Home insemination

[FSGirl]

Wondering if anyone has experience with this?
DH and I are TTC our second but he has been struggling with work and family stress - high pressure role and family illness. We both want this badly but DH is feeling some performance pressure and not ejaculating / losing erection during sex. It’s frustrating for us both when I’m ovulating and really get us both down.
I just wondered if anyone had successfully tried home insemination? I think it’s a good idea so we can be a bit more spontaneous with sex and take any pressure off but reassured that we have more chance of conceiving by adding this into the routine.
I have bought some bits off amazon (flat head syringes, “specimen” cups 😂and a cheapy conception cup type thing)
any hand holding / reassurance / experiences greatly appreciated.
It feels strange and clinical to be considering it but I am a bit hormone baby crazy and willing to give anything a go, but feel a bit embarrassed talking to anyone IRL about it because of taboo around ED.

DH and I faced similar issues when TTC this pregnancy. The cycle that was successful (I'm currently about 10 weeks pregnant) was entirely via home insemination. I DIYed it by using colostrum collection syringes from my previous pregnancy and a (clean!) glass GU pudding dish that was otherwise destined for the recycling (now recycled 🤣)... just to demonstrate that you don't need anything fancy in order to be successful. I also tracked BBT and used OPKs to get the timing right. When it comes to insertion method I got rid of any large air bubbles and inserted the syringe as far as I could in the direction of my cervix. I then lay down for about half an hour, which various sources seem to indicate makes a difference.

@Poppins2016 congratulations on your pregnancy! That is really great to hear a success story.
@FSGirl we are also doing this for similar reasons, around cycle 4 at the moment. We use flat head syringes (I looked for something similar to the ‘Mosie baby’ syringe) plus a washed out yoghurt pot 😂
I found some long running old threads with mnetters doing this, and it has really helped remove some of the stress around TTC for us. DH still doesn’t like the time pressure, but it’s a lot quicker and easier when you aren’t in the mood and to avoid tension around not being able to perform/deliver as required during the fertile window.

@Poppins2016 oh wow congratulations and thank you so much for your reply! Has made me feel a lot more positive about it. I feel the GU pudding dish should have had a special place on your mantelpiece though 😆
absolute best wishes for your pregnancy!!

@CurlyWurly1991 I never really thought about the pressure of TTC before as we were super lucky with our first and was one of those dreamy “look what happened” pregnancies - but this one definitely feels so much more conscious and scheduling sex when you already have a (very sleep averse) DC is just not happening.
It would be lovely to hear how it goes for you if a mutual hand hold would be beneficial!
I couldn’t seem to find a Mnet thread that had many responses so really felt a bit alone with it, so thank you for replying. I’ll keep everything crossed for you 🙏

DH and I did this on and off while TTC, we were having fertility treatment (super pricey) so it put a huge amount of pressure to 'perform' at the right time and honestly was ruining sex for both of us as it felt like we were doing it because we had to.

We used syringes from Amazon and a glass shot glass.

We agreed we'd only DTD when we actually both wanted to, and if not and it was ovulation time we'd do what we called the shot glass method. Funnily enough as soon as we had that option it somehow took the pressure off and we rarely needed it. The cycle I fell pregnant we'd DTD day before and after ovulation and did the shot glass method on ovulation day so not sure exactly which it was that worked but mentally home insemination really was a life saver for us.

@LavenderSweetPea thanks for sharing - I’m so pleased it worked out well for you both. I feel exactly the same, feel like we have to and if you don’t because you’re tired / stressed etc you feel the time pressure of how many fertile days left.. did you use a cycle calculator to track fertility? I am using my phone app but have ordered some ovulation sticks just to be sure.

When we first started with home AI, I was having fertility treatment, I was having scans to check follicle growth and then using a trigger injection to kick off ovulation, so I didn't do any other tracking to start with.

After we stopped with the fertility treatment then I used the easy@home ovulation sticks and using Ava bracelet to confirm bbt - my cycles were all over the place so a regular app would have been no good for me.

I got pregnant using a kit called TwoPlus - second month of trying and only using it once that month! We will be using it every month as my other half has always had issues finishing from sex so it makes it so much easier and less stressful. It's definitely helping with keeping intimacy fun!

