IVF July/August 2018

[Sunny1984]

Hey,

So like the title says really is anyone about to start an IVF cycle in July or August?

This is my first cycle and I’m excited/petrified!!! I would love to have some cycle buddies to chat to and for support. It’s all self funded as due to the postcode lottery we get no NHS cycles.

Just a little background. I’m 34, have been TTC for 2 and a bit years now, initial diagnosis PCOS and I had 7 cycles of Clomid which resulted in me falling pregnant in December but sadly I had a MMC at 11 weeks. I have since been diagnosed with endometriosis following an unexpectedly low AMH result. My right ovary is has a significant cyst.

I have an endometrial scratch on Monday and will begin down reg on Monday night. I’m a nurse so have no fear of needles but not sure how I’ll manage with injecting myself.

Really hope to have some company on this journey xxx

@35counting I took the day of collection off but nothing else. My transfer was on a Saturday last time though. I feel like I might take a few days post transfer this time, just to feel rested if nothing else. I didn't have an easy transfer though (was stuck with my legs in the air for 20 minutes while the nurse huffed and puffed (and might have even sworn) like she was birthing a calf.

I ended up getting a friend to post me ferinatal DHEA from the states. The only other one I've heard of in the UK is sold by biovea. It's flipping expensive but my consultant did recommend I give it a go. For other folks thinking about supps this is pretty much the only one you shouldn't take unless advised too. It can be counterproductive if you don't have lowel levels/diminished egg supply.

On Coq10 it's a good idea to find the ubiuinol form as apparently better absorbed by the body.

@gingergnome I'm enjoying 'everything I know about love' by dolly alderton at the mo

Thanks @cobblestones, all thinned our and they struggled to find my ovaries but I am all set for stims now, not looking forward to the extra injection every day, is anyone else on bemfola?

Dose is 300, not 350, nurse said it’s fairly high. I have 5 follicles one side and 7 the other, not sure whether that is good or not? It’s all very confusing!

Sorry @gingergnome and @tigergreen, I posted before I’d seen your latest messages, thanks for the tips. Our EC is planned for a week Wednesday (all being well) so ET should either be Saturday or Monday I think. Will try to factor in some time off.

@35counting I think 5 and 7 is a decent number! Fingers and toes crossed for you. Do you take your first stim injection tonight? I forgot to answer the qs about rest. I started off ivf in May thinking I’d rather be busy and stay distracted but I was quite uncomfortable due to too many follicles and ended up taking two weeks off work from 2 days before EC. Without ohss that would have been too long a period but with I felt that was right. If I was to have another ivf cycle without ohss I would opt for about 7-8 days off starting from a day before ec to a few days after et.

@ginger now that I reflect on it, it makes sense that they tested my prog because I’m on a frozen cycle which means no natural progesterone in me. Where as in a fresh cycle you would be producing your own and with cyclogest to bump it up a bit. But like everyone else I’m just guessing! Sometimes feel like half a doctor myself (read quack haha!)

@35counting great you can get started that sounds good to me. I just received a letter from the clinic from my last appointment and it said that my count was 9. I know last year when I was Polycystic it was 18 which I think it considered on the higher side! I’m being given max dose of 450 but it will be OVALEAP at a shocking £112 a day!! Is anyone else self funding? It scares me how much everything costs!!

@Cobblestones I will be having progesterone injections but Lubion which is SC so I can do it them myself. I think my clinic as a rule recommend the injections but when I was on Clomid I had early bleeding most cycles so I think they are being extra cautious. When do you start the IM? Let me know how they are, they are half the price so I keep debating them, just really not sure I can self administer!

I’ve heard really good things about this is going to hurt! I was going to get it having worked in the NHS for 16 years I don’t think much would shock me!!! I’ve probably got more time off than I need but that’s just because I couldn’t face the thought of being in charge of a neonatal unit and not 100% or having to change a shift last minute is a nightmare, oh and the sleep deprivation of nights I decided was worse than anything else for my body. I’ve got about 3 weeks off from next Thursday which will only be day 4 of stims!! I’ll need a lot of reading material!!!

Hi @sunny

I took the first one yest. Dh injected it for me as he had also done the one during stimms. I felt the pinch a lot more than I did the stimms but once I had taken it, it was pretty much ok. It only hurt if I pressed the area. However the angle needs to be perpendicular to the surface and being an oil based (acc to the nurse) you need a bit more force so I wonder if you can do it yourself. But given your experience maybe you can figure it out!

