Anyone else doing injectables? Gonal-F, Bravelle, etc.?

[TTC First]

I haven't tried guaifenesin bit I did try preseed. Preseed worked for what it does but I didn't get that BFP. DH is not a big fan of that one. lol Maybe I should try guaifenesin this month. Do you know how long you need to take it before O.

Wow, I can't believe that people had the children taken away. I don't think that is possible here. When I child comes into care the parents still have rights (most of the time). CAS goes to court to make the child a "crown ward" which means that the parents are no longer legally responsible and they have no rights. Once CAS takes over as official guardian then they can go up for adoption. It's heartbreaking because it can take so long. The parents have up to 1 year to fix the problem and get their kids back. After 1 year the child can go up for adoption. This is the goal at least. Of course there are court delays and stuff. Some kids can take years. I hate that the LO here is bonding with us and is loosing time with a great potential family.

I know that parts of the USA can be very racist and not very multi cultural. I would imagine that your area is pretty good. Here it is definitely not an issue, it's almost like I (being white) am the minority.

You guys have to pay to adopt? That's different. Here they do the "Home study" which is similar to one in the US. Then you have to take a course one evening per week for 6 weeks. After that you wait and get a phone call.

I don't think that we would adopt her. She is our first long term placement so I am sure there are going to be many more. We will want to adopt all of them and of course that is just not possible. I am not looking to have lots of children, I would be happy with just one. DH wants 2. Financially it's just so expensive now. They do offer financial assistance for some adoptions in Ontario. If you adopt siblings, a child over 10, or a child with special needs they will give you a monthly compensation.

I was talking to DH about the situation and he doesn't want to listen to the doctors. He wants me to go back to the original 150ui dose for a day to get the follies kickstarted. I didn't get into the whole IUI/IVF conversation, I figure we will cross that bridge when we get there.


So I see you haven't Oed yet. What's your plan? You going to try natural?

 

[TTC First]

So I went back in today and still only one follie. The person doing the u/s said there are small ones there that could grow, not sure if she is just bring positive. The doctor said I will only have 1 follie this month.

Here are my options

I can stop taking medication and apparently the egg will not release and the follicle will disappear. The problem is that they don't know how long my cycle will be. Last month that may be why my cycle was over 50 days.

I can still take the medication and trigger but try naturally. This would mean I would trigger in 2 days from now.

I can still take the medication and try the IUI with only one follicle. He said this would increase my chances 30%.

DH is voting that I still take the medication and trigger and try naturally. I am just going to do what he wants because I am just wanting to give up. I really do not have high hopes this month.

 

[pbl_ge]

FWIW, I think that's exactly the choice I'd make in your situation. Perhaps start doing guaifenesin 2x per day from now until O? I start noticing a difference pretty quickly, and TCOYF (book) says 5 days pre-O is best. I have no idea how much that really helps, but if that's what you're worried about, it might be worth a try.

The "kids taken away" thing is, I think, just a hazard of doing foster-to-adopt. Sometimes the birth parents will decide later on to fight for their kids. I think that's a good thing, but I also think it's incredibly hard on the foster parents. I asked my friends who did it if they were able to avoid getting attached, knowing that it was a risk, and they said they tried for about a week, then just gave up.

When you do private adoption, this is generally less of a concern, because the birth parents are usually the ones initiating the adoption (although it does happen). But private adoption is not subsidized by the state, so that's what costs so much more. I think there are tax credits that can help, but it's still at least $10-20,000.

I'm from the American South, which is supposedly very racist, but I think that's baloney. I've heard so much racist nonsense in this area that it makes the south seem like a diverse utopia. I think most of America is pretty racist, but it gets expressed differently in different regions, and part of that depends on how diverse the local population is.

Anyway, I hope that the injectables helped you produce an amazing, super-high-quality egg that will give you a good chance at a bfp. I know this isn't what you wanted.

Have you thought about what's next?

I have my appt with my doc tomorrow.

 

[Lawyer chick]

Hi girls. I'm 90 mins from niagara. I cross often (just last weekend)

Ttc first. Kudos on fostering. I would love to. Dh not so much, even tho he himself is adopted. We only have private and public options nd private I've heard is 25,000+ for an adoption .

