Can anyone shed some light on IUI odds?

[BabyChristie]

No I haven't. Still spotting this morning a bit and have more cramps in lower back than so far this cycle which makes me pretty certain AF is coming. Suspect my natural progesterone level has dropped as I'm not pregnant but pessaries are keeping AF at bay. Will probably have to test on Monday if AF doesn't come and then stop pessaries if BFN I imagine. Getting to the point where I actually want AF to come to put me out of my misery!

 

[BabyChristie]

Ooops. Did some surfing about 17dpIUI and spotting - seems Joli you are right. Lots of woment have spotting at this time with bad cramping and are still pregnant.

So, I've made a decision - I'm staying at my mum's this weekend so won't test. But if no AF by Monday, I will test so that I know either way. I'll update you as soon as I know. Wish me luck!

 

[Joli]

Hey babychristie - I have a friend who spotted for the first 12 weeks of her pregnancy, but everything was ok, and she was given a lot of progesterone. 17dpIui is a long time! I really hope you have some good news for us on Monday! X

 

[BabyChristie]

Sorry to say its bad news from me. Had spotting for two days but AF arrived this afternoon at 18 dpIUI. Very cruel as I was really starting to think we might have made it this month.

A month off then its on to our final IUI in April before IVF in June / July. I just hope we get there soon. Each failure is destroying a little bit of me.

Good luck to all you lovely ladies. Thanks for your support over the past couple of weeks.

x

 

[Joli]

BabyChristie, I'm so sorry that AF came, I sincerely know how gutted you must feel right now. DH and I had thought that we would need IVF, and were comforted by the fact that IVF has a huge success rate. You will get your BFP soon, I know it's hard, but try to keep your chin up. You can write on this thread anytime you feel like ranting or being sad or angry, I find it to be quite theraputic, and we'll be here to give you support! Why are you guys having a break this cycle, can't you do IUI 2 cycles in a row?

 

[BabyChristie]

Thanks Joli, I really appreciate it. Our doc has said that IVF has a very high chance of working for us and is convinced it will only take one or two goes and we'll be there. I'm trying to stay positive that we will get there and hopefully by the end of this year if all goes to plan...

We need a break this month as DH is away right when the IUI treatment would happen. I also think some time off the drugs would be good for me as they've been driving me pretty crazy with awful side effects and I have an MRI to investigate the endo on my bowel too this month so mustnt be pregnant. All in all, April is best so I'll try to stay focused on that for now. And keep punching my cushion hard to vent my anger as the counsellor suggested!

Hope you are feeling ok. How's it all going?

 

[Joli]

Hey BabyChristie - I am no doc, but I agree that you guys probably have a very good chance with IVF, and it is great if you can both be mentally prepared for IVF. It sounds like taking a break for a cycle is a good idea, and might help you both relax a bit as well. I live in Hong Kong, and I had planned to have my IUI here, but it was taking me sooo long to O whilst on Gonal-F, that we faced either cancelling our holiday (which we desperately needed) or doing our IUI whilst on holiday. After talking to our doc, we decided to do our IUI in Cape Town, South Africa where we were on holiday, and I honestly think that having it going whilst relaxed on holiday make a huge difference for both myself and DH. His sperm count isn't fantastic, and he only had 4% morphology. So there is hope You go and hit that cushion!!! I hope everything goes well with your MRI. I'm feeling ok, sore bb's, but no nausea, but I guess I'm still early. It is pretty nerve wrecking checking for any spotting each time I go to the loo, but so far so good (fx'd)!

 

[BabyChristie]

It's a small world! I had IVF in Cape Town 5 years ago, unfortunately with no success but the care was good. We had relatives there so it was nice to have treatment and a holiday as you said. And we spent part of our honeymoon last year in Hong Kong - wonderful place!

I'm sure it will take a while to get used to it and you'll be anxious for a bit, but once you have your scans and tests back ok I'm sure you'll feel much better. Take it easy! x

 

[Joli]

Thanks BabyChristie That's awesome about Cape Town! My DH's extended family live there, so we stayed at his parents place, and we had our IUI at the Cape Town Fertility Clinic. It turned out to be so much cheaper than doing it in Hong Kong! Hong Kong is an awesome place, very busy and hectic! DH and I met in London, and then moved out to HK together. Are you able to do IUI / IVF privately? I think there are supposed to be some very good places in the UK for treatment. I'm sure you're in very good hands!

 

[Smurfette]

Congrats Joli and wantingmore and all you lovely ladies who got their after IUI in the last couple of months!!!! Sorry I didn't come back to tell you the result. I was so blown away by the fact that it had worked I forgot to come back.

To all of you ladies having IUI soon, I'm sending you massive amounts of and very much crossing everything for you. The odds sound pretty depressing when the doctors tell you but as you can see from all these threads IUI really can work.

Hope to see you all really soon in 1st tri.



xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

[Joli]

Smurfette - it's great to hear from you! Congrats on nearly reaching 10 weeks! I am so hopeful that everything will be ok for me in the next few weeks, but I'm so scared that so much could go wrong. Well, just taking it easy and keeping my fx'd!

 

[CaseyBaby718]

So this thread really gave me hope!!!

I'm starting my first round of IUI with clomid and trigger shot in April.