I’m also self funding. It all adds up really quickly!!

(Ladies you’ll have to forgive me I’m a bit too active here being at home with not much else to occupy myself with!)

Studies point to the importance of healthy CoQ10 levels in both male and female fertility. The research articles can be found here: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23912751 and here: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26111777.

It’s essential to choose a CoQ10 supplement that is both water and fat-soluble to be sure your body is actually absorbing it. Research shows that solubilized formulations of CoQ10 are absorbed better by the body and lead to higher plasma CoQ10 levels.
(Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Plasma+coenzyme+Q10+response+to+oral+ingestion+of+coenzyme+Q10+formulation)

Happy Saturday!
The rain has finally hit here and things feel so much fresher - thank goodness!
For the first night since starting cyclogest I didn't wake up in the night with an awful stomach cramp. Long may that continue!

Sounds like your time off is a great idea @Sunny1984. Must be very challenging working in a neonatal dept going through this. I also think that in the USA they recommend, basically, lots of rest. So while I don't think bed rest necessarily, not draining 12 hour shifts while you are having your meds and procedures can only be a good thing!

@Cobblestones, that would make sense, yes. Also, as I've been reading more about progesterone I have been wondering if mine is usually a bit low (they only did the one test so could be time of cycle/fluke?!) as, so far, I'm feeling quite good on the cyclogest compared to normal and to what people on other threads have described. I hope I have enough progesterone with this top up to support a pregnancy. Just have to trust the clinic... however, if this cycle fails, I'm definitely going to get them to investigate this further. Although I can't say I fancy painful bum injections so 'be careful what I wish for' springs to mind

@Tigergreen - I've just looked Everything I know About Love on Amazon, it looks really good. Are you enjoying it? I think it's going on my list.

Right, I have 2 days with nothing to do but try and distract myself from the 2WW. I used all my good ideas for stuff to do in the last couple of weeks! #fail

How are you doing at distracting yourself @Cobblestones?
Work was a godsend for me the last two days although I did still manage to clock up a good number of hours googling conception/IVF stuff. Including reading a really dull 'physiology of pregnancy' academic text book chapter, which was all the underlying biology of conception, which I understood about one in every three words of!
The good news is that tomorrow is the half way point for us - woohoo!

@Tigergreen I posted quickly - you clearly said in your comment you were enjoying the book! Thanks for recommending it.

I feel like a guerilla poster. I just come on sporadically, post tonnes and then leave. Sorry if I'm annoying!

Morning all, yes @cobblestones first stim last night, needle is much bigger than I expected unfortunately! (Don’t apologise for being too active, this is the first place I turn to for anything ivf at the moment!)

I am in a world of pain this morning though, feel like I have a really bad hangover, splitting headache and waves of nausea. I am hoping this is just an initial rush of hormones and that it will settle down. Last time I had something like this was just before I miscarried. Apparently the extra hormones mean your body pumps extra blood around the body which causes the headache somehow, perhaps that’s it?! Hope it doesn’t last long, going to have to cancel plans today and no way I could go to work feeling like this!

Did anyone else experience this with the stims?

I can totally understand why you’ve booked time off @Sunny1984, not an ideal work pattern for this experience. It must be so hard for you working in neonatal too. I am office based and reasonably quiet at the moment so should be able to get some down time.

Hi ladies

@ginger I enjoyed your updates. Tell us more about those ideas you used up in the first two weeks. And stomach cramps - were they more like dull lower abdomen cramps? I’ve had a comobination of those and vaginal cramps which I think are caused by cyclogest.. they’ve been a bit sporadic.

Yes so grateful for the rain and the lovely cool breeze!

And yes you don’t want these bum jabs! My bum is sore on both sides now 😣 fingers crossed you don’t ever have to ask the clinic about this.

@35counting oh those side effects sound horrible! Poor you! Hope they settle down. I wasn’t on a very high dose so the only thing I experienced were hot flushes during stimms. And ofcourse discomfort closer to ec.

I did much better at staying distracted today thanks to dh being around. We went to the movies and for dinner and before that during the day I found myself caught up with Sophie kinsella’s latest. Btw I’ve also taken up knitting and I quite enjoy it. Had started that during my ivf cycle in May and continuing with it now.

