BFP after IVF - anyone want to join me in the wait for first scan?

[HopefulllHolly]

Sensitive

Hi everyone,
I’ve just had our first cycle of IVF and although we had very slim odds of it working (low AMH, low AFC, male factor, which led to only 2 mature eggs which thankfully led to one perfect day 5 blast). We are absolutely amazed and over the moon that it worked despite everything, but I am really struggling with the wait for first scan. I almost feel with infertility (we TTC for 6/7 years) that it does make you anxious and I’m finding the wait to my first scan (6th June) unbearable. I don’t want to seem ungrateful but I really wish I could enjoy it or relax a little but instead I am worrying about miscarriage and things I can’t control. For me this has been the worst bit of IVF so far, and I’d love to just be able to be happy so I don’t look back (if it does work) and wish that I hadn’t been so anxious and scared.

Is anyone else in the same boat who wants to keep me company? 🥹 Or can provide some tips on how to distract myself and cope better? I know there’s nothing I can do to change the outcome and what will be will be, but I don’t think I’ve ever worried so much in my life.

Thank you 🙏

Hi,

Firstly congratulations on your positive test!

We had IVF in March, we got the BFP on 3rd April and had to wait 3 weeks for the scan. I found it agonising, worse than the TWW. I could imagine in quite graphic detail arriving at the scan and being told there was nothing there.

Try to do lots of things that keep you busy and distracted. I enjoyed crafts like Lego etc. I journaled every day. I tried to stick to the facts - all the evidence I had so far (the test) was telling me I was pregnant even though I didn't have any symptoms yet. We booked last minute couple of nights away, not far or expensive but just as a distraction and change of scenery.

I also listened to some hypnosis tracks and visualisation tracks of the scan going well which really helped.

Good luck

By the way the scan was absolutely perfect and I'm now nearly 12 weeks xx

@windsor22 Thank you for replying and big congrats on your little one. Do you feel better now at 12 weeks or are you still worrying? I’m scared that I’ll be this anxious the whole time and I’ve wanted to be pregnant and have a baby all my life, I don’t want to feel like this.
I’ll try and find some plans to keep myself busy over the next two weeks, I wish the weather would play ball a bit more as it would be much easier. I do have symptoms so they are reassuring but every night before bed I start panicking again. Lego is a good shout, I like stuff like that I can focus on. I think if I journal I’ll get even more stuck in my head 😵‍💫
Big thanks again for the ideas! It’s so hard this bit, I was totally unprepared for it being positive and the wait after the test, no one talks about it and it’s awful!!

Thank you ☺️

Unfortunately I've discovered the anxiety doesn't stop after the positive test or even after the first scan 😅 I felt good for a few days especially when the symptoms got stronger but the anxiety is still there. I was a very anxious person before we even started TTC! I've been working with a therapist which I've found really helpful.

We had a private scan at 10 weeks just to bridge the gap between 7 and 12. This was incredible and worth every penny.

This weeks worry is the anxiety around the 12 week scan and the screenings but I'm just trying to enjoy it and again stick to the facts and statistics that say it's very very unlikely anything will be wrong. Just remember anxiety shows us that we care and helps to protect us/prepare for the worst but having tools to dial it down is so helpful xx

@windsor22 Oh bless you - I’m sure the 12 scan will be perfect - let me know how it goes. Im
actually not an anxious person usually so this is very foreign to me! It’s exhausting! Yeah I thought it would just carry on to be honest but I do hope we both get to a point where we accept we’re having a healthy baby so we can enjoy it.
I was thinking about getting a scan at 10 weeks so thank you for that! I’ll definitely get one if we get that far.
I can’t even bring myself to say I’m pregnant, I just say we got a positive test I’m that scared of jinxing it 😕

@HopefulllHolly I'm in the same boat! My scan is also the 6th June when I'll be 7+6. Seems such a long wait! I have actually booked a private scan for tomorrow (6+1) it may or may not help with the anxiety but I've prepared myself for that.

Awww @DippyDuck19 congratulations! You’re a little ahead of me, I’m 5+2 today. Nice that we have scans on the same day, we can keep each other company for the next 2 weeks if you like? Is it your first? Have you got any symptoms? I hope your scan tomorrow goes ok, I think I’m going to wait until the scan with the clinic as I’ll only panic if it’s too early to hear a heartbeat because I’m a nervous wreck at the moment. Definitely going to have one between the 7 week and 12 week though. Do you have any symptoms yet?

