@callingthestork - my RE uses Compassionate Care and that definitely helped us a lot, too! 25% off is a big discount, especially considering the meds cost thousands of dollars.
In any case, welcome! I wish you well on your banking journey. I took myo-inositol for a couple months and I have my ER tomorrow. I'll let you know if it made any difference
@wishiwaspreggo oh wow thanks for the tip! The thought of it going into the muscle is what makes me nervous! I definitely thought getting up and down was the worst too toward the end a few days leading up to retrieval, I just felt like a little crampy and was trying to be cautious of how I layed in bed and stuff! It will be a relief for sure once they're out I definitely felt grumpy too, I couldn't tell if it was the stims/hormones or not, but I certainly didn't mind blaming any irritability on the meds
@mkr_0128 the length and larger gauge probably help push the needle through the muscle more easily since it’s tougher than fat. Just my guess but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I feared.
Retrieval is done! I got 17 eggs I’ll know more about how many were mature and fertilized in a couple hours. They’ll put the device with the embabies inside me and I’ll be on my merry way until Thursday!
Definitely feeling some pain right now. I took some Tylenol. My wife is out getting my prescription pain meds while I wait at the doctors office.
@wishiwaspreggo I hope I think the same after I have to start doing them! 17 eggs is awesome!!! I can't wait to hear your next update I hope the pain subsides quickly!
@mkr_0128 14 fertilized is amazing!! I hope you have some good distractions for this upcoming week.
@wishiwaspreggo 17 eggs!! that's awesome! I hope you have a relaxing weekend.
@Callingthestork Sorry you are here, but welcome and i hope this upcoming ER gives you even more frozen embryos.
AFM ER scheduled finally for Monday. I have at least 3 >20mm and E2 5,300. So time to start eating salty foods and drinking the gatorade. No HCG trigger needed. Pretty uncomfortable but i'm just having a weekend of netflixing. Also hopefully DH did his "homework" last night at his hotel so his sperms are ready on Monday.
@wishiwaspreggo yasss friend yassss! Any woman who walks around with her embryos in her vagina is an Fing super hero! I hope that every last one of those fertilizes for you ladies. Can’t wait to hear another update.
@blackhottamales Monday will be here before you know it. homework. Hang in there!
People think we become mothers when we give birth but the truth is we become mothers the moment we start calling our babies to us in our thoughts, dreams and prayers. Some paths are short and some are so long that you can easily forget where you were headed.
How I feel all of the time. My 7 Year Journey ***Tw in spoiler***
IVF IVF #1 - September 2018; Follistim, Menopur, Cetrotide & Lupron/HCG combo trigger; PGS; ICSI Back on Levothyroxine FET #1 - October 2018; cancelled, all PGS aneuploid FET #1 - November 30th, transferred anyway Wondfo BFP 5dp5dt, CB Digi 6dpt, 1st Beta on 7dpt 93 2nd Beta on 10dpt 510!
TTC #1 since 2011. Tried for 5 years before we knew there was a one year rule. Diag w/MS 2016; w/PCOS & IF 2017 New RE 2018; PCOS diagnosis taken away, IF due to ovary adhesions, but prev. RE insists PCOS IF
IUI IUI #1 July 2017 w/100mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts IUI #2 October 2017 w/50mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts IUI #3 February 2018 w/5mg Femara+trigger; low P BFP February; mc March; Subclinical hypothyroid started Levothyroxine IUI #4 March 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN Medicated cycle & TI April 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN Tried several cycles on our own; all BFN
Update: 14 were mature and fertilized! I’m carrying 14 fertilized eggs in my vagina. I can’t believe it. I’m on my pain meds now and feeling eggcelent (see what I did there?) I go back in on Thursday and they’ll count and grade my embryos. Until then it’s nice that I can rub my lower abdomen and speak encouragingly to the embabies. My doctor said they’re having a party in there. I am very, very happy with our results so far and am feeling cautiously optimistic even if the fresh cycle doesn’t work surely we’ll have a couple to freeze for later!
@riathewolf - welcome back! 19 potential follicles is great! FX your stimming goes smoothly and everything progresses well.
@blackhottamales - holy, that is a lot of follicles! 40?! Wow! FX that you get some nice mature eggs! Monday will be here before you know it!
@mkr_0128 - that's a great fert report! FX you get some nice blastocysts!
@callingthestork - welcome! When do you start stimming? Are you doing your third cycle now?
@wishiwaspreggo - Awesome news! 17 eggs is great!! And 14 fertilized is great too! So crazy that you are carrying them! How big is the device? Haha re: eggcelent!
Also, you made me laugh: I don't know if it's the hormones or the mental strain but I am so tired and grumpy. I had to run an errand for work and a lady was walking too close behind me so I stopped, turned around and asked if I could help her with something. She took a few steps back and apologized.
If it makes you feel any better, I lost it at work yesterday. A customer was being super unreasonable, and I didn't lose it with the customer, but when my boss came to talk to me about how we should handle it, I lost my cool and yelled. Basically just saying variations of: "What the F*CK are we F*CKING doing, letting them walk all over us like this?! This is F*CKING RIDICULOUS!" Pretty sure the like 12 people sitting outside my desk all heard and were like: "Whoa, she is MAD."
This customer has been a pain in my ass, though. So I don't think it was from the hormones - ha!
AFM: I triggered last night and am going to have retrieval tomorrow.
I was going through my notes and it's crazy how different this cycle is than my last cycle. My last cycle was fast - I responded very quickly to the medication - so I only stimmed for 8 days. I was super uncomfortable before my trigger shot, and before I triggered, my E2 was 9434!
