avoid the worst pain ever: IVF ER tip
farmerlynda
member
I thought I'd post this as a public service announcement to those of you who are going to be starting IVF soon (or have already started your cycle but haven't hit ER yet.)
***Warning: this post is about
poop. I'm writing it so that other people don't have to go through what I went through. If you think this is TMI, you've been warned! If you choose to
read, don't feel bad laughing about it!***
Sooo... Last night I woke up at 3 a.m. in agony. As in, I got out of bed to go to the bathroom and crumpled to the floor where DH found me panting (trying to breathe through the pain) and sweating.
Why?
Because my digestive system was horribly, horribly blocked up, which is
uncomfortable when you're a healthy human being but, when you're
already sore and bloated and have damaged ovaries, is pretty much
unbearable. I have a high pain tolerance but I have actually never
felt that much pain in my life... it was like someone was ripping open
my stomach and dancing on my ovaries and uterus in high heels. That or the worst
period cramps you've ever had... times ten. I was sweating all over my
body, shaking, and felt like I might throw up.
DH was wonderfully supportive, but it's not very fun to be
sitting on the toilet moaning through gut-wrenchingly horrid waves of
cramps and feeling like you're going to die while your husband looks at
you in concern (and Googles "post ER constipation" on his laptop.) It
was a little ridiculous, and we don't normally accompany one another to
the bathroom, but I needed a hand to squeeze... kind of like I was in
labor. When, after an excruciating half hour, the blockage finally came
free, DH actually cheered.
Yup. My husband cheered for poop. Oh, the things that infertility does to you.
It turns out that this is fairly common (particularly among women
with mild OHSS). So my suggestion: Make sure your digestive system is
functioning properly (and your bowels are emptying, easily, every day) before ER.
The HCG shot blocked me up, and the progesterone supps made it worse.
On my patient packet it says to drink 8-10 glasses of water to prevent
constipation... I drank twice that and it didn't help. It also says you
can take Colace if you get constipated. The trouble is, by the time
there's a problem, it's too late! You're miserable!
So an ounce of prevention is worth a
pound of cure -- if God forbid I ever have to go through ER again, I'll
be hitting up prune juice, fiber drinks and "smooth move" tea (by
Traditional Medicinals) ahead of time. I'd advise you to do the same if
you have any kind of digestive slowdown from the HCG shot, or think you
might be susceptible to the progesterone. Because you don't want to be
dealing with this on top of the normal post-ER pain. (Which I probably had an extra share of due to 34 follies.)
By the way, I've been weighing myself twice a day per the RE's
orders to check for OHSS. Weight when I went to bed last night: 127.2
pounds. Weight this morning: 124.4. My stomach also went down an inch in size. Need I say more?
Severe MFI. Me: supposedly all clear but eggs showed vacuoles.
IVF #1 January 2012, ER Jan 14th: 34R, 27M, 23F. Day 3: 18 embies still strong. Day 5: zero "good," one "fair," the rest "poor." Transferred 3. None made it to blast or to freeze. Jan 28: BFN.
Lucky IVF #2: Transferred two beautiful day three embies on St. Patrick's Day. BFP on HPT 7dp3dt. Beta 1 (14dpER)=106; Beta 2 (16dpER)=140; Beta 3 (19dpER)=264! First u/s 4.17.
Hope is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - and sings the tune without the words - and never stops - at all - (Emily Dickinson)
Re: avoid the worst pain ever: IVF ER tip
TTC since 2008
Dh:34, no issues. Me:31, Endo, slightly hypothyroid, deformed ovary, paracentric inversion.
4 Gonal-F, Cetrotide, HcG, Crinone +TI cycles= all BFN
Lap in 2012 to remove large unresolving cyst discovered endo and double lobed ovary.
6 Gonal-F, Cetrotide, HcG, Crinone IUI cycles= All BFN,
1st IVF w/ICSI- June '13 Antagonist: Gonal-F, Menopur, Ganirelix, HcG, Estradiol, Crinone= 7 retrieved, 4 mature, 1 unfertilized, 2 abnormally fertilized, 1 normally fertilized. 2DT of only embryo and our miracle BFP.
Our beloved baby boy was born sleeping Oct. 13, 2013 due to pROM/IC/Uterine infection.
