IUI & Fertility in SSC

[solanks]

Hi everyone,

I've struggled to find any groups that are focussed specifically on same sex couples trying to conceive (that do not have any fertility issues).

My partner and I are currently on round three of IUI using donor sperm. The first two tries we did we attempted the natural route (so no medication and no ovulation trigger injection). We decided to go down the medicated route on our third try and are currently in the two week wait, waiting for our results today!

This whole process has been emotionally, physically and financially challenging, so much more than we ever expected, and we would love to hear from other same sex couples on this topic who are in a similar situation to ours. We want to exchange stories, offer each other support, give advice and also recommendations (as there is so much conflicting information out there and each clinic's protocols vary too, which we found bizarre).

Looking forward to hearing your stories; be they successful, unsuccessful, or even if you are completely new to this journey ✨

Ah damnit. Good luck for this new round - may your follicles be hearty, your peak day convenient and your baby cells sticky!

@strawberrylaces12 Ahh, I am so sorry to hear this and hope you're doing ok :( I truly hope that this next cycle is a success for you!

How are you feeling about doing a medicated cycle? Do you know what meds and dosage they are putting you on? Hope it all goes well and lots of love to you and your partner ✨

@Quickdraw23 Thanks so much! We had our initial consult already and are now just getting all the admin done in the lead up: we have completed forms and now need to do bloods. I did forget to ask on the protocol, but will do during our next consult (thanks for reminding me in your suggestions). Also considering using Access fertility for finance support as I like the look of their refund programme, though need to do a bit more number crunching first x

@ProfessorplumBilliardroomCandlestick @solanks

Thanks both. I'm feeling a bit anxious about the medicated cycle and having even more appointments to go to but I've tried to block out time in my work diary (e.g. having work appointments/meetings more in the afternoon as they do the scans in the morning) so that I can attend the appointments. No idea on the type of medication I assume they'll talk that through with me tomorrow hopefully.

I've sort of been thinking I wonder if iui isn't for us and I may need ivf. But at this point we've already had 4 attempts and we need to fund 6 to get an ivf funded and looking at the costs it makes more financial sense to fund two more iui attempts and get an ivf funded. So we'll just have to see. I'm honestly just feeling so drained and fed up with it all. It's all the uncertainty. I think if someone could tell me for definite it will happen on the 6th attempt then I'd be fine but not knowing if/when it might is what's getting to me. It's all I've ever wanted tbh, way more than my career for example.

Sorry for the rant, it does help a lot having this place to chat!

@strawberrylaces12 Your clinic will likely start you off on a low dose of meds, and as you will be monitored a little more, hopefully this helps you feel a little more assured. I don't know how many extra appts your clinic has suggested, but I think we had 1-2 extra scans to check follicle growth. Not sure if this helps, but my partner was on 2.5mg of letrozol and she didn't have any side effects from this, so I hope the same will happen to you too! Just think of the meds as giving your body that liiittle extra fertility-boost ✨

I hope it all goes ok tomorrow with your appt. Obvs we all hope for a bfp for you on this attempt, but it's nice to know you have other options available to you via the nhs if you do later decide... I am secretly a little envious of this haha :')

Lots of love xx

@solanks thank you, that info is really helpful 😊and very true about the meds. Really hoping that they help.

If we did need IVF then it wouldn't be with the NHS clinic that we're with currently as they do IUI but not IVF, they'd refer us to a local private clinic but we should get an IVF funded once we fund 6 IUIs hopefully. I'm hoping it won't come to that but also expecting that it might!

Sorry to hear of the outcome of your iui @strawberrylaces12 i have a friend who was successful on her 5th iui, which was also the first medicated one. Will stay hopeful for you!

glad your initial consult went well @solanks ! Hopefully there will be ample opportunity to chat through your protocol.

i realised after our consult that I forgot to ask about short vs long protocol and pros and cons to this - it looks like I’m going to be doing short protocol again. I do have short phone call booked in in a few weeks once we have the cmv stuff sorted, so I need to remember to ask then. I managed to get my bloods for cmv status done at work the other day (work for a hospital) and I’m just waiting the results now.

@Twomumfamily sorru I just realised I never thanked you for your insights into the cmv status thing! Thank you for sharing - we will have to discuss the theoretical risk if it comes to it. I really like our donor profile so we may just role with it. Is there any reading around the subject you would recommend?

@solanks - having just looked back on the thread I realised I answered your question about advice starting out all wrong because I read it while I was tired, and answered with you going to an appt in mind! Sorry!

More generally I was glad I didn’t make many plans during the week I did stim injections, because they have to be done at the same time every night and I didn’t want to have to worry about visitors asking questions or having to duck out of social stuff to go and do an injection. Don’t do a massive food shop before your meds get delivered because there needs to be room in the fridge. I would recommend booking the day after egg collection off work, or arranging the sick leave in advance if you can, because i felt really bloated by the end of stims, and the bloat doesn’t just disappear straight away post the egg retrieval.

if you have any other questions just let me know!

@Quickdraw23 Thank you. That's good to hear about your friend thank you 😊

@Quickdraw23 Thanks. Just waiting on updated bloods and will then both have a consult (will be sure to ask about protocol).

The meds they have said they use vary between: gonal f, meriofert, luveris, fyremadel, ganirelix. Not sure if you've had any of these?

