Anxiety over side effect for egg freezing/IVF drugs

[Rosiestraws]

Hi all

Just wondering if anyone can give me any feedback on side effects for the drugs you have to take for egg freezing/IVF - I'm planning on starting them for egg freezing next month and have found my anxiety really increasing and making me think I should delay it a month or longer until lockdown is over etc. Unfortunately I have a very low AMH (0.8pmol) and only 4 follicles so I know firstly that the egg freezing may not even produce any good eggs, but also that my ovarian reserve is critically low so if I'm going to try it I need to do it asap!

Background is I started getting really bad anxiety in October for the first time in my life which was sort of to do with Covid (was worried I had it and the thoughts of being on my own if I went into hospital etc) and it spread into other areas of my life such as being scared about going out and having anxious feelings/an attack. I think the underlying issue was certainly to do with wanting to have children, not being in a position/the right relationship to be able to have them etc and getting older and not being able to even consider trying to find a new person to have them with anyway because of the pandemic!

I have got to grips pretty well with my anxiety and am almost back to normal but then having my consultation about the injections and medications/side effects has brought things back up again a bit. I'm scared about the injecting, it going wrong, the side effects of nausea, vomiting, bloating or even the depression/low mood etc etc. My anxiety symptons included really tight chest, headaches, spaced out feeling etc so I also worry that I might have side effect and think it was anxiety or vice versa and they would make the other thing worse! Or things going wrong and having to go into hospital when noone would be allowed with me etc. (One pro to only 4 follicles though is super low risk of OHSS)

I'm obviously going to try and get some counselling again and speak more with my clinic about how to cope but just wondered how people who have been through this coped? What were your side effects? I'm trying to remind myself that the pros (possibly getting some good eggs banked and having a baby in future) far outweigh the cons but just keep going to the worst case scenario! :(

In case it's relevant - I'm meant to take Gonal-F 300ui/Menopur 150iu for a few days, then Fyremandel a few days and then my trigger shot of Buserelin.

Thanks in advance for any replies x

I suffer from anxiety and depression too, but you have to consider will your anxiety really improve if you delay? Or will it come back once you are ready to start again next time? If it reassures you, the injections themselves are easy enough to do - just watch instruction videos online, take it slow and steady and give yourself plenty of time (I regularly faint from having my blood taken, so I'm not great with needles! but I found giving myself injections fine)

Of those drugs, I've only had the Menopur for IVF myself (but at a much, much higher dose) - the only major side effect I had was nausea and vomiting, but only for a couple of days till I got used to the drugs. I doubt at a low dose you would get any severe side effects, most people don''t (my clinic seemed very surprised I was sick). It didn't worsen my depression and I didn't get any obvious bloating or significant headaches personally. Good Luck!

Thank you for the reassurance! That does all make sense...I think delaying it might not make anything better...think I'll try talking to the nurse/clinic about it all and getting some reassurance. I guess so many people have IVF etc nowadays with similar drugs that it can't be as bad as I worry about it being!

I also worried about side effects but actually had barely any. Just some constipation from the progesterone.

Gosh @Rosiestraws it sounds like you’ve been having a really tough time. I’ve seen lots of people who’ve described feeling as you describe in relation to covid, so please be reassured that you’re not alone in experiencing this. It’s great that you got the anxiety under control and I’m really sorry to hear that you’re getting worried in anticipation of your fertility treatment.

I was on a similar IVF protocol to you and I actually didn’t get any side effects, I thought I would be hormonal etc but I wasn’t, the fresh cycle was so much better than I thought it would be. My only issue is that I have 34 follicles so I got a pressure sensation during the stimulation, but my friend has a similar AMH to you and she didn’t get this at all, so it was probably because of my situation.

My advice is to please try not to worry about the side effects, my understanding is that those who go through egg collection to donate describe far less side effects than those doing it for their own fertility. This suggests that a lot of side effects can be down to worry and stress more than the physical effects of treatment. Clinics always monitor patients really well, and you will be able to call in and speak to someone at your clinic for advice if you did get any symptoms.