I'm sorry to hear the follicles are not going forward. I know a girl on another board had trouble responding then bam too many. I hope you can sort things out. I'm not sure if we will start next month or not.

 

[pbl_ge]

Boy, it seems like we're all really close--kinda cool!

So apparently the response that I had to the injections (over-responding followed by a crash in hormones) is referred to as a "brittle" response. When I google this, all I can find is info on "brittle PCOS." I definitely don't have PCOS, so I really don't know what that means. Basically he said people like me are tricky to calibrate for the meds, so I'm at higher risk of OHSS, problematic #s of embies, and more cancelled cycles.

So the upshot is that I'll be moving onto IVF next cycle. They're also going to give me a scan and a blood test tomorrow to see when I might O.

 

[TTC First]

"people like me are tricky to calibrate for the meds" That sounds like what my doctor was saying. He wanted to say that I don't respond the "normal" way. I heard the first part and he caught himself and said "typical" way. He says that since 150 is too much and 75 is too little we should try 112.5 next cycle. DH doesn't want to jump to IVF right now.

I think that it's so exciting that you are doing IVF pbl_ge. I am so excited for you I'm sure this will bring you your BFP you have been waiting for.

Maybe you will O about the same time as me. We decided to trigger and try naturally. I am going in tomorrow and I should be ready to trigger.

People always worry about the attachment with children. I know it's hard but we definitely try not to get too attached. There are always good things about the child leaving. I know that they are going to a family that is looking forward to having them. I am also looking forward to the break. With every child they are at a different stage. Last child was newborn and I wanted to get away from overnight feedings. That child went home and I got a 5 month old sleeping through the night. I was thrilled. Now the 5 month old is 8 months old and crawling. I could use the break and go with a younger kid that I don't have to chase around. I try to look at the positive change that I will see with a new kid.

Lawyer chick, did you have trouble crossing? I have family in Niagara and they are staying away from the border because Obama is in Buffalo so security is tight.

Fostering is quite tough and you really have to want to do it. Dealing with the kids is one thing but you also have training to do, the politics of the government, and the parents. I know some people have a negative image of fostering and the type of kids that you will see but typically that's not the case. I have a perfectly happy and healthy 8 month old right now. If you have any questions about it, let me know. Do you fall into Metro Toronto?

 

[Lawyer chick]

Nope re gta. I'm west of Hamilton.

I never have trouble and I've crossed at all 3 bridges.

Due to my work I know the blessings of fostering. I'd have to go outside my city agency, as we act for parents with children in care. That's been a deterrent.

Im wondering how they will schedule my meds. I'm only on cd 10 unmedicated break cycle. I'm trying to decide whether to start next cycle or another break. It's so hard

 

[pbl_ge]

Lawyer, you should start when you feel ready to start. If you don't feel ready, then keep taking your break. It's very stressful to do these medicated cycles, so don't rush it!

Good luck with your triggering, TTCFirst! Hope you catch this one. And you're right--don't try to cross the border before Thursday!

AFM, I had a scan today and I'm nowhere near Oing. I'm betting it will be about like your cycle, TTCFirst. All my follies were <10 mm, and I'm betting they have more shrinking to do, followed by more growing. This is going to be a looooooooooooooooooooooong wait before I get to start!

 

[River54]

Can I ask you guys how much the injectibles were?
I can't go ahead with IUI as I have cysts on each side (17 and 13 mm - dunno what that compares to) so I have to wait a cycle. - Just found out this morning.
Apparently I over responded to 50mg of clomid.
They have me down as doing femara and a couple injectibles when I can do the IUI cycle. They mentioned they were more $, just wondering how much? I am in Canada.

 

[pbl_ge]

It depends a lot on what kind of injectables you're doing. There's the lab-developed kind like Gonal-F, and I think it's much more expensive than the purified kind, like Menopur.

I can't comment on Canadian pricing, as I'm in the US, but I thought I'd add that little tidbit here.

Good luck!

 

[MPG1980]

Can I ask you guys how much the injectibles were?
I can't go ahead with IUI as I have cysts on each side (17 and 13 mm - dunno what that compares to) so I have to wait a cycle. - Just found out this morning.
Apparently I over responded to 50mg of clomid.
They have me down as doing femara and a couple injectibles when I can do the IUI cycle. They mentioned they were more $, just wondering how much? I am in Canada.

