IVF Drug Dosage

[FalseSmile]

Hi there

Any advice would be appreciated - I've to start on 300 Gonal F twice a day for 2 days then 375 once a day after, plus Luveris 75IU. Does anyone have any experience of this amount. I was told today that my AMH is below 4 - so not looking very hopeful.

Thanks in advance x

 

[Goldfish]

I have low AMH and was given 300 IU of Gonal-F for stims. I responded very poorly and only had 1 measurable follicle after 8 days of stims, so I ended up stimming for a few more days on the same dose. I asked about increasing the dose but they didn't want to increase it and at one stage we seriously considered abandoning the cycle. We decided to go ahead with just 2 follies and I'm now in the TWW...

Good luck!

 

[FalseSmile]

Hi there

Thank you for your reply - can i be really ignorant and ask what stims is? Sorry, i just had my NHS appointment yesterday and they didnt mention this? They just said i would be a slow responder if at all because of my AMH result being below 4, they didnt tell me the exact number. I have to get 1 Prostap injection on day 21 (dont know what this is for either?) then the others i mentioned and possibly a nasal spray? I've never had any treatment before but have never been pregnant in the 12 years of trying - i'm 32 so obviously there has always been a problem and i've also found out i have a blocked tube so i'm near absolute despair - but also very grateful for at least getting a try. Good luck, fingers crossed for you x

 

[Goldfish]

Stims = stimulation injection (gonal-f in our case).

Sounds like you're on the long ivf protocol. The prostap injection is a drug that's going to downregulate your reproductive hormones so that the clinic can time everything properly - sometimes it comes as a nasal spray but the brand name will be different (though it does the same things pretty much). After about 1-2 weeks on prostap you should get a bleed (like AF), then they will do a vaginal ultrasound to check that your lining is thin and your ovaries are inactive. Then once that's confirmed they will get you to start the gonal-f, which is a follicle stimulating hormone to get your body to recruit and grow more follicles/eggs.

I know how you feel, I have a blocked tube and low AMH too. Did they count how many antral follicles (AFC) you had? Sometimes even if you have low AMH, if your AFC is OK then you might respond to the stim drugs better.

 

[FalseSmile]

Hi

Thank you v much for the information - very helpful, the nurse who i saw on Monday was very nice but she didnt really explain what was going to happen to me - just gave me a list of all the injections i'd need to take (still shocked that its 3 a day), maybe i'm really stupid but i thought it would be 1 a day only, but i think i recall her saying that because i have low AMH they would need to be aggresive to get a response if at all. I really should have been looking up info on this well before now but to be honest i was still holding out for a miracle even after all these years but now the stark reality has hit me, so thank you for explaining the drugs to me. No, they havent mentioned my AFC at all, maybe i'll mention this next time i'm there. I've to phone next month when my period starts, however i decided last night to postpone this for a few months - its my only chance and i just cannot handle the thought of not producing any eggs as they said if this happens it'll be likely they wont even try again as it'll be pointless - i would not wish this on anyone, absolutely heartbreaking.
How are you feeling, is this your first time waiting to see if your pregnant? I really wish you all the luck in the world - i can imagine how you must be feeling x

 

[TooExcited]

Falsesmile - have your clinic advised that you take any additional supplements for your low AMH?

My AMH is 9.2 and should be around 13 so whilst not drastically low it is lower than it should be for my age. My consultant told me to take 3 x 25mg of dhea which helps to boost the response to ivf for ladies with low AMH.

If they haven't mentioned it perhaps you could call them and ask about it. You need to take if for 12 weeks prior to egg collection so if you have decided to take a break for a few months this could be perfect timing xx

 

[FalseSmile]

Hi TooExcited

The nurse just told me to take Folic tablets 400mg everyday. I see people on here saying CoQ10 is good for people in my situation - do you know if i could take these as well as DHEA? I suppose anything is worth a shot although i hope i dont make the situation worse - you never know what to believe! Good luck with your upcoming ivf x

 

[Goldfish]

Hi

Thank you v much for the information - very helpful, the nurse who i saw on Monday was very nice but she didnt really explain what was going to happen to me - just gave me a list of all the injections i'd need to take (still shocked that its 3 a day), maybe i'm really stupid but i thought it would be 1 a day only, but i think i recall her saying that because i have low AMH they would need to be aggresive to get a response if at all. I really should have been looking up info on this well before now but to be honest i was still holding out for a miracle even after all these years but now the stark reality has hit me, so thank you for explaining the drugs to me. No, they havent mentioned my AFC at all, maybe i'll mention this next time i'm there. I've to phone next month when my period starts, however i decided last night to postpone this for a few months - its my only chance and i just cannot handle the thought of not producing any eggs as they said if this happens it'll be likely they wont even try again as it'll be pointless - i would not wish this on anyone, absolutely heartbreaking.
How are you feeling, is this your first time waiting to see if your pregnant? I really wish you all the luck in the world - i can imagine how you must be feeling x

I found that the nurses didn't explain things all that well either, so I ended up getting most of my info by researching it myself. This is my first IVF and because I had such poor response (which was somewhat expected based on my very low AMH and AFC), at one stage we thought we'd have to abandon the cycle. I asked the nurse about doing a different type of protocol to try and get more eggs for next time and she had no idea what I was talking about - I had to explain the protocol to her!!! Didn't exactly fill me with confidence in her! I still have a few days before I test to see if the IVF worked so feeling scared!

I would try the IVF as soon as possible....the reason being that no one knows how you will respond to the drugs until you try it, and even if you don't get many eggs, if they're good quality then it's better than having lots of bad quality eggs. At 32, youre still considered "young" by IVF standards so you could get lucky with quality! Also if the first IVF doesn't go well then you can tailor the protocol and try a different tactic - egg reserves dont tend to improve over time so best to do it sooner rather later! Good luck whatever you decide