IVF Graduates - A place for pregnancy menkulling

[BeetlingAbout]

A chat thread for those who have conceived via assisted conception.

Come and join me egg buddies!

I am intrigued about a bump this time. With DS it was a fresh IVF cycle, I took photos from 4 weeks and for the first 8 weeks I got slimmer as my bloating/ovaries went down!

I didn't wear maternity clothes until 20 weeks and really didn't look pregnant until late 20s weeks.

I only looked PG lying down!

I went up to Birmingham (from London) at 38 weeks to go to the Twenty20 cricket finals and none of the drunk bloke would believe I was nearly due...had DS 3 days after at 7lbs 7ozs

Hi, I'm now 22 weeks today! Now have real bump to prove it:-) I wanted to say hello to euro chick We were on the same message board in infertility. I think you are at exactly the same point as me! Congrats!

It's so lovely to see so many familiar names here, and also to welcome some new ones too.

I feel much comfier here already than Nov antenatal! Hope i'll be staying this time!

Nobeer, will be thinking of you on Monday - how excited / anxious are you? You're going to see your little fleck!

Bugs, I am 10+2 today and will be due on the 19th November. It's a bit spooky as I went into hospital with my pprom on the 18th Nov, so it has to work out because the world cannot possibly be so shit, right?

I am so glad that you are enjoying things and feeling positive, this should after all be a wonderful part of life and it absolutely should be a joyous time.

Moggle, I think we are almost the same dates. How did it go with your brother last night?

Euro, i can't believe you are 22 weeks! You're over half way. Time really has flown, has it been quick for you too? I am really sorry to hear about your scan showing an issue. Is it something they are just going to keep an eye on? I can completely understand the resentment of getting more obstacles after all the IVF...it really doesn't feel fair sometimes.

Vall, you're here! It's happening! I hope they get in touch about those blood tests soon, they really do put the mind at rest a bit don't they? (for all of a day after the HCG!)

SecretGeek, I hope all the extra scans will be reassuring. I am high risk this pregnancy too so we can hold each others hands . I also feel as though i have read of someone else having this problem on MN. If you started a thread in pregnancy, i am sure you would get some reassurance from women in/or have been in, similar positions.

Time, it's great to see you here - you are my cerclage pin up! Can i be nosy and ask if you have heard of Nick Wales? He might be doing my vaginal cerclage in two weeks or so (if we go for it).

Tallulah, so glad to hear things are going well and you are so far along now! I'm with you on the apricots - much nicer than prunes, blurgh...

Caip, we were preggo together last year. I hope you have a sneeze birth and have your darling baby in your arms very soon. Take care xx

Ferrero, good to see you here and thank you for your advice on my SCH thread (and euro and vall). It's very comforting to know that this is more common than i thought, and it sounds like you are doing great now.

Hatt, sorry to read about your worries, i think it's always going to be a part of pregnancy for those of use who have struggled to get there. It's totally normal to start feeling well again in the second trimester and with more energy.

Choco, it's really good to see you too! I remember you on the egg buddies when i first joined as expatwifey! 23 weeks - wow, so wonderful to read so much success on this thread and pregnancies blossoming.

Welcome Olive and congratulations on reaching 22 weeks (with a lovely baby bump to prove it)

Morning all! Beetle I'm verging from excited to terrified they'll tell me that there's nothing there. Will update sometime on Monday.

Wow beetle you are a saint with all the personals! Yes we're almost exactly at the same stage, I'm due nov 17th.

val congrats to you!!!

It went well last night with bro and SIL. They were really happy and continued to talk about their future niece/nephew lots and ask me about the pregnancy etc, rather than letting the subject drop so I think we are all ok. They asked a few probing questions about IVF but didn't mention their issues. It was nice to talk about what we've been through with someone else though.

What a lovely post beetling. I've never taken to the October ante-natal thread either, although I'm sure the people are lovely. Just too fast and too blasé about the whole thing!

