Sept IVF/FET

[Lemongrass1]

I can’t see a Sept cycle up yet so thought I’d start one. Currently TTC #2. Our March FET was postponed due to Covid and we had a FET in July which sadly resulted in a BFN last week. Had our follow up last night and to our surprise we can try again straight away so signing consents next week and starting down reg in 2.5 weeks. Told the cycle went perfectly and must have been an embryo issue so we aren’t changing protocol but going for double embryo transfer this time. Anyone else looking to cycle/ transfer in Sept? Or am I a bit early/ keen 😂

Isn’t the IVF weight tough to shift??! Is there a science behind that with the hormones, or is it just inactivity and emotional eating I wonder?

@Youngatheart00 ! Its been said that the weight gain is mainly due to cutting down on exercising during the cycles and transfers and hence less exercise more weight gain. However i still feel the hormones must definitely have an impact for longer than the actual cycle and it would take more than three months to go to your pre stimulation hormone level i would say. Still i was a very active person pre ivf and was very difficult for me to put on weight. I stopped all exercise during my fresh cycle but even 6 months after and with exercising i am not losing any weight. Lockdown didnt help either for me! This is my experience maybe others were luckier!

@poupou was it recommended that you stop all exercise? I've been reading the opposite and the only thing that's a must is stopping any vigorous activity or jerk movements around 3-4 days around the egg retrieval, so no running, jumping, etc. If I don't exercise, my lining is always very thin and my lipid panel results get high. I'll be in trouble if I don't exercise.

I asked about exercise yesterday as I exercise most days. It's all very vague. They basically said listen to your body and don't start any new exercise program. I'm going to carry on running for the first few days of stims, then do low impact light weight online classes until a few days after egg collection I think, if I feel ok. I've also got two big dogs that need a lot of walking and they specifically want to walk with me not my partner annoyingly so I will always have to do about 10k of walks a day regardless. I'm only 5'1" so any weight gain is really visible on me.

I wonder if the weight gain is hormonal though. My body shape has always been hourglass, but as I've got older I've found I'm gathering weight around my middle and it's difficult to shift (even though I gave up drinking when I turned 40). And I'm losing weight from my usually chunky hips, so becoming more apple shaped. I think this is peri menopause, I think the changing hormones change the fat distribution. Maybe it's the same with ivf?

What is your AMH @Youngatheart00? Did you get much from your other cycles? Hopefully this is your lucky one!

Hi ladies, can I jump on this thread too?

I start the meds for a FET tomorrow, so will hopefully be able to transfer in early-mid Sept (by my rough calculations).

I had my egg collection in Feb - but was a freeze all because of OHSS risk. I don’t think I actually got OHSS but did have other complications from the egg collection so had to recover from that. Then just as I was about to get started with the FET, covid hit.

@poupou sounds like I’m on the exact same treatment protocol as you - I start norethisterone tomorrow and then buseralin next sat.

I have all the same anxieties that every woman in this scenario has, just scared it’ll all be cancelled for whatever reason, so just trying to take it one day at a time.

As for exercise, I usually run about 3-4times a week but stopped that when I started stims in January. This time round for the FET, I plan to keep running up until transfer, then I think I’ll stick to daily gentle walks. Exercise is what keeps me sane (and alcohol) so I need at least a little activity each day.

I spoke to my clinic yesterday just to update my thyroid result. She said they're still figuring out the nhs contract, which explains why we're not starting on my next cd1, but next step is our protocol consult.

With regards to exercise, I'd do what you feel able to. I know I had 2 dominant follicles on Tuesday (one on each ovary) and felt so uncomfortable yesterday - when I think I ovulated. I don't think I'll be doing much exercise other than walking.

Hi @HavingFaith :)

How does everyone cope with work? It's not a manual job so it's not that side of it, but I'm in a management role in a finance company so the stress has been high over Covid! I had almost 6 weeks off for EC, I went off pre treatment because I was so stressed and overwhelmed, and stayed off until after post operative recovery, and I felt soooo much better being off work. I felt like I could truly relax and focus on what was important. I've only been back a week, and with taking my first tablet this morning, and my first injection due this evening for FET I feel like I won't cope with working. But I feel like I'll be taking the piss if I get time again. I do meditation which helps mentally, but my mind is in overdrive again and I'm struggling to concentrate and actually do anything productive. I know most people work through and I have so much admiration for you, so has anyone got any tips please?

