Assisted conception (and the bits in between!) - part 3 - all welcome

[Caitni]

Right ladies, time for a new thread.

And a big welcome to everyone . Here's to many more success stories and healthy pregnancies!

ailz indian woman was 70 years of age and her sister was going for IVF aswell (i think she was 60) and didnt have kids, both sisters are married to the same man

nessandellis just wanted to wish you all the best. Had CD9 scan on Monday and they wanted me to abandon cycle and do iui as hadnt responded enough to drugs . Had to fight my corner for more time to stim. They didnt up my dosage - stayed on 150iu - but as the ladies on here assured me, a few days can make a huge difference and they were right (of course) Youre right to hang on in there - sending good vibes to your follies, hope they grow loads over the weekend and your scan goes better on Monday.

onlyaphase thinking of you and really hoping it was good news xx

Had another scan this morning - now have 8 follies between 26cmmm and 15mmso those little shrivelled Monday follies are now big and bouncy Friday ones and we are on for EC on Monday Looking forward to a needle free Sunday but bit nervous about EC. This whole thing feels like jumping through a series of flaming hoops not knowing whether youll go down in flames or not..

Hope you all have good weekend

Nessandellis yes wait til monday before making up your mind. your mind will probably be made up for you on monday anyway. positive or negative. the money you get refunded will go towards the next one hopefully, if you have to abandon, then wait and get loads of advice on what course to take meds-wise.
wishinanhopin oh my the pink discharge question, my oh my. it is a tricky one alright. I have had so many of these questions myself! My very honest opinion is that it is too early for implantation and too early for implantation bleeding, but there are women out there who have every implantation story under the sun. Implantation usually occurs about 8 - 12 days after ovulation i believe. it could just be bleeding from intercourse which is really common, if the area is tender. OR it could be a bit of blood from the release of the egg from the follicle apparently. My advice would be to ignore it unless it becomes heavy and keep having intercourse for a few more days at least. i think you have ovulated, possibly more than one egg. have you been scanned? good luck. someone else may have more info and speculation! i hope it is implantation!

Roseca thanks that answers some questions for me. shocking. crazy women. i felt so sorry for the spanish lady who died and left those two boys. i was crying. it is every mothers worst nightmare imagining what will happen to their children if they died. the british woman who was 72 really freaked me out, trying to get pregnant at 72!!!!!! and she was so frail! she could barely walk. When i was pregnant I had problems with my hips, when muscles really relaxed in preparation for birth, and i was 27! can you imagine how a 72 year old would cope. oh my god.
Bluebell imagine 26cm follicles! i would rather not! Great news about the bouncing follicles! good luck monday, you get a bit of a sleep anyway. you will be a bit sore, but put a hot water bottle on the area afterwards as much as you can and eat hot wholesome foods. Zita West has loads of suggestions, i will post them on here tonight or tomorrow for you. it is important to heal as much as you can before ET to give them best chance. OAP thinking of you too x

Sorry - just a quick post from me today (work is hectic and I'm hosting friends over tonight)

Bluebell - Congrats of fluffy follies! Wonderful news!

Nessanellis - I agree with the Sooty and Ailz, wait and see then don't be afraid to bail this time for a better cycle. Best of luck.

Roseca - baked goods sound so good - mmm samosas! I don't have that kind of talent, but I'm making due with new found veggie favs.

Cheesewurst update: still UNOPENED! YAY! NPA yes, they are of course, highly processed bundles full of everything bad one would ever hope to eat. (I really shouldn't have bought them) however a funny story: My DH told me that he bought food to have at work for his guys, and he's been eating another package there! HA! At least he hasn't touched the pack here at home, that would put me over the edge. Ailz- thanks for trying to shame me out of liking them, but I'm lost to the power of the cheese!

