IVF/ICSI June/July

[CakePigeon30]

Hi, couldn't see a thread for June yet so thought I would start one.

I'm on long protocol so actually starting down regulation on 28th May, egg collection not scheduled in until 8th July.

I am on NHS and this will be my first round. Was referred less than a year ago now and have managed to loose 2 and a half stone to get my BMI down.

Anyone else due to start around June?

@GCS34 Yes I have all the symptoms of implantation and looks really positive also you don't get a BFP till after implantation which would explain this morning. So I'm going to wait till that ends and then test again. As long as I don't full on bleed it might just be good news but only time will tell.

@CakePigeon30
Thank you.
It's a bit uncomfortable, but nothing like it was after the egg collection luckily.
I'm just hoping my blastocyst will be good enough, it was only a 3BB.
First cycle for me.

@SamVan
I was on 150 gonal f and fyremadel as well ☺️
I had my first injection on the 5th oh June, the first scan was on the 12th.

@GCS34 I haven’t had the first injection yet. I’ve just taken it out of the fridge to let it warm up slightly! I’m concerned 😬 good luck with your start on Thursday! Hopefully we will all be successful this round. Ivf is such a rollercoaster

@HighflyingUnicorn ooh nice to meet someone on the same stims. How did you find the whole process? Any injection tips to reduce the pain of feymadel? The tww totally sucks agreed. You’re almost there though!

Does anyone know if Gonal F makes you emotional? I’m having a rough week (illness, cat sick, husband away, leaving my job - by choice) and really don’t want to be even more emotional than I already am!

@SamVan how did it go? I think gonal f is an epi pen isn’t it? So it won’t be too bad. Not sure on fyremadel … I had ovamex last time and on Ganarelix this time. They just ache abit after you’ve done it but if you just rub the area it tends to ease it. And I did it in top of my leg which makes it easier and less painful as your tummy will be having the stims in.

@SamVan I think it does make you more emotional, I didn't feel too bad, I was just extremely tired.
I too was in a risk category for OHSS, that's why they kept me on 150 iu, I even had to cut it short, had loads of follicles, some fairly big, but they only managed to find 6 eggs.
My stomach was completely bloated after the egg collection, it still isn't back to normal.
I had no problem with the injection itself, they're both pretty much pain free, ink could feel the fyremadel more..
It's an exciting journey ahead of you 🥰

@GCS34 i did it! It was fine :) thanks for checking in. The main difficulty is forcing myself to put it in but the needle was sharp so there was no resistance. Are you having the same drugs this time?

@HighflyingUnicorn I’m sorry about the bloating and them not being able to find eggs in every follicle. I hear it’s relatively common but still really sucks. I hope you’re not in discomfort at the moment. How many days were you on stims for in total? My current plan is for 8 days.

@SamVan a total of 11 days.
It'll all be worth it in the end ☺️
The bloating was almost comical at one point, but not much pain anymore, more discomfort and the odd cramping.

How're you feeling about it all?

Hey, had my embryo transfer today too. Although it hadn’t made it to blastocyst stage, so likely it has already stopped growing (said it met the minimum standard for transfer, but looking at other clinics they would have left it another day to see). Get very little information from care, as to what has gone off, maybe get some answers in the consultation afterwards.

The bloating is awful!

@HighflyingUnicorn aww yeah somr friends told me they looked pregnant which was upsetting cause people asked them if they were! A good reminder for me to pick up a loose summer dress this week so I have something to wear to disguise bloating in the coming weeks. I’m feeling hopeful and grateful my stims this round are relatively light . But also trying to prepare myself for things not working out the way I want to. This is a difficult journey! Be kind to yourself these next two weeks! Lots of treats! And please do update us on any results/symptoms :)

@SamVan haha I always think the barks worse than the bite and often it’s the thought of it more than the actual injection. Glad it went okay!
how come you’ve already had the number of days you’re on stims for decided? I thought it was always based on how you responded but generally 12-14 days of them. Are you on a high dose / have a high amh?

nah on a different protocol this time completely to get better quality. I got aaaaaaallllll the eggs last time, and made 5 x embryos but they were all pretty crap quality, so their goals ‘less is more’ this time, so protocol is designed for less numbers but higher quality of eggs. That’s the theory anyway!