@HopefulllHolly yes this is my first pregnancy and has sunk in yet! We were given a very low chance of success with ivf so I feel on edge because this shouldn't have happened. Especially as it is our first transfer!
I am getting cramps, waves of nausea and extreme tiredness in the afternoons so am struggling at work! Do you have any symptoms?
I'm worried tomorrow will be too early but hopefully not. I've had some pains near my right ovary so worried about ectopic. I just want tomorrow to confirm it's in the right place!

@DippyDuck19 You sound just like us! We didn’t have good odds of it working at all - low AMH, afc and poor morphology and motility. We only got 3 eggs at collection, and then only 2 matured, and then one miraculously made it to day 5. That alone shocked us as we had prepared ourselves it wouldn’t work. We’re also on our first cycle and only transfer! Our doctor said we’d have 16% chance of IVF working for us. So I totally get you - it shouldn’t have worked so now you just want to keep hold of it and are even more scared.
I’ve got similar symptoms to you - extreme tiredness (just had a nap 😴), nausea (especially when not eaten), I am STARVING at all times, very thirsty and have cramps but nothing too bad - more twinges. I have more twinges on my left side and I think I implanted somewhere on that side as im convinced I felt it happen.
Good luck with the scan - keep me posted! I hope you see the heartbeat - you have a chance because I think it starts in week 5 - but don’t panic if you don’t just yet. ☺️ Excited for you!
Im going to keep doing pregnancy tests once a week until the scan to reassure myself. I have lost it! 😅😵‍💫

@HopefulllHolly we have extreme MFI with 4% success rate. We should never have got day 5 embryos but we have 1 (transferred) and 1 day 6 in the freezer. I feel like we've had our run of good luck so it must run out soon.
Will keep you updated regarding scan. I hope we see heartbeat but may not. The risk of miscarriage drops with a strong early heartbeat so hope we do see it!
I've tested right up until this week but have stopped as worried about the hook effect and if I see a lighter test, that will worry me! I feel like I've gone crazy too!!!
Have you told anyone? We've told immediate family and my manager which has made it feel a bit more real.
Wishing you all the best x

@DippyDuck19 Oh wow! Amazing you have got so far too! Keeping my fingers firmly crossed for you tomorrow and going forward.
We’ve told a few people - our parents and family and a few close friends, and my manager at work. We mainly told them because they know we were going through IVF - some of them have done it themselves so it’s been a nice comfort but a lot of pressure to not let them down!
I hadn’t thought about the hook effect - my tests can’t get any darker now. The control line on my first responses is so light you can barely see it now, and on my other strip ones both are very very dark. We’ll see if I manage to not test - I don’t have great willpower to be honest because I’m so panicky.
Wishing you both the best too, I’m sure you’ve got a beautiful little baby growing in there happily. xx

Eeek, I'm also in the same boat as you guys!! My 7 week scan would have been on 7 June but as my husband and I are away on holiday for two weeks it's now been pushed back to 19 June when we're back 😱

I had a devastating experience with an early scan a few cycles ago and so I'm definitely a bit anxious and scared that that very first scan won't be until 9 weeks now. That said, there's something in me that's a bit like well I won't know what I won't know, so best to almost try to force myself to forget about it all, keep busy and hope things continue to silently progress in the background! Especially as I've not really had any symptoms or cramping or anything. If I almost try to forget I'm even pregnant, maybe the time will fly by? Maybe? Lol! We shall see!!

Best of luck with your scans 💕

@SETTC87 Congratulations! And very to hear about your awful scan previously, that’s what I’m most scared of. I keep having to remind myself that if it doesn’t survive that it’s for a reason and it wouldn’t have become a healthy baby which makes it a little easier to bear. Gosh waiting to the 19th will be hard but at least you’ll be on holiday which is a lovely distraction, you’ll be nice and relaxed which is exactly what a growing embryo needs! Where are you off to? You could get a private scan before you went I guess but then you’ll be worrying while you’re away if it was too early anyway, so probably not a good idea!
Let us know how you get on on the 19th - will be keeping my fingers crossed for us all. ☺️ Have a great holiday too!

@DippyDuck19 Hope the scan today is magical ✨✨

@HopefulllHolly thank you. Scan went well. Measuring 5w+6 so a tad smaller but I imagine when it's soo small it's hard to be accurate. Also saw a strong heartbeat so feeling more reassured.

@DippyDuck19 Oh my gosh! How amazing!! That’s so lovely, so pleased you got to hear it thriving away. I hope mine on the 6th is as positive. Just realised that if it does stick our due date will fall on our 7th anniversary 🥹

@HopefulllHolly that would be nice as a 7th anniversary present! I got my bfp on our 6th anniversary so that felt special.

