Sept 2008 - stimming buddies :)

[lynniecat]

Thank for all the baby dust coming my way! I really need it as does Priya. We need our bfps this time!

My 2 embies are at 4 cells and 2 cells. Last cycle they were at 1 cell still on day 2.

Hoping for 2 6-8 cells embies for transfer tomorrow. Its at 9 am. Its early so less time for the embies to become grade 1...lets hope they are by 9!

Priya -- good luck with your guy. I hope its 8 cells tomorrow! When is your transfer???

[karenvancouverisland]

lynnie- that's GREAT news about your embies dividing appropriately- AWESOME. and if i can just remind you and priya and anybody else that yields a low count- i got PG my last cycle from only having 2 big follies at retrieval!! there WAS a heartbeat at 7 wks..it was REAL from only 2 eggs.and despite how atrouchiously (?) tired and bloated i was, i LOVED being PG. IT WILL HAPPEN TO US!!!

kerry- i loved what you said about being LOUD about our desire to be mommies.. sometimes it's so hard having others know- i feel embarrassed and like i'm defective, but i can logically know those feelings don't make sense (WHY THE HELL should i feel embarrassed??!! - i didn't do anything wrong). and when i've told people (for the most part), i've received amazing support.

sue- i hope you're able to work things out around your work retreat in a way that's comfortable for you. sometimes life hands us shitty choices and no matter what we do, it's unpleasant. we just need to take the 'lesser of the evils'.

kerry- sorry to hear about your headaches hope they go away, and that times flies til your friday appt. AND i'll work on that lottery thing too

as for me, i'm on a day off. waiting to hear from my RE for a phone consult re: DHEA, my next cycle, my last cycle, ect. i also have a massage and chiropractor appts today and will get to the gym sometime in there too! had friends over for a BBQ last night and it was lovely.

GHOST here said DHEA is questionable and the docs he works with don't believe , BUT i met another lady online ("low responder") who's antral follie count was 2, after flare stims had only 2 follies, BFN, then went on DHEA and had 11 follies her next IVF cycle- 9 fertilized, got BFP but sadly m/c. sooo......

wishing everyone a wonderful day. GROW EMBIES GROW!
karen

[karenvancouverisland]

well..talked to my RE and got a cold response about DHEA - "if it worked, we would use it". then he said they had applied to research it and health canada denied it, as there's no indication it works and we don't know if it's safe. he sounded annoyed- which made me feel like crying.

so i think he kinda contradicted himself (as he wanted to research it before for a reason ??!!). i think canada is stricter than some other countries- which is good as it prevents clinics from being 'bought' by drug companies, but maybe we're also the last ones to know when something works.

so i'm left to my own devices here- he doesn't approve of me using DHEA, and couldn't say if it would HARM my next cycle.

i'm leaning towards staying on it til i cycle- and NOT postponing my cycle to have 2 months on DHEA. so i'd cycle end of sept, after 4 weeks on DHEA. (the DHEA 'people' say you need 2 months) I DON"T KNOW!! argghh! i'm frustrated. i'm going to call the NYC clinic who uses it and ask them for a phone consult.
hope you're having a better day than i am so far! karen

[PriyaC]

Hey Guys

Lynnie - that's GREAT news on the embabies. All the best for the ET tomorrow.

Karen - thanks for much for the encouraging words. I know sometimes just a hug can feel you sooooooooo much better. Next time I am in seattle, I will try to come to Vanc. as well and see if I can meet up with you and get my BIG HUG personally .....
I can only imagine what must be going through you head right now reg DHEA ..... I agree to stick with the cycle and not wait for 2 more months.
Since you had BFP before I am sure you will get it this time around as well and this time it will lasts the whole 9 months BABY .
Have a nice day off and have a nice time with the message and chiro....

Kerry : Thanks so much for the +ver words. Hope the headache is better now. Is it the migrane that has come back?
Since I have read your post, I am saying it LOUD - its going to work and I will be PG ..... good am working from home today and no one is around you owe me a HUG too . We have some family in London so if I even come to visit them, I will make sure I see you as well

Soready - any update on sizes of the follies. when is the ER scheduled for.

Sue - how have you been? Did you talk to your boss abt IF?

I just got call form the clinic - the embryo is 2 celled and good grading. So hopefully this is the one.
Am trying to keep myself positive but its becoming a little hard ..but am still trying . To keep myself busy I am going to get my nails done with a friend and then watch lots of TV.
My ET is tomorrow @ 4pm.
Will be taking a few days off and work from home if possible to give myself lots of rest so that baby can attach ...
I also cooked a lot of food to last for atleast 4-5 days so will just relaxing and doing nothing - want do my best to get the baby attache to me

Thanks again for all the wishes and encouraging words
Talk to everyone tomorrow
loads of love and hugs
Priya

[lynniecat]

Karen--

I think staying on the DHEA and doing the cycle this month is the way to go. I know they say you need two months, but you will have that if this cycles is not your cycle.