This time, I was stimming for 10 days, and my E2 isn't as high - yesterday, it was about 7800. I'm not nearly as uncomfortable. That said, I'm showing about the same number and size of follies.
Really hoping that they find some nice, mature eggs tomorrow! And I'm also hoping that we get a different result this cycle than last - so maybe the cycle being so different is good? FX!
@funkykey Trigger finally, fx for you tomorrow! at your work scene. To be a fly on the wall....
People think we become mothers when we give birth but the truth is we become mothers the moment we start calling our babies to us in our thoughts, dreams and prayers. Some paths are short and some are so long that you can easily forget where you were headed.
How I feel all of the time. My 7 Year Journey ***Tw in spoiler***
IVF IVF #1 - September 2018; Follistim, Menopur, Cetrotide & Lupron/HCG combo trigger; PGS; ICSI Back on Levothyroxine FET #1 - October 2018; cancelled, all PGS aneuploid FET #1 - November 30th, transferred anyway Wondfo BFP 5dp5dt, CB Digi 6dpt, 1st Beta on 7dpt 93 2nd Beta on 10dpt 510!
TTC #1 since 2011. Tried for 5 years before we knew there was a one year rule. Diag w/MS 2016; w/PCOS & IF 2017 New RE 2018; PCOS diagnosis taken away, IF due to ovary adhesions, but prev. RE insists PCOS IF
IUI IUI #1 July 2017 w/100mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts IUI #2 October 2017 w/50mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts IUI #3 February 2018 w/5mg Femara+trigger; low P BFP February; mc March; Subclinical hypothyroid started Levothyroxine IUI #4 March 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN Medicated cycle & TI April 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN Tried several cycles on our own; all BFN
@funkykey - ha! I love a good “lost my shit” story the customer, is in fact, NOT always right. I work with college students so I try to take a customer service oriented attitude with them (at least for their housing) but some of these kids... dang. They expect resort-style amenities. I put them in their place pretty quickly there. But the parents are waaaaaay worse. Nothing I hate more than when they start a sentence with “I’m not a helicopter parent or anything but...” stop right there. Yes you are. I smile and let them tell me why they don’t like their kid’s gay roommate or the food in the dining hall or the color of their area rug and then say “If your son/daughter has a problem with it I will be happy to help them.” They hate that.
And hooray for trigger tonight!!!! GL with retrieval tomorrow May it go splendidly.
There are lots of reasons I want to have a family. One of the most selfish, superficial reasons though (*cough cough*) is because I want to be more free to judge parenting styles, lol. Right now, when there are parenting styles I don't like, I feel like I can't really say anything, because all these people are like: "Oh, you don't know until you actually are a parent." And bite my tongue and think: "Um, but I'm a human, and I know poor character when I see it." I want that self-righteous moral authority that comes with parenting, you know? I want to be one of those huffy moms who rolls her eyes and makes comments about helicopter parenting. LOL.
I would have such a hard time with people infantilizing their adult children! And such a hard time with bratty kids! "Excuse me, my dorm doesn't have a steam room?" Like: "Wow. It's day 2 and you've completely missed the point. Good luck."
@wishiwaspreggo 17 eggs is amazing! I am soo intrigued by the INVOcell, so please keep us posted!!
AFM--I had a pretty rough night last night. Warning--this may be TMI for some, but also important to know! So I have been, let's say, stopped up, since my ER on Tuesday. That along with the bloating has created a really sick joke of me actually looking as though I am four months preggo. My nurse told me I could use a suppository to "get things moving," so I figured I would have an exciting Friday night and went for it. Things worked (I'll spare the details), BUT as soon as I got up I fell to the floor with excruciating pain in my lower abdomen. I was terrified that my ovary had torsed, so DH and I rushed to the emergency room, which thankfully is only 5 mins away. They do not, however, have an OB department so I was quite worried. Fortunately, things worked in my favor and my nurse was 18 weeks preggo via IVF! She knew exactly what was going on and made sure to explain to the doctor on call exactly what I had just been through...what a relief! Anyways, after a one hour ultrasound, the only thing they could come up with was that where the follicles had been had filled with blood and fluid, and some of those had burst, which could cause that pain. I called my RE this morning and the nurse on call said she wasn't sure, but was thinking maybe it could be AF coming soon. I doubt it and think it was probably option A, as I have never experienced pain like this before, and it went away after about an hour. Quite the exhilarating Friday night to say the least.
Moral of the story---maybe it is best to stay "full of sh--," at least for the time being. Sorry if TMI!!!
Hi, Funkykey, I was wondering if you have done or thought about an ERA test before your transfer? My RE is going to make me do one to make sure of how many days to do PIO before a FET. Five days is standard, but a quarter of ladies in test studies had receptive endometrium either early or late, and the test measures gene expression of 64 genes in a biopsy of endometrium to determine if it is pre-, post-, or currently receptive and gives how many hours it's off. Also works for unmedicated FETs. You have to do a mock FET cycle to get the biopsy, and the cost (at my place) is around 2,700. Sorry if you've talked about that already. WishIWasPreggo, I hope you get great embies! I think its the neatest that you get to take care of them! Can I worry about them with you? No VOCs anywhere near your precious cargo! Laurenc52, shocking story but you survived with a great sense of humor! Fingers crossed for your embies. Well..... just when you think you've adjusted to the glacial pace of IVF conception, ya hit a speedbump. After 6 days of 3 shots twice a day, my ultrasound showed TWO small follicles, and my cycle is canceled. Coping strategy involves chocolate....and more chocolate. Apparently I have an estrogen-producing cyst. So Plan B is to do 4 Ganirelix shots near the end of BCPs before the next cycle to shut down cysts and grow an even crop of eggs. So early Nov egg retrieval, hopefully. Doc said this happens, next time will work. So much for Round 3. My hope is to have 2 more egg grow cycles, try very hard to be happy with whatever number of embies we end up with, and then do a medicated FET in March--my clinic only has a cycle every other month because the embryology team is out of state and just comes for a couple weeks. They can do the Endometrial Receptivity Assay test between cycles. Does anyone here have embryos growing in a lab that uses microscope incubators with the time lapse monitoring? My clinic's team gets to use those at a lab in Florida. I think it would be so neat to watch them grow or even to get a picture of one's own actual embryo.
