IVF/FET Jan/Feb/March No2 2022

[Dobcaty]

As our current thread is filling up soon here is our No2
Baby dust to everyone. Please tag others if I missed 😘

@Frenchiepupmama
@Cayandsimit
@Janefx40
@GodspeedJune
@thislittlebird
@Coops0406
@PcosSOS
@Aimz40
@Bluehawaii29
@lucymills1234
@Justwannabemam
@womaninkent
@Jennie154
@Sydney1986x
@Bluebonnet3
@Gigi89x
@NaomiNatNat
@heywhatswrongwitu
@Mochii

Thank you everyone for your messages. Am trying to forget about it and move on. Just done some mindfulness and feeling a bit better. Thanks for all the love and good luck to everyone going through egg collection and be nearing transfer dates/ in the 2ww and beyond

@thislittlebird yeah I did. I was pretty swollen and felt sick but brushed it off as I didn’t know what was normal. I was probably about 4 inches larger round my waist and it felt very hard and sore. My ovaries were also quite big on scans so they were worried about it. I said I felt completely normal because I didn’t want them to stop the cycle. Once I had the embryo back in I suddenly put on about 5kg and got much much bigger (went up 4 dress sizes in 2 days) and couldn’t go to the toilet at all. They were the first signs after it got worse

@Cayandsimit couldn’t agree more x dogs just have this way of finding people who need them ❤️ Don’t know where we would be without ours

@Mochii thanks for sharing. I’m very concerned about OHSS and have been ever since I learned about it really, that was a year ago. I’m not sure what to do, my clinic has a threshold of 20 (I had 19 follicles on scan, what’s collected remains to be seen!) and they’ve given me an HCG trigger. I feel fine right now, but if I feel even slightly bloated/sick or whatever I’m going to have to fight my corner on this.

For context, I have a lot of anxiety around medical procedures anyway, and around getting sick. I’ve been battling my own immune system for two years now, since we started ttc. My well controlled eczema turned into a nightmare, a chronic skin infection and recurring blepharitis to boot. I strongly suspect it’s stress causing it, but I’m stuck in this circle of having to treat it constantly and it’s tiring, I’m tired of not being in the best health. Last spring I was on strong meds, 9 weeks of antibiotics and inflammatories, 4 weeks of prednisone to get it under control. I’m also asthmatic and the thought of getting OHSS on top of all this other stuff I’m still dealing with scares the crap out of me. I’ve been awake half the night worrying. I’ve said to them I’d rather wait than transfer fresh but they plough ahead. I’ve emailed asking to talk about it with the nurse and I don’t mind if they say speak to your egg collection doctor about your concerns but I really wish they would err on the side of caution more. It feels unfair that 19 is fine but 20 isn’t.

@thislittlebird when I did my fresh cycle they got 18 eggs and there were more follicles on the scan. They were concerned about OHSS but did a blood test and decided it was ok. I didn't get OHSS, I had a fresh transfer without any problems, which succeeded. I know it's very concerning but OHSS is not inevitable even with higher numbers. Please try not to worry too much.

@womaninkent thank you, that’s good to hear. Did you feel fine before your trigger? I feel fine now. This fairly arbitrary threshold of 20 really stresses me out. It doesn’t make sense when every clinic has a different number and it doesn’t help that I don’t see a consultant at all, the only time I saw a doctor was august and that was difficult to follow, quite rushed and chaotic. Is the blood test for oestrogen levels do you know?

@thislittlebird I don't think they ever told me what they were testing for-sorry. It's now a while ago but I don't think I felt particularly bad beyond being quite bloated and I think I put on about half a stone (which I still haven't really lost 3 years later 🤦🏻). If you're worried could you talk to a nurse at the clinic?

Hi guys just wanted some advice. Having nausea and really bad dry mouth side effects from the oestrogen tabs. I’ve taken 4x 2mg tabs so far. Has this happened to anyone else? X

Also my period was a bit early but is the heaviest it’s been in a while. Is that a good thing that I’m clearing my system completely before this transfer

@thislittlebird I wouldn't worry about the numbers. I got it with 14 eggs collected but another person in Nov 21 thread had 20 or 25, she didn't get it and got pregnant in fresh cycle. So it depends on the person. I remember she got Clexane against blood clotting risk. I also got it but due to coagulation test. Maybe you can ask that if they collect 20 smt eggs?
At the ER they checked the general blood values and liver enzymes. I had to get them checked again in the clinic a few days later. They did a scan as well to check if ovaries has gotten bigger.

The most important thing is to listen to your body. If you feel extreme bloating a few days after the EC, like as if your abdominal area is filling up with water and constipated then you can go to the clinic to get it checked and postpone the ET.
If your ovaries almost went back to their normal size in 3-4 days, there is no free liquid in abdominal and blood work looks normal, I wouldn't worry and go ahead with ET.
Good luck 🍀

@thislittlebird btw I also have huge anxiety about getting sick. So I totally understand... If it would make you calmer, I can DM you my blood work so you know which values has been checked in case of OHSS.

