Starting ICSI in the New Year. Join me?

[Craftycakey15]

Hi all. I am currently ten days in to taking Microgynon to suppress my ovaries before we start the ICSI process right after my clinic opens in the New Year. I am 40 and my husband is 41. I have mild PCOS but was told that my greater egg count meant that we had about a 50% chance of conceiving in an ICSI cycle. Trying not to be scared and look forward to hopefully a positive outcome from this process. Anyone else starting ICSI soon? Good luck to us all and to all already on the journey. Let's share our positivity and all we are doing to take care of ourselves.

Hi all.
Well I started the Cetrotide this morning. It took me about 20 minutes including calling the clinic to ask for help in how to do it (I couldnt get the first mixing needle off!). I have had no side effects yet. I am suffering with anxiety about the whole thing, and havent slept properly for three weeks. I am worried its going to affect the outcome :( No matter what, it is so much money for us and I'm also worried about the effect of ICSI on my body long term.

I hope I dont get the itching Bananafish. I expecting symptoms to kick in soon now its been a few days of injections.
Gottahavefaith - how's your mood? Can you plan any treats like a beauty treatment to cheer you?
MehMehMeh - I hear you re the protein. I am trying to drink a pint of milk today and its gross. Not managed it the past couple of days but having my protein balls. Probably put on weight from trying to eat all this extra protein lol.

bananafish how are you doing?

Craftycakey how is it going? I'm doing ok with the milk, but only having small glasses of it. I bought the protein balls you suggested and they're not bad. I might stock up now. They're handy to eat after a run.

I've got my period/withdrawal bleed and am grumpy as all hell. But stressed with work and want next week to be over...I definitely have this overwhelming feeling of wanting to run away and be left alone.

crafty I asked my Dr that specific question and he said negative thinking absolutely couldn't affect the outcome although it was likely to make the whole experience tougher going emotionally. I have some terrific IVF guided meditation / relaxation Mp3s that I find completely brilliant to help me deal with washing machine brain and help to get me off to sleep. Maybe worth a try?

Also there is absolutely no evidence of any long term impact of ICSI on your body - apart from pregnancy, after which your body will never be the same again!!

BTW don't worry about the Cetrotide. We fucked it up royally the first time we did it. Forgot to swap the needles before trying to get rid of an air bubble and squirted what felt like half the syringe out in a giant cascade of liquid. Didn't do any harm other than a stonking row between DH and I!!

Mehmeh I'm OK. 2ww going at glacial pace. Dr told me a very very cautious 12dp5dt (12 days post 5 day transfer ie equivalent to 17 dpo) which means not caving and testing early will become more and more challenging. Triple boots points this weekend so might as well stock up on FRER!!

If this one doesn't stick we will get right back on the bike and go straight into a FET cycle with one of our frosties. Hoping we don't have to defrost anything for a couple of years, but if not then we'd be looking at another transfer some time before the end of Feb...

Hi all, back to see how you are all doing?
Bananafish any news???

I had my ICSI egg collection yesterday - 35 of them. I was worried I would have OHSS as I felt so bad yesterday. Today I do have some abdominal pain but its bearable, cant really do much as it hurts to walk around. Did go out to the supermarket though. They also found a problem with the sperm that the percentage of mature sperm in my partner was 30% as opposed to the usual 65% so they proposed they do the PICSI procedure which we, of course, agreed to.

I got a call from the lab to say that 22 are mature enough for fertilisation and that tomorrow morning they start to test the quality. Fx for all of us.

Holy moly Crafty you're an egg laying machine!!! I hope they're keeping a close eye on you? You really don't want to risk a fresh transfer if you're hyperstimulated, please rest up and drink loads of fluids. And if you feel in the slightest bit ropey give your clinic a call!

Congrats on such an epic haul and hoping for a terrific clutch of embryos

I was naughty and tested early on Sunday (8dp5dt) and got a blazing BFP line on a FRER Blood tests on Tuesday and Thursday confirmed I am officially up the duff, going back on Mon for a repeat to check things are rising as they should

Hope the rest of you ladies are all well xx

Wow that's a great haul crafty! Fingers are crossed for you!

Congratulations bananafish! That's fantastic news!

I'm ok, conference at work is over and I was soo happy with it all I had a glass of champagne to celebrate! Nurse said to me on Monday that I can have it and that it's a mental thing really. I'm definitely glad I had it, have been stressed for so long! Started stimming on Wednesday which is interesting! I feel bloated already. Bit sad about having to slow down my running but hopefully it will all be worth it.

The stimming has made everything so real for me now...I'm rather scared of it all now - well mostly the outcome of the treatment and the very real risk of it failing. Meh

Bananafish congratulations! I am so pleased for you! I hope all continues well with your pregnancy. :)

Meh I know how you feel about the swimming. That's where it all gets real and it is a worry. The whole process is tough and we can only take one day at a time.

I am not sure if how I'm feeling today is normal, the day after egg collection. I'm better than yesterday as I dont have nausea but I do have constant abdominal pain and hate this bloating. I am having at least 2 litres of water but don't feel I'm weeping that much and it, of course, hurts when I go. I will tell the embryologist tomorrow when she calls.

P.s. bananafish when did your pain end after egg collection? I'm really worried they won't do the transfer this cycle and just want to get on with it! Don't know what's normal

Crafty honestly that doesn't sound fantastic - I would definitely speak to your clinic. I know the prospect of freezing all isn't nice, but you do not want to fuck around with OHSS. And if you are hyperstimulating the chances of a successful transfer are much much greater with a FET than with a fresh transfer - some Drs think the future of all transfer will be frozen because the uterine environment may be more receptive than in a fresh cycle when it's disrupted by high stims. So if it comes to it, it will be the best thing for you and for baby. I hope it doesn't but the main thing is that you are in good nick!