@laurenc52 omg that sounds like a terrifying night! I'm glad you got checked out and started feeling better! Hopefully the worst is over and everything is good from here on out
Last time I did IVF, in my group, there was a woman who had serious post-ER complications. I can't remember the details, but she had some internal bleeding and had to be hospitalized; I remember thinking: "Holy F*ck, she could have died." I know it's rare and it's not common, but some of the post-IVF complications are really, really scary. Good for you for taking it seriously, and so glad you had that nurse!
@callingthestork - I'm so sorry for your transferred cycle! That is awful!
Just thinking about it now, you have had a really rough go! I would be up to my eyeballs in chocolate! Keeping FX for you that this next round, and your changes re: ganirelix, etc, do the trick!
I did an ERA this last March, after my second failed transfer. It said I was receptive. I have no reason to think my failed transfers are because of my uterus; more likely, it's the embryos themselves.
My clinic does not give us photo of our embryos, but every time we've gone in for a transfer, they show it on a screen when they are preparing it for transfer. DH takes a bunch of photos, and then I stare at them all through the TWW. I love the embryo photos.
In other news, OMG guys, my abdomen is so itchy from all these bruises and injections! Anyone else having that?
I'm so sorry that happened @callingthestork I'm glad you and your doc have a new plan worked out already though! I hope you get lots of embies in the next 2 cycles!
@laurenc52 yikes! you were definitely right to go to ER. glad everything seems to be ok now. take it easy! sounds like some OHSS symptoms so be careful!
TTC History in Spoiler
Me: 29 DH:34 TTC 21 cycles All TI cycles BFN (with letrozole, ovidrel, prometrium) Hysteroscopy + Polypectomy + D&C on 1/3 IUI #1 February 6, BFP 2/21, CP 2/26 IUI #2 March 14, BFN IUI #3 April 11, BFN IUI #4 May 11, BFN July 2018 IVF, developed lead follicle, converted to TI, BFN August/September 2018 IVF converted to freeze-all: 7 mature eggs; we fertilized 3 and froze 4. 3/3 fertilized and 1 blast! October 2018 FET-BFN November 2018 FET-TBD
@laurenc52 Oh my goodness! I’m glad you quickly went to the ER. I hope you continue to feel better. @funkykey Good luck! @wishiwaspreggo That’s an awesome number of mature eggs. I hope you have some great embryos growing! Can you feel the device once it’s in?
@funkykey 11 eggs is great! Hoping for good news tomorrow
We got a call today that they froze 3 blasts today and they said they expect to be able to freeze more tomorrow and Tuesday. Anyone ever hear of freezing day 6 and day 7?
@funkykey awesome!!! Can't wait for tomorrows update I hope you're feeling well!
@laurenc52 my clinic freezes days 5 and 6!! (They never said anything about day 7 though.) BUT the nurse told me that freezing on day 6 is no different/worse than freezing on day 5
@laurenc52 oh gosh! I’m so glad you got it checked out. And I hope that you feel better real soon.
Update for me, I had my day 4 US and BW and I guess it wasn’t what they wanted to see so they upped my doses. I’m now at 450 Gonal F and 150 Menopur. I’m so nervous that I might not be responding though I know medication tweaks happen all the time. Maybe it’s just the hormones but I’ve been sort of a snappy nervous mess these last two days. Tomorrow is my Day 6 check in, cross your fingers that we have some notable growth!
@funkykey – maybe I’m in the minority of parents but I
think it’s perfectly fine for those without children to judge other people’s
parenting styles. I judged them myself. And you know what? Now that I am a
parent my judgment has quadrupled lol… pretty much because what annoyed me
before annoys me even more now because I know how easy it is to adjust your
attitude and parent better. TW – parenting talk for those who don’t want to
hear it – Like when I went to Disney World before I had kids and I’d hear
parents yelling at their toddlers/preschoolers and I’d think “That’s rude but I
guess it must be stressful so I don’t know.” But now? Lady/sir, calm your tits!
Your kid is THREE and he doesn’t understand what’s going on! He needs a snack,
a nap, and then come back to the park when he’s feeling better. Have some
patience, for God’s sake. Those huge parks are very overwhelming to little
people. No, they won’t be grateful and happy you took them when they’re
exhausted and hungry.
@laurenc52 – Oh my gosh, that’s so scary!!!! I’ve been
heeding the warning about being stopped up so I’ve been drinking Miralax. That
seems to help. And I’ve been taking it easy on the narcotics. I don’t like to
take more than I absolutely need. I’m glad everything turned out okay but the
risk of torsion is real
@callingthestork – I am so sorry about your cancelled
cycle L
that is so frustrating. “It happens” is a terrible response to your situation but
I guess that’s the only thing to say. It sounds like your RE has a plan and
hopefully next time will be better.
