Look for September Cycle Buddies

[Anissabug]

Annashope - Thank you so much for the kind words. It is nice to know that we are not alone! I am soooo very sorry to hear about your lose. I can't imagine what you are going through but know that we are all here for you. Your name says it all.........I love it!! I recently went on vacation and saw a plague that said "Just when you are about to give up.............Hope gives you the strength to give it one more try!!" Hang in there it will get better!

Soccermom - I do monitor at home and deal usually with one nurse. She is wonderful and never in a hurry. I actually spoke w/ her today and had not taken some meds because the nurses last week (4 different ones) during surgery, gave me all different instructions on what to do............so I waited to speak with Linda today to get the info. Yes all 6 IVFs have been at CNY. I see that you are projecting possibly Monday or Tuesday for ER..........me too. When did you start stimming? Maybe we will be on the same timeline at the same clinic........Really small world!!!! I am overall very pleased with the clinic and everything that they have tried with us!! I take Menopur as well and find that when I ice it isn't always so bad. I hope you have a stressfree wknd w/your MIL.

dawgs - good luck with your U/S tomorrow

Wondercat - I greatly appreciate your heartfelt words. I am so very thankful for having this site and all you strong caring women!! I am doing the AF dance for you You will become a pincushion soon!

It81 - Thank you too for your words of encouragement! Sorry but I don't know much about the cervix and if it can move?? As for Ghost - he/she is like the expert who you can ask questions. I don't know if there is more than one but I think they belong to a clinic or office and deal with this daily like our RE and nurses. They are very helpful and always answer the tough questions......

Emma Welcome back........3 week vacation! Hope you had a wonderful time!

Hopefullintime - I am doing the AF dance for you too. Is this your first IVF cycle? I think everyone does something different, depending on your particular protocol. I have always just call the office on my 1st day of my period and then have to have my scan and bw by day 3 (baseline) and usually start meds on day 4 or 5. ER has always been exactly 2 weeks from the 1st day of my period and the ET depends on the number/quality of embies you get. I have had day 2,day 3 and day 5 transfers. Then you go into the dreaded 2WW which ends with your beta (blood drawn pregnancy test). Hope I didn't confuse u with all that rampling............Keep us posted when your AF arrives. I know it will be soon..........

Sorry if I missed anyone. Again.......Thank you all so very much for the warm welcome and very encouraging words from everyone. It truly is amazing how wonderful and strong you all are on this site and what you all have been able to endure and still press forward. What doesn't kill us only makes us stronger!! We all have HOPE for Sept BFP

Good nite!

[Wondercat]

Looks like there are quite a few of us trying to decide between the September and Fall boards. Still no AF, so I'm thinking "Fall" for me - but what a lot of activity on both! It just took me about 20 minutes to catch up with everything just from last night.

hopefullintime - I have never been wanting AF to just start already so much in my life. How about you? That scan isn't too bad, kind of icky but you have to figure the nurses and doctors are used to it and they're the ones down there dealing with it. I usually bring in the biggest pad I can find for after because in addition to the usual stuff there will also be a lot of the lubricating gel. It's just... messy. The betas are the pregnancy blood tests to check your HCG levels (not sure if somebody already answered that...)

[soccermom]

Annisabug-
So funny that you'd mention Linda's name...she's the best! I've talked with two other out of town coordinators & just do not get the same vibe or info from them that I would from Linda. She was my go to girl back in 2007 & maybe that history makes me more at ease with her...who knows...she's a great lady! I have an u/s tomorrow am & b/w too, that should determine when ER will be. Linda said possibly Friday, depending on whether or not my follies hit a big growth spurt. I wouldn't mind holding off until Monday though. Last time we stayed in a hotel the night before, a just in case move on our part...traffic/construction & DH is not too keen on giving up the goods at the office. The only issue is that many of the hotels are booked solid since the NYS fair is going on right now....hmmmmm....maybe a night at a B&B at Skaneatles(sp?) Lake??

[dawgs1257]

Hello everyone.

Annashope - I am so sorry to hear about your news. I could not imagine one miscarriage, let a lone two of them for one pregnancy. You must be a very strong person. Hang in there. I am hoping for good newsto come your way soon!

My u/s went fine. The RE says I have about 4 or 5 follies in each ovary and that the uterus looks good. I go back Friday for another u/s and b/w. They told me we would be scheduling my ER and ET then as well. However, this is what they told me last time around and when I got there on Friday, I had to go back in on Monday and then they scheduled me. As for right now they are predicting ER on Tues or Wednes of next week. I am thinking more one the lines of next Friday for ER. We will see!

[wanderlust]

Hello everyone!

Is there room for one more? We are going through our first cycle of IVF so would like to share this. We're in The Netherlands and while the doctors speak good english all the leaflets and info are in dutch (our IVF dutch is very poor) so we're feeling a bit in the dark but thankfully the www and forums like this are a big help.

So, I've finished the jabs, that was a journey in itself, but eventually go my head around the injecting part. I found not looking at the needle and not thinking about it was the easiest. We did the egg (x2) transfer on Monday just gone so we are not just waiting.