I was sore the day of collection and then pretty much fine thereafter. Hoping you feel better soon!

Mehmeh I think a glass of fizz was practically medicinal! You're doing amazingly. You gotta be in it to win it, and you are absolutely in the game xx

Bananafish I have been in touch with my clinic daily. They think I just have mild OHSS and I am booked to go in to embryo transfer tomorrow. Thankfully the pain got better the last two days but I have had to take it easy still as I do get pain. I am only taking paracetamol once/twice a day but still have some bleeding and pain going for a wee.

The egg quality has been good, I have 20 out of 22 very good quality as of yesterday. They didnt update me today as it's day 4 but they will give me the final update tomorrow. I will be freezing some and putting two back in to me as I am 40 years old.

Hope all going well in early pregnancy?

crafty hope everything goes well today. Amazing to have so many fantastic embryos and hopefully lots of great frosties. Hope you're not feeling too uncomfortable?

All OK here although it doesn't feel quite real. Three blood tests all looking good but now another 2ww until my scan at 7+1. Just desperately hoping for symptoms so I can feel some sign it's hanging on in there

I wonder if women without fertility issues (or history of mc) feel quite so anxious - feels so presumptuous to think just because I got a BFP that I will get a baby 9 months later. I was reluctant to even make a GP appt in case it's tempting fate, but I'm high risk so DH and I thought best to bite the bullet and assume I will continue to be pregnant unless we have good reason to suspect otherwise

Bananafish - so pleased all your blood tests look good. How exciting that you are waiting for your first scan. Good luck!

I completely understand what you say about feeling anxious even though you got a BFP. After trying for a baby for so long and having had a miscarriage myself, I find it hard to imagine ever having what I long for too...even though I have had very good results from embryo transfer: they said that the two embryos transferred were very good quality and I was told today that they are freezing another seven of the same quality.

Nine days to go now to test!

Yay crafty hope the next nine days fly by! Fingers crossed and I am thinking good things for you!

bananafish my champagne was medicinal hehe.

I have my day 10 scan tomorrow and feel uncomfortable already. It's weird. Part of me is hoping that the EC happens towards the end of next week (feel a little guilty that I will make life difficult for my boss in the early half of the week due to half term and others being off) but then I don't really want to wait either! Gah

Thank you but I think I'm out for this cycle. I had some fresh blood yesterday evening and again tonight (2dp) . To have this right after transfer isn't a good sign.

Good luck - it can and does work! My first go at ICSI resulted in DS who will be 14 in 2 weeks! Hope you are as lucky!

Thank you. I called and spoke to a different nurse today who told me to increase my progesterone pessaries from 2 to 3 a day. They will call me on Monday but I'm pretty sure this is all too late.

Craftycakey I hope you're ok, my fingers are firmly crossed for you.

bunnygirlie how are you doing?

bananafish how is everything going?

My EC is booked in for Tuesday...eek!

Crafty tonnes of hugs, I hope the extra progesterone helps, and that it’s an implantation bleed and nothing more sinister. We’re all rooting for you - hope you can be kind to yourself in the mean time until test day. And amazing to have so many frosties

Mehmeh sounds like your scan went well if your EC is booked for Tues, woop! Enjoy your drug free day tomorrow

bunny hope the stims are going well

gottahavefaith thinking of you

All OK here, kind of wish I had more symptoms to reassure me something was going on!

xx

Hi all,
Hope you all had a good weekend and are all feeling ok at your various stages.
After I spoke to a different nurse about the bits of fresh blood (on 3dp5dt, Saturday) she told me to increase the pessaries to three a day and that has stopped the bleeding of any type at all. They called me to day there is nothing I can do now but just wait til Friday to test. It's going to be a long week. I have no symptoms at all but no idea how I should be feeling.

Bunny - welcome, hows it going?
MehMeh -how are you feeling? It's amazing when that horrible bloated feeling is gone after EC. Good luck with it.
Bananafish - did you have any symptoms in the two week wait? I feel nothing. Stupidly did a test today, 5dp5dt and got a clear negative. God, stupid I know. Are you getting any symptoms yet?

x

Crafty glad to hear you've upped the progesterone and that seems to have helped

I listened to a lot of guided meditation / relaxation Mp3s (you can get the Zita West one from iTunes) and did quite a bit of adult colouring!

I had bugger all in the way of symptoms, apart from a crampy periody feeling - which at the time I told myself was just the progesterone (as anything anyone says they feel is just as likely to be the progesterone as anything else), although I was obv hoping it was mythical implantation cramping

Otherwise nada in the 2ww xx

God the bloody bleeding is back! I have really bad insomnia so am going to listen to the Zita West meditations. Good idea re the colouring books! I bought one and haven't touched it yet

Good luck today Mehmeh xx

Thank you I'm currently tucked up on the sofa with a cup of tea. Starving now too!

We got 7 eggs...hubby had to give 2 samples and so now I'm a bit worried about that. Fingers are firmly crossed that we get some embryos that are good!

The magnificent 7! Hope you have a restful day while your eggs and his sperm get jiggy in the love lab overnight (cue Barry White music!)

With ICSI they only need 7 good swimmers so I am sure in two samples there will be 7 great ones! Xx

Hehe, nice imagery there bananafish! Thank you, I really hope we got some sperm and good ones with minimal dna fragmentation...gah!

Fingers and everything are firmly crossed now xx