Pregnant after IF

1st/2nd Trimester Check In w/o 8/5

k_mama91k_mama91 member
edited August 2019 in Pregnant after IF
Happy Monday(Tuesday)! @PoeMasque hope you don’t mind me starting us this week ☺️

  • How far along/EDD?
  • How are you feeling this week?
  • Rants/Raves? Questions?
  • Any upcoming appointments?
  • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing?
Calling!!

@PoeMasque EDD 2/8

@emmasemm EDD 3/7

@k_mama91 EDD 12/5

@Tulips25 EDD 1/11

@cigaline EDD 2/10

@celticknotfire EDD 2/27

@ivfsurvivor EDD 3/3

@love112314 EDD 3/9

@sincethelastday EDD 3/10

@bluguitarhannah EDD 3/10

@caitiemae EDD 1/30

«1

Re: 1st/2nd Trimester Check In w/o 8/5

    • How far along/EDD? 22w5d 
    • How are you feeling this week? Pretty good, it’s been really hot and I’ve been drained by the heat. So ready for it to cool off!
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? We can see baby move from the outside now and DS thought that was really neat! 
    • Any upcoming appointments? 8/15 for biweekly check up
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? I always say fixing my hair. It’s pretty much always down and straight. I would kill to be able to use a wand and actually style it. 
  • Loading the player...
  • @akak23
    So glad to see you over here :-)  Happy thoughts for you and your bean!
    ~~ Our Story in Spoiler! TW loss/child~~
    Fall 2012 -- started TTC
    Summer 2015 - no BFP yet, labs normal, referred to RE
    Fall 2015 - Summer 2016 - Further testing all normal. 3 IUI's -- BFN. Recommended move to IVF. Planned cycle for fall 2016.
    September 2016 - Surprise natural BFP. MMC @ 8 weeks. RE expressed confidence that we just needed the 'right' embryo.
    Fall 2016 - Spring 2017 -- Break from TTC
    June 2017 - Started IVF; egg retrieval for freeze all cycle. 9 mature eggs retrieved, 5 fertilized. 2 4BB embies on ice.
    August 2017 - FET transfer both embies. BFP.  Twin pregnancy confirmed by ultrasound. EDD 4/28/18
    September 2017 - Twin B stopped developing; Twin A doing perfectly! Graduated from RE @ 10 weeks
    March 2018 - Baby Girl born via C/S due to pre-eclampsia -- strong and healthy!

    TTC #2
    January/Feb 2021 - Freeze-all IVF cycle 
    March 2021 - FET of 1 PGS normal female embryo. BFP! Beta #1 156,  #2 472, #3 1241, #4 5268 EDD 12/5/21 - Christmas baby!


    "When all is lost then all is found."


  • Morning everyone! 
    • How far along/EDD? 17w3d
    • How are you feeling this week? Ok, more or less. Not handling the heat very well either. I still keep getting heat headaches and my doctor told me to eat more magnesium-rich foods, so I'm trying to do that. 
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? Rant - I will never understand people just point-blank ask if someone is pregnant. I had 2 instances recently and they both made me feel very awkward. One was my neighbors who I'm close with, but the wife just straight up asked "so, are we expecting a boy or a girl?" I stared at her and just said "what do you mean?" Her response to me was that it's pretty obvious so she was curious who we were having. The second instance was at a friend's birthday party where the hostess just asked me in front of a group of people "so, have anything to tell us?" I said no because I wasn't ready to share our news in front of people I don't even know well. The rest of the day the women there just kept glaring at my stomach but no one else asked. It was really awkward. 
    • Any upcoming appointments? 8/28 for the anatomy scan.
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? Stress and worry less. I try to control it as much as I can but I'm such a worrier naturally. Also, @k_mama91 I'm so with you on the hair, especially in the heat and humidity! My hair is naturally wavy/frizzy so these days it's either in a bun or straight when there's less humidity. I was just telling this girl at work yesterday that I'm envious of her ability to create these gorgeous beachy waves every day. I tried a bunch of wands and just can't replicate. 
    ***History & TW in Spoiler***

    ***bfp & child warning***
    TTC - since 2014
    7 rounds of Clomid - BFN
    IUI #1 - October 2015 - BFN
    IUI #2 - November 2015 - BFN
    IUI #3 - December 2015 - BFN
    IVF #1 - March 2016
    Retrieval #1 - April 2016
    FET #1 - May 2016 - BFP!!! DS - Born January 2017
    Trying for baby #2...
    FET #2 - January 2018 - BFN  
    No more embryos left; switched to a new RE
    IVF/Retrieval #2 - January 2019
    IVF/Retrieval #3 - March 2019
    FET #3 - April 2019 - BFP!!! - DD: Born December 2019
    Trying for baby #3...
    FET #4 - October 2021 - BFP!!! - Due June 2022


  • Good morning ladies! I’m with everyone else and hope the heat settles down a bit! 
    • How far along/EDD? 8w6d  3/10
    • How are you feeling this week? The nausea is still ongoing throughout the whole day, but it’s been manageable. A couple days here and there of fatigue. I was really dumb and decided to spend two hours doing weeding and yard work in the heat. I think I ended up getting a touch of heat stroke and the combination with regular nausea was not fun. I keep reading that nausea is supposed to peak around week 9, so I’m hopeful that it’s going to decrease a bit soon. 
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? Kind of a rave. A co-worker and I went for a walk at lunch and I’ve suspected she was pregnant for awhile now, but of course didn’t ask. She ended up telling me she was and said she was 8 weeks along. I’m not planning on telling people at work until the 2nd trimester, but it was too tempting and told her I was 8 weeks as well. We both have the same due date! Turns out she also had some trouble getting pregnant, so it was so nice to catch up with someone who has been in a similar boat. 
    • Any upcoming appointments? None until my first OB app on Sept 5th. 
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? Definitely worry less. Always been a bit worry wart, but would like to get it more under control. On a less serious note, I wish I had a better green thumb. I can keep plants alive for a period of time, but I always seem to either under or over water them. 
    @k_mama91 - thanks for starting the thread! That must be absolutely out-of-this-world to see the baby move!!! Have you been able to capture it on video? 

