ERA EMMA ALICE testing thread 8

[Gardenlady543]

@2021ivfagain @kerrym87 @Janefx40 @seven201 @thislittlebird @Spin101 @Enfys23
@CailinInUK @BewilderedBee @Loz2467 @Lori2022 @VenusStarr @clhiu @Faithhopelove83 @APSR @ChickenT2b @Mina209 @IVF22 @Lizzybeth1988 @AM08 @Fluffykins33 @Sar1010

Continued in from thread 7 :)

@2021ivfagain I used my heated faux fur throw on the lower settings after my transfer. I don't think you need to go to cold showers, I think they mean not boiling hot, so a warm comfortable heat should be fine.

@2021ivfagain please don't worry. There is absolutely no reason I can think of why you shouldn't lie on a warm blanket. And no need to take cold showers - to be honest I would have thought that would be worse (but still won't have done any harm).

You are meant to keep warm as @Gardenlady543 said so don't have a boiling hot shower but normally warm/hot is fine. I had hot showers but I turned it down a notch from my usual scalding hot. I also had hot water bottles throughout tho on feet/thighs not tummy.

The 2wW is so tough I know xxx

@Enfys23 yes, transfer is this afternoon. Glad to hear yoga and mindfulness has helped. I think it’s important to dedicate that time for yourself. I haven’t been so good this time but will need to get back to it after transfer.

@Gardenlady543 sorry to hear you’re still feeling congested. Are steam inhalations ok to do? I’m ok, thank you. I know my transfer it happening on a really thin lining so am not holding on to any hope.

Should I take any supplements today on day of transfer?

I have just come out of my appointment with Bill smiths on Harley street. He just did a transvaginal scan for our initial meeting but WOW it was so different from any other scan I’ve had before. No stirrups and completely pain free, he confirmed the Andenomyosis (endometriosis) but needs to check how it interacts with the womb when I’m further along in my cycle. This could be having a huge impact on implantation.

He also confirmed I have pelvic endometriosis and so a SIS and hycosy is the next step. This is something my clinic didn’t really offer me until I demanded it. So I am glad I’m going down the right path with this. Just not sure whether to do it at my clinic The Evewell or with Bill?

Just for context I went for a fertility massage with Silene in Kennington, London. And I was recommended Bill Smiths after I told her about my 2 Chemicals and 2 failed euploid transfers. He specialises in implantation failure.

After my Era Emma Alice results coming back with everything normal except low lactobacillus I’m hoping that is we solve this andenomysis issue it should help implantation!

good luck @Spin101 on your transfer!! You’ve done everything you can now ❤️

Congrats on your transfer @2021ivfagain . Amazing blast number and I’m so glad they froze the remaining blasts, I feared they would discard any you couldn’t transfer. I do hope you can set aside some worries and try relax during this time. Warm/hot showers are totally fine, it’s mainly extremely hot baths for a long time that can be harmful.

@Spin101 all the best for your transfer.

@Sar1010 Great to hear you had a good appointment with Bill. I’ve been recommended him by a friend who had two miscarriages following a stillbirth :( . I don’t have any clinical reason except that I’ve never had my uterus checked by my clinic, no hysteroscopy, saline scan etc. So if (big if) I do get a genetic risk free, euploid to transfer, I want to have had my uterus checked in advance. I’d probably follow up with him rather than your clinic as he is somewhat of a pioneer in this field. I’m hoping to see him late August. For me, he’s recommended a scan 3-4 days following ovulation. Unsure why he’s picked that timing, I had assumed he would’ve liked to see me when my lining was thin. I’ll enquire.

I’m on Day 3 of stims at the moment so a few days behind @Enfys23. I’m so used to this by now, and life is so busy, that I almost forget to do my injections! But not quite!
@Enfys23 hope it’s going ok. You mentioned EC may be on Monday. Presumably this isn’t set in stone and they recommend trigger at the optimum time? I ask for a print out of my follicle sizes and independently review them rather than relying on the clinic. Had I not done this and insisted on later trigger I honestly don’t think I’d have my daughter as they were always triggering me too early.

Ah @CailinInUK thats a relief to hear that someone else knows of him… I just never know if I’m being recommended people just for the sake of it and it always feel like a bit of a gamble. But it makes me happy knowing you’ve heard of him.
yes he said he was basically one of the first, if not the first, to do scans for women struggling with infertility. It was remarkable how quickly he diagnosed me and also just how pain free the whole experience was.

I have to go back around ovulation and then afterwards too as he wants to see how my endo reacts with ovulation and progesterone.
which reminds me I must ring up now and book these appointments.. seems like they book up quite quickly.

I’m also going to do being stims in a very busy time in September… not looking forward to that but as you say we’re used to it all now.

i hope you have a bit of chill time in the evenings xxx

@Spin101 thinking of you this afternoon. Really hope it goes well and I can understand how you feel but I will still hold some hope for you ❤️. I didn’t really take anything except vitamin D, oral probiotic and folic acid post transfer. Let us know how you get on. Sending so many positive sticky thoughts.

@Sar1010 that sounds so productive. Glad it held some answers and a plan. Maybe someone I need to see at some point then too. I haven’t heard of him before.

@CailinInUK hope all going well with you. Thank you 💕My clinic are so minimal on monitoring as you know and I don’t think there’ll be any chance of them changing their minds if want to trigger! In the last two stims there weren’t many small follicles coming up though so think would have risked losing the good ones by delaying, but will be interesting to see how the DHEA has changed things (if at all) this time. My last day 10 scan (I’m being scanned on day 9 this time round) showed :
Left Ovary
18
18
18
7
Right
21 mm
13
10
we got 4 eggs with 3 mature from this which was my better cycle.
The other cycle I had similar day 10 scan (though I think there was only a follicle or two of much smaller size besides the 4 that seemed usable) and we only got 1 egg at collection (but a very inexperienced person doing the collection).
Feeling more nervous about tomorrow now but equally know I’ve done everything possible and cannot change the outcome.

