Wait/go private/IVF what to do?

[Socu3]

Hi everyone, I need some advice. We've been trying for our second for 1.5 years now. My husbands sperm count etc is low which we believe is the issue. He has a varicocele which was going to be treated end of last year, and it didn't end up happening.
We've now been referred again via NHS and it looks like the earliest the procedure will happen is 5 months from now. Should we wait until then, even though there's no guarantee it will mean we have a baby, OR get this surgery privately but spend 2.5K and again no guarantee it will mean a baby. OR push on with going for IVF which will obviously be more expensive as we can't get on NHS? I feel we have wasted so much time and I'm close approaching 35. I feel v despondent and have no idea what to do.

I’ve heard lots of success with sperm count increasing with supplements - has your DH tried this yet and has he had a repeat test? We’re in a similar boat - secondary infertility but my DH hasn’t been diagnosed with a variocele - low sperm count and low morphology which we’ve addressed with supplements. We’re going down the IVF route this spring if no bfp by March/April

Hi @poppet131 yes my DH has. In fact he went from about 1.8 million to 6.6 million in 5 months. This was down to cutting alcohol, more exercise and loads of supplements. However it's still not been enough for a bfp yet. I had an emergency c section with my 1st, and I've heard of that can cause fluid in uterus. I don't know I have this but when I got my tubes checked there was mention of some fluid near my left ovary so I'm wondering if this is also causing problems and it's not just the low sperm count. If we go down IVF route then this would be checked more thoroughly. Argh, its all so hard. How long have you been trying?

Hi @poppet131 ! We have just had the news of low Concentration (8million) and very very low morphology. What supplements have you been using? Are you going privately or via NHS if uk based? We are right at the beginning of the process I guess. Tomorrow I'll call for our fertility referral and I just don't know what to expect. Any thoughts much appreciated. Thank you x

@Socu3 sorry, I jumped on your thread in my panic. So I would try everything possible to get that varicocele treated asap. That could be a big hurdle and then you can at least keep trying while you wait for further fertility treatment. X

@Socu3 sorry you've had struggles and also a long wait. I don't have an answer for you about private versus NHS but you will want to treat the variocele before IVF anyway. Despite what some IVF clinics will say you can't get around sperm DNA damage (that variocele can cause) through selection of sperm. We were told that by one of the leading urologists btw.

Best of luck with your journey for number 2. We've been on a long journey for our second as well and I know it's not easy xxx

@Socu3 btw I know 35 feels ancient when you are there but in IVF terms you are a babe in arms! X

@FlyOnTheWall89 - we had a concentration of 9 million per ml and morphology of 2% - has jumped to over 70million per ml and morphology of 6% eith supplements. He had been taking wellman since start of TTC but after the first analysis, we added vitamins C, D, E, Zinc and pine bark. Our motility has dipped though but not sure whether that’s due to us catching covid between the two tests! Still hasn’t resulted in a pregnancy but the fertility consultant is keen that we try for a bit longer given DH’s recent results before we go down the IVF route. We will continue to try but to be honest, I’ve lost hope!

@Socu3 - We’ve been trying for about 18 months now. I also had a pelvic scan and was told it’s normal to see a little fluid in the uterus just after ovulation so it might be that? If you have another scan, maybe schedule it for pre-ovulation so that way you can rule out if it’s free fluid or post-ovulation fluid from the egg bursting out of the follicle? X

@FlyOnTheWall89 thank you, yes. Think we will definitely push on with NHS procedure to save some money, no doubt we will need it elsewhere for other treatment.
@Janefx40 I didn't know that about the DNA side of it, thank you. We will definitely need it done either way! Also thank you for reassuring me about being nearly 35, I keep breaking out in a cold sweat about it
@poppet131 yes good idea. I had my scan where they saw fluid to check my tubes fir fluid (there wasn't any in there) on day 12 of my cycle so I think I was pre ovulation but perhaps not. I'd like a more investigation into it definitely!

@Socu3 I'm not sure if it's always the case but worth checking out. My DP did a comet test for sperm DNA fragmentation and his results were horrendous (originally - it was all ok in the end). I remember them saying that there can be various causes including variocele which is relatively easily solved.

IVF clinics pay too little attention to the sperm because high levels of sperm DNA fragmentation can lead to infertility and miscarriage but they often don't even test men for this. And I've heard of clinics saying they will use ICSI or PICSI for men with high levels of DNA frag which is nonsensical because you can't see DNA damage in an individual sperm even with a microscope or equipment. Again I was told all of this by Mr Ramsey who is one of the leading specialists.

In your case though you already know about the variocele so not sure it would be worth doing the test but definitely worth fixing.

Best of luck xxx