I've decided: WE NEED GOOD NEWS!!! I was thinking this morning, when was the last time we had a BFP in our thread??? (was it really LondonLottie?) We are DUE! Unfortunately, I don't think it will be me - not feeling any different than normal, and got somewhat weepy last night (weepy and randy are my signals of AF). I'm still on progesterone to help hold off the witch and give any little embys a chance... So I'm holding out hope for Roseca and Sooty - who's next to test after that?

OH - and I've lost a couple of pounds this week! YIPEEEE!

Sorry for absence of posts - when DH is at home I have to wait for the PC to be free, or try and crank up the incredibly slow laptop downstairs.
Anyway, we had 5 fertilised eggs overnight on Wed night, and I went in today for embryo transfer - 1 excellent 4 cell and one slightly less excellent 4 cell have been put back and now we just have to wait.

Actually we have to wait for ages and ages, can't test until 2 weeks on Sunday, and no early testing either as I have another shot of HCG to take in 4 days time, so that won't be out of my system until about then anyway. so I'd get a false positive. I'm sure I've read about this additional HCG shot being given as additional luteal phase support before, just have no personal experience of it myself. Whenever I've opened my mouth to question my new clinic's protocols I've always shut it again though, as their results are just so good it seems pointless to argue with them.

Sorry to not catch up with others on here, will be back on later on I hope

Hi Girls
Thanks for the reply Ailz. I have been reading up on the topic a little, and both your answers are very accurate. Implantation at this point is far too early. But yes ovulation can cause bleeding, and also it was the third day in a row we've tried so maybe I should be a bit more gentle LOL.
Here's hoping, and I do intened to keep trying the next couple days as the spoting is only pinkish and hardly there at all now.
Best of luck to all you babymakers out there.

Well I'm out. The witch has arrived early.

Let the downward spiral begin...

Ailz i felt sorry for that spanish woman too after all them years of looking after her mother and missing out on the most important thing ever motherhood until she was older and then cruelly being dealt a blow like that, she will still be in their hearts though and i am pretty sure that her nephew and his wife will look after them properly. crazy 72 year old woman I missed the very beginning of the programme but caught up with on Channel 4 OD and it turns out she has tried IVF a couple of times over the last six years or something like that and she is actually relying on egg donation aswell as human tadpoles without being horrible she is quite scary. You know what gets me with them ladies in India i was wondering if they were from a rich area sounds horrible but didnt seem like they did and when they were in the clinic did you see all the other older generation in for the same thing? There was no mention of how their treatment was funded

onlyaphase that is fantastic news good luck for monday and do take it easy 4 the next 2wks. i am almost at the end of my 2ww dont feel any different really apart from periodic AF pains (which worry me) and sore boobs but i have had them since i restarted Buserelin and Puregon. DH suggested a HPT cause the way i was feeling and i said no cause i dont want to think about the results until i have to

islegrin do you mean what i think you mean? i hope not

onlyaphase soz got it wrong way round meant to say well done

bluebell the good luck for monday message i posted to onlyaphase earlier was meant for you, guess i havent woken up yet lol.

anyway might be a bit early but i am going to post the mocha cupcake recipe on here now i wont go into detail on the cupcake bit cause it is straightforward enjoy ladies.

Mochacupcakerecipe
7oz caster sugar, 7oz unsalted butter softened, 2 tsp coffee granules, 1 tbsp boiling water, 4 eggs, 7oz self raising flour

for the icing
1 tbsp cocoa powder, 1 tbsp boiling water,
1 x 250g tub mascarpone cheese, 2 tbsp icing sugar, grated choc to dec

preheat oven to 180degrees/gas mark 4 cream sugar and butter dissolve granules in hot water beat into mixture add egg at a time then fold flour to combine bake in oven for 20-25mins or until spongy

For icing - dissolve the cocoa in the boiling water then mix into mascarpone cheese along with the icing sugar, spoon or pipe onto the cupcakes and sprinkle with chocolate (asda do choc 100's and 1000's which are equally yummy)
ENJOY AND HAVE A NICE WEEKEND

Roseca I'm not sure what you are thinking, but my AF started today, so there is no need for me to test until Tuesday.