@2021ivfagain agree with everyone else that lowest setting heated blanket won’t have made any difference. I have one in our bed and it is only body temperature warm. Also warm but not hot showers fine. It’s the really hot long showers or bath that’s not recommended. Take care and don’t let this worry you, so hard I know.

@Gardenlady543 hope you feel better soon! Still no news from midwife/about the scan?

@Spin101 I just took my supplements as usual on transfer day. Best of luck :)

@Sar1010 this sounds like a really good appointment!

@Enfys23 is your day 9 scan tomorrow? I finally heard from the nhs and they are doing my scan tomorrow afternoon so I cancelled my Sunday scan and will do one with ultrasound direct the following Sunday.

I hope you had a smooth transfer @Spin101, fingers crossed for you

@Sar1010 it’s good that you go to see someone who’s able to get to the bottom of your issue and can provide treatment for the next cycle

@2021ivfagain echoing what everybody else said, my acupuncturist keeps recommending to keep warm during the luteal phase and implantation. I think hot baths or really long hot showers should be avoided just in the sense they may end uo rising body temperature which you don’t want, but in balance my understanding is that it’s better to keep warm than cold, although I’m sure a few cold showers won’t have done any harm

Thank you all for your kind words. I was in and out quite quickly so didn’t get round to asking how my lining looked. This time my embryo thawed 100% which surprised me after last time.

@Enfys23 Thank you ❤️ Hope your scan goes well tomorrow!

@Gardenlady543 Glad the nhs finally confirmed a scan date for you!!

@2021ivfagain hope you’re ok x

Congrats on being PUPO @Spin101 ❤️

Thanks so much. Sorry for not keeping up. My Dad is still in hospital so just taking things day by day.

@Gardenlady543 I’m using Flora femme twice a day, but when I get towards the evening ph rises and discharge starts to come back again. I think it’s the cyclogest. I wish I could take 3 probiotics a day. Eg 2 Flora femme and 1 vagibiom. That would help me but worried that is too much. I’m trying to limit how much I use Vagibiom but really need to use it tonight.

Thank you @Gardenlady543. I go to weekly yoga classes - do any of you know whether or not it’s advisable to attend yoga a few days after transfer?

That’s great news @Gardenlady543 glad you knew in time to shift the private scan time. Maybe some sterimar saline wash and a steroid nasal spray by now if you’re still congested? Hopefully virus should be long gone.
Will be thinking of you today.
Yes my day 9 scan is quite early this morning. Clearly nervous as I’m up already 😣😂

@Spin101 I don’t think gentle yoga, providing you don’t do some fancy hot yoga that overheats you, would be a problem. I carried on with yoga videos on YouTube that were designed for 2WW I seem to remember them being quite chilled out.

@Spin101 I think they normally recommend no yoga right after the transfer. I've actually signed up for some classes and they all said they don't take people until 14 week

@Enfys23 I've been using a saline nasal spray that is 100% sea water, eucalyptus oil and strepsil, I think I'm at the tail end now, so hopefully will be back to normal soon. Good luck at the scan!

@2021ivfagain 3 times a day might be too much why don't you do 1 flora femme and 1 vagibiom a day?

Hello @Gardenlady543 . I used a Vagibiom pessary for the first time last night then realised it’s encased in coconut fatty acids. Do you think that could be detrimental to sperm being able to do its job since we’re doing timed intercourse? I believe oil based lubricants should be avoided when TTC and the next few days are critical for us to be trying, do you think I might have messed things up? I have my superovulation scan this afternoon, after completing the prescribed course of Letrozole last Saturday.

@Gardenlady543 Already doing one Flora femme and one vagibiom a day. I’m fine until near the evening. You see I started getting these symptoms back on transfer day when I had to stop probiotics that morning.

@clhiu so I personally only use vagibiom at the start of my cycle because it contains acid and at ovulation the pH increases slightly as sperm like alkali environments. I am sure one wouldn't have done much but I would probably stick to different probiotics that don't have acid mid cycle and maybe avoid any at the peak timed intercourse time.

@2021ivfagain would it be a good idea to stop measuring the pH now, I haven't measured since before my transfer.

Ok, thank you so much @Gardenlady543 , it’s day 12 today and haven’t had an LH surge yet, I usually ovulate on day 16-18 so hopefully haven’t messed up my PH too much then

@Gardenlady543 I haven’t measured ph for months. I feel BV symptoms naturally. I know when ph is not good and I’m getting discharge. Last month I knew by my symptoms I had BV back again. I got tested and I was spot on. GP picked up BV infection.

@2021ivfagain oh I thought whenever you said your pH is high you had measured it.

@Enfys23 @Gardenlady543 thank you. I think I might skip my next few classes as we do twists and forward bends.

I got my medichecks oestradial levels back (day before transfer) and they’re 1,400. I have no idea if it’s good or bad or ok

@Spin101 that's a great level, mine was 1500 in this natural modified cycle that I've had. I looked through a lot of evidence and found it hard to pinpoint what is the best level, I know they definitely like it over 500. I think if it is very high there is some evidence that it's not good, but then in fresh cycles it will be many thousands and obviously those cycles do work.

Thank you @Gardenlady543 glad to hear so! I think mine was 15,000 during EC. I’m glad you and @Enfys23 recommended I get it tested during this cycle. It’ll be a good reference point for future cycles