I've got quotes for all of these from our local Asda pharmacy so looking forward to comparing the prices lol. Based on our clinic's success rates we anticipate that it could take up to 3 tries before we get success, so pondering more now on the finance side of things. There's just so much to think about isn't there! 🤔

@strawberrylaces12 Good luck with your appt today :) x

@solanks i haven’t had any of those meds, I was on bemfola and cetrotide when I did my stims. I know gonal f is a follicle stimulant and research shows it’s slightly more effective than bemfola. The other drugs I’m not sure of sorry!

@Quickdraw23 no problem at all, I’ll have to dig out some of the stuff I found regarding CMV for you.

Little update from me, went in for my scan appointment today and decided to not go ahead with FET this cycle. I have a slipped disk in my back and I need another few weeks of physio and pain meds which aren’t compatible with pregnancy. Absolutely gutted, but know it’s the best thing for my body. Hopefully will go again in May and still got 4 embryos on ice.

Does anyone have any experience with doing 10 days of oestrogen and then stopping? I feel this will completely mess up my cycle?

@Twomumfamily Really sorry to hear this, though it sounds like the right thing to do (as frustrating as it may be) 😔

I really hope that the ongoing physio and pain relief helps as a slipped disc sounds bloody painful! I hope that May makes it way around quickly for you and that when it does, your back is much better ✨Lots of love xx

@solanks thank you it was good, everything has 'reset' as they'd like. I start my gonal f 75 injections this evening. Some more scans next week to review 😊

@strawberrylaces12 How are you getting on with your injections? xx

@solanks well the first few I thought I was injecting it right with the pen and obviously wasn't pushing it down enough and didn't realise it had to go down to 0 (wasn't told that part!) so hadn't actually been getting the dose. Then I read the leaflet and realised, thought I'd messed it all up! Thankfully the clinic were pretty relaxed about it and said as I had realised within the first 5 days of my cycle it was fine and I develop follicles naturally it's just an extra boost so they pushed my scan back a day. So my scan (cycle day 8) yesterday showed 3 small ish follicles developing, and they said keep going with the injections. Got another scan tomorrow to see where I'm at.

How are things with you? 😊

@strawberrylaces12 Ahh that was lucky then - Idk about you, but I get so flustered with doing these things yourself! How have these scans (with the injections) compared to previous? Do you have more follicles growing than before? Sounds very promising and I hope tomorrow's scan goes well :)

All going ok my side thank you. We will be doing our IVF very, very soon, which I am excited and also very nervous about!!

@solanks IVF very very soon? HOW SOON?! That's very exciting.

@solanks yeah me too! I've not had scans as early on in the cycle before so I'm not sure on how measurements compare but I've got 3 growing this time which is more than previous cycles without medication (previously have had 2 cycles with 1 follicle and 2 cycles with 2 follicles, I do wonder if the trigger shot may have been a cause for developing 2 before). Will be interesting to see where they're at tomorrow.

Oooh exciting!! What's the first step? I don't really know IVF in much detail.

@ProfessorplumBilliardroomCandlestick how are things with you? 😊

@ProfessorplumBilliardroomCandlestick Haha! In April all being well 😅 I will likely step away from the thread whilst we are in treatment, but will touch base again once things have settled. I'm so scared and I'm not even the one in treatment lol! We are trying not to put any pressure on ourselves and just take each day as it comes, but my goodness it is difficult.

How are things going with you and bump? Have you any scans booked? Perhaps you've already had some 🤗 x

@strawberrylaces12 Similar to IUI to a certain degree I guess... consultations, bloodwork, scans. Then it's: bloods and scans on day 1-3 of cycle > then stims get introduced at a certain point > once on stims you then get monitored with more bloods and scans every few days > then when ready, take another injection (trigger) > then onto egg collection. I believe they then they do the fertilisation on that same day > monitor the progress over 3-5 days > then all being well, do a transfer (which I've been told is very similar to an IUI) >>> then it's onto the very fun TWW!

...correct me if I'm wrong on any part (anyone who has had ivf lol) 😅

@solanks oh that’s so lovely. April is soon! I am keeping my fingers crossed for you that it all goes well and you’re very sensible to not put pressure on but to just take it one step at a time – a very good way for us all to be!

@strawberrylaces12 so glad that the early mix-up with injections didn’t have any effect on the cycle. Are these the stomach injections? How are you feeling about it all?

My latest is not much! I’ve had no scans so far, but I have started getting morning nausea so I feel like that’s a good sign that things are progressing. I now have a bedside table of snacks and Lucozade! It helps. We have a scan in a couple of weeks' time with the clinic to see how things are going, then if all is well, I get turfed out to normal routine GP care. Keeping everything crossed. So much of this is just characterized by waiting, isn't it?

@solanks ah yeah that all makes sense! Eek not long now!!

@ProfessorplumBilliardroomCandlestick yes stomach injections which have been fine thankfully once I worked the injection pen properly 😅

So I had another scan today. What a difference two days makes I now have 5 follicles growing instead of 3! Thankfully two are on the smaller side so they won't cancel the cycle and I'm having IUI tomorrow. Obviously there's a chance of multiple births but I wouldn't mind at all and I've had a couple of months with 2 follicles developing naturally and I didn't get pregnant with those. So we'll just have to see. Didn't quite realise that the mediated cycle is £500 more than non medicated so had to pay that this morning, so glad we can afford it, a privilege I know!

@strawberrylaces12 That's great! I know that with medicated cycles there is that slight possibility of hyper stimulation, so I'm really pleased that all is good and you can go ahead. Will you be taking the trigger shot too? Hope tomorrow's procedure goes ok ✨