Azoospermia - Donor Route Support

[Blue234]

Hi everyone!

This thread is dedicated to those of us navigating the azo journey and considering or have chosen the donor route.

I thought it would be great if we could share our experiences, offer support, and help each other through this challenging path.

Looking forward to hearing your stories and supporting one another along the way.

I am happy to start this thread by sharing our story:
-After around 1 year TTC, we were diagnosed with unexplained non-obstructive azoospermia back in March 2024. We were given 30% chances of finding sperm with MTESE but my partner decided he wanted to try all we could before moving to option B.
-We had MTESE done via NHS in August 2024 and unfortunately it was unsuccessful. We had lots of discussion before the surgery and we had agreed that we would good via donor route if the surgery wasn't successful.
-We have now been referred for a NHS funded IVF cycle using sperm donor (funded by us) and currently waiting for the clinic to call us to have implications counselling.
-In the meantime, we are currently in parallel the process of finding a suitable donor.

I’m feeling a mix of emotions right now. On one hand, I’m happy and excited that we still have a chance to become parents and the idea of a future baby brings me so much joy. But on the other hand, there’s still a lingering sadness about what we’re going through, especially when I think about what my partner is facing.

Even though I know it’s not all about genetics, who hasn’t dreamed of having a baby that looks like their partner or a blend of both of us? While I believe I’ve mostly come to terms with this, a part of me still feels a bit heartbroken.

Choosing a donor is challenging. We try not to overthink it and even find moments to joke around while browsing profiles, but there’s so much to consider. One thing that particularly worries me is the possibility of our child wanting to contact the donor when they’re an adult. What if the donor isn’t kind to them? I know this is something far off in the future and out of our control, but it’s been on my mind lately.

Sorry for my long message, I will stop now! But just thought of sharing some of my thoughts to start with!

Looking forward to hear your stories!

@Magix86 @StarJasmine93 looping you into this new thread :)

Hi ladies, hope you’re all doing well. @Magix86 how are your blood thinners coming along?

Just popping on as I’ve found out the answer to is my protocol long vs. short. We’re ’Medium long’ protocol! 😂 It’s to try and reduce the chance of OHSS as even taking the Clomid for a few days I had 10 follicles growing. Then looks like we’ll be doing ICSI.

Meds all collected, demo and baseline bloods done. Just waiting for my cycle in around 12 days, then I’ll start meds from day 14, stims from day 2 the following cycle. Moving our straws to the IVF clinic next week. All set to go!

Oh gosh @Disco24 sounds like everything is in place! Great news. And nice to know about your protocol too! Seems they can tweak anything needed really to ensure the best outcome.
My injections aren't too bad, getting some tiny bruises where they've been done and they sting quite a bit. Main thing is having to do them in my tummy which I'm hating as I'm so aware the baby is there! He gave me a huge kick yesterday right where I was about to inject 🥺

@Disco24thats fantastic news!! Sounds like it's all systems go now 💪🙌 woohoo. So pleased for you. Good they are doing what they can to avoid you getting OHSS. It's no joke. The most ill I've ever felt in my entire life. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

@Magix86oh goodness yes! I didn't think about the fact you are injecting in your tummy. That sounds quite tough.

So ladies, we have a full house... I'm also expecting a boy 😂. I've been told I have an anterior placenta so I will feel movement quite late on vs. the norm. He's super active though so hopefully it's not too long 🤞

Oooft @Magix86 doesn’t sound ideal, and bless him kicking you just there. Already ruling the roost 😂It will be all worth it though 💖

Wowwww @StarJasmine93 100% boys!! How are you feeling?

I did read there is a higher chance of having a boy as male embryos grow quicker and therefore hit Day 5 quicker, and are deemed better quality! It’s minimal but interesting in our stats xx

Woo another boy!! Congrats @StarJasmine93 💙 hope you start to feel the movements soon, although as magical as it is it's also quite a lot! I've jumped up twice today on the train in response to a big hard kick lol 😳 😂
I read the same kind of thing @Disco24 it's so interesting isn't it!

Hey ladies! Sorry I have been absence from here for a while but I have had quite hard weeks since last time I wrote here. So wasnt in a mood to be very active here tbh! First I got a really bad cold (which happened to be COVID🙈), it took me more than two weeks to fully recover. It was the last cold I have ever had (probably due to the fact that we can only take ibuprofen🤦) plus together with my pregnancy symptoms. And then when I had just recovered, we were diagnosed with twin to twin transfusion (not sure if you know much about this but its one of the biggest risks in an identical twin pregnancy). Luckily the situation has improven through the weeks and babies are fine and there is no need for early delivery for now, so lets hope we still make it to week 36 (when we will have a planned delivery if babies dont come earlier)🤞 I am trying to take it day by day, dealing with my big tummy and exhaustion as I can🥴 this super warm summer is also not helping! I guess is the same for you🤦
@StarJasmine93 congrats on your baby boy💙😍 cant believe its all boys so far! We should consider creating a new football team😂😂 How is it going in your end?
@Magix86 i believe you are almost theree now? How is the countdown going? How are you feeling?
@Disco24 how are you? How is everything going in your end?