I personally could not put it off any longer than necessary! Your doctor reacted just like mine. I think they are slow to change their protocols....

Let us know what you decide with the DHEA and scheduling!


Priya--

Yay on the 2 cell embaby! I am glad its dividing on schedule and hopefully will be 6-8 cells by 4 pm tomorrow! I love that you have all day to give that embaby time! I was really nervous about the 9 am transfer since it does not give my guys as much time to show their awesome cell diving qualities!

Wishing us both awesome transfers tomorrow!!!

[karenvancouverisland]

hi priya and lynnie- thanks for the encouraging words i would sooo love to meet any of you in person if you're ever up this way.. just thinking about it puts a big smile on my face

GOOD LUCK tomorrow on ET- invite those embabies into your loving care.. the cell division is such a good sign and 9am will be ok ithink, as they can just keep dividing better inside their future mommie..they'll be happier there than in a dish!

and thanks to you both for providing input on whether or not to cycle end of sept, or wait for oct.. it's funny though- my DH just said the opposite; but he'll go with whatever i want. i'm so grateful for the input; i think i need some quiet time to reflect and get in touch with my GUT to get the final answer- right now my HEAD is getting in the way. i know my GUT doesn't usually lead me astray...

i'd love to hear how everyone else is doing too...??? kerry- can you remind me what your friday appt. involves?

love you all- tons of hugs, karen

[SueQiwi]

Priya~I think you've got a strong fighter there! Don't be discouraged by numbers--I have seen the most unexpected and miraculous results on these boards! Your embie sounds strong and will implant just fine with a little PMA. Good luck at transfer--you have PMA flowing form New Zealand!

Lynnie~Good luck at your transfer also! I am thinking of you and those two lovely embies. I know you were disappointed that more didn't make it--but I think two strong embies is something us low responders can be proud of! Keep the faith--you sound like you have a great attitude.

Karen~I just love reading your posts! And rest assured you do not sound crazy--or drunk! I think you have got a great spirit. I think I would go for the cycle now if I were you. All the waiting around makes me a bit crazy amd I'd prefer to get on with it. And you know your body can get pregnant alaready without any DHEA at all! And this way you will have DHEA up your sleeve for next time (of course I hope that there will never be a next time--but I find I like to have a little extra something to focus PMA on each cycle that is different than the last. It's herbs for me this time as I didn't do them last time. I will prob try DHEA next time if God forbid I need a next time!)

Kerry~I hope that you get some resolution at your Friday appointment. Do you want to cycle again right way? Or give your body and mind a break?

so ready~Did you go for ER yet? I hope they get dozens of eggs!

Thank you all for your thoughtful advice regarding this daggone work retreat. I have been a total wimp and still have not had a chat to my boss yet. It is just so exposing to have to explain about infertility and IVF--I just hope she understands.

I am still taking BFPs. The microdose flare protocol calls for 3 weeks--but they had to add almost an entire extra week because of when I got my AF in the beginning. oy!

[lynniecat]

Well my 4 cell went to 8 and my 2 cell went to 6. Both grade 1! They were transfered this morning!

So I can say my kids are 6 and 8 today!

[soready73]

Again, at work so I need to make it quick. I’m going to try to get on again in the next few days and catch up on all that is going on.

Just a couple quick comments…

Priya and Lynnie: Good luck with your ET. I’m sending positive energy and prayers your way.

Karen: I agree with the others. You should do a cycle this month. Not only for the reasons stated by the others, (I hope I express this correctly) but it sometimes makes a person feel better, and time go by faster, when they feel they are actually doing something. Do you know what I mean? Waiting, even if it’s not for a long time, can seem like forever sometimes. If you are able to do the cycle this month, why not?

My ER is scheduled for Thursday, 9/11 at this point. I don’t have an exact time yet, I will get a call from my RE this afternoon (it’s 10:05 am CST – I can’t get the time stamp correct on my messages). I’m so glad that after tonight, no more shots. It’s all pills, patches, and suppositories. NO PIO! Yay! Hearing others talk about it, I’m so glad I don’t have to do that one.

Good wishes and prayers to the rest of you.

[lynniecat]

soready --

Good luck with that retrieval on the 11th. Let us know what time. Its always a relieve to stop the stim meds! Life gets simpler. Oddly I prefer the PIO to suppositories! I do my own shots and never had an issue doing them. I little sore at first, but that seems to go away after a few days. I think I am the odd one when it comes to PIO.

