IVF at Create Fertility - process and timeline?

[ohsheglows]

Hello all, I used to post on the conception thread but I think it's time I now moved to the infertility section instead.

I've been trying for over a year now and have decided to go down the IVF route. I have low AMH and low antral follicle count (3) and I'm 32 years old. After so many days of feeling down and crying, I now feel like I need to get into gear and try to be more positive about it!

Is anyone on here currently with Create Fertility for their IVF or have been in the past? Can someone give me an idea of costs, general timeline and the process?

Thank you all 🙏

@VenusStarr just waiting on my AF to arrive and then I can (hopefully) start cycle 3, unless they advise me to wait

Hopefully any day now @Sunflower360 i have my scan on Friday and consultation next week. Can I ask if you made any changes to your diet or did you cut out sugar etc

It’s such a minefield constantly reading to try cutting out gluten, dairy and sugar etc and it seems very overwhelming. I’m very confused by it all and wanted to know if you made any changes lifestyle wise such as exercise that you think might have helped?

@Hopesandsunshine I've tried to adopt a higher protein, lower carb diet. Like nuts, full fat greek yoghurt, seeds (pumpkin/sunflower/chia), eggs, greens like spinach/broccoli, berries, chicken, oily fish and more water. Whether it makes any difference I don't know but kind of just makes me feel like I'm doing something positive to help things along!

@Sunflower360 yes I’ve done that all before and will try to go back to that, it’s just one of those things isn’t it? I want to feel like I’m helping but also not sure if it has any impact? I might adopt a 80-20 approach and see if that helps 😂

@Hopesandsunshine yeah it's quite hard 😂 but it is important to eat what you fancy too, think it's all in moderation

I’m also a vegetarian which makes things even more difficult nutrition wise! But I’ll try and be more good and less sugar (comfort eating at its best!)

@Sunflower360 thank you sometimes I wonder if any of it makes a difference but then I also want to feel like I’m doing something too. Can I ask with low AMH if you or @VenusStarr had to ever prime with anything to help egg maturity / quality? Hope your both having a good weekend xx

@Hopesandsunshine my AMH was 4.3 in the summer, could be lower now as it went down from I think 6.8 late last year

@Hopesandsunshine I had a double trigger for both my natural modified cycles, this time round could be one but will see

@Sunflower360 thank you so much for getting back to me (I’m just thinking or over thinking lol) but it’s soo handy to know these things as I’m sure after two round of conventional IVF, my issue is quality. But I’ve read some people prime with other things to support egg quality, and I haven’t heard of double trigger…sorry if this is a silly question but what is a double trigger and does it help with egg quality? Xx

@Hopesandsunshine no problem at all. It's basically 2 x trigger injections (the one you take 36 hours before egg collection). So I had 2 x Ovitrelle injections

@Sunflower360 ahh okay so in my last two conventional ivf rounds we only did 1 trigger interjection, and a double is two…did you feel it made a difference to your egg quality? Xx

@Hopesandsunshine not sure if it helps with egg quality as such but it helps them mature if I understand correctly so it tries to capture as many eggs to mature as possible

@Sunflower360 ahhh yes that makes sense, I might ask about this in my consultation and see what the doctor thinks. Which Create clinic are you with? I’m thinking of going with the Oxford branch Xx

Hey @Hopesandsunshine I haven't done priming before.
Glad you have your scan and consultation soon. Still haven't got my amh results, my protocol consultation has been pushed back to 13 November so will get them then. Hoping my husband's dna fragmentation results will be back early next week. Getting close now. I've put him back on impryl, hoping it helps his motility and dna frag.

I'm with Birmingham Create.

How are you getting on @Sunflower360 I nearly had a double trigger but they monitored my bloods and I didn't need it in the end. I'm on 600mg ubiquinol for egg quality. Going to start eating more protein as well. X

False start for me unfortunately @VenusStarr as I had some residual follicles from my last cycle. Dr did suggest having a break before I started the stims but said I could proceed only if this did not occur (he said it was possible, stupid me for not listening). Anyway cycle has been cancelled and I'm waiting for AF now to re start, if it comes before December then I can start the cycle before Christmas otherwise I'll have to wait until January

Oh I'm sorry to hear that @Sunflower360 how long are your cycles usually? Mine are around 24 days, so have worked out I should be able to get my first cycle in before Christmas. Are the follicles that just didn't develop big enough last time?

Can I ask, when you did your first cycle, were they ever thinking that it would be a fresh transfer? Am a bit worried I might not get anything to day 5 x

@VenusStarr yep I understand they were the follicles left from the last cycle so they need a month until your natural period to clear, I was advised this was a risk, so it was my decision to see and as it happens it was the case. Think its also why they suggested mild next time round for me rather than natural modified to see if they can get more than 2 eggs again, but we'll see if that happens or not.

My cycles are normally 28/29 so hopefully will start before the end of November as I really want to geg this cycle done before Christmas...would mean testing right before Christmas though but whatever will be will be and I'd rather just do it.

