IVF HAMMERSMITH

[lolajones]

Hey smiths
Had my appt with Mc Fertile yesterday and thought I’d give you the full 360.
First thing to say is, he is lovely. Very down to earth and funny. We had a long chat about my last cycle and the future. So, surprisingly, the answer to the can I thaw 6 of my embryos and try n grow them to blast was lets have a go. He said they hardly ever do it but given my situation (lots of eggs, lots of embryos, good uterine response) we could experiment. The word experiment makes me feel a bit “hang on” but also really positive that he’s into it. He doesn’t think the hydrosalpinx is a major issue for me but is scanning me just in case, given I’ve been having some symptoms. Also asked him about acupuncture. He said that he always thought kind of why not? If it make his patients more relaxed. However, in the last 6 months there have been three trials that show statistically significant results that acu does improve pregnancy rates. So he recommended me someone in Harley Street, Zhai Clinic and said I should go for treatment with her before going back for another cycle.
Feel better after seeing him, was feeling like I never wanted to do this again. Think its due to all the other stuff I have going on. Anyhooo! I’ll no doubt be back on the trail in late August, after a holiday.
So how are you all? I mentioned this site to Mr Lavery and that we had a hammersmith thread – he laughed and said these sites scare him. I was also asking him about the ARGC figures and other clinics that test and monitor a lot. Smoke n mirrors n stats. But still a good clinic.
The weather is perking up…. I can see the sun through my study gaol barred window…. The exams are in 4 days and then I get my life back. I cannot wait.
Ok amigos, hope you’re all ok – keep me posted!
Love, Lola
xx

[lolajones]

PS. Good luck Carolyn! Hope your lap goes ok.

Lola
x

[CarolynB]

Hi Lola

Quick post as need to get to bed as up early to get to Ham for 7.30am for op.

Thanks v much for all the info from your review. Does sound like you had a really good review. Go girl. Pleased to hear that they will allow you to do a 'bid' freeze and go to 5 day. Way to go. Plus pleased to hear the word re-acu helping the success rates.

Just 4 days to go. Hang in there. I am sure that all your study will pay off in the end. Very best of luck

Been really busy over last few days with parents down in Devon so not had much time to think about tomorrow until we got back to London this evening. A little stressed but how bad can it be Hope that Mr Trew can sort me out a bit or at least find out a bit more about what the hell is going on down there.

Will check in after my op and when I feel up to it.

Baby dust to all. At least we are still in World Cup - just!!!

Love Carolyn xxxxxxx

[Vickyp]

Hi Lola

I bet Mr Lavery was straight on this site as soon as you left the room!! Just wanted to say that I read an article about the Zhai Clinic in the Independent and it sounds fantastic - I looked into it and there are lots of success stories on their website (or were). I had acupuncture.

Love Vicky

[CarolynB]

Hi Hammers

Well had the lap done today by Mr Trew today at Hammersmith. He was very good. Calm and too the point which I can deal with.

Was low down on the list - somebody has to be - so had to wait from 7.30am (got there at 7am as cannot bear to be late and get stressed) until 1.30pm before they took me in. The waiting was the worse as made dh go to work as he has taken so much time off - no point both of us wasting another day, so he just collected me. You feel so good in those gowns and slippers - don't you Only took just over 30 mins and was coming around by soon after 2pm. Feels sore and can feel pain in my shoulders and ribs but knew from here that was par for the course and will be the air locks. At lesat it is done which is the main thing.

So Senor Trew comes to see my afterwards said that the good news is that they found no additional problems beyond the blocked tubes. Quite a relief. The tubes are open at the top end which they did not know before so that sounds good also. All fronging around He thinks that he can operate and take out the blockages out & reconnect the tubes for me. He told me what the blockage was called but it was a very long word so I of course have forgotten it so cannot google it. Op must be a bit painful as would need two days in hospital afterwards but then there could be a possibility that I might be able to get pregnant naturally. He puts success rate of pregnancy after surgery at around 50% based on what he has seen. Cost sounds similar to a cycle of ivf so about £3,000 ish. He wants me back a week on Wednesday. We will look through the wonderful photos (like showing snaps from a tour to your friends ) and then we'll have to decide More choices and still no plan. I hate not having a plan. I guess that I think that we should try the op but dh refusing to be drawn at this stage. He says it is easy to say but he is not the one that has to go through all the s***. Might post a thread and see whether other ladies have had success after such an op. The Trewster said that I would have to wait about 3-4 weeks to get it done. I am an accountant and have to work mega hard over next month for publishing our Interim resultsa so would be pretty hard for me to get anything done before say 4th August. Then I finish current job so timing might work out quite well. Other option is either FET or another fresh cycle.

