Fertility Appointments and Beyond: Electric Boogaloo

[thislittlebird]

Hit capacity on the old thread, will tag you in!

@Kay00 no, I don’t think so, I’m bleeding like my period is about to start properly now. I started bleeding 7dp5dt and it’s gone quickly from spotting to red light bleeding today, which is 8dp5dt. Stopped the meds tonight and had two stark white negative tests. OTD is tomorrow but it’s stupid to wait until the morning when you’re already bleeding, y’know? I had a crazy eczema outbreak on 4dp5dt and then this weird migraine/fatigue/flushed cheeks/nausea day on 5dp5dt. I think something was happening with the embryo and maybe my body was fighting it off? I definitely need to push for prednisolone, the only time I had implantation was when I was on that. Hopefully we’ll have another embryo to try with, worst case it’ll be our 5CC 😬

It certainly sounds like something was trying to happen. I'm sorry that it didn't make it this time 😔.

I'm guessing you have spoken to the clinic about using Prednisolone again, did they give you a reason why you couldn't use it this time?

@Kay00 they made me do an NK cell test and it came back normal range so they didn’t advise it. But i’m convinced I have an overreactive immune system at the very least, so i’m going to push for it. How can they possibly know what my body is doing? Not everything can be tested and I know a) the only implantation I had was on that and b) I have an array of immune related issues that they’re currently choosing to ignore.

@thislittlebird 😔I'm sorry, that really sucks 💔. When will you find out about the PGT-A results? xx

@JeanieJ probably between today and Friday. I’m not expecting much, clearly we aren’t very good at this.

I’m supposed to be working today but I’m just sat on my sofa in my pyjamas. I’m too busy to call in sick and I’m off on Friday anyway.

I feel so stupid expecting this would work for us a year ago, really wish I’d never wanted kids.

@thislittlebird I'm sorry. You've had such a rough ride and it's just not fair. Take all the time you need and hopefully you get some good results in the next few days x

Thinking of you @thislittlebird , I hope you get some good news today xx

Yeah, we got one euploid embryo out of three, the 4AA. So that's good. I'm just pretty convinced that the 5AA was probably good too, and tried to implant so it feels like such a missed opportunity.

@thislittlebird that is very good news 💕 so you have one solidly good embryo on ice. Now you need to find the correct set up for a FET. Are you going to talk again to the clinic about prednisolone?

@Kay00 yeah, I am. My consultant emailed saying he was pleased to hear we had an embryo and I replied saying I want to discuss pred because I had an immune response to the embryo and also want to discuss more progesterone support. Especially since my natural levels will be very low on a FET, need to discuss taking letrozole for it maybe.

Hi ladies, how are you doing?

I had my laparoscopic ovarian drilling today. I'm home and recovering and feel ok, although I'm in a bit of pain and discomfort.

Interestingly the consultant found my left ovary had aheared to an organ (I assume my uterus) and she had to separate it. A friend tells me this can contribute to infertility.

I wonder whether it got stuck to my uterus after a previous round of IVF or whether this has been a long standing issue for me.

Luckily no endometriosis found (unless it was endo that had glued my ovary to my insides), but I'm not getting my hopes that any of this will work. I feel like it's just a very invasive stab in the dark 😅

Much love to you all x

Hey @Kay00, how are you feeling a few days later? I’m fine, you know how it is. Speaking to our consultant on Tuesday so need to prep for that tomorrow. Packing for my birthday Portugal trip next week.

I was going to say, that sounds like a bit of endo but hopefully they’ve resolved it.

That sounds like all of this, doesn’t it? A very invasive stab in the dark, and so far no pay off lol

I'm OK, thanks @thislittlebird . I'm so happy to hear you are going on holiday... I'm super jealous 😁 Although relaxing in my garden in the sun yesterday and today has been nice, as we have had 29 degrees!

