IVF March/April

[Noirberry19]

Is anyone starting ivf in March/April?
Have had confirmation today I will be starting treatment in March. Been prescribed norethisterone, which I have to take CD21 of my next period (due next week).

@RedFaerieBoots fingers crossed for your 2 embryos

@Hazza2021 that sounds good for you. Hoping they grow well.

I have just had my first stims scan and it didn't go well. It doesn't look like I am responding to the medication at all. I had 2 follicles on my left ovary 1 was 9-10mm the other tiny. And the nurse could barely see my right ovary so doesn't think its doing anything. Also the lining of my womb is thinner than it should be. The nurse took bloods to see what my hormone levels are and will call later. They have changed my medication but I am not happy with what they have done. She changed me to 225 bemfola and 225 menopur. As the nurse said menopur works better for women with low ovarian reserve (which we knew I had prior to starting). I should of been on menopur anyway as this is what my consultant initially prescribed but the nurse changed it to bemfola (telling me bemfola and menopur are the same thing!) But when I got home the minimum dose on my bemfola pen is 300.. . so can't even give the 225 dose advised. (This is after spending another £220 on additional meds!) I have emailed and left answerphone message with the clinic asking for an urgent call and preferably by a doctor!

@ThinkingOfPineapples

Also I meant *semen ... not a pile of sailors

This really made me giggle, thanks @ThinkingOfPineapples :)

@Narwhal88 I just had egg collection this morning:

They got 9 eggs, which I'm very happy with! So far I feel fine, just dazed. We'll be having ICSI as my partner had low morphology today but the count seems fine and they didn't sound worried so keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow.

Thanks @Donimo for your well wishes and I'm so sorry about your news today - it sounds extremely frustrating especially since they should have known which needs work better from the start! I really hope they can sort it out quickly and without needing to buy more meds! Was this the Day 9 scan?

I'm sorry you don't have the numbers you hoped for @RedFaerieBoots - sending you a big hug and hoping that your embryologist is right (I'm sure they know what they're saying!) and your 2 make it to day 5. Definitely still in the game xx

Great news and progress @Hazza2021, very glad for you :) I hope you're not in pain anymore.

@RedFaerieBoots sorry you are not getting the numbers you hoped for. I know how that feels. But if those 2 stay strong and you end up with 2 good blasts it will have all been worth it. Also did you enquire about having a day 3 transfer? I had that on my first cycle as I had few embryos and it resulted in my daughter. The thinking was that when there are few embies you might be giving them a better chance of survival inside your body rather than in the lab...

@Donimo That does sound really frustrating! Yes Menopur is def better if you are not responding well. But it might work miracles. On my last cycle it was also added into my protocol later in (around day 9 as well I think) as my follicles were growing slowly and it really sped things up so hopefully it will do the same for you!

Great news on all the egg retrievals! Sounds like there will be lots of good updates soon!

@Tarsette - embryologist says day 5 is best. She seems hopeful but will ask on Thursday just in case.

@beachbum85 glad today went well. Make sure you get some well deserved rest!

@Donimo sorry your scan didn't go the way you were hoping. I'm sure the clinic will adapt things and get you to where you need to be for egg collection. Keep my fingers crossed for you!

@beachbum85 congratulations on your egg collection. Hope you get a lot to fertilise. Were you expecting it to be ICSI? How are you feeling? Thank you for your thoughts.

@Tarsette thank you for that advice. Can you remember how many extra follicles you had by adding the menopur in? Today is day 8 for me.

The nurse has called and said that the doctor has said to do alternative days with 450 menopur tonight then 450 bemfola tomorrow etc. Also does anyone know how long you can take stimulation injections for in total. My provisional date for egg collection was Monday (which would of meant stimulation for 11-12 days) but the nurse hinted that it will probably be delayed. I have read that you can take stimulations for upto 14 days. Is this correct? Or can I take them longer if needed? Does anyone have any experience?

Thanks @Donimo @TTCbabyH and @Tarsette :)
We were told they'd decide IVF or ICSI on the day, because previously my partner had one good SA and one borderline one - so we weren't sure but ICSI is not a big surprise.
I'm very relieved and overall feeling pretty well just very tired.. in fact I'll go nap soon :) I know they gave me painkillers whilst I was sedated so I'm preparing for some pain once those wear off.

