Abc IVF

[computersaysso]

Has anyone recently had IVF with abc IVF? They have approved me for a frozen cycle only at the moment.
Do you know if they are only doing frozen cycles in light of the pandemic.
We have mainly chosen them due to low cost. I appreciate that the low cost means cut backs in certain areas, but I'm often waiting for 1-1.5 hours on the phone to speak to a central phone line for all branches.
It's tricky as I know that IVF is really down to the individuals body response, but I still feel that decisions made by doctors about medication doses etc are important.
Keen to hear about others experiences.

@Beaglemum91 I hope they sort it for you. Thanks, I get my medications delivered tomorrow xx

Does any1 happen to have an email address for Linda? Xx

Little update from me. My nurse from Cardiff clinic phoned to check how I was yesterday and made an appointment to see me today as I had been so unwell. (Bristol clinic also phoned me with an after care call which was nice). Turns out I do have mild OHSS ... explains the pain and why I've felt so dreadful. I was told I should have rang for advice when I was so unwell the night of the op.

I prob won't feel fully better until i bleed in about a week. If we have embryos we will be looking at starting treatment when we get the next period (after this bleed).
Hope you ladies are all well xx

Oh @StarryHannah I'm so sorry to hear that. Its hard to know what to expect and what warrants a phone call when you havent been through it before. Wishing you a speedy recovery.

@Beaglemum91that sounds really quite annoying. I know some GPs are so anti any investigations etc whereas some are willing to do it. I was also told after my ectopic by the hosp that the NHS does do everything to get you ready for IVF i.e. tubal removal etc. but stops short of providing the actual IVF if you already have a child. My GP didnt seem to agree with this either...

Just a quick update from my side. I went back in for a scan today and there is a sac and yolk in uterine. No fetus or any sign of a heartbeat. I really can't see this ending in anything other than a miscarriage as by this stage in the game in a normal pregnancy there should be a visible fetus at the very least. Sac is also small. Guess the only good thing is that an ectopic can be ruled out so I think the EGU are much more relaxed now. I have to go back in another two weeks for another scan. Unless of course, I miscarry before that. I feel like I'm on a really extended 2ww but with a lot less hope for a good result!

@StarryHannah I am really sorry to hear! I suppose you don't really know until you go through it. But not to worry it will all be fine.

@edibletreats I'm sorry to hear! What can you do just see how it goes for the next scan and it might all just be ok fingers crossed xx

@edibletreats sending you love ❤ xxx

Thank you for your kind thoughts everyone. We have had good news. As you know from 10 eggs 6 fertilised. On day three we had four good embryos ( 2 x grade 1 with 7 cells, 1 x grade 1 with 8 cells, 1 x grade 2 with 7 cells and slight frag, plus we had a grade 3 and a four cell). So they took them all to today which is 5 day and we not have three good frozen embryos... a 3AA, 3BA and a stage 1 which she said was good enough to freeze as she was happy with development. So we are super happy.

My bleed started today too (just 5 days after egg retrieval) so my OHSS will be gone very soon. Next steps now are to book in our frozen transfer on my next cycle 😊 I'm wondering if i can expect my next period in my usual 28 days now? (as this bleed is 12 days earlier than what my normal period would have been) xxx

Hi everyone, been reading this thread for a while and you all seem like a really friendly and supportive bunch! It's been super useful hearing about all of your experiences with ABC, I'm very grateful for your insights.

StarryHannah - congratulations on your great results - having three such good quality embryos is amazing!

I hope you don’t mind me joining in, but I wondered if I could ask a question about ABC? I’m hoping to start IVF at ABC Manchester in the near future. I have my first consultation and scan etc in early/mid April. How quickly can you start IVF after the scan? Will you be told on the day of the scan whether or not you're eligible for treatment at ABC (based on fertility tests I had done about 6 months ago, I think I fit the criteria)? How quickly after that can you start treatment? Is it unrealistic to think I could start in May?

@loulou2021 welcome 😊 Yes you will find out on the day if you are eligible. I also took all my results from a previous clinic with me. If you have everything they require like up to date smear, as soon as you have your bloods done with them and have the meds delivered in time you can start that cycle. As soon as you have your treatment consultation following your baseline scan you will be phoned by a patient coordinator to pay deposit and book bloods. When everything is confirmed okay the coordinator calls you to pay the rest and book delivery of your meds.