I went into my doc's office to pick up the next round of injections for IUI. DH and I had decided to do 6 rounds of IUI, then one IVF round. But today, there just seemed to be no point to doing the 6th round. What would be so different than the first 5??? So if I'm going to throw a Hail Mary pass to the end zone, why wait??? (American football terms, sorry)

So, ladies - I'll need much of your wisdom and encouragement, but I'm finally graduating to the IVF group! Start BC pills tomorrow and EC and transfer in September. If this doesn't work, the options from here are slim pickin's. I'll keep my fingers crossed!

That's actually the scary part - not many options left. I've got to give it a shot, I can't go down without giving IVF a chance... so here I go. (what a difference a day makes)

islegrin i think i am a bit confused too early in the morning for me hadnt woken up yet soz for the confusion. but hey hope it works out for you

Hi lovely babymakin' ladies

Oh Islegrin boo boo hiss to the witch! So very very sorry that this one didn't work out. If I may say so, I think you're doing exactly the right thing by focussing forward, deciding what you want to do and getting set to do it. I always feel better if I can get on with what's next, rather than wallow in what's not next. You're clearly a strong and wonderful person who will be a brilliant mother - hang in there. And very good luck with the IVF - you've had some warm-up practice!

BTW, I did have a smirk over your AF symptoms - I just get weepy, without the randy - would quite like that And re eating things that make people like Ailz go euuuurch, my irresistable yucky snack is .... wait for it ... raw pastry eaten in pinches while cooking! I know, I can't explain it, but it's delicious and since I'm making a blackcurrant tart I've recently caved in to temptation! all together now, eeuuuuchhhh!

OAP, great news about the embies, sending you lots of sticky vibes and 16 bagfulls of baby dust arriving by stork, one for each day of your (loooong) 2WW. Are you managing to rest up and think dividing and growing thoughts?

Bluebell6 fabulous news about the follies! Grow grow grow! and very best of luck for Monday.

NPA I'm glad you're feeling up to posting again. It's grim when the baddies get you. And I can't believe all your friends having babies at once! That's a real kick in the gut - and possibly quite excluding for you too. But well done on getting to a more accepting place - apart from anything else, it's exhausting feeling angry, desperate and upset all the time, and much calmer when it stops! Your doses sound incredible - in fact, you're the only person I've come across on higher doses than me! Let's hope that this one does it...

Nessandellis , hello and welcome. I agree with the others (who are usually right!) give it your best shot but if you have to cut and run, there will be a way to give it another shot. I had to abandon my first cycle as a cyst on one ovary prevented a response, but the second one yielded 4 lovely fertilised eggs.

And Wishin , keep on sh@ggin'!!! I'm sure it was an ovulation bleed, everything's going in the right direction, so attagirl!

So I've finally got things heading in a better direction, and we're starting IVF again tonight. AF managed to turn up while I was on a 2 day work trip, which is a speciality of hers, but I couldn't stand the thought of missing yet another month so I cut it short with maximum complications and hassle and made it to the clinic for baseline scans this morning. I'm on 450 Gonal-F, 150 menopur, aspirin, heparin, and steroids - just waiting for the kitchin sink - so this is really our best shot!

LL hope everything's OK with you and the Zwilling!

Flibberty I hope you're feeling better.

Hi Ladies. Haven't posted for a few days as been very busy with my DS's 6th birthday party and a few major house renovations too!

Islegrin - So sorry about AF. Sounds like you have taken a positive attitude to IVF though whcih can only be good.

OAP - That's fantastic news. I'm keeping everything crossed for you. Take things easy.

Bluebell6 - That all sounds really positive. The very best of luck for EC on Monday.