@Donimo I stimmed for 12 days but I saw someone stimming for 17 yesterday on Instagram (in the US): instagram.com/we.wait.patiently

hi all sorry have been a bit quiet on here the last few weeks. It has been very busy with work, which whilst is a welcomed distraction has been a bit intense. Glad to see people are progressing!

@Donimo tonight will be my 14th day of stimulants. At my scan yesterday, they suggested we cld be ready to trigger either tomorrow or Thursday but i have another scan booked for tomorrow morning to check everything out and have my bloods repeated. I got off to a very slow start but things appear to be going in the right direction now, although slowly. There was a noticeable difference once they upped my dose of menopur from 225 to 300 and they said that almost the first 5 days on the lower dose were irrelevant and i effectively started again. They didnt seem too worried about me continuing with the stimulants beyond 14 days... As to follicles i went from about 9 'all less than 6mm' after 5 days to at least 14 all around 10-15 at my scan yesterday (which was after lots of stims). Hope this is helpful.

Im feeling a bit rubbish about it tbh as since yesterday ive become super nauseous and have a constant headache. Hoping tomorrow there will be good news.

sorry meant to say (which was after 12 lots of stims)**

@beachbum85 that's a great number collected! I hope you're feeling okay afterwards? I found chocolate, ice-cream and napping on the couch while watching trash TV really helped me after egg collection.
Fingers crossed you get great news when the embryologist calls with your numbers.

@Donimo I'm sorry to hear about your scan results. I don't know much about the medications you're on so I can't offer any advise. But I just wanted to say I know what hearing that news is like, and it absolutely sucks. A real punch to the gut, so I'm sorry. Hopefully the shift in drugs and higher doses will do the trick though and get you some top quality eggs from this round. Keeping everything crossed for you. x

Hi ladies, I hope you're all well. Sorry I've been super quiet on here lately as I was snowed under with work but I'm finally on annual leave now yay!

Today is day 8 of injections and I am so over them already. Fortunately I haven't experienced any side effects (yet) but the injections aren't pleasant!!! I've found that the nurse isn't too forthcoming with information, I always see ladies commenting on the number and sizes of their follicles but I am not being given that information. Should I be asking???

Congratulations on egg collection @beachbum85 9 is a great number, fingers crossed you have a great fertilisation rate and a good number of quality blasts.

Sorry to see your scan didn't go as expected @Donimo I hope the new dosage works much better for you

@Hazza2021 that's awesome, I hope your embabies grow into beautiful blasts

@RedFaerieBoots I'm sorry your numbers aren't as high as you had hoped but as you said you're still in the game. I've got my fingers and toes crossed that you end up with two top grade blasts

@Narwhal88 how are you getting on? I see you have a good number of follicles and possibly EC on Friday which is really exciting.

@ForeverHopeful17 hey on my first scan they weren't very forthcoming either but scan 2 and 3 the nurse read them out which was good so worth asking if they don't.

@Donimo sorry to hear this! I felt very low and deflated after first scan but trust the experts they have increased the dose for a reason and I'm sure after your next scan you will know more and have better news.

I was told stims for 15 days originally. I don't know this for sure but we added cetrotide in the mornings which helps prevent ovulation I believe - only my own research so sorry if I'm wrong.

Please don't worry it will all be ok xxx

Thank you everyone for your kind words. I have spoken to the nurse again this evening and they have confirmed that they will have me doing stims for extra 2-4 days. So let's just see. My 2 year old daughter made me appreciate what we have today. We told her I was at the drs this morning. She has then spent the day telling me-
"Mummy use my cream to make bottom better" (her only experience of the dr that she can remember was getting cream for nappy rash) and "Mummy Dr says no more jumping on the bed"

If only that could sort all problems!!

@beachbum85 hope you are feeling ok and managed to get a nice rest today. Good luck for your update tomorrow

@Peachthepiglet sounds like you are having a long road with it all too. Sounds like things are progressing a little better for you now. How are you feeling about it all? Were you expecting not to respond too well. I wasn't due to my low AMH but still worse than I had hoped. I too am not keen on these extra days of injections but hopefully they will all be worth it. Good luck for your next scan tomorrow

@ForeverHopeful17 have you had a scan yet to see how you are progressing? I am also day 8 today.

Trigger injection done!! Feels real now!

Hi all, just found this thread. Almost 800 MSG's here, wishing everyone the best with their treatment cycles.

I did 3 regular cycles with NHS, no luck. I m just about to start my 4th cycle privately- hoping doing something different might give a different result. I m doing embryo banking, followed by down regulation and then FET.

