Ivf oct/nov/dec

[holdontohope]

JDH - so sorry about your MC big !

First - GL with your next beta today, I hope its good! You'll have to tell us what it is

AFM - Woke up feeling like someone had bonked me on the head! Part of my head really hurts, but only that area. So odd. Just got the call from the Dr's office confirming my appt tomorrow 8:30 for acupuncture and 9:15 for U/S and bloodwork Thanks for your responses, I still had to stim for 15 days last time, and it was so annoying. Even the Dr was puzzled. I kept growing new follicles but none of them would grow! I ended up with 30+ follicles and only 15 eggs after 15 days or something crazy like that. This time we are starting with the lupron and I'm taking supplements to aid in fertility so hopefully these things combined with my improved diet will make me stim faster! Get this show on the road

Sorry about your head!!
My ER is est for Dec 9th or within the next 2 days... So I think there plan is for me to stim for 10-12 days Maybe that's another reason why my med dose is so low. Another question I am going to ask when I talk to the nurse today We could be having our ER on the same days

 

[Em260]

First - good luck today!

Ali - hopefully the changes they made to your meds will help so you don't have to stim as long this time. That is weird about your head hurting in one spot. Maybe you hit yourself in your sleep?

 

[alicatt]

Ali - My first 2 cycles I stimmed 11 days each, this last one I stimmed for 12. I had around 25 follicles this time, but got 12 eggs and I also did acu this cycle only. This was the most follicles I had ever had and the most eggs retrieved. Hopefully you won't have to stim 15 days again; I know towards the end it becomes so uncomfortable.

First - Good luck

It totally does! I had OHSS last time, my E2 was over 5000. It went from 3000 to 5000 overnight too. How crazy is that? The Dr had already given me the orders to trigger that night, but then when I saw the E2 result I was like.. no wonder I feel horrible!

Did anyone else have albumin during their ER to help keep OHSS symptoms to a minimum? They think I'll need it again this time too.

 

[michelle01]

ali - WOW, 3000 to 5000, that is a huge jump! I think when I triggered mine was just over 3000 and that was the highest it ever was with any cycle! My first cycle when I triggered I think it was 1675 or something like that and I cannot remember my second one now. Hopefully you won't have to worry about OHSS this cycle!

 

[alicatt]

First - good luck today!

Ali - hopefully the changes they made to your meds will help so you don't have to stim as long this time. That is weird about your head hurting in one spot. Maybe you hit yourself in your sleep?

Maybe my 2 dogs tag teamed me and pounced on my head! It is in the back of the head. Kind of where you get a kink in your neck, I think that is really what it is. But it is more of a headache then a kink. Very strange!

 

[wannabeprego]

@Ali, on my last day of stims, which was day 9 my estraidol was at 5,303 and 2 days before that it was 1,888. I didn't get prescribed the albumin for OHSS though. I did end up getting prescribed Lovenox injections for 10 days though and those a are a blood thinner to prevent blood clots which can occur when your estrogen is really high I guess. The injections for the Lovenox are ruff though, i am all bruised up from the injections, i have red dots from them as well on my belly and they burn when you inject them. In my opinion they are worse than any of my stims medications were, even when I was doing 3 injections a day they didn't leave all of the marks and stuff like the lovenox does.

 

[alicatt]

@Ali, on my last day of stims, which was day 9 my estraidol was at 5,303 and 2 days before that it was 1,888. I didn't get prescribed the albumin for OHSS though. I did end up getting prescribed Lovenox injections for 10 days though and those a are a blood thinner to prevent blood clots which can occur when your estrogen is really high I guess. The injections for the Lovenox are ruff though, i am all bruised up from the injections, i have red dots from them as well on my belly and they burn when you inject them. In my opinion they are worse than any of my stims medications were, even when I was doing 3 injections a day they didn't leave all of the marks and stuff like the lovenox does.

Yikes, I think I'll stick with the albumin!! They did an infusion during my ER, and the anesthesiologist administered it while I was out! Only issue is that I woke up in the middle of my ER. Did I tell you ladies that? It was really freaky. I remember waking up and saying.. ouch that hurts! The Dr was yelling at me to stop talking. All the while I'm thinking, well then stop hurting me! Then I was out again. I think they were trying to keep me barely sedated because most time I wake up with a monster headache and its from too much of the meds, so I had asked them to go lightly. Not that lightly though! LOL. So I have a feeling I will have the same issue this time around. I didn't realize that having a high E2 could cause blood clots! Good to know.