Do you have any close friends who are having or have had IVF? If so please reach out to them for support (I’ve found this really helpful, but know I’m lucky that my friend has been having IVF at the same time as me), also there are threads on here for people going through IVF each month, I’ve found these really helpful for support, nobody understands this process as well as those going through it at the same time.

I know you have the tools to deal with this because of how well you did with the anxiety, please don’t worry yourself over this, I’m sure you’ll cope really well

Hi @Rosiestraws I also have low AMH and have been on the max dose of menopur for 2 rounds now and i have zero side effects. The side effects of vomiting etc are more likely with high AMh as you’re likely to overheat. I have done 4 rounds of ivf in total and have never even felt my ovaries get bigger. I’ve also had zero side effects on my mood.

So I wouldn’t worry overly about this. Unfortunately with low AMH like myself you’re unlikely to produce too many eggs which tend to be the reason behind massively elevated hormone levels and physical symptoms.

Good luck with your round.

I was worried about side effects of the meds, but having been through two egg collections I can say that I personally didn't experience any. I actually asked my consultant about it and she said she'd never had a patient withdraw from treatment on the grounds of physical side effects, which I found reassuring. I was apprehensive as I have one DC (without fertility treatment) already and had a really rough first trimester, so I thought there might be some sort of crossover of symptoms, but luckily there wasn't for me.

I hope this helps a little

Thank you so much everyone for those extra replies, it means a lot!

I've been feeling calmer about it all again now I've spoken to lots of friends and planning on hopefully starting counselling in the next week or so to hopefully have that going on alongside the egg freezing. I think also there's a lot to be said for making a decision and then sticking with it and realistically there's nothing much to be gained by waiting another month except delaying the worries for another month. So I think I should just get on with it and trying to just take it all a day at a time and deal with any side effects if they happen 🤞🏼

It's comforting to hear so few symptoms so far too and hopefully I'll be lucky and have minimal ones too. One of the few pro points about low ovarian reserve 🙁

I don't have any friends who are going through IVF, no....most of my friends all have young children and all conceived with no issues. Sadly also means they're rather busy with them now and not got time to support me really. But I will try to make plans to chat to different people a few times a week and keep talking. Thanks for the suggestion to join on one of the IVF threads for when I start...that's a good idea.

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply x

I didn’t have major side effects from my round, other than pretty bad constipation (didn’t go for 8 days!) but that was only temporary. Injections are annoying but the needle is so fine and so small that generally I could barely feel it going in. It was the “admin” of it all that stressed me out a bit - so many clinic visits, timings of meds to remember etc. But again, it’s temporary and manageable - schedule in some nice things / treats / relaxation / exercise to help counteract all the other stuff. Try not to think too far ahead - deal with each day at a time. It’s hard and a real challenge if the results aren’t what you hoped for, but nothing ventured nothing gained.

Hi lovely
I'm on gonal f and cetrorelix right now and the only symptoms I have had were a rash for about an hour after the first two cetrorelix jabs (after that I didn't get much) and now that I'm about a week into stims I feel quite bloated and a bit uncomfortable at night time. I have about 34 follicles right now so obviously those growing and increasing in fluid is putting a lot of pressure on my stomach
Other than that no other side affects, I have found it hasn't even really changed my mood at all

I'm also the BIGGEST wimp when it comes to hospital appointments/injections etc. First blood test I fainted. First baseline scan (which is one of the easiest parts to this) I had a faint spell but I think because the room was small, the window was shut and with the mask on and heat it just worked me up.
I have surprisingly been able to manage the injections quite well. My partner does them and I look the other way

It's such an intense thought this whole process so it's natural to feel this way about it.

Hi @Rosiestraws, I'm the same as you, low AMH, follicles of around 3-4. I was on different drugs to you but I just wanted to reassure you that I didn't have any nasty side effects from the drugs at all, apart from bloating (not uncomfortable though). Good luck with your freezing!