@zamora_spin – No, I can’t feel the device. Having it
inserted was a bit uncomfortable (the RE had to brace my hip to push it all the
way to my cervix) but once I felt it “pop” behind my pubic bone I couldn’t feel
it anymore! It’s held in there with a diaphragm. Not super excited about the
removal process but it’ll be worth it to know how many grew and how well they’re
doing!
@riathewolf – How many follicles did you have at day 4?
Hopefully that extra boost of meds will get things moving faster. Yes,
medication tweaks do happen frequently. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for
growing follicles!
AFM, it’s been 48 hours since my ER and I’m feeling
pretty good! The pain has gone down significantly. I only needed my narcotic
pain meds for the first day. I took one last night because TW my 3 year old
body-slammed himself onto my abdomen while I was lying in bed.
Funny story about the anesthesia: I was in the room where
they do the retrieval with my legs propped up on the table and the nurse tying
them down. The anesthesiologist put something in my IV bag and asked how I
felt. I said the sprinkler system on the ceiling was moving in circles. Then I
felt the speculum and said “Wait, I’m not asleep yet!” and everyone said at
once “We’re all done!” I said “Done with what?” then they laughed. I thought
they meant they were done giving me the medicine but it turns out they were
done with the retrieval. It’s so trippy to not know it even happened!
@wishiwaspreggo It was sort of weird because it was a weekend visit so it wasn't my normal team. So no one really said much. I should have asked more questions but I just felt uncomfortable. They still saw 19 but all that was said was "They're still tiny so we'll check your bloodwork." And then I got the call to up my dose. so I think that's why I'm so nervous. I wasn't given much info. I see my doctor and regular nurse tomorrow and I think that will put me more at ease.
@riathewolf - Day 4 is really early to make that kind of call, isn't it? Especially if you have 19 follicles! Is this day 4 of stims or CD 4? I think my first scan was day 6 of stims and I had follicles ranging from 9-14 mm. Hopefully you get some more answers tomorrow! I'm curious to see the logic behind that myself. Just seems like a ton of medicine but I don't know your situation. Everyone is so different.
Another fun story about PIO: I've been learning how to give myself the shots. I've asked MW to help me and the first shot I basically just asked her to wipe down the area with the alcohol swab and then aim the needle for me so I can insert and plunge. She did as I asked and I gave myself the shot. I didn't check for blood first so when I pulled the needle out I got a good stream of blood going. W absolutely panicked which made me stressed so I begged her to calm down and just get me a compress. She ran out of the room to get paper towels so I just got the compress myself lol... The next shot (last night) she helped me position it and we checked for blood this time. Nothing came up so we were good. I did my shot and then as soon as I took it out she started aggressively rubbing the injection site with the alcohol swab I shouted and she apologized and said she thought she was just cleaning it out. The buuuuuuuurn... My W is so good at a lot of things but this is just not her forte.
Before we started all this with me we were going to have her harvest her eggs for me to carry. I am so, so glad it didn't turn out that way. She would never be able to manage this herself. I am much better suited since I have a high pain threshold and am generally more flexible/less grossed out by stuff.
Sorry I’ve been MIA! I just caught up on everyone’s posts.
@laurenc52 - Your emergency room story is terrifying — so glad you’re ok! I’m at high risk for OHSS so I’m going to be on high alert if I have even the slightest symptoms. Congrats on your 3 frozen! FX that you have even more tomorrow!
@mkr_0128 — Yay for 14 fertilized! Keep us posted on Thursday’s results!
@funkykey - So glad you have a successful ER with 6 fertilized! Hope you're feeling ok and can't wait to hear more!
@wishiwaspreggo - Your PIO story had me laughing because that's totally going to be me with my DH! Before this whole process he was gung ho about helping me with injections, but when I actually had to start, he just couldn't do it. I’ve been able to handle the subq injections so far, but was hoping to get a little help with the HCG trigger and PIO! He’s flat out refusing because he doesn’t want to hurt me (but he's ok with me hurting myself of course). It’s probably for the best because he most likely would make it worse!
@blackhottamales - Wow! Congratulations on your 30 eggs! Hope you’re feeling ok, and that you get a great fertilization rate! Update us when you can!
@riathewolf - I think medication adjustments are pretty normal! I’ve already had my Gonal F dosage decreased and my Lupron dosage increased. Hoping your adjustment results in a ton of healthy eggs for you!
@callingthestork - Welcome and so sorry to hear about your cancelled cycle. Hope that those estrogen producing cysts are shut down quickly for you!
UPDATE ON ME:
Since my progesterone was too high at my first baseline appt on 8/31, I waited a few days for it to go down before starting stims. I had a second baseline last Weds 9/5 and all looked good, so I started my Gonal F the following night. Similar to Lupron, the Gonal F shot was fairly easy for me. I did feel something going on in my ovaries pretty much immediately though (slight campiness). Hopefully that means it's working! I went back in for bloodwork yesterday morning. They said that my LH is a bit high and they don't want me to prematurely ovulate. They had me up my dosage of Lupron back to 10 units, lower my dosage of Gonal F to 125, and add in Menopur.
Ugh the Menopur shot sucks! I did my first one last night. It was confusing as hell to figure out which syringe and needle to use and how to mix it (my nursing consult was so long ago and there was so much info thrown at me that I didn't remember - plus I feel like I have a million syringe types and needles). Luckily I found a video online and that helped me figure it out. Of course I forgot to ice the injection site like @blackhottamales recommended, and of course it burned going in (and took forever to inject - is that normal? Or maybe an issue with my syringe?). Then afterwards I had some achy pain in my mid to upper back, nothing too crazy, but it felt pretty much the same as my kidney/liver does after a night of too much drinking. I got a little scared because I felt some slight breathing difficulty too, but I think it was more from the pain itself than a respiratory issue. Luckily it went away after a bit. I did my Gonal F shot right after the Menopur, so I'm thinking it was from my body processing the meds? I don't know, but I'm definitely going to mention it to my doctor tomorrow when I go in for more bloodwork and another US!
