ERA EMMA ALICE testing thread 7

[VenusStarr]

Hi all. We're on our 7th thread! Really hoping for some more positive news in the coming months.

Hope you’re okay @Gardenlady543 with no sign of surge 🤞🏼

Thinking of you @ChickenT2b

How are you doing by now @VenusStarr ?

Oh and this is will be 3rd fresh cycle @CailinInUK so the last out of the refund package. You’d really think they would want to throw everything at it to make sure they don’t have to give us thousands of pounds back…

@Enfys23 up and down. We've been to the cinema which helped distract me but my mood has crashed since. I'm not sure I'm up for going straight into another try.

Thanks for checking in on me ❤️
Hope you're OK after today. I really wish we all could just catch a break and have things go smoothly for once. X

@VenusStarr @Enfys23 @Gardenlady543 thank you all and apologies if I’ve missed anyone that replied to me.
I did another FRER today at 17 dpo and at 3 minutes it was still pretty faint. However, by the time I’d text my Dad to say IVF is back on, by 5 mins it had become one of my darkest. So I am hanging onto this for now.
I did an Asda one too just to see and was disheartened to see it so faint but I hear they are rubbish tests anyway?
Don’t think I’ll be resisting the urge to POAS daily until I see some consistency 🤦🏻‍♀️

I hope you are all doing ok. It’s very hard to keep up but I am trying!

@VenusStarr fingers crossed for you 🤞🏼

@Enfys23 sorry haven’t got any experience using DHEA and very little understanding of ovarian cysts. I was told cysts can be problematic if they start producing their own hormones, they found one at my last baseline scan, but the bloods cleared me of hormones issues. At the next scan the cyst wasn’t even mentioned, but when I asked they said, it’s either gone or could be hiding behind one of the larger follicles so in that sense it is possible that not all your follicles are visible on an ultrasound if hiding behind larger ones.

I just wanted to say though, do not ever apologise for posting too much, this is what’s this group is for and it can be a very stressful process and every step and sometimes you know only people going through the same thing can understand so post away whenever you feel like ❤️

Thank you @clhiu ❤️

🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼@ChickenT2b really hope they continue to darken.

Had the scan, 1 x 20mm follicle, lining 8.75mm triple lined, so they have taken bloods and as long as I’m not surging I will likely trigger tonight for a transfer Monday and having intralipids this afternoon.

Not good news today 😞 same old shit, different day really but I'm really disappointed in myself. Feel like I've let dh down. Not really sure what to do next. I think I'm just going to take some time off here for a bit. I wish everyone well with their treatment and tww, I don't want to bring the mood down with how I'm feeling right now x

I’m really sorry to hear that @VenusStarr , very little that one can say in this situation, but try not to be hard or disappointed in yourself, remember this is absolutely not your fault and nothing you could have done differently. Take the time you need and look after yourself. Sending a huge hug ❤️

I'm sorry @VenusStarr it would have been great if it had worked out for you this cycle, things have been really tough for you with your DH hospital stay :(

@VenusStarr I'm so sorry. It's utterly shit. I wish there was something I could say to make it better. Sending love xxx

I’m sorry it’s not worked out @VenusStarr. Do whatever you need to get through it, it’s such a horrible experience.

@VenusStarr so sorry to hear this 😞. Take care of yourself.

From my side, I am about to go in for a private hcg test. After the false hope of yesterdays line progression, we are back to a fainter line 🤦🏻‍♀️. Why does it have to be such a mind f🤬.

If nothing else positive, this will at least answer my previous question as to whether to test for NK cells or not pre IVF.

@VenusStarr really sorry to read this. Be gentle with yourself, it’s definitely not your fault.

@ChickenT2b sorry line is more didn’t today. 17dpo looked promising. I’ve no personal experience and don’t want to scare you but a rising and falling Hcg can indicate ectopic. Maybe ask the question..

@Gardenlady543 sounds very promising, the best I’ve seen your lining in my time on this chat. Fingers crossed for you.

@Enfys23 your clinic’s approach is non-sensical and not consistent with mine, which is same company. Keep fighting for a scan before treatment, if you have the fight left. I know it can be really wearing.

I’m so sorry I’ve been absent in the thread! I had such a tough time on the prostap it affected every part of my life in particular my relationship.

I wish I could catch up on the thread but it may take me quite a while! I’ve been on my estrogen now for 11 days, went for my lining check for FET and it’s 8.4mm triple layer but then that “fibroid” literally there staring at me in the face! It encroaches on the cavity. It’s not inside the cavity but it is pushing on it. So on some images the endometrium looked “normal” and you couldn’t see but when she moved the probe and made it 3D you could see it! It’s 1cm and I’m not sure how much is in the cavity but obviously on my hyterscopy it wasn’t flagged as “distorting” my cavity. The nurse got the Dr in for a second opinion and she scanned me and said it isn’t big enough to cause issues and isn’t right into the cavity - something along those lines! She said if it did grow or encroach more and I had surgery it would be open surgery, is this what you had done @Gardenlady543 ? I feel so negative now. I felt like the prostap would help my endometrium and my adenomyosis but no? It’s not even shrunk the fibroid and I can’t see myself getting pregnant with that. :(

Feeling deflated even though she tried to reassure me surely this is the reason I haven’t got pregnant naturally again. The prostap was so tough and now this. Any words of advice? Wish I could kinda draw the diagram 🙈 xx

I’m just dropping in to say the spotting has started, between the migraine and this I’m not convinced this is going to end well. This is the same as what happened on my chemical cycle in September, started spotting 6dp5dt transfer 😔

@ChickenT2b thinking of you, when will you get the hcg result?

