IVF/ICSI May 2025

[GamerGirl09]

Hey everyone!

Thought I’d start a thread for those of us starting everything next month :)

Personally, I’m from the UK and will be starting ICSI in Ireland. Just over the BMI limit for the NHS in the UK and have been trying for c.6 years for our first. Had final tests yesterday and consult. Going with ICSI as my husband’s sperm analysis came back teratozoospermic. Other than that, nobody can find any reason we couldn’t conceive naturally, it’s just not happened!

Currently phoning up pharmacies in the UK for medication quotes (struggling to source Bemfola at the moment though). I’ll be on the short protocol and they reckon it’s likely I’ll be a freeze all as AMH and AFC came back decent. If I get get the meds in time, looking like I’ll start at the very end of this month, with egg collection next month 🤞🏼

Would love to connect with others starting around the same time ♥️ Good luck to everyone ✨

Hi GamerGirl!

We too start IVF ICSI next Month, going out to Cyprus from the UK for egg collection, freezing for genetic testing then hopefully going back to transfer in July (all being well)

Similar to you, all my bloods and scans came back fine, other half does have a low sperm count but nothing that would point blank stop us from conceiving, so it’s “unexplained” 5 years of trying with no previous pregnancies.

I too was over the NHS criteria for BMI, although I am under it now, at 40 I am now too old for any help in our county as the funding doesn’t cover over 40.

With your meds, I would recommend you trying The Fertility Pharmacy for a quote if you haven’t already,

initially we were quoted by Boots £1269 which was way under the 1.7k The Fertility Pharmacy did, however it turns out they messed it up so when we went to actually buy them from Boots the quote jumped to £2,400! Quote from Asda was also not far off that figure, so surprisingly The Fertility Pharmacy (who our clinic originally sent us to) worked out a lot cheaper!

that went against everything I had read up on myself, with Asda being the cheapest in many situations and being Non Profit for IVF meds…. They definitely were not!
it may vary depending on what meds you are prescribed, but I wish I hadn’t done all the running around in the first place, as we ended up back to where we were at the start 😂

We got there in the end though lol

sending lots of luck your way! X

Lovely to meet you! We sound to be in a very similar situation then - And if I’m a freeze all like they think, we’ll be going back early July for the transfer too!

Thanks so much for the recommendation - I have actually contacted The Fertility Pharmacy for a quote (they haven’t come back to me yet) but wasn’t too hopeful as had heard Asda and Boots cheapest and Asda cannot source the Bemfola and Boots quote looking to be over 2k… That’s great though, slightly more hopeful now! I’ve had a couple other places come back to me (The Fertility Medication Centre/Fertility IVF and Stork) saying Bemfola is out of stock or they can’t supply, so I’ve also gone back to my clinic to say struggling to source it and their admin have said they’ll ask a doctor if there’s an alternative they can prescribe - so we’ll see. I’ve been prescribed Bemfola, Progynova, Cetrotide, Ovitrelle, Buserelin and Utrogestan.

Really glad you got there in the end! And sending you loads of luck too! Will you be out in Cyprus for a couple of weeks for scans etc before collection? X

Oh wow! So similar in many ways aren’t we!

what a giant pain about not being able to source the Bemfola…definitely doesn’t make it easy when you aren’t doing the treatment in the UK does it.

Don’t quote me on this (because I haven’t got a clue myself!😂) but form a quick google Bemfola seems to be similar to Gonal F which is what we have been prescribed

If it’s any help, as I notice you have a couple of the same on your prescription, ours was priced by The Fertility Pharmacy below

Cetrotide x6 £216

Ovitrelle x1 £39

Meriofert 150 x15 £616.18

Gonal F Pen 900iu x3 £654.81

Adding on the fees and delivery it came to £1708 in total.

They telephoned to give me lots of information too, which was lovely!

We start the meds first week of May when my next cycle starts, a couple of the scans we will have locally, then fly out to Cyprus half way through to continue and be there for when we are ready for the egg collection.

It’s just a giant unknown isn’t it, we know what we hope to happen, but the reality is just not known!

Are you in Ireland for the full duration?
How are you feeling about it all?

Honestly i’m terrified….I literally hate the thought of being sedated, don’t ask me why 😂

Nope - definitely not easy 🤣 Yes I’ve seen (from a v quick google) that Gonal F seems similar - so fingers crossed!