@KatBeCool !
I wasnt told to stop exercising but to reduce it and do walks and as you said not running. In my case i was running every day and also doing weight training. I however stopped as i was responding very poorly to stimulation and after stopping improved and was also affecting lining and heard also implantation. I also increased my protein intake and it appeared to help with egg production and lining! I was still walking every day thought! I dont think you should stop exercising especially if you werent told to do so. But do a more light routine. For me personally as my exercising routine appeared fo be heavy i decided to cut it down to improve things!

@HavingFaith !
I would have preferred a shorter protocol but fingers crossed this will work! You seem to be already on day 14 of the cycle so you are getting there! Fingers crossed for you! Anxiety is hitting the roof but i hope there wont be any cancellations for the next few months with Covid.
Regarding exercising i agree 100%! Its the only thing that keeps me sane! I just started to return to my old routine again as i tried walking for the last 12 weeks and didnt do anything for me. I am going to try running 3 times a week and see see if lining is ok if not will stopped earlier. Keep us posted how you are doing with the medication!

Hi @ivfjourney5 - I'm carrying on working, but one of the reasons I was happy to get going quickly is that August is pretty quiet for me. I'm a manager in a tech company and our customer base is academic so they're usually on holiday for August and take a while to get rolling again in September. Our company is chaotic and always stressful though, so I've learnt to reign in how much I care. Sometimes I use a meditation app to unwind so I don't end up having nightmares about work, and I try and do yoga through the really stressful times and also giving up drinking really helped, as that was fuelling work related anxiety. If I sleep and eat well and exercise, then I can cope. I'm currently working from home so hoping I can get away with not disclosing the IVF, and just take some days off here and there. I have exams on 15th September so I will claim I'm taking time off to revise (which I will be, in the clinic waiting room!).

@ivfjourney5 sorry you’re feeling like that, it’s so unbelievably stressful by itself, without work stress on top! I worked through ivf but I told my boss about it before I started treatment and she was amazing - let me work from home (pre-covid) as much as I needed and was extremely understanding about me having last minute hospital appts. Have you told your manager? If you feel able to do so, that might me something to think about as sometimes just having them knowing and being able to be extra flexible with you can take away from the stress.

When I was in the office and it was all feeling too stressful, I’d book myself a meeting room and just go and work in there by myself. I’m in an open plan office with about 50 people so it just felt too overwhelming somethings. In the meeting room, I’d put the blinds down and just take some time to calm myself down and pace around and then work alone at my own pace. Not sure if that’s an option if you’re in the office at the mo.

Now for my FET, I’m working from home 100% because of covid so I think I’ll take regular breaks and go out for walks to try and not let work get on top of me. I plan to take off the two weeks for the tww as I just want to try and ‘relax’ as much as possible (if possible at all!). But obviously that depends on how much annual leave you have etc. I have heard some people say they get signed off by their GP for the tww too.

@poupou I feel the same! I asked about a shorter protocol but they said this was the best protocol for me so I’m happy with that.

@79andnotout I think you're still too young for even perimenopause. You gain weight as you get older mainly due to slowing metabolism. Hormonal imbalance isn't always age-dependant but it can also cause weight gain. The idea behind exercise is get your heart rate up (to a reasonable level) and to get your blood flowing more which, in turn, brings more blood to the uterus and helps build stronger lining. It helps with egg quality, supposedly. But even simple walking is better than nothing.

@ivfjourney5 work hasn't affected me as much as covid. I was working from home before already so it never changed. Getting out of the house was my only sanity control. And then quarantine hit, ohhh... I started baking more out of boredom. That plus no exercise for a couple of months, hello extra pounds. Keeping focus is hard, but when my mind starts racing I have force myself to pause, thankfully, over the years, I've mastered that.

Thanks all.

Yes I told my manager and HR representative when I found out I needed IVF, and I've kept them in the loop all the way through. They've been understanding, although I haven't given them much choice.... for instance I don't specifically ask for time off for appointments, I tell them I have an appointment. Treatment is very much my priority at the moment. I was open with them about how I was feeling pre EC and cried down the phone on numerous occasions!
I've been WFH since the start of March (aside from all the time off) and will be for the foreseeable. I think the WFH has been part of the problem because I've been so isolated (I live alone).
I've provisionally booked a few days annual leave off around FET, and a few days around OTD. As my gp signed me off for the 6 weeks my sickness record is now off the scale, that's also playing at the back of my mind (only been in the company for just over a year) but I also know it's exceptional circumstances and it helps I've told them what's going on. The last week I've been so drained after work I literally just slob on the sofa, and I know that's only going to get worse when the exhaustion comes in from the drugs!
Arrrgh sorry for bringing the mood down, just feeling it today :(
Tomorrow is a fresh day...