Any comments/feedback/input would be much appreciated.

Lola - get down Zhai clinic as soon as you finish your studying They will not know what has hit them

Take good care ladies.
Love Carolyn xxxxxx

[lolajones]

Haloo
Glad you're feeling chipper after your trewster lap. Good news then!?
I had tubal surgery last may at UCH, Mr Saridogan. He is excellent, lots of surgeons i know really rate him. Anyhoo, I didn't get the cut and paste replumbing that it sounds like you may have but they did spend the best part of 2 hours having a delve and general tidy up. They said it looked good anatomically afterwards but still suggested I go straight for ivf as I was getting on a bit (35! rude awakening!) and it was a bit San Andreas.
Operation wasn't too bad, I did have a week off work though, pain for a day or so but not as bad as my ectopic.

So....decision time for young Carolyn... Its tricky isn't it, if you get a good surgical outcome then it means you have a chance to get pregnant every month. But then the chances of getting pregnant per month naturally are about 5 - 10% for women our sort of ages. I think if someone told me now that they could fix my tubes, I would still have ivf. Maybe I'm just talking nonsense just improves your odds i guess.

Choice sucks! Make Trew decide! Maybe you could use the photos for this years christmas cards? My Ovary says "Happy Holiday!".

Keep me posted anyway. Sorry but I forgot to take Heat when I was there last friday. All they had was a month old Now! - you pay private and thats the best they can do??? Searched it thoroughly for Liz Hurley graffitti

Vicky - how're you and mister Oliver? I'm definitely going to do the acu. It would be freaky if Mr Lav had a peak at this site. It would freak me out if my patients were posting about me. Unless they were saying how tall, gorgeous, approachable yet uncannily intellegent I was no chanceroo.

Ah well, its back to studying for me. Sheffield tomorrow for trial by viva have pedicure and lunch date all booked for "Freedom Friday" BRING IT ON!!!!!!

Ciao amigas

Lola
xxxxx

[poochie]

Hi Gang

Carolyn – glad to hear lap went well , decision time for you, I guess it depends what Trewster thinks next week, if he says go for it I would, if he sits on the fence push him for answers.

Lola – not long to freedom Friday, I hear the weather is suppose to be good that day, so an extended out door lunch for you my girl.

Take care my buddies


Vicki X

[CarolynB]

Vicki - do you have dates yet for next month when you can get going? Sorry if you have said and I have lost track but July is right upon us so guess you must be gearing up for tmt

Lola - almost over the study finish line. You are just going to have the best day on Freedom Friday. Good Luck for tomorrow & Wednesday and enjoy Friday - you certainly deserve it after all the effort that you have put in. How funny thinking about your patients posting about you. God only knows what they would all be saying. Most of the people who work for me just say it to my face

I am building my list of questions for the Trewster:

- Can he really mend my tubes - what 1 or both of them?

- How long will they be open for before they close down again?
And how do we know when they close up again - do I need to go for dye tests all the time.............

- Will he support my attempts au naturel with drugs to push up %? Can't get my head around doing it without drugs and that it could happen

I am older than all of you so know that time is certainly not on my side. I don't care about it being natural, I just want to do what ever will work. Maybe I will just put a gun to Mr Trew's head and leave it there until he tells me what to do and promises me that it will work

Now magazine - you'd think that they would have an entire stand for us given the amount of money they are taking off all of us.

Off to see if Spain can knock out France.
Love Carolyn xxxx

[CarolynB]

Dear All

So have been a bit sneaky. Rather than waiting a week to see Trewster and then ringing his office to book my op anext Wednesday and not being able to plan for another week, I thought that I would chance my arm today.

Rang his assistant - who is v nice - and gave her a sob story about needing to book time off work/holidays etc etc and could I book provisionally now and then confirm op in a weeks time after Trewster shows me the photgraphic evidence...........

She was very helpful. Why can't they all be like that??? She mentioned that he is away in July so thought that I should let everyone know that. However, that worked fine for me, as that is when I am mad busy with work so could not really have done the op then anyway.

So I am all booked in for Monday 7th August if we decide to go this route. She said that I could always cancel if we had a change of mind when we see him. I am still building lots and lots of questions about whether the surgery is the best route forward. Just not sure

This is just the best date for me though so may be fate is leading me down this path. I leave my current job for a sabbatical and that is my first day off work. That means that I will have all the time to recover and not be stressing out about my job at that time.