Ah thank you for that! Stork seems to be cheapest then for those two we’ve both been prescribed - Ovitrelle and Cetrotide, but not much in it (Ovitrelle £37.66 and Cetrotide x 8 £217.04). That’s good to know though thank you, and if The Fertility Pharmacy do have the Bemfola then probs worth just getting everything with them then.

Oh that’s so exciting! If we can get the meds in time 🙄🤣 then I’ll probably be starting 30 April I think, then starting stims 9th May I think (only paid yest and have prescription but waiting for the medication plan to come through). That’s good you can have a couple of scans over here! Would be super helpful for us because I’ll need to go over on 16th and 19th (I think) for the scans then hopefully all being well, egg collection around 22 May 🤞🏼 Will be flying over and back for each thing unfortunately, but with it being so close it’s just probably cheaper and time-efficient for us to do that than stay out there for a week, and my work are super good with it so I get the time back for each appointment which is so helpful and good of them.

Yeah, you’re right - it’s a huge unknown. So much can go wrong at so many different points and it just feels so surreal that we’ll be injecting and then going over there for scans then the extraction and the implantation and everything hahaha. Feels sooo odd and not real real 🤣

I’m ok with it at the moment to be honest. Not overjoyed at having to inject but the sedation etc doesn’t really bother me at the moment - although slightly nervous at being one of the people who doesn’t fall asleep and instead chats sh*t at them for half hour (like what if I say something offensive without knowing 🤣 you know when you’re driving and see a police car and you’re doing nothing wrong but you’re like omg gotta drive good 🤣🤣 like I’m definitely not the type of person to say anything offensive or anything but what if I do while I’m all doolally 🤣🤣🤣🤣). Other than that… I’m fine! Hahaha

I’d like to think I’ve got quite a good balance between feeling positive whilst also knowing it might not work and we might be left with nothing and have to try all over again. However, if I’m honest with myself I know I’ll be absolutely devastated if it fails. It’s just rubbish isn’t it that even though we’ve not been as lucky as other people conceiving naturally, and we want this so much that we’re willing to pay for it and go through all this for it, that there’s a possibility we’ll be unlucky with this too. Just gotta stay as positive as we can though I guess and manifest babies ✨🤣

BABY DUST TO EVERYONE ✨

@JDann hi I am also going to Cyprus having a fet in may I got my meds from India randomly as Asda were being funny about me prescription prior to this time I used fertility 2 you they source via stork and we're the best price wise but if you can wait india is defo cheeper but about 4 weeks transit time who are you with in Cyprus

i would never have thought of India as a place to source them! Thsts worth noting for the future if we need them. How does that work with meds that need to be refrigerated though, I can’t image they are able to send thet way!? We are with Cyprus IVF Hospital, it’s our first rodeo, so a lot to learn I’d imagine! Super good luck to you! X

@JDann there are different ones that don't need refrigeration you can also get them posted from Cyprus from some of the pharmacies, I had such issues getting Asda to accept my emailed then printed prescription they wanted them to send the original I stayed in Cyprus for the duration rather than fly back and forth

Hi ladies. I might join also if that's ok. I was in the April group but unfortunately I had a completely failed cycle. I had retrieved 7 eggs but only 2 were OK enough for last minute icsi as husband sperm count was really low on day of egg collection. Unfortunately a failed fertilisation and we ended up with nothing. So decided to go ahead and have a break with this period and start back up with the next. The clinic put me on a fertility supplement in hopes this will increase my egg quality as il be 40 in July and the new plan is to increase my medications and maybe have a late egg retrieval in hopes we have more mature eggs for icsi. Not sure how it will all work but I'm trusting my specialist.

@Miraclemuma03you are very welcome. So sorry to hear of your failed transfer but hopefully the supplements have an effect and 🤞🏼 for the next one. Is your husband taking any supplements too, or just you? It’s my birthday in July too so we’re birthday buddies 🤣 Really really hope your next transfer goes well - sounds positive and hopeful with the supplements ♥️

@JDann In the end, 4 pharmacies came back stating Bemfola was out of stock or they cannot supply, so my clinic has prescribed Menapur instead, which I’m finding is fine to source :) Had a number of quotes come back and will probably pick one tomorrow and hopefully can get the meds to start on 29th :) x

Hiii everyone.

I’m starting a FET next month. My little boy is now 2.5 so felt like we’re finally ready to start for #2.
So nervous to be doing this again 😫!! My stomach flutters just thinking about it. My meds arrive on Tuesday then it’s just a waiting game.. I think AF will start around the 4th.

