Embryo Banking Support Thread / PGS wait

[ForeverAintEnough]

Hi all, I’ve just name changed but I’ve been on here loads and chatting to many of you under different user names ( irrational fear of being outed!). I wondered if there was interest in a ‘no transfer happening’ group? So those doing embryo banking or PGS or whatever.

I’ve just done one round of embryo banking and found the normal threads difficult with discussion of hoping for a Christmas pregnancies etc.

We are unfortunately taking the long way round with 3 rounds and no transfer. It looks like my first transfer might not be until June 2021.

If anyone wants to jump on feel free!

About us: Me 34, DH 36, TTC 3 years. Both male and female issues. x3 rounds of IVF all failed. Moved clinic to Lister for 3 rounds of embryo banking and PGS. One round of embryo banking just finished with x3 blasts sent off for PGS testing.

Thanks @SarahK2000! I think my consultant is going for the numbers game too. I’m already on Ubiquinol, so that’s good. Fingers crossed this next round does better. The emotional and financial toll is a killer!

What Zita West vitamins? I already taking vita fem xx

@Longgame21 I just started taking all of the ones in this pack…my consultant has only ever recommended the Vitafem or pregnacare conception and ubiquinol Q10 but I just had it all just incase it helps. www.zitawest.com/product/the-ultimate-ivf-nutritional-kit/

Thanks for sharing. I am already taking a number of those supplements separately, so that’s reassuring.

Hi everyone !

Thank you for the reassuring words about progesterone/pregnancy/depression; I feel less lonely! I am actually a bit better mentally, not physically though! I guess my body had to adjust to the enormous production of hormones…. wait for it…

I am sorry @SarahK2000 that like me you didn’t tolerate well the downregulation drugs; it is very horrible… you should ask for a natural FET if possible 😊 or do you have a plan already?

Thank you @Longgame21 for sharing your experience! I will mention the medication to my consultant when he is back from holiday, although he still reads my emails even on holidays ha

So, update on my scan today…. Having been pregnant 6 times before this one, the longest for 14 weeks, I could tell this one was different. The pregnancy tests were stronger than normal, and I feel worst than the previous times… so, yes, I am pregnant with twins! From one hatched 6AB euploid embryo! I am not shocked at all, I knew it deep inside^^ It’s going to be an extremely risky and challenging pregnancy, but I have good doctors around me!

Next control in two weeks, step by step…

Take care 😊 xxx

@Sophfr17 Oh wow...twins!! This is amazing, congratulations on both of your babies now!

So happy for you, it must be a scary time too with all the potential health complications of twins, but I hope you’ll be looked after well and have a safe pregnancy, you deserve it x

Sorry ladies I’ve missed a few updates, but hope you’re all doing well. I’ve got my consultation to discuss hysteroscopy next week and will hopefully set the date, then I can transfer my 6BB...hope it’s as luck as @Sophr17!

Oh wow @Sophfr17!! Congratulations on the twins…hope you continue to have an easy pregnancy 😊 my medicines for the transfer cycle came yesterday and there seem to be a lot more than I expected so it’s definitely a medicated cycle albeit with cetrotide rather than Burselin. I stop my Northisterone on Thursday so hopefully things will move quickly after that. I have really been struggling with lack of sleep so hope it’s not a sign of my stress. I have also stepped into an additional work area which maybe wasn’t wise in it’s timing but I worry about putting everything into ivf incase it fails.
@IslandStars - hope your transfer date comes round quickly. Fingers crossed 🤞 for your success.

Hi all, sorry I’ve missed a lot I was trying to stay off mumsnet when on my break.

Huge congrats @Sophfr17 on your twins. Wishing you a safe healthy pregnancy. How many weeks are you now?

@IslandStars glad you’re getting the hysteroscopy sorted and then onto FET.

@SarahK2000 how long until transfer? Good luck with it all. Good to be getting moving with the transfers.

@Longgame21 are you taking much break between your next round - have you had your testosterone checked to see if you’d benefit from DHEA?

I unfortunately have gotten more bad news to add to my existing bad news. My ERA/EMMA/ALICE came back. My progesterone after 6 days of x2 Crinone was 4 and it should be >50 so no wonder my two previous transfers have been unsuccessful as 4 is far too low to sustain implantation. My bad bacteria came back showing I have Chronic Endometris and my good bacteria which ideally should be >92% came back as 0% which the consultant said he has never seen before. So overall it’s no wonder I’ve never been pregnant when you add all that to our sperm issues.