    @akak23 - welcome! Ugh, so sorry to hear that you haven’t been able to keep any food down! 😔 I hope the BRAT diet helps and that it settles down a bit. 

    @Tulips29 - seriously with the nosy asking!! I really feel like people who haven’t been through infertility or any kind of trouble carrying a pregnancy, have any clue how sensitive of a question that is. Good for you for holding your ground and just point blankly telling that group of people that you have nothing to share! That takes guts, so bravo! Hope you don’t experience any more of those situations though. I’m also with you and @k_mama91 that I’ve given up ever learning to really style my hair. I have learned to use a straightening iron to curl my hair, but it still never looks really good in my opinion. I’m always amazed at how some women are able to do all these fancy braids and styles. 

    Hope everyone has a good week!
  • @k_mama91 forgot to add to my previous comment, but how awesome that you're seeing the baby move from the outside! 

    @akak23 welcome! It took me a while to let my guard down and feel enjoy being pregnant with my first because I was always nervous something would go wrong. I had a bleeding scare at 7 weeks and then when we finally started telling people our news, I had an even bigger bleeding scare at 15 weeks. I was nervous almost my entire pregnancy as a result + I had placenta previa and had to take it really easy not to cause any other bleedings or issues. With this baby, I feel a bit more at ease earlier I think. I still worry, but seeing the belly grow and getting the checks at each appointment helps with reassurance. Once I feel her move I think I may relax a little more. 
    ***History & TW in Spoiler***

    ***bfp & child warning***
    TTC - since 2014
    7 rounds of Clomid - BFN
    IUI #1 - October 2015 - BFN
    IUI #2 - November 2015 - BFN
    IUI #3 - December 2015 - BFN
    IVF #1 - March 2016
    Retrieval #1 - April 2016
    FET #1 - May 2016 - BFP!!! DS - Born January 2017
    Trying for baby #2...
    FET #2 - January 2018 - BFN  
    No more embryos left; switched to a new RE
    IVF/Retrieval #2 - January 2019
    IVF/Retrieval #3 - March 2019
    FET #3 - April 2019 - BFP!!! - DD: Born December 2019
    Trying for baby #3...
    FET #4 - October 2021 - BFP!!! - Due June 2022


  • First I just want to day thank you everyone for the kind words last week. 

    • How far along/EDD? 9w1d
    • How are you feeling this week? Happy for the baby but starting to get emotional about missing FL. We moved about 2 years ago and it's not the same as back there. It was the first place I lived that I absolutely loved. I made my husband promise we can move  back in about 8 years or so hopefully this baby will be enjoying the sunshine state im the future. As for symptoms, (besides being emotional) nausea is still off and on and still so tired.
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? 
    • Any upcoming appointments? August 15, fingers crossed it's the last RE appt.
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? Lol there's a lot of things. I agree with @akak23 about trying to not be concerned with the future. Also @Tulips29, I worry a lot as well so probably that also. 
  • Thanks @sincethelastday and @Tulips29!

     @love112314  I love that famous quote I try to remember when I’m having hard time being present “it’s about the journey not the destination.”

    @sanpelligrino congrats to you! 


  • @k_mama91 thanks for starting this week - and wow to seeing outside movements! That must be sooo cool especially for your DS.

    @akak23 welcome! I haven’t let my guard down yet, well not for more than a few hours after each scan!

    @tulips29 Over. Ore than 10 years where I’ve struggled with massive bloating from food intolerances the amount of times people have asked how far along I am I can no longer count... unless they were very sweet about it, I always snapped very hard back at them - especially once we started actually trying... but now it’s difficult - I wouldn’t want to be too harsh as of course in the end they will know that they were right... but it’s still the principle... why can’t people mind their own business. I normally don’t have to guess if anyone is PG at work as I am one of very few female senior managers and pretty much every pregnant professional comes to me to ask advice very early on how to approach their own boss! I’m just the keeper of all the PG secrets!

    @sincethelastday that’s nice you’ve found a work buddy on the same timeline as you who also gets IF!
    Regarding gardening, I’ve been told not to handle any soil and if I do to use protective gloves not just normal gardening gloves. Maybe it’s just some soil risk locally here which led to that advice though - but worth to check out. I have taken it as license to have DH do all the dirty work for me ;-)

    @love112314 oh where in Florida did you live? I know the Orlando area pretty well as I was there often for longer business trips around 6-10 years ago. My DH did a semester at university in Miami for his masters and he totally loves it there.