@Bonniebonsall - My W said the same thing (she didn't want to hurt me). She did a HCG shot for me once and inserted/removed the needle so slowly it freaked me out so she's no longer on duty for that. All I ask is for help cleaning and aiming the needle. I hope she mellows out and gets better with it over time. If I have to stay on these shots for several weeks she's gonna have to buck up.
I had the same confusion over mixing the HCG! I didn't have any instructions and none came in the box of medication. It came with a HUGE vial of mixing agent and I didn't know how much of it to use. I watched a video on Freedom Pharmacy's website and it suggested 1 cc of fluid to mix with the powder. I did as instructed and it seemed to be fine... but then I found the instructions my RE gave me buried on my desk and it said to do 2 cc's of fluid. Ugh. I just did the one and it seems to be okay.
Anyway, the PIO isn't as bad/scary as I thought it would be. It would simply be helpful if I had a partner who had a stronger stomach but it is what it is.
And I've heard Menopur is bad I never used it myself so sorry you have to go through that! None of this crap is easy, that's for sure.
@blackhottamales 30 eggs is awesome!!! Make sure you stay extra hydrated on our favorite Gatorade!!
@funkykey so exciting to have 6 fertilized!!! Can't wait to hear more as the week goes on!
@wishiwaspreggo I am so, so nervous about the PIO...it is refreshing though to hear that you figured out how to do it on your own because I HATED when DH did my trigger lol.. I also panicked with the HCG because I was supposed to mix it in FIVE cc's of the fluid because they wanted it to be super diluted and I was also using Lupron. The syringe only went to 3 cc's and I had a total meltdown because I didn't realize I could just fill the syringe twice :-)
@Bonniebonsall I'm sorry to hear you had such a hard time with the Menopur...it didn't really burn that bad for me, but I have heard horror stories. Someone did tell me if you mix it and let it sit in the syringe for a little bit before injecting it didn't burn as bad? I didn't try it because I didn't find it to be terrible, but maybe that is worth exploring? I found it easiest to do the Gonal F first, as I knew that one was easy peasy, then the Menopur, and then the Cetrotide last because that one was the worst for me (it gave me a welt basically every other day).
My embie update---9 more were frozen today, so we are at 12 as of now! I think DH had a heart attack when I told him how many embryos we currently have frozen (as we were hoping for maybe 4-5). The embryologist said they are expecting a couple more tomorrow, so we'll see what the final count is tomorrow. Still just hanging in there waiting for AF.
AFM: still waiting anxiously for my final update Thursday! I started spotting this morning (brown), and I do usually spot 1-3 days before my period. Does anyone know when to expect your period after stopping everything following a stim cycle? (I'm doing a FET so I'm not on any meds right now, just waiting for AF) I'm on cycle day 18 right now and my cycle ranges from 23-28 days usually. I'm assuming this is spotting before my period, but it's a tad earlier than normal. I'll ask the nurse too when she calls me Thurs with the update, but just curious if people tend to get their periods earlier or later following a stim cycle?
@Bonniebonsall yeah the Menopur needle is a 30 gauge so it will take longer to inject. So don’t worry that is totally normal. My method that so far has no burning, is to mix it, let it sit for 15-20 minutes. And then ice before hand. I haven’t felt anything. It’s worked amazing
Re: September 2018 IVF ER
@callingthestork Welcome! You reminded me I was going to post links to the compassionate care programs I know about. I didn't qualify for the income based one from EMD Serono but I did get a card good for a 10% rebate on Gonal-F (which is by far my most expensive med).
This program is for EMD Serono (Gonal-F): https://www.fertilitylifelines.com/en_US/home.html?q=save-fertility-treatments/savings-military-veterans#tabs-2
This one is for Merck products (Follistim): https://www.fertilitybydesign.com/FirstSteps
Every little bit helps when you are OOP!
Retrieval is done! I got 17 eggs
Definitely feeling some pain right now. I took some Tylenol. My wife is out getting my prescription pain meds while I wait at the doctors office.
@wishiwaspreggo 17 eggs!! that's awesome! I hope you have a relaxing weekend.
@Callingthestork Sorry you are here, but welcome and i hope this upcoming ER gives you even more frozen embryos.
AFM
ER scheduled finally for Monday. I have at least 3 >20mm and E2 5,300. So time to start eating salty foods and drinking the gatorade. No HCG trigger needed. Pretty uncomfortable but i'm just having a weekend of netflixing. Also hopefully DH did his "homework" last night at his hotel so his sperms are ready on Monday.
@blackhottamales Monday will be here before you know it.
My 7 Year Journey ***Tw in spoiler***
IVF #1 - September 2018; Follistim, Menopur, Cetrotide & Lupron/HCG combo trigger; PGS; ICSI
Back on Levothyroxine
FET #1 - October 2018; cancelled, all PGS aneuploid
FET #1 - November 30th, transferred anyway
Wondfo BFP 5dp5dt, CB Digi 6dpt,
1st Beta on 7dpt 93
2nd Beta on 10dpt 510!
TTC #1 since 2011. Tried for 5 years before we knew there was a one year rule.
