Pom Poms, Placards and Picket Lines. The Berries are putting up the barricades and will not be crossed! A delightful bunch of 30 something Ladybros TTC #1.

[happylass]

The Berries have strict entrance criteria: TTC #1 for 12 months+, over 30, NO instadiffers, must have a special pimping pot and absolutely no mention of baby dust/dancing. Not that we're fussy!

Current Ladybros:

Smidge 39, TTC since Jan '13. Unexplained. Some high NK cell immune treatment. IVF#1 Short protocol Jul'14 BFN; IVF#2 Nov'14 and IVF#3 Feb'15 both Long protocol BFNs; Natural FET Jun'15 - Another BFN. Trying to work out what to do next.



Happylass, 37, TTC since Aug 2012. 3 failed ICSI cycles, 1 failed FET and 1 abandoned cycle due to poor response. Awaiting next and final cycle with own eggs hopefully Feb/March time. HATE THIS SHIT!!



Beaky 35, ttc 3 yrs, 2x failed iui 1 long protocol ivf cancelled, 2 short protocol IVF both BFN, very low amh/poor responder etc. 3rd IVF in January.



Tigerdog, 35, ttc since Jan 2013. Unexplained. IVF #1 chemical pregnancy. Currently redoing tests in preparation for IVF #2.



barkingtreefrog 36, ttc since Dec 2011. clomid bfp summer 2013 then mc @7 weeks, iui bfp summer 2014 then mc @6 weeks. Factor V leiden thrombophilia diagnosed at the repeat mc clinic. IUI bfn Jan 2015, IVF bfn April/May 2015. FET bfn August 2015, remaining frozen embryo perished. Private tests showed high nk cells activity and th1/th2 as well as mthrfr gene. Started downregging for long protocol ivf in Oct 15 plus two intralipid drips, and got pg. Third mc @ 6.4 weeks despite heparin, intralipids, metafolin and prednisolone. Last Ivf attempt starting February 2016 then on to adoption. 



Kuma - 40. TTC 2.9 years. Low AMH high FSH - DH antisperm ABs. Failed IVF June 14 and March 15, cancelled cycle June 15. Last try Jan 16. 



Lucieloos, 36, Low AMH & sperm motility. ICSI#1, April 2015, Czech Republic, BFN. Icsi#2, cancelled before EC. Icsi#3 & 4, Embryo Banking. 3 blasts in freezer. Icsi#5 in Czech in Jan. NHS cycle in Feb / March.




Sesame, 40, ttc 2 years with no dp, multiple failed IVFs, 4 ETs, 1 bfp followed by mc, poor responder with v low AMH, but still looking for the golden egg.

Nolly, 33, TTC 3 years, 1 confirmed MC, 2 more suspected. still in limbo. 



Funkymonk 33. Ttc since October 2012. Mc June 2013, Mmc dec 2013, mc June 2014. Factor v Leiden thrombophilia. Abandoned IVF Jan 2015 due to thin lining. Abandoned FET Aug 2015 due to thin lining. 4 embies on ice. Currently experimenting with different cycles in an attempt to thicken lining.

Clem, 39, ttc since 2013. diagnosed with anovulation by nhs so on a course of clomid. no male factor issues. all other test results have come back okay inc. ovarian test reserves. currently being referred back to nhs for single funded cycle.

Nolly, 33, TTC 3 years, 1 confirmed MC, 2 more suspected. Starting IVF in January.



Antonia79 36, ttc #1 since 2009, adhesions made for sticky insides & one tube removed, confirmed NHS IVF route Sept 15, TTC naturally again as recommended by doctor until IVF cycle starts (early - mid 2016) if not conceived by then.



Grin - 35, TTC 3 years, NFI why I can't get pregnant,, 3 X failed clomid attemots, 2 X ICSI failed fertilisations, 1 x IVF BFN. Doing another cycle in Mar 2016 and thinking of embryo donation.



The Roll of honour:

Pip - Quite simply the Best In Show.
Lumen - The Legend that is....

Happy new year Berries! I hope you all had a lovely NYE! [santa]

Happy New Year everyone! I hope this is the year that everyone's baby dreams come true.

Happy new year to everyone hope our baby wishes come true

beaky did you have a nice nye? Yes I'm generally ok thanks, was so so nervous before the appointment on Wednesday. Things have been a bit up and down of late. But fortunately lots more good days mixed in with the ones where I feel down about things. I suppose that's a move in the right sort of direction. I know that nervous anticipation well. Does it feel good to be underway again at all? I've got everything crossed that it's third time lucky for you.

manatee glad you've found a mc friendly pg thread. Nice to have you here though so please post as long as you want to. How long is it till a 7 week scan?

barking can't believe your fc went to answering machine. Mine is still open . I've heard of norethisterone or provera being used to bring on a bleed, tho I'm not very clear how they would work. I suspect a few weeks delay after mc is not that unusual. Is it possible your fc might let you start after 3 months break, rather than 3 cycles? I can't see what the physical difference would be.

clem good luck with the clomid round. Fingers crossed for a fufc!

chicken hope that 2016 is your year.

