Anyone else want to join me in getting ready for ivf in 2013? Good egg buddies wanted!!!

[Karbea]

Hello,

Dh and I have been trying for over 2 years and had one failed ivf (Icsi) attempt at the Argc last spring. We are going to go again in the new year.

I wondered if anyone else was planning to do the same? And whether anyone fancied joining me in 'princessing' (stolen from style & beauty :) ) for ivf?

I'm not sure what this means in terms of what I'll do, really hoping for some help in researching how to get the best eggs ever, and perhaps how to improve dh's little swimmers....

Anyone up for being a good egg buddy?

Well if you're sure, fairy.

Hurrah! Can you bear to tell us (well, me) all about it, caip? To help me prepare myself...

It was fine northey. I had the menopur booklet in front of me and just went through it step by step. Once you've got the small needle on and have the liquid in the syringe, you're meant to push it a bit until you see a drop then do the injection, but quite a few drops squirted out. Oops! It took me a while to do it but it only hurt a tiny bit and not for long at all. I have to do 150 a day so 1 vial will last me 4 days.
They said no exercise, drink 2-3 litres of water a day and put the needle all the way in.
I have to go in on Wednesday morning for a scan and if the follicles look good egg collection could be as early as next Friday, or I'll have another scan and egg collection the following monday

Hi all, wow, lots going on!

fairy good work on those eggs by cd5!! Hope some of the others catch up by Monday. It goes fast enough nice you start, hey?

We have a consultation re our ivf on Sunday, hope to start late Feb. Well, of course I'm hoping either this or next month's iui will work, really. :)

caip well done on the injecting. I'm very lucky (in this instance, as it has many downsides!) in that my husband is a doctor, so his side of the deal is to do the sender injecting, and jiaj!!

vanilla after my lining was too thin for my first iui I took baby aspirin, vitamin e and l arginine. This was all self prescribed though, I didn't have another scan to see if it had worked, and didn't get pregnant. I think proper drugs are the way forward, so am sure your clinic are doing what they can. Good luck! What do you need to get to? Are the follies the right size already?

Hello everyone

Wow it is all going on. Well done in all your progress that is all very exciting.

Scarlett we all worry too much, I'm glad you got the result you hoped for.

All the injection business sounds so complicated. I'm also hoping to start in feb. I've just had the letter and our 1st appt at the ACU is Monday for scans, consent forms etc. it will be day 9 in my cycle by then so depending on protocol I might even start end Jan.

Even though I haven't started with the drugs yet I can see how helpful it is to compare notes. There is so much to remember.

I decided to tell work that I am having some treatment at the hospital over the next few months and that I will need to be abit flexible work wise starting on Monday afternoon. My manager was really supportive and said I could do whatever I needed to do so that was a relief.

Good luck with all your scans and injecting. I think acupuncture can help lining. At least my practitioner tells me that that is what we are working on and my periods have been much easier since I started acu treatments.

Have a good day.
X

Hi all - woke up this morning with no snow on the ground but I have the belly of a snowman! Couldn't get on any of my trousers and so am wearing my most voluminous, warmest dress for work. I will at least look pregnant if nothing else by the time I go for EC on Mon or Tuesday...

Also have alarming amounts of cervical fluid - has anyone else experienced this? I freaked out thinking it was ovulation somehow making it past the Cetrotide but Google and the nurse reassured me that it is normal as it is due to estrogen levels rising. Thought I would mention it in case some of you have it and are similarly alarmed.

caip good luck with the cycle, I have found it easier than I expected.

Hope you all are enjoying 'snow days'.

Hello fairy

It is reassuring to know that you have found it all easier than expected. I guess our imaginations can be quite active!

Well done for getting this far.

Have a good weekend.

Sharon x

Well my lining had improved by 0.1mm - so nothing really. I have been told to use patches now too. So get a script for them. Does any pharmacy in London/Surrey have them...nope so fingers cross they come in tomorrow. Even more annoying they prescribed patched they no longer make How can they not know that?!

It is an FET so don't have to worry about follicles...well, only that they continue to do bugger all

Hello y'awl. Do you mind if I pop back in? I'm going to be doing a FET next cycle, which should start towards the end of next week. I've done 2 ivf cycles, but this will be my first and only FET (we only have 1 frozen embryo, poor little bugger).

vanilla I was wondering what you have been told to do to improve the womb lining, other than meds? Is it just a case of stuffing down lots of protein?! I've not been given so much advice this time by the clinic, although I was told I could still have the odd glass of wine this time, wohoo lush emoticon Good luck with the patches, which sound interesting...

I had torrents of cervical mucous fairy during my ivfs. I'd end up muttering and swearing whenever I went to the loo and discovered gushington central!

caip do you have to mix up the menapur? I used gonal f, which came in a pre filled pen, so was ver easy. We had to mix cetrotide, which we found bloody hard and ended up throwing one away £30 down the pan

Re the stabbing, we were told to put the needle all the way in, but I can't see that it matters as long as the needle juice is going in. north the plastic tummy sounds amazing! Did you get to have a go at stabbing it?!

hi gin, yes have to mix the menopur. did my first cetrotide jab this morning and again managed to squirt some across the room trying to get rid of the air!
what do you have to do to get ready for fet?

vanilla hope the patches arrive and do the job

fairy thanks for the warning re fluid!