 

[holdontohope]

My surrogate is in FL - I live nearby in the Bahamas. Getting there is not hard, but the flight does cost a certain something and I need to watch my pennies. We have already agreed that I'll be there in the delivery room - I'll just be up by her head and there will be a privacy screen. I don't feel the need to watch that actual moment when the baby pops out as it were (nor the urge to videotape it, either) and it would just seem a bit much to ask to stare at her private parts when it happens. I think she'd let me if I wanted to, but I think she's equally comfortable with me by her head.

My surrogate is not my egg donor - there are all sorts of legal complications if you go that route. Basically, then the surrogate has as many (if not more) rights to the baby than you do, because it's 'hers' as well as mine. By using a separate egg donor, the donor has no rights and nor does the surrogate. I have no desire to be the subject of a Lifetime movie of the week depicted by some character actor struggling in court to regain the rights to my own child. Of course, I have no expectations that such a thing would happen and I've very comfortable with my surrogate, but it does seem for the best.

Picking an egg donor is a very strange experience - I guess those who have picked out sperm donors can relate. You are literally picking someone out of a catalog. I had a large number to choose from, so that enables you to be 'choosy' but it also made me feel extremely judgmental - rejecting people for any flaw that I felt I didn't care for. For me, I was looking for the following:
1. No history of mental illness in the family
2. Dark hair and not very pale skin (skin cancer runs in my family)
3. Parents and grandparents who were long-lived
4. People who described themselves as even-tempered. You would be surprised how many people put on their egg donor write-ups 'I have a fiery Italian temper'. I'm like, no, I don't want a child with a fiery Italian temper, thanks!
Of course, it's all something of a crapshoot - children do not automatically look like their parents or inherit their temperament, but since I was choosing, I did my best to stack the deck. I also limited it to people with green eyes - not because I'll be crushed if I get a boy without green eyes, but that was an easy way to weed out the black donors - I'm a white guy and while I was open to the idea of a Hispanic donor, I was not really interested in a mixed-race child.
I also wanted a donor I felt was reasonably attractive to me - I think nature gives us attractions for a reason and I just didn't think it prudent to mate with someone I wouldn't be attracted to. That probably sounds rather boorish - I didn't fantasize about my donor or anything like that. I was also offered models who were donors, but cost twice as much. I certainly didn't think THAT was necessary - I'm a decent looking fellow, I think, but I'm not Adonis. The idea of paying twice as much for a smoking hot egg donor just seemed really wasteful and self-indulgent.
Picking a surrogate was both easier and harder - you are really only concerned with their health but more importantly, you have to have a feeling of trust and comfort that goes both ways. I did actually use a black surrogate on one of my attempts that did not work out, though the one I am using now is white.
Anyway, going home to talk my doggie. Thanks for letting me ramble!

I think you made the best choice by not having your surrogate be your egg donor also That sounds WAY too confusing for both sides.. But I know there are people that do it that way.

It is so funny that you, Ali and I all chose/ended up with donors that had green eyes I guess I was a bit 'choosy' also when it came to picking a sperm donor.. I think since I had to look for 2 months, I became more choosy as I the time pasted. But mine mainly revolved around:

-donor who donated AFTER 2009.. The laws for what a sperm donor has to be tested for medically, increased after 2009. I am 23, so someone close to my age (donor is 25 years old)
-medical history (most important out of everything)
-ethnicity.. I am mainly German, Swedish with a tiny bit of Indian. I have olive skin color, was hoping to find the same (and did)
-personality, I wanted someone semi opposite of me because I am quite shy and reserved.
-the reason for donating was another big one for me
-Degree, BA or MA
-Eye color wasn't important to me, I have light brown eyes and in my family there is blue and hazel also.. Now that I have chosen a donor though, I am SO happy that he has these beautiful green eyes
-Height was something that was important to me. I am only 5'6 (that is normal for females in my family) but all the men are over 6'3.. Plus that is what I am attracted too!
-sports, athletic (sports are VERY big in my family)

I did see childhood pictures of my donor and that was enough for me . I decided I didn't want to see adult pictures because that felt too personal for me. I chose a donor in the same state that I live in, so I didn't want the "looking" over my shoulder feeling.. I did choose a willing to be know donor, so when my child is 18 they will have the option of meeting there biological father. I felt that should be their decision to make, not mine.

Hopefully we all have good news by Christmas!!!!

 

[ashknowsbest]

ali - I'm not sure what albium is but my doctor put me on dostinex (I'm already on it for elevated prolactin that I'm supposed to take once every 2 weeks to keep in under control) but he put me on it for 7 days every day ... it helps with OHSS ...