@FSGirl a hand hold would be great… we have other issues too with irregular periods for me and we are both over 35. Similarly our first child was conceived easily (although we had similar issues it only took us a couple of goes so was not a problem). For us it’s the ongoing timed sex that really kills the enjoyment and has led us to this point.
@moosey89 I’m so pleased to hear it worked for you. I remember your name from the other thread on AI with the twoplus. Great to hear it’s another option if I want an upgrade from the yoghurt pot and cheap needleless syringe 😂

Btw, I don’t know if there’s science to this but I’ve read a lot of ladies doing SI ensure they have an orgasm during the process. There is lots going on to make your body hospitable to conception when you get t aroused … and then the contractions that follow orgasm speed the sperm along up to and through the cervix. So while SI can feel a bit clinical at least there’s something in it for us!

@CurlyWurly1991 so true about the orgasm, I definitely did that each time we did home ai. I also on the last try (when we got pregnant) also used a fertilily conception cup thing - like use the syringe, put in the fertilily, then go for the orgasm, wait twenty minutes or so then remove the cup.

@CurlyWurly1991 very happy to be a hand hold, my syringes and stuff are arriving after the weekend but feels like forever to wait for my next predicted window. But I assume it’ll be early October time! So I might post on this thread to update after my first try!!

@moosey89 so good to hear your success story with this! Are you actively trying at the moment then?
I agree about thinking it will help to keep intimacy more fun. Whenever I’m ovulating I feel like I’m a bit militant and that doesn’t help with the performance pressure at all for DH!

Right @LavenderSweetPea I am going to follow this method step by step 😂

Yep this method worked for us! Like you, we wanted to take the pressure off and we were both like ships that passed in the night with busy jobs.
Syringes, specimen pots and that pre-seed stuff - can't remember what it's called? I also took Vitex supplements the month I actually got pregnant .. might have been coincidence, but that my friend who had also been struggling got pregnant the month she tried those too. I just bought it from Amazon.
I also always gave myself an orgasm afterwards to give the sperm a helping hand!

My husband was struggling with the performance pressure when we were ttc. It all felt quite stressful timing sex with when I was ovulating so we decided to use a kit from Two Plus Fertility and combined regular sex & at home AI. It def took the stress out of trying for us. We conceived on our 3rd month of trying (first time using the kit) and I'm now 21 weeks pregnant with our first baby. I also used clear blue OPK, conception plus lubricant & made sure I had an orgasm after. Hope that helps 😊

I feel like so many people do home AI but don't admit it to their friends 😂

@Ragdollmum31 and @Rhi86 thanks for replying. Hearing from everyone on this thread has a - made me feel more confident it can work for us and b - not make me feel so alone with it. I love all my friends and we are very open with everything but I don’t think I could talk to them about the reasons why we would consider home insemination. And I am someone who needs to talk over everything!!! So thank you for responding!

Haha @LavenderSweetPea do you know it’s probably more common than we think just no one talks about it.
Last cycle I ovulated, DD was in bed with us every night at various points and so very limited alone time which ramps the pressure up. She keeps saying how desperate she is for a sibling and I’m like we’re trying but maybe sleep in your own bed a bit more and it could happen 😳

Also congrats on your pregnancy@Ragdollmum31 🥰

@FSGirl yes we are 😊 second cycle this time round trying. First unfortunately ended in missed miscarriage at 10 weeks x

@FSGirl my husband hated the pressure with our first so I started to just not tell him when I was fertile and just upped the sex all month round so he didn't have a clue and he was getting sex on tap with no pressure which he couldn't really complain about !

@mrssunshinexxx that is undoubtedly the best way of doing it! While my DH enjoys the sex he doesn’t always get to the end … and dislikes the pressure to do so (long-standing issue and much more common than I realised). When not TTC it’s no issue because it just means more focus on me (!!) but not so great when you need those swimmers in the right place at the right time.

Cab I ask how this works in practice? Do I need to get DP to wank into a cup and then insert straight away? We are getting v serious next cycle but I find the whole thing incredibly unsexy and he often feels pressured so this might be a better approach!

@mosiacmaker I'd recommend leaving the 'sample' in the cup for 15 minutes roughly to slightly liquidate before using. Obviously ensure the cup is clean (no one needs an infection)