I certainly do know Nick Wales. He did my TAC only 4 weeks ago. Lovely guy, but I'd be surprised if he does a vaginal cerclage, he is a major advocate of the abdominal one. Its not the easiest operation in the world, but it's all over for me and once you recover the baby is super safe. Worth considering, and I'm happy to tell you my experience.

Did you do your ivf at C&W?

Just out of interest, where did you all have your ivf done?

Hi ferrero, we had ours done at the nuffield hospital in Woking.

Beetle Haven't even told the clinic about the BFP yet! It's round the corner from work (Ferrero - The Bridge Centre) so was going to call on Monday then go in on Tues and Thurs for the bHCG. Then I can mental about my early scan

On phone so have completely forgotten any other questions/comments Enjoy your weekends as pregnant ladies

I remember what I wanted to ask! Time are you on bed rest now?

Time, we had our treatment abroad as no funding for IVF in my borough (a bit further down the district line).

He has recommended i have a vaginal stitch over TAC as i'm already pregnant. I think also because my case is not black and white and i have no formal diagnosis of IC.

He speaks very confidently of cerclages and makes out the risks are tiny, but i'm still not sure about it. I have been the 1% too many times before to not take that risk seriously...it's such a difficult decision to make.

In other news i just went to EPU for a scan. It has been a week and half of brown bleeding since my last and the suspense was just killing me. Bean was wiggling around and measuring 2 days ahead at 10+4 and my cervix was 2.9cm (not sure if that's normal?). The blood clot is over my cervix and is 2.1 x 10 x 8mm. She said she wasn't worried about it so i can breathe a bit better now.

One more thing i want to rant about as it has been bottled up and then i will shut up!

I had a smear test done back in January pre-ivf, and the clinic told me the results were normal. I am getting all my records together so asked for copies last week. The smear test result sheet is normal except that they found bacterial vaginosis.

The consultant's registrar from last week has put me on antibiotics just in case (clindamycin?).

The clinic have not responded to my email from three days ago asking why this wasn't treated pre-pregnancy.

Should i be making a fuss? The safety of antibiotics isn't widely known in pregnancy, and after the miscarriage and infection question marks from the last pregnancy, i would have thought this would have been something important to tell me about?

Beetle phew about the clot, but I bet you're annoyed about the BV and antibiotics. Is this the clinic where you had IVF or your new doc? I'd be tempted to make a fuss, especially with regards to your medical history.

Ferrero I also had my IVF abroad (at a clinic called IVI in Spain) cos that's where I live.

Ah that would be an occlusion stitch. Basically closes the cervix from the vagina side to reduce the risk of ascending infections. They tried that with me but couldn't find any cervix to stitch up from that side!

Anything about 25mm is considered OK, but preferably around 40mm so they would keep a close eye on you. The TAC should catch it if it shortens though. Mine is 22mm but docs are really pleased with that and said they expected shorter after my surgeries.

No bedrest for the moment thankfully. One doctor says it shouldn't be needed but my obstetrician says I need to be aware it's a possibility. For the moment I'm a 'normal' high risk pregnancy. Back to work on Monday.

I had IVF at Chelsea and Westminster, NHS funded, following two private cycles at the Lister. Those cycles didn't fail normally. I have 12 1 day frozen embryos there, as they couldn't put them back for various reasons. I was preparing for a FET when the NHS funding came through so I did one more fresh cycle, and the bean stuck!!

P.s. I know what you mean about being in the 1%. I asked my oncologist to stop giving me stats after a while as they just scared me, when I think it was supposed to be reassuring.

But now I'm in the 1% that get pregnant after cervical cancer, so I'm happy with that!!

How did you find Lister Time2deal?

I went to an open evening there when choosing a private clinic but felt abit out of place amongst the ferraris and Bentleys that kept pulling up outside.

Plus it was wrong side of London for me (I'm North West) so train journey was a nightmare. But my aunt used them for both her children years ago and found them good I think.

I ended up going private at the Wolfson clinic at Hammersmith (where I had my nhs cycle 5 years ago). Place was a nightmare to deal with but my consultant was a gem... So I was pleased when they moved the private clinic and my consultant to Boston Place in Marelybone... Caught first time, got to use embryoscope, and hardly any queues/scheduling issues as I was one of the first customers.