 

[holdontohope]

I hope everyone has a great Thursday!!

I felt much better when I woke up this morning! So glad because I have a ton to do today! Will catch up with you girls later

 

[holdontohope]

ali - I'm not sure what albium is but my doctor put me on dostinex (I'm already on it for elevated prolactin that I'm supposed to take once every 2 weeks to keep in under control) but he put me on it for 7 days every day ... it helps with OHSS ...

Just wanted to say real quick!!! Miss seeing you on here Hope your appt goes well with the FS on Monday!!!

 

[alicatt]

ali - I'm not sure what albium is but my doctor put me on dostinex (I'm already on it for elevated prolactin that I'm supposed to take once every 2 weeks to keep in under control) but he put me on it for 7 days every day ... it helps with OHSS ...

Interesting all these different options! I remember from about 1 day before ER til about a week after I just felt horrible. Tired, and bloated and uncomfortable. I did find it hard to breathe a little, but not horribly so. If I sat up it wasn't that bad, and I was monitoring my weight and it peaked and was slowly going down so I knew that I was getting better. That helped a lot! Knowing it was improving. However I have heard that if you have mild OHSS that if you do start getting worse it is because you are pregnant! Apparently the HCG shot and then the HCG rise from implantation is what makes OHSS worse.

 

[ashknowsbest]

Yeah I've heard all of that too. I pretty much felt just the way you described but my discomfort only started after the ER. I was totally fine before that. When the nurse called and told me that I had to go on dostinex the day before ER because my E2 was above 5000 she asked me how I was feeling and I'm like ... I'm GREAT! She was shocked. But yeah, it was really uncomfortable and I monitored my weight also to make sure that I wasn't gaining anything and I wasn't so I didn't think it was necessary to make a big deal and call the doctor, etc. etc.

 

[Em260]

Hold - I was surprised that the RE didn't want to see me for 5 days because my last cycle I went in on day 4. That's good that you can go in if you feel like things are changing. What are you planning on baking this week?

I was surprised by how long too! I thought maybe he would want to see me 3 days max.. Since this is my first IVF cycle and I am younger.. Thought he would want to see me every couple of days

Well... You never know what I will end up with when I start baking! Banana bread for sure! Then I want to try out some new gluten free chex mix recipes. I am sure I will end up making something not so healthy also Maybe some chocolate peanut butter cupcakes or peppermint chocolate cupcakes..

I need to put some chicken in the crock pot so I have some protein to eat also. Maybe I will make some chicken tortilla soup since its raining here. Home made mac and cheese sounds yummy too!! I am hungry at the moment But not for all that together! lol

Hold - sorry this got buried in the pages of posts and I just saw it! Yumm you can send some of that banana bread my way!! Home made mac and cheese sounds so good too. I was eating so healthy for my last cycle but this time around I've been craving carbs like crazy. I've had mashed potatoes and gravy every day since Thanksgiving oops haha.

 

[ashknowsbest]

hold - thanks! I've missed you all too but it has been very quiet on my end, nothing to report so I've really just been stalking. I see you started your menopur! You're almost at ER! Are you getting really excited now?! Oh and home made mac and cheese .. yum! I love mac and cheese!

 

[HappyBunnyAB]

JDH I'm so sorry!

 

[HappyBunnyAB]

Just got back from my ultrasound and my follicles are growing but a little slower this time so my retrieval might not be until Monday or Tuesday. I hope it's Tuesday because then my RE will do the retrieval. Each of the REs has a day of the week where they do all of the monitoring, retrievals and transfers. All of the REs are good but I like mine the best

Em, good luck next week. I hope you get lots of follies.

 

[HappyBunnyAB]

First- how have you been?

Hi Sweet. I'm doing well. Third beta is today. I've been feeling like I'm still pregnant, so I'm a bit overconfident. I hope the test results are good

How are you? It sounds like everything is gong well.

Good luck today!

 

[HappyBunnyAB]

Ali, I did 8 days of meds because I have PCOS so I responded really well to the medications. I hope your headache goes away. Meds tend to make you so tired.

Wanna, I hope those lines keep getting darker and darker. I've read it takes 10-14 days to leave your system but who knows. I never tested out mine. Gl!

 

[wannabeprego]

First- how have you been?

Hi Sweet. I'm doing well. Third beta is today. I've been feeling like I'm still pregnant, so I'm a bit overconfident. I hope the test results are good

How are you? It sounds like everything is gong well.

Good luck today!! I hope your numbers go up and that you have great betas!!! Keep us posted!!!

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