Just got referred for IVF

[honeycheeks]

Hey Ladies, how is everyone? Hope you had an amazing weekend.

Aleja and Stinas - good luck for your appointment.

I have been experiencing severe migraine since last evening , it still isnt gone. I wonder if it is a side effect from any of the meds. Hope it eases off soon.

 

[aleja]

hi ladies,
honeycheeks perhaps the migraine is a side effect from the meds. I think this is fairly common during injections. i did have a slight headache on some days but just drank lots of water to help.

noasaint, i am not sure what to do the with patches as i didn't use these. It sounds like you are spending lots of time sorting out the cycle...i hear you sister! an IVF cycles feels like a part time job sometimes. Wow you only have two weeks left till your EPU. that has come around quickly.

Sheri, again what a shame you are starting from scratch again but i guess everything has to be perfect before the FET otherwise you could end up wasting a precious emby. What does a HRT cycle involve? I am learning so much from you...thank you so much i really appreciate your thoughts

stinas, how did your appt go?

tobefruitful, hope you are feeling a tad better today

littleangel...how are you going??

Me: i had my follow up FS appt last week. FS reviewed my failed stim cycle and we talked about the FET. He answered a whole list of my questions!! I came prepared this time as up until now I feel like i was a bit naive about everything and just took FS's words at face value without doing my own research.
In a nutshell, he said my stim cycle went as well as possible (except for the last hurdle (implantation!!) He said hormones great, I avoided OHSS, normal lining..but he said that implantation is one of the great mysteries in IVF as there is some natural processes - ie the woman's body accepting the embryo.

I asked him when does the situation move from just 'luck of the draw', or a 'lottery' to having an actual implantation issue> he said that if I have no pregnancy after 2 full stim cycles including FETs then it is classified 'implantation failure' and something else is going on...
but he said that i need to take things one step at a time and not get too ahead of myself (which I am of course!!!). I even asked him whether I should skip the frozen blastys in favour of another stim just because my eggs will be older at the end of the year. he said not to worry as my ovaries don't know its my birthday

Anyway so...the verdict is that I will have a natural FET during my next cycle...now just waiting for AF to arrive..not sure when this will be but hopefully over the next week.

 

[Stinas]

Hi ladies!!!

No news here yet....tom is our apt! Hopefully we will get results right away since im pretty sure the urologist is going to do the ultrasound. Ill fill you in tom!

 

[sheri76]

Hi ladies

Noasaint- not sure if it was not enough meds or just my body this month my next appt I'll get all the meds for HRT cycle & ask a lot of questions.

Honey- hope your migraine has gone now & your cycle has started well

Aleja- HRT cycle is where they hijack your hormones completely with meds a bit like how they do in the ivf fresh cycle I think hope your af arrives soon

I'm still waiting for af to arrive I'm guessing it will be on time in about 10 days

 

[honeycheeks]

Aleja - i dint know IVF meds could cause such bad migraines...
Sheri - no the migraine still aint gone. I now wonder how much worse is it going to get when i start stims.

Good luck to you both. Sheri it looks to me like you are going to do a full IVF cycle sans the egg retrieval, i donno, it just sounds that way to me.
Stinas - I hope your appointment got you one more step closer to making a baby.

 

[noasaint]

Sheri, I'm not familiar with HRT cycle. What's the different with just a medicated cycle. Do they use different meds?

Sorry about the migraines Honeycheeks! If I remember correctly I had headaches a few days in a row on stims last cycle. Thankfully no migraines. DH came home with one on Saturday and poor thing ....... I made him have "happy time" so his SA would be ok today. They told us about 3 days and it happened to land on Saturday.

This morning we had our consultation with the ART nurse. I was disappointed that it was a group setting. Three other couples were there, I was on the only one on the antagonist protocol. She talked for over an hour going over the different protocols, what the meds are called, which ones are shots and which are not. She went over the timeline of most cycles. Honestly, I felt it was quit a bit of wasted time. Then we had to watch her do all the meds. This is now my second meds class, me and DH just looked at each other like wow this is a repeat.

She did give me plenty of syringes and needless for the Menopur so I can stop stressing about that. Looks like my appointments will be at 7:15 this time, before for the IUI cycle they were 8 AM. I'm glad though, it helps with no having to make up a ton of time at work. We got a list of dos and don'ts so I'm making a list of a few things to get at the store. This was the first time I had heard anyone mention prenatal vitamins and 1000 folic acid. Mine has only 800 so I'll be getting a supplement. Wish I would've been told that much earlier. Oh well. We got a big package of paperwork complete with drawings of bodies with patches to show where the shots go. LOL.

Unfortunately since we are not sure which trigger I will be doing (Ovidrel or lupron) I have to get meds for both kinds of cycles. So one way or the other I will end up with meds I can't use. I guess I don't really have a choice but hopefully I can donate any leftovers to someone else paying out of pocket.

 

[Stinas]

Ok....so i have some news....I am too lazy to type it all again so I will be c/p from the azoo thread......