@GCS34 I think this is just what they project the likely stim days are, but I have enough meds for 12 days of Gonal-F so it's going to depend on how I respond. I responded very fast to stims on IUI so they expect it'll be quite fast. I have high AMH so low dose.

Best of luck with your new protocol!! I hear the first cycle is almost a test round so I'm sure you'll have better results this time. Btw, what drugs were you given for your collection which were nice? I wasn't given any nice ones when I was last under sedation.

@SamVan ahhhh I see. That’s good you have a good response. I did ovulation induction for 3 rounds with injections too and responded mental with that as I have a high amh also, so I’m only on 150iu meriofert for this round. Was on 115iu of ovaleap last time. I imagine I’ll be faster this time due to slightly higher dose. We’ll see.

yes it’s sad but I hear the same. Often they just learn a lot but a lot of people round one works so it’s just a bit of trial and error sometimes.
hahaha the sedation drugs. Not sure what your clinic uses but the ones I got made me super trippy and felt drunk for a few mins then woke up in a delirious state of contentment. It was beaut 😂

@GCS34 Damn I'm gonna be asking them for the happy drugs next time! I just woke up feeling like I'd had a mediocre nap.

I'm not sure how I'll respond to the stims on IVF as it was different drugs the last time. But we'll see I guess! It's hard to know until you do IVF as well what the actual issue is and why it hasn't worked yet. There's so many stages its amazing any babies are made at all!

My round was cancelled as I still only had one slow growing follicle and a very thin lining. So disappointed and sad that once again my ovaries have done bugger all. I know they only gave us a very very slim chance of ivf working but you hope so hard it will work and you will be the lucky one with the miracle success story.

On the plus side as it was cancelled before egg collection we get most of the money back so can now afford to look at another try. which we didn't expect. Have an appointment on Thursday with the consultant and I think we will now be looking at donor eggs.

I wish all the rest of you well with your treatment xx

@GwenH82 sorry to hear it. Do you think you will have a break or start again next cycle?

I've just had my down regulation scan and all is well so starting stims tomorrow. I'm on 225iu meriofert, looking through the posts this seems much higher than everyone else? Is anyone else on 225?

@GwenH82 sorry to hear that, silver lining I suppose that you’ll be able to try with donor eggs hopefully. You try to be realistic, but it doesn’t stop your mind having hope.

@CakePigeon30 I did 450iu (no explanation as to why!).

Has anyone been prescribed to take more than the recommended dose of cyclagest 400mg (progesterone)
It's recommended twice a day. I've been prescribed 3 times a day. Does anyone have an idea why that might be?

@GwenH82 am so sorry to hear that it’s 💩 isn’t it?

@HighflyingUnicorn I believe it’s just to help with lining growth and try to keep everything in place. I was initially given cyclogest twice daily, but ended up with cyclogest twice daily, Ellest solo 3 x a day, crinone gel 1 x a day and 2 estradiol patches changed every three days - still no idea why but have our follow up consultation on Thursday so hopefully will get some answers

@GwenH82 I’m sorry it didn’t work. That must be devastating and I wish you all the best with your move to donor eggs.

@HighflyingUnicorn did you do a progesterone blood test? I understand they can adjust it based on your progesterone levels. The nhs clinic I’m with just does 2x cyclogest each day but a private specialist I’ve seen said that for 30% of women that’s not enough. So I’m going to get my progesterone levels tested privately before transfer (unless nhs does it) and get additional progesterone if needed. I think some places do a mix of injections and pressaries. The pessaries really upset my stomach personally. And that was with just 1x a day after iui.

Hi @CakePigeon30 I was on 225 too. I believed it was a low dose as they said I shouldn't require much medication. Hope it goes well for you!

I'm on 225 meriofert too when I get started. I think it's a fairly standard middle of the range dose for people who aren't a big risk of over/under responding!

@CakePigeon30 I’m on 225 meriofert. Started Cetrotide as well this morning. My belly is feeling quite tender now on day 6. Got to inject again in a couple of hours. I was going with the method of alternating both sides but now it’s all tender so wherever I inject is quite sensitive.

Another question- anyone else beginning to have a dodgy stomach? Very personal I know but seeing though we’re shoving needles in us and pessaries up us, I thought that the horse has already bolted with dignity!! Haha

@Toon49 do you have a start date? Have you all recovered from covid?

@SlinkMcSlink is cetrotide a similar drug to meriofert? I'm only on meriofert.