2nd IVF w/ICSI- Feb. '14 EPP/lupron/antagonist: Estrace, lupron, HGH, Gonal-F, Menopur, HcG, PIO, lovenox, doxy/dex.=21 retrieved, 16 mature, 15 fertilized!! 5dt of 1 blast/ 6 frozen. BFP! Beta 1 9dp5dt:83.9 Beta 2: 11dp5dt: 145.2 Beta 3 14dp5dt: 497 Please be our sticky rainbow baby!
This reminds me of my post laparoscopy constipation. Yeah that was HORRIBLE. It hurt like no ones business. It got so bad that my doc told me if I tried one more laxative(enema) and it didnt work, to go to the ER. I had consumed over 16 different doses of laxatives in a 72 hr span and NOTHING. I literally had to leave work because I was in too much pain. Thankfully the asst manager had a lap the year before and experienced the constipation and so she knew I was dying(felt like it!)
Anyways, needless to say, of course the laxatives kicked in about 4 hours before my cut off time to go to the ER. And I was at Menards(a store like Home Depot). It was awful.
I am so sorry you went through this too! Honestly, it was the worst pain I've ever felt. And I feel like nobody ever told me about this ahead of time! I think they should tell you to take laxatives BEFORE the procedure, you know, when it will actually have an effect. Honestly I think the laxatives I took after I was already miserable made it worse (adding gas pressure to the already miserable mix).
Severe MFI. Me: supposedly all clear but eggs showed vacuoles.
IVF #1 January 2012, ER Jan 14th: 34R, 27M, 23F. Day 3: 18 embies still strong. Day 5: zero "good," one "fair," the rest "poor." Transferred 3. None made it to blast or to freeze. Jan 28: BFN.
Lucky IVF #2: Transferred two beautiful day three embies on St. Patrick's Day. BFP on HPT 7dp3dt. Beta 1 (14dpER)=106; Beta 2 (16dpER)=140; Beta 3 (19dpER)=264! First u/s 4.17.
Hope is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - and sings the tune without the words - and never stops - at all - (Emily Dickinson)
MFI: zero sperm (using pre-chemo frozen samples)
9/2011 IUI#1 + 50mg Clomid= BFN
10/2011 IUI#2 100mg Clomid+Trigger=BFN
11/2011 IUI#3 (Last before IVF)100mg Clomid+Trigger=BFN
1/2012 IVF. ER 1/25 (18R 15M 15F) ET 1/29
Yay! I feel vindicated about my poop post now
I was kinda embarrassed to post it, but seriously, I just want NO ONE on this board to have to suffer like that.
Severe MFI. Me: supposedly all clear but eggs showed vacuoles.
IVF #1 January 2012, ER Jan 14th: 34R, 27M, 23F. Day 3: 18 embies still strong. Day 5: zero "good," one "fair," the rest "poor." Transferred 3. None made it to blast or to freeze. Jan 28: BFN.
Lucky IVF #2: Transferred two beautiful day three embies on St. Patrick's Day. BFP on HPT 7dp3dt. Beta 1 (14dpER)=106; Beta 2 (16dpER)=140; Beta 3 (19dpER)=264! First u/s 4.17.
Hope is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - and sings the tune without the words - and never stops - at all - (Emily Dickinson)
I know! I was soo annoyed that they didnt say anything. I think I lost like 3-4 lbs that afternoon. It was AWFUL. It hurt to sit!! And I totally agree, the laxatives probably made it WAY worse!!
ouch! I had a lot of issues with my digestion post lap, but not nearly as bad as this. Luckily I live with a digestive care nurse and he knew all the right drugs to keep me on
TTC since 2010
lots of IUIs and 1 IVF all BFNs
FET currently on hold
I'm a high recommender of colace!! Any time you take narc pain meds, have surgery, etc.. take a colace a day for 3-4 days before hand- seriously!!
I'm so sorry you went through that but glad you're feeling better. Goodness, woman!
Jan 12: IVF #1 - BFP!
Great advice Lynda. I learned this also the hard way. I have constipation IBS, and have horrible problems with this anyway. During my second IUI, right after trigger I got pain just like you described. I was by myself. I knew I needed an enema b/c it was like right there. I drove myself to CVS, sweating and feeling like I was going to pass out the entire way, and by the time I got home, I crawled into the house literally on my hands and knees.
I now ensure that my bowels are empty prior to trigger.
