Referral to fertility clinic

[MrsKBill]

Afternoon!
So I have a 4 year old boy and I also had a miscarriage 18 months ago. I'm 40 and we have been ttc ever since the miscarriage. I have had blood tests and his and had semen test - all came back normal expect for my progesterone is 9.4.
My doctor is now referring me to a fertility clinic - does anyone have any idea what happens from here?

Unfortunately you'll be offered basic advice only - having a child already means you won't be eligible for IVF on the NHSA

Hi, yes unfortunately the above advice is correct. I have a 2 year old and was refered last year to a local fertility clinic. We had an initial telephone call to take down our history. We then had some tests performed by the clinic, sperm anayalsis, ultrasound and bloods, which were covered by NHS. We had to pay for AMH bloods ourselves. Then to get any of the results of these tests we had to pay £170 for a telephone review with the consultant to discuss these results and discuss what treatments were reccomended. All of our treatments, consultant appointments and medications we have had to pay for privately.

Yes I thought this maybe the case. I was thinking if it was progesterone levels that I would just be given something for that - I wasn't really expecting a referral

Hi, our initial consultation is set for May. I'm also not sure what to expect. What do they normally ask in the initial consultation? As it's a telephone consultation, how does it work: will they talk to me first and then to my husband? How long does it take from initial consultation to treatment?

@MrsKBill I am really not sure what other options there are as from our tests we needed ICSI. So not sure what other treatments they may recommend and if any of these are covered by NHS even if you already have children. But during my initial telephone consultation prior to them knowing what was going on I was told any results and treatments would have to the paid for.

@yustynne prior to my initial telephone consultation we had to fill in loads of paperwork and they just went through this during the telephone call. My husband wasn't with me for this telephone call as we couldn't find a time when we weren't at work to do it. But to be honest they didn't ask anything other than what we wrote down. These were the type of questions asked-

• Past pregnancies and histories.
• Our and family medical history's
• Gynaecology history
• lifestyle factors (bmi, alcohol intake, exercise levels, stress levels etc)
• How long we have been together, how long been ttc and how often etc

Following this she spoke about what tests to have done.

@MrsKBill I think it is still good to be referred to a fertility specialist as they will be able to do all the tests necessary to see the whole picture. Then you can say to them what you want or expect and they may be able to offer different treatment solutions. Some GPs can be really clueless regarding fertility.

@Donimo Thank you, good to know! Do you know how long it takes to do all the tests? Also how long does it take to start the treatment?

@yustynne I had my first telephone appointment at the start of September and then tests about a month later (would of only been 2 weeks but I had a holiday booked). My husband had his first sperm anayalsis a week or so after my tests but then needed a second sample approx 8 weeks later. We had an appointment for the results at the end of October and then an appointment to plan our treatment at christmas (following husbands second sperm results). We started ICSI 2 weeks ago and due to have eggs collected if all goes well 29th March. Hope this helps a little.