For those who are or have gone through IVF?

Hollowvic · August 2014

After this BFN and knowing my Hs MFI I'm seriously considering IVF. Just wondering does everyone have to get the injects that go in the muscle (that scares me the most)? Also do you have to avoid things during the cycle, like alcohol for example? Last question, would you say it's worse or better than you thought it would be? I'm so scared at the thought of it.

gsancho · August 2014

The shots in the butt are mainly the progesterone shots, which you won't take until a bit later on. So by that point, it's not quite as intimidating. Everyone is different, but I avoided alcohol during stims for the most part...I think I had 2 glasses of wine when I just couldn't take it, but I think most people try to avoid it. On the days between ER and ET, I know some people indulge and have a few drinks.

It's a little more nerve raking when you're worried about things like how many follies you have, and how the fert reports will end up. I think the wait between ER and ET are the worst. So mentally it's been more draining for me, but physically it's been about what I expected.

RNCrystal · August 2014

No advice here but I'm interested the the responses- thanks for posting!

jencity9 · August 2014

I was TERRIFIED about the intramuscular shots but they are actually very easy and not bad at all!!! You would be so upset if you let that influence your decision at all about IVF. I am so proud of myself for going through IVF (waiting on beta now) but there was not any part of it that was unbearable by any means.

lebradford · August 2014

I've never done IVF, so I can't answer most of your questions. However, we are eventually going to do it, so I have lurked on the IF board and read a lot. The PIO (progesterone in oil) are usually the only intramuscular shots. I wanted to tell you though that there are other non-injectable forms of progesterone. I know most people doing IVF use PIO, but I have seen people use suppositories too. You should ask your doctor if they require PIO for everyone for IVF if that's one of the main things worrying you about IVF. :-)

ronniesgirl1981 · August 2014

Our trigger was IM and it was way better than menopur. For me, the emtional part is much, much worse. But I also have had shitty cycles. My guess is that it is much easier emotionally if your cycle is going well.

Hollowvic · August 2014

Just curious, why can't you take Progesterone in the pill form like after an IUI? I have heard of it in suppository form and I'm going to ask them about that.

Pintobean39 · August 2014

It was actually more stressful than I had ever imagined, especially waiting on news after the ER. I'm guessing the 2ww is going to be pretty bad once I get to it. So far I only did a couple of days of the PIO that's injected in the muscle and it really was NBD. I was really sore BUT I drove 10 hrs out of town to get away and I'm sure sitting in the car for that long a period did not help.

As far as abstaining from alcohol I did have a couple of drinks during stims but not even enough to get a buzz. Just a glass of wine (because it's good for you right?) and a mixed drink one day out by the pool. I did have to quit exercising but I really didn't feel like it anyway.

Overall the medications weren't bad, then again I had done 3 cycles on injects before IVF. I did stress a couple of time that I was getting it wrong and even had a hiccup once giving myself the wrong med and I freaked out, but it really wasn't a big deal.

If I had to do it all again I'd do it in a heartbeat, I just REALLY hope I don't have to. I'm with @gsancho‌ it's much more mentally draining than physically.

Hollowvic · August 2014

@Pintobean39‌ I noticed in your siggy that you have 2 girls and a boy. Can they tell the gender before they do the ET?

Sha259 · August 2014

For both of my IVF cycles my RE only had me taking 1 IM injection (the trigger), so I was thrilled about that! I was on Progesterone suppositories 3x per day, but I had no irritation like some people do, and was very happy to have an end point to the injections!

I will say though, most of the fear will go away once you do your first inject. Even my trigger went great and I was super nervous! The unknown is always scary.

Good luck!

Pintobean39 · August 2014

Hollowvic said:
@Pintobean39‌ I noticed in your siggy that you have 2 girls and a boy. Can they tell the gender before they do the ET?

Only if you do genetic testing of which we did. As you can tell from my siggy I've had a few miscarriages and 2 were confirmed chromosomal problems. I'm 40 now and that happens with age, which is why we did IVF, I'm tired of having miscarriages, I have more bad eggs than good.

Not everyone does genetic testing, it depends on age and your particular situation. It's expensive, it cost me $5,000. My clinic also doesn't do it in house so we had to freeze all and do a FET later so they are at risk not to thaw.

Hollowvic · August 2014

@Pintobean39‌ that's interesting! I turn 39 in the fall so I'm about the same age as you. I don't blame you for not wanting any more miscarriages, that's another fear at my age.

kristyn831 · August 2014

My injections will be all subcutaneous and then the trigger is IM. I'm more concerned about the pain of childbirth lol.

Twinkie0612 · August 2014

Honestly IVF is much easier than I expected, but I've also done 3 fresh IVFs and a FET so I could probably do this stuff in my sleep.:). For me I was afraid of getting overwhelmed with our first cycle, so I made sure I was super organized. I broke the process into small tasks and crossed them off my list as I finished them.

You will probably need a minimum of one IM injection (trigger) but it could be more if you use PIO. My husband has always given me my IM injections and really they are not that bad.

