioned this to DH that it was good we wouldn't be at my grandpa's birthday party so I wouldn't have to argue again with my cousin. DH then asked "considering our situation (our infertility problem), if I were raped would I keep the baby?"
I without a doubt said no, I want his babies and no one else's. I think that really struck a chord with him and showed him that I am 100% in this no matter what, regardless of who has the issue.

I wish more guys were open to talking about it because I'm sure it would help guys if they heard other guy's stories.

nitnat007

@jennifer_louise our camping trip two years ago, I ended up slicing my finger open with a knife. We had to go to the ER, 5 stitches later. We set our bar at "no trips to the ER". I can totally related to such standards lol. 

@celticknotfire I have found the way to get MH cracking on projects is if I start acting like I am going to do them myself. Grab the sledgehammer and the power tools. But throw in some silly questions along the way to get his attention. It amazing how quickly he comes to "supervise" and then ultimately just take over. Evil, but effective. 

keikilove

@jennifer_louise Welcome back! I too am sorry you’re in this thread but maybe this is where all your success begins! I don’t have anything else helpful to add to what the other ladies said but just wanted to say hi. Clearly, we’ve missed you! Also, bless your heart if you are planning to attend all those events. Don’t forget to give yourself permission to skip them if it just becomes too much. 

@celticknotfire @begging4abump @chichiphin @madcouplewithabox @littleredm Thank you all SO much for your kind and thoughtful words.❤️You really helped to boost my spirits and gave me a few really good questions to ask the doc. THANK YOU. @chichiphin I’ve had karyotyping done on me & *TW*the late loss*—everything is normal. MH hasn’t had his done yet. 

@nasah15 & @PrettyPalomino Welcome friends! I hope you both get some clarity soon and that your IF journey is short & sweet. 

AFM, I am on a high right now after our visit with our new RE three days ago. Warning: LONG update.
First off, my RE is on another island so we have to take a plane ride to get there. (There aren’t any REs on my island.) Insurance only covers my flight so that’s part of the reason MH hasn’t ever come with me to any IF appointments in the past. 
Anyway, we started at 9 am and were in & out of her office all day until 4 pm! We started w MH doing his SA. MH’s sperm analysis was taking awhile to come back so in the meantime they did all the discussion about moving forward with IVF, fees, outrageous cost of PGS testing(I had no idea!), meds, timing, etc. We also went over a lot of things dealing with which supplements I should be taking and which ones to stop taking (I’ve been taking 75 mg of DHEA per the book “It Starts With The Egg” but RE cut that down to 25 mg.) As well as which meds/steroids I will need to keep autoimmune issues in check if ever I get another BFP. (She also made a really interesting point that progesterone is assumed to be a supporter of pregnancy until the placenta takes over, but she said it’s really an anti-rejectant, and that’s why it’s so important for women with IF issues to supplement with progesterone to keep the body from rejecting any embryos.) 
Then the doc says “OK, instead of wasting any more time for SA results, Let’s do your requisite ultrasound.” I knew I was starting my Fertile Week but we couldn’t take advantage because MH had to save his sperm for analysis and because doc had benched us for some other testing (which had just returned normal as well). Anyway, she starts the U/S & exclaims that I’m about ready to O. She also counted the follies on right and left (same number as when I did a saline sono 6 months ago with another RE) and confirmed that I had great blood flow in my uterus. That was a relief. (I’d previously wondered if it had been poor uterine blood flow & whether it had led to any of the RPL, so that was a relief to check off my list of what-ifs.)
They ran my bloodwork & while we were waiting for that to get back MH’s SA came back: all normal. Based on our history of RPL & DH’s normal sperm counts, the nurse & finance lady informed me that it’s highly unlikely insurance will cover us for IVF. That was disappointing to say the least. We don’t have a spare $25k right now!
So then my bloodwork came back showing that my levels would be peaking the next day and the doc recommended that we do an IUI the next afternoon. It was too complicated to arrange staying overnight so we ended up going for a surprise IUI that afternoon! We got on the flight home a few hours later like, WOW! Total whirlwind of events and up and down emotions!! On top of all this, my birthday was yesterday & I had such a great day because I’m now feeling so hopeful after being so down for awhile. I know IUIs don’t have a good success rate but I’m hopeful nonetheless.🙏🏽
So now I’m waiting to confirm O with 3 days of high temps. I think it was last night (on my bday!) which gives us great timing. IUI would have been on -2. I’m so excited that I don’t even want to consider how I’ll feel if this doesn’t work. Ok, finally done with my novel! Thanks for reading and for being such a great support group! 

ruby696

@keikilove, what a great update! FX so hard for your IUI! Hey, so what brand of DHEA are you using? I'm not seeing an RE anymore (am I still allowed to post here?), and I feel like I should start taking DHEA since we're on our own again.

keikilove

@ruby696 I think you’re most welcome here! Will leave it to anyone else to chime in otherwise. Thank you for good vibes for the IUI

Here is the DHEA brand I’ve been using. It’s the only one I see at every health food store & at Whole Foods. I included a second pic of the one they gave me at RE’s office. I think you can order this online too. ?

Third pic is the pills side by side. They look identical in person. I was taking 75mg (25mg x 3/day) because the book It Starts With The Egg said that’s the only dosing that’s been studied & it’s what they’ve had great results with at fertility clinics—particularly with women with AMA/DOR. Now that both my RE & GP said that 75 mg is too much I’m going to cut down to 25 once per day. However, I don’t feel any negative side effects with 75 mg. 

The last pic is the sample of the “preconception” vitamin pack I was given. She said I could stop taking “all that other crap” hahaha. You can order these vitamins online, not sure how expensive they are.

PS: She said Ubiquinol was fine to take to improve cell energy/egg quality, and that it is fine to continue it throughout pregnancy. Not so with DHEA or Vitex. Best of luck to you!! 

jennifer_louise

@keikilove Thanks for your awesome update! It is so crazy that you have to fly to the RE, I am never complaining about the 30 minute drive again! Also, I LOVE that you had a surprise IUI (lol) and the fact that it's your birthday I think seals the deal for you this time. ♥️💜

keikilove

@jennifer_louise Thank you!❤️That’s what I’m hoping too!!!

madcouplewithabox

@keikilove oh my goodness girl! What a roller coaster of a ride. Sending all the good vibes your way!

celticknotfire

@keikilove what a crazy but great update!  Sending lots of positive thoughts your way!

chichiphin

@keikilove woah what a whirlwind!!! But I’m so excited you got this IUI in. Fx!!

ruby696

@keikilove YGPM