IF Testing and Treatment w/o 11/1

fantasyflyte

Consultation went well. It was basically what I expected - the nurse is going to call me later today or tomorrow to schedule an in-person appointment to do a base ultrasound and bloodwork. They need a bunch of stuff in addition to the CD3 stuff I originally had done (he wants thyroid, blood type, infectious disease check, AMH, some other stuff I don't remember). We don't have to do another SA, but he's going to email us a link to a supplement he wants MH to take for sperm improvement. He's also going to email me a different OPK to use (I have a feeling it's going to be the CBAD one).

The plan is to get the baseline tests done (not an HSG though) and do up to 3 rounds of Letrozole + IUI, which is pretty much what I expected. He said they'd do further testing if we have 3 failed IUIs. He wants to do Letrozole because he wants me to ovulate sooner than CD20 for the IUI cycles.

My best guess is that the timeline will be pretty much what I expected - testing this next cycle and starting medicated cycle in mid-December. Should be interesting and I'll have to see if/how the holidays affect it, because if I ovulate a week sooner than my current, it would be right about Christmas.

So I guess now I just wait for the nurse's call to schedule the ultrasound and go from there.

Also my weight wasn't mentioned at all, which was a relief.

bumblebee0210

@fantasyflyte. That's great! It sounds like they are giving you the full monty on tests, which is really what you want (especially since most are just blood tests). And no weird bmi nonsense-- sounds like a good clinic. Hoping the IUI is all you guys need. 

bows22

@LJMoon6 thank you for letting me know YH doesn’t always go. Makes me feel better haha. And I think you should just give yourself the credit for the extra follicle being from the extra day!

acleverusername

@walkawaynee just to be clear, I'm only starting transfer prep on Saturday, which will include being on BCP for 2-3 weeks to calm down my ovaries. 

@bows22 Wow, it's already another IUI time! Good luck! It sucks that YH can't be there. Dumb question... I guess he's producing a sample at home and you're taking it to the clinic with you? 

@zwink1 wow! It's almost Beta time???!!! I feel like your transfer was just yesterday. I will throw my weight behind what others said: I hope the cramps was your embryos getting snuggly in your ute. 🤞🏻

@kiki047 I also can't believe transfer prep is already here. But I guess with the delay in ovulation + extra long cycle really shrunk our timeline. We had discussed an early Dec transfer date with our doc after the CP, so that's what we're still targeting (this is to work around his holidays the week of Tnxgiving + holiday lab closures). I should have the PGT-A results back within 2 weeks from Day 5/6, so I think we'll def have them back before transfer. 

@LJMoon6 Woo for 2 follicles. Hopefully this round will do the trick, regardless of how you got here. Remember to take deep breaths in TWW so that the embryos has a snug stress-free environment to snuggle into. And I totally support your taking a break from treatment afterwards. If you're interested, I would encourage you to look into organic-conceptions.com.

@fantasyflyte I'm excited that your appointment went well. I'll echo what Bumble said about it being a good clinic since they're not hung up on your BMI and also wanting to do a full slew of testing. One thing to keep in mind: there's not telling how Letrazole will affect you; sometimes it really speeds up O; in other cases, it doesn't move it by much. Hopefully your first round lines up with your Christmas plans. 

@bumblebee0210 I took tomorrow & Friday off although I do have "breakthrough meetings" both days that I can't miss (manager training + interview). Otherwise I plan to park my arse into a hammock and relax. Luckily our weather has been SO nice these last few days (I spent lunch hour sitting out on the deck) so I think this bodes well for my hammocking. 

bows22

@acleverusername his appointment is 2 hours before mine so he can still do the sample in person luckily. Taking the sample in would be way too much stress for me haha 

acleverusername

@bows22 Duh... that makes total sense. That's what we'd do too (only they had us come back like 1 hr later for the actual insemination.) I was getting hung up about how the clinic was going to let you walk in with some sperm in a cup. Like... whose sperm is it?! Anyways, brain fart. 

gingermama29

I’ll be back to do tags later but wanted to share an update. I had my baseline US today and apparently I’m just about to ovulate (it’s currently CD 49). My lining was 8.09 and I had a mature follicle on my right ovary at 2.14! I’m not sure if my RE will start me on Letrozole given where I am in my cycle; I imagine I’ll hear one way out the other tomorrow. The US tech said everything looked great though! For whatever reason, my blood work results haven’t gotten posted on the patient portal but my RE’s office said that they received them when I messaged them asking about myo-inositol.

acleverusername

@gingermama29 Sounds like this cycle will be a natural for you, and - if you need another one - they'll start you Letrazole then. But, hopefully you won't need it!

optimistgardener

@fantasyflyte just gonna pop in here to say it's my experience that even if your clinic wants you to use CBAD they'll often just tell you to call them when you get a "peak" reading, which, if you are pretty adept at reading your cheapie opks, you'll probably be able to do without the assistance of the digital "reading" and all that extra throwaway plastic. do whatever makes you comfortable, though. i'm so happy that the meeting went well and you have come away from it feeling positive!!

@ljmoon6 hurray for the extra follicle!