Bumpless - Sorry to hear about the about bad timing of AF. What you posted has made me wonder something. What do all you ladies do about time off work for appointments, ultrasounds, EC and ET? Do you have to tell work why you need time off? I am not working at the moment, having been a SAHM for a while but am thinking very seriously about going back to work as I can't just stay at home waiting to see if I get pregnant and I feel I need to get on with my life in case we never manage to have a baby! On the other hand if a manage to get a job which would involve a small amount of retraining I would feel terrible for taking lots of time off and then maybe going off on maternity leave. I feel really torn. Any advice?

To everyone else I haven't mentioned I hope you are all having a great day.

Hi ladies
Sorry not been around all week, it has been somewhat hectic and I am somewhat shattered.

Islegrin -- sorry to hear about the IUI, I think you are absolutely right to go for IVF, why wait? - fingers crossed for you

sooty - hope you are doing ok, where are you re your next round?

OAP - great news on your embies, keeping fingers crossed for your 2WW and sending buckets of the sticky stuff to you.

NPA good to see you back again, hope you are doing ok

Bluebell - well done for sticking to your guns over your follies, sounds like they did well. I get really annoyed with the medical establishment at times, we know our bodies better than they do, so they need to stop treating people like the average! grrr makes me mad

ailz - hope you ok?

nessandellis and Wishin' welcome to this thread, hope things work out for you both. Ness - definitely waiting until monday is a good option. Even if you do have to abandon , at least you will have given it a chance, what more can you do than that? Keep thinking positively, I know it is hard, but IVF can and does work.

Wishin - does sound like it could be bruising from some rough bang bang or ovulation bleed (i haven't had the latter!). Implantation is normally 8-10 days post ovulation, when the embie is in the uterus and not in the fallopian tube. Hope the clomid works out for you.

LL - hope you are doing ok and aren't too tired/sick etc etc

had a bit of an eventful week. Started contracting on tuesday night at 34+6 days. and that sent DH and I into a mad, mad, mad panic. Way to early for baby to make an arrival, nothing organised, no one to care for DD. I had a bath and it seemed to stop them. So only a few twinges since. really need to hold off for another couple of weeks until I finish work.

Then y.day I was taken to hospital with suspected swineflu symptoms and issues with my breathing (it turned out to be a bad case of heartburn!!) the absolute shame [blush}, fortunately it wasnt me that called the ambulance or wanted to go, but my work insisted. I have never been so embarrassed in my entire life.

right off to tackle the ironing. oh the joys of domesticity..

hugs to you all xxxx

Roseca my sincerest apologies, I read my post again, and it sounded snotty - which wasn't my intention at all. I guess I was just concentrating on what else my earlier statment could have meant, so I was trying to be clear, not snotty. I hope you get your BFP on Tuesday!!! I was kind of hoping for a couple of positives for this group.

Bumpless thank you for your kind and understanding words. I'm excited because this option takes my bad tubes out of the equation, but tbh I'm scared. This all seems so final, so big and the what-ifs keep floating around in my head. Then I get this gut feeling that IVF will work and I know from seeing all of you post, that once you get into it, it's not that big of a deal (right???).

Oh well, it is what it is! The nice thing is that I love my life how it is now, and love my DH. Unfortunately those are the reasons why I want to share this life with a kid or two. It's a double-edge sword. Actually, it's kind of the opposite of that because it's all good things, so it's kind of like losing weight on a chocolate diet!
heee hee - ok the thought of that cheered me up!

BTW - 3.8 lbs gone this week! got a lot more to go!

islegrin i didnt take it as a snotty reply dont worry it was honestly probably too early for me to be on here as i werent awake yet

Hi everyone, i am fine, just have not had chance to post anything. i have read all the posts above but not had chance to reply yet. will do so later today. NATURALLY I have a lot to say! take care everyone x

Islegrin good news on the weight front, and you sound really together on the no-more-IUI-and-onto-IVF-plan. It is good you can start so soon, nothing more irritating than hanging around waiting for things. Can I ask why you were doing IUI if you have dodgy tubes? My remaining tube is buggered, so there was never any option than IVF for me.