@CailinInUK good memory :) I think the highest I ever got up to was 9mm on a medicated mock cycle but the quality didn't look good. So this is def the thickest in a modified natural cycle with good quality, last time it got a bit thicker in between the last scan and transfer.

Oh dear @Loz2467 sorry to hear the medication is making you feel rough. I had small fibroids, one was felt to not be submucosal and was 1cm initially but over the time I was having treatment got to 2cm. Then out of nowhere a small submucosal fibroid appeared which was 1cm, it was pushing into the cavity by 50%. The surgeon said he would try to get them out through hysteroscopy but because they are small when he infused fluid they disappeared into the lining so he couldn't see them, sounds like this has happened to you as well. My surgeon said if I didn't have the history I had then he wouldn't have tried to remove them due to the small size but with my recurrent implantation failure I was told this was the most important step in my management and unfortunately it was escalated up to open, but I was always going to at least have a lap to check for endo at the same time, so the surgeon did that through the incision. In Europe they are doing a lot more advanced operations avoiding open surgery, I went to a lecture from Elias Tsakos, Medical Director , Embryoclinic. Wish I knew about this before I had the open surgery, so do have a look in Europe if you're considering it.

@thislittlebird have you tested yet?

@Gardenlady543 no, I don’t have any tests yet. More spotting just now, feels like it could be a repeat of September. Might test tomorrow.

@Gardenlady543 thank you! I do remember you having it done that’s why I wanted to ask. I can’t picture how much it was entering the cavity - I should of taken a photo because I was left alone for a while in the room with it on the screen in 3D whilst I was waiting for the Dr. So possibly that’s why he couldn’t remove mine via hyterscopy too? Because of it being small and not showing when the liquid entered? The dr tried to say we would only opt for surgery if they get bigger and encroach the cavity more but this looked enough to me. I’m down for my transfer next Tuesday. I’m just in panic mode after the worst symptoms of down Reg and then now feeling like there is zero hope. I know I’ve “only” had 1 failed fresh but I’ve also not got pregnant naturally in the last 2 years after getting pg naturally easily before that so makes me think it’s the reason for no implantation. Would you advise against the open surgery in the UK then?

@thislittlebird thinking of you and hoping for a good outcome.

@Gardenlady543 I should get the hcg result tomorrow. I did a couple of cheapies this afternoon and they are squinters. Crazy how it can change so rapidly.

Ive found a clinic to administer my fertilysis RPL tests so trying to plan for the worst and hope for the best. I wonder if for the micro biome testing I can use the menstrual blood likely to arrive soon if this is a chemical or if I would have to wait a full cycle for ‘normal’ menstrual blood 🧐

@ChickenT2b doing the menstrual fluid with the bleed from this lining will be good as you'll know if there was an issue there, this is what I did. I'm sorry this is all so stressful. People said to me after my chemical that people often seem to be more fertile after a chemical.

@Loz2467 if I did it again knowing about this option I would definitely try something less invasive. Open surgery leaves scarring, risks adhesions and the recovery was brutal. The third night in hospital I woke up vomiting at 3am, I had no strength in my abdomen so couldn't even vomit on the floor, every time I retched it put pressure in the abdomen and pulled on the scars. I just laid there vomiting on myself waiting for the nurse to come and remember thinking, this is enough, I'm ready to go now. After all I'd been through with unsuccessful transfers to be in so much pain and face this recovery, it was so much. This is a big operation. The consensus seems to be submucosal fibroids whatever the size affect implantation and should come out.

I hope the spotting eases, can you increase progesterone? Did you have a Progesteone blood test at all?

@thislittlebird I’m so sorry you’re going through this again, it’s shit and unfair.

@ChickenT2b sorry to hear about your situation too, really such a rubbish process to go through and for some of us over and over again, I think you proactive attitude and knowing about next steps you want to take will help

@Gardenlady543 happy for you that things are progressing in the right direction and you’re finally headed for the FET

Does anybody know if blood thinner injections can lower your heart rate? Mine had been growing steadily for the past couple of weeks and the past couple of days it’s decreased by 1 beat per day and I’ve done minimal activity so if anything should have gone up and I’m reading this as a really bad sign

@clhiu obviously I hope it’s not that but it’s all too similar so far. Weird you mention HR. I noticed my resting heart rate had gone up a couple of points since transfer, seems very odd how it does that. And now it’s kinda middling, not as high as it was or as low as it was before this cycle. Not sure what to make of that really.

@Gardenlady543 glad your scan went well and good luck with the trigger!