Lovely to hear from you @Blue234, sorry it’s been so hard for you recently. That sounds really tough, especially with the twins, must have caused a lot of anxiety. Very glad to hear things have improved.

All good here, we have finally started our treatment! 1 week into Norethisterone, and start Buserelin tomorrow. First injection! I seem to really struggle with fatigue on progesterone, so glad there’s only a week left of that. Probably about 2 weeks until we start Stims!

I must have had the longest treatment plan known to man, over a year now since our first treatment consultation 😅 you’ll have 7 year olds by the time I give birth xx

Hey @Blue234so nice to hear from you!! Sorry to hear you've had a rough time of it 😞. So scary about the twins, I bet you were terrified! Really good to hear things have improved though, that's amazing! How many weeks are you now? You must be nearing the 30s right? I'm 24 now. Baby boy super active and always wriggling away. 💙

@Disco24thats fantastic news that you start injections tomorrow - yay!! What a milestone ❤️ do you have your egg collection roughly pencilled in? When you aiming for?

I'm all good though! No complaints here really. Aside from the OHSS at the start, I've had a fairly easy pregnancy so far. Don't want to jinx it but so far so good. I do get aches and pains in the night which disturbs my sleep but it's manageable. I'm still managing to run which I'm super proud about. Its more of a plod than a run but still moving while I can ❤️.

@Magix86defo must be close to the finish line now 🤞

Ahh really nice to hear from you all! So sorry to hear of the ups and downs @Blue234 that must have been a super anxious time for you. Glad things seem to have settled though and hopefully all on target for 36 weeks 🥰

@Disco24 you've started! 🎉 Good luck for the first injection today, you've got this 💪🏻 egg collection will come round sooo quickly now.

@StarJasmine93 so nice to hear you've had a fairly straightforward pregnancy, and still able to run - that's amazing!

I'm at 33 weeks now 🥹 not long to go. We ordered a pram and cot last night so it's definitely feeling real! I'm struggling massively in this heat and I can't sleep cos I keep feeling sick at night when I lay down. Got some pelvic pains going on to add to the mix too haha! I'm at the stage now where I'm planning the birth with my midwife so there's a lot to think about. But baby boy seems to be cooking well in there lol 💙 we have another scan in a couple of weeks to check his growth

@Magix8633 weeks ❤️ time will probably fly for you now.

Sorry to hear about your pain and nausea at night, that doesn't sound very nice 😢. Hope that passes for you and you can get some restful nights soon.

Oooh can I ask what pram you went for?? There's so many to choose from. We have an appointment with mamas and papas in a few weeks so we can learn about what's available etc. No idea where to start on any of this 😂.

@StarJasmine93 thank you ❤️ just need to get through the last few weeks!
Of course. We chose the uppababy, mostly because of how easily it can convert to a double if needed in the future. We went to mamas and papas too but it felt really rushed and they didn't really seem interested in explaining too much 🙃 I'd really recommend a baby appointment at John lewis - they will spend 90 mins with you and go through anything you need in so much detail - carseats, prams, cots etc. You also get 10% off whatever you order following the appointment

Thanks ladies! No date on egg collection just yet. Still got one more week of down regulation, then need my breakthrough bleed, then we’ll start stims and discuss dates. So realistically if breakthrough bleed comes quickly we’ll be looking around first week of August.

@Magix86 you are now the third person who has said this to us so we've literally just booked a John Lewis one instead and cancelled the mamas and papas one 😂. Thank you! My best friend has that pram you bought and she raves about it all the time 🙌.

@Disco24ahhh so exciting!! How was your first injection today?? Please do keep us posted with everything! Would love to follow along your journey if you are up to sharing it ❤️

Ah @StarJasmine93 I felt bad for saying that after you'd already booked the appointment but if other people have said the same then fair enough! Really good to know your friend is happy with the same pram, thank you 😊

@Disco24 just echoing what Star said, would love to follow too if you're up for keeping us updated ❤️

Hi ladies! Sorry I haven’t kept you updated, my best friend announced her pregnancy 1 week into my down regulation and it absolutely floored me. Which led to me needing to protect myself from all your happy news too. I hope you’re all doing well though, and you all know it’s not personal 💖

So, we’ve fiiinally come to the end of our stims, and are hopefully planning to trigger tonight (just waiting on timing confirmation call). My body had a slow start off the line due to being suppressed so well, so had to do stims for longer. This has also meant we might have to freeze all, so might not get to do a fresh transfer either so it’s been a lot. Good news is I’m now responding, and I have 8-10 follicles hopefully mature by Wednesday!

xx

Hey @Disco24! It's so so nice to hear from you! You've been in my thoughts ❤️. Sorry to hear you've had a tough time. I'm afraid to say that even when pregnant, I still find pregnancy announcements triggering. I'm not sure it ever leaves us. A lovely side effect of our journeys 🙄. You have to put yourself first and protect your heart and if that means having a break from us too, we all understand.

