IVF or IUI - can anyone who has made the choice please help.

Hi,

Me and my partner are currently looking in to starting a family! We are completely new at this and we have gone to our GP but she didn't have a clue on what to do and was no help! it's now been 2.5 weeks and I have phoned the GP 5 times and still am no further than when we started. We don't even know if we would be eligible to go through the NHS or we have to go private. So is there anyone in the West-Midlands area that has gone through this process and guide us in the right direction?

Hi there people, I was wondering if you could give me some advice. I have a 2 year old girl who was conceived thru IUI on our second attempt. I was 36 at the time. We then tried 5 more attempts at IUI at age 37 and nothing!!! We then pulled out the big guns and attempted 1 round of IVF but the doctor had troubles getting my eggs out. I am now 39 and she has suggested now doing IUI with the IVF drugs.Has anyone had success with this?? We were very shocked and never thought there was a problem with me .... our problem was with the hubby and his abstract sperm, so coming out of the IVf proceddure with no eggs was totally devastating. We always planned on having two and now it seems we might have an only child. sugesstions please?

Oopsy, just caught up with the thread. Hearty congrats Fanjo.

Given your age I'd go straight to IVF. No point throwing your money after IUI (although of course it might work first time) but more often couples have three failed IUIs and then move on to IVF. You have a much better chance of conception with IVF.

Congratulations DuelingFanjo, that is fantatic news. We have our first consultation next Monday to discuss having IVF and it gives me a lot of hope reading stories like yours

excellent news!

This is an old thread, but as it popped up again I took a look. If you click on DuelingFanjo's name, her profile says she is pregnant via IVF, due in December

....sorry, also just to add, we used IUI.xx

Hi, was flicking through the topics and looked on here as 'this was once me', if that doesn't sound too strange!
Just wanted to say that after 10 years of unexplained infertility I went on to have a little girl [now 11], and five years after a wonderful son. I believed for years that this would never happen and spent just as long crying and wishing that I could fall pregnant easily just like my friends had. I know the pain that everyone here feels. I lost five babies along the way, but my God I love the ones that I have and they were worth the wait.
Don't give up, and the very best of luck to you. xx

IVF at your age has a higher rate of success, get on with it!

my sister had unexplained infertility. She emigrated to Australia. There she had four sessions of acupuncture (she is 37) and bingo. Pregnant, baby girl, perfect. Not heard of it over here UK>

hello
im new to mumsnet and i was told about this by my sister-in-law/friend because we too are a couple who cannot conceive. we are in the 'unexplained' infertiliy group. i will say this firstly, that you were pregnant and miscarriage and nothing tears your heart out more than that, so i am completely heartbroken for you. now, time to move to the next step, i agree with londonlottie that you are not a failure, i had this conversation with a friend recently and he, yes he, said the exact same thing to me. though i never, until that point, admitted to feeling like a failure nonetheless this can sometimes be the root of our despair rather than the other worries and sorrow that we feel. now, to answer your question, you have two things working in your favour, the will to persevere and you are being honest with yourself. there is no person on this planet that has a right to tell you to go and 'do more tests, eat this, drink that' like, we are not idiots and we are not causing our infertility so stop with the advice and lets move on. i would ask you this in as gentle a manner as possible, why are you asking lots of people about your decision? and not yourself? no two couples are alike in their dilemma and what one person advises may not be what is suitable for you. i feel that if someone decides for you and it doesnt work then anger sets in and you will blame yourself again. i was constantly looking for reasons not to admit that i felt i was a failure, so your consultant has given you the options. age and weight are factors but so is your fear of going ahead with a decision and being hurt again if this fails, a risk that is very real. so stop being hard on yourself and whatever decision you make will be the right one...you have to believe that rather than not believe that. you have to believe in yourself. good luck fellow iui person!

I was offered both but am going to try iui with clomid next month. Clinic said try3 rounds then move to ivf. Sperm okay, all tests on me okay too except mild pcos. I'm early 30s and so is dh. I'm also overweight.

Hello - This is the first ever contribution to mumsnet! I am now 29 weeks by IUI. We too had unexplained infertility and had been trying for 2 years before I found my clinic (whom i LOVE!!). I had IUI assisted with some hardcore drugs which are used during IVF anyways (to make me produce as many follicles as possible) so in terms of treatment the early stages are the same. Also i would be forthright with asking for these drugs as its a common misconception that IUI has low success rates because some clinics offer it unassisted.

IVF is absolutely more physically invasive than IUI in the implantation and egg collection stage but i would check whether the success rates they are offering for IUI are based on you being assisted with drugs or just the insemination. I was always told that with unexplained infertility its always best to try IUI first.

If money is against you the stress you will put on yourself with a 'one chance saloon' of IVF could be hugely counter productive. Have you looked at some clinics that offer egg sharing in return for cheaper or free IVF? Maybe that doesn't float your boat.

Good luck with it.

I would try IVF, given your age. :-)

Hi There, DF,

Sorry to hear of your loss. I have been in the position of making a decision, but with the luxury of being on the NHS, and therefore entitled to 'use up' all of my IUI entitlements before IVF, so decided to try IUI first. As soon as my consultant saw I had turned 38, she recommended moving on to IVF - I think IUI is not really recommended for those 'older' among us!

If cost is an issue, have you considered having 'natural IVF'?

This is offered by the Create clinic...google Dr Gita Nargund for more info. Basically they do it without all the expensive drugs etc, so it really cuts down costs. Apparantly it can cost less than half as much as medicated cycles. I think it is worth looking into...would like to hear back from you if you decided to go for it

That is great news - try and get them to do 3 samples 3 months apart, it will give you the most accurate picture of just how good the sperm is. Wish you lots of luck.

Hi

I had this dilemma also but my clinic took it out my hands by stopping doing IUI as the success rates were so low. However it does work for a lot of people and as you dont have a known problem with sperm I would probably go down that route first. We had 3 cycles of ivf and have our lovely son now but I think had we had unexplained infertility I would have started with IUI.
Good luck in whatever you decide.