@gingermama29 omg cd49 *eyes crossed*. that's super helpful though to know you're just about to ovulate. sounds like it's time to get busy.

@zwink1 eeep. fx for you.

ETA @acleverusername GL tomorrow! i'm so excited to hear the initial results! I hope you got the couch all cleared off for a bit of down time afterwards.

acleverusername

@fantasyflyte just to echo what @optimistgardener said re: cheapie OPKs vs CBAD. Just be aware that Peak on CBAD is actually first positive cheapie OPK, not your "peak" cheapie OPK. Does that make sense? 

@optimistgardener Couch is all ready for me!

bows22

@acleverusername @optimistgardener @fantasyflyte when I call my RE’s office and leave a message saying I had a positive OPK and they call back and say “I got your message saying that you got your peak?” I want to scream every time. 

Although, their system of only going by FMU is going to screw me eventually when I get a positive wondfo with SMU so maybe it would be better to use CBAD anyway if that’s the way they want to play the game. 

gingermama29

@acleverusername I’m not currently taking a probiotic but the side effects have been much less over the past couple days so that’s a plus. Yay for ER tomorrow!! 

@optimistgardener I hope you’re able to figure out a way to balance your teaching load with all of the traveling. 

@LJMoon6 ugh that’s so frustrating! I don’t blame you at all for feeling that way or hanging up on them! Great news about your lining and follicles! FX for you!!

@keikilove Not currently on the extended release, but I’m easing into my dosage; 1 pill a day for two weeks and then increasing to 2. 

@bows22 glad to see you too! I haven’t been in the dailies lately so I’m glad to catch up now. Yay for IUI tomorrow!! And omg yessss to leftover turkey sandwiches! Actually, all of the leftovers on a sandwich is my favorite part of Thanksgiving food!

@zwink1 FX for good news on Friday!

@fantasyflyte yay, glad it went well and they didn’t mention weight at all! Sounds like you have a good plan going forward!

acleverusername

@bows22 my clinic wants me to use CBAD between 12-3pm. Go figure. Everyone has their own way to test for the same thing. 

walkawaynee

@acleverusername your comment confused me so much. I looked back and see that I typed transfer when I 100% knew and meant to say retrieval! In any case FX for you tomorrow! 

keikilove

Good luck today @acleverusername! Thinking of you this morning! 😉🥚🐣 

Sending good luck your way as well @bows22! 🌈 FX for a successful IUI! 

bumblebee0210

GL today @aceleverusername and @bows22!!

kiki047

Sending out extra good luck to @acleverusername and @bows22 today!!  

fantasyflyte

good luck @acleverusername and @bows22 today!

LJMoon6

@acleverusername and @bows22 I've been thinking about you both this morning! Good luck!

optimistgardener

@acleverusername you're probably sitting in your doctor's office by now. good luck! @bows22 gl to you as well!

bows22

Thanks guys! IUI is all done. Count was great 👌 and everything went well. 

Good luck @acleverusername!!

edit because TB hates when I tag mid-post

gingermama29

@acleverusername good luck today! @bows22  glad to hear it went well! FX for you!!

AFM, I heard back from my RE this morning and they said given that my US and blood work show imminent ovulation, I won’t be starting Letrozole this cycle (which makes sense) and that we’re free to attempt a natural pregnancy this cycle. So here’s hoping! 

zwink1

Glad to hear everything went well @bows22!!

Thinking of you and wishing you luck today @acleverusername!

@fantasyflyte, glad to hear the consult went well and you have a plan in place for testing!

@kiki047, well, I only have internet cheapies that technically expired in April, and I purposely didn't buy more... but yeah. 

acleverusername

You guys!!! So much love this morning! You’ve got me all blushing and such. 

@bows22 glad that everything went well with the IUI. Good luck with TWW. I hope the start of the exodus continues with you and a few others… @bumblebee0210, @zwink1 I’m looking at you!!! And @LJMoon6 I’m holding my breath for you too!

Edited to add @LJMoon6 to the above list!

AFM, on the way home now but I already have my report to share in spoiler. It’s good news!

The doctor was able to get 14 eggs of which 13 were mature!

Now we wait for fert report from this batch of eggs, as well as the thaw rate / fert report from the “Canada eggs”. 

acleverusername

Also, here’s a pro-retrieval tip for you guys: I came more prepared for the post-OR experience this time. Last time I was REALLY annoyed when they wheeled me out of OR at all the bright lights in my eyes as I was coming out of anesthesia and the beeping from the monitor. So this time I brought a sleeping mask and ear plugs. Obviously I couldn’t have them in the OR with me but MH was waiting for me and handed them over as soon as I asked for them. The doctor was seriously impressed. He even “felt up” my eye mask to see the quality. Lol.

LJMoon6

@acleverusername OMG! That’s such great news! So many mature eggs! I can’t wait to hear the next update. How many “Canadian eggs” are you starting with? Is there a percentage you’re expecting to lose from the thaw?

