Create Fertility - Experiences

[Sunflower360]

Hi 👋

I was hoping for people's experiences and thoughts on Create Fertility? I am considering them, so any thoughts would be much appreciated.

I am currently going through a short protocol with high stims with another clinic, baseline scan showed 4-5 follicles (expected that as I have low AMH/low ovarian reserves) but through my high stimulation am only showing 1, maybe 2 follicles that are growing...so cycle is not looking great.

So I wanted to consider Create as they specialise in natural modified and mild IVF, but would appreciate feedback on people's experiences as we would be going in multi cycle with my low AFC/AMH and want to ensure it's the best decision in those circumstances.

Thanks!

Update from me... AF arrived 5 days early so got my scan on Friday...it's a day 3 scan though so a bit earlier, will see what that holds. I'm wondering if I'll have to abandon and restart next month, not like me to start my period really early and it's heavy too, plus I've literally just getting over a heavy cold (tested negative for covid), so thinking it could all affect follicle recruitment 🙁

@HopefulElle @Woodcottage1 @Jx3303 how are you all getting on? @Doxy21 hope you're ok and hope the scan next scan is good for you

Good luck on Friday @Sunflower360, don’t count yourself out just yet. Hope you’re feeling better. I’m back for a scan Friday too, that will be day 6 for me. Really hoping this one’s OK!

Thanks @HopefulElle and that is good news! Are you happy with the results so far?

@Sunflower360 Haven’t been scanned yet this cycle, usually have day 5 for my first one but they don’t scan on Thursdays.

Good luck today @Sunflower360 🤞🏼

Thanks @HopefulElle hope yours goes ok

Had my scan today - one bigger follicle. I’m really worried the same thing will happen as last time and I feel really disadvantaged that Create was the only clinic I could afford. I never had only one follicle with my previous clinic and I’m really querying whether create are doing their best for us. I tried pushing back to no avail. I’m the opposite of @Sunflower360 i want this over with quickly now just so I can say I tried all I could, not because I have any hope. Sorry to be such a downer guys. Just need to vent.

@Doxy21 really sorry you feel that way 😔 I'm not sure what you mean by you're opposite to me? We're all different, so hopefully, as you say you're challenging them, they could look into your concerns and try and find a more individual approach that could work for you. Have they got all your notes from your cycle outside of Create?

It is positive that you have a bigger follicle though, as the aim of natural modified is one egg which should be the dominant follicle

@Sunflower360 sorry, I meant you seem really spurred on from your previous round (and rightly so!) and I think mentioned you were keen to keep pushing forward and I guess based on that success. I might have misinterpreted that, apologies if so. I just feel the opposite of glass half-full ness - keen to just get it over with based on how badly it’s going so that I can stop. Last time I had a lead follicle too. They have all my notes. They said I could only do mild if had 6 or more follicles and I had 5. They disregarded that I had 4 follicles before and got 3 mature eggs using mild. They said ‘but still no baby’ - I just feel in the grand scheme of steps (follicles, eggs, blasts, transfer) getting to transfer with no baby is still better than getting zero follicles and not even being on the ladder!

@Doxy21 no need to say sorry, can completely understand how you're feeling, having had an abadoned cycle and no fertilisation on another cycle myself prior to Create, it can be really deflating and leaves you questioning what to do next to achieve what it is your aiming to achieve. At some point, and it could happen, I may need to accept a life without children - was only thinking yesterday about the bucket list of holidays, probably because I'm still pre empting this may not all work, and I'm imagining that life so it's not a shock if that is what happens....call it damage limitation! So I completely understand.

I think you're right taking positives from the cycle where you got 3 eggs and an embryo. Are Create using the same stimulation meds as your previous cycle? Sometimes I understand different meds can work better perhaps? Of course I'm no way qualified but hopefully, and I would like to think, that Create would consider all of this.

What I do think though, is that Create are very much mild/natural approach and they are unilikely to steer away from that model. I got advised in my consultation that mild was not an option as my AMH was low, they advised anything below 5 pmol they advise natural modified so I think the follicle approach that you're being advised is consistent with that.

