IVF Pregnancies (thread 2)

[Holskey]

@LemonyT
@strawberrysummer19
@Etonmess20
@IamnotwhouthinkIam
@strawberrysummer19
@paintfairy
@2mumlife
@Starbeach
@TheSnufflet
@Novavee
@Donimo
@Monday55
@Cakecakecheese
@Porridgeislife
@JAR1981
@Hufflepuff1
@2022babyhope
@becarefuloutthere
@notsofertilemyrtle
@RiverRiot

I've definitely missed people, but hoping I've got everyone who's been active recently. Apologies if not!

@CurbsideProphet such wonderful news. I'm so pleased for you.

Oh amazing news @CurbsideProphet. The wait to find the heartbeat is always a tense moment but that experience must have been terrifying! You must have been so relieved when they found your little one 🥰

I had my scan at the wellness centre and there was no doctor present. Was yours somewhere else?

@strawberrysummer19 that's wonderful news about your 20 week scan - I must have missed it but what did your 17 week gender scan say? @paintfairy have you had yours recently? I know you two had dates near me..

I just had my anatomy scan this morning and I'm having a boy and a girl ❤️ can't believe my luck, except I have to have another scan in about two weeks as she wouldn't stay still long enough for them to get a good enough look at her heart 🙈 I've only just started to feel them both moving this week so it's all started to feel very real (well, the fact I have an absolutely enormous bump at 20w as well)!

@Holskey I completely forgot you were there too. Yes at the Wellness. The Consultant was from the fertility service at RPH. We think this is a very new system to improve continuity for patients referred from RPH. We didn't have this last year. We are self funded now, but presume they scan all patients from the RPH area on a Thursday when this Consultant is there.

@CurbsideProphet that's great news, glad all went well for you.

@TheSnufflet that's great news one of each. At least you can tell them apart, worried I won't be able to tell my girls apart! I think struggling to do everything on the abnormally scan with twins is normal. I had mine last week and struggled with their positioning too as both twins seem to be on my left side! So couldn't see twin 1's spine properly or twin 2's heart properly. But as I have fortnightly scans anyway they said will try again next time!

@TheSnufflet yes I've had mine. Everything was OK from what they could see, baby was being slightly awkward. 🤣 She did manage to confirm it was a girl though, which is what the 17 week gender scan also said. I've started buying things now! Seems very surreal still though.
I'm pleased everything is OK with you. One of each is exciting! 🎉

@Etonmess20 We've stil not had the opportunity to hear the heartbeat (only seen it flickering away) at our scans, so it would be really nice to actually get to hear it. I'm not sure I'm getting a 16 week midwife appointment - they seemed to say since I was going to be getting cervix scan the hospital might just do all the checks needed then instead? I've actually not even met my midwife yet as booking was over phone.

@Holskey I'm so glad its not just me! I can't wait for feeling movements 🙏

@TheSnufflet How exciting you can feel movements now! Glad everything at the scan went well. Its nice you get a second scan to see them again :D

@CurbsideProphet Such a great update to hear! The relief after the initial difficulty must have been immense. Keeping everything crossed all continues to go well from here

Hi all. Need some reassurance once more! So today my consultant prescribed me antibiotics. Turns out my last 3 out of 4 urine tests was positive for uti!! And no one bothered to tell me at the time My last urine test was a month and half ago! I even went to midwives specifically in Jan as i kept feeling like I needed to pee, so they asked me to come in for a urine test. They told me that if results were positive I’d get a phone call. I never got a call so assumed it was just my retroverted uterus/ general pregnancy symptoms making me need to pee all the time. So I’m annoyed it turned out it was positive all this time, and no one bothered to tell me until March!!! Anyway, now I am antibiotics. Has anyone else taken Amoxicillin in pregnancy? I’m worried if this affects my microbiome and therefore affect the baby? It’s just one worry after another. Does anyone recommend or take a probiotic during the course/ pregnancy? Wondering if I should just to replenish good bacteria that’s killed off?

@LemonyT I took a tonne of antibiotics at the end of my last pregnancy without any problems for the baby. The hospital gave me yakult.

@womaninkent yes I will buy some Yakut. Maybe some kefir too. Thanks

@LemonyT I remember you asking about this ages ago! And all this time you had a UTI. I can't imagine why they didn't tell you. They dip mine in front of me and say "that's all clear". I'd complain tbh - there's something wrong with their practices if they're not communicating such basic information about your results.

The antibiotics will be absolutely fine. They wouldn't give it you if it didn't have a solid track record. I haven't had to take amoxicillin before, but I did have to take another drug which said "do not take if pregnant or breastfeeding" so I understand how worrying it can be. I can't see any reason why not to take probiotics, but I'm no expert. Maybe a decent yoghurt or kefir would help?

Midwife here: UTIs are very common in pregnancy because the ureters stretch and lengthen. If untreated, they can lead to kidney infection and sepsis, and are linked with preterm labour. People can be asymptomatic but still at risk of those complications. Definitely better to take what is prescribed for you. You may get thrush afterwards as well - many people do after antibiotics and especially in pregnancy.
Hope you are feeling better soon.