In Canada, Gonal F 75iu is $81.00 and $85 for the Ovidrel.
We did two injectible cycles so far. Last month costed us over $800 because of the higher dosage but our work benefit covers the meds.

Baby dust to you

 

[Lawyer chick]

Hi river. I'm in ontario. About to start my first. I respond ok on clomid but we revworried about potential block right tube. So onto injects for chances at follicles on each side. I've been told pureon 100 iu and it's 114 each. I do t know my doseage yet. Good luck to you.

 

[River54]

Thank you for your responses - so for the next cycle, when I am allowed to do IUI, I looked at the protocol set out - femara 5mg x 5 days, and gonal F 150 units x 2.
I gather it'll be alot more pricey than the clomid. So far my extended medical has covered the prescriptions. Pretty sure the fine print said $5000 lifetime max for the drugs. I just hope it works! I'm in BC

 

[TTC First]

Lawyer, you should start when you feel ready to start. If you don't feel ready, then keep taking your break. It's very stressful to do these medicated cycles, so don't rush it!

Good luck with your triggering, TTCFirst! Hope you catch this one. And you're right--don't try to cross the border before Thursday!

AFM, I had a scan today and I'm nowhere near Oing. I'm betting it will be about like your cycle, TTCFirst. All my follies were <10 mm, and I'm betting they have more shrinking to do, followed by more growing. This is going to be a looooooooooooooooooooooong wait before I get to start!

Oh no pbl_ge...I really hope you don't have a cycle like I did. That was like 53 days or some crazy number like that.

 

[TTC First]

Thank you for your responses - so for the next cycle, when I am allowed to do IUI, I looked at the protocol set out - femara 5mg x 5 days, and gonal F 150 units x 2.
I gather it'll be alot more pricey than the clomid. So far my extended medical has covered the prescriptions. Pretty sure the fine print said $5000 lifetime max for the drugs. I just hope it works! I'm in BC

River54 take it from us....go slow with the injectables!!!!! Right ladies

It is very easy to over stimulate and that is a waste of a cycle. I over stimulated on 150 Gonal F and I got 1 follie on 75. It does get very costly. My clinic also likes us to take progesterone from O for 14 days so there are additional costs. There is also the cost for the trigger.

 

[TTC First]

ok ladies I went in and I triggered today. Still only one follie so I am not that excited, just waiting for the cycle to be over and start next cycle and do my IUI. I have to go back Saturday to confirm I Oed.

 

[pbl_ge]

Good luck, TTCFirst!

 

[TTC First]

Oh no pbl_ge, you're still going. The good thing is that you may not need to take a break between cycles. When I had my long cycle they said that I had no cysts on CD3 so I could start meds again. So it sucks to have a long cycle but then you don't have to wait out a whole month to start again.

 

[pbl_ge]

Oh no pbl_ge, you're still going. The good thing is that you may not need to take a break between cycles. When I had my long cycle they said that I had no cysts on CD3 so I could start meds again. So it sucks to have a long cycle but then you don't have to wait out a whole month to start again.

Positive OPK this AM, so I'm thinking it's almost over. I'm TERRIFIED that I'll have a cyst again, although it may not matter bc of the three weeks of planned BCP.

How's that TWW treating you?

How's everyone else?

 

[TTC First]

Oh no pbl_ge, you're still going. The good thing is that you may not need to take a break between cycles. When I had my long cycle they said that I had no cysts on CD3 so I could start meds again. So it sucks to have a long cycle but then you don't have to wait out a whole month to start again.

Positive OPK this AM, so I'm thinking it's almost over. I'm TERRIFIED that I'll have a cyst again, although it may not matter bc of the three weeks of planned BCP.

How's that TWW treating you?

How's everyone else?

Lucky you, O around CD29. I Oed last month around CD39.

I'm doing ok in my TWW. I triggered on CD14 and got an immediate temp increase then it fell till CD17 and dramatically increased again. CD17 I went for an u/s and they said that I had Oed. So I am not too sure which temp increase is my O, but it doesn't really matter to me.

DH and I are heading out with friends to Niagara area to do some camping next week. It will be nice to pass the time for my TWW. We are planning to do some golfing and fishing. We are newbies at both so this should be interesting.

So you guys are confirmed doing IVF next cycle? We could get our BFP close to the same time.