    • How far along/EDD? 9+3 today EDD 7th March
    • How are you feeling this week? I alternate between extremely nauseous and tired to the opposite end of the extreme feeling super human! My weight is still steadily dropping even though I’ve baked and eaten cakes and cookies like crazy on top of normal meals and snacks. But I really get a few hours a day where it feels like someone has given me a drug and I feel like I could solve all the worlds problems singlehanded. I thought you only got a “glow” in second trimester. But if I will feel like this all the time once I’m there, then watch out world! I also guess I might crash at some point! 
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? Raves you can see above. Rants, well, a bit sad is that DH is away again this week. Another rave is I told my boss today! After being signed off sick last week, having quite a lot of appointments and agreeing with the OB today to stay on restricted movement, meaning working from home when I can and keeping my feet up in the office, no longer walks, no late nights etc then I have told him and asked him to keep it strictly confidential until I say otherwise. He agreed to all proposals as he said he knows I will make sure my team delivers. Let’s see if he can really keep a secret or not though!
    • Any upcoming appointments? Today I had my “adenomyosis vs fetus” weekly checkup. LO has grown right on track, HB going away, did flips on the screen and I saw the tiny stumpy arms and legs moving. I think it’s going to be hyperactive like me! The adeno has not grown so that’s good. My uterus has really started to shift up out of my pelvis which made the angles on viewing the adeno today a bit tricky. But that also explains why I’ve “popped” a tiny tiny bit. My OB also showed me how to feel my uterus today so that was cool so I know it’s that in future (and not that my intestines are trying to burst out!). Next appointment is Monday for check and Harmony blood draw.
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? I’m als going with the hair! My sister is a genius. She can get out of bed with greasy rough looking hair and in half an hour looks like she’s just walked off the runway with immaculate flowing locks. Whether curly or straight or up some kind of updo she is really talented. I do not have the patience. And my arms ache too much. I do have ghds which mean I can straighten in 5 minutes, but it’s just plain straight like a “Rachel” then. No real style per se.
    Me 43 DH 45
    Married 12/2016
    TTC #1 since 04/2015
    AMA, DOR (AMH 0.65, AFC 2-4) and autoimmune issues (RA, APS), low TSH, adenomyosis
    7 retrievals, 3 transfers
    Jun19 FET BFP, due date 7th March 2020, DD born Feb20
    Sep17 IVF1 - 1ER, 1F, 1ET, BFN
    Nov17 IVF2 - 1ER, 0F
    Jan18 IVF3 - 3ER, 1F, 1ET, BFN
    Feb18 - second opinion and additional testing
    Apr18 IVF4 - cancelled (E2 too high)
    May/Jun18 IVF4 - 4ER, 0M, 1F, 1 frozen day 3 (not best quality)
    Jun/Jul18 IVF5 - 5 ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen day 3 (not best quality)
    Jul/Aug18 IVF6 - 4ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen day 3 (good quality)
    Aug/Sep18 IVF7 - cancelled (cyst)
    Sep/Oct18 IVF7 - 3ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen Day 3 (excellent quality)
    Oct18 IVF8 - Cancelled (cyst and too low TSH)
    Oct18-Jan19 bringing TSH under control
    Feb19 ERA and hysteroscopy
    Mar19 Investigation for fibroid and adenomyosis
    Apr19 adenomyosis confirmed, polyps removed
    Jun19 FET after 2 months Lupron, autoimmune protocol, transferred two day 3 frozen embryos
    Sep17 - Pergoveris 10-17 Sep, Orgalutran 15-18 Sep, Ovitrelle 18 Sep, ER 20 Sep for 2 follies, 1 mature egg, fertilized, ET 1x 2d 4-cell embryo 22/09, 05/10 BFN
    Nov17 IVF2 - Pergoveris 2-14 Nov, Orgalutran 5-14 Nov, Ovitrelle 15 Nov, ER 17 Nov for 3 follies, 1 mature egg, did not fertilize
    Jan18 IVF3 - Pergoveris 30 Dec - 8 Jan, Orgalutran 5-8 Jan, Ovitrelle 9 Jan, ER 11 Jan 3 eggs, 2 mature, 1 fertilized, ET 1x 4d 12-cell embryo 15/01, 24/01 BFN
    May/Jun18 IVF4 - Rekovelle 25-29 May, Menogon 30May - 2Jun, Zomacton 25 27 29 31 May and 2Jun, Cetrotide 30May - 3Jun, Gonasi 3Jun, ER 5Jun 4 eggs, none mature, two matured overnight, 1 fertilized with ICSI, Frozen day 3 but not good quality
    Jun/Jul18 IVF5 - Rekovelle 21-24 June, Menogon 25Jun-3Jul, Puregon 4-5Jul, Zomacton 21 23 25 27 29 Jun, Cetrotide 25Jun-5Jul, Gonasi 6Jul, ER 8Jul 5 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized with ICSI, 2 frozen day 3 but not good quality
    Jul/Aug18 IVF6 - Rekovelle 26-29 Jul, Menogon 30Jul-7Aug, Buserelin 26Jul-7Aug, Zomacton 26 28 30 Jul 1 3 Aug, Gonasi 7Aug, ER 9Aug 4 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized (normal IVF), 2 frozen day 3 good quality
    Sep/Oct18 IVF7 - Menogon 19-30Sep, Buserelin 19-30Sep, Zomacton 19 21 23 25 27 Sep, Ovitrelle 1 Oct, ER 3 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized with ICSI, 2 frozen day 3 excellent quality 

    Fav Quote: The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return

  • @sanpelligrino - welcome and congrats! I can totally relate with feeling nervous to be excited about being pregnant. I remember being quite shocked with how much fear there was mixed in with the happiness of finding out I was pregnant. I’d gotten so used to not having my hopes up with each cycle that it was hard to be relaxed and hopeful. I have found that that worry has decreased over time. I’m assuming you have some scans coming up soon to check on the baby? I hope they provide you with a peace of mind, but I also believe that it’s perfectly normal to continue feeling nervous at times after all you’ve been through. 

    @emmasemm - sounds like you had a great OB appointment! I can hardly wait to see more action on the US screen - must’ve been so amazing to see! This may be really uninformed, but how did your OB show you how to feel your uterus? Also hope you miss the crash and burn and just continue being a “super human”! 😁 Thanks for the gardening tip as well - after my little ordeal with the heat and weeding, I think I’ll have DH take over that little chore lol. 
  • @emmasemm Glad baby is growing nicely!

    @wildrainbow Welcome! I would’ve fell in the floor to get a surprise bfp, how cool!

    @sanpelligrino Hi! I totally get what you mean about being nervous about feeling happy. It’s almost like you’ll jinx yourself. 

    @love112314 I’m an emotional wreck about everything even this late in the game so I feel your pain. 

    @sincethelastday A good friend of moments struggled for years to get pregnant and we’ve been pregnant together this time so it’s been nice. She’s actually being induced in the morning so I’m losing my pregnancy confidante.