Diag w/MS 2016; w/PCOS & IF 2017
New RE 2018; PCOS diagnosis taken away, IF due to ovary adhesions, but prev. RE insists PCOS IF
IUI
IUI #1 July 2017 w/100mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts
IUI #2 October 2017 w/50mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts
IUI #3 February 2018 w/5mg Femara+trigger; low P
BFP February; mc March; Subclinical hypothyroid started Levothyroxine
IUI #4 March 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN
Medicated cycle & TI April 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN
Tried several cycles on our own; all BFN
@blackhottamales - holy, that is a lot of follicles! 40?! Wow! FX that you get some nice mature eggs! Monday will be here before you know it!
@mkr_0128 - that's a great fert report! FX you get some nice blastocysts!
@callingthestork - welcome! When do you start stimming? Are you doing your third cycle now?
@wishiwaspreggo - Awesome news! 17 eggs is great!! And 14 fertilized is great too! So crazy that you are carrying them! How big is the device? Haha re: eggcelent!
Also, you made me laugh:
I don't know if it's the hormones or the mental strain but I am so tired and grumpy. I had to run an errand for work and a lady was walking too close behind me so I stopped, turned around and asked if I could help her with something. She took a few steps back and apologized.
If it makes you feel any better, I lost it at work yesterday. A customer was being super unreasonable, and I didn't lose it with the customer, but when my boss came to talk to me about how we should handle it, I lost my cool and yelled. Basically just saying variations of: "What the F*CK are we F*CKING doing, letting them walk all over us like this?! This is F*CKING RIDICULOUS!" Pretty sure the like 12 people sitting outside my desk all heard and were like: "Whoa, she is MAD."
This customer has been a pain in my ass, though. So I don't think it was from the hormones - ha!
I was going through my notes and it's crazy how different this cycle is than my last cycle. My last cycle was fast - I responded very quickly to the medication - so I only stimmed for 8 days. I was super uncomfortable before my trigger shot, and before I triggered, my E2 was 9434!
This time, I was stimming for 10 days, and my E2 isn't as high - yesterday, it was about 7800. I'm not nearly as uncomfortable. That said, I'm showing about the same number and size of follies.
Really hoping that they find some nice, mature eggs tomorrow! And I'm also hoping that we get a different result this cycle than last - so maybe the cycle being so different is good? FX!
My 7 Year Journey ***Tw in spoiler***
IVF #1 - September 2018; Follistim, Menopur, Cetrotide & Lupron/HCG combo trigger; PGS; ICSI
Back on Levothyroxine
FET #1 - October 2018; cancelled, all PGS aneuploid
FET #1 - November 30th, transferred anyway
Wondfo BFP 5dp5dt, CB Digi 6dpt,
1st Beta on 7dpt 93
2nd Beta on 10dpt 510!
TTC #1 since 2011. Tried for 5 years before we knew there was a one year rule.
Diag w/MS 2016; w/PCOS & IF 2017
New RE 2018; PCOS diagnosis taken away, IF due to ovary adhesions, but prev. RE insists PCOS IF
IUI
IUI #1 July 2017 w/100mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts
IUI #2 October 2017 w/50mg Clo+trigger; BFN; benched w/big cysts
IUI #3 February 2018 w/5mg Femara+trigger; low P
BFP February; mc March; Subclinical hypothyroid started Levothyroxine
IUI #4 March 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN
Medicated cycle & TI April 2018 w/7.5mg Femara+trigger; BFN
Tried several cycles on our own; all BFN
@wishiwaspreggo congrats! 14 must be a lucky number lately
@funkykey I'll be thinking good thoughts for you for your retrieval tomorrow! Hoping different is good as well
And hooray for trigger tonight!!!! GL with retrieval tomorrow
@wishiwaspreggo - OMG, I could never do your job! LOL!
There are lots of reasons I want to have a family. One of the most selfish, superficial reasons though (*cough cough*) is because I want to be more free to judge parenting styles, lol. Right now, when there are parenting styles I don't like, I feel like I can't really say anything, because all these people are like: "Oh, you don't know until you actually are a parent." And bite my tongue and think: "Um, but I'm a human, and I know poor character when I see it." I want that self-righteous moral authority that comes with parenting, you know? I want to be one of those huffy moms who rolls her eyes and makes comments about helicopter parenting. LOL.
I would have such a hard time with people infantilizing their adult children! And such a hard time with bratty kids! "Excuse me, my dorm doesn't have a steam room?" Like: "Wow. It's day 2 and you've completely missed the point. Good luck."
@mkr_0128 Awesome news on the fert report! Thinking about you and hoping for good results next week.
@funkykey Good luck tomorrow!!
@wishiwaspreggo 17 eggs is amazing! I am soo intrigued by the INVOcell, so please keep us posted!!
AFM--I had a pretty rough night last night. Warning--this may be TMI for some, but also important to know! So I have been, let's say, stopped up, since my ER on Tuesday. That along with the bloating has created a really sick joke of me actually looking as though I am four months preggo. My nurse told me I could use a suppository to "get things moving," so I figured I would have an exciting Friday night and went for it. Things worked (I'll spare the details), BUT as soon as I got up I fell to the floor with excruciating pain in my lower abdomen. I was terrified that my ovary had torsed, so DH and I rushed to the emergency room, which thankfully is only 5 mins away. They do not, however, have an OB department so I was quite worried. Fortunately, things worked in my favor and my nurse was 18 weeks preggo via IVF! She knew exactly what was going on and made sure to explain to the doctor on call exactly what I had just been through...what a relief! Anyways, after a one hour ultrasound, the only thing they could come up with was that where the follicles had been had filled with blood and fluid, and some of those had burst, which could cause that pain. I called my RE this morning and the nurse on call said she wasn't sure, but was thinking maybe it could be AF coming soon. I doubt it and think it was probably option A, as I have never experienced pain like this before, and it went away after about an hour. Quite the exhilarating Friday night to say the least.
