What to do (or not do) in ivf 2ww???

[Mrs G]

Hi ladies

This is a question for those of you who have already gone though, who are currently going through or who will be going through the ivf 2ww. What did/will you do or not do?

I am mainly thinking about work/rest/eating/exercise/sex or anything else you can advise me on.

I need to decide whether to have the time off work but I think it may drive me even more crazy!!

Thanks
Kath xx

 

[chocci]

I had time off work and to be hoenst i am glad i did as i felt quite emotional all 2weeks. With regards to sex, if you are using progestrone supps then if you can manage it your a better woman than me since i felt sore using them!! haha I didnt want anything else going near me. besides i felt protective of my embie!! haha Its hard to think about anything else during the 2ww, i could concentrate on nothing and would not have been able to work. I could think of nothing but symptoms and my embie. Best advice to anyone is to ignore your body, the drugs play tricks on you and do not indicate pregnancy, they also do not indicate failure. Try not to obsess no matter how hard it is your body is not likely to tell you its pregnant just as much as it is unlikly to tell you it is not.

Its the hardest part of the cycle but to be honest i found my 2ww went pretty quickly especially towards the end as i just did not want the test day to come

Good luck hun!!! I hope to have another 2ww in august, in the mean time i am gonna jump my hubby until then........you never know, miracles have happened!! haha XX

 

[akcher]

I took 3 days off of work for the ET. I rested and stayed off my feet. After I got to work, I kept it easy, no lifting heavy stuff. Nothing over 10 lbs. I stayed away from caffeine. Lots of rest and eating healthy.

 

[maz]

I was advised at my clinic to avoid lifting anything heavier than 10lb, no intercourse, no swimming, and no exercise more strenuous than walking (not hill walking though). After that I was told to use my own discretion, and if in doubt, don't do it.

I did take the day of EC, the day after EC (as I was advised I wouldn't be insured to drive), and the day of ET off work, I worked the rest of my TWW as I would have gone mad sitting at home. At least while I was working, it gave me 7 hours in the day where I wasn't thinking about what my embies were doing. I'm going to try and go on holiday for at least a week during my next TWW - whenever that happens to be .... My clinic were of the opinion that there isn't one particular thing that increases/decreases chance of success. Some of their past patients have worked normally, gone running, sat in the house, or gone to Florida for a fortnight and been successful, while others haven't. It's very much a personal choice.

Good luck for your treatment - when are you starting?

 

[wrightywales]

i was told not to lift anything heavy. can have sex but dont really fancy it anyway. avoid alcohol and smokey atmospheres. eat healthy and drink 2-3 litres of water a day. cut down on caffine but ive stopped it all together.

they told me to eat like i am pregnant so no unpasturised cheeses espicially goats cheese, mayonaise, pate and uncooked eggs. make sure all meats are cooked thoroughly and avoid raw meat like parma ham. make sure fruit and veg washed thoroughly and hands and utensil.

 

[CurlySue]

Am currently on Day 4 of the 2ww. I work for a very stress inducing person. He has driven me to panic attacks before. The past few weeks with him have been an utter sickening nightmare so to protect myself from that I felt I had to take the 2ww off. I couldn't have coped going into work with him acting the way he acts. It would've just made me ill.

The lady who performed my ET told me no sex for 7 days (not sure why) and not to lift anything heavy. She said enjoy taking it easy. Make sure to put your feet up when you get home from being out, etc. Try not to do anything stressful.

It's kind of driving me mad thinking about what every last twinge means but it's better than being at work worrying about when he is next going to pull a hissy fit, etc.

The hardest part is trying not to look things up. The internet is a great place but it's also a killer!!!!

 

[vineyard]

Very similar to everyone else, I was told no sex and no lifting more than 10 pounds until results. Transfer was on a Thursday and I planned to go back to work on Monday. However, I was sick with the flu so I went back to work on Tuesday. I have a fairly low stress job and I needed to work to keep my mind off of things. Sitting at home by myself for 2 weeks would have stressed me out to the max. I avoided caffeine, alcohol, and cigarette smoke. I decided not to work out at all other than occasional walking until I got my results.

 

[Mrs G]

Thank you for all your replies ladies. I rang the hospital today to get a bit more info and they have said they will sign me off from ec day until after 2ww if I want. Not sure how I'll feel, might go crazy at home all day!!

As June arrived today, just gotta wait for her July sister to come along and then all stations go!!!!

Curlysue - best of luck hun. Got everything crossed for you and those embies.

Kathxx

 

[Mrs G]

PS anyone go for acupuncture??

 

[Helen]

Hi

I was signed off for the 2ww with "family stress", not entirely due to ICSI but also MIL was seriously ill in intensive care. We were going across to visit her every night straight from work and not getting home till late having not eaten anything. It was a horrendous time, we were doing injections in a room off intensive care and then going in to see her. I was also having a really stressful time at work as the bosses were making me sack DH's best mate. Deep joy!

It was the best thing for me as I just couldn't hold it together although I think had things been more "normal", I'd have probably gone into work just to keep busy.

I avoided exercise, pretty sure we didn't have sex though don't remember being told not to and just wrapped myself up in as much cotton wool as possible.

As a minimum I'd take the EC day and day after plus ET days off. Partly because its an emotional time and partly because you may feel a little tender.

 

[vineyard]

PS anyone go for acupuncture??

Yes, I did acupunture weekly 2 weeks prior to starting meds. I did it the day of transfer and the day after transfer. I also did it weekly for another month after that.