IVFers thread

Hi All
Just wanted to wish you all luck and that I'm thinking of you. After years of ttc we were shocked to have success on our 2nd IVF -it CAN happen!

SavesS - we were advised to abandon (too few eggs - so not lining) but chose to continue and it worked!
BTW - acupuncture can help lining thickness. Also, if the lining is not enough can't you chose to have ec and freeze embies ready for a FET in another cycle?

Waves at Coggy!
Chic

Just checking in to see how you all are...

Thanks Sticki - will get some brazil nuts!
Are you there tomorrow? It was harder to get an appointment than recently and I practically cried on them as the only appt they had left was too late for me to go and get ds from nursery in time and I don't have any childcare after.
Luckily that nice doctor with the glasses (don't know his name) overheard and sorted it out.

Soosy glad your follies are growing.
Any AF news Coggy?

Just a quick dash in.... to say to SaveS that for some reason I remember that eating brazil nuts can help with lining? I cant remember the other things but acupuncture can really help too (havent read your earlier posts again to see if you are having some)

Good luck to you and all!
PS Havent yet met PK. (Still downregging until next week when hopefully AF arrives and scan etc to start injections).

Coggy sorry to hear of your af woes. it always happens that way when you want it to come, it doesn't, esp when you have spent so long willing it not to arrive!

SS sorry to hear your news too, hope things improve over the next couple of days.

Follicles growing, barring any great disaster, heading for EC on monday and ET on Wed.

Sticki and PK how are you both and have you actually met yet?

Coggy sorry to hear your tummy is painful and AF is being unreliable!

I hope it turns up soon.

I went to the clinic this morning and the uterus lining has actually got slightly thinner rather than thicker from the last scan. They have upped the oestrogen dose a fair bit and I have to go back onFriday to see if it has made a difference. ET will not now be Monday. If the lining gets better it might be weds but if it doesn't the cycle will get abandoned

I will be so annoyed if I've done all this for nothing.....argh!!!

Sorry for the 'me' post....how is everyone else getting on?

My stomach is blinkin' painful....AF is on it's way but it's taking a flipin' long time!!!

Phoned clinic today and they said it wasn't too much of a problem...I may just need to have ET a day or two later.

I was worried that this month may have to be abandoned.....I guess the worry has been holding AF off. Feel less anxious now and also had a facial this morning so everything is being much more chilled here today in the coggy household!!! (Apart for the AF cramps!)

Coggy - I hope af has arrived, its always the way with downregging. Your clinic can give you something to make it come on.

Hello everyone and esp to Mowmi and swerve. You lot have been really chatty! DS's birthday yesterday and had party I am completely shattered. Had another scan today lots of follicles and had my dose reduced to 150, 225 every other day. I find it soo frustrating as I still end up producing loads of eggs it just takes longer and I end up taking more drugs in the end.

About telling people, it really depends how long you have been ttc as, if like us you have been trying for 7 years you can't really hide it. All our close friends and family were aware of what was going on but i rarely give details and say if i am pg you will know. I agree with you sticki! But this morning I really wanted to cry about the whole damn thing, its just hormones and tiredness and you know apprehension, stress and everything else that goes with doing IVF.

Am finding jeans a little tight now so obviously my ovaries are getting bigger have loads of sympathy for those feeling really bloated!

Going for supper and then bath and bed.
Night Night x

Hi manuka.....all going okay I think. Still waiting for AF to appear. Should be here soon. She's got until tomorrow night and then I'm buggered!!!

Feel like it's going to arrive at any second...but blow me...when you want her she takes her wretched time!!!!!

Tried FLYing for a while a couple of years ago Sticki...read the book and still swish and swipe every now and again!!!

Coggy- hello sorry for butting in here.Been wondering how you are. Saw your name and just thought I'd say hello and I really wish you all the very best for a successful result very soon. xxxxx

Only - I agree about telling people. We have never told that many RL people about any of it. Im especially sensitive about telling those few who know about the timing of cycles as they seem to want progress reports and Im not usually up for it. The technical stuff (ie follicles, drugs etc) means nothing to those who havent been through it and ultimately it is only the elusive BFP that we are all waiting for which I cant tell them about as I have never had one after treatment. But have to tell those who do childcare (still struggling to cover the early morning of my EC).

Coggy - I wish I was a FLYbaby but an aspirational fly! You?

Hi and welcome to Swerve and mowmi. Nice to make contact with some others out there going through the same thing.

I've actually told very few people in RL that we are going through another cycle of IVF, in fact only the friends who will babysit DD on the day of egg collection. Last time we told a couple of friends only, which suited me fine. Would rather people didn't know in RL, as I think it is incredibly difficult to know what to say, and very easy to get it wrong!

Actually, what gets me about telling people and having IVF is that it becomes the most important thing about you - not sure if anyone else has come across this but, for example, if a friend is talking about an acquaintance with a baby they will always mention if they had IVF. Its like a label that gets attached to you forever! Or perhaps I should get over myself and stop being so sensitive!

Welcome Mowmi and Swerve!

It is so true that it's easy to feel in RL that you are the only one going through this so it makes all the difference to have people to swap notes with.

Dust Bunnies Sticki???!!!!!

Could I have just found out that you are a FLYbaby??!!

coggy - psml at no hoovering! yipppeeee! the dust bunnies will be happy in our house (not sure DH will be!).

Welcome swerve and mowmi. Good luck to all.

Good luck to all of you. may there be many beautiful babies as a result.

I'll start another round in a couple of weeks. done 4 harvests and 3 frozen transfers. the outcome was my gorgeous dd, now 8 months old.

even so, i'm dreading the next round. fingers crossed that the recipe the drs finally put me on is going to work again.

