Trying to conceive for 10 months or more. Thread 5. All ten plussers welcome.

[lucieloos]

Thread for anyone TTC for over ten months. Please feel free to join us!

I'm 27, DH is 30 - infertility certainly doesn't discriminate on age!

I think Lucie was probably asking as the younger you are the more chance your eggs are good. And therefore as you're young your 5 embryos have every chance of making it.

I was 29 when we had our first round of IVF - can't believe I'm going to be at least 31 before I have a baby.

Yes itsme, Sammy is right. The reason I was asking is because at 27 you have a brilliant chance of your embryos making it to blast so try not to worry too much.

Sammy, good luck with the testing whenever you decide to go for it. I know what you mean about the not knowing vs bfn. I always have good intentions of holding out but I never can. I think I need prior warning before OTD.

Banana / Sammy, do you know if it's possible to take estrogen tablets alongside stimms in a fresh cycle? I'm thinking that the femara I have to take which is a bit like clomid may thin my lining a bit but I'm also thinking if I took estrogen then that could slow follicle growth like it does in a fet? Any ideas?

lucie yes we did but only a few days after starting the Cetrotide, because otherwise it would affect the follicle growth

In a long protocol you can start it much earlier - which is why our first attempt at my second cycle was to try LP so we could better control my lining (cycle cancelled due to failure to downreg).

We started it about 2-3 days after starting Cetrotide on my second cycle

I also don't believe Femara impacts on the lining? Hence why it's a better alternative for ovulation induction as it doesn't have the same effect on the lining as clomid (it's not anti estrogenic, it's an aromatase inhibitor, so doesn't affect lining or CM like clomid does)

Thanks Banana, that makes sense. I know femara isn't meant to affect the lining as much but I have been following KitKat on ff (think you have spoken to her too) and she is doing a very similar protocol to the one I will be doing and her lining is much thinner than it usually is. It was only 4.9mm on day 10! I think I will just try and see I would really like a fresh transfer but if the lining isn't thick enough I will just have to freeze. I think I would want it to be at least 6mm on day 10 so potentially 3 more days then before trigger for it to thicken so even if it just did 1mm a day then could potentially be 9mm.

Yes Lucie, I know what you mean. OTD is a Tuesday so I will probably test on Sunday if not before to prepare myself.

I don't know much about estrogen on a fresh cycle, but my consultant said we could add it in after egg collection if my lining was thin. We didn't, but it was in my notes.

Sunday is pretty good going Sammy I don't think I could have waited that long the suspense kills me lol. Have you had any symptoms?

Yep Katkat is doing the same protocol!

We started oestrogen the day before trigger, when it was 7.2mm. EC it had already started to compact and it was 5.5mm. Then at the 'do we or don't we transfer' lining scan on day 4, it was 8.5mm, and we transferred the following day

I was on 2mg progynova three times daily

It seems I am an example of the women my Dr said he's treated whose lining doesn't respond very well to purely exogenous oestrogen - but seem to once there's natural oestrogen in the mix

So I'm really hoping that as my lining responded to natural oestrogen in my 2nd and 3rd stims cycles that it will do so again, if we do a stimulated ovulation induction cycle to prep the endometrium for a FET

Keeping my fingers crossed for you banana. It's always responded to stimms before so let's hope it does next time to and you can finally get to work on those 6 little frosties. I also added estrogen from EC on my last NHS round as my lining was thin. The one thing both KatKat and I have in common is a couple of weeks before af started for my NHS round I had a hysteroscopy with biopsy and KatKat also had biopsy right before this cycle so I'm wondering if that has caused the lining to be thinner?! Mine has never been as thin as it was on the NHS round. It did thicken quite quickly when the estrogen was added but I want it to be thick before EC if I am going to do a fresh transfer this time.

Hmm I honestly don't know re hysteroscopy. I had my hysto (including endometrial biopsy) 2 weeks before starting stims for my 3rd cycle and had the thickest lining I've ever had. The Coventry clinic prescribe the scratch for some ladies with thin lining - although in my case my Dr doesn't want to redo it, as he's very minded to 'do no harm' (given I've had an ERPC and hysteroscopy with curettage - although don't have adhesions thank god, he doesn't want to risk giving me any)

It's so hard to know with lining - it's different every month and can be so bloody (no pun intended) temperamental!

Yes maybe it's just one of those things then. Will just have to see how it goes and take it from there. I know my body responds well to estrogen tablets so if worse comes to worst I will just have to go for a fet.

No symptoms Lucie. I'm feeling quite tired but I woke a couple of times in the night so that explains that. Boobs are sore, but they have been since a couple of days in to stimms. Have had some minor cramping but nothing obvious. Gah! DH said earlier 'I wish there was some kind of X-ray microscope which could tell us if they're still alive'

Should I have by now do you think?

I'm so scared.

Having just said that I've just been struck down by some strong low down cramps. Oweeee

I had cramping and felt very periody. Put it down to period or progesterone and was trying to tell myself it couldn't be the mythical implantation cramping. Well turns out it wasn't so mythical!

But not at 6dp3dt though I'm sure.
I just went food shopping and some bags were quite heavy. Maybe I over did it?

Sammy, 9dpo which is what you are is the most common day for implantation. I had implantation bleeding at 10dpo it was only a little bit and stopped as soon as it started. I had very mild craning and felt like af would turn up any minute which it obviously didn't. I didn't test on 11dpo but couldn't hold it any longer on 12dpo as I kind of felt there was a good chance of bfp and lo and behold! I think it sounds promising for you. I don't think you will hold out until next Sunday

Oh Lucie, don't get my hopes up!

How long should implantation cramping last? Could it be on and off?

Sammy my cramping was about 4 or 5dp5dt which is about the same time...

Sammy and itsme - I have everything crossed for you. Itsme you still have a great chance with your eggs and Sammie, eek.

Yep mine was same time as well. It was on and off I think for a couple of days and then I tested and it was all a blur after that. Sorry don't want to get your hopes up but the timing fits. Just try and play it cool and see what happens the next couple of days.

Oh god, I was doing so well up to today! Agh!!!! Xx

All I have done all night is think about my little Petri dish. If I could, I would sit there watching them for the next 5 days, I literally can't cope with not knowing how they are doing.

I've spent all night hypothesising and a major concern is, if we get two to blast I really don't want to freeze the other one - I would be terrified it wouldn't unfreeze and any second chance would be lost.

DH wants to buy a new carpet for our bedroom, my response = we need to start saving for IVF followed by frantic googling of clinics.

I just want to go to sleep and wake up when it's all over

Itsme - at my clinic (as I recently found out) if you only have two they will put both back on day 3 - if you have more then they will let them go to blast and only put one back and freeze the others. The defrost success rate is pretty high, so please try not to worry. I hope you managed to get some sleep?

I woke up at 3am with a killer headache. I always get this when AF is due so I'm not feeling so hopeful now (jeez, this is such a rollercoaster!) although I keep thinking that surely the hormone dip that usually causes it has not happened as I'm still thing progesterone????