First time ivf/icsi

Hiya not done it fully but done a couple egg collection rounds with ICSI so first steps. Feel free to reach out direct if any specific questions. Thanks

@Pav thankyou. Its really scary thinking about it all!

Hi Hannah. Happy to answer any questions that I can that you may have

@D thankyou. I have all the questions 🤣 mainly pain, emotional side to it all and how much it takes a toll on you and your partner etc. I can't bare to go through it all to loss another baby

I had progesterone pessaries that holds your baby upto 16 weeks

your clinic should offer you up to 3 counselling sessions as part of your ivf so you could choose to use one of those to discuss your concerns, hopes, dreams, fears etc.

Everyone has their own experience as to what they find painful. For me some injections have been worse than others. Some people don't mind them at all. Some get side effects some don't. I definitely took things slower during the stimulation phase of ivf and had some days to rest after egg collection. But some people take their injections on nights out.

I'm currently pregnant with my first after our first round of ICSI. Happy to answer any questions. I had a frozen embryo transfer as I got OHSS after egg retrieval

Sadly there is no guarantees with ivf so it can be a very emotional journey. Having support around you can be very beneficial. It does however only take one successful embroy and anyone could be part of the success statistics - I would just be aware that ivf isn't a guarantee. Your clinic should have published figures for their success rates on their website

that's not really an accurate statement. You can still miscarry whilst on progesterone, especially if the baby is not developing properly and is genetically abnormal. The progesterone helps to maintain your uterine lining but it won't stop a miscarriage in all cases

Happy to offer support/ answer questions.
I’ve had a fresh and frozen transfer, both successful. However I lost my daughter at 17 weeks with no obvious cause. Currently 33 weeks pregnant with my son. Sadly there are no guarantees with IVF.
I had OHSS after egg collection. I have PCOS.
Currently on progesterone until 36 weeks.
I also have a cervical suture because the assumption is “incompetent cervix”.

IVF is a lot to go through, and you need support to navigate the ups and down. The hormones affect people differently, and it also depends on the protocol the clinic put you on.

I would say despite having a very traumatic loss, it is absolutely worth it. My husband is the most kind supportive person and I couldn’t have coped without him. I feel like the whole process has made our relationship stronger, but we have been together for 16 years.

Everything crossed that we get to bring this one home with us 🤞x

Thanks guys. They've told me I've got 35% success rate and my eggs are low for my age and I have a higher chance of miscarrying again so we are trying to weigh it all up. I also have a blood issue so will need blood thinning injections throughout too and also progesterone pessaries. Very scary 😨

If it helps, the “natural” rate for conception is 20%, which helps to put the IVF success rate into perspective.
I had blood thinners at the start too and I’ll have had pessaries to 36 weeks this time.
It is a lot to weigh up, and I know the miscarriage risk if terrifying after all the effort of IVF and your previous losses.
Here if you want to chat xx

@Kelly thankyou 🥰

they told us our change was 30-35% so we were gearing for 3 rounds before anything happening and it worked first time! We were working with male factor infertility so although we got 16 eggs and 13 matured, we only ended up with 3 embryos to freeze so that was quite the roller coaster. We've now got 2 more chances in the freezer waiting for when we're ready.

Also progesterone pessaries are normal protocol, in frozen transfer cycles you tend to need a higher dose (or add in progesterone injections too) than in fresh cycles, but everyone has to do them. I'm on 6 per day, it's a bit tiresome but you get used to it! I much prefer using them rectally than vaginally, a lot less messy.

@Charley that's good to know, thanks. I'm glad it worked first time for you! Our issue is both of us but hopefully it's not too bad and it'll work out.

6 failed IUIs, 1 cycle of IVF, 18 eggs, 4 embryos, 2 didn't take, 1 didn't survive defrosting, our last embryo is now 13 months old 🥲 if I could do it all again I'd go straight to IVF. It's not easy; I didn't find the drugs too bad, the egg collection was probably the worst bit for me in terms of pain but it passed quickly. It helped to know we were giving ourselves the best chance we could have with our circumstances. But the rounds that didn't work were so heartbreaking. I don't think we'll do it a second time because of the pressure on my mental health, we're lucky to have one and wouldn't change our journey because it's resulted in her. I hope you get your rainbow 🌈 or find your own path to motherhood, there are other options if the fear of loss is too great, you need to consider your health too and how much you're willing to keep trying. We had a cut off point in mind when we started

I had progesterone pessaries with my first transfer (fresh) resulting in my son. I had a non medicated frozen transfer for my second (14 weeks pregnant) with no pessaries prescribed or even suggested. All I had was a ovitrelle injection on transfer day so pessaries not always normal protocol.

Heyy, I'm currently going through my second cycle of IVF/icsi. More than happy to talk about anything you want! It's a different journey, so definitely nice to know you're not alone and have people to talk to :) fingers crossed all works well for you

ah yes, forgive me I forget some people have completely unmedicated transfers, but this is not likely for OP given her history of miscarriage.

Happy to answer any questions you have xx

@Charley Hi , did you have any symptoms? I transferred one 5AB embryo 8 days ago. Do you know your embryo's grade ?

i didn't have any symptoms until after a positive test, all symptoms before are just related to progesterone! I got a real positive at 5dp5dt and after that I had some acid reflux and extreme thirst. It was a 5AA

I’ve done IVF with no success. The statistics say 30% of women have success with their first attempt. It increases a lot I think to 50% with 2 attempts.
One thing to be wary of ask for a list of all medications sent. My second cycle got canceled a few days from the finish line due to the wrong concentration of a medication ordered thanks to my horrible nurse. I would strongly advise to not go to CCRM.