So I have to repeat the test after taking antibiotics and macrobiotics and hope that the situation improves. If it doesn’t consultant said I will need to do more rounds of IVF as I’ll likely need more embryos to try get one to take. Also consultant said I will need intramuscular injections of progesterone the minute an embryo goes in but I can’t take them for long as they can cause an abscess so have to figure out how we could sustain my progesterone levels during a pregnancy. It amazes me how for so many people all these things just work together easily!

Overall I am glad I did the tests as it was me who pushed for it not the consultant so at least I haven’t wasted an embryo but I do worry now about my ability to even carry a pregnancy. It is never ending really.

@Sophfr17 mega congratulations to you, so exciting. I know it’s really hard but try to take one day at a time right now ❤️❤️❤️

@IslandStars so pleased you have your appointment. I bet you can’t wait to get moving!

@SarahK2000 glad things are moving for you too. Can you take a few days off after the transfer to relax?

@ForeverAintEnough3 we are going to have our nurse consultation next week as at my age we can’t really wait. I haven’t had my testosterone checked but spoke to my consultant and he doesn’t think DHEA will particularly help me as we already get quite a lot of eggs. I am trying melatonin this cycle though, so fingers crossed!

I’m so sorry to hear about the results of your tests, that’s all very complex. Sometimes it feels like everything is stacked against us doesn’t it?! I really hope the antibiotics and macrobiotics make a difference for you xx

@ForeverAintEnough12 Sorry you’ve hit another stumbling block, but at least this one has produced some answers. I don’t understand why progesterone isn’t monitored before transfer and during 2ww for everyone so it can be adjusted if it’s falling too low...maybe that’s too simplistic considering nothing is simple/easy with IVF!

The ease at which the majority of women get pregnant is amazing considering everything we discover during IVF. Everywhere I go seems to be full of young mums these days, I really wish I started all this sooner.

@Longgame21 Good luck with your appointment next week, it’s nice to get moving, the waiting in between cycles is so hard.

Hi all

Can I join you guys?

I’m currently doing IVF on the NHS with donor sperm. Round 1 we got 14 eggs, 11 mature, 11 fertilised and 2 blastocysts. Round 2 (different protocol) and we got 9 eggs, 8 mature, 4 fertilised and 1 blastocyst which wasn’t good enough for transfer or freezing.

At day 3 this round we had a 6 cell and an 8 cell, so we’d hoped to get one decent blastocyst, but unfortunately it didn’t happen.

I’d also been taking DHEA for 3 months before this round (plus other new supplements) so was pretty gutted in all honesty.

Has anyone else had rounds like this ie quite different from each and ended up with no blastocysts?

My AMH is 8.6pmol and I’m on a strong protocol, so I’m wondering whether I should switch to a lighter protocol, once I’m outside the NHS track.

Thanks for your help!

Hi @Tryingtobeanembryobanker I have had a similar experience to you. Exact same protocol each time. First round 3 blasts, second round cancelled day of egg collection as consultant didn’t think we’d get more than 3 eggs , third round 1 blast. I also wonder about trying a natural approach. My AMH is 9 and I’m 35.

Sorry that’s not much help!

Are you planning to transfer your two balata before doing another round.

Thanks @ForeverAintEnough3, that is actually really helpful! I’ve been feeling quite down about the result, but it’s good to hear that other people have different results even on the same protocols, so thank you!

I’m 35 aswell, 36 in a couple of weeks.

I’m not really sure what to do yet tbh. I think I’m leaning towards doing another round before any transfers.

How about you? What protocol were you on by the way? My first round I did 225 Menopur, 225 Bemfola and 225 Cetrotide and second round was 225 Menopur 150 Bemfola with 0.2 Buserelin. I was then increased to 225 Bemfola, as my estradiol wasn’t high enough.

I was on letrozole for 5 days and then 450 menopur and then cetrotide. My consultant said if we do another round he would probably do a double trigger as he feels like I should be getting more eggs.

I’ve actually done 3 rounds prior to the 3 I mentioned to you. 1st we got one morula, BFN. 2nd no embryos made it to day 5. 3rd 2 blasts transferred 1 and BFN and 1 frozen. I was on different protocols for those and we also have male issues which was our initial reason for doing IVF. We fixed a varicoele issues and I went on DHEA and we started making blasts from then on.