I would have caught my first cycle but had to wait for smear results, so I started on my next cycle! They are much faster than other clinics who have a waiting list xxx

@loulou2021 i also would of caught this cycle if i had already had my rubella vaccine so have to wait until next cycle due to not having it, good luck xx

@StarryHannah thanks so much for your reply. Yes I was thinking that it was probably a good idea to bring my previous test results with me - I'll definitely do that. The reason why I'd be keen to start in May is because my best friend has moved her wedding and hen weekend to July and August and I think that would interfere with treatment if I started in June or July (I'm bridesmaid so can't miss either events), so it could end up delaying things by quite a few months, which isn't ideal. But I'll wait to hear what the clinic say about timescales in due course.

Thanks @Icsi2021 for your reply. It's reassuring that it looks like the clinic can move quite quickly once you get booked in. I thought it might be slow as I've had to wait over a month to be able to get the initial consultation.

Is it possible to get the bloods done before the scan etc? I'm booked in for fertility bloods at my GP next week anyway and get my AMH test back in a few days too. I'm just wondering if I'd have to have them all repeated when they've all been done within 2 weeks of the scan and consult anyway? I guess what I'm asking is are there anyway 'special' bloods that I need that wouldn't be included in my ones next week

Welcome @loulou2021. I'm also with Manchester. If it helps I had my scan and initial consultation on November 20th and consultation a few days after, they said i met criteria at the scan but said it would be confirmed at the consultation. I then booked my treatment consultation for 6th Dec I think it was. They said it could be 3 weeks to get a treatment consultation but both my first and refresher have been booked in within 2 weeks. Meds were then ordered and arrived about a week later and I started on my cycle 1st Jan so very quick depending on when you're period's fall around your appointments. I emailed all my previous info to them before my scan so they had it ready in the system.
@Bean99 the bloods they do are for non communicable diseases like hiv, hep a etc so they have to do them before treatment can start. Nothing should be repeated if you have it.

@StarryHannah sorry to hear about your OHSS but sounds like you have some great little embryos ready for when you get better!

@Beaglemum91 thanks for the reply. That's great that things moved so quickly for you. I'm hoping for similar timescales, although I have irregular cycles so can't be sure exactly when on May my period would arrive. Will just have to wait and see I guess.

Now that my consultation is booked I'm hoping it will give me the kick I need to tidy up my diet a bit. I eat healthy meals but I am also a serial snacker (I have a really soft spot for chocolate and wine). Who knows if that kind've stuff actually makes a difference, but feels like I should try!

@loulou2021 hopefully it's a similar timeliness for you! I started eating healthier although I already did as I cook from scratch each night and don't drink alcohol or fizzy drinks. I cut out caffine and I'm down to decaff tea only. I love chocolate, especially over Christmas so it was hard to cut that down but I just didn't buy as much as I normally would and that worked. I cut down on sugar generally and didn't eat any chocolate throughout stims and had it as a treat after EC. You just do what you are comfortable with. Ita been really hard for my DH so we're cutting things back as hes comfortable with so he can still have some things he enjoys.

@StarryHannah forgot to say, the IVF cycle messed up my first real cycle after and I was 4 days late (total mind) and was more emotional than I normally am. It does mess with your bodies natural hormones so don't worry if it's not a normal 28 days cycle!

@StarryHannah. Hi I was interested in reading your story as you are in a similar position. I have high estrogen levels and will have to have a frozen cycle after egg retrieval on Tuesday. What is abc policy on FET after OHSS?

@Beaglemum91 sounds like you've got a really good balance of cutting out stuff out but letting yourself have something as a reward if you want it eg after EC. We have male factor and I'm trying not to put too much pressure on my DH to cut too much out. He already eats really healthily and doesn't drink much. I haven't asked him to cut out caffeine as he enjoys a couple of cups in the morning, I'm pondering whether I should (I'm now drinking decaf tea and coffee). Do ABC give you any advice on things you should cut out or do they leave that you to to decide on your own? At the clinic where we did our investigative tests they pretty much said there was no point in cutting anything out as we already eat healthily and don't drink much. But then there's so much on the internet that says otherwise, it's hard to know what to do!