It is so silly that things like this make you just SO HAPPY. But the timing could not be any better for me & dh.

Lola - thinking of you as you endure the final parts of your exam. Sure that you will shine. Take on board all your comments about natural versus assisted..............no easy choices at all.

Baby dust to all.
Carolyn xxxx

[CarolynB]

Lola

Just to say hope all final exams went well.

Have a terriffic FREEDOM FRIDAY

Love Carolyn xxxx

[poochie]

Hi all

Lola – Hope final exam went well and your freedom Friday was fab. Its great That Mr Lav will support you for blasts, I surprised they don’t do many considering there Lab and team, but its fab that he’s open and up for it. A holiday first is just what the doctor ordered.

Carolyn – I like your style that’s exactly what I would have done, then again I’m an accountant too so I guess its in our genes. Good luck with appointment next week.

I start stimms depending on AF 29th Jul its a short protocol so ec will be about 12 aug.

Have a good Weekend


Vicki X

[CarolynB]

Vicki

Another fellow accountant . May be we should keep quiet about it or else we might scare of Dr Lola and the others

Good that you have dates set for your next cycle.

I keep thinking that my third AF should be here in like 2 weeks so I could start a new cycle then. Against that if I have the op and it works then we might be able to try every month. I keep going from 1 decision to the other.

I just want to know what will work............AAAARGGGGG

I will update after I see Trewster on Wednesday.

Love Carolyn xxxxxxxxxxxx

PS - Hope everyone is enjoying the sunshine - especially Lola not her hard slog is over with

[CarolynB]

Well my Hammersmith pals

Very good appointment with the Trewster. Full techine colours of my tubes, womb and other vital organs. It is amazing what they can show you just via a 20 mins op. He told us that other than some damage in both tubes right near the womb (which we could see - white on snaps) everything else was in really great shape. He even told me that my liver was in good condition. dh nearly feel off his chair at that and my mis-spent youth. Everything that I have read (and that is a lot) says chances of success are higher when blockage is near the womb end of the tubes. Asked about scar tissue created by the op - he said none as he will do it all via microsurgery on the tubes after he has opened me up - he told us that he was the only surgeon who does this sort of repairs in the UK - used to be one other!!!??? He will become my hero if this works. Asked about checking tubes - he will do a dye test at time so we will know that they have been opened. He said that we could start trying immediately afterwards - as soon as I felt up to it physically - will need to control dh there! He told me chances of it working are 54%. He said for those people 84% of cases happen within 8 months. So he said we could try for say 6 months and then do a cycle of ivf if we wished - no set time that we have to give it, up to us. He just says it is a way of doing both. The thing that I had not thought of was rather than having to wait 3/4 months between ivf cycles - we could be trying then naturally as well. No drugs - just au naturel. He seemed pretty sure that we should try the surgery as it gave us another option. Will talk to dh later as we both had to rush to work but sounds like the way to go. So booked in for 7th August. 4 weeks recovery time but what the hell I can just get dh running around for me. Can't get it covered on insurance at all but may be able to get work to pay me for sick leave rather than having to take out of my sabbatical - I am at least going to chance my arm and ask our HR department - why not

Another 12 hour shift at the office so am heading home to crash. Feel better than I am 90% there on the decision. It was the chance of trying in between ivf cycles that I had not even considered plus his attitude to the op and the recovery that pushed me from 50/50 upwards for the op.

Would be interested to hear views of others on the above - does it make sense. Particularly Dr Jones - any views???

Take care all.
Carolyn xxxxx

[poochie]

Hi Hammers

Carolyn – In this fertility game giving yourself as much opportunity as you can to get pregnant makes so much sense. Having IVF and trying naturally gives you the best opportunity, and lets face it trying the natural way is so much fun! So go girl and get that op. Good look with HR.

Lola – Hope you well and enjoying your exam free time.

Vicki X

[CarolynB]

Vicki -

Thanks for your support! You are so right on all counts. Upping the odds is what it is all about

Talked to my HR department this morning and they are looking on it very favourably. I have been here nearly 12 years and have worked by socks off so they should do. She is going to talk to my boss tomorrow (so I don't have to) but looks like I will get the 4 weeks as paid sick leave rather than having to take out of my sabbatical. Makes the thought of 4 weeks recovery a bit more manageable.

So called Mr Trew's assistant this morning - she is v nice and v helpful - and it is all now confirmed for 7th August.

At least I have a plan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Take good care.
Love Carolyn xxxx

Lola - r u ok? Been away for a while - hope all is ok and that you are just having a wild time post-exams.