 

AFM: Our IUI is scheduled for tomorrow. But we didn’t BD until late last night. Usually I like a good 2 day hold, but this one will be like 12 hours short of that. So today I told MH that he had to make sure to drink plenty of water, and that he should purposefully give himself blue balls a couple times throughout the day lol. I don’t have enough faith in him to do what you all suggested a month ago. So I’m hoping this will be good enough. Things I never thought I’d say to MH lol.

kiki047

@bows22 YAY so glad it went well! 
@gingermama29 well damn, hopefully you can take full advantage of your TI cycle and won't need that letrozole after all!! FX!! 
@acleverusername holy eggs Batman! To quote my good friend Eleanor Shellstrop, 

Also good call on the eye mask/ear plugs, that's a great idea! I wanted to bring in my own drink but they wouldn't let me this time, but I made sure to have a large, cold gingerale waiting for me in the car after. And a warm blanket. 
@LJMoon6 I'm chuckling like a schoolgirl at 'blue balls'. MH complained about it the first few times I gave him his "homework" before our IUIs. I sent him this: 

He's much more compliant now   If YH normally has decent count you should be ok. Even if count is down a little, some studies show that most other sperm parameters are improved with a shorter hold even if the count is a little lower. 

walkawaynee

@acleverusername great results! FX things continue to go well! Gonna add ear plugs and a mask to my ER survival list!

@LJMoon6 GL at the IUI tomorrow! I love that you gave him that assignment,  who would think we would ever have to say these things!

@bows22 glad things went well today! Take good care of yourself this weekend! 

AFM: had my baseline US today. The nurse had a really hard time fining my ovaries,  like REALLY hard. There 2 students watching today too so that was fun. I had 2 follicles on one side and 5 (maybe) on the other although there was a lot of debate amongst them at the end as to whether she said 2 or 5. So maybe had 7, maybe had 4. Either way I am just happy they found my ovaries and saw something! 

optimistgardener

@walkawaynee i'm sorry they had to dig around to find the ovaries! i always am kinda weirded out when there are students in the room (although, having lived with med school students in undergrad, i've never said no when i've been asked if i mind their joining). FX that they saw 7 follicles for you. Have they given you the go-ahead to start your injections?

@acleverusername omg those are great numbers! i hope the good news keeps on rolling in.

@kiki047 i lol'ed at your tiny violin gif. perfect.

walkawaynee

@optimistgardener I still don't start stims until 11/24, the clinic submitted the order to the pharmacy today. I don't mind the students in there really but it equaled 5 of us in a very tiny exam room! 

@kiki047 the gif is funny. Like it's that big of a deal compared to what we do! 

optimistgardener

@walkawaynee oh yeah, right. sorry. my brain these days oof. of course you're waiting till the last week of the month!

acleverusername

@gingermama29 In the words of Kool & The Gang... "Get down on it!"

@zwink1 so excited for your beta tomorrow. Eeeeek! 

@bumblebee0210 SO EXCITED FOR YOUR TRANSFER TOMORROW! How are the PIO shots going? Good luck. Crossing everything for you. 

@LJMoon6 Good luck with the IUI tomorrow! I hope YH's swimmers are ready for the challenge. I honestly don't know how the thaw rate is going to be for the 🇨🇦eggs. I vacillate between being optimistic and having all of them survive the thaw (my clinic is known for its excellent embryology lab, and I often see reports of 100% thaw rate on the local IVF FB group from them). On the other hand, they were collected in a different lab, and also transported 2000mi, so it's possible none of them made it. I'm trying to stay optimistic though. Hoping for a 90% thaw rate. Oh, and there are 11 of them. 

@kiki047 LOL @ Eleanor Shellstrop. Great GIF, btw. That would be TOTALLY something I'd say to MH if he complained about something related to this process. 

@walkawaynee Eeek sorry about that experience. Hopefully 7 is the right count. And hopefully that experience doesn't repeat. GL with the BCP! End of November will be here before you know it. 


Random q: last week on stims I had some pretty vivid/weird dreams. Has anyone else experienced that? 

fantasyflyte

A funny: I called my insurance company today because the clinic financial lady callef me to verify I wanted to go thru insurance for the IUI, because the insurance told the clinic that we were only covered for 2 treatments period, IVF or IUI. I was pretty sure that was incorrect but I wanted to get official word from the insurance company. I was right, my benefits handbook states 3 IUI and 2 IVF.
I don't expect the poor guy answering the phone for the insurance company to intimately know what every procedure in the handbook is. But it made me laugh when he helpfully informed me that if "they did both at once," it would count as 1 of each in terms of the insurance coverage. I just said "Of course, thanks!"

acleverusername

@fantasyflyte Lol. Good one. 

bows22

Thinking of you today @bumblebee0210 !!

optimistgardener

@bumblebee0210 sending all the good implant vibes.

kiki047

@bumblebee0210 Hope everything goes well today - celebrating you being PUPO!!! 

@fantasyflyte LOL to "both at once". Uh huh, right!  
@acleverusername I don't recall having any particularly vivid dreams on stims. Letrozole, yes. 

fantasyflyte

@bumblebee0210 fingers crossed for you today!

zwink1

Thinking of you today @bumblebee0210. I hope everything goes smoothly!

walkawaynee

@fantasyflyte maybe he is on to something, try both at once and  see what happens     

GL today @bumblebee0210