    @Tulips29 People are so rude. I would never have the balls to ask someone if they were pregnant, stranger or not.

    @akak23 Welcome!! Sorry to hear you’re sick, I’m not a fan of the BRAT diet other than the rice. Hopefully it helps you! I haven’t caught him on video yet, I just noticed my belly jumping last night but I’m planning on getting a video soon. 
    • How far along/EDD? 5+3, EDD 4/4/20
    • How are you feeling this week? I'm totally fine except in the afternoons. Lately I've been feeling motion sick and exhausted come 3/4pm.
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? Did you show faster with baby #2? I'm wondering when I can expect a bump to form. Last pregnancy I don't think I had a really noticeable baby bump until I was close to 20 weeks!
    • Any upcoming appointments? Next Tuesday is my first ultrasound. NERVOUS!
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? Cooking. I wish I actually LIKED cooking more than I do. I find it to be such a chore.
    @k_mama91 That's the best being able to see/feel baby move!

    @akak23 Glad you decided to hop on over here! With my first pregnancy I don't think I really relaxed about the pregnancy until I could feel the baby move regularly, which happened around 18-19 weeks. But even then I would feel anxious from time to time. IF really strips you of your joy with this process. I hope you're able to enjoy yourself really soon!

    @Tulips29 That is completely inappropriate that you've been asked twice like that. I don't understand people AT ALL.

    @sanpelligrino Congrats and welcome!

    @wildrainbow Welcome and congrats! Did you do fertility treatments with your first?
    ***BFP & Child Warning***

    Me: 34, DH: 38 ~ TTC since 2014
    IUI #1-3 (Nov 2015, Feb 2016, May 2016) = BFNs
    IVF ER (July 2016) = 7 PGS normal embryos
    FET #1 (Sept 2016) = BFP! DD born 5/30/17
    FET #2 (April 2019) = BFN
    FET #3 (July 2019) = BFP! DS born 3/27/20
  • @wifeinraleigh28 We were on a treatment break when ds1 was conceived, I had my third loss before he was conceived. Before DS2 was conceived,  I had two more losses and an appointment at my RE to get started on bw and treatments again.  

  • @wildrainbow congrats!! And how crazy is that! Hopefully a dating ultrasound can confirm how far along you are.
  • @k_mama91 thank you so much for starting this post!! Work has been super busy and I just completely dropped the ball :( 

    @akak23 with DS I decided to go “all in” and just enjoy every second I was pregnant, even if it didn’t last. After 2+ years of stark, white BFNs every day that was a step farther than we’d ever gotten was a gift. This time around I definitely feel differently....but maybe that’s just how second pregnancies go? I know all the aches and pains that are coming and I wonder if our “super easy and perfect” pregnancy and delivery last time was just a fluke.....I think the bottom line is, however you feel is fine and there’s no right or wrong way to go through this journey. 

    @wifeinraleigh28 i was the same, no real bump till 20 weeks...this time, yikes! I’m very obviously pregnant and I’m only 13 weeks (coworkers noticed my bump at 8 weeks though). I started out the same weight both times, so I think you do just show faster with #2. 

    • How far along/EDD? 13+3, 2/8
    • How are you feeling this week? I had pretty bad cramping all day yesterday and still some occasional afternoon headaches, but overall pretty good. 
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? Rant: why is insurance such a sh*t show?! It’s basically a full time job to hold insurers accountable. I have double coverage and between the OBs office coding visits wrong and one of the companies randomly not covering basic maternity care, I am on the phone with someone almost every day to figure out why I’m being charged hundreds of dollars for covered services. And I’m a nurse who specialized in maternity care coordination! So if this is hard for me how is anyone else supposed to navigate these errors? The worst part is the hospital I work for actually manages their own insurance coverage - so of all institutions they should know better. Ugh. 
    • Any upcoming appointments? Not till the 26th :(
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? I wish running wasn’t such a struggle. It took me years to just be “average” (9 minute miles), meanwhile my husband took a break from running for over a year and can still do 6 miles in about 40mins. 
    Me: 39 SO: 36

    Dx: low progesterone, possible DOR - officially "unexplained"

    TTC#1 since November 2015
    9/16/2016 IUI#1 - BFN
    10/12/2016 IUI#2 - BFN
    1/21/2017 Clomid/IUI#3 - BFN
    March 2017 IVF: BFP! (beta#1 191, beta#2 378!) - it's a boy! DS born 12/6/2017

    TTC #2 since July 2018
    May 2019 IVF #2: BFP! (beta#1 346, beta#2 646) - vanishing twin at 8 weeks. Baby B still going strong - due 2/8/20!
    Pregnancy Ticker
  • @persnickity Thanks! I'm still in major shock. If it weren't for the fact that my 2 friends saw the very faint line, I would have thought I imagined it. Retest tomorrow to make sure I wasn't hallucinating, lol. 
  • @PoeMasque
    I'm the insurance specialist for our office so if you need help with anything, feel free to shoot me a PM. :-)
    ~~ Our Story in Spoiler! TW loss/child~~
    Fall 2012 -- started TTC
    Summer 2015 - no BFP yet, labs normal, referred to RE
    Fall 2015 - Summer 2016 - Further testing all normal. 3 IUI's -- BFN. Recommended move to IVF. Planned cycle for fall 2016.
    September 2016 - Surprise natural BFP. MMC @ 8 weeks. RE expressed confidence that we just needed the 'right' embryo.
    Fall 2016 - Spring 2017 -- Break from TTC
    June 2017 - Started IVF; egg retrieval for freeze all cycle. 9 mature eggs retrieved, 5 fertilized. 2 4BB embies on ice.
    August 2017 - FET transfer both embies. BFP.  Twin pregnancy confirmed by ultrasound. EDD 4/28/18
    September 2017 - Twin B stopped developing; Twin A doing perfectly! Graduated from RE @ 10 weeks
    March 2018 - Baby Girl born via C/S due to pre-eclampsia -- strong and healthy!