I'm still thinking through my appointment. I choose not to name the fc on here, at least while I'm considering being a patient there.

I had a scan along with my consultation. It was day 3 and they saw three small follicles (actual follies, not antrals), which interestingly is a better result than I've had on some early scans. They also spotted some adenomyosis on one side of my womble - although not really sure if that actually means anything for ttc - any experience berries? Nothing else was pointed out to me that was particularly remarkable, tho the screen also showed up live shedding of menstrual lining.

The doc offered me a protocol which sounds half way between a natural cycle and antagonist protocol. The first few days there are no drugs. They let the body recruit its own follicles without intervening at all. (The opposite of the step down approach I had on my last cycle, where I started on high stims for 2 days, and then a much lower dose after that.) After that they usually add 150iu stims. Then I think a couple of days later cetrotide. I don't fully understand why starting with a big whoosh of external fsh is meant to be a bad thing, but given my scan showed my body is recruiting similar numbers of follies on its own, it does seem worth a punt.

The doc also recommended I continue with icsi (something about aged eggs being less likely to fertilise normally).

The new fc would also monitor me much more closely than my current one, to time ec.

Doc was also happy enough with my supplement list - high dose coq10, a bunch of antioxidants etc. - as not proven, not harmful, but theoretically beneficial. I was advised against the dhea, but doc seemed ok with the fact I've given it a try. Actually I've just come to the end of 4 months supply, and I'm wondering whether to order another 60 days. So far it's given me horrible skin but zero extra eggs. What do you think berries? Should I give it the benefit of a full 6 months?

They will also routinely prescribe clexane and steroids to anyone who asks for it. Again no proven benefit, but they seem to think that ETs are such rare events that a couple of weeks worth probably won't do much harm (obv continuing drugs if bfp).

The doc couldn't tell me the fc's success rates based on their recommended protocol and my circumstances. This is a complete contrast to my current fc who instantly refer to a laminated sheet of their own robust statistics which clearly show no. patients, AMH, age, protocol, pg rate and live birth rate (per cycle started) - ie real results from real patients (for my group this is about a 15% success rate - although I'm sure my chances are lower). I feel that this is a huge weakness of the new fc. If you do not know and track your success rates and audit your own figures properly there is no way of learning how effective is your clinical practice. I have asked for more info.

My guess from the figures they do publicise is that actual live births for my group might be 3-5% per cycle started. Hope has a price. They must deal with extraordinary numbers of bfns in this fc. Again this is more guesswork, but I reckon if I was ttc naturally my chances would probably be similar each cycle.

Sorry again for the mammoth post. I've still got a lot to thing about.

sesame I agree with you that a fc (especially a private one) absolutely should be tracking its success rates. Doing otherwise is poor commercial practice quite aside from just looking a bit shifty. What was your gut feel though? Also I've not been here long so sorry if I missed it but how come you're considering moving clinics?

PS - sorry, missed your question sesame. By my reckoning I'm about 6wks today. I haven't booked a reassurance scan yet (maybe I've been afraid to jinx it?) but will do on Monday.

Sesame that protocol sounds quite similar to Kuma's where she didn't have anything for the first few days then picked up a low dose of menopur (I think) for a few days afterward. I think for low responders it's as good an option as any really. I would agree that I would expect a private clinic to be able to be specific about their results for various groups of patients. On the dhea subject I do think that and the coq10 made a difference for me. The recommendations I've seen is 4-6 months use but is a tricky one. All I can really say is that I went from a cycle of having one follie up to egg collection, and the next cycle (3 months after this while taking dhea) I had five follies on the ovary that had never responded previously. Who knows what the fuck goes on with our bodies. I am so so anxious about getting any again this time and I am just hoping for 2 good ones. Any extras are a bonus. I do have a lot of grumbling down there but I get this occasionally on normal cycles. Need to do my meditation I think.

Manatee still keeping my fingers crossed for no issues. I've never been pg but the mantra some use - today you are pg - always sounds a bit reassuring to me.

Hope the rest of the berries are enjoying the last of their hols and that's why it's so quite here!

Sesame my gut reaction is that the clinic probably (hopefully!) do keep data for their own use, but not to share with patients? I never really feel reassured by other people getting pg on whatever protocol, it's never going to work for 100% and it depends so much on too many variables to compare yourself to others. My clinic have general statistics on their website (is not broken down into specific protocols and treatments) and we were shown statistics for multiple births when we had to make the decision on one or two embryos.