Regarding fresh transfer they only do that in your 3rd cycle as their protocol is to pick the best one from all your 3 cycles. If you only got one embryo from your 1st cycle they would freeze at day 3 so you had at least one to transfer if you got no day 5's. If you got more than one embro then you get a choice to freeze a day 3 or let them all go to day 5. I decided to freeze a day 3 in my first cycle despite having another 2 in the running... didn't want to take the risk but as it happened we ended up getting a day 5 frozen in that 1st cycle too, so they said they would thaw the day 3 when it comes to it and see if it gets to day 5 before transferring, so still a possibility it may not make it but we have 2 x day 5's so may as well see what it can do outside the body. It may be worth asking Create if they could transfer fresh in an earlier cycle but then if you did get pregnant you would lose the money on the other cycles, but then I suppose that wouldn't matter anyway if the result was good!

May I ask, when you did mild IVF with Create what was your dosage of stims and how many embryos did you get? Think your AMH would have been similar to mine.

Sorry that was a long message! 😂

Thank you so much for explaining @Sunflower360 I hope that you're on track for end of November 🙏

With my mild cycle, I was on 225 bemfola. I think I stimmed for 9 days in the end. They monitored me closely with my bloods. I only had 2/3 follicles on scans but they got 7 eggs, was shocked. But only 3 fertilised (didn't do icsi). But all 3were top quality at day 3, we got a 5AA and 2 3AAs (one was abit slower but was able to be frozen by the end of day 5, they were thinking to push to day 6). I think this is the one that deteriorated after freezing though.

That's a relief about your day 3 frostie. Would you transfer both, if they both make it?

I feel like I need to be patient and trust the process but I also just want things to work out.

I'm panicking that my amh is really low now and that's why they're holding off telling me. But then if it is bad, I'd rather not know yet as I'll have questions 🤯

Thanks @VenusStarr I was advised 225 Gonal-F from 150 but was a bit nervous about it after my max stims (450 Gonal-F) NHS cycle (different clinic) led to failed fertilisation (standard IVF, since then have done ICSI).

I did 150 this time and have to say it looked the same from the scan this week before it being cancelled so may be incliced to go with 225, was just a bit nervous it could affect the quality

@VenusStarr I asked about a double transfer and was advised no, mainly as its my first transfer and they don't want me to lose 2 embryos if there was something wrong with the lining etc Kind of agree with that to be honest, although having twins would be great!

Try not to worry about the AMH, hopefully that will be ok, they tend to focus on AFC anyway. Plus Create specialise in low AMH so their used to seeing it and getting results. I would have thought you would have had the results though if it's been a week? That one is usually a quick turnaround I thought? So may be worth chasing if you wanted to know

@Sunflower360 so sorry to hear it got cancelled been there and it’s a horrible feeling and hope November bleed can come soon enough and then you can get started again! I understand the need to just get them over and done with and what will be will be.

@VenusStarr you had some fantastic results on your rounds! And like @Sunflower360 said I think AMH fluctuates month to month so AFC is what they now like to look at. And you started with 2 follicles and ended up with 7 eggs that is blooming amazing!

I’m having a crisis week my mum who is only 64 might have dementia and it’s really starting to hit me. I’m also in the head space where if it was going to work it would have worked by now and feeling very hopeless after over 2 years of trying. What happens if my quality just doesn’t improve as my previous rounds in another clinic I’ve only ever had 1 reasonable embryo from 7 eggs total (conventional IVF and no ICSI).

I have my consultation with Dr Booth on Friday but I’m wary that all of these doctors are in the business to sell hope and IVF and just not sure what to do, it’s a lot of money estimating £13000 altogether when it could be spent on other things and I’m just all over the place :( xxx

Thanks @Hopesandsunshine

Sorry to hear about your Mum. Completely get what you mean about costs, it is a lot spend. 13k does sound OK for IVF though, is that a multi package? If only not to have regrets later its worth it, its how I think of it anyway

@Hopesandsunshine I'm so sorry to hear about your mom ❤️ that's really tough and your mom is so young. A friend at works dad has just geen duagnosed, its a cruel disease xx

It is a lot of money for ivf. In an ideal world I'd prefer to do a 2 cycle package but create don't offer that. I'm not confident we'll grt anything based on last year. I've added it up and mild ivf is £14500 and around £12800 for natural modified and including icsi. Ive added the blood package on too because they did test me a lot the first time. But not including meds, which I'm estimating about £800 per cycle. I also need lots of immune meds when we do eventually transfer, as well as lubion, but I'll cross that when I get there. We've got to take a loan out to cover it all now 🤯🤯 this is definitely our last go though.

For what it's worth, I much preferred the idea of mild ivf and with my amh I seemed to respond well to that, so I lean to that approach opposed to max stims. What did you do before?

@Sunflower360 yes. I get that about a double transfer, you'd still have a back up plan. Hopefully your final cycle will give good results too 🙏
I think I'm going to wait for my consultation, am too scared to get bad news 😕

@VenusStarr sorry if you have already said, when are you hoping to start your cycle? Have the clinic flagged a cut off for cycle commencement before Christmas?