    TTC #2
    January/Feb 2021 - Freeze-all IVF cycle 
    March 2021 - FET of 1 PGS normal female embryo. BFP! Beta #1 156,  #2 472, #3 1241, #4 5268 EDD 12/5/21 - Christmas baby!


    "When all is lost then all is found."


  • ladies, may I ask if anyone here conceived from an IUI ?
  • Lurking*** @wifeinraleigh28 granted I had twins first but the second time around there was absolutely no hiding it by 10 weeks and third time around by 7 or 8 weeks it was very clear. (granted a lot of it is bloat but I think our bodies know the routine and our abs give up the ghost way sooner. 

    @sanpelligrino I did.

    @wildrainbow congrats
    *TW*
    TTC 1/2012
    Diagnosed : unexplained infertility
    6 rounds of IUI and a MC 2/2014, rainbow twins 4/2015
    TTC #3 5/2016
    Restarted Fertility tx
    IUI 2 rounds, baby girl 12/17

  • @sanpelligrino - I conceived with my second IUI. We were given a 12-15% chance of it working, so I was fully expecting to do one more round and move onto IVF. Obviously, very pleasantly surprised that it worked! 

    @Tulips29 - oh my gosh, I love your response to that woman in the elevator!! Savage! 👏
  • @sanpelligrino - quite the story to getting your BFP! Sounds like your self-advocacy also helped out! 
  • Congrats and hi to all the new members @caitiemae, @wifeinraleigh28,@akak23, @sanpelligrino and @wildrainbow! Wow that's a lot of people in the last 2 weeks.  

    @kmama91 that's exciting to see baby move! I'm looking forward to that time...

    @akak23 I wouldn't say I'm enjoying being pregnant yet although I'm feeling much better than in the early weeks... from 9 weeks on I started to have periods of feeling 'normal' and over week 11 when I was away on holiday I felt great, but I think that was partly being away and able to put my feet up and not do any chores at all. Back at home I'm still finding it hard to make the effort to do non-essential stuff that takes some energy...

    @Tulips29 sorry to hear about your insensitive questions... I would be livid if I'd been you at that party. Good on you for refusing to spill the beans!

    @sincethelastday I've finally replied to your PM :-) Keep hanging in there with the nausea, it will get better soon. I forced myself to have candied ginger when it was really bad, and ordinary chewing gum helped me for just mild queasiness. But if it gets bad maybe it's worth trying the tablets others have recommended...

    @emmasemm ahh thank you so much for thinking of me over the last few weeks! :-) It's so sweet and means so much. Things have gone from strength to strength this week - DH being particularly nice and affectionate and it turns out he's started reading one of the books in secret (or at least when I wasn't looking) so maybe that's had some effect! I'm impressed by your superhuman episodes - gosh I wish I got some of those, would compensate for the slug on the sofa moments the rest of the time!!

    @PoeMasque so sorry to hear about your insurance hassles - that sounds like a total nightmare and of course you're right, it must be even worse for anyone less competent than you (i.e. everyone by the sounds of it). It would make me angry with the system although that is not a helpful reaction since it's one of those things that calls more for the serenity prayer than fruitless ranting... but I do get cross with compassionless administration as I feel that civilised societies have a duty to make these things easy for ordinary people. I have had a bit of a battle getting reimbursed for some expenses here but nothing on the same scale. On a different topic, I have been trying to get a resident's card for Europeans in anticipation of the UK crashing out of Europe and leaving me stranded, and so I queued for 5 hours (yes 5!) this morning just to get an appointment to go and show them the necessary paperwork in over a month's time!!

    @sanpelligrino I also got my BFP after IUI, first time round! I put that down to the gold standard protocol used by the brilliant team we were under - no funding issues here so they pull out all the stops first time round...
    • How far along/EDD? 13+3/ 10 Feb 
    • How are you feeling this week? Pretty good - my sister stopping over one night forced me into cleaning and tidying at long last, which has definitely boosted my morale seeing the house looking good. Just need DH to finish building our wardrobe and I'll be in heaven :-)
    • Rants/Raves? Questions? 
            Raves - buying a winter coat with furry hood from Mamalicious for 21€ as well as a few other items for silly prices. And my SIL bringing a whole bag of work-friendly winter maternity wear :-) Rants - man on the train yelling at me for sitting on a flip-up seat in a crowded carriage while a woman with her arm in a sling (who I hadn't seen) was having difficulty holding on. When I said I was pregnant, he just replied aggressively, 'well if you're pregnant, ask for a seat back here!' in the area where he was standing. Someone offered a seat which I just sank into wanting the floor to swallow me up...
    • Any upcoming appointments? Well we had our 12w scan which we were relieved to see looked normal, but the big disappointment was the pictures we came away with... they are completely blurred! I've never seen any as bad as that. There's absolutely no point showing them to anyone. Feel quite cheated of a special moment as this scan is the one you most want to show when you tell everyone the news. Our 7 and 9 week scans were printed out with a proper printer with way better resolution than in this dilapidated place we had to go to after being stood up... On the plus side have finally found an OBGYN to take me on who has rave reviews, so looking forward to meeting him in September
    • GTKY: What is something you wish you could do or wish you were better at doing? Not procrastinating! That would make life a whole lot easier...
  • @cigaline congratulations and wish you a happy pregnancy. What was the "the gold standard protocol" used by your team if i may ask?
  • @sanpelligrino well I slightly flippantly called it gold standard because they have some of the best success rates in France... but also as it seemed pretty full-on whereas I get the impression that in the US people start with a 'light' version and build up to the full works for insurance reasons. 
    If I remember rightly, it was Clomid from day 2 to day 6, Gonal F injections on day 6, 8 and 10, and US and bloods on day 9, which identified 3 large follicles and that my oestrogen was pretty high. I'm not sure if this determined the use of Cetrotide which is a follicle-inhibiting drug, but I had to take that on day 10, (plus the Gonal F which seemed a bit contradictory!) and then finally at night-time on day 10 we trigged ovulation with Ovidrel for an IUI on day 12. 2 progesterone pessaries of 100mg morning and evening (seemed excessive to me!) from IUI until beta on day 28. 
    I took all of that despite being in the 'unexplained fertility' category and not having any trouble ovulating - so I can only assume they believe that it is all still worthwhile even without identified fertility issues...