Started fertility treatments 11/2010
Ovarian dysfunction, LPD, male factor
6 failed medicated IUI's
Pregnant 5/2011 - Miscarriage at 6 weeks due to triploidy
Decided to adopt - 6/2012
SURPRISE! Pregnant without intervention - 7/2012
Sweet Baby James Born 3/2013
Decided to be "One and Done"
....OR NOT.
Pregnant 12/2018 despite birth control pills
Here we go again...
Due 8/26/19!
LOL, that thought totally crossed my mind. I even felt like I was making "labor noises" through the cramps... but honestly, if labor hurts more than that did, FML! We're all screwed.
Severe MFI. Me: supposedly all clear but eggs showed vacuoles.
IVF #1 January 2012, ER Jan 14th: 34R, 27M, 23F. Day 3: 18 embies still strong. Day 5: zero "good," one "fair," the rest "poor." Transferred 3. None made it to blast or to freeze. Jan 28: BFN.
Lucky IVF #2: Transferred two beautiful day three embies on St. Patrick's Day. BFP on HPT 7dp3dt. Beta 1 (14dpER)=106; Beta 2 (16dpER)=140; Beta 3 (19dpER)=264! First u/s 4.17.
Hope is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - and sings the tune without the words - and never stops - at all - (Emily Dickinson)
Sorry you had to deal with this too. You are one strong lady to be able to drive yourself.... I can't even imagine!
Severe MFI. Me: supposedly all clear but eggs showed vacuoles.
IVF #1 January 2012, ER Jan 14th: 34R, 27M, 23F. Day 3: 18 embies still strong. Day 5: zero "good," one "fair," the rest "poor." Transferred 3. None made it to blast or to freeze. Jan 28: BFN.
Lucky IVF #2: Transferred two beautiful day three embies on St. Patrick's Day. BFP on HPT 7dp3dt. Beta 1 (14dpER)=106; Beta 2 (16dpER)=140; Beta 3 (19dpER)=264! First u/s 4.17.
Hope is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - and sings the tune without the words - and never stops - at all - (Emily Dickinson)
OMG!! So sorry you had to go through that. I can't help but LOL though, I love how open we can all be. Two thumbs up to your DH, he is going to be awesome when you're in the delivery room!
Edited: spelling
First RE appt 5/11
Dx w/ Stage IV Endo
IVF #1 July/Aug 2011. Long lupron protocol ER 8/8 ET 8/11 = BFN
IVF #2 - Postponed due to cyst/endo. Lap scheduled for 9/11
**P/SAIF welcome**
~~~September Siggy Challenge~~~
IVF #1 with ICSI - ER 1/20 (16R, 12M, 10F), ET 1/23 (1-10 cell and 1-8cell transferred), BFP on 1/31 Beta #1 on 2/3 = 68, Beta #2 on 2/6 = 261 EDD 10/12/12
OMG, FL, this was a tale to be told! I literally laughed out loud. I'm sure it was terrible at the time, but at least you can see the humor in your husband cheering for a big poop!
I feel your pain, I went through it post-lap. DH found me in a crying pile on the kitchen floor. Thanks for the heads up that it can happen after ER! I never want to feel that way ever again, so I'm sure you just saved me a whole lot of agony
Dx DOR (AMH .49), Stage 3/4 Endo, Septate Uterus
After 2 years, numerous tests, abdonimal surgery, and 2 IVF cycles, we are so grateful to be expecting.
Transferred 2 "perfect" 8-cell embies 6/12. Beta 1 6/25: 472! Beta 2 6/27: 1055!
First u/s shows TRIPLETS! WHAT?!?! Both embies stuck and one split. OMG
Levi, Henry, and Amelia were born healthy at 34w3d.
DX: PCOS/Recurrent losses/MTHFR mutation (compound hetero)
5 hysteroscopies/2 surgical
3 Inject IUIs = 2 m/c's and 1 BFN
IVF #1= BFP. m/c at 7w6d. Needed 2 D&C's and scar tissue removal. Mild OHSS
IVF #2 = BFP. Severe OHSS. 4 Drainings. TWINS!
Lynda (and Jalara) thank you for posting this! I've actually had a similar experience, when I was on narcotics after knee surgery this past summer. I'm glad I know to prepare beforehand! (And Lynda, my DH actually had to give me an enema, because I was on crutches and couldn't stand up! Poor man has gotten waaay too up close and personal; but he cracked jokes the whole time to keep me from being embarrassed.)
