New to IVF - nervous!

hello! I think I'm "officially" going to be doing IVF, though DH and I haven't specifically said so yet. We visited the infertility specialist about a month ago and went back today for a hysteroscopy to check my uterus for fibroids. the doctor said everything was good, though he did have to remove some tissue. DH said he was given mixed news on semen analysis (though he didn't fully understand what they said and I was still groggy from the anesthesia that I didn't pursue it). However dr. said that due to one ovary not working fully, DH's mixed sperm situation and our ages (40 & 41), IVF was the best way to go.

they gave me a birth control pill prescription and ran through the prices with me and asked if we wanted to start for march.

So many questions....

How many IVF cycles does it typically take? I guess prob there is no typical. but we need to figure out whether to buy the cycles a la carte or buy the "3-cycle pack"

I heard there are shots - how many and how often?

I've seen people mention acupuncture with IVF - why? what is this for? is it a typical thing to do along with IVF?

How does stress impact IVF? Concerned b/c work is stressful and busy season is in summer.

thanks for reading everyone - I'm nervous and excited and bracing myself in case things don't work out, though I don't want to go into it with a negative view I also feel very cautious due to my age and our combined reproductive issues.

So grateful to have this board to read up on others' journeys and ask questions

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

I'm not much help because I'm in the same boat you are. We are going for IVF consultation at the end of March (soonest appointment we could get!). I just wanted to wish you the best of luck!! I know its very scary. I'm nervous myself and would love to know what to do expect.

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

good luck to you too! i have a feeling once we go through one cycle we will feel much more comfortable

i just read an article that my specialist sent me on age and successful implantations. for someone my age it's very low 6.1%

we got married about 3.5 yrs ago. i was just not ready (i was on the fence about having kids at all). even though I knew age would be a big factor, i thought the responsible thing was to wait till i was certain i wanted a kid. now i kinda wish i'd gone for it even if i wasn't ready. not gonna dwell on that too much b/c i did what i thought was right for me, but i can't help but think about it.

Anyway, I will see what fate has in store for us!

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

It took me 1 fresh and 1 frozen cycle before I got pregnant. There really is no way of knowing if it will work for you the first time or not. As for howmany shots it depends on your protocol. I was on four different shots in total the whole cycle but not all at once. The type and number of shots real depends on what your issues are and also how you respond to the meds. Once I started shots I pretty much had to take at least onea day, usually more during the whole cycle until egg retrieval. I didn't do acupuncture so I can't help there . Good luck with everything

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

Posted by karabara

good luck to you too! i have a feeling once we go through one cycle we will feel much more comfortable

i just read an article that my specialist sent me on age and successful implantations. for someone my age it's very low 6.1%

we got married about 3.5 yrs ago. i was just not ready (i was on the fence about having kids at all). even though I knew age would be a big factor, i thought the responsible thing was to wait till i was certain i wanted a kid. now i kinda wish i'd gone for it even if i wasn't ready. not gonna dwell on that too much b/c i did what i thought was right for me, but i can't help but think about it.

Anyway, I will see what fate has in store for us!

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

Just want too say that th time you waited was a good choice. If you were on the fence abouthaving children, I think you made the right decision in waiting. Good for you for carefully thinking it through!!

As far as your questions, there's no way to know how many cycles it will take. The Dr can give you plenty of statistics and may say that many women in your situation get pg within 3 trries but some will only take 1 and some might take 4. Theres just no way to know :(

for the shots, every protocol is different but I had 2 or 3 every night for 12 nights in my belly. I had another in my behind for 3 nights. They are not bad.. you get used to it and there are techniques for making it easier.

Accupunctuire for some women is to help with egg quality. Personally I did it for stress relief. The accupuncturinst told me she did a lot to "move energy" the right way and it has a lot to do with your chi. My husband is a complete non believer but I am. It helped me learn to meditate and just be in a better state mentally. Many studies show an increased success for women who do accupuncture with IVF as well.

Regarding stress, you want to learn to get a handle on that overall because IVF can be stressful with appointmets and time sensitive medication on top of the anticipation/worry that everything's going ok. My advice is to learn to best manage your stress because it might add a bit to your daily routine.

GOOD LUCK!!!!

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

thanks for the luck and support, everyone beanie, that is so encouraging! i have some questions out to my doctor so hopefully i can get some answers early next week. i started taking BCP just in case we decide to go ahead with it in the next cycle. DH is very discouraged by the statistics, and I can understand why. But we will see...
Journey, I can see how stress mgt will be key. I felt very stressed just before my Hysteroscopy, partly b/c of the not knowing what they would find, but also I don't really like medical procedures.

Hugs to all!

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

Re: New to IVF - nervous!

Acupuncture can help egg and semen quality, and aid in stress relief. Most importantly, it can increase your chances of a successful transfer by 65%. Of the 4 IVF cycles I have completed, 3 of them I did acupuncture and all 3 cycles I ended up with a BFP (4 embryos total between the 3 cycles, all 4 took - 2 of them ended in miscarriage though). My first cycle I did not do acupuncture and transferred 2 perfect embies, neither took. Needless to say, I am a firm believer!

Re: New to IVF - nervous!