Hi @Mellow89 I have had to have FET due to high AMH causing high oestrogen levels, and I'm glad as I did develop mild ohss and was quite poorly even though only mild. It was 2500 for standard ivf, 995 for freezing of embryos for two years. Patient coordinator phoned me today and confirmed I will have a reduced FET price of 1050 and I have to pay 50 extra for meds. I had my egg retrieval last Monday, my embryos were frozen on Saturday which was day 5, and I had detailed treatment summary emailed to me today with my embryo grades etc. My period also came Saturday which was just 5 days after retrieval. My nurse is allowing me to start the meds ready for FET on my next period. The patient coordinator has told me to phone about two weeks before my expected period date, they will then book me in for online appt with the nurse a week before my period is due. Following this online appt my patient coordinator will call to take payment and then my meds will be sent to me. No injections this time around. Tablets start on day two of period and I will have a couple of scans to check how my womb is doing. I'm with ABC in Cardiff but had to go to Bristol for egg retrieval and will go there again for FET. Let me know if you have any further questions x

@loulou2021 they didn't say much at all for the first round apart from a healthy lifestyle etc. After that was unsuccessful they recommended antioxidants etc and I think it gave DH a reality check that he needed to do what he could yo improve his sperm. He is American and didn't have a very healthy lifestyle before coming here and ecen though It has improved a lot he was still having coffee, dark soda (caffine) lots of sugar and alcohol, though nowhere near what he uses to over there. He started to make small changes before our cycle but got really serious after the failure as I think it hit him that ivf isn't a magic solution. It probably didn't help that we were given hardly any advice on the matter so most has been my own research on medical papers. He now doesn't drink (though did on his birthday), has cut down on sugary drinks opting for diet, only has zero caffine dark sodas, less dairy/cheese (probably the hardest one for him) and has his anti oxidents and omega 3 each day. We will see how our next cycle goes and then see if we can get more tests. Unfortunately as he is from the USA he gets no fertility treatment on NHS so we're having to do it all ourselves privately and had no idea where to even start.

Warning on waiting time at CRGH

i had two horrible experience with CRGH recently

1. in jan 2021 i went there for a baseline scan and registered at the front desk. the receptionist asked me to go to the second and wait. i waited nearly 2 HOURS. during that time, i went downstairs several time to check the status and why it took so long. they told me that they overbooked. after two hours, i lost my patience, and spoke with a nurse. she said that i am not on their system. it turned out that the receptionist foegot to check me in, despite the fact i spoke with him several time! total waste of time!

1. a couple of weeks ago, i went in for another scan. i checked in at the receptionist as usual. they asked me to wait downstairs because waiting room upstairs are full. i waited for an hour, and during that time, there are a couple of patients came earlier than me are still waiting and kept asking the receptionists whats going on. eventually i got my appt. the nurse told me that she didnt understand why receptionists kept sending ppl with later appt come up instead of patients with earlier appt. she actually called my name and several other patients names, but because we were told to wait downstairs and didnt hear it.

ivf is extremely time, financial and emotional comsuming, and having these kinds of experience really put people off. id recommend people who go to crgh be aware of their recrptionists

Hey ladies

Hope you’re all well.

I had my baseline scan today at Wimbledon and they have said I need to have Rubella and another bloody test and my partner needs to do another SA as the last ones were done in 2018.

Has anyone been in this situation and paying for private IVF but had tests like this through the GP On the NHS? 🤞🏽 I am waiting for a call back from my GP but was just wondering if anyone else has had this situation.

Also could you please advise as to what my OH can do to give the best chances for his analysis and levels? And are there any vitamins I should be getting for him?

Thank you all xx

@Whitney93 at abc they have always said to me whatever the test is i need such as my thyroid would i like it done with them or GP todo it, i aldo had to have my rubella but they dont do just rubella it is mmr and needs to be 2 doses 4 weeks apart xxx

@Icsi2021 thank you for your reply. So it’s a blood test I am having to have? Rubella and TSH? Luckily I am booked into my doctors tomorrow to have these bloods done. I was really surprised they could get me in so quickly! And also saving us £215! 🙌🏼X