Moral of the story---maybe it is best to stay "full of sh--," at least for the time being. Sorry if TMI!!!
Funkykey, I was wondering if you have done or thought about an ERA test before your transfer? My RE is going to make me do one to make sure of how many days to do PIO before a FET. Five days is standard, but a quarter of ladies in test studies had receptive endometrium either early or late, and the test measures gene expression of 64 genes in a biopsy of endometrium to determine if it is pre-, post-, or currently receptive and gives how many hours it's off. Also works for unmedicated FETs. You have to do a mock FET cycle to get the biopsy, and the cost (at my place) is around 2,700. Sorry if you've talked about that already.
WishIWasPreggo, I hope you get great embies! I think its the neatest that you get to take care of them! Can I worry about them with you? No VOCs anywhere near your precious cargo!
Laurenc52, shocking story but you survived with a great sense of humor! Fingers crossed for your embies.
Well..... just when you think you've adjusted to the glacial pace of IVF conception, ya hit a speedbump. After 6 days of 3 shots twice a day, my ultrasound showed TWO small follicles, and my cycle is canceled. Coping strategy involves chocolate....and more chocolate. Apparently I have an estrogen-producing cyst. So Plan B is to do 4 Ganirelix shots near the end of BCPs before the next cycle to shut down cysts and grow an even crop of eggs. So early Nov egg retrieval, hopefully. Doc said this happens, next time will work. So much for Round 3.
My hope is to have 2 more egg grow cycles, try very hard to be happy with whatever number of embies we end up with, and then do a medicated FET in March--my clinic only has a cycle every other month because the embryology team is out of state and just comes for a couple weeks. They can do the Endometrial Receptivity Assay test between cycles.
Does anyone here have embryos growing in a lab that uses microscope incubators with the time lapse monitoring? My clinic's team gets to use those at a lab in Florida. I think it would be so neat to watch them grow or even to get a picture of one's own actual embryo.
Good luck, all.
Last time I did IVF, in my group, there was a woman who had serious post-ER complications. I can't remember the details, but she had some internal bleeding and had to be hospitalized; I remember thinking: "Holy F*ck, she could have died." I know it's rare and it's not common, but some of the post-IVF complications are really, really scary. Good for you for taking it seriously, and so glad you had that nurse!
@callingthestork -
Just thinking about it now, you have had a really rough go! I would be up to my eyeballs in chocolate! Keeping FX for you that this next round, and your changes re: ganirelix, etc, do the trick!
I did an ERA this last March, after my second failed transfer. It said I was receptive. I have no reason to think my failed transfers are because of my uterus; more likely, it's the embryos themselves.
My clinic does not give us photo of our embryos, but every time we've gone in for a transfer, they show it on a screen when they are preparing it for transfer. DH takes a bunch of photos, and then I stare at them all through the TWW. I love the embryo photos.
In other news, OMG guys, my abdomen is so itchy from all these bruises and injections! Anyone else having that?
@laurenc52 yikes! you were definitely right to go to ER. glad everything seems to be ok now. take it easy! sounds like some OHSS symptoms so be careful!
TTC 21 cycles
All TI cycles BFN (with letrozole, ovidrel, prometrium)
Hysteroscopy + Polypectomy + D&C on 1/3
IUI #1 February 6, BFP 2/21, CP 2/26
IUI #2 March 14, BFN
IUI #3 April 11, BFN
IUI #4 May 11, BFN
July 2018 IVF, developed lead follicle, converted to TI, BFN
August/September 2018 IVF converted to freeze-all: 7 mature eggs; we fertilized 3 and froze 4. 3/3 fertilized and 1 blast!
October 2018 FET-BFN
November 2018 FET-TBD
@funkykey Good luck!
@wishiwaspreggo That’s an awesome number of mature eggs. I hope you have some great embryos growing! Can you feel the device once it’s in?
We got a call today that they froze 3 blasts today and they said they expect to be able to freeze more tomorrow and Tuesday. Anyone ever hear of freezing day 6 and day 7?
@laurenc52 my clinic freezes days 5 and 6!! (They never said anything about day 7 though.) BUT the nurse told me that freezing on day 6 is no different/worse than freezing on day 5
@laurenc52 oh gosh! I’m so glad you got it checked out. And I hope that you feel better real soon.
Update for me, I had my day 4 US and BW and I guess it wasn’t what they wanted to see so they upped my doses. I’m now at 450 Gonal F and 150 Menopur. I’m so nervous that I might not be responding though I know medication tweaks happen all the time. Maybe it’s just the hormones but I’ve been sort of a snappy nervous mess these last two days. Tomorrow is my Day 6 check in, cross your fingers that we have some notable growth!
@funkykey – maybe I’m in the minority of parents but I think it’s perfectly fine for those without children to judge other people’s parenting styles. I judged them myself. And you know what? Now that I am a parent my judgment has quadrupled lol… pretty much because what annoyed me before annoys me even more now because I know how easy it is to adjust your attitude and parent better. TW – parenting talk for those who don’t want to hear it – Like when I went to Disney World before I had kids and I’d hear parents yelling at their toddlers/preschoolers and I’d think “That’s rude but I guess it must be stressful so I don’t know.” But now? Lady/sir, calm your tits! Your kid is THREE and he doesn’t understand what’s going on! He needs a snack, a nap, and then come back to the park when he’s feeling better. Have some patience, for God’s sake. Those huge parks are very overwhelming to little people. No, they won’t be grateful and happy you took them when they’re exhausted and hungry.