My clinic says suppositories are just as good and PIO is not needed, but have not switched over completely yet. I asked to do the PIO! LOL!

[kez01]

Hi all

Lynnie:good luck I'm glad your embies are doing well. lets hope they are feeling sticky. I hope the next two weeks fly by for you.

Priya: I hope your embie sticks in for the long haul, I'm keeping everything crossed for you. Thats good thinking to get all your food cooked in preparation, I might do that next time. I hope time goes really quickly for you.

Karen: I'm sorry you had a bad consult re you DHEA, I know how you feel about wanting to start your cycle, It is hard when you have got your DH wanting to wait and you desperately want to just get on with it. I hope your gut gives you the answers you need. Take care we're here for you with whatever you decide.

Sue: I hope you cycle hurries along for you, it sounds as if its being a long 3 weeks, I know when I did down regulation for 3 weeks before starting stims, it makes the whole process much longer. Try keep busy and you will soon be starting stims.

Soready: I'm keeping my fingers crossed you get some nice eggs on your ER day, not too long now, I hope your taking it easy and eating lots of protein, fruit and vegetables to keep your follies growing. Good luck.

Well I had another long day at work today, only a 30 minute break in 13 hours, I feel like an old woman this evening and looking forward to going to bed. I have a short day tomorrow and my neices are coming for dinner and I am doing a reflexology treatment on one of my friends so the day should go quick.

My consultation will entail the consultant telling me what he thinks happened with my last cycle and then me asking all the questions I need to. I saw the dr who I thought I was going to see on friday and he said the letter was wrong and I am actually going to see the original consultant. I'm not sure if I'm happy about that or not. I need to make sure I say everything I want to and not feel awkward as I see these doctors everyday during my working day.

Well I'm going to have to go to bed.
thinking of you all,
take care
Kerry xxx

[to_have_fun08]

soready - Just wanted to pop in a say GL at ER. Hope you get lots of good eggs.

Chris

[PriyaC]

Hey Guys:

Lynnie - good news on the ET - both the embabies have good cell #s . Am sure they will stick to you We are official in our dreaded 2WW period

Sue - thanks for the PMA - Hope you are doing OK with the BCPs now and they are not making u moody like they did before. I agree with Kerry the microdose flare makes the cycle longer... And talk to your boss girl - stop worrying - am sure she will understand - her being a woman.

Soready - All the best with the ER. Did you get the time? Hope its in the morning so you are no hungry and thirsty till late. Hope you get lots of eggs.

Kerry - You must be having sweet dreams right now Have fun tomorrow with your nieces and have a relaxing day as well. I can only imagine your appointment being awkward .... hope you get to ask/say what you want to. How can they make such a mistake. Could you request to see the doc you want to see just for 5 mins at least during that day? What is reflexology for?

Karen - hope you had a relaxing day as well.

My ET went fine. The embryo had divided into 4 cells by yesterday evening and then in the morning it divided again - they did not give me the exact cell number but the pic looks like that of a blast embryo. Am going to call my RE and confirm this with him tomorrow. Also did accupunture before ad after the ET, it was very relaxing. This time I could make out the uterus and could see the "embryo drop". Doc on call was very excited and happy by himself - they way he has placed the embryo - just right in the middle and was almost jumping up and down - he seemed very positive which made me feel positive abt the baby - it was so funny. I am glad it went this way.
Now am lining up lots of things to keep myself busy for next 2 weeks
My beta is on 20th.

Talk to everyone tomorrow.
Have a good night everyone
Lots of love
Priya

[lynniecat]

Priya--

I think they like the embryos to be 2-4 cells on day 2 (which both of us had) and then 6-8 cells on day 3. My guess is that when your 4 cell from yesterday divided this morning it became 8 cells (all 4 cells each diving into makes . Call and find out the total number of cells at transfer. It could have even been 10, but 6 to 8 is what they expect for a good embryo. Apparently embryos can get often hung up at 2 points ---- the day 2 to day 3 stage (getting past 4 cells is a big deal!) and the 4 to 5 day stage (making it to blast on day 5 is the other biggie). Then of course implanting, etc. etc., getting into college, getting married....LOL


So looks like we both have made the first leap. Now we need our little ones to get to blast in two days! Grow grow grow!!!!!

[SueQiwi]

Lynnie~Congrats on ET! Those two embies sound top-notch. Im so glad to hear how well they divided for you! And so much better than your last time--things are looking good for you.

Priya~Congrats to you too on ET!! I think that it is telling that the Dr was so excited about your transfer. He has done hundreds of these and if he feels that yours was especially successful--I believe it probably was! how cool.

more later. . .