Nov/Dec Cycle for Baby #2 attempt?

[Neffi211]

Welcome Wendy! We definitely have some pros on this thread so you are welcome to all of our knowledge. I recommend learning alot of your procedure but not going crazy. I am an internet junkie when it comes to medical stuff and sometimes it just makes things worse. This thread is full of so many women that can answer your questions and it was honestly the only thing that got me through my first three IVF attempts. What is your story? How old are you and DH? How long have you been married? Do you live in mexico?

[kerpupples]

Welcome Wendy! I would say read everything you can until it stresses you out, then step back from that for a bit. Relaxation has really been one of the keys to success as well as not going crazy through this process for me.

Hi Michelle! Looking forward to cycling with you this round. Sorry to see you've had a string of disappointments. I remember being so envious that your first IVF worked. My Morgan is 2 1/2 now, my how the time flies!

[claud662]

I'm on my phone so I can't write too much but I wanted to say a big helllo to Michelle!!!! I can't wait to hear from you and your upcoming cycle!!

[CT_Michele]

Oh boy, I promised personals and now it is waaaaaaay past my bedtime! I will definitely hit you guys up tomorrow! Neffi, I think at u/s this morning they said my right side "looked" ovulatory," whatever that means. But then bw said no, I didn't yet. Very common, I don't track my cycle. I imagine bw monday will be fine. Then I should start lupron. My real meds should arrive tomorrow. I am most worried about dh and his THIRD tese. It will be done under anesthesia this time, with no gaurantees we will get anything.

Ok, more tomorrow, I seriously need to sleep or I will be a zombie teacher tomorrow!

[LYD10]

Hi everyone, it's definitely good to see some familiar faces on here! I am on my 6th ivf. It took 2 cycles to get baby 1 and here is hoping that 6th ivf will get us baby 2. I am on BCPs right now, starting Lupron on saturday.

[SueQiwi]

Hiya--I recognize a lot of you on here! I just had my 5th IVF canceled due to only one follicle. Very devastating to take all the injections and not even get to collection. And get this--I still had to do trigger shot and pessaries for 2 week wait as the Doc told us when to have sex in hopes of a miracle. But sadly it did not work.

I've always had at least 5 follies--I'm worried that my body may just be too old now (im 42). Or maybe it was the DHEA I took for 16 weeks before the cycle. That is really the only thing I did differently. Super disappointed as I thought the DHEA would help me get tons more follies and eggs! Has anybody heard of DHEA negatively affecting follicle count?

Glad we can all be here to support each other. It is much different doing IVF for number 2--not as much free time to obsess or Google! But I am finding the stress and disappointments are just as bad. That desire for a baby is just as strong.

[claud662]

Good afternoon ladies!!! Hope your all doing well! I have a minute to post while my daughter is napping (or at least playing in her crib for the remainder of her nap!)

As her first birthday is quickly approaching (next weekend) my baby itch is getting stronger and stronger and even though I VOWED to myself and DH that I wouldn't obsess about getting pregnant for the first year I feel that nagging obsessive feeling starting to grow inside! My latest stress is that I'm supposed to get my AF the end of December and want to do a natural transfer (no shots and they regulate my natural ovulation) but I have a work thing on January 7th-January 8th where I have to stay over in NYC and that will probably fall right around the time I am going to ovulate I can try and get out of the work thing (but they are paying for me to be the chaperone for teens seeing a broadway show and doing an educational workshop) or I can suck it up and wait for my January period and just delay for the month! I know option B is the way to go but I am going to ask my RE depending on when December AF arrives if it's possible to do without that morning monitoring!

LYD-I think we cycled before together and I'm hoping this is lucky #6!

Michelle-still can't wait to hear your update...

Neffi-As someone with lining issues I've got everything crossed for you.

Sue-so sorry that you had nothing at retrieval. I can only imagine your dissapointment and frustration. What are your next steps?

Wendy-Acupuncture was a huge help for me the last time I did IVF that helped me relax. I was an obsessive googler and that drove me crazy!!

Hope you all have a great weekend and can't wait to hear updates

[CT_Michele]

Ok, work week done, cranky toddler in bed, few minutes before dh gets home = time for update and personals!

Alexis- thank you for starting this thread! During my last cycle back in april, I was so excited to come back on the boards and I started my month's thread nice and early and attempted running "the tracker list." Silly me! The thread ended up with 30 plus people and with a full time job, a photography business to run and a toddler at home I could not keep up! I like that this thread will probably be smaller and more intimate. I also agree 100% about the pain of infertility after the first child. The first time I did IVF, I didn't know what I was missing. After having Ella, I long for those euphoric days at the hospital and the joy of becoming a mother. I want that feeling again, worse than ever. I also love Ella to pieces and REALLY want her to have a sibling!