I avoid alcohol and caffeine during cycles. I don't know if it is necessary, but I do it. I have pretty much cut out alcohol and caffeine from my normal diet, so it's not really a big deal to me. My RI wants me to drop another 10-20 lbs before my next cycle, so i can't afford the empty calories from alcohol right now.

Hollowvic · August 2014

Well thank you for all the advice. It doesn't seem as bad as I imagined. Sounds more emotionally draining. I'm going to talk to my RE about it. I'm most likely switching REs so I have a lot of decisions to make.

theholmanherd · August 2014

RNCrystal said:

No advice here but I'm interested the the responses- thanks for posting!

Me, too! We're saving for IVF now. Thanks!

Hollowvic · August 2014

I go for my beta in the morning and I know it's a BFN, I'm pretty sure we're going straight to IVF, terrified and excited at the same time.

RunCC37 · August 2014

Hollowvic said:

After this BFN and knowing my Hs MFI I'm seriously considering IVF. Just wondering does everyone have to get the injects that go in the muscle (that scares me the most)? Not necessarily. I only ever had to do IM injections for my FET. I did three IVF cycles without a single IM shot. When I got to the IM shots, they really weren't that bad. It takes more time to do them (because you should use a heating pad & massage the injection site), but as far as pain goes, I hardly felt them.

Also do you have to avoid things during the cycle, like alcohol for example? My doctor recommended that I avoid moderate-rigourous exercise (no running, yoga, lifting). Every doctor is different with their thoughts on restricting alcohol and caffeine. IMHO, everything in moderation is ok, so if you had a glass of wine while you were stimming I wouldn't judge. However, I was very strict and gave up alcohol and caffeine entirely for the eight months we were pursuing IVF with my eggs.

Last question, would you say it's worse or better than you thought it would be? I'm so scared at the thought of it. That is a really hard question to answer!!! In terms of the physical demands, it was easier than I expected it to be. I felt very bloated and uncomfortable around ER. The shots were a breeze. It was very hard for me to give up running during IVF, but that's only because I'm a marathon addict! Emotionally... it was WAY harder than I thought it would be. I knew it was going to be emotionally exhausting. I don't think there are any words that I could say that would adequately prepare you for what the emotional side brings to the table. But I'm the type of person who goes for it. I don't back down when I'm afraid because that's not going to get me any closer to my goal. I am undeniably scarred from those three IVF cycles. I will never be the same, and I found lows that I didn't know were possible. Even though I don't have a baby to show for it, I don't have any regrets. I know we tried everything we could. And time heals all wounds (well... the pain is less acute anyway).

Good luck to you!

RunCC37 · August 2014

ronniesgirl1981 said:

Our trigger was IM and it was way better than menopur. For me, the emtional part is much, much worse. But I also have had shitty cycles. My guess is that it is much easier emotionally if your cycle is going well.

hugs @ronniesgirl1981 ... this would be my guess too. I can only imagine that the emotional toll is still hard, but if you have success with your first cycle then... well, yeah, it should hurt a whole lot less.

RunCC37 · August 2014

Pintobean39 said:

It was actually more stressful than I had ever imagined, especially waiting on news after the ER. I'm guessing the 2ww is going to be pretty bad once I get to it. So far I only did a couple of days of the PIO that's injected in the muscle and it really was NBD. I was really sore BUT I drove 10 hrs out of town to get away and I'm sure sitting in the car for that long a period did not help.

@Pintobean39 - this was absolutely the worst part for me too. I hope your future 2ww won't be nearly as stressful for you. I have to say that my 2ww with Ninja was easy in comparison. I focused on my daily meditations and keeping my stress level down. It was a really peaceful time surprisingly (until the BFN

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For those who are or have gone through IVF?

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Me 33, DH 37 -- TTC since Jan'12 -- Low AMH (0.78) & endo, SA w/ low motility
IUI's 1-3 = BFN, IVF converted to IUI 4/13 = BFN
IVF 1.2: 8R 6M 4F -- 2 blastocysts frozen, FET 8/15 = BFP!!
Beta #s = 445;1,098; 9,545 -- EDD 5/2 -- Team Pink!

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Want a personalized experience?

For those who are or have gone through IVF?

Re: For those who are or have gone through IVF?

Me 33, DH 37 -- TTC since Jan'12 -- Low AMH (0.78) & endo, SA w/ low motilityIUI's 1-3 = BFN, IVF converted to IUI 4/13 = BFNIVF 1.2: 8R 6M 4F -- 2 blastocysts frozen, FET 8/15 = BFP!!Beta #s = 445;1,098; 9,545 -- EDD 5/2 -- Team Pink!

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Me 33, DH 37 -- TTC since Jan'12 -- Low AMH (0.78) & endo, SA w/ low motility
IUI's 1-3 = BFN, IVF converted to IUI 4/13 = BFN
IVF 1.2: 8R 6M 4F -- 2 blastocysts frozen, FET 8/15 = BFP!!
Beta #s = 445;1,098; 9,545 -- EDD 5/2 -- Team Pink!