Hi Gin-not been told much by the clinic really. More what I've picked up on here. Lots of protein, drink milk. I am having acupuncture too but have done all along and all through my last IVF and PG. I am exercising quite a bit but no more than normal.

First patch on...forgot to mention I am allergic to plasters...it's a bit sore already. Oh well only 46 hours to go...(they change every two days)

Snort of laughter at gushington central, gin. Good luck for your FET.

Pops in waves at gin and norf. It's looking like ivf only in summer, so in the meantime I am keeping up (mild, it is so cold out) exercise, and drinking in moderation to be fighting fit.

You are managing better than me then, lem. I am eating like a horse, including lots of rubbish, and quaffing more coffee than normal! Bah. I'm hoping that fitness in the cycle itself is what counts most

I am sure your fitness in cycle is what it all comes too. And as I have said to you before, your egglets are not the issue, it is the tubes. So don't worry too much. I feel confident that bypassing them will be just what is needed for you.

Also my (slight) virtuousness will get a good knock, when droid arrives next week. We're away for the weekend after, and I have had definitely less alcohol and less coffee in January, but as we're not doing anything AC-like in Feb, I'll be happy to drink like a fish and sit in cafés not nursing my one coffee but having many :)

hi all,

just a quick one...i've seen on some of your posts about not exercising when you are injecting. I start buserelin injections tomorrow - should I not exercise?

seems strange if you want to keep as fit as possible, but just wanted to get your thoughts. I usually do some interval training and weights 2-3 times a week.

thanks hope you are having a good sunday...its our anniversary so going out for lunch and a cheeky glass of vino, i'm trying to keep my life as normal as possible as well as fingers crossed at all opportunities!

xx

oh and BTW....down reg this week has not been too bad, I've had a major craving for chocolate as if i was going to come on, have quite a windy tummy...if you know what I mean

is this the calm before the storm i wonder?

HontyTont, our consultant told me not to do my two weekly classes. whilst I was injecting (Gonal F & Cetrotide). He said once things start to develop and the tummy starts to get bloated it would be best not to do anything high impact. Although walking would be fine.

Perhaps it depends on the type of exercise and the intensity of it?

To be honest though I didn't feel much like jumping around and being energetic whilst injecting - although I think I was pretty lucky and got off lightly with side effects whilst injecting the bloated belly was enough to keep me from the gym!!! Anyway I'm not sure my workout gear would have fitted!!!!!

Hope you had a lovely Anniversary lunch!

Hi All
I've not been around much recently, been enjoying the snow with DH. Got my lining scan tomorrow, really hoping its the right thickness and looking good. Also now stressing about how travel to the clinic abroad because of all the snow - hopefully our flight won't be cancelled. Although we've not even booked it yet...!

Hi everyone, been lurking a bit and am starting my 5th cycle of ICSI/IVF in 3 weeks time. Just to answer HontyTont about the exercise, once you are on the ovarian stimulating drugs you probably do want to take the exercise right down. Things like walking and swimming are mostly fine, but you just need to check in with yourself to see how you feel. If you feel bloated in the tummy, or tender or anything like that, probably best to avoid weight training or anything strenuous. I'm a big exerciser and for fresh cycles I do avoid it - for frozen cycles without ovarian stimulation (so down-regging only) I can carry on as normal. HTH.

Does everyone know about vitamin D, by the way? Lots of us are deficient in it (due to northerly latitude - you make it via UV on your skin) and in studies where they adjusted for everything else (age, IVF, etc) showed that if you were low, you had a higher chance of not keeping the pregnancy. I've just sent off for a blood test from this NHS lab www.vitamindtest.org.uk/- it costs £25. Some GPs or your clinic might do it, but mine didn't so I'm hoping than knowing (and upping if necessary) my levels will help. For me it's about controlling as many of the variables as possible, so you always know you've done all you can.

Afternoon all. I'm on CD6 of my first natural cycle. Had a scan this morning and everything looks good. I have about 4 follies growing on each ovary at the moment. They are slightly bigger on the right and the blood flow is better there, so the ultrasound guy thought I would ovulate from the right. That is what I expect too (I can feel ov and it was left side last month). Next scan is on Thursday. I feel quite level headed about it at the moment. Not sure how long that will last though!

Thank you adakate & pollykitten

Your advice has been great! I also spoke to my nurse today and she said be sensible and take it easy....so I guess I will have to do just that!

She also told me to stop taking my cod liver oil....anyone else had that advice?

I do need to start taking my multivitamins though

Hope anyone that had scans today had good results

Xxx

Hi all

Honky I think the cod liver thing is because too much vitamin A can be toxic to the foetus.
Polly I've been taking a conception vitamin that contains vitamin D, hopefully my levels of everything are fine. I know what you mean about wanting to control all variables though. Good luck for your next cycle!

Scan today all good - transfer now pencilled in for the 25th. Eek. So flying to Spain on the 24th and back on the 26th, DH booking the flights as I type.
All a bit scary and real now, although I still don't quite believe I'll end up pregnant. Test date all going well will be 8th February.
Work wise they don't have a clue what's going on. I'm going to call in sick on Thursday/Friday, and then hopefully see the doctor to get signed off for the 2WW on the following Monday. Feel a bit guilty, but for once I am going to focus on myself rather than my job.

Eek.

delilah GOOD LUCK!!!!!
Totally thinking positive thoughts for you

Xx