Assisted Conception and the bits inbetween

[soosy]

Welcome to the new thread I only hope I can link it to the old one

Hi Rattling and everyone else,

Londonlottie - I understand your hesitation about IVF, I was wavering for a while and we had a few bits and pieces going on in the summer which meant the dates didn't fall right but now we are going ahead with it I feel much better and more proactive somehow, although pretty scared.

We also had six months worth of clomid and were offered more but I didn't really feel that it was working and it was making my feel really ill and depressed which isn't good for the romance anyhow if you know what I mean.

We have 'unexplained fertility' but I think the problem is that I am not ovulating, at least not regularly, I am now 37.

Mowmi - good to hear that things are going well with you and I hope that everything continues positively for you. Make sure you rest up and take care.

So I am about to start downregging on Wednesday for my first cycle, let's see how that goes eh?

Hi all

Mowmi, congratulations on your great haul of eggs! Do you know how many were mature (and therefore expected to fertilise)?

Last time I had 10 eggs collected - a record for me - and only 5 fertilised though, which was really disappointing till the consultant said at the followup that only 5 eggs had been mature! Wish I'd known that at the time as I wouldn't have got my hopes up for a bumper embryo haul and blastocysts and frosties....

Had my blood test results back - FSH levels are now 10.3 (up from 9.6 last November) which isn't great. I'm assuming my clinic won't suddenly refuse to treat me as I've responded well to the two cycles this year, but it has made me feel a bit blue today. I'm all lined up for another cycle, starting to down reg in a couple of weeks, and these results have made me feel pressurised, that I need this cycle to work else I'll be too old.

Onionlove good luck for downregging this week, hope it goes well for you.

Soosy bummer about the house. Hope the vendors pay for being so greedy in the long run.

I've been without internet access all week as we had friends staying in the spare room/office....although DH has wired the cottage for wireless internet access etc (you could run NASA from the control panel in the attic) he can't control the fact the walls are mainly 4 foot thick and defeat wireless capability. I've been too busy to miss the internet, so have come back today to find virtually all my friends are pregnant and emailing the good news to all. I do hope it is catching and rubs off on all of us!

Hope everyone else is well and thriving....

Hi everybody, sorry have been away sorting out move. We move Monday and then it is a mere month til my appointment. Not entirely sure I am going to change clinics as I feel very old and I don't want to go through all the tests again, which I will have to do if I go to a private clinic. TBH not sure we can afford to go to another clinic. Sometimes I think I wanted to move to give me a reason to stop doing the IVF, not sure how I feel at the moment, we'll see what happens in Oct.

Congrats Mowmi! 18 eggs is fabulous, keeping everything crossed they make fab embryos.

OAP good to hear from you, you are not old but I know what you mean. I have to say after seeing Sooty's post and now yours about FSH, is it reliable indicator anyway! When I had my first cycle of ICSI, they gave me quite a high dose of FSH as my levels at 9.1 at the age of 28 were considered a bit high. I had OHSS and produced over 20 eggs. So I am beginning to think that these numbers are just that numbers. Wishing great things for your next cycle.

Sooty hope af arrives and you can make plans, I love a plan!

Onionlove downregging you are on your way good Luck!

Londonlottie I would talk to the clinics first but it is ultimately your decision. The Lister has a really good reputation esp for older women (over 35). Taranissi is quite $$$ driven, but also as a friend discovered they are results driven too and so if they don't think you will get results they may not treat you. The NHS cannot profit from your treatment, if you eligible for NHS treatment, and there is something to be said for that.

Hello to everyone else

Sx

Afternoon Ladies, Thanks for all your kinds words...

Heard back from the clinic - they did icsi on 16 of the 18 and 13 have fertilised! The plan is to put them back on Monday at the moment - they are calling me tomorrow to update me on how they are doing and have asked me to keep tomorrow clear in case they need to go back early, If they do well they might wait until wednesday?
Keep crossing those fingers for us!

Sooty - hope you get a visit very soon.

Onionlove - good luck with the downregging, it is scary but you'll feel like you're on the road - i felt fine on it (bar a few extra pounds at the end of it all!)

Only a phase - try not to worry about the numbers, I agree with sossy, you've responded well so far. I was told I'd only need a small amount of stimulation because my levels were low but I had one cycle abandoned because my ovaries did nothing and had to have my dose doubled (after threat of abandon again). on the 2nd. Surely If you respond well that's the best indicator of whether ivf is going to work for you?

Soosy - good luck with the move!

Thanks again for all your support so far.

xx

Hey LL don't stress out about drinking/ovulation. My friend took an ecstacy the night she conceived (forgot the contraception) and a number of Dr's assured her that until the last week of your cycle you can do no harm, and even then it is theoretical until week 5 (ie possible but highly unlikey).

mowmi - what a difference, from nearly cancelled cycle to 18 eggs and 13 embryos!! Fantastic!

Good luck for ET x

Virtual hugs to all those feeling down about stepping onto the IVF rollercoaster .

LL your dilema has brought home to me how I wish I had acted two years ago - I held on to the romantic idea of conceiving naturally for far too long. I think you're right to take decisive action and if my experience of dawldling and delaying helps someone else I am pleased. Good Luck with it.

It might be cheaper here in France. £4.5K sounds a lot.

Hello girls.

Well, after three years, four miscarriages, and two trisomies, I'm finally going to look into IVF with pre-genetic screening.

The two clinics I've been recommended are ARGC and the Lister, which specialise in us over-40s. Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these two? They both seem to have their own pros and cons: the Lister has an office in the City, which would be easier for me to get to, but ARGC operates at weekends, which would be more convenient... The lister seems quite nice and fluffy, but ARGC gets great results.

Hmmm....

Evening Ladies,

Quick update...everything is still going well, ET will be Wednesday now which means we'll be transfering blastocysts. Trying not to get too excited, trying to concentrate on the possibility of frosties to use if this one doesn't stick!

I can't speak highly enough of Mrs Nargund and her team - they have been fabulous since the day we walked through their door.
I'm not sure how she decides on natural IVF Candidates...think it suits women with regular cycles and or women with diminsihed ovarian reserve but I'm not really sure (wasn't an option for us).
In terms of Mild IVF she uses the minimum amount of stimulation required to do the job - I think if your FSH levels are fairly good this is the route she might send you down (we started on a low dose but had to double it to get my ovaries to respond and then reduce it again).

It must be difficult to choose a clinic - we were lucky enough to see Geeta at St Georges NHS and then followed her to Create when told we'd be looking at IVF (didn't want to wait 2.5 years for NHS treatment)

Herb - wouldn't let the weekend thing sway you... they all see you at the weekend when they need to during treatment. Once you get in to it you'll be dictated by the cycle as to when you need to go in - I'd suggest the one that is easiest to get to should win on that score.

Hope you're all well x