Hi im new here, i started bc last Monday they told me to stop it today and come back on Thursday for bloodwork and ultrasound and hopefully start meds by Friday, are the shots bad? Im so nervous
@emilynoel810 congratulations, that's such amazing news!!!
@mouse39 that's a great number of eggs! About what I had actually
@thezaltyberger wow what a story--I definitely think you made the right decision. I am also very science based but do believe in eastern medicine (if the person utilizing it really believes in it), but I think sometimes they want to sell treatment plans as much as any other doctor. I always iced 5 - 10 minutes prior to the injection so I didn't feel the needle going in (the menopur still stung a lot when injected). I actually injected my gonal-F pen into my menopur vial and drew them both up into one syringe for one injection every night - my doctor told me combining them was fine as long as the total volume stayed under 1mL (otherwise you get a big fluid pocket at the injection site). I did that throughout my stims and then would do a second shot with the third medication (which didn't hurt at all). I agree though, the gonal-f pens got very hard to press at the end of the injection to ensure you got the full dose.
@vl__2019 I am TERRIFIED of needles and my husband isn't great with them either (he passed out one time when he saw them removing an IV), but honestly they were nowhere near as bad as I thought they would be. I was so nervous for the first night, but it was much much better/easier/less painful than I was expecting. What helped me (and I know everyone is different) was icing the area for 5 - 10 minutes prior, and combining the medications into one syringe (when possible). The icing helped to not feel the needle go in (literally at all) and my husband actually gave me the injection so I wouldn't have to look at it. The menopur burned a little, but it was over so quickly it really wasn't bad. I also found that snuggling with a heating pad after helped with the injection site, although as long as we rotated injection sites and sides every night I didn't get much of a reaction--just some mild bruising which went away in a normal amount of time. I know it's really scary to think about but I promise you can do it and you'll feel so much better after the first one!
@vl__2019 I just want to echo that the shots are not as bad as the anticipation building up to them. I got hyped up about my first needle just because we interact with needles so rarely. Before the infertility journey, I don’t think I was even getting my blood drawn once a year. Please trust that the idea is much worse than the reality. The needles are short, and you’ll be surprised at how insensitive your belly is. The menopur does burn on the way in, but it’s over in 2-3 seconds. I promise you will be okay!
Thank you @soccergirl23 and @thezaltyberger, im so anxious, i keep reading about ppl with pcos and oshh and im praying that dosent happen to me, thats why im leaning into and frozen transfer i think it will help if my body rest before a transfer.
@vl__2019 I have PCOS and highly recommend the frozen transfer. I didn't have OHSS, luckily, and my estrogen was really high pre-retrieval so I was worried. There is some alternative trigger shot they can do now which almost eliminates the chances of OHSS - I think its Lupron instead of HCG? I can't remember now, but I would definitely ask about it!
For anyone else doing shots, I would also ask if they can give you the smallest/thinnest needle possible. For my PIO shots this cycle they just happened to give me very thin needles and it takes longer for the fluid to go in, but I literally don't feel it at all! I'm not sure how to tell the exact size but the label says "BD 25G 1 1/2" needle" - its really amazing, and has actually reduced soreness after too as I think the slow administration disperses the fluid better so there are no knots.
@emilynoel810 congratulations on your blessing, cant wait till its my turn, how long did you wait to transfer? I think my trigger shot is an hcg should i ask my dr about the other one?
@vl__2019 Thank you so much! I had my ER in May and then didn't transfer for my first FET until July but that was because they found a polyp on a scan in June which I had to get removed so that delayed me by a month. Usually they just want you to wait one cycle in between.
I would definitely ask about the Lupron trigger shot. It may not be necessary depending on what your doctor thinks your risk is, but at least it gave me peace of mind!
I had my egg retrieval this morning. They retrieved 12 eggs! They said for a women my age that is really good. Hoping the numbers do not go down that much after all the testing.
That’s AWESOME @mouse39!!!! I hope that exciting news eases the cramping! Let us know how it goes!
I had my first blood test this morning after three days of shots. They said my E2 measured at 922.1, which means I was responding really well but they want to be careful not to overstimulate. They’re adding ganirelix (same as cetrotide) to my regimen for two days in addition to the Gonal-F and Menopur that I’m already taking. On Thursday morning I’m going in for my first ultrasound and additional bloodwork.