Oh, also, I have only ever done 3 day transfers. My RE feels most of the time, that the embryos do better in their "natural incubator." He only does day five if it is a selection process for quality reasons.

Neffi- Girl! So glad to see you here! We did this together once, we can do it again! Can't believe our bumpin' fall 08 babies are full blown toddlers already! Crazy how time flies!

LYD10- I know we have crossed paths a bunch too! I hope you get baby 2 this time too!

Claud- another familiar face! I think I have been on these boards for too long! LOL It seems I have "met" everyone!

Kerpupples, Sue, brit - so glad to see all of you too! Looking forward to getting through this with all of you!

Ok, so the update. Tried a fresh cycle back in april with the frozen sperm we had from Ella's cycle and they only got 5 eggs b/c they couldn't get to one side to retrieve. They think b/c of scar tissue from c-sec or weight. None of the five fertilized. It was devastating. And retrieval was physically the most painful I have ever had. I was almost on bed rest in pain for 5 days. My RE said at preliminary u/s that he foresees the same problem with that side. I am terrified of it happening again. All of that for not even a glimmer of hope.

DH has been taking HCG injections for about 5 months. Research had shown that it could increase sperm production. While it has naturally increased his testosterone, still no spermies in sample. He is gearing up for what will probably be his 3rd and final TESE. This time it needs be in the OR under anesthesia. He is getting medical clearance/physical this tuesday for that. We are planning a fresh tese the day before retrieval. Very risky. If they find nothing, my cycle is a bust and I don't even make it to egg retreival. DH and I are not ready to say yes to donor backup sperm.

I went this past thursday for u/s and bw to make sure I ovulated so I could start lupron. Of course, I hadn't ovulated. I need to go back for bw monday morning. As long as it shows ovulation, I should be starting lupron. I would be starting meds December 1st, retrieval week is the week of december 12th. My big ol' box of meds came yesterday.

I am scared this time around. I am not sure we are even ready to have another baby considering we just moved and I am mid school year, finances, etc, but I know that I need to just keep trying and everything else will work out. Like someone else said, I wanted my babies close in age, but things didn't work out that way. I am not sure how many more times I can try, physically and emotionally.

Ok, I have a bazillion things to do and I really just want to go to sleep! I will check in again soon!

[Neffi211]

YAY! Started my estrace and Viagra today! Come On LINING! in ten days we will know if this works! The vaginal viagra is going to be a mess, I can tell already. The pharmacist said "you should lay down for 30 mins after" well thats not happening since I have to do it 4 times a day! I do have work, and toddler and a life....so looks like its just going to be messy and I hope that my body absorbs enough of it to make a difference!

Michele- this is it, I know what you mean of having that longing for a second child and this is our last attempt so I hope it works, if not it's back to waiting on adoption.....but who knows if that will ever work out either. I have been thinking about the day that I may have to come to terms with having an only child....it's very upsetting to me, but it may be a reality, and I am blessed for what I have.

This is going to be a nice board! I am excited for the days of the BFP posts. Maybe since this is a smaller board, we can set some sort of record will ALL BFPs!

[alexis]

Hello again ladies! I feel so bad I haven't been on for almost a week; crazy! I do find with a toddler at home, it's much harder to squeeze in extra minutes on the computer (but so valuable and worth it when I do of course)! It sounds like many of you already know each other from past cycles; that's great! I too hope that this string will have a record of BFPs! Isn't it amazing how we have this huge life issue in common and yet we all have different paths/stories for how we got to this day? I've been reading more about infertility and finally accepted that I have infertility. Reading more about infertility and all of the emotions around it has really been helping me for this current cycle!

I, too, am worried about the financial stress of a 2nd child (or twins for that matter)! Don't you feel like you are playing the odds so much when you decide how many embryos to put back in? I hate reading all of the statistics and trying to figure out what is best to do based on percentages!

Welcome to our newcomers! I look forward to getting to know you gals better as we go through this together!

SueQiwi- I'm so sorry to hear about your last cycle being cancelled. I can only imagine how devastating and frustrating that is to go through all of the injections and not have the results you need to continue with the cycle. You do everything right and then mother nature seems to have a different plan; it's so NOT FAIR!

LYD10- Welcome to the board! Did you start your Lupron today? I sure hope this cycle provides you with baby #2

Wendy- Welcome also! Going into your first IVF is very scary at times and there are just so many unknowns out there. I just recently looked back to my journaling from my first IVF and it's amazing how wonderful it was going through it the first time. We were super lucky and got pregnant with our first IVF with our son; it was a great experience all around. Trying for baby #2 has proved much more difficult for us, but as you can see from all the wonderful ladies on here, we are here to support each other through this. Many of the women have been through multiple IVF cycles and once you have that one amazing child, you absolutely know that all these fertility treatments will be worth it if it helps us get our baby #2. It can be painful along the way, but it will all be worth it in the end!