Keep us updated with your appointment on Tuesday x

@Kay00 glad to hear the procedure went well and you're recovering ok. Albeit, it sounds very uncomfortable.
Do you know how your ovary adhered to your organ if it wasn't endo? They found something similar in my lap a few years back, but it was attributed to some internal scarring I had from my childhood appendectomy.
I hope this helps you get better results from your next cycle 🙏 xx
Good luck with your appointment today @thislittlebird xx

@JeanieJ I don't know, but I'll ask my consultant when I speak with her next. I guess it could be a small amount of endo or perhaps scarring from my last IVF round?

How is your pregnancy progressing? How are you feeling?

Good luck today @thislittlebird

@Kay00 the weather in London has been dreadful. Got half a day of sun yesterday but it still feels quite cold and it's still mostly grey. Portugal weather doesn't look as nice as I was hoping, I wanted to relax and hang out at the beach and stuff, not sure how it's going to go yet. It's 20-23 and rain is forecast at least some of the trip. We'll have some nice food either way, I'm looking forward to going to an amazing looking gelato place! No idea what to pack though. I bought myself a really nice summer dress from Boden and wanted to wear it for my birthday dinner there but I don't think it will be warm enough. Might keep it for the summer here!

The appointment was good and relatively positive because we can make embryos, clearly. How many more attempts we can afford is another issue. After discussion, the doctor has agreed to give me 10mg of prednisolone for the next FET, even though he thinks I'm talking crap about having an immune response to the embryo. I can't shake the fact I had implantation the one time I was on it.

He also raised doing the ERA test and medicated transfers/cycles, but I don't want to do them, never had wanted to do them. If the prednisolone option fails me I'll consider it for a future cycle, but for now I'm keen to stick to natural modified.

What''s next for you post-op?

Oh and in small wins, I've lost 12lb/5.4kg since January. I'm hoping to keep it up when I'm back, my weight had been running away for me for a few years.

@Kay00 well hopefully that it's sorted now, your chances will increase 🙏

Pregnancy is going ok-ish. I had my 12 week scan the other day and got a call the next day saying that baby was increased risk of Downs, so I today I just did another test (NIPT). Bit disappointing as I was hoping we were out of the woods, but now just about a weeks more wait till we know.
xx

Hi everyone. I'm back, several name changes later and need to catch up!

@jeanieJ I'm so glad your pregnancy has stuck and you're ok. Wishing you the very best for the latest test results.

@thislittlebird just catching up with your messages. Are you still with Lister?

My last NHS round was in August and was a complete disaster, resulting in two crap eggs neither of which fertilised. Transferred a frozen which didn't stick.

Got my period today so off for my baseline scan later. First round with a new clinic. Been on low dose dhea testosterone and growth hormones for three weeks. Here's hoping they've made a difference.

@thislittlebird 12lb wowzers! That's flipping awesome! Well done 👏. And good news that the clinic agreed to use prednisolone ❤️ fuck him if he doesn't agree, he can't possibly understand everything that's going on in your body.

@JeanieJ 🤞I hope so x

I really hope the NIPT test comes back with the result you want, it's an additional stress you don't need at this stage xx

@Alsobeyondshit hello again 👋. Sorry to hear last round, and transfer were a dud 😥. Onwards and upwards, and a huge good luck for your next round.

I'm really interested in the growth hormone that you are being primed with, do you mind me asking what it is? I read about some really positive outcomes from using growth hormones, so keep us updated with your progress xx 😜

@kay00 I've been taking genotropin 0.4mg once a day. No idea if it has helped or is helping but my consultant recommended it! I don't have wide knowledge about it but my basic understanding is that some clinics recommend it in the lead up to and during stims at a low dose like I'm doing and some a really high dose just during stims (lots more expense too!!) I think argc maybe does this?

I've also been on a specific brand of DHEA as my testosterone was in the lower third as well as a bunch of supplements - 25 tablets a day. Adding to that from today following my baseline scan another 26 tablets of L'Arginine... I'm going to be rattling.

I'll let you know if I get better results this time!!

Have any of you done PGT-A testing? I'm not sure how I feel about it. Interested in your experiences.