I have been prescribed tamoxifen, with low dose of menopur and bemfola on alternate days. I have slightly low AMH, so I m just trying not to think about the cycle. I took it really hard after the 3rd cycle, so trying hard to stay positive.

Hope everyone's collection and transfer go well... sending lots of positive energy to everyone

Good luck everyone with all your future treatments

@6543336787gesgvjhg good luck for your egg collection :)

Thanks @6543336787gesgvjhg I will definitely press for more information at my scan tomorrow. Enjoy your injection free day tomorrow and good luck for collection on Thursday.

@Donimo yes I have my third scan tomorrow but the nurse isn't too forthcoming with information so I literally have no clue how I am progressing. When is your next scan?

Good morning everyone! Good luck with the planned EC and ET! apologies for being so quiet, it is an extremely busy period at work and I only get to read some posts at 6 am or 10 pm!

@Donimo, such a lovely daughter, a blessing :)

I have my first scan today , this is my seventh day of stims so we will see, I am not having many side effects (only a bit lower abdominal pain).

Good luck to all!

@AnitaB83 I'm shocked at the lack of side effects I've had really. Felt bloated a couple of times, odd headache (which I get anyway) felt tired two of the days but that's it. I thought it would of been more difficult or I have been lucky maybe.

@ForeverHopeful17 thank you, it's strange not having 10 reminders go off for the injection 😂 hope your first scan goes well. X

Thanks for the lovely wishes and good vibes everyone - I really appreciate the support from this thread :)
The clinic just called and 8 have fertilised with ICSI - sooo happy and relieved!! I also have this constant worry that something is going to go horribly wrong when we least expect it, but just trying to enjoy the good news and keep the positive energy going.
I'm also feeling pretty well after EC. I hardly had any pain at all, and just a bit of an upset stomach, but that might be the antibiotics as they always affect me that way.
@ThinkingOfPineapples lots of naps, chocolate and trash TV for me too... Worked wonders!

@Peachthepiglet I hope your scan goes well today and you can trigger soon and, especially, I hope you're feeling better nausea/headache-wise!

@ForeverHopeful17 I always asked the nurse if I can take down all the information after the scans 'for my records'. They didn't allow me to take photos of the charts, but they did give me all the numbers. I'd ask, you have nothing to lose :) good luck with your scan today

And you too @AnitaB83, good luck with your scan today.

@Donimo that is so sweet of your daughter :) I hope the extra days of stims work - I'm sure it will be worth it in the end, these doctors know what they need to do/change.

@6543336787gesgvjhg enjoy your day off and good luck for tomorrow!

Thanks for all the well wishes and advice ladies. I was able to take a picture of my chart so have all the info that I need now. Looks like I'll be stimming for an extra couple of days which sucks as I'm ready to see the back of these needles but it is what it is.

@beachbum85 that is amazing, I'm really pleased for you. I think the worry is normal but definitely try to keep the positive energy going. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for your embabies.

Welcome @KB2209 I am also now on alternative menopur and bemfola. Think I am going to have to record which I take each day to remember! Have you started your cycle yet?

Hope your scan went well today @AnitaB83

@6543336787gesgvjhg good luck for your EC, is it tomorrow?

@beachbum85 that's great that 8 have fertilised. Are you having a 5 day transfer? Glad you are feeling ok and sounding really positive which is great

@ForeverHopeful17 glad you got more answers today. Did they say how many follicles you have? Are you responding slowly, is that why you will be stimming for longer? (Join the club! ). My next scan is Friday, whens yours?

It sucks doesn't it @Donimo So I have 10 follicles on each side but the right ovary is too high so collection from there is unlikely. My largest follicle is 16mm and the smallest is 9mm (x3) how are yours looking? My next scan is also Friday. Egg collection was first scheduled for Sunday, but I was told that is unlikely so possibly Monday or Wednesday she said.

Thank you so much @ForeverHopeful17 and @Donimo!
Yes, we'll have a transfer on Day 5 on Sunday morning.
The embryologist said she'll call us on Day 3 and if they see that some are clearly developing much better than others, and waiting till Sunday is risky, they will recommend a Day 3 transfer of 2 embryos! She said that situation is unlikely but we should be prepared anyway.

@ForeverHopeful17 I'm glad you got all your information this time round! Your numbers sound really good - it's a shame that the right side is too high but hopefully those 9mm ones will grow by Friday :)

Keeping my fingers crossed for both of you for good news on Friday!