Michele- Welcome back! It sounds like you know quite a few people here, so that must be comforting for all of you! We will be here to cheer you on as well:)

Brit- Welcome also! I have of course already checked out your website; very nice! I look forward to hearing when you start your cycle this time.

Kerpupples- Great to hear from you too. Do you have an estimate when your transfer will be? When do they do the chromosomal testing on the embryos (it sounds like that has already been done?)

You know what I love about this thread? Each of us definitely have a success story to share (even amongst the difficulty we are going through now or with past cycles). I am so encouraged to hear about so many successful FETs. That's so awesome! Aren't we so lucky to be around with all of the great technology that is out there?

Neffi- Awesome that you started your estrace and viagra today! You mentioned in 10 days you'll know if this works; how often are you monitored over the next 10 days? Keep us posted!

Claudia- I can totally relate to the stress of when to cycle or whether to postpone a cycle for a month or not. I travel some for work, so it makes it more stressful to cycle during heavier travel times. I also tell myself I don't want work to interfere with my personal life (and baby making serious efforts!) Over Thanksgiving, we are staying here instead of visiting family due to this cycle. At first, I researched getting monitored remotely in MN, but that option quickly become cost prohibitive (and honestly, it was too stressful to worry about).

I hope I didn't miss anybody (and if I did I'm so sorry!).

AFM, started my Gonal F on Thursday night (with my Lupron). So far, feeling just fine. I had a consult with my doctor after our last two failed cycles and so now we are going back to the protocol that worked for the cycle with my son. Fingers crossed it's the magic protocol for us. I think ER will be on November 28th.

Here's a question for you guys; what is it like in the waiting room of your clinic? Mine is beautiful and comfortably furnished, but I'm telling you, there is so much tension in that room you could cut it with a knife! Nobody talks to each other and you can just tell that everybody is in pain. It makes me sad to see. It's a little easier for me now though (knowing we've had success in the past); I truly believe this will work. It may just take a few tries!

Ok, time for me to get to bed! Thinking of all of you and hope to hear from you soon!

[Happy Bunny]

Hi ladies, I've been following along during my cycle. I didn't post about my cycle because I just can't... It's too hard for me to talk about it while it's happening.

You'll probably look at my sig and think that we're nuts but due to my age, my ability to stay home and our current financial situation, we decided to go for #2 rather quickly.

I am stunned... Literally stunned that it worked. Last time, we had a 5dt of two awesome blasts. This time, we got the call that we had to come in for a 3dt because we only had 3/14 still going at Day 3. Although my doctor was optimistic and kind and said that we had a good chance, all that I could hear was "THESE EMBRYOS ARE HORRIBLE, IT'S NEVER GOING TO WORK". We transferred 3 (1 best quality and two "just under that" according to the doctor). I felt really defeated that we didn't get the awesome blast transfer that we had with Brooke. I immediately began to obsess.

Last time, I didn't POAS but this time, I did. I first peed at 6d93dt and it was BFN. I probably read every thread on the internet posted since 2003. Of course, I might have read that 2000 women tested BFN on 6dp3dt and went on to get a BFP but all that I could focus on was the few women who got theirs on that day and determine that our IVF didn't work.

We still have numerous hurdles to face before this pregnancy makes it to the viable determination but I'm going to try to accept the happiness every day instead of trying to calculate our odds for bad news.

[Neffi211]

Happy Bunny- Congrats on you BFP on HPTs. I don't think you are crazy at all! I did and IVF cycle when my DS was 10 weeks old! I got a BFP but m/c at 9 weeks. Now DS is almost 3 and here we are still trying for #2. Congrats again! When is your beta?

[Happy Bunny]

Neffi: My beta is Tuesday. Even though I've got + HPTs, I still can't help but to feel some concern. It's as if I expect the pregnancy to be taken away any minute (I was like that with Brooke too). Infertility does odd things to one's optimism, aye?

Alexis: The waiting room at our RE is pretty much the same... Tension filled. There's hardly even any eye contact. I try to limit taking Brooke there but I do when it's just a blood work appointment. I feel like a real jerk taking a little baby into a waiting room at a fertility clinic. On one hand, maybe others see it as a sign of our doctor's success but I cringe thinking about the women who may be there for a WTF appointment.

[thirdtime]

I am also planning on doing the retreival aspiration and then freeze and implant next September but do the freeze part now? How does it work when you freeze? Can you email me at srshore24@aol.com I really need someone to talk to about this before I make a decision

[berryla]

I invite you to join us over there. Best of luck.