We'll have to send the bat signal to kuma, I agree it sounds similar.

Happy new year everyone. 2016 can't possibly be as shit as 2015.

I'm still waiting for AF. It'll be 7 weeks tomorrow. I imagine I won't be the only one queuing up to phone the fc as they've been closed. There was a number for medical emergencies but everyone else with a query will be trying to get through tomorrow.

Happy New Year ladybros!

New Year's resolutions are to be positive, and to read more books. New job, IVF and wedding should keep me pretty busy for the first few months at least.

beaky how are you getting on? When is your next scan? Fingers crossed for you that this is third time lucky.

barking how frustrating that af has gone awol. What do you think the clinic will say?

clem I hope the funding decision comes through quickly. I'd imagine it is just a formality if you meet the criteria so shouldn't hold anything up.

sesame that sounds interesting and I think I would want to give it a go if it were me. I must say I haven't asked my clinic for the specific success rates for my protocol but I will do at my next appointment. I have adenomyosis and was told it shouldn't cause ttc issues. I also found that the symptoms can be managed using vitex tincture but I don't use this when doing a cycle.

manatee hope you're doing ok.

happy hope you had a good ny break.

I'm feeling a bit tired and like I have a cold coming, so the last evening of the holidays will be spent on the sofa watching The Bridge on catch up.

Evening Ladybros and a very Happy New Year. Here's hoping that 2016 is the one for us all! Got back from our lovely break on Friday. Kraków is such a great city - bloody cold though!
Barking I hope you manage to get through to the FC tomorrow and they can get you sorted quickly.
Hope our stabbers are doing ok. Beaky and Nolly all the very best for your first scans.
Clem I hope the NHS come back with a decision for you quickly. A very good idea to look at other options whilst you wait.
Sesame that sounds like a productive appointment. I'm another one who's never really paid much attention to success rates. Although having said that there are only 2 private FCs in my area to choose from!
Manatee hope you're hanging in there and your scan comes around quickly to provide some reassurance.
Nothing much to report here. I actually managed to forget about TTC for a little bit whilst away. Feeling rotten today. Not sure if it's all the rushing around over Christmas or the fact that AF is on her way. Probably a combination of both! Off to sort myself out ready for school tomorrow .

Hi ladybros...
Can I come back again please
I had a MMC just before Christmas, so back on the IVF treadmill in the next few months

Spare, 34, TTC 3.5 years, 1st IVF - BFP then pregnancy loss after 20 weeks, 3 BFN FETS, 2nd IVF BFN then BFP from a FET and MMC at 10 weeks. Hoping to start another round in Feb

So sorry sparechange

so sorry spare, how shitty and unfair. hope you are looking after yourself. xx

Welcome back spare

I called the clinic to ask about my 7 week wait for AF. And then called again. Then left a message. Nowt.
I shall try again tomorrow, but also call the gp to see if they'll do a blood test to confirm hcg levels. I still feel run down, faintly nauseous and more tired than I should. So if there's no hcg left I probably want to speak to a gp anyway...

happy
Hope school today wasn't as bad as it could have been...

Oh spare I'm so sorry. This process is so shit.

spare nice as it is to have you around, I'm gutted for you to see you back. Do you have any idea what caused the mc?

sesame
I asked, nay begged them to do a chromosonal test on the fetus, but they refused, as this is technically my first MC (the last one doesn't count, apparently ) and they only start testing after 3 MCs
The best they would do was a visual check to make sure it wasn't a molar pregnancy, but I know it wasn't molar because I saw the heartbeat at 6+2 and 8+4
So back to the treadmill of turmoil

Barking Thanks for the blanket... Hope the clinic picks up the bloody phone! How annoying for you and hope you get some answers pronto

spare so sorry to hear that. Did you ever have mc investigations or a hysteroscopy? I thought experiencing a 2nd trimester loss meant you were entitled to such things?

manatee I am considering moving fc as I there is very little more that my existing one can offer me. The new fc do track their success rates, they are just not expressed as clearly as I would like and the doc I saw wasn’t as on top of them as I hoped. In fact he did say something more along the lines of what barking said – there are just too many other factors at play, and no way of determining which women will get pg and which don’t. My only caution is about whether the fc is trading a little bit on the optimism that they manage to get women in their 40s pg, even if over 90% of natural cycles fail. But the reality for me is that the chances of success are extremely low, and if I want to keep going I will just have to deal with that.

beaky is that you on stims now? How are you feeling, did the meditation help? When is your first scan? I think the improvements between your 2 cycles are very encouraging, and a good reason to stick to the supplements. I’m still taking the CoQ10 etc, but I still haven’t decided about ordering another 2 months DHEA. I don’t feel it made a difference to my last cycle, although I had only taken it for 3.5 months before EC. Also I’m getting close to crisis point with my skin - which wasn’t all that great before I started….

barking did you manage to get hold of your fc? Did you go to your GP? Is there some sort of berry dance that we could do to help bring on af?

tiger hope you are feeling better?

happy glad you had a nice holiday. How was school?

nolly is your cycle underway now?

