Should I try IUI

[ttcbaby4us]

Hi All,
I am hoping someone with similar situation can offer their advise.

OH and I just had our first visit to fertility clinic and given options of either IUI or IVF. We for sure want to do IVF but not sure if IUI for us is worth the time and effort.

I will be 40 in 4 months and have only one tube on the right side and OH has low morphology. We have been trying for 14 months and have been pregnant twice, once was ectopic and the other miscarriage.

The doctor said we have only 5% chance of conceiving through IUI w/clomid but it is an option. It won't put us out or down on the waiting list but I have to be at least 2 months off clomid before I can begin IVF. We just went on the wait list at our visit last week and they expect a 3 month wait.

I could try IUI for 1 month and still be safe for IVF but with only 5% chance I don't know if I want to go through with it and just wait for IVF.

We have been pregnant twice with no treatment, except the miscarriage was directly after HSG.

I'm just not sure what to do. I don't want to miss my chance but then on the other hand maybe I can prepare better for IVF treatments.

 

[Flake-y]

Hi there...

EVeryone has a different opinion of IUI, but thought I'd give you mine! For me personally, I wish we'd never bothered with IUI & just done IVF straight away. I know IUI is so much cheaper, but it's still devastating when the cycle fails, and I felt that I could only take so much failure. I prefer the better odds of IVF, and the chance of frozen embryos as well. But some people have success on the first month with IUI, so it's a very personal thing.

What odds have they given you for IVF?

 

[mrssunshine78]

i'm the same as flake-y, i too wish we hadn't bothered with iui, we had 5 cycles all bfn. On the other hand if you have to wait for ivf anyway, maybe you would feel better giving it a go? its a very personal decision
good luck

 

[hollyw79]

I can see positives to both sides. I am a fan as it worked for me the 1st try- my issue was DH had a lower sperm count and low morphology. I ovulate fine- but took clomid to help. I think 5% is a ridiculously LOW.. that doesn't sound right- but then again- everyone receives different statistics. It HAS worked for a TON of ladies and also has NOT for a TON. I think it's up to you.. if you can handle giving this one last try before jumping into more invasive measures- then go for it. If you feel a bigger sense of urgency then I would go with the IVF as you DO have a higher chance of success. best of luck whatever you decide my dear!!

 

[seoj]

End result, you have to do what feel right for your situation...

BUT, I will say that IUI worked for me. And I only had about a 5% chance as well due to my higher FSH levels and age (37) along with my hubbies count/motility/morphology. It's certainly not gonna hurt to give it 1-3 tries... ya never know? It's much less evasive than IVF. Honestly, it felt like the best decision for us initially... so we gave it a go. Plus, IVF for us was WAY more expensive... so that was for sure a factor.

But I do understand wanting to go with the route that offers the best odds- which would be IVF.

Hope some of this helped hun!!! Best of luck you with whatever decision you make!!!

 

[PR&TR13]

I'm with the rest, whatever is best for you.

I think that if it wouldn't affect you to try once before moving to IVF then go for it because if you've gotten preg before with the same 5% chance maybe this will work and you can save the $ (if your insurance doesn't cover it).

But like others said if you have better chances you might want to go straight to IVF. It's very personal and you and your DH should talk about it and decide together. I think that as long as you both agree and support eachother in the decision then you will get through it and see.

Personally I'm glad we tried IUI because it worked for us. I had my fallopian tubes fingers sticking and a blocked tubes but was able to get them open with a Lap & Hyst surgery. I remember reading on the internet that getting the fingers to unstick wasn't a very successful surgery and plus we had DH with low count and motility, but even all those odds against us we were blessed with this opportunity. My insurance doesn't cover any infertility so I definitley wanted to give IUI a try. But that's my situation everyone is different and I wish you the BEST in whatever decision DH and you make.

 

[ttcbaby4us]

Hi there...

EVeryone has a different opinion of IUI, but thought I'd give you mine! For me personally, I wish we'd never bothered with IUI & just done IVF straight away. I know IUI is so much cheaper, but it's still devastating when the cycle fails, and I felt that I could only take so much failure. I prefer the better odds of IVF, and the chance of frozen embryos as well. But some people have success on the first month with IUI, so it's a very personal thing.

What odds have they given you for IVF?

Thanks for your message, all experience helps. They gave me a graph showing statistics for person with my age and others. My age would be around 42% pregnancy rate and 35% live birth rate. I don't know if these stats would change given our personal circumstance, maybe I'll find out later. Thanks again for the advise.

 

[ttcbaby4us]

Thank you everyone for the words of advice, It is a difficult decision. We don't have insurance coverage for infertility treatments, with the exception of partial coverage for drugs. But we do have money saved up for this and are willing to do whatever it takes. We just want to have a baby and I feel like we're running out of time. So there's a lot of pressure on making the right decision with waiting lists, drugs, and everything else.

Thanks again and the best of luck to all of you.