  • sanpelligrinosanpelligrino member
    edited August 2019
    @cigaline thanks for sharing - yup sounds very close to the cycle i was on.
    Except that the cycle you described still seems like a semi-light version, since it uses clomid (similar to femara) for ovulation induction and added injectables only at the end. The usage of cetrotide makes it seems like a 'heavy' version, as cetrotide or ganirelix is typically used in IVF where one deals with multiple follicles and super high estrogen levels, to prevent premature ovulation. I was on 200mg progesterone morning and evening (still am), and it does sound excessive to me.

    I strongly believe the femara/clomid + injectables made my body product large follicles early on, for e.g. by CD 8 or 9 I had larger follicles compared to my last cycle on pure gonal f injectables where i had more number of follicles, but smaller in size, which allowed me to stim for a couple of extra days compared to my femara cycles. This in turn also let my lining build sufficiently over an extra day or two. I diligently captured notes during all my cycles to analyze how my body was reacting to the various medicines, and i noticed in my past cycles, I was doing my IUI on CD 11 or even CD 10 in a cycle, however in my successful one,I ended up doing IUI on CD13, because i had to stim for a few extra days to allow the follicles to grow. CD 13 also turned out to be closer to a natural ovulation cycle, so i definitely vouch for slow n steady growth of follicles vs fast and bigger. This was just my observation for my own body and cycles. It may or may not make sense for others.
  • @cigaline I would’ve told him to kiss my pregnant ass. As for the woman in the sling, she could’ve asked for/taken a vacant seat for herself. Sorry that happened!
  • @cigaline what is wrong with people?! Don’t feel bad about the train, you had every right to sit down and that guy needed to shut it. ;)
  • @cigaline people make me ragey! Don't pay any attention to that kind of stuff. I also bet there were plenty of men (young ones too) who were sitting around not giving up their seats to the woman in the sling. At least that's usually my experience here on the NYC subway. And they all pretend to sleep when they don't want to give up their seat. But great news for a normal 12 week scan and getting prepared for the winter with all the maternity clothes! :smile:

    ***History & TW in Spoiler***

    ***bfp & child warning***
    TTC - since 2014
    7 rounds of Clomid - BFN
    IUI #1 - October 2015 - BFN
    IUI #2 - November 2015 - BFN
    IUI #3 - December 2015 - BFN
    IVF #1 - March 2016
    Retrieval #1 - April 2016
    FET #1 - May 2016 - BFP!!! DS - Born January 2017
    Trying for baby #2...
    FET #2 - January 2018 - BFN  
    No more embryos left; switched to a new RE
    IVF/Retrieval #2 - January 2019
    IVF/Retrieval #3 - March 2019
    FET #3 - April 2019 - BFP!!! - DD: Born December 2019
    Trying for baby #3...
    FET #4 - October 2021 - BFP!!! - Due June 2022


  • Haha thank you all for the sympathetic replies! It actually happened a while back so I’m over it now but I was quite shaken at the time, mainly because he just seemed so angry. 

    To to explain a little more clearly, I was in the standing area which the doors open directly onto, with 2 flip up seats each side of the aisle. When the train gets busy people are expected to stand up against the seats. My reasoning is that I am not even really in the way if still sitting since I’m short and people can actually hold on above my head. 

    Behind this standing area are the normal fixed seats which don’t flip up. I think he found me unreasonable (or worse) for staying in the standing area since it was so rammed full the people on fixed seats couldn’t see those standing up the other side, and the lady with the sling couldn’t easily move from where she was standing...

    But yes, @k_mama91 I also thought that if someone had to ask for their needs to be met it could have easily been either one of us - and of course the main point is that there was absolutely no need for him to be unpleasant at all if his aim was to help someone! I actually wanted to be near the doors as I only have 5 minutes to get my connecting train when we arrive at the terminus and so every minute counts when fighting against the scrum! But you can’t expect someone that bad-tempered to consider whether I had good reason to act as I did...
  • @cigaline 5 hours?! I don’t understand why these kinds of things can’t be scheduled via the internet. 
    Me: 39 SO: 36

    Dx: low progesterone, possible DOR - officially "unexplained"

    TTC#1 since November 2015
    9/16/2016 IUI#1 - BFN
    10/12/2016 IUI#2 - BFN
    1/21/2017 Clomid/IUI#3 - BFN
    March 2017 IVF: BFP! (beta#1 191, beta#2 378!) - it's a boy! DS born 12/6/2017

