Calling all RMA Ladies (1st page updates)

[DaisyQ]

I'm 13 dpiui, 12 dpo according to my chart.

AF won't show on her own because I'm taking progesterone suppositories. I'm supposed to test on Friday (15 dpiui, 14 dpo) and stop the progesterone then, if its negative. AF should show ~36 hours later.

I do all my monitoring in NYC, because I work in NYC. It's just a long commute from nj.



I know there is still a chance, but it's pretty small.

 

[Kins]

Hi all,
First time posting on any TTC forums I usually just read the posts and compare them to myself BUT I felt I just had to reply here because:

I am a fellow RMA'er in PA I go to multiple offices depending on available appts. There are four offices offiliated with my doctors in the Philadelphia area.

Anyway all these terms even after I look them up are so confusing.

At this point my husband and I have been officially trying for about 9mths. 11mths since off birth control.

We have been going to RMA since December. So far Clomid failed me and the doctors started me on Lotrizole no results the first try. Not sure if they are going to increase the dose or try injectibles.

My gut is telling me they want to switch to injectibles. I am currently taking my provera pills to bring on my AF. But mean while the NP said my doctor wants to have a "conference" yikes that doesnt sound good.

Anyway my DH still needs to get his tests done. I guess we were delaying it b/c I clear was the issue. I dont get AF's so I assume I never have ovulated never have unless I was on birthcontrol.

Anyway that is my story.

We shall see wha the next step is.

Everyone on here keeps mentioning that IUI is very expensive. Anyone have a guestimate of cost?

I dont think I will do IVF. Just a personal thing for me.

 

[marie44]

Kins - A "conference" is a good thing. That is your game plan for getting pregnant. DH should be tested bc it is so easy for them to do a SA and find out if he had any issues. If he does, he can start working on them with a urologist or vitamins or whatever they advise. I don't find the IUI's to be that expensive. For us, it was $300 for the IUI, $300 for the BW and U/S and another $150 for the meds. If it works, it is not a crazy price to pay. It is possible they will move to injectibles as the next step but not sure. Sounds like you're on the right path and taking action. GL!

 

[Kins]

Thanks Marie. So far I have been lucky and only had to pay $10 per doctor visit for b/w and u/s and my prescriptions for pills have be $5 or less. I did get the ovidrel inj they said to have it on hand in case. That was $15.


I'm glad there are discussion boards like this, I havent told our friends/family we are trying because i dont want the "so hows it going..." questions all the time.

 

[BlueStorm]

Welcome Kins!

I am sorry you are having such a hard time. I also agree that a conference is good because you can figure out a game plan and after DH has his SA you can have an even better idea of what the game plan might be.

It seems like the next step would be injectable meds. For me (In NJ) we did not have any insurance coverage for our IUI's so we had to pay totally out of pocket. For everything excluding meds it was $2400. That includes all the u/s bloodwork and back 2 back IUI's. Our insurance covered some of the meds but if it didn't it would have been another $2000.00. Hopefully your insurance covers something. If you are not interested in doing IVF I would say IUI would be a good choice, expecially if your DH has no issues then the chance should be pretty good.

 

[marie44]

Welcome Kins!

I am sorry you are having such a hard time. I also agree that a conference is good because you can figure out a game plan and after DH has his SA you can have an even better idea of what the game plan might be.

It seems like the next step would be injectable meds. For me (In NJ) we did not have any insurance coverage for our IUI's so we had to pay totally out of pocket. For everything excluding meds it was $2400. That includes all the u/s bloodwork and back 2 back IUI's. Our insurance covered some of the meds but if it didn't it would have been another $2000.00. Hopefully your insurance covers something. If you are not interested in doing IVF I would say IUI would be a good choice, expecially if your DH has no issues then the chance should be pretty good.

Wow, our prices were a lot different. I did skip a few of the "recommended" appointments like Day 3 bw and I really only had 1 u/s and the iui. I was out of pocket for my first 2 IUIs so I tried to do the minimum. My cycles are really regular so I think he let me slide. I agree, huge difference in price from clomid to injectibles as I'm finding out with this IVF. My insurance is going to cover 1/2 of the first IVF and then nothing after that so I will probably be out 10K from this cycle & if it is a BFN, we're screwed!

 

[jchic]

Welcome Kins!

I am sorry you are having such a hard time. I also agree that a conference is good because you can figure out a game plan and after DH has his SA you can have an even better idea of what the game plan might be.

It seems like the next step would be injectable meds. For me (In NJ) we did not have any insurance coverage for our IUI's so we had to pay totally out of pocket. For everything excluding meds it was $2400. That includes all the u/s bloodwork and back 2 back IUI's. Our insurance covered some of the meds but if it didn't it would have been another $2000.00. Hopefully your insurance covers something. If you are not interested in doing IVF I would say IUI would be a good choice, expecially if your DH has no issues then the chance should be pretty good.

Wow, our prices were a lot different. I did skip a few of the "recommended" appointments like Day 3 bw and I really only had 1 u/s and the iui. I was out of pocket for my first 2 IUIs so I tried to do the minimum. My cycles are really regular so I think he let me slide. I agree, huge difference in price from clomid to injectibles as I'm finding out with this IVF. My insurance is going to cover 1/2 of the first IVF and then nothing after that so I will probably be out 10K from this cycle & if it is a BFN, we're screwed!

Marie, when do you go for your beta? Have hope! I am sure it worked all my fingers and toes crossed for you

 

[marie44]

Thank jchic! I am hoping it worked! I'm surprisingly feeling pretty positive and excited despite having no pg symptoms whatsoever. There's no need to be miserable right now when I have no reason to be. My beta is Tuesday 3/27. I'm hoping to get the best news of my life! GL with testing!

