Question about BC and IVF..

maddie7 · October 2011

Why do you have to go on birth control before IVF? I notice many people say they go on it prior... Does everyone? TIA

justlld · October 2011

I think people do it to regulate your cycle or the calendar or something, but it depends on your doctor. I don't like them, so I didn't have to for my IVF.

wille2b · October 2011

i think my RE does it so he can be "in charge" of my cyle. he can control timelines that way

XV11Star · October 2011

Wow... I am glad you asked this. I thought BCPs prevented a dominant follicle... now I am utterly confused.

I started my BCPs on a "regular" unmedicated CD 2. I will go off of them on the 9th and start stimming 5 days later. Am I going to have my period again, then, when I start stimming...? Embarassed I don't know this. Sorry if this is hijacking the OP's question.

Ruthie04 · October 2011

XV11Star:

Wow... I am glad you asked this. I thought BCPs prevented a dominant follicle... now I am utterly confused.

I started my BCPs on a "regular" unmedicated CD 2. I will go off of them on the 9th and start stimming 5 days later. Am I going to have my period again, then, when I start stimming...? Embarassed I don't know this. Sorry if this is hijacking the OP's question.

My clinic uses BCPs to stagger cycles and prevent dominant follicles. Unfortunately, I still developed a dominant follicle, but I'm told that's not very common. My ovaries just like to be unique!

I don't think that's a bad question!! I also asked my RE about having my period between stopping the pill and starting stims. He told me some women bleed, but that it didn't really count. However, I had a full on period, so I suppose it's different for everyone. I'm supposed to start stims for IVF 1.2 around 10/12, so it looks like I'll be right there with you!! Good luck

XV11Star · October 2011

Oh, thank you Ruthie! You made me feel much better. Good luck to you too!!!!

Ruthie04 · October 2011

XV11Star:
Oh, thank you Ruthie! You made me feel much better. Good luck to you too!!!!

Of course!! Glad to help!

ecleptic · October 2011

XV11Star:
Wow... I am glad you asked this. I thought BCPs prevented a dominant follicle... now I am utterly confused.

I started my BCPs on a "regular" unmedicated CD 2. I will go off of them on the 9th and start stimming 5 days later. Am I going to have my period again, then, when I start stimming...? Embarassed I don't know this. Sorry if this is hijacking the OP's question.

Some docs specifically wait for a period to start after BCP. Mine doesn't- I start stims (or estrace if it's a FET cycle) 3 days after I stop the BCP.

I had three days of spotting with the IVF and FET I was on BCP but it was lighter than even my typically light periods.

My doc likes BCP because it gives the ovaries a complete rest and gives all of the resting follicles the same start when you start stimming. In that respect it can help reduce the chance of a dominant follicle.

It takes a while for the follicles to go back to a fully rested state again after ovulation. Which doesn't mean that they won't grow/ovulate- it simply means that there's extra strain (remember the average person has >10 resting follicles and only one of them ovulates in any given month so the others are spending months resting!). Since you want everything absolutely perfect and ready to make as many high quality eggs as possible for IVF- it makes sense to do a BCP "rest" cycle of 2-4 weeks. By the time that my FET rolled around- my ovaries were back to being tiny with a nice variety of resting follicles. It's the same idea between requiring a rest cycle and BCP before starting a new IVF if the first one doesn't work.

Edwina.McDunnough · October 2011

Not all clinics use BCP regularly. MDLF requires it since it suppresses your ovaries and is part of the specific protocol. Some REs like to add it just to suppress your ovaries beyond a basic agonist or antagonist protocol (neither of my clinics do this as a general rule). But lots of REs use BCP to batch patients or otherwise manipulate their cycles for convenience and scheduling purposes.

Mrs.Slick · October 2011

XV11Star:

Wow... I am glad you asked this. I thought BCPs prevented a dominant follicle... now I am utterly confused.

I started my BCPs on a "regular" unmedicated CD 2. I will go off of them on the 9th and start stimming 5 days later. Am I going to have my period again, then, when I start stimming...? Embarassed I don't know this. Sorry if this is hijacking the OP's question.

I was told this as well. BCP are used to suppress your ovaries as well as control when to start things.

And you might have another period. I didn't since I was doing BCP + Lupron so I was super suppressed and my lining never thickened up enough to get another period before stims.

babina868 · October 2011

I didn't do BC before my IVF, and I did the long Lupron protocol. My nurse just said that taking BCP might make it more convenient because then we could plan the cycle more easily. But I have heard that sometimes they can over suppress you, and my AMH is in the low range of normal for my age, so I opted to not do them. In hindsight, oversuppression was not a problem for me (I stimmed really fast -- just 7 days total), so it's possible I'd take them if we had to try again.

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