Welcome mowmi.

This is the beginning of my first cycle of IVF so I have been asking lots of questions, as you have probably read. It's a great source of info as there are quite a few of us and each clinic seems to do things quite differently.

I have talked to some of my RL friends about my treatment and, although they are VERY sympathetic and supportive, it's not the same as being able to talk to people here who have been through it all before.
I also find it a MASSIVE support to be going through this at the same time as others so that we can compare feelings/ frustrations/ follicles etc. etc.

All the Fs!!!!

I hope that you feel free to ask away/ moan and groan if things get on top of you and, hopefully, yes....here's to 2008.

hello ladies, would you mind if i joined you?

We've been told our best chance of developing a bump is ivf!

I have PCOS and rarely ovulate but the deciding factor is DH who has a very low normality count (despite our best efforts to improve) we've had all the tests done so far on the NHS but we're not prepared to wait 2.5 years!

We've got our first appointment at the private clinic next week (St Georges House - Raynes Park) I'm also going to restart accupuncture.... sorry I'm going on about me, me, me...

I don't know anyone else who's had IVF so you guys are likely to be my only sounding (for which I apologise in advance!!)

I've read this thread from start to finish and wish you all lots of luck and success - let's hope 2008 is a good year for us all.

xxx

Wow.....that makes me feel incredibly grateful.
I'm having my IVF on the NHS......so if not, my puregon bill would be the same as yours onlyaphase if we're on the same amount.

I knew that the drugs would be expensive but I was told all drugs would cost up to £1,000 privately. That's not even close is it??!!

I guess lifting and normal life is okay up to ER/ET week isn't it SS?
I have read not to do any strenuous excercise whilst taking the drugs because your body should only be concentrating on follicle growing and not worrying about sending blood supplies to parts that excercise would need IYSWIM. Not very well put!!!!

I think I shall turn into a bloater! No exercise for several weeks AND the drugs......plenty of gentle walking I think coming up!!!!

Glad it isn't just me who thinks my drugs bill is dreadful. I will be taking 450iu daily, though dosage will be confirmed after my first scan. I think last time I was taking 200iu daily, which seemed to do the trick, but 2 years further on, my hormone profile has changed a bit.

About the lifting, just to second everyone else, I think doing the lifting you normally do ie lifting toddlers etc should be fine, just don't start lifting wardrobes. I do remember last time being told to carry on as normal just no baths or swimming for the two week wait, which made sense to me...and I remember getting basketfuls of logs in and dogwalking the day after ET. Hmm, not sure I would again TBH, may spend more time resting if possible and less log carrying.

The nurse at my clinic said not to lift but only when I asked her. She said not to worry obsessively about it given I have ds but to try not to.

I won't be exercising and if the treatment does work that advice from the clinic lasts til 12 weeks - and no flying if I remember correctly too so no holidays.

Last time I gave up my beloved sport that I play for the entire pregnancy but of course given the circumstances I was just grateful for being pregnant!

Has anyone else put weight on since starting the drugs - I think I've piled on 5lbs. But partly also because I normally take metformin for pcos and had to stop.

Had another acupuncture sesh this morning - some of the points hurt and some don't for me . There was one today that was so horrid - worst ever - but most are ok I guess once they're in aren't they.

Blimy.....no-one's told me anything about lifting/ non-lifting etc.
I've just read Zita West's books and told my DH that I can't hoover for several days - HUURAH!!!!

She (ZW) also says bed-rest for three days after ET which seems a little extreme (and impossible for all you with LOs) but I shall make the most of generally resting I think. My clinic said to just be normal and go back to work. Quite different advice there don't you think???!!!

The drugs are SO expensive aren't they?
No wonder the NHS are stingy on who gets treament and who doesn't!!

How much puregon are you on each day onlyaphase?
I'm on 225 units in the am and again in the evening....so just over a vial per day.
When I was doing IUI I only had 50 units per day........now going up to 450 units sounds scary!!!!!

Soosy...scan sounds good to me.

Hi there all

I dont think Ive heard the specific advice not to lift but it probably makes sense but quite hard not to. I think it is best to avoid lifting things that weigh more than your dc as you get used to that (anyway thats the advice I had after the caesarian which is also when you want to avoid putting stress on the area).

Onlyaphase - yikes your drug bill! It is almost obscene how much they cost. The menogon/menopur (FSH) is £20 per vial - £100 per day for me. I live in fear of dropping them!

I always squeal and flinch when the acupunture needles go in (and bleed everywhere too!). Such a woos!

Have a good weekend everyone. At least its stopped raining (temporarily?).

Hello everyone it is damp Saturday Morning, and I am thinking of constructing an Ark. Scan fine 8 large and several smaller follicles so far, not starting cetrotide just yet.

pk hope you are well and having a calm and restful wkend.

coggy, I bruise really easily too but acupuncture seems not to have that effect! (i do though doing my injections!) The numb tongue seems a little weird, unless of course that is where they put the needles! Perhaps you should ask.

Onlya phase, my God your drug bill is enormous, do you have a puregon pen or vials as I checked out the price of the pen and it was almost twice the price of the vials. what's your dose. Try and get some acupuncture it does amazing things.

Sticki, i hated downregging soo much so I am sending tea and sympathy...

Save scrabulous, wow not long now.... I am hoping to have my ET around the same time as you, but these things never go as I expect.They told me about not lifting to, but it is impossible with a small child. So they eventually told me that probably the 2 days after ET is was probably better to avoid lifting if poss, but hell how do other mothers of toddlers get pg, without even knowing it! I have a friend who picks up her DS all the time and he is a big boy, she had IVF and got pg, so I would try not to worry about it. I think that its the heavy lifting you are not used to is the real problem.