@laurenc52 – Oh my gosh, that’s so scary!!!! I’ve been heeding the warning about being stopped up so I’ve been drinking Miralax. That seems to help. And I’ve been taking it easy on the narcotics. I don’t like to take more than I absolutely need. I’m glad everything turned out okay but the risk of torsion is real![:\](https://forums.thebump.com/resources/emoji/confused.png ":\")
@callingthestork – I am so sorry about your cancelled cycle L that is so frustrating. “It happens” is a terrible response to your situation but I guess that’s the only thing to say. It sounds like your RE has a plan and hopefully next time will be better.
@zamora_spin – No, I can’t feel the device. Having it inserted was a bit uncomfortable (the RE had to brace my hip to push it all the way to my cervix) but once I felt it “pop” behind my pubic bone I couldn’t feel it anymore! It’s held in there with a diaphragm. Not super excited about the removal process but it’ll be worth it to know how many grew and how well they’re doing!
@riathewolf – How many follicles did you have at day 4? Hopefully that extra boost of meds will get things moving faster. Yes, medication tweaks do happen frequently. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for growing follicles!
AFM, it’s been 48 hours since my ER and I’m feeling pretty good! The pain has gone down significantly. I only needed my narcotic pain meds for the first day. I took one last night because TW my 3 year old body-slammed himself onto my abdomen while I was lying in bed.
Funny story about the anesthesia: I was in the room where they do the retrieval with my legs propped up on the table and the nurse tying them down. The anesthesiologist put something in my IV bag and asked how I felt. I said the sprinkler system on the ceiling was moving in circles. Then I felt the speculum and said “Wait, I’m not asleep yet!” and everyone said at once “We’re all done!” I said “Done with what?” then they laughed. I thought they meant they were done giving me the medicine but it turns out they were done with the retrieval. It’s so trippy to not know it even happened!
ER went well. 30 eggs.
Will write more later. FX for everyone!
UPDATE ON ME:
Since my progesterone was too high at my first baseline appt on 8/31, I waited a few days for it to go down before starting stims. I had a second baseline last Weds 9/5 and all looked good, so I started my Gonal F the following night. Similar to Lupron, the Gonal F shot was fairly easy for me. I did feel something going on in my ovaries pretty much immediately though (slight campiness). Hopefully that means it's working! I went back in for bloodwork yesterday morning. They said that my LH is a bit high and they don't want me to prematurely ovulate. They had me up my dosage of Lupron back to 10 units, lower my dosage of Gonal F to 125, and add in Menopur.
Ugh the Menopur shot sucks! I did my first one last night. It was confusing as hell to figure out which syringe and needle to use and how to mix it (my nursing consult was so long ago and there was so much info thrown at me that I didn't remember - plus I feel like I have a million syringe types and needles). Luckily I found a video online and that helped me figure it out. Of course I forgot to ice the injection site like @blackhottamales recommended, and of course it burned going in (and took forever to inject - is that normal? Or maybe an issue with my syringe?). Then afterwards I had some achy pain in my mid to upper back, nothing too crazy, but it felt pretty much the same as my kidney/liver does after a night of too much drinking. I got a little scared because I felt some slight breathing difficulty too, but I think it was more from the pain itself than a respiratory issue. Luckily it went away after a bit. I did my Gonal F shot right after the Menopur, so I'm thinking it was from my body processing the meds? I don't know, but I'm definitely going to mention it to my doctor tomorrow when I go in for more bloodwork and another US!
@funkykey so exciting to have 6 fertilized!!! Can't wait to hear more as the week goes on!
@wishiwaspreggo I am so, so nervous about the PIO...it is refreshing though to hear that you figured out how to do it on your own because I HATED when DH did my trigger lol.. I also panicked with the HCG because I was supposed to mix it in FIVE cc's of the fluid because they wanted it to be super diluted and I was also using Lupron. The syringe only went to 3 cc's and I had a total meltdown because I didn't realize I could just fill the syringe twice :-)
@Bonniebonsall I'm sorry to hear you had such a hard time with the Menopur...it didn't really burn that bad for me, but I have heard horror stories. Someone did tell me if you mix it and let it sit in the syringe for a little bit before injecting it didn't burn as bad? I didn't try it because I didn't find it to be terrible, but maybe that is worth exploring? I found it easiest to do the Gonal F first, as I knew that one was easy peasy, then the Menopur, and then the Cetrotide last because that one was the worst for me (it gave me a welt basically every other day).
My embie update---9 more were frozen today, so we are at 12 as of now! I think DH had a heart attack when I told him how many embryos we currently have frozen (as we were hoping for maybe 4-5). The embryologist said they are expecting a couple more tomorrow, so we'll see what the final count is tomorrow. Still just hanging in there waiting for AF.
@funkykey Congrats on the 6 fertilized!
@laurenc52 wow that's amazing so far!!
AFM: still waiting anxiously for my final update Thursday! I started spotting this morning (brown), and I do usually spot 1-3 days before my period. Does anyone know when to expect your period after stopping everything following a stim cycle? (I'm doing a FET so I'm not on any meds right now, just waiting for AF) I'm on cycle day 18 right now and my cycle ranges from 23-28 days usually. I'm assuming this is spotting before my period, but it's a tad earlier than normal. I'll ask the nurse too when she calls me Thurs with the update, but just curious if people tend to get their periods earlier or later following a stim cycle?