Your bloods should hopefully indicate if there is a mature follicle possibly, are you able to ask what your results are from the bloods? I have asked each time and found it gave me an indication how it was going. I found this link useful to interpret them:

theduff.co.uk/oestradiol-levels-ivf/

And this in case you need to translate the measure of estradiol:

unitslab.com/node/113

thanks @Sunflower360 - the round at my previous clinic where I started with 4 follicles, got 3 eggs and 1 embryo was mild stimulation. I actually had all 3 at day 3 but that clinic’s policy was they only proceed with day 5. So similar at create would have given me potentially 2 or 3 embryos. Yet create have told me that they can only do natural modified for me due to starting with 5 follicles instead of 6 at baseline scan. I asked to do mild. Thanks, I will ask about bloods but my concern is they aren’t even trying to get more than 1 follicle when last time that 1 follicle was empty (again, never happened to me before). I tried to push for the protocol that worked for me before. I think i might feel differently if I hadn’t done better in both my rounds at my previous clinic than so far both my rounds with create.

@Doxy21 I think Create have a model and they stick quite rigidly too it I think, I was told the same in my first cycle with them that the aim is one egg, anything else is a bonus. Tbh my thoughts were that I got 2 mature eggs in my high stims cycle of which neither fertilised so one decent egg would be better than 2 rubbish ones, hence why I agreed with natural modified. Despite how I did in my first cycle with Create though, they have not suggested doing Mild and I'm still doing natural modified so I think their stance is very strong on 'quality over quantity ' abs that cut off for AMH levels/follicles to do mild appears to be a stance they do stick to

@Doxy21 keep positive if you can, appreciate it is hard. @HopefulElle hope your scan went OK?

@Sunflower360 it was OK thanks - main thing was there was no signs of cysts so that was a huge relief! (Mainly because I thought that might cause even more delays). Only 2 follicles and still small, so they’ve told me not to start meds yet and to go back on Monday. Praying I’ll be able to start then!
Seems similar timings wise to my first cycle, so hopefully this will be cycle 2, but trying not to get my hopes up yet. How was yours?

Oh @Doxy21 so sorry you’re having a tough time of it. Completely get it. I was offered a very high stim protocol at another clinic and find it so hard not to wonder ‘what if’, even though I’ve never done a cycle elsewhere, so imagine that is extra tough when you do have a comparison. I just desperately want to get the 3 cycles done so that I know the outcome either way.

@HopefulElle that sounds promising, hope your scan on Monday goes well. I'm in the same boat, small follicles and blood test showed to not start stims yet, so will know more on Monday after the next scan

@HopefulElle @Doxy21 when you had cycles cancelled due they charge you at all for the scans or was it just stims you had to pay for? Just wondering in case, so I'm prepared if that was to happen

@VSRCM have you started your next cycle now, if I remember correctly you were waiting to start after a break? @Woodcottage1 how did the scan go? @Jx3303 how are you getting on, have you had egg collection?

@Sunflower360 i haven’t had any cancelled with create but from when I read the contract I think they charge £200 per scan you had to a max of £600

@Doxy21 yes that was what I understood too, will see what happens

@Sunflower360 they didn’t charge me for my scans on cancelled cycles, only had one scan for each. Or at least they haven’t billed me yet. I’d had meds delivered which I hadn’t used, but they have a long date so will be fine for my next cycle.

@Sunflower360 my cancelled cycle I paid £200 for the first scan I had and I'd used some of the medication, but I tend to have too many bemfola so it worked out ok for next cycle I just needed more cetrotide which I haven't yet paid for - probably gets added to a tab.

Collection went ok thanks, I've been sorer than usual the last few days but then I did have surgery for the MMC so there's been a lot going on up there for quite a while now.

We had three eggs collected with was great but then our call on day 1 was disappointing with only one fertilising correctly - for both our create cycles we've always had good day 1 updates so it was a blow. It's still continuing on day 3 so I'm praying it's still progressing by day 5. I'm just so tired, of everything - being away from home for 10 days takes it out of me emotionally and physically it's been harder after collection this time, I'm so bloated and uncomfortable but just trying to rest now we're home and drink plenty of water. I intend to stay in my dressing down all day today.

How is everyone one else doing?

@Doxy21 I'm really sorry you're having a rough time, I hope you're feeling a little better and have a restful weekend. It's really hard to not be a glass half full kinda person when things don't go well and previous bad cycles really give me the fear. And I get lulled into a false sense of hope when it's good news and then bad is so hard to take.

@HopefulElle really glad to hear that there were no cysts at your scan, I have everything crossed you'll get to start again Monday!

@Jx3303 sorry to hear you're feeling that way, it's good that one is going strong still and fingers crossed for your day 5 update. Did you have ICSI? Hope you feel better soon

@Sunflower360 thank you 😊 I'm trying to stay positive, I hate the update days they are just the worst aren't they. I'm also trying to remind myself we almost weren't doing the last cycle and we said anything from this cycle added was a bonus. I'd just have liked a day 1 update where they were all still in the running. Yes we've done ICSI all three cycles with create. How are you? x