BTW... This thread has dropped off my "Pregnancy" topic list... Have I done something stupid or can you guys not see it either?

Good news about the sch Beetling.... If those measurements are in mm that is a small one, and being over the cervix means usually that it isn't interfering with the placenta.... Just means you can see more blood because it has a quick route out!

Hey egg buddies!!!

It's great that I 'know' so many of you on here. As others have said, I've been way too anxious to post on any other threads so am delighted to see this one. For those of you who don't know me, I'm 16 weeks pregnant on Monday from our first privately funded IVF at Homerton hospital in Hackney. I had a miscarriage and two ectopic pregnancies last year, resulting in two tube removals. I'm 38 and have a 2 year old son who we actually conceived completely by accident (it feels so unbelievable typing that, but it's true).

Unlike some of you guys, my bump is massive! I think it's a combination of second baby and all the bloating from the IVF cos have been in maternity clothes from 5 weeks. At 7 weeks a lady in the park asked me when I was due. I actually find this v reassuring although have been less reassured by my consultant who is dying to slice me open on my due date due to my being 'high risk'. Sigh.

Anyway - it's so lovely to see everybody on here and 'meet' some new buddies. Hope you are all having great weekends. Xxx

Ferrer I guess anyones opinion on the clinics depends on your success! I chose them as by chance my private health referred me to a consultant based at the Lister after a bad smear, and he was the one who diagnosed the CC. Therefore I was moved straight to the front of every queue at the IVF clinic - and was seen by one of the senior consultants.

I think I was given a consultant appointment, and squeezed in for a scan etc with less than an hours notice, so that was the deciding factor to start with. It was too stressful a time to think of anything else.

They were e

xpensive, but to be honest they gave me lots of extras. I did a monitored cycle before the second IVF, plus a lot of extra scans (to diagnose another problem), a few dummy ET's and never saw a bill. I only paid for the actual ICSI cycles, which while expensive, it was nice not to have to pay for all the extra things I had to have done.

It was convenient enough for me and that is important. I found it easy to get early morning scan appointments, and they do a lovely GA based EC. The food is also excellent!! I know that shouldn't be a consideration, but they give you lunch after the EC, and I had minted lamb chops there that I still remember. ;)

However, in in the end it didn't work while I was there. My last appointment had me leaving in tears when the cycle was suddenly cancelled post EC, and so I am happier in the end with C&W who do not have a good record on the face of it. I found them quite personal and always the same nurses which was nice. Neither the Lister or C&W have the embryoscope which I would have liked, but it's worked out so not complaining.

Hi bad waves

Can't believe you have a full bump! I am hoping I will move from fatterto pregnant soon enough. Everyone who knows though greets me by looking first at my waist. As someone who has been sensitive about my size all my life I find it slightly disconcerting...

I'm 16+3 also, so should be getting there soon enough.

Wow time2deal

Sounds like a nice place. Minted lamb chops sound pretty yummy right now and good that they threw in extras. At Hammersmith they would bill you for toilet paper if they could...

Boston Place I got the embryoscope for free because we initially declined it (due to historically low egg fertilisation), but the embryologist had one available (because clinic was new and not full) so she put them in anyway which I am grateful for. We had much better fertilisation rate than previously, awesome pictures and updates more often because they didn't have to take the embryos out to assess them. So bit of a fluke, but as you say, I think all the "frills" pale into significance compared to a BFP!

We were with Create. I hate taking drugs, particularly hormonal ones, so I favoured the natural/mild ivf route they offer.

We used the embryoscope on our last cycle but it was a bit pointless as only one embie made it to transfer day.

Gorgeous baby boy born this morning, 8lb 8. Horrendous birth though, induction, forceps, emergency surgery to remove placenta and 3 litres of blood lost. So happy though!

Yay, congrats Caipirinha!

Enjoy your lovely well deserved baby boy.