@LemonyT I had a UTI in around week 9 & took amoxicillin, no thrush for me afterwards (& I would usually get thrush from antibiotics). Currently 31 + 1 & baby is fine

Thank you @Begoniagal7 - that’s very helpful! And @Etonmess20 reassuring to hear!
@Holskey I’ve now bought some urine stick tests online and will be keeping an eye on it! Will raise at my next midwife’s appointment why I wasn’t informed sooner- but I think my tests are sent to a lab, so possibly a loss of communication? Still, doesn’t exactly instill huge amounts of faith in me. When I had my ectopic, the hospital also gave me the wrong blood results (for another woman). When they realised, they said they’d investigate why that happened and be in touch- never heard anything again i appreciate nhs is always under the cosh… but it’s still super worrying.

Thank you @Donimo and @2mumlife 💐 I'm having an early NHS scan around 9 weeks so I don't have to wait until 12 weeks. They're being very good to me so far. I'll be having my booking appointment over the phone soon as they want to send me off to the Consultant ASAP. Just got to try and keep the faith 🍀

@LemonyT I had antibiotics 2 ish weeks ago at 5.5 weeks for a UTI. My GP dipped my wee and it showed clear, but the lab test showed definite infection. I can't even tell you what antibiotics they were but everything was absolutely fine and I've not had any thrush (thank goodness, I feel rough enough without thrush!).
I sympathise with the worry that you have to keep on top of the admin and communication otherwise things don't happen. I wonder where the results were going? Hope you're feeling ok now.

@LemonyT Thats really poor no one told you.

@CurbsideProphet That's great they are taking such good care of you x

@2mumlife I had a very upsetting experience last year with the gynae assessment service and I think they're very aware that they need to give me proper care now that I've made it to 8 weeks for the first time. I've also got a complicated medical history (including epilepsy) so I imagine everyone wants to cover themselves. I hate having such complications, wish I could just be one of those "oh we weren't even really trying" women 🙄😬

Doh! I’ve just tested positive for covid so am going to have to miss my 9 week repeat scan this Wednesday ☹️ Luckily not feeling too bad (I’d put it down to early pregnancy exhaustion until 4 of my colleagues reported they had covid this morning…) just very thankful this didn’t happen 5 weeks ago…

Oh no @Mountaingoat31. I hope you're doing ok. Take it easy.

Feel better soon @Mountaingoat31. Have they rescheduled your scan?

I've just passed the 24 week mark, which everyone on a FB group I'm in is celebrating as viability day. I'd never heard of that before. Is that just because the NHS considers a loss after this point to be a stillbirth rather than a miscarriage? Plenty of babies born before 24 weeks have survived so I'm wondering why 24 weeks is significant.

@Holskey survival rate for a baby born at 22 weeks is less than 10% and likely to have serious life long medical conditions. Whereas the survival rate at 24 weeks jumps to around 60% (although still very early and likely to have lots of problems). But I haven't heard of viability day either before! But you are right pre 24 weeks is a late miscarriage and post is a still birth. Also I think if you have concerns post 24 weeks you are now seen on labour ward rather than early pregancy unit and nhs care changes

@CurbsideProphet I understand. We knew we'd never get that 'surprise' pregnancy being a same sex couple, but I thought it would be easier. There is a part of me thats really sad / feels we've missed out on a lot of the excitment / mystery of it all with everything being so medicalised. Its good they are keeping a close eye on you. I keep half wanting to just have a 'normal' pregnancy with less medical intervention, but then I also kind of like the reassurance of being seen more often!

@Mountaingoat31 Take it easy and hope you don't feel too bad.

@Holskey @Donimo I think its just a reassurance milestone. Well done on getting to 24 weeks!

How’s everyone doing? I’m 9.5 weeks and symptoms (nausea mostly) have really faded. I still get the ravenous hunger/pain, up in the night to wee, and absolutely knackered. Trying not to panic but my NT isn’t for another three weeks, not sure how I’ll manage. Anyone else experiencing similar?

@Begoniagal7 at around 10 weeks I was exhausted all the time, and sad to say I’m still peeing a lot too even now :( but the tiredness does go away!

@holskey congrats! I just hit ‘viability’ this week too :) are you able to predict when baby kicks now? I’ve noticed kicks start in the evening and last till early morning for me. And then he’s mostly quiet in the day! A new sad symptom is that I can no longer eat the full meals I’m used too. Me and hubby are away this week and I’m so upset that the food is mostly wasted on me as I can only manage a small plate and then I’m stuffed. Still only a small problem in the grand scheme of things! I’m also starting to hurt having to only sleep on my sides, anyone else getting this? Like their left side starts to ache after an hour or two and you keep waking to switch over?

@Begoniagal7 my symptoms are still coming and going at 8w6d. I was looking in my diary from the last pregnancy and it looks like I started to feel better around 10 weeks so 9 weeks sounds fine to me. I've read that between 8 and 12 weeks the placenta takes over which can made you feel better.