With all the appointments and carrying the injections to the hospital for the nurse to check etc. got so confusing and every session involved so much info transfer that I eventually took to treating my appointments like a meeting i.e. I minuted everything and took action points. May sound extreme but I found this helped me otherwise I was carrying all the info and instructions in my head and that only led to sleepless nights trying to remember everything.

I didn't notice any extreme side effects (neither did those around me) to the medication except I was a bit more emotional than normal. This only really came out when I was watching things like Little House on the Praire or Extreme Home Makeover!

Look forward to reading more tomorrow!

[lisa32]

Hello People,

Well im back for those of you who have spoken to me before, if not ill explain a bit about my journeys ive incountered lol.
When I was on here last time it was my first go at IVF and it was all pretty scary as all the injections waking up at certian times for abt 2 weeks, then scans, egg collection which hurt then not long after that ET. The 2ww was a nightmare and to be honest I didnt really relax at all which I regreat as that resulted in me bleeding on the third day of ET which of course I didnt have a clue on what was going on and was pretty cut up as you can imagine. Family and friends said oh it can be common to bleed but I knew I was losing the clump!!! It got to the day of the test and as I knew it was a Big fat Negative!!!!
So once all the hurt and tears were all gone out of me and the negative energy went I wanted to try again. This was not going to beat me!!
So here I am again 2nd time lucky started the injections again got a supressed scan on Tues 31st Aug 2010. But I wont be having EC as I had one frozen at blastosist stage so I will be using that on day of ET. On Tues I will hopefully be told that I can use the patches to thicken the lining of my womb which I will have to put on every other day for 2 weeks. Then middle of Sep/end of Sep I should have ET. This time I will be on my back for the dreaded 2ww which will kill me and be tied to sofa lol only joking!!

Any peps speak to you soon. xxxxxxxxxxx

[amanda1027]

Haven’t been on in a while but please know I think of you all!! Hope everyone is doing well!!

Annissabug: Thanks so much for asking about the shots. Are you still on schedule for retrieval on Monday? We seem to be on the same cycle! We too are hoping for a retrieval date Monday. I will find out more today after blood work and US. Shots are going ok. Menopur shots sting a little but I keep trying to amp myself up come shot time! I too have bruises from the shots in my belly. I am quite colorful! Is your mother-in-law still visiting? Keeping my fingers crossed for you!

Wondercat: Thanks for the welcome! The last round of stimulants/IUI I did I was only on 75 units of gonal-f. Due to the fact that I have PCOS my RE was concerned about too much stimulation. After only one follicle participating I asked to move on to IVF. I started this round with 275 units of gonal-f and I am currently on 150units. I had blood work done on Monday and my estradiol was in the 200s; I went in on Wednesday and it was 1,029. Not sure if these numbers are normal?
I just got home from US and blood work. I am not sure what to think right now. The US tech found LOTS and LOTS of follicles and has scared me a little that I may be hyper stimulating. My ovaries are so big right now they had a hard time telling them apart from one another due to the fact that they are smashing into one another. I am waiting to hear back from the NP about my blood work but I am freaking out a little. I so don’t want to have to go through this process and have too many follicles only to start all over again. I am hoping for the blood work to be in an ok range to trigger shot tonight and retrieve Sunday. Anyone hyper stimulate before? How much is too much Estradoil? In need of a glass of wine here in St. Louis!

[soccermom]

Hello all!
Welcome Lisa & Wanderlust!!
Annisa & Amanda - looks like we're still on track together! My ER will be Monday morning ! Tonight is my last night of Lupron & Gonal F, trigger shot Saturday night at 10pm. I'm thinking transfer will be Friday? My Dr does not recommend best rest after ET, other than laying still for a good 30 minutes...then acupuncture. But strict bed rest beyond that is nothing he recommends...which is good since the following week is the beginning of the school year & I can't very well take off the first two weeks of school.

Sounds like both of us responded very well to the meds Amanda! My u/s tech told me "Girl...you have a ton of follicles!" I did hyper stim during my first ivf, they classified it as mild...but let me tell you...that pain was not "mild"! I only had one 'episode' one night when I woke up in the middle of the night 1dp5dt. I thought my appendix burst. For me it was an intense pain that lasted a solid 10 minutes. Didn't know wtf was happening to me, I was scared out of my mind. I was monitored every other morning via u/s & b/w (think they looked at CBC?) for nearly the entire 2ww. Luckily I didn't have any serious complications from it, and I only experienced pain that one night. Hopefully you and I won't have to go through any of that in the upcoming weeks.

Have a wonderful weekend girls!

[annashope]

Soccormom YAY!!!! I am so excited for you...good luck sweety I will pray for a successful ER and ET for you...You are almost PUPO!!!!!