@Alsobeyondshit so interesting, thank you for sharing. I will have a chat with my consultant about it before our next cycle as I think my eggs need a boost.

I haven't done any PGS testing because I both rounds of IVF I've done so far I have collected 40 eggs in total (across both rounds), still had all 40 'going strong' on day 3, but only had one 5 day blast still alive by day 5 in each round. Both times we fresh transferred, and both failed (in fact on my 2nd round I started bleeding immediately and my period started 2dp5dt... So my body gave the blast zero chances).

I'm not against testing embryos. If I magically had say 5 blasts on my next round then I would fresh transfer one and test the rest, but that's because I think I am a high risk of abnormalities.

To try any level out my hormones, and improve my egg quality/blast rate, I have just had ovarian drilling (a week ago). I will be interested to see how that effects my numbers... But I'm not holding out too much hope.

@JeanieJ my next steps, as you asked 😊, are to call into the clinic with my CD1. They want my next IVF cycle to be in July. However... I'm not sure how drilling holes in my ovaries might effect my normal cycle 🤷

Good luck with the NIPT @JeanieJ

@Alsobeyondshit yeah I’m still with them. On one hand I feel like I should try another clinic because they’re quite pricey, but at the same time they’ve got us further than ever in terms of understanding dh has antisperm antibodies so natural isn’t happening for us. We’ve kinda run out of money tbh, so we need to start saving again. Let us know how your cycle goes!

I did PGT-A this time. I’m having mixed feelings. We had 5 embryos, 1 5AA was transferred fresh (bfn), they tested three: the 4AA, 4BB and 4BB and the 4AA came back euploid. Also had a 5CC which we frozen without testing. So I feel like I’ve lost my embryos in a way, but at the same time, if they weren’t destined to develop further then maybe it’s ok. I’m too old for all this. 1 out of 3 is about bang on for my age, I think you’re the same age roughly?

@Kay00 thanks! I wanted to get to a lower weight before I turn 40 in a couple of days. Which I have, but want to keep it up for our Lake District holiday too. I’m kinda upset today because the specific days we’re in Portugal are looking like a total washout. Ordered a pac a Mac on Amazon yesterday :/ I had this specific vision of getting away from the shitty UK weather and spending a few days in the sun, but the weather said I can piss off.

What annoys me is that I feel like we do know our bodies and they’re all very dismissive. Anyway, the doctor is affable enough and agreed to a low dose. Knowing my luck the 4AA won’t even bother trying to implant.

I’ve read a lot about the growth hormone stuff on Reddit. Personally, I don’t think we need it, but when I post on Reddit people without fail recommend omnitrope (a US name) because it seems so common in ivf out there I guess.

@thisthislittlebird Yes I'm 40, think you're a wee bit younger? I'm really conflicted with the PGT-A testing. It bumps up clinics' success rates so of course they're for it but I don't want to discard anything. I might ask for a fresh with this round and test anything left over.

Sorry you're still feeling so blurgh about everything. I know you've often expressed frustration. I think it's good to think about how long you want to stick at all this. You aren't obliged. There is life beyond IVF and being a parent. I'm definitely not going to go on and on. I have my red lines and have found that helpful in a way, knowing I'm just not going to keep going if you know what I mean?

Well done on the weight loss! I have put a bit on and I really don't like it

Thanks everyone 💕
It feels like a slap in the face after infertility and loss, but I'm feeling a bit more optimistic about the outcome either way now. I've literally just turned 36, so I knew it might increase my chances a bit, but there were other factors in my bloods that put me in the increased chance category. Fingers crossed all is fine though 🙏

@Kay00 gosh July is not far away for another cycle, my fingers are crossed that the procedure will make a big difference for you 🍀

@thislittlebird well done on the weight loss and I hope your trip to the Lakes gives you a chance to switch off for a while.

@Alsobeyondshit I don't have any experience of PGT-A testing. My clinic did suggest it to us when we found out DH had high DNA frag, but we couldn't afford it.

xx