Have everything crossed for you for the 6th! Still feels like a long way away but am sure the time will fly.

Hi, I’m joining this post too!
I had a positive result almost 2 weeks ago my first scan in on Thursday.
I’ve actually found these past 2 weeks of waiting way more harder than the 2 weeks between transfer & testing date! I was so chilled & relaxed during that 2 week wait and since getting the positive test result I’ve been so worried.
I’ve had a couple of bleeds / spotting episodes so maybe that’s why I’m so worried.

I really wanted to be happy & relaxed. I am happy obviously just worried. I’m hoping this cloud of anxiety disappears after the scan! 🤞🏼

good luck with your scan OP & everyone else!!

Hey @Fluffyted! Welcome and big congrats on your successful round! So pleased for you. ☺️ Gosh yes this bit is so much harder, I’m a bundle of nerves. All I think about is the worst case scenarios. So exciting you haven’t got long until your scan!! I really hope it goes well, keep us posted. I’m excited for Thursday too as it’ll mean it’s only a week until ours 🤣 Somehow having a week to wait feels manageable but over a week does not! xx

I am feeling the nerves ahead of my blood test and then scan! So I wanted to join this group and share the experience!

second IVF treatment - frozen transfer following a successful fresh cycle. I was a bit surprised that it doesn’t make it any less nerve-wracking. My scan isn’t booked yet but hopefully they will do it when I get my blood test on Wednesday.

Hi @TorrentialHighSeas ☺️ Ah amazing you had a successful cycle already! I bet it’s still as full of anxiety though! Congratulations on this one! How many days past transfer are you? Have you been feeling any symptoms? The wait for the scan is BRUTAL - I am going out of my mind. Literally going to bed early every night (plus I’m so tired) and counting down the days. Nice to have your company while we countdown together ☺️☺️

@HopefulllHolly thank you lovely!!
It hasn’t massively sank in yet, I don’t think it will until we have the scan. I feel like this whole IVF journey has made me not want to believe it until I see it 😂
I’ll deffo keep you all updated! Awww yours is so close too, this second week definitely goes much faster!!

The nausea has really kicked in for me this weekend, like a constant feeling 🤢 but I guess I’m glad I have more symptoms now! The only symptom I had was tiredness so I was like something must be wrong 🙈 I’m my own worst enemy sometimes.

My clinic don’t do blood tests to confirm the pregnancy so I think that’s made this waiting process much harder
@TorrentialHighSeas good luck with your blood test & scan!!

@DippyDuck19 awww wow! I’m so glad your scan went well - that must be such a lovely & wholesome feeling ❤️

x

@Fluffyted Yours is 2 days away!! So exciting! Let me know how you get on! I’ve read some lovely threads of people who all
waited for their scans together, then the 12 week scan, the 20 week scan and then they all have their babies, it’s so sweet! But also scary because I don’t think any of them really accepted it was all ok until they were about to pop 🤣 I really hope we all accept it’s happening after our 12 weeks scan! I’d be so sad to feel this anxious my whole pregnancy (if it does go full term…see?! Always an if or but!!).
I can’t wait until Thursday as then it’ll be less than a week and I know it’ll go past quickly especially with the weekend in between. I keep worrying I’m not pregnant anymore because my symptoms are more pronounced some days over others - today I can’t stop burping (totally not like me!) and I am exhausted. Yesterday I was sick all day and had cramps, the day before I was fine but tired. Do your symptoms change every day too?
Sending you lots of excitement and positivity for Thursday! ❤️❤️

@Fluffyted thank you! It was lovely to see the scan and the heart beating away. I felt very reassured on Sunday but now back to being anxious again! My scan at the clinic still seems so far away! Like @HopefulllHolly I'll be counting down the days from Thursday!
I am grateful I have some symptoms as this does help a little bit! My symptoms vary day to day. I tend to alternate daily particularly the nausea. I have a good day with very little to no nausea, then the next day will be bad. The tiredness is a killer though and affecting work. I get to 2pm and really struggle to keep my eyes open!
I can't wait for this phase to pass but at the same time, the symptoms are reassuring.

@TorrentialHighSeas good luck for yours bloods.

Good luck for bloods tomorrow @TorrentialHighSeas

Ah your symptoms sound very similar to mine @DippyDuck19 i had to retire to my bed after 3 today because i just couldn’t cope with backache and tiredness, thankfully my work is deathly quiet at the moment and I’m on leave the rest of the week now. Soon it will be Thursday and we’ll be closer! ❤️