Thank you @Cayandsimit but it’s fine, I’ll probably obsess over bloods if I go down that road. I’m going to speak to the doctor on the day about my concerns too.

I spoke to the nurse as @womaninkent suggested and then half hour after I got off the phone I started getting sort of pulsing shooting pains in my lower back. Didn’t love that.

@thislittlebird hey, if it helps at all… my clinic has a cut off of 25 follicles before they worry about OHSS. I had 25 retrieved, so I had a freeze all, and I was okay! My ovaries were very swollen and they took about a week to go down. I wasn’t particularly bloated or anything, but I did take it easy over the week following collection.

@LetstalkaboutBruno thanks! It’s good to know some are higher but it is frustrating that you don’t get more choice as the patient around what you’re comfortable with which in my case is a freeze all once my body has calmed down. I know most people want the transfer but I desperately don’t want to be sick for weeks or more.

@Cayandsimit I’ve not got PCOS. He did measure my ovary which was 7.3cm , from googling I can see that 8-12cm is the usual size for moderate OHSS so maybe by the size my ovary is at the moment he thinks I might be at risk.
I’ve no symptoms at all though, does it always come on after EC do you know? Hopefully it will be fine, I’m back tomorrow so will ask more questions.

@thislittlebird ah it must be frustrating for you that their cut off is 20 and you’re at 19.
Like I said they did measure the ovary and perhaps on the larger size so that could be the reason they’re being cautious.
Are you able to request a freeze all or does your clinic not allow that?

@Yognog1 I think I’d need a reason because 20 is their rule? Not sure. I’m going to speak to the doctor about my concerns on the day. All of this depends on us getting any blasts of course lol

Did you say you had one ovary that had most of the eggs? Maybe that one concerns them.

@thislittlebird hopefully once you’ve spoken to the doctor that will put your mind at ease.
It is difficult putting so much trust in other people, although they’re professionals we’re still relying on them to make the best decisions for us which I’m finding hard too. You just pray they’ve got it right for us.
Yeah I have severe endo in my left ovary and it doesn’t seem to have responded much at all. Thankfully it’s only in one. The right ovary is fine and that’s the one that has 15 follicles. I am relieved as I was worried I’d get a smaller number with one ovary as they suspected my left might not respond, so I’m happy with 15 from the one side.

@thislittlebird in my case I knew something wasn’t quite right but I just ignored it because I was desperate to continue. If it happened to me again I think I would know well before I got ill. I think if you’re sensible about the signs you will be okay, it’s my fault it got so bad really.

Hi Everyone can I join the thread?

Had a fresh transfer on Saturday and felt fine but suddenly this morning I'm feeling anxious it's not worked because I've not had any spotting. I know you're not supposed to symptom spot but I had spotting the one time I was naturally pregnant (which ended at 5 weeks)...

Anyway my husband went away for the night for work this morning so many that's why I'm suddenly fretting. This is our last embryo before we move onto Donor Eggs so lots of hopes riding on it.

Xx

@yognog1 I checked the documents. I went to ER 3 days after EC. My right ovary was 7.3, left 6. Normally it should be around 3,5. However, due to the fertility treatment everyone's ovaries get bigger than usual. I think what causes OHSS symptoms to get worse is the liquid leaking in the abdominal area. So you might have a swollen ovary but no free liquid in the end. Swollen ovaries go back to normal size usually in a week. Since you don't have any symptoms, please try not to panic.

I found this page very helpful for monitoring yourself for any symptoms:
my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17972-ovarian-hyperstimulation-syndrome-ohss

Keeping track of how much you eat/drink and how much came out and checking your weight regularly are very important.

@Yognog1 sorry I missed your question. There are two types of OHSS. Early onset and later stage. I got early onset which is more likely to get. Later stage occurs if your get pregnant but it is rare.

@Dbop100 try not to worry I was exactly the same. And then the spotting came. Remember everyone is different and not everyone spots.

When do you test ?

Thanks so much @Cayandsimit that’s all really helpful. I’m not worrying too much thankfully, and I’m back in tomorrow armed with some questions this time. Luckily all my appointments are with the consultant so I’m confident he’s advising the right course of action for me.

@Justawannabemam thank you 💕 they told me to test on 17th, which feels like a million years from now.

We transferred a day 5 high quality embryo on Saturday, So I guess today would be 8dpo? When did your spotting start? I had some lower back pains on Sunday which I thought was a good sign but I've felt nothing yesterday and today. I know it's likely to be the meds and I should try not to symptom spot but I seem to have fallen apart today 😵‍💫