IVF question if anyone can help?

[LaurenaC]

So, after 6 years of not getting pregnant naturally my husband and I are going for IVF.

We have an appointment with the clinic on January 20th for our consultation.

Can anyone tell me what happens after that and how soon after that will I start the medication? Essentially I want to know how much longer I have to wait for the possibility of being pregnant!?

Thanks in advance everyone. We can only afford one cycle so unfortunately all out hopes are pinned on this! xx

 

[Dazed]

Following. My consult is on Feb 9th.

 

[melissaelaine]

Every clinic is different, so it is really subject to your clinic. They'll start by doing basic tests - blood tests, HSG to make sure your tubes are clear, semen analysis to check that out. And then they'll go from there. I had my consultation in October 2013 and did not start my cycle until September 2014, but we had some male factor issues that my DH's doctor wanted to look into and also test DH out on some medicine. So, that was why we had the delay. We probably could have started our cycle as early as January 2014 if it hadn't have been for DH's extra steps.

 

[star25]

Hi, I had my first ivf appointment in June and started treatment in October ( 14)
I could have started on my next af after initial appointment but I had some delays as I was taking part in a clinical trial and my long cycles held me back a bit too
I then overstimulated after treatment so had to freeze all embryos so still havent had a transfer yet but hopefully will have by mid Feb this year, good luck!

 

[LaurenaC]

Thanks everyone dor the reply.

This might seem a really silly question but the reason I'm having to go for IVF is that my tubes are blocked with scar tissue from endometriosis. I can still have it done can't I?

Also. I was reading about embryo transfer and can I chose whether to have 1 or 2 transfered or will they make me only have one? This is my one and only shot at it so would choose two of I had the option.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply, it really is a scary time and it's good to have support out there.

X

 

[tulip girl]

It can be quicker! I had my first consult/initial scans on the Wednesday, my lesson injection that afternoon, my drugs arrived on the Friday and I started stimming on the Sunday! Perhaps as I was paying privately I could be more proactive maybe?

It was my choice to go ahead quickly. My next cycle was about to start, the summer holidays had just started (I'm a teacher) and I didn't want to waste any more time. The consultant was a bit 'eeek, that's a bit fast really' (with his head in his hands!) but was happy to follow my wishes. He did warn me as it was the wrong time in my cycle, they couldn't properly check my lining and see if I had a polyp or something, and if this was the case, they may need to freeze any embryos we made...but I was willing to take the chance. For me, having the stress of work/appointments/gossiping taken away was important.

As for number of embryos, your clinic will have their rules. Age is the major factor. We put back 2 (I was 37) both implanted but one didn't grow past the sac stage (the other one is 20m and we currently playing tea parties in her playroom!) I'm back here thinking of trying again, most likely during the summer holiday again. Good luck xx

 

[tulip girl]

It's my tubes that are the problem too. An ectopic pregnancy a few years ago and tubes that are adhered to places they shouldn't be!

 

[star25]

Hi, it will be fine to do the ivf as doesnt use the tubes, also depends if your in uk and nhs or pprivate as have different policies, my clinics policy is but ive ticked the 1-2 box depending on tje quality but I would rather have 1 fpr safety lol

 

[Lirpa11]

Hi, I don't know about ivf with your situation, however we had our consult advising to go through with ivf mid November, then counseling, a catch up with a nurse, and we started the ivf cycle on nov 29.

We did an antagonist (quick and short) cycle without birth control. Generally the doc would have put me on the pill for 4 or so weeks beforehand then did start fertility treatment on my cycle after the pill. However we are leaving to usa next month so he tried a short cycle. We started November 29, egg retrieval December 9, embryo transfer December 12, and had the pregnancy test scheduled for December 23. So just at 4 weeks or so.

They will tailor the cycle to your situation I'm sure.

Good luck!

 

[LaurenaC]

Oh wow it can be quick then if you want it to be. That's great news. We are paying privately as we don't qualify for NHS treatment in our area, it's one of the worst PCTs in the UK. It's taken us nearly two years to save enough money to do it ourselves so that's why we can only afford to do it once, hence wanting two embryos transfered instead of one. I'm 36 at the moment, 37 in a few months and we are doing the IVF with a clinic called St Jude's private fertility clinics.

I guess I'll know more when I go for the consultation on the 20th but it's been so helpful having all your replies.

I do hope it works for us and for anyone else going through this.

Thanks everyone xx

 

[melissaelaine]

I also just wanted to comment on your other questions:

My understanding is that you can still do IVF if your tubes are blocked. They retrieve the eggs with a needle that goes through your vaginal wall, so they don't actually go through your tubes. Some doctors may want to try to clear the tubes first to see if that helps you conceive, but if you think yours is severe enough for IVF, they may bypass that option.

And as far as transferring embryos, it really does depend on each clinic and the patient. We weren't even given the option to transfer more than 1. We had 2 embryos at blast stage at day 5 and they picked the best and transferred it. I think if you are under 35 and no known history of problems with implantation, many clinics will recommend only transferring one, particularly if they make it to day 5. But that really does vary by clinic.

 

[Ilovetomatoes]

Both of my tubes are damaged and I'll have retrieval on monday. Although, my RE wanted my tubes tied first aka tubal ligation to prevent hydrosalpinx issue during IVF.

I think it really depends on your clinic and RE. My clinic only does IVF retrieval during the odd months. It also depends on your body. My first cycle was canceled so here I am 4 months after my consultation ready for retrieval . Goodluck with the whole process.

 

[Dazed]

Wow it really does seem like it can be a quick process! I have no tubes, so we shall see.

 

[MMW430]

I'm in the US, but we started the process in mid March of 2013, and had my retrieval April 30. We transferred one embryo and it worked on the first try. He just turned 1 yesterday. We didn't have any real issues though outside of not getting pregnant.

 

[EvAGiRL88]

Hey Guys! Yes that go straight through the cervical wall to retrieve the eggs from the ovaries.....
I had both tubes removed this past Summer due to complications so IVF was our only choice.....I am having retrieval on Saturday!