Advice on iui versus ivf needed

[Mrs W 11]

Hi all,

I am currently considering fertility treatment and am looking for some advice from others who have done the same. Here is my story.....

I got pregnant first time trying with my daughter who was born in 2011. 14 months later we decided to ttc no 2 and again got pregnant first try. Sadly that ended in mmc at 12 weeks last January and we have now been ttc again for a year with no luck.

We have had all tests (blood tests, scan, hycosy, sperm test etc) and everything is normal. The consultant thinks if we keep trying I will get pregnant. However..... I don't believe my hormones are working correctly. At 7-8 dpo every month I get a dull back ache. On 9dpo it ramps up to a very painful horrible lower back pain. 10dpo I feel completely normal. Usually spotting on either 10-11 dpo and af arrives 11-12 dpo. Whatever hormone is going crazy on 8-9 dpo is what I think is stopping an egg implanting.

Therefore my first option is a medicated cycle of iui. My consultant doesn't think my success rate with this is any higher than a natural cycle because there is no evidence to suggest I have a hormonal issue but she does agree that the drugs would control my hormones so it could work. Success rate is 15% and it costs about £1200.

Or I do ivf where my success rate will be 35-40%. Again cycle is fully controlled hormone wise. Cost is £5000 and although I know my chance of success is higher, I also know its much more invasive.

I wanted a 2 year age gap and even if I got pregnant now it would be a few months over 3 years. I really don't want to wait any longer, I am desperate to get pregnant and have another baby. I do have savings to pay for the treatment but of course I would rather not spend it on ivf when we need a new car and house!

It's a dilemma and really a bit of a gamble! Do we do one cycle of iui in April (that's the soonest they can start me on treatment) and if it fails I have a month off and do ivf in June. (But if iui does work I save £4000)...... Or do I do ivf in April and if that fails I pray that my one ovary gives enough good eggs to do a fet in June. That would be either £5000 if the first go works or over £6000 if I need both.

Of course I know there are no guarantees even if I do two or three treatments but given that I've got pregnant easily in the past I'm hoping I will do. All opinions, thoughts and advice are welcome.

Thanks
Xx

 

[Juliet11]

I did more IUIs than I can remember in 2011. It wasn't till I did a IVF cycle August 2012 that I got pregnant. For me IUIs were mostly covered so I felt I could do it. They are less invasive than IVF. And for some people they work like a charm. For me they didn't and if I had known I would've gone straight to IVF.

If I were you I would try IUI once and if it didn't work then go to IVF because you really want to be pregnant soon.
It's hard with no guarantees but that's what I would do.
Best of luck!!!!!

 

[3chords]

If you can afford IVF over IUI, it is a no brainer in my opinion.

IUIs are not particularly effective and in countries where IVF is covered, they have basically abandoned the practice altogether.

 

[Mrs W 11]

Thanks both! I'm so torn! More opinions welcome x

 

[star25]

Hi, I think if your Dr thinks you would not have much more success with iui than trying naturally, and considering you would like to be pregantn soon, I would go for the ivf.
Also bear in mind other waiting times though for the ivf. I know you don't have long cycles but for me I had my first appointment in june for ivf, didn't start until October because of long cycles, I then had to do a freeze all and couldn't have an embryo transferred as I had OHSS so had to take a cycle off to recover and now hoping to start my fet finally at the start of feb!
There can be other things can hold up the ivf though such as cysts etc so just be prepared for any hold ups
I'm sure whichever you choose will be the right one and I hope you get your bfp!

 

[star25]

ps) although I haven't had transfer or a bfp I have got 8 embryos in the freezer so all the waiting was worth it in the end and if you end up needing 2 iuis (which I hope you wouldn't) that could pay for half an ivf cycle x

 

[Mississippi03]

Hey mrs, you arent ever far behind me are ya! Much like you i think my issues all hormonal. My RE suggested i try 3 rounds of iui before moving on to ivf. Im currently in my tww of my first iui

 

[messica]

I agree with 3chords. If you can afford it and have the time to invest, IVF is going to best stack your odds. Especially since you've been able to implant and successfully carry a child before.

That said, have you seen an actual reproductive endocrinologist to get a really highly specialized pair of eyes on your test results? Sometimes that can make all the difference as opposed to a regular OB or FS interpretation.

 

[Mrs W 11]

Messica, there isn't anything like that in the uk unfortunately! I'm sure it would help but I think if I could hunt down someone who could help it would probably cost more than the ivf! I have had all the tests that are available to me either via the nhs or paying privately at a fertility clinic.

Miss - hello! I have been off bnb for so long but pop in now and then and needed some advice. Good luck with your iui, I'll check in to see how you get on, praying for your bfp.

Thanks Star - I guess the delays that could happen is another reason I am keen to start ASAP. I only have one ovary so I haven't got as much chance as usual to have enough eggs for a future FET if ivf fails

Have been thinking a lot this weekend and I think I probably will go straight to ivf. When we first met the consultant in oct/nov she said keep trying for another 6 months and then go for ivf if you want to. Firstly I wish I had just gone for it there and then because I could be pregnant now if I had, and secondly I don't want to do iui and if it fails think, if we had done ivf I could be pregnant now. I know most people try for longer than a year but I'm 34, we do have the savings and I just want to have another baby now.

Thanks everyone. Ill book my ivf appointment Monday and hopefully join some of you in this area of the forum on some threads soon.

 

[Mississippi03]

Glad you made a choice. Hope it works out girl xo

 

[Mrs W 11]

Thanks Miss x

The hardest bit is not knowing what's wrong! Something must be but I can't seem to get to the bottom of it. If my cycle seemed normal I'd accept that it was luck but over the year, analysing my luteal phase, I know something is wrong.

 

[Mississippi03]

When would you be able to move forward with ivf?

 

[Mrs W 11]

I'm just about to post a thread as ivf is the way we've defo decided to go. I need to call the fertility clinic tomorrow and set up my first appointment where we sign all of the paperwork and hear about dates etc. I'd ideally like to start on my next cycle (I'm on af now) but she did say 1-2 months, more likely 2 so I think 2 natural cycles and start end of march.

What happens for you next, do you go in for blood tests to find out if iui was successful? X

 

[Mississippi03]

Well at least you are getting on the right track.. I hope you sign all of the paperwork and then let go of the steess of trying and magically it happens natural happened to me with my nov cycle.. I knew i was doing iui in jan.. Let it go.. Got pregnant.. But unfortunately lost it! They have me on progesterone supps so hopefully that helps this time.

Test day is a week from tuesday. I dont think they do bloods unless i get a positive test. Or if af showsthen i start another round of iui right away..