Chinese Accupuncture

[Blythe]

I am doing both acu and herbs throughout stims and i feel comfortable with both. Never thought i would do the latter but i think it is helping - she was rather insistent that the herbs would really help me - i believe they have.

 

[alison29]

I think you should try different things too. If one cycle did not produce results why not change it up the next time. It's banging your head against a wall doing the same thing and expecting different results. I love it when a practioner says for sure that something will help feels right doing it. Good luck

 

[Briss]

Blythe, that's fantastic. I also had doubts about herbs and IVF but I guess it all depends on your treatment and your doc. I will talk about herbs/IVF with Dr E next time cos I am actually quite comfortable with his herbs. I am keeping my fingers crossed for you.

 

[Jazzbird]

Briss - I'm well thanks. So glad to see later ov and nice steady temp rise for you. Hoping you do get a good fsh reading soon.

Blythe - looking forwards to reading your ivf diary. Really praying this brings the BFP you so deserve.

Hi to the other ladies

 

[kits]

Can't wait to read your diary Blythe!

Love your progress Briss!

Hi ladies, sending love, luck & loads & loads of

 

[gingmg]

Blythe- cheering you on and rooting for you from the side lines. That actually goes for everyone here.

 

[Blythe]

Briss - sorry for stupid AF. I loved your chart this month - it is the best i remember seeing your chart.

Everything is heading the right direction. Is DH due a sperm analysis soon? I cannot remember how long he has been having the treatment.

anyhow, i am thinking of you and hope you are ok

 

[Briss]

Blythe, thanks. yesterday I was just too depressed and angry to say anything, I did not feel this bad before, suddenly I just felt like I cant be miserable on my own anymore I have enough misery to share with many people and I wanted to do something violent to make smb else suffer for a change, than just to be on receiving end all the time. I knew this would pass so I just went out and cried it all out for a few hours, could not care less about people staring at me. I know I should be grateful for having a good cycle, very little pre AF spotting, my results are OK but nothing matters cos I am not pregnant and I will be 38 soon. I think at some point endorphins kicked in from the walking exercise and I started feeling a bit better, went home and made dinner. still pretty upset though... the usual

got my results back, it's good news for me and bad new for DH. 6 months of hormonal treatment and very little alcohol and his results are actually worse than before. WTF!!! count is below 5 million and morphology 1%. no wonder I am not getting pregnant, we do not stand a chance. I do not know how he is going to motivate himself to carry on without alcohol when it did not make any difference. I can try and get him to take vitamins blaming his poor results on the fact he has not been taking any but deep down I know it was not the issue.

My results are OK, FSH got down to 11.8!! so it was worth it playing with the private blood tests and waiting for a bit longer before doing the real thing, my estrogen went up a bit more on that day and suppressed FSH even further so I am now officially below the threshold of 12.5.

My AMH is 13.41 – the highest I have seen (not surprisingly considering the amounts of Vit D I was taking, about 10,000 daily for a few days before taking the test). it may not be accurate but at least I feel we have a chance to get IVF funding now.

My TSH also got down to 3.08 from 3.78, not ideal but at least it's fluctuating rather than just going up. It's still higher than they like but maybe my spotting was not related to thyroid?

The only problem is the MCHC is quite low which may indicate iron deficiency or anaemia. I guess I need to start taking more iron this cycle. I would still like to repeat my FSH this cycle to see what's going on and check my estrogen in case I have a cyst.

we cant TTC this cycle cos I am supposed to have an HSG type test to check my uterus and cervix. begging DH to take me abroad for a week to get me through my birthday

 

[Jazzbird]

Briss - great news on FSH and pre- AF spotting. It's Dr E - I swear . Can you persuade OH to go to him? My friends OH had poor count and 0% morph - they were advised to have ICSI. He took 3 months of herbs (no acu) and his morph went up to 5% and count went up. Honestly, there is so much evidence for herbs and male infertility. It's worth a shot?

I'm sorry though that another cycle brings another disappointment. I think you are on the right track - it is a matter of time and getting your foot through the ivf door.

Praying for you Briss. Xxx

 

[alison29]

WTF with your husband? What did is uro say about this? I am sorry that is really disappointing. I am really happy about your progress though. What do they suggest to do now, can you do icsi?

 

[Briss]

Jazzbird, I feel very positive about Dr E, I booked my FSH this week so we will see what my levels are this cycle. I want to show the herbs DH was previously on to Dr E to ask for his opinion. DH will not go to a TCM doctor, unfortunately the experience with Dr Zhai put him off for good. I am confident in our urologist, he has an excellent reputation in the UK and even globally so I do believe DH is getting the best medical attention it's just that something is not working and maybe it's not treatable.

alison, I am disappointed for my DH cos he has been really good, he took his medicine and stayed away from beer most of the time, he did not do excessive exercise (it's not recommended as it increases body temp and damages sperm), no extreme dieting, we had plenty of DB so his sperm was supposed to be constantly refreshed – is said to improve quality. the only thing he was not taking his vitamins regularly but compare to alcohol it should not really be a significant issue. I was expecting his count to go up to at least 15-20 mil not go down to 5. ICSI is our only option, I am even going to ask for IMSI. still cant understand it the meds made DH produce more testosterone but if his testosterone increased why his body is not using it to make more sperm? he is not doing body building or anything so where is it all going?