Just got back from our u/s apt! We do have some answers. I think it went well. It is a blockage. He has a cyst in his prostate that he was most likely born with. Doc said it looks like thats the main issue here, BUT we will be doing a biopsy to make sure sperm is being made before we make a decision on surgery. Doc said he can go in through the tip of the penis and "scrape" out around the cyst to make room for the sperm to go through. There are risks with this surgery, less than 1%, but still...enough to make you think twice. Risks are leakage/trouble peeing, trouble pooping, and ball pain. Sorry about all the non technical terms, but we got a lot of info and I could never remember those crazy words.
The next step is for me to set up myself as a patient at the fertility clinic and get a regular workup, so the urologist can do the biopsy there and then freeze sperm if found. This can happen within the next month or so. We need to work around DH work schedule since its busy time for him and recovery is 5-7 days doc said.
As of right now DH does not really want to do surgery. I dont blame him, i am also leaning towards not doing it and moving on to IVF. I guess we will have a better sense of direction once we see what the biopsy results are. Besides that all his testings are all regular...even the genetic tests.
Im happy that the ball is rolling. I already called the fertility clinic and am waiting for a call back. Once I set that up, the doc will be calling the doctor I will be going to directly to explain our situation. He said once you have an apt we might be able to go in and do biopsy before they see you since our situation is slightly different than the "normal".
Just glad its moving along.

 

[honeycheeks]

Stinas- Getting a surgery doesnt sound cool at all. so I dont blame you or DH for not being keen on it. But it is good news that you are now getting answers. I hope you can soon put some spermies on ice. I really havent got any much info on his condition but I just hope it makes you happy to find the answers rather than being in dark about it.

Me: Migraine has eased off a bit, but it could return anytime. I do still have mild headache. I am tired of waiting on AF. Doesnt look like she wants to turn up.

 

[aleja]

Hi ladies
Noasaint I am not surprised you were feeling uncomfortable in a group setting. That would have felt slightly awkward . I don't even like looking at people in the waiting room at the fertility clinic, I certainly don't want to be in a group with them !

Stinas it's great to hear that there is hope there with DHs situation . The surgery sounds like a doozy .. But if it unblocks all the spermy now that would be amazing too

Honeycheeks are you doing the long protocol ? I hear that the side effects from some of these meds can be tough . I hope your body adjusts to them quickly so you won't get the migraines anymore .
My AF is not cooperating either .. No idea when it will happen but at this stage I think it will a loooong cycle

 

[honeycheeks]

noasaint- group sessions just dont work for me. IVF is something so personal and a different experience for everyone, it defeats the purpose to have group sessions.

Aleja - I am doing the long protocol, so to speak. But before starting stims , I just had one injection which works to suppress hormones. I did that on cd 22. The migraine came in about a week later. There are no other IVF meds that I am on, until I start stims, just folic acid. Well, thats not until AF shows up.

 

[littleangel]

Hi everyone, sorry I've not been absent for a few days. I've read through the posts and it seems like things are moving on well for most people.

Thanks everyone who asked how I am - I'm doing fine. Feeling a lot better in 2nd tri, still a little tired at times, but nothing more than I would expect. We're having a glorious spell of sunny weather in the UK at the moment, and I've been enjoying that and getting my exercise programme back under way. I've been doing 3 miles a few times a week, alternating slow running and walking and yesterday I went swimming. I definitely feel better for it and much more like myself.

honeycheeks - I have a pic from my 12w scan. It's not a good one as baby had his/her back to us for most of the scan. I've been hesitant to post it, as I don't want to upset anyone posting scan pics in the TTC forum, but I figured you asked and this is your thread.

Spoiler

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7216/7302780316_ce14281e28_m.jpg

 

[littleangel]

Stinas - good news that you've got some answers. I can understand your DH not wanting surgery, but from what I understand that one procedure (with the 5-7 days recovery) could solve all your problems? IVF might sound more attractive, but I know you know it's not an easy route either, and to put you through potentially several cycles of IVF drugs and egg retrievals (sedated rather than anaethetised, but you're still sore for a few days after) to avoid one surgery may not be the best thing.

Noasaint - I wouldn't have liked a group session either, especially if it was a repeat. We had enough trouble scheduling simulaneous time off for appointments without having extra stuff thrown in. I also can't believe that you have to buy two types of drugs, knowing you will only use one. That seems very odd. When do you start injecting?

sheri & Aleja - hope your AF comes soon so you can start your cycles.

honeycheeks - hope you feel better soon. I felt great on the stims, so hopefully when AF has been and gone you will be OK.

to everyone xx

 

[Stinas]

Littleangel - I know its still going to be a long journey....and there is a lot I will have to go though. The reason why we are leaning more towards it is because the surgery is not 100% that the sperm will be able to come out and it could still be his varicocele as well. Once we get the biopsy we will know more, maybe we will just need to do IUI. I just dont think its worth the risks with the surgery especially if it might not work.

