Very low AMH and AFC

[GingerRCD]

Hi,

We've been TTC for about a year now. I'm 38 (soon to be 39) and have very low AMH of 0.55 and had an antral follicle count of just 1 today. Obviously, I'm absolutely crushed by these results. Just posting to see if any of you are in a similar boat and to hear about your experiences/success stories.

My partner has no male factor infertility.

Words of wisdom and support would be great right now! X

Hi there, I had pretty much the same results as you. On my first round of ivf I had an amh of 0.7 and 2 antral follicles and it worked! We got our little boy.

We tried again when he was 3 & I had the same antral follicle count but my amh was 0, undetectable i was told. We had one unsuccessful round and then we tried again and I also have a 2 year old girl now. Don't give up hope xx

@Bellesmother

Hi and thanks so much for responding, I really appreciate it. Your story has brought me so much hope! It's amazing.

I feel like doctors write us off with those kind of numbers.

If you don't mind me asking, how many eggs were they able to collect in each of your ivf rounds and did you just have one transfer the first time and two the second?

Honestly, you really cheered me up last night! Thanks again x

Hi on my first cycle they collected just 3 eggs, 2 made it to day 5 & were transferred. I actually had a scan at 8 weeks & it was a twin pregnancy but at my next scan at 12 weeks, we lost one of the twins, which was sad but we were blessed with our son.
On my second unsuccessful cycle they collected 4 eggs but none fertilised.
On my third cycle, just 2 eggs were collected, both made it to day 5 & were transferred and we were blessed with our daughter.
I won't lie, it was very hard. I followed the book "It starts with an egg" religiously , i didn't drink alcohol at all, and started fertility acupuncture also.
I really wish you the very best of luck, I've been in your shoes, so I know exactly how you feel xxx

Thank you @Bellesmother.

I'm sure it wasn't an easy journey whatsoever. I felt devastated hearing those results and know there are likely to be many challenges ahead and lots more uncertainty.

Is a "cycle" one egg collection? I think my clinic are going to recommend collecting on 3 separate occasions and then doing one transfer. Did you have conventional ivf or did you have more mild ivf because of your low amh? Just want to be as informed as I can be.

Did you avoid plastics etc too? That's one thing I think may be difficult as they're everywhere! I've made changes to my diet and am taking supplements, and have just started acupuncture.

Thank you, it helps to hear from someone who knows just how tough all of this is xx

Yes a cycle is one egg collection. I think it was conventional ivf. The first round was a long protocol and the other 2 cycles were short protocol.
Yes I also tried to avoid plastics as much as possible. I was also prescribed dhea by the fertility clinic between cycle 2 and cycle 3.

Hey OP
I have an AMH of 0.6 with AFC of 3. Collected 3 eggs first round, 1 fertilised and made it to a great Day 5 but unfortunately transfer failed. We’ve made some tweaks to my luteal support meds for this round.

This time my right ovary didn’t respond at all so we collected 2 eggs, one developed into a beautiful embryo, even better than the first. I’m currently 1DP5DT. It’s quality over quantity sometimes so try not to feel too disheartened. It’s not impossible ❤️

Hi there. I am 37 my partner is 40. I too have low amh at 3.5 and my partner has some fertility issues we knew of. My results were a shock and ive been in termoil ever since getting them last month. I am so worried with my age and waiting times with NHS (1st referred Oct 2022) so we went private for a consultation recently....the doctor was so negative, and said it wasn't even worth trying ...like is this normal?? We have decided to go with NHS but will be another 6months with NI waiting times. I'm reading other low AMH on here and i am living for the positivity. Just a message to say you aren't alone xx

@StarEyes0971 No, that's not normal. My AMH was 3.6, I got 6 eggs, 3 blastocysts, and am 26 weeks pregnant from the first transfer from that round. Notwithstanding any other issues, you can absolutely conceive with those numbers.

@MrsMotts Thanks for your message. Honestly, stories from other women in a similar position to me really do give me hope.

Any update on how the transfer went? Sending you lots of luck! X

Hi @StarEyes0971 and thanks for your message.

I'm really sorry you had that experience. It's just like where is the sensitivity and care?!! I find it shocking. We are people, with feelings, and this is such an emotional thing for a woman.

It certainly can feel hard to be hopeful with low AMH etc, but as long as we have some eggs there is still a chance. It's an indicator of our reserves and not our chances of conceiving, as we all just need that one good egg.

Sending love your way x

I don't have such a positive outcome but perhaps some useful information to share.

I had AMH of 4.6 in August 21. Did IVF in August 22 -> 6 eggs -> 1 embryo which resulted in a chemical pregnancy.

Another cycle October 22 -> 1 egg -> 1 embryo which resulted in a MMC at 8 weeks.

I've also been pregnant twice naturally but had a MMC at 11 weeks and a TFMR at 16 weeks. But we have male factor issues which you don't so you're chances of conceiving naturally may be reasonable because AMH shouldn't impact chances of natural conception.

I'm now 38, have an AMH of 1.1 and an AFC of 6 at my last scan. We're going to try a duo "stim cycle" (two stimulations and egg collections back to back in the same monthly cycle) in January which has been shown to give better results in people with low AMH apparently.

I also do "oestrogen priming" (take oestrogen tablets) in the 2 weeks before starting a cycle. This keeps the FSH hormone low which reduces the chance of getting a cancelled cycle (which I did have twice in the past when my sleepy ovaries didn't respond to stims).

I also recently found out my thyroid was a bit low which is common in women with low AMH so I'm being treated for that which should also help conception.

Having low AHM is such a stress when going through IVF.

@GingerRCD today was test day, and we have a BFP. Obviously nowhere near out of the woods yet but staying positive ❤️

@MrsMotts OMG, that's amazing!!! Congratulations, what excellent news just before Christmas!

Keeping everything crossed for you that the pregnancy progresses well.

Which ivf protocol did you use? Was it a shorter mild ivf cycle? Xx

@GingerRCD thank you ❤️ trying to stay quietly optimistic but fear this might be the tough part waiting now!

I had testosterone priming before norethisterone to plan my period, and then GonalF, Meriofert 150 & Ganirelix (I had about 12 days of stims) then collection and fresh transfer. We also had a double trigger of Buserelin and Gonasi. I think that’s a short cycle?

supplements I take are OVUM & I added NMN this cycle. Don’t know whether it made any difference but we got a better embryo so who knows 🙃

I had AMH of 1.54 pmol/L 2 years ago at a fertility mot. I was depressed by the results and single at time so just accepted it. Fast forward 2 years - I’m now 40 and 13 weeks pregnant. I conceived naturally and my AMH is probably close to zero now. Low AMH doesn’t mean you need ivf and it doesn’t mean you can’t get pregnant easily. All it takes is one egg