Eeek, so exciting to hear your update. The trigger shot is such a pivotal moment! ❤️ Such a milestone to get to as well. Sounds like you have a good number of follicles so hopefully a decent number of good quality eggs 🤞. Really treat yourself tomorrow - your only drug free day? Or are you already on progesterone pessaries?

Freeze all is frustrating but trust me, if you are at risk of OHSS, it is not worth the risk. It's the worst thing I've ever experienced. I'm pretty sure there is a slight (very slight) increase in success from a frozen vs. fresh. Whatever they decide will be the best thing for you! ❤️

Keep us posted if feel up to it! I loved having this group to share with when I was going through the stages of egg collection, then getting the news on day 3 and day 5 and transfer etc.

Always here for you lovely! xx

Oh what a gorgeous message thank you, and thank you for understanding 💖

Yeah I actually went back through the messages earlier, and I think we had a similar thing with lazy follicles 😂. I’d rather wait if it’s not the right environment, and as you say there is a higher chance of success with frozen. Can’t believe OHSS is that bad! Feeling pretty heavy already, so can’t even imagine. The only caveat is if all frozen I can have a wine so a slight reprieve of the health.

Yeah I’m quite apprehensive about the drop off etc, so keep your fingers crossed for us! We’ve had so many set backs in 2.5 years just need a few things to go to plan 💖

Yes I defo had lazy follicles and then they suddenly took off after they kept upping my dosage 😅. Glad they did it for the results we got but that's what landed me in hospital with the OHSS 👀😬.

Ooft, a health break to have wine sounds dreamy haha. I've been completely off alcohol for over 7 months now. I don't miss it as much as I thought I might but a nice glass of Shiraz would be lovely 😅. Take these perks whilst you can!

Got my fingers crossed for you for the next week 🤞🤞. Will be thinking of you on Wednesday xx

Hey @Disco24 ! So lovely to hear from you, and sorry to hear it's been a tough time ❤️ there's not a lot that makes this whole thing easier to be honest.
Massive to have made it to trigger tho!! That's awesome. Really hope you enjoy the wine - you absolutely deserve it.
Sounds like a good number of follicles to be honest and I'm sure they are doing what's right for your body.
You'll be on my mind tomorrow, hoping it all goes well. Just go in as relaxed as you can and know that you've done everything in your control up to this point. It's an anxious wait for the day 3 and 5 updates but we're here for you if you need us ❤️

@Disco24 so nice to hear from you! Don't worry at all we fully understand you, and as @StarJasmine93 said you should always protect yourself and do whatever you need :) We are here to support you whenever you need us :)

Sometimes I have been quite conscious on whether I should have shared certain news here. So I am so sorry if I ever made you feel bad. Unfortunately we all know how it feels :(. We all have been there too and pregnancy announcements (specially from close people) felt to me like a big punch on the face.

It's amazing news that you are almost there! Hoping everything goes well tomorrow. While the freeze all can sound really frustrating (I also was at risk of having to do this and just the thought of having to wait again made me feel so frustrated), should this happen try to focus on the fact that it might be a better chance of success! Keeping fingers crossed for you. Our thought are with you❤Take care XX

Thank you all 💖 and absolutely not @Magix86 you’re right to share everything that’s what we’re here for. Sometimes this can all feel so lonely so very thankful to have you all who understand the feelings. I will let you know how tomorrow goes and if we’re fresh or frozen!

Sending love to you all and those beautiful babies xx

That is egg collection complete and I’m back home on the sofa.

In a real turn of events they managed to get 15 eggs?! Consultant had originally wanted 12 but with how stims went they said now likely 8, so I was so shocked with 15! He did say not sure if maturity of the smaller ones, so prepping myself for a bit of a drop off tomorrow, however for now we have 15.

And my lining has responded too, so aim is fresh transfer early next week! What a week 🎢🫠😂

Yaaaaay that's amazing 🤩!! You must be so happy 🙌🙌. The exact same happened for me. They were confident on 8 eggs and they got 12 so even my smaller follicles must have had mature eggs by the time we did trigger and got to collection. So so pleased for you and even better that you'll have your transfer soon.

Keep us posted on the next few days if you feel up to it. Have a nice relaxing evening with your favourite meal tonight and stick your feet up. Be kind to yourself ❤️. Don't rush to get back to work. I ended up having to have the following day off as I was quite tender the day after.

Hope you feel okay xxx

Yesss @Disco24 awesome news!! I'm so happy to see this 😊 15 is a great number. Definitely relax now and keep hydrated. I also drank pomegranate juice and ate brazil nuts daily to help between egg collection and transfer. I have no idea what helped or if anything at all did but just tried a few little things. I'm pleased you'll get a fresh transfer instead of delaying for a frozen one x

@Disco24 yaay! Thats amazing news! 15 eggs is a great number🙏🏼 And so glad to hear that you will have a fresh transfer! So happy for you😊 take care these days before the transfer🤗🤗