CAN ANYONE ELSE HELP ME

ANGELA · Post by **ANGELA** » Fri Dec 05, 2003 12:43 pm

Hi all just wondered if anyone else can tell me what will happen at my first consultation, have had my assesment at kings have been told its an hour long appointment including a scan what i really want to know is will i have to go on a waiting list for i.v.f or is this the start of it all happening?? my love and best wishes to you all love Angela

michelle_in_scotland · Fri Dec 05, 2003 2:05 pm

Hi, i don't go to Kings so i don't really know anything about them, i'm at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and we had our first consultation back in July, we've been back a couple more times since then for my Fiance to give samples and at our last appointment a few weeks ago we were told that we would be starting treatment after March but more likely it would be during the summer. I thought once we had our first consultation that would be it, we would be starting, but i've found it's a long slow process to get to the stage of starting treatment. So i reckon you will be put on a waiting list as i think there would probably be a lot of complaints if they let you jump the queue before others that have been attending for a much longer period of time. It's easier said than done, but at this stage you have to have the patience of a saint. It does feel like you're getting nowhere at times but you just have to try and carry on as normal and you have to remember ... you will get there soon!!! Good luck with your upcoming appointment. Take care, Lots of love Michelle

Becky28 · Post by **Becky28** » Fri Dec 05, 2003 2:15 pm

Hi Angela, I think it will vary depending on what tests, if any, you've already had, but for what it's worth I could tell you about my experience of King's? Disregard anything that seems irrelevant! My GP had already given me lots of blood tests, and I'd already had an internal scan (not painful, less invasive than a smear, so don't worry if you need one) - and that had all determined that I have polycystic ovaries - which I sort of knew already because my cycle is so erratic, and that's the reason we thought we couldn't conceive. But the GP also referred my DH for a semen test to be sure he wasn't complicating matters (!), and we discovered he has v low count. That was the reason we were told IVF with ICSI was our best hope. We knew all this before we saw the consultant at King's, so our first concultation was to sort out the practicalities of when to begin treatment. We were told that we'd have to wait approx 3 years to be eligible for NHS IVF, and that we'd only get one turn funded by the NHS, even though we're relatively young (29) and have no children. BUT (a big but, so don't panic!) I think this will have changed since the law on NHS funding for IVF was amended recently, and they'll be able to tell you more about this. It's also worth bearing in mind that the wait varies from borough to borough (we're in Southwark). Anyway, we decided to self-fund - it cost us about £1800 for ICSI (IVF is a bit less), and our GP paid for the drugs. We were told the wait for ICSI would be 9 months even if we self-funded, and were disappointed to have to wait - it was because they were building a new lab and moving the department. In the end we only waited 5 months as they wrote to us to say they were ahead of schedule - our first consultation was in the January and we started injections towards end May. In hindsight the wait did us good, as we needed to work through our feelings, and I also tried to get fitter, cut down on alcohol etc. I do hope none of this has worried you. I know the waiting for your appt is awful, but once you've met the team at King's things will seem much clearer and you'll at least have a time table and a plan. Best of luck, Beck x