I have my first apt at the fertility clinic next thursday. I need to be a patient before DH can get his biopsy done there. Regardless, we will be freezing anything they hopefully find.

 

[aleja]

hi gals,
littleangel, the photo of your baby is lovely. its a shame that some ladies may be offended by you posting it (hopefully not on this thread). I know everyone is different but i think we should also be celebrating success as well as supporting ladies through heartbreak. being pregnant through ivf is its a major feat so its nice to see things are going well with it.

honeycheeks perhaps your migraine is not related to the injection, but these meds are very powerful even if it is one injection. Initially I only had 1 FSH injection during my stim cycle and this itself caused the mild OHSS . who would have thought one measly jab could cause such an effect!!!
regardless i hope you are feeling better today

hello other ladies

 

[honeycheeks]

littleangel- your bub is so beautiful. I particularly love the side profile u/s pics. I am glad you posted the pic. I really hope to see this thread soon move to a phase where all the ladies on here are preggo and talking pregnancy cravings and no more IVF.

Aleja - i did some research and found that the injection i had is very powerful and it is a slow release one. It is found in the highest concentrations after about 1 week to 10 days after the injection. Headache is one of the side effects, so I just think it could that. There were no other reasons for the weird headache. I usually know when a migraine is coming, but this one caught me off guard. But I am glad it is gone now.

Stinas - I hope time flies through this difficult time of your life. hun. I know you are going through a lot more than some of us here, it would it really unfair I said I do understand what you are going through. My prayers are with you always.

Me: I still havent started AF though I was on tabs to start my period. I have been on the same medication several times earlier and always had my period in about 4 days after stopping the pills. But no sign of AF now. I wonder if the meds for suppression wrecked havoc in my body. It makes me sad to think that.

 

[littleangel]

Stinas - I think i understand where you are coming from. I've said before that the nice thing for me about IVF was the confirmation at every step that things worked: the eggs being produced, fertilising, going to blastocyst. Even if the cycle had not worked, I know it would have been a comfort to me that we finally had some kind of certainty. I wish you success with whatever method you choose

Thanks ladies xxx

 

[drsquid]

my headache is back in force today. had my us and labs drawn and i start gonal and menopur tomorrow and continue the medrol and lupron.. whee 3 shots a day

 

[honeycheeks]

drsquid- good luck for your cycle. Headaches can be a huge nuisance, I had a very bad headache after my first shot. 3 shots a day...phew!! that is a lot.
I really hope it works for you.

littleangel is right. IVF gives you the confirmation at every step that things are working. My non IVF TTC cycles used to be very stressful when I had to do everything I could do at each step without a certainity as to whether or when i ovulated, whether we BDéd right, are the sperms swimming right, did egg and sperm meet. There isnt any clarity at any step and then the entire 2ww just adds to the stress.

AF hasnt come yet. I had some weird CM today.I had loads of it but it had no color. I am hoping it is the beginning of AF.I hope AF comes tomorrow.

 

[Stinas]

Honey - Thank you for the kind words. It sucks having something so rare and not being able to do much about it. I am glad it is a blockage...which doc says its like 99% that he IS making sperm, which was my main concern. It is what it is at this point...we have to make the best of it.

littleangel - I could imagine how less stressful it is in a way knowing each step is actually happening. My cycles have always been irregular, so I never knew what was going on....I even had multiple +OPKs in a cycle....and I do not have PCOS or anything "wrong" with me. So not knowing was "normal" to me. Stressed me out every single cycle.

How long is the actual IVF/ICSI process? I am going thursday to the Fertility center....hopefully AF comes and goes by then! What should I bring/ask? I am going for a "full female factor workup"...which im pretty sure I have done almost every test already within the last 4 months. Main reason why I am going is so that I am established as a patient so DH can get his biopsy done there with our urologist and they can automatically freeze whatever sperm they find. He will probably do that mid July. If we do go ahead with IVF, about what kind of time frame should I be looking at? Just to get an idea.

 

[aleja]

Hi stinas, for your medical I would just bring any previous results you have. Eg If you have had hsg and cd 21 tests to prove ovulation then the doc will look at this. In terms of questions I would want to find out what ivf protocol they use .. U will probably need icsi if your DHs sperm not great. ..either antagonist (short) or long (down regulation ) . If they do both I would want to find out out why they favour one over the other for you . You can find out how the protocol works and how they do the egg pick up , either under sedation or general Anesthetic ... Hmm not sure what else.
In terms of your DHs biopsy they will likely find the sperm they need..don't lose hope-with icsi you literally need a few good ones. My DHs last results done during Egg pick up were so poor even the scientist commented ... But 15 spermy fertilised 15 eggs so that's all that was needed .

Drsquid GL with your cycle.. The headaches are painful but you are now well on your way to growing some follicles

Honeycheeks I am glad to hear to you got to the bottom of the headaches ...and lack of AH.. I hear you I am in the same boat ..still waiting .... So frustrating