    TTC #2 since July 2018
    May 2019 IVF #2: BFP! (beta#1 346, beta#2 646) - vanishing twin at 8 weeks. Baby B still going strong - due 2/8/20!
    Pregnancy Ticker
  • @poemasque welcome to the world of local government in Europe! Still very old fashioned, done in person, very limited opening hours, have to queue to apply to come back and queue another day with lots of paper forms  :D
    Me 43 DH 45
    Married 12/2016
    TTC #1 since 04/2015
    AMA, DOR (AMH 0.65, AFC 2-4) and autoimmune issues (RA, APS), low TSH, adenomyosis
    7 retrievals, 3 transfers
    Jun19 FET BFP, due date 7th March 2020, DD born Feb20
    Sep17 IVF1 - 1ER, 1F, 1ET, BFN
    Nov17 IVF2 - 1ER, 0F
    Jan18 IVF3 - 3ER, 1F, 1ET, BFN
    Feb18 - second opinion and additional testing
    Apr18 IVF4 - cancelled (E2 too high)
    May/Jun18 IVF4 - 4ER, 0M, 1F, 1 frozen day 3 (not best quality)
    Jun/Jul18 IVF5 - 5 ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen day 3 (not best quality)
    Jul/Aug18 IVF6 - 4ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen day 3 (good quality)
    Aug/Sep18 IVF7 - cancelled (cyst)
    Sep/Oct18 IVF7 - 3ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen Day 3 (excellent quality)
    Oct18 IVF8 - Cancelled (cyst and too low TSH)
    Oct18-Jan19 bringing TSH under control
    Feb19 ERA and hysteroscopy
    Mar19 Investigation for fibroid and adenomyosis
    Apr19 adenomyosis confirmed, polyps removed
    Jun19 FET after 2 months Lupron, autoimmune protocol, transferred two day 3 frozen embryos
    Sep17 - Pergoveris 10-17 Sep, Orgalutran 15-18 Sep, Ovitrelle 18 Sep, ER 20 Sep for 2 follies, 1 mature egg, fertilized, ET 1x 2d 4-cell embryo 22/09, 05/10 BFN
    Nov17 IVF2 - Pergoveris 2-14 Nov, Orgalutran 5-14 Nov, Ovitrelle 15 Nov, ER 17 Nov for 3 follies, 1 mature egg, did not fertilize
    Jan18 IVF3 - Pergoveris 30 Dec - 8 Jan, Orgalutran 5-8 Jan, Ovitrelle 9 Jan, ER 11 Jan 3 eggs, 2 mature, 1 fertilized, ET 1x 4d 12-cell embryo 15/01, 24/01 BFN
    May/Jun18 IVF4 - Rekovelle 25-29 May, Menogon 30May - 2Jun, Zomacton 25 27 29 31 May and 2Jun, Cetrotide 30May - 3Jun, Gonasi 3Jun, ER 5Jun 4 eggs, none mature, two matured overnight, 1 fertilized with ICSI, Frozen day 3 but not good quality
    Jun/Jul18 IVF5 - Rekovelle 21-24 June, Menogon 25Jun-3Jul, Puregon 4-5Jul, Zomacton 21 23 25 27 29 Jun, Cetrotide 25Jun-5Jul, Gonasi 6Jul, ER 8Jul 5 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized with ICSI, 2 frozen day 3 but not good quality
    Jul/Aug18 IVF6 - Rekovelle 26-29 Jul, Menogon 30Jul-7Aug, Buserelin 26Jul-7Aug, Zomacton 26 28 30 Jul 1 3 Aug, Gonasi 7Aug, ER 9Aug 4 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized (normal IVF), 2 frozen day 3 good quality
    Sep/Oct18 IVF7 - Menogon 19-30Sep, Buserelin 19-30Sep, Zomacton 19 21 23 25 27 Sep, Ovitrelle 1 Oct, ER 3 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized with ICSI, 2 frozen day 3 excellent quality 

    Fav Quote: The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return

  • edited August 2019
    @cigaline and @emmasemm - my condolences for the wasted time I’m sure you both have spent in queues waiting and waiting. I’m going to try to remember this next time I’m waiting for something and it only takes say an hour. Ugh 😖😖
  • To everyone who asked about feeling your uterus! In the spoiler as I ramble! And please ask your OB if you want to try it. 

    So normally when not pregnant your uterus is within your pelvic cavity so you can’t feel it yourself if it’s normal size and place. And using the US trick or having a full bladder to lift the uterus up a bit isn’t really practical for feeling it lol! Most OBs or REs don’t also feel for your uterus in normal appointments as it can be very uncomfortable or even impossible depending on how much “extra padding” you’re carrying and where your uterus is sitting in the pelvis. Easiest to feel it is with very lean ladies. (Not me!) But if you’re under eg for a Hysteroscopy they might feel for it then as it helps them match the feeling to the pictures from US or MRI.

    When I had my last Hysteroscopy in April they tried but I was too fat (45lbs more than today). It actually said this on my op report! Well it didn’t say the word fat, but medically said it...

    If you have a larger uterus for some reason eg fibroids or adenomyosis it can be easier to feel. I do have both.

    For most people during pregnancy around 12 weeks the uterus is big enough that the top is out of the pelvic cavity and it can be felt if you know what to feel for. I mean you don’t want to spend lots of time pushing hard on it... so best not done too often or without guidance. She showed me with the flat of my fingers of one hand (not finger tips). The uterus coming out of your pelvic cavity is what really makes that first proper small bump (and not just bloat lol!).

    Because my uterus has the extras hanging on, it seems the Fundus of my uterus did already peak out of my pelvic cavity slightly. We also know very clearly that my uterus lies off to the left and this is where my tiny tiny bump is more prominent than on the right.

    Once you get a proper bump, the measurement your midwife or OB makes for growth is taken from that same point of the top of Fundus of the uterus. It’s just much easier once you’re bigger to know where it is! 

    OK hope that gives some interesting nuggets!


