on to IVF- confused and nervous

i had and ivf with Dr Rausch at north shore..and since im execpting AF in a week we have to make our decision on whether we want to satrt our first IVF cycle. i know everyone is diffrent and they didnt mention anything to me about BCP (i noticed some ladies started with that). they said to call and set up my cycle, is that when i start lurpon shots? then basically its just of month of meds til i get AF again? aprox how long after that is the ER and transfer? i do not have many days left at work and trying to figure this all out.
Also at what point does DH go in for a sample for them to freeze?
sorry for all the questions just very stressed about all this.

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

i do not have many answers regarding IVF, but since you are saying you are still deciding on it, tell us what your dx is. So, you mentioned DH has varicocele. Any issues besides it?

Good luck!

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

nope no other issues. he was a heavy smoker so at first thats why we thought his SA results werent that great. After the 3rd failed IUI he went to see a urologist and was diagnosed with varicecole. thanks !!!!

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

i see. what are his numbers?
did you do umedicated or medicated IUIs?

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

i forgot what his numbers were, they have been gettting better since he stopped smoking. as for my iui's they were unmedicated. so i have never been in fertility meds which scares me also.

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

hm.. i am not an expert, but i think that if his numbers are getting better and you have no issues, IVF might be something not to be rushed into were you monitored for IUIs? Were you ovulating normally? Did you try back to back IUIs? again, i am not an expert, there are girls here who are much more knowledgeable on this.

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

i appreciate all your feedback...thanks again.
we tried back to back iui's and i was monitoried. i did ovulate naturally also.i guess they were getting better but not great. they said it usually takes a few months. but then the whole variceole thing came up.

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

IVF maximizes your chances of conceiving much more than IUIs or clomid cycles Depends how aggressive you want to be. I chose IVF after 3 failed IUIs but did another IUI while waiting for certain tests to come back. At that point, I was done with IUIs and was READY for IVF. But that’s ME , everyone is different and goes at their OWN pace. No one should be rushed into something like this.

What meds and how long your cycle with be, depends on your protocol and dx.
Your Dr. should go over all of that with you on your CD 3 apt. BCPs didn’t work for me, so GOD FORBID I need another IVF I would do a antagonist protocol and would start with lupron and FSH and skip the BCP. Count on 6 weeks, as a general rule.

I took one day off from work for ER and 2 days off from work for the ET. Most docs do not recommend bed rest anymore so you could get away with just 2 days off. All the monitoring I did in the AM before work, hopefully your clinic will have early morning hours. I would ask. You may luck out and have one of the days fall on a wknd

As far as freezing sperm, I didn’t do that. DH gave a sample day of. I think they only do that if they anticipate a problem with getting a collection day of. Again something to ask your RE.

IVF is scary, it’s a roller coaster of emotions, but it also is a lot more managble then I thought. Lean on your DH, friends and family and us ! Best of luck to you !!!

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

your protocol may be BCP or may be lupron. i did BCP for three and a half weeks, then started stims a few days later. i just had my retrieval today and it's 42 days since my last cycle ended. so by the time it's all said and done and beta is in it will be a total of 55 days for the whole cycle.

IVF is weird. once i got over the decision to actually do it, i thought for me it wouldnt be a big deal, just a glorified IUI/TI cycle. my meds previously didn't seem that much different. now that i'm in the thick of it, it is def more grueling than a regular cycle. you are monitored more intensely and the hormone levels are a lot higher and overall its just more intense. theres a lot more meds overall, especially after the ER/ET.

i took one day off for ER which was today. i am SO thrilled that its a friday and i have the weekend to recover, although i really feel OK right now. so far i only took one day off for ET, but i'll do what i have to do to make sure i give myself the best chances of this working.

my DH didnt freeze any sperm either. he gave a fresh sample today. it took him less than 3 minutes . but if you have specific issues that require a frozen sample, i am sure your doctor will work with you to arrange it.

anyway wishing you tons of luck!!!

Re: on to IVF- confused and nervous

thank you guys so much. i am being put on lurpon not bcps i called the nurse yesterday just to get an idea of dates (mre how many days in btw each so i know). i go to NSUH and work in downtown nyc so thats tough. so i can make sure notto plan any important meetings on the important days. my cycles are normally 27-28 days. so with that should be getting AF next week. i know this might sound scrazy but we havent told anyone besides my parents at this point....just nervous. i guess we are going to have to esp since the ER and ET are bigger procedueres. thanks for the well wishes and wish everyone one of you the best!