 

[Blythe]

Briss - what a huge blow that will be for your DH. i wonder what his urologist will make of this....has he had a debrief appt with him yet?

I'm so sorry you were crying...it makes me sad to read that. Its so darn heartbreaking and you have been doing this for so long. Im so pleased to read your stats....amazing that they AMH has changed so much and I'm so happy to see that you are now in safe zone for IVF on the NHS.

it is not a matter of if - it is just a matter of when

 

[melly2]

Briss: Hi There. I'm so sorry to hear of DH's poor results. Have they been checking his FSH level as well? That's a very important hormone in sperm production. They put my DH on Clomid to increase his FSH levels, which was somewhat of a factor.

 

[alison29]

UGh that sucks. About your birthday, you still have plenty of time I just had mine also in May. My dh also likes his beer and he also likes p*t. Sperm count aside how about they don't do it because it's bad for your regardless of what it has done to your counts. My dh is 42 he has cleaned up his act ALOT but not squeaky yet by anymeans. It is so strange that your dh has higher drive so the drugs are working? Was he taking clomid or soemthing else? Mine has been taking some fertiliaid a friend gave me for men (once she got knocked up) for a while now. SO not much else i can do for him other then the clomid.

 

[alison29]

Melly how much clomid and for how long was your dh on it?

 

[Briss]

Blythe, thanks! I always look forward to your posts, you are so encouraging. it's hard getting bad news all the time, and whatever i try I get a negative result. Today I am OK and able to deal with it but yesterday it was like a new low for me, I did not know I could be so aggressive (in my thoughts rather than actions but it's a matter of time). getting bad SA results kind of explains why nothing happened, I have to say I was getting my hopes up cos DH's sex drive is so improved I was sure his SA must be better so we may even have a chance at natural conception, obviously no such thing. DH is due to have a call with the urologist to we may get some answers.

melly, you are right, the outcome of the treatment is increase in both testosterone and a slight increase in FSH but testosterone was more important (at least that's what we were told)

alison, my DH is on tamoxifen, it's similar to clomid but not as aggressive. My DH put his social life on hold and career as well cos drinks with boss/colleagues is a must and he is not doing it. the only reason he has done it is because he could see my despair but obviously also because I threatened to divorce him and go donor sperm route. I cant even imagine how he feels now

 

[alison29]

My dh receivd flack from one of his professional groups for not wanting to crack beers at 4 in the afternoon. Um hello that is just sad! They bought him his special beer but still. I know it is usual though. He is taking an exercise class twice a week which keeps him more on the straigth and narrow those nights. I am so glad my work is not like that i would hate to have to socialize after work it would feel like more work. ITs hard enough being gluten free and avoiding baked goods gatherings at work, i don't think alot of people understand what gluten is or how it can cause silent damage.

 

[Briss]

I had my follow up acu session today. Dr E was pleased with my chart – it's perfect apparently (don't I know it!). basically things are moving in the right direction so we carry on with the same herbs. apparently my day 3 FSH is an indication of how well my ovaries worked the previous cycle so I am hoping to see some reduction in FSH levels tomorrow (obviously if I have a cyst that will screw things up). He looked at the herbs for DH that my previous doc suggested but said it's impossible to recommend these ready made formulas. Basically similar to what Dr Zhai said. there is no such thing as herbs for sperm cos it all depends on the person's condition, deficiencies etc. he also said that particular formula would be too weak for my DH anyway. as things stand it's ICSI/IMSI situation.

This cycle is going to be wasted on more tests for the IVF clinic. I wonder if we can start the next cycle or is it also going to be wasted waiting for them to make a decision. I also hate to do these things in summer when most doctors are away on holidays.

 

[Irish_eyes]

Oh Briss really sorry you were so upset the other day and hope you are doing ok at the moment. Also sorry to hear about your DH's results but happy that your cycle is improving. Can I ask why you are not eligible at the moment for IVF on the NHS? What is IMSI?

 

[Briss]

Irish_eyes, thanks. I am doing OK today. it's all down to my FSH, it is apparently too high so there is a risk I will not respond to stim meds and the cycle fails so they do not want to waste money on smb like me who may not be successful. I completely resent that. there only thing I could do is to show that my FSh is not an indicator of low egg reserve so I may still have some left for stims. luckily my acu doc is with me on this one and also thinks my high FSH is not necessarily related to the number of eggs. having said that, my right ovary has a cyst and is not functioning normally, most times I ovulated from my left ovary and the right one has no more than 1-3 follicles. anyhow FSH was the only formal requirement that I could not satisfy for the NHS funding and I am hoping my latest results will be acceptable to them but cant be sure. basically just more and more waiting for me. although having seen my DH's recent SA, I think I am prepared to self fund, definitely do not want to put it off for longer

DH is really upset, I can tell cos he does not even want to discuss this. it hit him pretty bad. between us we were joking about his count going up to 100 million judging by his sex drive so I really did not see it coming. Dr E said, there cannot be a natural conception with such low numbers…

IMSI is a new technique for sperm selection for ICSI https://www.nhs.uk/news/2008/07July/Pages/NewIVFtechnique.aspx basically they are just able to look more closely at sperm and select the best candidates. still it's just about morphology cos they are selecting best looking sperm, they cant really tell whether the sperm is chromosomally normal so there is no guarantee. when morphology is low IMSI is just offering a slightly better chances