NHS fertility manchester - St Mary’s

[AnonTTC]

Hello,

Just looking for a bit of advice/previous stories tbh..

My partner and I are attending our consultation at St Mary’s next month and I was hoping somebody could help advise on their experience/what to expect next.
We had our initial tests earlier this year, so we’re expecting to be told treatment recommendations/next steps in our appointment, but I wondered what the timings or the process is like from this point? We’re also hoping they will recommend we try clomid/letrozole before going through IVF, but I seem to get the impression they tend to go straight to the IVF option? Has anybody else had experience of this?

I’ve also seen a lot of people saying they managed to get a private referral to CARE manchester, but we didn’t get a choice when we were referred. Is this something we’re able to request? I get the impression care have better results so any positive st Mary’s stories would be much appreciated :)

Thanks

I was searching for private IVF thread recommendations and came across your post. I've just had the initial test appointment at Mary's and I've been told it's 62 weeks until the follow up appointment to discuss results and next steps 😳
How did you get on with Mary's? Did they go straight to IVF?

Hi @McJ10 - so sorry, not sure why I didn't see this sooner but it's only just popped up!! Hope you are doing okay?

In my experience, it was a lot less than this but I think it varies by individual. For reference, I am in my early 30s and had no male factor issues. We had initial tests in Jan 2024, and then we were seen by a consultant in October 2024. So I guess 9 months? What I will say is that I called up after 6 months to see where we were up to and that's when they booked me the October appointment, so definitely worth checking in around the 6 month mark (I don't even think they will entertain you before that).

Also, something to reassure you is that once you see your consultant there really isn't any waiting around after that point - you can start your treatment right away and everything runs nice and smoothly. I have 0 complaints about St Mary's and they have been fab for us! They have an app you will get access to where you have all the information and can message with questions at any time.

In terms of treatment, we were offered the option to go straight to IVF or try ovulation induction first. Since my primary issue was that I didn't ovulate, we opted to try that option first before IVF. For us personally, that didn't work so we ended up going for IVF in the end (again, all was very quick and patient led so as soon as we decided on that route we were given all of the relevant protocol). However, I know lots of people who that option has worked for so might be worth trying depending on your circumstances.

Hope you manage to get seen nice & quickly and wishing you lots of luck! Happy to answer any more questions if you have them :)