@ForeverAintEnough3 that’s interesting about the DHEA because I was thinking about coming off of it after this round, but I think I might keep on it now. I was taking 75mg at first but reduced it steadily to 25mg as it was making me so spotty etc. Is that the dose you take or more?

Also interesting about the Menopur, aswell. A friend had a lower AMH (5.4 I think and she’s just turned 35) and she got 4 blasts from 10 eggs on 300 Menopur and 0.2 Buserelin. Makes me wonder why I’ve got the Bemfola which is pure FSH 🤔!

I need to look up what Letrozole does... what clinic are you with if you don’t mind me asking? I need to look at clinics for after our NHS rounds.

Thank you for sharing, it’s so helpful x

Have you had your testosterone tested @Tryingtobeanembryobanker ? You’re supposed to be minutes on DHEA. Mine was 0.1 and it’s supposed to be 1.5-2 anything over 2 it can impact on egg quality. Ive had zero side effect Sen the DHEA so it could be worth making sure your not now too high testosterone wise.

I’m with Lister. Letrozole is supposed to be to help my own brain trigger hormones to grow eggs. That said I did have a cancelled round on it so who knows how much it helps.

Unfortunately eve tone responds differently. I was out on all Menopur as I’d previously been on all gonal f and a mix of gonal f and Menopur so it was to try something different. I had similar outcomes from being on the mix (2 blasts vs 3 in one round and 1 on the other on all Menopur)

@ForeverAintEnough3 that’s interesting about the mix and trying something different. I’ve heard good things about Lister. Have you been with them for all six or did you switch?

I do need to get my levels checked to be honest. I did ask through my NHS clinic but they wouldn’t do it, so I best order a Medichecks one or something. Did the Lister do yours?

I find it so interesting how many different protocols there are! I’m switching consultants as my previous one only ever suggests changing the donor sperm, as opposed to saying, “you have different rounds and we’ll switch back to the previous protocol...” so I’m looking forward to hearing what he suggests!

@Tryingtobeanembryobanker apologies for all the typos in that post! With DHEA you are supposed to get your levels checked every 3 weeks. I actually live in Ireland so I get them checked here but previously my ivf clinic in Ireland checked them for me. U.K. consultants seem to have a very blasé attitude toward DHEA and just put people on it without any monitoring.

I’ve only done embryo banking with Lister. Previous 3 rounds were in 2 different Irish clinics.

If you are going private I’d do consults with several clinics and ask them what they think of you. That’s how I ended up at lister as I felt they really read and understood my file and had new suggestions.

@ForeverAintEnough3 that’s a really good idea, thank you! I was wondering how people decide because it’s a lot of money to invest without knowing whether they’re going to have the right protocols etc!

Yes I think they are. My previous consultant wouldn’t endorse any supplements (including coq10/ ubiquinol) so when I suggested taking DHEA she said I could try it but that was about it. She was bloody useless!

So are you thinking about trying lighter forms of IVF at all? I’ve also been looking at Create, who do that.

I did a consult with create but they said they would only offer me 150 Bemfola. Said I wasn’t a candidate for the natural one discussed here often. So it’s again worth doing a consult. If I did natural I’d do it with my consultant in Lister. We’ve already discussed it as an option.

@ForeverAintEnough3 that’s really helpful thank you 🙏. I need to look at the lister!

@ForeverAintEnough3 @Tryingtobeanembryobanker I’m at the Lister too!

How do you find them @Longgame21 who is your consultant?

@Longgame21 oh brill! Always good to get two recommendations! Will be interested to hear how you’re finding them!

@Tryingtobeanembryobanker welcome! I wanted to share that I had a short protocol with lower dosage of medicines first time round plus cetrotide and in that cycle managed 8 eggs of which only 3 fertilised and no blastocyst.me. Subsequent 3 cycles were all identical long protocols with 225 Meriofert and 225 Fostimon plus Burselin for down regulation. All of these produced over 13 eggs but fertilisation rates were different with the last round only having 1 egg fertilise out of 16. The rate of blastocyst conversion was also completely different with the majority of blastocysts from the 2nd of the 3 rounds. So it’s so unpredictable even with the same protocols. My consultant seemed to prefer going for high dosage medicines and getting as many eggs. Good luck with your journey. I wish you success. I am with CRGH and must say they are an excellent clinic from my experience so far.