TTC through Donor IUI or Donor IVF or just undecided - all welcome!

[Kwick709]

This thread is for anyone trying to conceive... or thinking about doing so through donor IUI or donor IVF. Nothing TMI - feel free to join, we are a lovely group here to support and help keep the cray-cray away!

So my dog is busy testing the things I buy... and you know what, she makes me laugh enough to banish the pre-emptive superstition (don't worry I bleached it afterwards!!)...

Honestly Im a great believer in what will be, will be - Im not going to go and buy a pram or anything like that (I am too superstitious for that!), but if I see something little that I like or its at a great price, then I might get it. These things make me feel positive, rather than longing for something and longing can be a dangerous business as it makes me blue.

Anything that makes my blue, affects my chi and I think may affect my hormones and my inner balance so Im going with it. If I get to the point that having a baby myself becomes unfeasible, and surrogacy is out, then I'll go inter country adoption. Have a child, I will.

Kwick - September is just around the corner, you're right! Still feels so long away though... I'll just have to be patient!

Stork - your dog is BEAUTIFUL! What is she called? How old is she? That baby bouncer is lovely too.

I haven't bought anything as such yet, I've bought a baby book though... You know like the memory books. It's so lovely - it has a page where there's a family tree and you can put passport sized photos of the family members, all the way to great grandparents. I'm so excited to fill it out!!
Mum thinks I'm mad, but I spoke to a psychic yesterday at this fayre thing.. She said she sees a baby girl in the next 5-6 months without me saying anything to her!!!
Some people are sceptics but I really believe in that kind of thing.

It's time to start testing for LH surge again... Feel a bit down heartened because I didn't get one last month.

How are you all?

Good luck with the surge, caution.

We're just in the waiting period where DP's had the insemination but we can't test. She's very positive but I am terrified (I've got a history of miscarriage; she's never tried before). At the moment she's absolutely shattered, though - I'm guessing that's the side-effects of hormones?

caution my ovulation has been off the last two months. I get high, but no peak. Bloody irritating!

She's called Tallulah-Belle, she's 4yrs old and a toy poodle. I adore my fur baby!

Ooh that cut off before I had finished! Anyhoo good luck with your surge tracking!

robin best of luck and fingers crossed! Xox

Thank you Robin. It's driving me mad!

Stork she is beautiful 😍 I have a dog too - her name is Tessie and she's 5 this year.. She's a cross between pug & Yorkshire terrier! Glad to hear you adore your fur baby - I'm a massive fan of fur babies... They're so loyal and gorgeous!!
Thank you. I'm just hoping that I actually get somewhere this month. I'll be speaking to the clinic about it on the 16th anyway, but hoping it doesn't come to that!

Very disaplointing French pharmacy spree... All the things I wanted to buy had ferility impacting ingredient cyclo-somethingorother in them :(

On way back - train is so rammed very hard to work, so I am going to catch up on MN and then read trashy novel.

caution try testing every day - more than once - sometimes it is hard to catch surge.

robin fx what hormones is she on? Progesterone should not make her tired.

Nice doggy stork

Any news taydex? pickle?

Ah the joy! I have a smear test to look forward to tomorrow!

Kwick - I am testing every day... and twice! I'm testing around 12pm before work and then again later on. Don't see how I can fit in anymore around work but I'm going to have to try.
Good luck with your smear test tomorrow - now I'm 25 I have to book my first one - I've heard they're not nice, so will be thinking of you!

I fricking hate them!!!!

kwick - she's just on progesterone gel now, but she was on injections of something before - gonal f?

It could just be she's unrelatedly tired, I suppose. But then I think people respond to hormones differently - she does get tired at points in her normal cycle, so I guess a little bit extra isn't going to help.

Hope your smear goes ok tomorrow. I really hate them too! Fingers crossed you get someone gentle.

I'm 32 and never had one-yuck!! Haven't been able to bring myself to have one but once baby trying starts I'll have to get used to people being around the foof
I'm still on pill so haven't started testing Lh or know when cycle is.
I now have £800 in my fund thanks to a £62 tax rebate-wahoo!!

Oh, pickle, do get one! (Am bossily evangelical about this, sorry)

DP had to get one before the clinic would do anything anyway.