I have been in touch with the new fc over the last few days, trying to get a few more of my questions answered before making my final decision. It’s not the easiest place to get through to, but I did manage to have a helpful chat with one of the nurses yesterday. On my list to organise are some alternative quotes for drugs, as the new fc charges quite a bit more than my previous place for certain things (gonal f and cetrotide). Has anyone got any suggestions for suppliers that I should approach?

sesame They could see from ultrasound what happened with my first baby, and then confirmed it with a post mortem. They had already done an amnio to confirm normal chromosones, and to do a CGH array, which ruled out some genetic conditions. I had a private hysteroscopy after my 3 failed FETs to make sure there weren't any adhesions, and got the all clear. I wonder if that also acted as a scratch and helped get me a BFP, so will get one done before the next round.

For drugs, I think Asda's pharmacy was always considered cheapest, but I went to my local pharmacy and asked them to get me a quote, and it came back about £5 more than the cheapest price I could find on FF, so I went with them for convenience (plus my nearest Asda is miles away!)
Might be worth phoning around a few, but there is also a thread on FF with prices

spare I’m sorry you have been through so much. I know it’s a different situation, but there is a youtube TTCer (strength beyond the storm) who went through a late pg loss, followed by mc’s, hysteroscopy then removed an undiagnosed septum, she then had another mc, but this time from a pgd tested embryo - it was only on the second hysteroscopy that they found a little bit of tissue left behind, it was removed and her next pg was successful. Sorry if this is not helpful. Anyway I believe in scratches as my only bfp was right after my first scratch didn’t help me on my last ET though.

Thanks for the tips on the drugs, I’ve read lots of the FF thread and have sent off a bunch of emails for quotes. The variation in prices is crazy and weirdly my last supplier was very competitive on the drugs that I would need (especially gonal f and cetrotide), but I suspect that's a deal that might only be available through my current (regional) fc.

Spare, big love to you and Mr S what an awful year 2015 was. Are you going to stick with the same clinic for another round?

Clem what's the timescale for hearing back about the funding? Have you decided who you would go with if you went private? Good luck for the clomid round.

Barking I'm doing the "come on af" dance over here for you. Hope it turns up soon so you can get going when you need to.

Smidge how are you getting on?

Grin how about you too? Did you get your assignments done?

Manatee hope you're doing ok too.

Tiger loving the resolutions! Did te cold stay away? I've come down with really heavily right in the middle of stimming. Anyway how was the Bridge? Has anyone watched Deutchsland 83? Loving it so far in the beak household.

Happy how are you feeling about starting the next round? Hope school has been ok and not too full on so far.

Sesame I have adenomyosis too, as with tiger, they advised me it doesn't affect ttc but for some reason I'm not 100% confident in that! Having said that I couldn't find much that indicated it was a problem. Are you feeling optimistic about the new clinic? I don't know about private drugs prices to help there. I have been stimming and first scan showed 3 follies on the right and a big cyst on the left so at least there's something there anyway. Next scan is sat and probably ec on Monday next week. Am totally ill with a cold though so just adding that to my worries! Ha. Trying to relax and take a what happens happens view. that's so not me though

Oops *Deutschland

Sesame I contacted about 6 places for drugs and made a spreadsheet for the price they charged for each drug I needed . I shall find it and pm you a link...

No AF here. Went to gp on Tuesday who did a blood test to check beta levels and also anaemia (still feel tired, run down, nauseous) as that's not unusual after a mc. Results hopefully back tomorrow. Clinic said it could take my body a while to recover and late AF wasn't anything to worry about 7.5 fucking weeks, I'm not worried, I'm impatient and fucked off!
They said if it's not back by the end of Jan they'd do a scan to check there wasn't an issue preventing it such as a cyst.
I went to woo needles again tonight in a desperate attempt to get something happening!!!

Hope the cold goes away soon Beaky. I'm always anxious about that because the anaesthetist asks the question before EC - I don't know what would happen if I said I had a blocked nose (probably they just check you're breathing through your mouth instead but I'm always concerned they'll just send me away)

This morning our packing boxes arrived! Eeek! Quite exciting! MrSmidge has asked his boss for a year's leave without pay and apparently he got a bit grumpy and told him he has to work out who will do his job in the meantime... MrS then discovered the person he'd earmarked handed in his resignation just before Christmas hence why his boss has a touch of the grumps.

Tiger have you bought your wedding dress now? Mine's just gone up on ebay So beautiful but it's not exactly something to keep when space is tight is it. Should have listed it ages ago though.