So sorry you both had to go through this--I hope it all settles out soon. I found eating bran flakes and anything else with fiber was a good way to help clear mine up more quickly.
TTC #1 Since 8/2010
Me: 34, DH: 35 DX: DOR (FSH 14.9, AMH 0.67, AFC ~10) and Egg Quality
IVF #1 Feb 2012. MDFL protocol w/ Met. 7 ER, 0F.
May Donor Egg IVF cycle:3 EF, 1 blast ET 5/12, 2 frosties
BFP 5/21! beta #1 5/22 306 beta #2 5/24 818 beta #3 5/31 15,038.
"Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are a good person is a little like expecting the bull not to attack you because you are a vegetarian." --Dennis Wholey
Chemical Pregnancy
I also have the same problem with IBS and no one told me about what could happen after ER. DH had to give me an enema the day before ET. I was told after to drink lots of water and gatorade.
Farmer - I just wanted to mention that I've been lurking on the board and you and I had almost identical stats post ER!
My unsolicited advice - stock up on Gatorade until after your transfer. It was my saviour (and it will get some fluids into your system and hopefully... ummm.. 'wake it up' a little).
Best of luck!!!
June/July 2011 - IVF #1 - Transfer cancelled due to OHSS
23 perfect embryos. All 23 made it to freezing!
September/October - FET #1 - October 12th - 2 Grade A embies
October 20th - BFP??! EDD - July 1, 2012
Beta #1 = 154, Beta #2 = 352 Beta #3 = 3,800
U/S #2 - November 14th = 133 bpm! U/S #3 & 4 - November 30th and December 7th = 163 bpm! U/S#5 - January 30th - TEAM PINK!!!
Baby Sweets born on her due date!
Thanks Sweets! Here's hoping my first transfer has as good a result as yours did
I'm still hoping I don't get OHSS so I don't have to wait for FET...
Severe MFI. Me: supposedly all clear but eggs showed vacuoles.
IVF #1 January 2012, ER Jan 14th: 34R, 27M, 23F. Day 3: 18 embies still strong. Day 5: zero "good," one "fair," the rest "poor." Transferred 3. None made it to blast or to freeze. Jan 28: BFN.
Lucky IVF #2: Transferred two beautiful day three embies on St. Patrick's Day. BFP on HPT 7dp3dt. Beta 1 (14dpER)=106; Beta 2 (16dpER)=140; Beta 3 (19dpER)=264! First u/s 4.17.
Hope is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - and sings the tune without the words - and never stops - at all - (Emily Dickinson)
So glad our husbands have a good sense of humor about these things! And glad that they're willing to do whatever it takes to take care of us
Severe MFI. Me: supposedly all clear but eggs showed vacuoles.
IVF #1 January 2012, ER Jan 14th: 34R, 27M, 23F. Day 3: 18 embies still strong. Day 5: zero "good," one "fair," the rest "poor." Transferred 3. None made it to blast or to freeze. Jan 28: BFN.
Lucky IVF #2: Transferred two beautiful day three embies on St. Patrick's Day. BFP on HPT 7dp3dt. Beta 1 (14dpER)=106; Beta 2 (16dpER)=140; Beta 3 (19dpER)=264! First u/s 4.17.
Hope is the thing with feathers - that perches in the soul - and sings the tune without the words - and never stops - at all - (Emily Dickinson)
Dx PCOS (June 2006, re-confirmed March 2012), Anemia (May 2010-Still fighting to correct it), Fibromyalgia (May 2011)
Initial b/w - normal
HSG (March 2012) revealed right tube open and looking great. Left tube deformed with hydrosalpinx.
Lap (April 2012) Removal of left fallopian tube. Right tube open and viable, but "rather enlarged." NO evidence of endometriosis...Uterus looks beautiful and "very capable" of carrying a pregnancy!
October 2012 - Clomid 50mg + trigger + IUI = BFN
With all factors taken into account, RE is recommending IVF. Planning on moving forward with treatment as a single woman using DS by Summer 2013.
After 17 months of trying, Surprise BFP #1 2.15.2008 | EDD 8.7.2008 | Lost 2.16.2008
After 2 more years of trying, Surprise BFP #2 1.29.2012 | EDD 9.11.2012 | Lost 1.29.2012
Surprise BFP #3 3.27.2012 | EDD 12/2/2012 | Lost 4.1.2012
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