Hi @KatBeCool we have early menopause in our family. My mother had hers at 40, her mother at 36, and my younger sister was told she would have hers at 37 by her fertility clinic a few years ago. I seem to be going along ok but have definitely had perimenopause symptoms for a few years now already, and my blood work has indicated that too. I have autoimmune thyroid issues (for ten years now) so my metabolism is tightly monitored and regulated so it's definitely not that. Hence my main theory it's hormonal. I don't think my diet has changed much.

Hello everyone! I’d like to join in too if ok. We had a failed fresh transfer in July which was our first go at IVF. Hoping to start meds for FET next week with plan for transfer early September, if Aunt Flow plays ball.

Wishing everyone lots of luck xx

@ivfjourney5 I wouldn’t worry too much about the time off work, especially as it’s for a specific purpose and doctor certified. It’s not like you’re taking lots of odd days for a cold etc. I stressed a lot about work for my first cycle, less so for my second. At the end of the day work will continue without you but this is life changing, life creating stuff. It must take priority. Sorry to hear you are going through things alone, sounds tough. Are you using a sperm donar? Hopefully your clinic offers counselling and / or you’ve got close family or friends that can support you through this. As well as mumsnet, of course!

@79andnotout my AMH is 8.5, or was at last testing which was in December. It was around 13 a year earlier so concerned about the drop off but I also had my tubes removed in that year so have been told reduced blood flow to the ovaries could have impacted. I’m hoping it hasnt moved much lower, I’m not sure they are intending to retest me again as I had 2 tests at 8.5 within 6 months of eachother. I think it’s just a matter of rolling the dice again, with max dose drugs, and hoping for the best.

@Youngatheart00 - ah ok. Yeah my AMH has veered between 8-13 over the last three years. Either way, I'm still in the low response expected category, so it makes no difference to the protocol at my clinic. The last measurement was a year ago and actually my highest (13) and they said they're not going to bother measure it this time, they're just repeating the scan to make sure I don't have any cysts or fibroids. Yeah fingers crossed a fresh roll of the dice does the trick!

@Youngatheart00 no I'm not using donor, my husband works away and he's been away for the last 2 months, and he's not due home for another 2 months, and contact is minimal to say the least!

@Evey43 welcome and good luck!

@KatBeCool I might do some baking this weekend! Although normally when I bake I go OOT and then have too much cake to eat or give away!

@79andnotout hopefully your hormones hold out until you're done being pregnant.

@ivfjourney5 I started freezing things that I bake because there's always too much otherwise. Cheesecake so far freezes the best.

So I'm waiting to see what my current AMH and FSH. My last numbers are a bit old now because it was before covid. But it always bothered me that nothing wrong was ever found. Hormones ok, tubes clear, lining normal, follicles many, pregnancy zero, other than the chemical once.

@KatBeCool ahh of course! What an idea! That's my day planned! Hopefully you get tested soon and the results don't take too long to come through 🤞🏼

First injection was successful last night and I'm feeling better about things today (probably just because it's the weekend and I don't have to work 😂) Also had no pregnancy related dreams that I've had the last couple of nights which normally put me in a weird mood when I wake up.
Does anyone have plans for this glorious weekend?

Hi all can I join? Due to start another fresh cycle end of September but just posted another thread I’m worried about the alcohol effects on male sperm as I don’t think he’s reduced enough as the date has all of a sudden been sprung on us

@ivfjourney5 yay so glad your first injection went well!! And it’s great to hear today is a better day 🙌

I don’t have any plans this weekends so will just be lazing in the garden I think. My clinic will test me and my husband for covid in a couple of weeks time so we’re being more cautious than normal at the mo (not sure if we’re being too cautious but the covid consent forms scared us a little!)

@Mctm123 hello! I just read your other post. That’s great you have a date to start your IVF, if I were you I’d go for it. It sounds like your partner has been healthy and taking supplements so I don’t think casual drinking will make a huge difference? My husband has a very low sperm count but in the two months or so leading up to when we did ICSI he took supplements and worked out more but still had the occasional drink and his speed count went up massively on the day of my egg collection! So I think the losing weight and taking all the right vitamins etc seemed to impact more positively than the alcohol impacted negatively, if that makes sense

Just seen my typo - *sperm count ha!

@HavingFaith thank you, that’s really reassuring to read! I’ve got my heart set on September after not knowing what we were going to do (it’s a long story not covid related) but we’ve had multiple miscarriages and suffer with secondary infertility and I just want to make sure this time we throw everything at it!

Your comment has really helped, thank you 😊