Hi all 😊
My husband and I returned from Spain last Thursday after a fresh embryo transfer (B quality) and I’ve been an anxious wreck ever since. I’m on a medicated cycle so still taking progesterone and oestrogen which makes it really difficult to know whether the occasional abdominal cramps and slight lower back pain are hormone related or whether they’re a sign that the transfer has failed 😞 Due to have hCG blood test on Wednesday but I’m driving myself crazy with worry. Has anyone else experienced anything similar? Xx

@GamerGirl09 yes hubby also started a male fertility supplement as his sperm count was quite low with his last two samples so hoping we can increase this. I was hoping we could avoid icsi but have been told we will need to have it again.

Hi there everyone. I'll also be hopefully starting next month. I've been trying just over 2 years with unexplained infertility. Wishing for the best results

@GamerGirl09 best of luck . I'm starting icsi again in few months waiting on consultation . I've heard alot of women use fertility2u. In in n.ireland and one of the clinics here use them for meds too . Will you be staying in Ireland or travelling back and forth to uk

@Miraclemuma03I’ve asked my husband to start on some supplements as he has an issue with his morphology, but I’m not sure if it’ll have time to take effect before egg collection which will hopefully be around 22 May 🤷🏼‍♀️ We’ll see. Is there a reason why you’re trying to avoid ICSI?

@mumtrovert@StrawberriesCream1212welcome and good luck ✨

@Mimes83it might be easier to find someone in the April group who is at a similar stage as you are? Best of luck for your test on Weds 🤞🏼

@VioIetMoon thank you so much. Have you had success with ICSI before? I was originally prescribed Bemfola, but had trouble sourcing so the clinic prescribed an alternative, Menapur. Fertility2U didn’t come back cheapest for me - Stork and Asda were cheaper so going with Stork at around £1630. The cheapest quote I got was just over £1500 but it was from a company I’ve not had much luck researching so just a little apprehensive to go with them (that was from The Fertility Medication Centre, who passed it on to one of their suppliers, Fertility IVF, to quote me). It’s less than an hours’ flight to Dublin for me so will just be flying over each time. There’s a chance I might stay over between scans as those are just a few days apart, or after egg collection but will probably decide closer to the time x

My medication arrived today & I’ve had ovulation pains, so here begins the waiting!!

@GamerGirl09 we had no success with icsi. Previously we didn't need it and hubby was just above minimal needed to not need icsi and we had a better fertilisation rate. We usually get 4 embryos but its been 4yrs since we did a full cycle last and so far this last round was our worst.

Question.. my Evorel patches say to use 2 patches and change them every 4 days. But the manufacturer writing on the box has the days of the week on it and a box underneath, saying to tick the box of which days I’ll change the patches so it’s the same each week. That means that it’ll be 4 days then 3 though. Would you do 4 days or just pick two days of the week and stick to that?

@mumtrovertI’d definitely ask the prescriber to make sure, but if I had to choose I’d go with same 2 days each week. Evorel.ie says:

Changing your patches

You must change the patches twice a week to give your body a steady supply of hormones. There is enough hormone in each patch to last for several days
Change your patch on the same two days every week. This will mean that one patch is on for three days and the next patch for four days
For example, if you apply your first patch on a Monday, change it on Thursday and again on the following Monday. You can work out your two days from the following table, starting from the first day of use.

I’ve never heard of Evorel before now though and I would definitely check with the clinic to see what they want you to do :)

@Miraclemuma03 oh no so sorry to hear that :( hopefully it was just a one off and everything works out much better this time around for you 🤞🏼

Hi all Stated my estrogen yesterday, should all be on track for a transfer on the 8/9th may anyone else on this time frame ish

Thanks @GamerGirl09I will check with them. What you’ve written makes more sense.

Aw how exciting @camelinastormI’m much later than you but good luck and hopefully you’ll be one of our first BFPs.

@camelinastormgood luck! ✨ I’m also much later - looking like egg collection around 22nd May and they think I’ll likely be frozen. If that’s the case my transfer will probably be July x

Hello! Hope you don’t mind me joining this thread. Had my second EC today .. 36F. If all goes to plan will be going for a fresh transfer. Numbers were .. a bit meh today so not sure what will happen! Best of luck everyone xx

@Toryory21not at all, welcome :) Best of luck to you - it only needs one embryo… ♥️

I’ve been taking Progynova for 5 days now (pre-stims) and I am SO BLOATED. Anyone else felt the same on Progynova?