Yay for extra money in the fund.

pickle you should defo get one - they use a speculum which they also use with IUI and IVF so best to be forewarned.
Glad your baby fund is growing :)

I have a tilted cervix which means extra long speculum and extra rooting around. delightful. And yet I do it religiously as not doing it is a risk too far, best to suck it up and think of England, stiff upper lip and all that, and just remember to relax, frankly the nurses tend to awesome and every fertility clinic will expect you to have had one. results can take a few weeks so make sure you work that into your timings. xxx

YY, that's a point, it's really useful to be able to go to the clinic already knowing stuff like whether or not you have a tilted cervix (ouch, stork!), because you want them to be in and out as quickly as possible and doing the least that could possibly disrupt you down there.

How'd your smear test go Kwick??

My mums friend is in labour - hurrah! She lives in Stratford upon Avon though now so can't see baby for a good few weeks as she's an hour away - but so excited for her. She's been counting down the days and is desperate to be a mum again, I'm so pleased for her. X

Just done an Amazon OPK - and this is the best I get, which is a negative.. I know there's a few days to go til my fertile window ends but I can't seem to get a line darker than this!

Caution hmm that is quite a weak line. Have you had any LH blood tests run yet? (Sorry, I can't remember who has done what!)

No I haven't Shoes - I'm going to the doctors tomorrow about something else so I may have to ask him about it because I'm getting concerned.
This is going to sound really uninformed, but when do you actually have the LH blood tests?

How you doing now Shoes? X

Day 2 of your cycle (so 2nd day of your period) is when they would check your hormone balances including LH. There is a further day 21 (progesterone) test which is used as to check whether you're ovulating.

My lovely GP ran these tests plus STI tests for me, saving me the cost of having them done privately. If your GP does any blood tests make sure you get a copy of any reports to give to your fertility clinic when you get to that point.

I'm pretty good thanks. Life has been busy and very good fun over the past few weeks which has helped my recovery from the miscarriage enormously. I'm hoping to make it to Denmark in 2 weeks' time for IUI attempt 3, but the flights are already selling out so I'm preparing myself not to be able to have another attempt until after the summer holidays.

Pickle smear tests are really not that bad. As Kwick said, it's all good speculum practice! My top tip is to take a long breath out as they open the speculum - doing this has made it easy for me.

Imagine how pissed off you'll be if you delay having a smear until your fertility clinic demands it and then you have to delay starting treatment while you wait for a smear appointment and result. Get thee a smear appointment booked right away!

caution try not to get too stressed. The lh surge is hard to find sometimes. When I was doing IUIs my clinic did not soley rely on this - it was more down to the size of my follies.

Wow ladies! Best smear ever!!! She was in and out quicker than you can say "Jesus, Mary & Joseph this hurts". Came home to find boiler on the blink though

So, so happy it is Friday!

Argh re the boiler Kwick . Cold showers are not fun! How are you otherwise?

Robins the two week wait is indeed stressful. I think the excitement/worrying in itself can be draining. Only advice is to keep busy to take your minds off things without overdoing it. Hmm that was very obvious advice, I do apologise! Try to keep positive though - thinking of all the things that could go wrong won't help your mental state! I've tried to adopt an infuriatingly philosophical 'what will be will be and me thinking negative thoughts won't change the outcome so I may as well be happy' attitude.

I'm on CD 14 and still nothing starting to get really concerned...!!

Ah I see Shoes... I may have to ask for that. I went to the Dr's this morning but didn't ask because I had read your reply first - I'll have to go back in a week or two and ask him if it's possible.
Well, I've decided to drive to the fertility clinic on the 16th - the one in Wales, CRGW. I was going to have a telephone consultation but I've decided to go for it instead and be there physically. I asked my GP today to print off my HIV, Hep B & C, my Rubella and my Chlamydia tests so I can take them with me. It's saves on expenses... All I'll need is an AMH blood test and maybe CMV.
I'm glad you're good Shoes and that you've had things to occupy your mind since your mc... Being busy at times like that is always good! Hopefully you can get to Denmark in two weeks time, let us know.

Kwick - that's good news. I think because I'm having treatment in Wales, I'll need to reply on opk's. I don't know though, we'll see.
I'm glad your smear went well - at least it wasn't as bad an experience as you were anticipating! X

I'm actually getting somewhere with the opk's this month...!! CD15, and I'm getting closer.

OMG OMG so I've just done an ovulation test and (I think) it's positive?!!!! I know it's such a silly thing to get excited about but it's because last month nothing happened!! I'll attach a pic, I got them from Amazon - they're still cheapie ones but they're in the plastic casings instead.