I feel only a little bloated, but can’t tell if that’s the shots or the period that just ended two days ago. I feel emotional, but again, can’t tell if it’s this journey that feels endless or the hormones I’m pumping into my body. Poor DH feels helpless.
Are you guys sharing your IVF journeys with people close to you or keeping it more private?
@thezaltyberger i want to share so bad but idk why im being so superstitious about it..im so excited but just hope that it works and i have the baby that ive been dreaming of since 2016
@thezaltyberger thanks and I will definitely let you know. That is great news that you are responding well to the medication. I am not sharing with my family everything with my sister. I am status of how judgemental my mother will be due to my age.
@mouse39 congrats on your eggs. Fingers crossed for as many good blasts 🤞🏻
@thezaltyberger Glad to hear that your body is responding well to stimulation and that you don’t have major discomfort @vl__2019 IVF is scary but at the same time exciting process. And just remember that you are strong and brave because you are on this journey.
AFM nothing really to report 😐 just waiting for AF to arrive. I still have 2 month before transfer
Holy moly does that Ganirelix BURN afterward!!!! The nurse could’ve given me a heads up??? Here I was wondering what you guys were talking about with the cold packs and hot packs since I’ve had a pretty uneventful first 3 days...but now OUCH! Pretty sure I deserve a candy bar...
Good morning everyone. So the clinic called today. Out of 12 eggs retrieved only 9 matured and were injected with sperm. Of those 9 only 6 fertilized normally. I'm getting a bit nervous I'm down half the eggs and they still have five days left and PGT testing.
@mouse39 I remember being surprised that there was so much drop-off at each stage, and its hard to see those numbers go down, but that sounds like a pretty expected result to me. In general, I've heard that if 1/2 fertilize that is really good. My fingers are crossed that most make it all 5 days!
AFM...
Beta #2 was 839! More than double my first Beta of 334.9. We also found out that they transferred a girl! Next appointment is 2/5 for ultrasound. That will be 6wks6days. Can't wait!
Did anyone experience headaches from their injections? I've had headaches two days in a row. I'm well hydrated I think and headaches aren't normal for me. Wondering if the hormones are playing tricks on me?
@vl__2019 I promise you'll be okay and that we'll be here for you! Will you be administering the injections yourself? I promise the idea is scarier than the actual application!
@mouse39 to echo what everyone above said, those numbers do seem really good! Also, I had one embryo fertilize a day later, which I didn't even know about until day 6 when they told me how many were able to be PGS tested!
@thezaltyberger I got headaches the first 3 days of injections and then they went away--I asked my doctor and was told to take a pain reliever which really helped with them (I don't remember if it was Ibuprofen or Tylenol though).
@vl__2019 I remember feeling that way too. I went through everything and separated it all out, took inventory and read through all of the instructions for use, which made me feel less overwhelmed once I understood all of the injections, how to mix them, where to administer them, etc. It's also exciting because it means you're one step closer!!
@vl__2019 it sounds like you feel strongly that you don't want to do it yourself, which is a really important thing to know! If your friend can make it over at the same time every day then definitely go for that option. Otherwise, your husband will only get better with practice and feel more comfortable and confident. My husband is in nursing school, but because all his schooling was during the pandemic, most of his clinicals were cancelled and so when I had my two IUIs those were actually the first two injections he ever administered - good practice Today is day 5 of injections for me and I feel well practiced. The first day is the scariest, but the best part is that the first day only happens once! Do something kind for yourself afterward, eat a candy bar, watch a trashy TV show, anything!
@vl__2019 I stabbed myself. My husband can't cope with needles and I thought about asking my mom (a doctor) to give the IM shots but decided it would be unrealistic to have her do that every day and I should just do them myself. I am also a medical person so that helps a bit! As long as you are using the right gauge of needle, it shouldn't be too painful; it's just uncomfortable since it takes a good deal of force to inject the medicine due to its viscosity. When I switched to ethyl oleate PIO, it was much easier to inject because it's a much thinner solution.
~~ 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!
My partner is so set on having a boy. And I have to admit I am one to always think negative before positive. I told him not to get excited what if we only have 1 egg we might not have a choice. @thezaltyberger - Thanks just hoping that number doesn't decrease that much more. I didn't experience headaches but I was constantly dizzy and nauseated. @vl__2019 I felt the same way when I first received my medication. What helped me was to buy a container with different drawers and organize them. My clinic also provided a link that guided me step by step from the mixing to injecting which I believe helped. @soccergirl23 how many did you have tested and how many came back with no abnormalities? My doctor is hoping to have at least 1 or 2.