[Anissabug]

Soccermom - I am scheduled for 9 am Monday morning for ER!!! I have to do my trigger tonight at 9:30! I have about 10 good size follicles. Good Luck, Monday - I will be thinking of you. We are staying in Syracuse over night because of the fair and Justin Bieber concert - have a 12 yr old DD! so it will be nice not to have the long drive..............

Amanda - how are u doing? are you still on for Monday? Thinking of you!

I totally understand about the OHSS - I over stimulated my second IVF and they also said it was mild - it didn't feel mild!
I ended up in the Emer room with the pain and dr tried to give me morphine............I almost had a heart attack. I wasn't even taken ibuprophen (sp?) !! Anyway, they watch me closer now.

Welcome Wanderlust and Lisa! Good luck with your stimming. You have come to the right place.

I will try to post more later if not when I get back on Monday night! Have a great weekend ladies!!

[soccermom]

Annisabug-
I'm right after you Monday morning! I'm scheduled for 9:30! How funny is that???! OMG! We are staying over night Sunday too - leaving DD with my parents. Maybe we'll both be back there Friday morning for ET?! Small world my dear. Looking forward to getting these follies out - I'm so bloated...I nearly got out some preggo pants the other day for more
wiggle room.

Annashope -
Thanks for cheering me on - I can use all the good wishes & prayers! How are you doing? Numbers still falling?

[Emma839]

Annisabug & soccermom,
Congratulations for having gone so far. Having read the stories happened here, I realise a lot of things may go wrong during the cycle. Keep on your good job!

Dawga1257,
I guess that you are also approaching the stage where Annisabug and soccermom are now standing. Since I am new to the cycle, I don’t know many medical terms and abbreviations. Would you mind to write out the following abbreviations so that I can catch the detail better:
u/s, b/w, ER, RE, ET

wonderlust,
I agree with your approach for the doctor appointment. It is indeed not easy to keep everything in mind even though I can get a lot of info on the internet; they are info after all. An IVF treatment is very individually dependent stuff. I will try your way, not to watch, when I have to give the shot myself.

Lisa32,
Thank you for sharing. I am about to go through the 2 week nightmare. I will try to be relaxed and hope the suffering is not wasted.

Amanda1027,
It is indeed not nice to hear that you have to repeat after so much has been done. How are you now? Can you continue the treatment?

It took me a while to get back on track after 3-week vacation. Now, things start moving little by little, so do my IVF. Stopped taking pill last Thursday and the mc came last Saturday; it still on its course. I am expected to start the Puregon shot this Wed. Hb promised to give me the shot but I am not sure whether he can keep his promise because he is very busy lately. I hope that he keeps his promise anyway; otherwise, I have to do the shot myself… scared.

[lt81]

Went for my baseline scan today and have the greenlight to go. So had my first shot of Menopur courtesy of my DH and it was not too bad. A little sting but that was it, much better than I had imagined it would be - phew!

Emma89 - Abbreviations:

u/s - ultrasound
b/w - blood work
ET - embryo transfer
ER - egg retrieval

I think there is a list of them on the introductions page.

[Anissabug]

Hello ladies! Just a quick update for me..........went for ER this morning and had 18 eggs!!! that is the most so far! Just have to wait for the fert report tomorrow......hoping for at least 5 embies. We have decided to do a 3dt instead of 5day. We originally were staying the nite in Syracuse because we had tickets to the Justin Bieber concert at the NYS fair but when we got there yesterday morning at 9 am - we found out it was cancelled and rescheduled for Wednesday nite!! Needless to say we drove more then 2 hours there and back and went back this morning for our ER. Anyway - I am sore and tired so I will check back later or tomorrow with updates.


Soccermom and Amanda - Any updates??? Looking to see how you both are doing!

Baby dust to all and keep up the PMA!

[soccermom]

Holy Canoli Annisabug!
That's a lot of eggs! That's incredible!!! You go girl!! I kind of had a buzz kill when the embryologist told me I had 9 eggs - I certainly felt like I had way more in there. I had 13 mature follicles, and I guess tons of immature ones. I'm thinking maybe the Menopur helped keep my numbers lower than last time, since I did hyper stim. So...like you I'm waiting for tomorrow's phone call to hear how many become embryos ! I would assume if all goes well, we'll do a 5dt like last time. I'm definitely going to schedule an acupuncture session too, DH wants to try it out too - so we'll both be in a zen state post ET. I'll be feeling better than him though...since I'll have that valium flowing through my veins .
Sorry to hear about the concert, that stinks! Will you go back on Wednesday? Would your 3dt be Thursday?? You'll log a lot of miles this week! We stayed over last night & went out to dinner - felt so strange not having DD with us! However, it was nice to make it through a meal & have adult conversation - I think we both needed a date night.
Did Dr Kiltz do your ER? We had Dr Massey, he also did our fet back in July. He's a great guy, but I was hoping for Dr Kiltz.

It81 -
Congrats for getting started!!! The menopur really doesn't sting that bad at all - just enough to let you know it's going in! I've found it's the lead-up to the shot that is the worst part, b/c when it's done you say "oh, that was it??" Are you doing Lupron too or just Menopur at this point?