Hi ladies, mind if I join you? I'm on day 27 of down regulating! Been delayed a week due to some pesky ovary activity but fingers crossed all should be good to move to stims next week. For some reason, I am TERRIFIED of the next few stages- stims, egg collection, you name it! Can someone reassure me it's not that bad?

Hi @Springb0ks and welcome, day 27? That is a long time, did they not work well initially?

The previous posts on these from others were v reassuring for me. I’m afraid I can’t give you any reassurance re stims, I’m on day 2 of bemfola and my body is not enjoying the sudden hormone rush! Fingers crossed it is just the initial shock and will get better!

In my plan, the clinic wanted me to take the meds for 24 days but when I went for the baseline scan they found a thin lining but slight activity on my ovaries. All of their tests confirmed that I'm officially down regulated but I've had to give it another week to see if the activity goes/ stays the same and then (hopefully) move to stims. @35counting, I've been incredibly lucky that I've not felt a single side affect so far. Did you down regulate? Have you found stims much different if so? Hoping your symptoms clear up and you're feeling better soon!

Yes down regged for 14 days, been very tired and found it very difficult to concentrate at work but otherwise no real symptoms other than joint pain. I’m not feeling as rough this morning thankfully, full headache and some light nausea but nothing like yesterday thankfully!

*dull

@35counting glad to hear you’re feeling a bit better!! Hope it continues to get better as your body starts to get used to the hormones

@spring welcome! I was ttc for 4.5 years before I decided to start ivf, having spent 2 years just mentally preparing myself. So I can say with conviction that I was extremely scared and had built it up majorly in my head. However it really wasn’t half as bad. In fact, once you get used to taking the injections (which it sounds like you have given the long down regging) it passes quickly, you feel more in control (unlike the whole infertility nightmare we’ve been through) and it finally feels like you’re making progress. That’s how I felt. So don’t worry. We all are here to answer questions. Take it one day at a time. All the best!!

@35counting, so glad you are feeling slightly better!
@cobblestones, we've spent 2.5 years TTC and my worst nightmare was IVF and now that I'm here- it's not been too bad so far! I'm a real worrier though and panic over anything... and I completely agree, for the first time ever I finally feel in control of something.

Hi @SparklyShelle yes sounds like we are very similar, we are having ICSI too. Good luck for your first appointment, I found it such a relief to be finally taking the first step. We went with London Women's Clinic in Swansea and they were so helpful and explained our options, the whole process and timescales etc. We left the appointment feeling very excited and positive. My period has finally arrived! so fingers crossed start stimming tomorrow. Not looking forward to the injections and side effects but thanks to all the lovely ladies on here at least I sort of know what to expect lol.

Hi @KatieMcnic that’s fantastic!!! Good luck with the start of your stimming - the journey has begun 💕

I’m so worried about not making the BMI but will just have to eat grass for another week and a half and see what happens! 😱

I’m glad you’re feeling so well informed! This feed has been really useful as well - we all know that reading into things can be worse so actually to hear from all of you lovely ladies who are in the same boat really helps reassure those of us just a tad behind or those who just need a little pick me up when it all gets too much!

...so positive pants on...👙

Let us know how tomorrow goes, ✨ xx

Morning my loves, did everyone have a nice weekend? I spent mine on nights 🙄, the Suprecur has started to make me very ratty so very grateful for a day off!! Off for a scan today, hoping my ovaries are quiet so I can start stims, hoping the max dose won’t make me feel too awful 🤞🏻.

Welcome @Springb0ks you are my hero, I don’t know how you have survived 27days of downreg it’s made me feel so rough! Will you hopefully starts Stims today?

@35counting pleased to hear you are feeling a bit better now.

@KatieMcnic sounds like we will both be starting stims today. What drug are you on?

I can’t imagine working nights @Sunny1984, I don’t know how you do it normally, let alone whilst going through this. I really hope your first days stimming aren’t as bad as mine, I still have a full headache and feel sick in the morning and also had a bit of a hot flush this morning! Hope you, @Springb0ks and @KatieMcnic have a better experience on your drugs!

*dull - damn autocorrect!

@35counting they are pretty brutal when I normally only manage 3 hours sleep between them! So pleased I only have 2 more shifts and they are luckily days then I have 3 weeks off!
Just need to find things to keep me occupied, we are planning to sell our house so may try and get started with that.
What time of day are you doing the injections now?