 

[jchic]

you definitely will Keep your positive attitude and keep yourself busy this weekend!!!

 

[BlueStorm]

Marie - I wanted to ask you about your IVF cycle Were you on long protocol? I am still confused about the long and short protocol. My re told me I would start BCP and then Lupron injections. Did you do this?

 

[marie44]

Marie - I wanted to ask you about your IVF cycle Were you on long protocol? I am still confused about the long and short protocol. My re told me I would start BCP and then Lupron injections. Did you do this?

I'm not completely sure the difference but I think if you take a cycle b4 to prepare, it is considered long protocol. I tried to talk them out of this bc I didn't want to wait an extra month when my cycles are so regular but in the end, I ended up going on BCP for a month. It helps them with scheduling and takes some of the guesswork out of it. No Lupron injections though. There are a lot of appts for monitoring bc they like to keep changing your dosage which was really annoying but I guess important.

 

[BlueStorm]

Thanks Marie! I'm just trying to get it all figured out and am still confused about the Lupron injections. I guess I will just find out when I start but I have nothing else to concentrate on right now since I'm waiting to start so I just keep day dreaming about the whole process!

 

[marie44]

Bluestorm - I think Lupron injections do kind of the same thing as BCP (suppress ovulation) and is part of down-regging. I don't know why sometimes they give both. Are your cycles pretty regular bc if not, they may need extra DR drugs? Just a guess though I never understood DR anyway. I did some research and found it doesn't help or hurt, just makes scheduling easier for the dr and patient.

I'm still trying to stay sane during this 2ww & so far, so good!

 

[jchic]

Thanks Marie! I'm just trying to get it all figured out and am still confused about the Lupron injections. I guess I will just find out when I start but I have nothing else to concentrate on right now since I'm waiting to start so I just keep day dreaming about the whole process!

Isnt Lupron good for endo too?

 

[DaisyQ]

Hi guys. I've been blathering on in my journal about all this, but in a nutshell, I'm going back to see the Doc in April to discuss when we might move to IVF. After this first failed IUI, I just don't want to delay too much, especially as we have a limited fertility benefit. So I'm going to do another IUI with clomid this cycle (although I'm going to ask for back to back this time), but the cycle after next I'm actually going to ask about IVF. I realize this is somewhat aggressive but we have all these travel plans which makes planning for IVF very difficult and I really don't want to wait until July/August, which would mean 5 IUI attempts before IVF. I don't have the stamina for that or the $$. So I'm hoping to start IVF in late April, or at the latest, in June.

Marie how much monitoring goes on while you are BCP? My friend said that her monitoring didn't really start until after she got her period after BCP stopped, and she started stims. ?? If there's not much monitoring during the first couple of weeks of the cycle, then I can do it in April or June, but if there IS monitoring - then I'm screwed and have to wait until July...

As far as down regulating, I found this site: https://thefertilityblogs.com/trying-to-conceive/what-to-expect-the-ivf-timeline/1564/

It sounds like the BCP get your hormones under control, so that the doc has more control over the process in general. It also sounds like the BCP help prevent cysts and helps prevent OHSS. Lupron it says, is to prevent premature ovulation and to make sure the follicles are all developing at the same pace.

 

[jchic]

Daisy - I think that is a good plan. I think June for an IVF is good, If you want June, then in May they will start the estradil, etc since RMA only does long protocol and not short, which includes prepping the cycle beforehand.
I think its on a case by case basis between the lupron and the BCP. For me, because I have had VERY bad reactions to BCP they will do the Lupron instead.
I think we will be almost going through IVF together! Because I have this April cycle IUI then May prep then June IVF
Hi IVF buddy!

 

[marie44]

Daisy - There is not much monitoring on BCP. You have to do CD3 BW and take the IVF class. DH has to have his BW and SA up to date (I think within 6 months of the procedure so he can do that anytime). They gave me a date to come in AF or no AF (maybe CD 25 or so) and based on the BW results, they would start the stimming the next day. You get almost a 3 week stretch with no monitoring.
Most of the research I've read recommends 3 IUIs. If it doesn't work in the 1st 3, the next 3 have low success rates although possible so some drs think it is worth a try. I think is is good to start prepping for IVF but hope and pray this IUI works and you don't have to do it

 

[DaisyQ]

Thanks Marie. I agree - I have read the research too that suggests 3 IUIs. I am open to doing three, but I just don't want to do more than that. The reason I'm wondering if I can go to IVF after only 2, is because I'm traveling in late April and again in late June/early July, so planning the IVF is a bit of a logistical nightmare. If I do three consecutive IUIs, I'm looking at starting the IVF protocol in mid-May, which won't work because ER would be in late June/early July, when I'm away. So that doesn't work at all. So it's basically a choice between 2 IUIs and then IVF, or 4 IUIs then IVF. The main consideration of course being $$. If we do 4 IUIs, we may not have much of our 10K fertility benefit left to cover the IVF - you know?

So Jess, I would either be starting BCP in late April with ER in early June, or in mid June, with ER in July.

Also, my friend who did IVF with RMA NY used both BCP and Lupron. She started the BCP first (for 21 days) and started taking Lupron partway through. She then stopped BCP, got her period, but was still on Lupron when she started stims. ?? I guess everyone is different.

 

[DaisyQ]

Ugh, just figured out that if we do IVF starting in June, CD 25 falls on a day that I'm away!!! So that won't work I don't think. Obviously I'm going to discuss with the doctor, but it looks like April... or JULY. Nooooo!!!!

 

[marie44]

Daisy - i see dh has high count, how is his motility & morph? If good & you have no issues, you're probably good candidates for another iui. It is a dilemna though bc if it is a bfn, it will feel like a waste of time. It might be worth doing the 3 iuis & then see where you stand & how your travel days go. There's no predicting the future. What does your dr recommend?