@vl__2019 I’m sure you’ll do great!! It’s really not as bad as I expected.
@mouse39 I had 6 that fertilized and 3 that made it to day 6 to be tested. Unfortunately I had 2 that were chromosomally abnormal and would not support life and one genetically normal one, but my RE was very surprised with those results given my age. I think it can swing either way and I was just on the unlucky end of it, but I was happy to get at least one to try honestly! I’ll keep my fingers crossed and hope you’re on the lucky end
Had my first pre-ER ultrasound today and more bloodwork. Ultrasound tech said that everything looked great and I had 2 follicles over 11mm on the right and 4 on the left. She said I'll likely have two more ultrasounds before I go in for the egg retrieval. Could it be that my usually grouchy nature is feeling...hopeful?
@mouse39 I was 28 and my husband was 29 at the time of our retrieval. Both healthy and therefore the Dr recommended not doing PGS testing. Well our first transfer worked and resulted in our 20 month old daughter. Now TTC #2, I’ve had 2 failed transfers and 1 terminated pregnancy due to abnormalities. We decided to have our 9 remaining embryos tested and only 2 are normal.
We started out with 27 eggs retrieved, 23 injected (ICSI), 19 fertilized....13 frozen at day 5 blast. So all I’m trying to say is don’t get too down about your numbers.... quality is what matters. I was super excited and almost felt bad about having so many embryos, but now I’m left with only 2 normals to try and get our second baby. I’m wishing all the best for you and hope you end up with a couple good embryos!
AFM: hoping my cycle will start in the next day or two, finally feeling crampy today....(yay!....??) The joys of infertility!
Re: Jan 2021 IVF/FET
@mouse39 that's a great number of eggs! About what I had actually
@thezaltyberger wow what a story--I definitely think you made the right decision. I am also very science based but do believe in eastern medicine (if the person utilizing it really believes in it), but I think sometimes they want to sell treatment plans as much as any other doctor. I always iced 5 - 10 minutes prior to the injection so I didn't feel the needle going in (the menopur still stung a lot when injected). I actually injected my gonal-F pen into my menopur vial and drew them both up into one syringe for one injection every night - my doctor told me combining them was fine as long as the total volume stayed under 1mL (otherwise you get a big fluid pocket at the injection site). I did that throughout my stims and then would do a second shot with the third medication (which didn't hurt at all). I agree though, the gonal-f pens got very hard to press at the end of the injection to ensure you got the full dose.
Are you guys sharing your IVF journeys with people close to you or keeping it more private?
@vl__2019 IVF is scary but at the same time exciting process. And just remember that you are strong and brave because you are on this journey.
And congratulations @emilynoel810 - I very much share you excitement and joy after this whole journey. Hope you're feeling well too!
@emilynoel810 so exciting, congratulations!!!!
@thezaltyberger I got headaches the first 3 days of injections and then they went away--I asked my doctor and was told to take a pain reliever which really helped with them (I don't remember if it was Ibuprofen or Tylenol though).
@vl__2019 I remember feeling that way too. I went through everything and separated it all out, took inventory and read through all of the instructions for use, which made me feel less overwhelmed once I understood all of the injections, how to mix them, where to administer them, etc. It's also exciting because it means you're one step closer!!
@soccergirl23 yes thats the exciting part, praying this all goes well
I stabbed myself. My husband can't cope with needles and I thought about asking my mom (a doctor) to give the IM shots but decided it would be unrealistic to have her do that every day and I should just do them myself. I am also a medical person so that helps a bit! As long as you are using the right gauge of needle, it shouldn't be too painful; it's just uncomfortable since it takes a good deal of force to inject the medicine due to its viscosity. When I switched to ethyl oleate PIO, it was much easier to inject because it's a much thinner solution.
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."
@thezaltyberger - Thanks just hoping that number doesn't decrease that much more. I didn't experience headaches but I was constantly dizzy and nauseated.
@vl__2019 I felt the same way when I first received my medication. What helped me was to buy a container with different drawers and organize them. My clinic also provided a link that guided me step by step from the mixing to injecting which I believe helped.
@soccergirl23 how many did you have tested and how many came back with no abnormalities? My doctor is hoping to have at least 1 or 2.
AFM: hoping my cycle will start in the next day or two, finally feeling crampy today....(yay!....??) The joys of infertility!