    Me 43 DH 45
    Married 12/2016
    TTC #1 since 04/2015
    AMA, DOR (AMH 0.65, AFC 2-4) and autoimmune issues (RA, APS), low TSH, adenomyosis
    7 retrievals, 3 transfers
    Jun19 FET BFP, due date 7th March 2020, DD born Feb20
    Sep17 IVF1 - 1ER, 1F, 1ET, BFN
    Nov17 IVF2 - 1ER, 0F
    Jan18 IVF3 - 3ER, 1F, 1ET, BFN
    Feb18 - second opinion and additional testing
    Apr18 IVF4 - cancelled (E2 too high)
    May/Jun18 IVF4 - 4ER, 0M, 1F, 1 frozen day 3 (not best quality)
    Jun/Jul18 IVF5 - 5 ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen day 3 (not best quality)
    Jul/Aug18 IVF6 - 4ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen day 3 (good quality)
    Aug/Sep18 IVF7 - cancelled (cyst)
    Sep/Oct18 IVF7 - 3ER, 3M, 2F, 2 frozen Day 3 (excellent quality)
    Oct18 IVF8 - Cancelled (cyst and too low TSH)
    Oct18-Jan19 bringing TSH under control
    Feb19 ERA and hysteroscopy
    Mar19 Investigation for fibroid and adenomyosis
    Apr19 adenomyosis confirmed, polyps removed
    Jun19 FET after 2 months Lupron, autoimmune protocol, transferred two day 3 frozen embryos
    Sep17 - Pergoveris 10-17 Sep, Orgalutran 15-18 Sep, Ovitrelle 18 Sep, ER 20 Sep for 2 follies, 1 mature egg, fertilized, ET 1x 2d 4-cell embryo 22/09, 05/10 BFN
    Nov17 IVF2 - Pergoveris 2-14 Nov, Orgalutran 5-14 Nov, Ovitrelle 15 Nov, ER 17 Nov for 3 follies, 1 mature egg, did not fertilize
    Jan18 IVF3 - Pergoveris 30 Dec - 8 Jan, Orgalutran 5-8 Jan, Ovitrelle 9 Jan, ER 11 Jan 3 eggs, 2 mature, 1 fertilized, ET 1x 4d 12-cell embryo 15/01, 24/01 BFN
    May/Jun18 IVF4 - Rekovelle 25-29 May, Menogon 30May - 2Jun, Zomacton 25 27 29 31 May and 2Jun, Cetrotide 30May - 3Jun, Gonasi 3Jun, ER 5Jun 4 eggs, none mature, two matured overnight, 1 fertilized with ICSI, Frozen day 3 but not good quality
    Jun/Jul18 IVF5 - Rekovelle 21-24 June, Menogon 25Jun-3Jul, Puregon 4-5Jul, Zomacton 21 23 25 27 29 Jun, Cetrotide 25Jun-5Jul, Gonasi 6Jul, ER 8Jul 5 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized with ICSI, 2 frozen day 3 but not good quality
    Jul/Aug18 IVF6 - Rekovelle 26-29 Jul, Menogon 30Jul-7Aug, Buserelin 26Jul-7Aug, Zomacton 26 28 30 Jul 1 3 Aug, Gonasi 7Aug, ER 9Aug 4 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized (normal IVF), 2 frozen day 3 good quality
    Sep/Oct18 IVF7 - Menogon 19-30Sep, Buserelin 19-30Sep, Zomacton 19 21 23 25 27 Sep, Ovitrelle 1 Oct, ER 3 eggs, 3 mature, 2 fertilized with ICSI, 2 frozen day 3 excellent quality 

    Fav Quote: The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return

  • Wow! This board has grown a lot which is awesome to see :) Glad to see you all on the right track. Hi and welcome to the newcomers.

    @emmasemm We were in Gainesville which is about an hour north of Orlando. But my husband and I made a 5 year plan to move closer to coast which definitely made my mood improve.

    @sanpelligrino We were also successful on our second IUI. But we were using IVF drugs only so this was going to be the last before moving to IVF because of the cost to success ratio. I was shocked when it worked. The difference between the first time was that the follicles were bigger (not sure exactly how much tho), I took estrogen to build up the lining, and we did the HCG trigger in the hip vs the stomach (not sure this had an effect but who knows lol). Glad it worked for you also!

    @cigaline Idk how some people can be such jerks. I know a few like that who think they have done nothing wrong. Hopefully you don't have to run into that again.
  • @cigaline
    That sounds like the protocol my doctor uses for his IUI's -- we did 3 before moving onto IVF and were also in the unexplained territory. I did have a natural pregnancy (while in France haha) after our IUI's but m/c due to abnormalities in embryo development and based on that, the doctor felt our issue was egg/sperm quality and would be best addressed with IVF. His is a small clinic but it has a very good reputation and he's extremely experienced -- first IVF pregnancy in our state (Florida). 

    @love112314
    Are you UF alumni? We are Gators :p  We still live in state though; we're in Palm Beach County so we're having LOVELY weather right now. DH works in the state university system and I work part-time-ish in our family medical practice so we're pretty bedded down here now. I always like entertaining my friends with stories about "Florida man" or "Florida woman". 
    ~~ Our Story in Spoiler! TW loss/child~~
    Fall 2012 -- started TTC
    Summer 2015 - no BFP yet, labs normal, referred to RE
    Fall 2015 - Summer 2016 - Further testing all normal. 3 IUI's -- BFN. Recommended move to IVF. Planned cycle for fall 2016.
    September 2016 - Surprise natural BFP. MMC @ 8 weeks. RE expressed confidence that we just needed the 'right' embryo.
    Fall 2016 - Spring 2017 -- Break from TTC
    June 2017 - Started IVF; egg retrieval for freeze all cycle. 9 mature eggs retrieved, 5 fertilized. 2 4BB embies on ice.
    August 2017 - FET transfer both embies. BFP.  Twin pregnancy confirmed by ultrasound. EDD 4/28/18
    September 2017 - Twin B stopped developing; Twin A doing perfectly! Graduated from RE @ 10 weeks
    March 2018 - Baby Girl born via C/S due to pre-eclampsia -- strong and healthy!

    TTC #2
    January/Feb 2021 - Freeze-all IVF cycle 
    March 2021 - FET of 1 PGS normal female embryo. BFP! Beta #1 156,  #2 472, #3 1241, #4 5268 EDD 12/5/21 - Christmas baby!


    "When all is lost then all is found."


  • @mbradfo2 I’m born and raised Floridian from Martin County! Going to PB was going to the big city for us growing up :) I moved to TX 7 years ago but I go back home about 10 times a year. Love me some Florida! 
Sign In or Register to comment.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"