Flibberty nothing like an over-reacting manager to send you off to A&E! How funny (for us, not you!). Hope you are well and keeping your feet up as much as possible

Gingerwine for time off for treatment etc it hasn't mattered since I had DD as I stopped work then anyway. Prior to that I either took sick leave for my exploratory operations or EC, and was just very late into work for the rest of the time. My clinics have always had scans and blood tests first thing in the morning to give working women a fighting chance of getting to work, and now I don't have to rush I take the later appointments so they can have free run at the early ones >> as I remember how awful it was to get to work at midday and still have a full days work to do.

Well, two days after ET here and I wonder how on earth I'm supposed to get through the next two weeks. I am aching all over (presumably from being tense during ET) and am overcome with depression and boredom. And it is raining and windy outside. Really I'd like to go to bed for the next two weeks with a stack of light reading, but this isn't an option. I do hope this is a reaction to one of the many drugs I've taken this last 4 weeks, and that I feel more positive tomorrow. Far too early to symptom spot yet, so I haven't even got that to occupy my mind.

Hi to everyone else >

Hi all

feeling a bit down i have this awful feeling that AF is coming to visit no pain as such have a bit of discharge need i say more. bl**dy typical the day before i am meant to go for a pt feel a bit gutted havent told DH yet

Roseca it is pointless to tell you not to worry, but chin up, the day isn't over yet.

Hope it all turns out well for you, fingers crossed

((((Roseca)))) only time will tell. Hang in there, even if the witch gets you this time, there's still hope!

OAP I'm glad your ET is complete, 2 wonderful embys! Glad you mentioned HCG during the lp, never heard of that before, but your new clinic sounds well-experienced and growing babies! The tww can certainly seem like a let down (not much to do compared to all the prep) and no information, scans, blood tests... JUST WAITING! Books sound like a great idea, maybe just squeeze one is as you can? Music can be another great distractor and you can listen while doing other tasks.

RE: IUI - I had an HSG done and one tube was blocked from an ectopic 4 yrs ago (no surgery), the other one they said was open. That's why we were trying IUI, plus the cost factor/ invasiveness of IVF. So we wanted to give it a more than decent shot. I think we have, and it's time to move on.

I'm thinking about it a lot, even dreaming about it every night. It's a big deal, lots to prepare for mentally.

Roseca -- fingers crossed for tomorrow. Your emotions are bound to be up and down. I can remember quite clearly being up one minute then thoroughly down the next with the oh bugger it hasn't worked feeling. Hope you manage to get through this eve and I really hope tomorrow brings some good news for you.

OAP -- you need a 2ww plan. I hated mine both times, it just dragged and dragged, but was def shorter 2nd time around with dd to run around after and I went back to work and had xmas to think about just before my POAS date. However I caved 2nd time and tested early. Good luck.. it will pass, again fingers crossed for you.

islegrin - Going the IVF route for the first time is a big deal, in fact each time is a big deal, but it does get easier in terms of the process, not the emotional baggage. But try not to worry too much. You are giving it all a shot. If you have had an ectopic before, it shows you can get pregnant. Does your clinic take embies to 3 or 5 day embies? -- Good for you that you are losing weight. I am so bad at it. But I need to shift lots!

Ailz --- hope you ok?

((((((roseca)))))) sending you hugs. Really hope it?s not as you think and its just those evil hormones at work. Fingers and toes crossed for your test.

OAP I think you?re right could be a side effect of taking all the drugs. Not sure about a stack of books what about a stack of chocolate or comedy clips or music on youtube? Hope you feel a bit better tomorrow.

Islegrin sorry to hear your news. I hope you get the support you need to make the right decision about your next step.

Hi to everyone else. This is just a quick post am having early night in prep for tomorrow. Feeling v nervous...