Low Egg Reserve and Ovarian Cyst

[Wishing4Snow]

Hello everyone. I went for blood tests and a scan at BCRM and the results were not what I wanted. I am 37, single woman with a low egg reserve and AMH at 3.7. I also have a 2.5cm cyst on my left ovary which I likely need to see the gynaecologist about and get removed. The clinic are going to call tomorrow after they discuss this to see if it is a game changer. And I also need an echocardiogram as I was diagnosed with a heart condition at birth and the clinic would like my cardiologist to sign me off before treatment, which I understand. But all of this is going to take time, which I seemingly do not have.

All if this has felt like a massive blow today and I feel I am in shock. I phoned work when I got back (who couldn’t have been nicer) and have gone to bed. I haven’t stopped crying since.

I do not qualify for NHS funding as I am incredibly blessed to have a child from a previous relationship. But I so wanted to give them a sibling and frankly have a child who I do not have to share with an ex. I have been saving for the last 3 years to get to this stage and now I feel lost and don’t know what to do next.

Is there any hope left for me?

Hoping someone will reply.

Also, correction: AMH is 3.2.

Hi @Wishing4Snow sorry to hear that you are going through such a tough time right now! But I wanted to say that low AMH and cyst are not the end of the world. Some tips from someone who has been through it:

• if you have a choice, make sure you are with a clinic that specialises in low AMH / diminished ovarian reserve patients. They’ll be much more sensitive and should be able to better tailor your treatment
• if you have to wait before you can start treatment - use that time to get healthy - exercise, eat well (Mediterranean diet but lots of good protein), supplements (high strength vitamin D, omega 3, and subject to your cardiologist approval ubiquinol/Co-enzyme Q10, melatonin and DHEA)
• be prepared that it might take a few cycles before you get there but you are still the right side of 40 so the eggs you do have should still be fine quality-wise

Subject to cardiologist approval (or at least them saying it won’t harm your heart) I recently read a thread on here called “Pregnant with POI” about the benefits of the supplement NMN too - so also something to add to your list.

Good luck! ❤️

@GracePKI Thank you so much for replying, lovely. I feel so incredibly lost and like my chances have been snatched away because it took me too long to save the money by myself.

Do you happen to know of any clinics that specialise in low AMH / diminished ovarian reserve?

I thankfully have good health otherwise and my heart condition does not affect me in any way. I know I am fortunate in this regard. Still going to carry on eating healthy and taking vitamins.

I also plan to carry on with my savings pot as I expect it to take a few tries now.

I am just devastated so I really appreciate you giving me some hope. Seriously, thank you x

I was with the Lister and found them to be very good, but I’m sure there are others to consider too. We did a few consultations (including with clinics overseas) before deciding who to go with. You might get more bang for your buck in eg Greece or Czech Republic than London/UK if you didn’t mind travelling.

Other tips are to give up/limit caffeine and alcohol as much as possible (sometimes easier said than done I know).

From reading so many IVF threads on this and other forums it really is about quality not quantity- there are so many stories of women having loads of eggs collected and only 1 or 2 make it to blastocyst stage vs others who have much smaller numbers and end up with similar or better outcomes. So don’t lose hope X

I too have DOR, same age and very similar AMH to yourself. Decided to do a few retrievals as husband and I weren’t quite ready to have a child yet. I have done 2 egg collections (only 7 eggs retrieved in total) and if after a few months of trying (3-5months) nothing happens, then we will likely do a third egg retrieval and embryo making to see if we get anything for transfer. Pretty much every doctor I’ve seen has said that as long as I’m healthy/ovulating this AMH is still okay to fall pregnant (even naturally, that is if there are no issues with partner/sperm). In terms of making embryo and the quality of eggs it’s an aspect you will only know once you mix the two together, obviously age is a factor in quality but please remember that AMH number is an indicator of quantity and not necessarily of egg quality (people with high AMH also get poor quality eggs). In addition, there are other health factors to consider - your uterus lining or if you have a history of implantation failure, mmc, etc can also impact chances of live birth success.

Truth is, AMH is only one piece of the puzzle, I too cried copiously when I heard my numbers and after the poor results of my retrievals, but if there’s anything I have learned from reading pretty much all of these infertility threads is that it only takes 1 GOLDEN EGG 🥚 so I say do what you can (eat healthy, take the vitamins, live a well balanced lifestyle, find a good clinic, etc) and just hope for the best. Wishing you much success in this upcoming journey, you’ve got this! 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼

Sorry for the slow response, been in my own head all week. I really want to believe that the quality in my eggs is still there; the clinic were optimistic about that being the case due to my age. I feel silly as I approached this really optimistically and now feeling deflated already. I hadn’t considered travelling abroad so thank you!

Thank you for taking time to reply to me, @ViVRe, such helpful and hopeful information.

I went back to the clinic today and they were not concerned about the cyst and said I can carry on as planned. I feel more anxious now knowing my egg count is low, but they said that I should still have good quality eggs. They also said everything else is looking good with my lining etc. I’m going to have a follow-up appointment next week.

You’re right it does only take one. I just didn’t anticipate being in this situation and I feel a bit naive for going into it positively.

Thank you for the hope and well-wishes x

Hello Wishing4snow,

I am in a similar situation to yourself (37, low AMH) it's very hard. I get one cycle on the NHS, which I have started and as Dr. predicted response to stimulation drugs was low but one of the nurses who scanned me also said that it is often the women with only a few eggs that go on to have a successful pregnancy not those with loads - so don't lose hope!

EDIT: I forgot to add I also get ovarian cysts, sounds like it was a simple one if they aren't worried. My clinic didn't want to start treatment when they knew one was present so they waited until it resolved only for me to get another in my treatment cycle but they didn't see it until my first stimulation scan but everything is still going ahead so don't be too concerned about that!