@Jorie I'm with the agora in Brighton. They told me I've got around 30% and could miscarry again which terrifies me and tbh I'm still panicking and wondering if I can cope with another loss. But on the flip side it could work and it'll be worth the try. It's definitely the biggest decision we've ever made.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience! That's not fair! I've got it in writing from my consultant what medication I'm going to be put on, so when I receive them I'll triple check before starting!

My doc told me if you do genetic testing on the embryo it lowers the chance of miscarriage to 4%.
Worth a shot so you don’t have to go through the heartbreak of a miscarriage.
I had an embryo round 1 but once tested we learned it was missing a chromosome. I’m really happy we checked before paying 5 grand to implant. Per my doc 1 in 4 embryos are good due to natural selection.

@Jorie I'm not sure they do genetic testing on the nhs. My consultant never mentioned it 🫤

The lab takes a small sample of cells from the placenta and sends it off for testing. I don’t see why any embryo lab couldn’t do it. Apparently it’s a fairly simple process from what the genetic counselor told me.

@Jorie just looked it up and sadly the nhs won't do it because its expensive 😒 can't complain. I get 3 cycles for free.

Hello! A lot of women don't understand their body and don't fully understand what the issues are in regards to the unexplained infertility or miscarriages. If you choose to do IVF then it is important to not go into it blind. You should be doing a few things. 1. Find a reputable clinic. You need to remember that IVF is a business. They make money off of you. It is indifferent to them if you conceive or not because if you don't they will just recommend another round. You need to do your research when selecting the clinic. When I went through IVF, I found a research facility that received funding for successful implantation so they were motivated to get you pregnant. 2. You need to be preparing your body for the process (you need to spend at least 3-6 months eating right and on the correct supplements) this will increase egg quality, increase egg quantity, balance hormones, etc. 3. Managing stress and releasing trauma. Our body stores trauma which could negatively impact your IVF journey.

I am a holistic fertility and women's health coach. I work with women to help them through these processes. I don't know if you are interested but I do offer a free consultation and would be more then happy to chat with you about some of the things I commented about in further detail.

@Mya I understand what you're saying, however I can't control any of those things. I'm nhs funded so can't choose my clinic, and I don't have 6 months to prepare. I'm told when I'm having it as its free.

Honestly I don't think any of those things will make a huge difference. I was extremely stressed when my last embryo went in because of the one that hadn't survived freezing and this being our last one and that's the one that made it. I also had McDonald's on the way home. For the most part with IVF it's more luck than anything else. Yes the clinics want to make money but they also want good statistics!

Oh I see. Well then I would highly recommend to start taking coQ10 or ubiqunol, and a prenatal that has DHEA, folate and magnesium. If you have the financial means I would recommend accupuncture and/or hyperbaric chamber before implantation. It is extremely important to start eating as much nutrient dense food and snacks as possible and cut out sugar and gluten. Feel free to Google any of this to find out the benefits they have on the body, reproductive system, and helping to get and stay pregnant!

I wish you all the best!

@Mya I'm taking the appropriate supplements. Been taking them for 2 and a half years now. And my diets fine. Thanks 😊

of course luck plays a role and those who are religious will argue that it is in God's hands at the end of the day. But there is a lot of research done on the success rates and how success rates increase based on supplements, holistic approaches such as accupuncture/Chinese medicine, dietary changes, etc. These things have been proven to increase egg quality and quantity which of course increases chances of success!

wonderful!! I wish you the best of luck with your IVF journey!! ❤️❤️

Your born with a certain amount of eggs. It’s impossible to increase quantity.

That is correct you cannot increase your total reserve. But you can increase the quantity that grows with stimulation in the ovaries for collection.

That’s not true. You can perhaps increase the QUALITY of the eggs through diet/ supplementation/ holistic therapy etc but the quantity of eggs collected is dependant on the stimulation drugs, that’s why the clinic scans so regularly during stims and adjusts the dosage so carefully, to maximise follicle maturation but to limit risk of OHSS.

Don’t think it’s really fair to insinuate that IVF success is down to factors that individuals can control, it’s generally not.

there is a number of research and literature that prove that holistic changes such a nutrition, supplementation, Chinese medicine, etc increase the chances as I mentioned in my previous messages. There is a wonderful book called "It starts with the Egg" by Rebecca Fett who has multiple degrees and extensive experience as a molecular biologist and biochemist. She really deep dives in the science behind these holistic approaches and how/why they work along with the statistics associated with the proof that they work (yes, that also includes increasing the number of follicles that mature). You should read it. I completely disagree with stripping women of their hope by saying that they have no control over the success of IVF when there is scientific research proving otherwise.

I’ve done plenty of reading and research, thanks.

It’s predatory to be lurking on groups where women are trying to support one another through their IVF experiences and you’re trying to peddle your wares for the “magic solution” to making it work.

And actually by saying that we have the “power” to improve results by paying £1000s for a course, then £100s for this alternative therapy and that supplement, it’s not empowering at all. It puts even more pressure on us that we’re doing it “wrong”.

It’s especially crappy to be posting stuff like this on people’s posts who have experienced baby loss and are desperate for answers.

Even the actual scientists do not have all the answers, so I’m simply not going to trust another “guru” on the internet saying they have all the answers for fertility.

Glad whatever you did worked for you. Doesn’t at all mean it’ll work for everyone 🤷‍♀️