SUPER EXCITED!!!

Concerned and a little reserved too but we will see. Mostly i'm worried that a. it won't work the first time or b. I will have too many eggs and they will have to cancel.

So, just a little background about myself, i'm currently 22 and have been TTC since Jan 09. Did clomid 50mg for two months in Dec and Jan.... with BFN.

Hoping that April is the month!!

 

[Joli]

Hey Casey - this thread should give you hope for sure! I have PCOS as well, and didn't think I could be one of the lucky ones where IUI would work first time round, but what can I say... it did! Rather than clomid, I was on Gonal-F before my IUI (thought I did 2 rounds of clomid before that without IUI), and since they are able to adjust the dosage day to day on Gonal-F, this means that an experienced doc will be able to ensure you don't over stimulate too many eggs. Mine took a really conservative approach, and I didn't get my IUI until CD27!! But he wanted to make sure only 1 or 2 eggs released. We'd love to hear how you get on in April! Keep us posted

 

[CaseyBaby718]

Thank you for telling me about Gonal F. I am going to try and remember to bring it up with my doctor on our follow up visit.

I'd like to idea of being able to adjust the dosages more so as to not over stimulate. Thanks.

I'm glad that you are a first time success.

Would you say that there are a higher percentage of first time successes with IUI then with just clomid?

 

[Joli]

Hey Casey - there is indeed a higher percentage of first time successes on IUI with Gonal-F, but I think that's because you often get 2 eggies release, plus clomid thins your uterus lining which makes it harder to implant. It also dries up a lot of your natural CM - I'm not sure whether this is as important when using IUI rather than natural conception, but I certainly noticed this whilst I was on clomid. The only down-side about Gonal-F is (1) you have to inject yourself in the tummy every day, but it's a very small pen needle, like you get for diabeties; and (2) Gonal-F is a lot more expensive than clomid. Even in hindsight though, I'm so glad I was on Gonal-F, apart from the bruises on my tummy from the shots, I felt so much better on it, with less side effects. Best of luck when you meet with your doc!

 

[reedsgirl1138]

I am so glad I found this thread!! You ladies are amazing and I have been wondering soo much about IUI versus IVF...I have been ttc since May 09 after a tubal reversal and I have had 2 chemical pregnancies. I am getting a HSG done on tuesday and then go from there but I am thinking that the looks of things from you ladies IUI is the route to take!! Congrats to you all that got BFP!!

 

[Joli]

Hey reedsgirl, I'm glad this thread can give you hope...it certainly gave me hope! We honestly thought it would have to come down to IVF for us, but we were prepared to try IUI 3 times, and I'm so glad we did. IVF is so expensive and you really have to be mentally prepared for the long process. If you haven't tried IUI yet, then I would most certainly give that a go a couple of times first. It's a lot cheaper, and as you can see, it most definately can work! I really hope everything goes well for you!!

 

[CaseyBaby718]

Jodi,
Thank you again for your info. I was a little nervous about it when i looked it up because it is a injectable. But I think what you described are some of the things that I really didn't want to happen. More eggs then can be used, and other side effects like I didn't know Clomid can thin the lining of your uterus. That's awful...

I will definitely see what my doc says. I hope he isn't too stern about using clomid. I hope I can get the Gonal F injectable.

Can I ask how expensive it is?

Reedsgirl... I don't know what your DR said but HSG is super painful. Think menstrual cramping on steroids. I was actually crying during mine, and the DR kept telling me how good I was doing even though He had to hold my hips down because I was writhing in pain. They told me to just take some tylenol before i go in. I recommend the allowed safe dosage for a day. Which I think is 8.... I would maybe do 4 or 5. Usually when i'm cramping during my period I take that much and it goes away pretty easily. For the HSG it won't go away but at least it may not be that bad. I definitely would take more then 2 that's for sure.

Best of luck to you. Hope things go well.

 

[Joli]

Hey Casey - don't worry about it being an injectible, I am totally scared of needles, a complete baby, but it really doesn't hurt and the needle is about an inch long, and it goes in, and you click the top of the pen, as if you were clicking a ballpoint pen, and that's it. By the end of my cycle, I had no problem doing it myself, but before that DH did it for me. It really is fool-proof! I'd definitely do some research online on clomid and gonal-F before you decide which way to go. I think one gonal-F pen (which has around 5-8 dosages, depending on how much you're taking), costs about US$200. It took me ages to ovulate but most women only need to use the pen for 10-14 days.

 

[CaseyBaby718]

Ouuuu, that's steep. So i would need at least 2, so about $400. I wonder if my insurance will take care of that cost at all.

I wish there were actual statisics on what the success rate of IUI is, according the age.

I'm pretty sure that a lot of people wait until they are at least older then I am (22) to go through fertility therapy, which I guess is why my DR is telling me that my odds of IUI conception are around 20-25%. Which seems low, but that means that by the third time (if it takes that long) I have a 75% success chance. and by the second time it's 50/50. Which is pretty good odds.

But i like to look at graphs, and i just wish there was a graph for age and success rate.

Also, I wish I had a Crystal Ball so that I could see into the future and figure out if the first time was going to be a success. I can already tell that April's tww is going to be mind blowing!