Ivf and holidays

[GinAndSlimlinePlease]

I'm recovering from a mc, and due to start ivf on a few months. No exact date yet.

I want to go on holiday in late May/early June. But I don't want to leave it too long before starting ivf (all being ok with my referral etc). It is possible for me to be away during the start of ivf? If I take all my drugs with me? it'll only be 5 days in France.

It'll be my first ivf so I've no idea what to expect. I do know that I'll be on a high dose of drugs. so frankly, if I feel shit, I'd rather be in leave then work.

Oh, and I have a limited window to go on holiday in. so I can't play with dates. and I'm being a bridesmaid and going on proper holiday in August so want to compete ivf within that window.

Am I being naive? I'd be going away to see a friend I haven't seen for years as she moved to Australia. so it is really important I do go see her when she's in Europe.

You can go on holiday during down-regulation, in fact I'm doing just that over Easter.

Down-reg lasts for 2-3 weeks (although you might want to check with your clinic as they might do things differently). You'll need appointments at the beginning of down-regging to go through process with a nurse, and appointments at the end for scans to check it's worked. But in between you can go away.

BUT timing of starting down-regging is determined by your cycle - you start down-regging around day 23 of your cycle, so if may be hard to predict exactly when you will start / finish, especially if your cycles are irregular. If you can't be flexible with dates it may not be the best idea.

Do you know what ivf protocol (drug schedule) you will be on? Most people do what is known as the long protocol, where you down regulate for a period of time before starting stimulation drugs (down regging normally takes a couple of weeks starting from day 21 of your cycle). If thats the case, going on holiday during the start of down regulation would be fine. You inject once a day, the drugs don't need to be kept in a fridge and you don't tend to feel too crap. You normally need to attend for a scan a couple of days after your period starts (normally 7 ish days into down regulation) so you'd need to be back for that. Once you start on the stimulating drugs you'll be having scans every couple of days so would need to be in the country. Good luck with it.

X post with nightmare spoon. Agree with the point about timing being a bit unpredictable especially if your cycles aren't spot on.

Also IVF can take around 7 weeks from start to test date, sometimes even longer if it doesn't go exactly to plan. So you need to make sure you start by June at the latest if you want it all over and done with by August.

I also arranged to go on holiday for the down regulating stage of the long protocol. I started down regging on day 21 and made sure I could get home for my first scan (which was two weeks later). It worked really well for me because it helped the time pass! I told my clinic what I was planning to do and they were fine with it. Good luck x

Thanks everyone, these are really helpful. I'm really torn as to what to prioritise! I certainly can't wait until autumn before ivf!

I don't yet know what protocol I'll be on. The doc said I'll need do strength of drugs to get the eggs out, but other than that I know nothing

I think I'll investigate flights but only buy cheap ones if any.

I found my clinic really helpful in working around holidays & work commitments. Just a note of caution that once you start stimulation you have to be available for frequent scans. Also, if you overstimulate (as I did) you may have to 'coast' which can extend the process before egg collection. If this is your 1st attempt I might be best to try not to juggle it with the holidays as you can't be sure how your body will react to the drugs. The emotional side can be tricky if it doesn't go to plan so be kind to yourself. X

Is there a specific reason such as age that you can't wait until September? IVF isn't just physically hard, it can be emotionally draining too, so it might be better to get any distractions out of the way first. I know waiting is hard when all you want to be is pregnant, but it might serve you better in the long run.

Apparently I don't need to worry about overstimming. It was my main worry but apparently they'll needed to pump me full of drugs to get anything. Nice...

The main hurry is that I really want to be doing something positive about everything. consultant said I should get in as soon as I could. Once I've recovered from mc.

opposite to the last message-if you have short protocol, going away won't be an option.
I had to have regular bloods and scans during stim so couldn't have gone anywhere. I was really lucky in that i didn't feel poorly at all so that side of things wouldn't have been a problem but I had to go to clinic every other day until I was ready for collection. its so they can adjust your drugs accordingly for best possible yield and to avoid over stim so you really wouldn't want to miss those scans and bloods.