37 replies to this topic

[Thehappyvet]

 

Not all all - don't even mention it

I've read so much about Greece, Cyprus and the Czech Republic on here - I didn't know anything about overseas clinics until I started browsing this forum and I find it really amazing that people share all sorts of helpful information with each other.

 

I had second thoughts in the beginning, but then I discussed it in several forums. People were sharing their own experiences about the clinics I was considering. I also did a research on my own and contacted many clinics, and this is how I finally decided, but the forums were indeed a great help! 

[Lilly.moon]

To me, being a mother has been more important than physically experiencing the pregnancy.  Having a biological connection from at least my husband's gene would be nice...but I think the fact that we can hopefully be loving parents to a child who otherwise will not have any...outweighs the biological connection.

I understand. At the end of the day, each person will/should do what feels right for them.
I posted a new thread last week asking about supplements but haven't gotten any replies, so I will ask you. My Dr. Prescribed DHEA (Dehydroepiandrosterone); I did some research online and although some research suggests it could improve IVF outcomes, there haven't been that many studies to really back this, and so I've decided that I don't want to put something into my body that hasn't been studied that much. After all, I am 40 years old with DOR and we all know that the older you get, the poorer quality your eggs are, so taking supplements that are supposed to change the outcome of this natural course of life seems unrealistic to me.
Will you be taking supplements? Has your Dr. spoken to you about how important it is?

I've been to two fertility clinics here in Vancouver and the doctors at both clinics recommended DHEA for my DOR. So I decided to take it.  My sister is a naturopath and she also recommends it to her patients as anti aging supplement regardless of whether they are going thru IVF or not.  
 
Have you read the book called, "It starts with the egg"?  There is a chapter on DHEA for DOR.  It says DHEA does not just increase the number of eggs and embryos; it also appears to boost live birth rates by reducing chromosomal abnormalities in eggs.  Yes the major criticism for DHEA is that some doctors regard it as "experimental" and that the "gold standard" clinical trials typically used for pharmaceutical drug approval have not been done on DHEA.  Most studies to date have only compared DHEA treatment to each woman's previous IVF cycle or to a matched group of patients not taking DHEA, rather than randomly assigning a large group of women to take DHEA.  
 
Personally, with DOR, where time is running out of time to get pregnant, I cannot afford to wait for a proper trial to be done on a large group.  As far as side effects are concerned,  because DHEA is thought to increase testosterone, it may have side effects related to male hormones, including oily skin, acne, hair loss and facial hair growth.  Fortunately, I have not had any of the side effects.  
 
And about changing the outcome of the natural aging course of life...or what i thought of as "playing God"......aren't we already doing that by deciding to go thru IVF?  We are injecting our bodies with strong hormonal medications to force our ovaries to grow follicles to produce as many eggs as possible than just one....then fertilizing them outside of our ovaries....freezing...thawing.... The whole IVF process is certainly going against natural course of conceiving especially for women like us in our 40s...beyond the normal child bearing age. Plus I think IVF medicine and injections have far worse side effects on our body than supplements like DHEA.  
 
Ultimately, you need to do what makes you comfortable...and you may be a bit late in taking DHEA for your upcoming IVF anyways...because they say it takes several months for it to have a beneficial effect.  So maybe just wait and see how your first IVF goes?

I haven't read that book but I've seen it mentioned in this forum and was thinking of ordering it.
And you are right about us changing the natural course of things by opting for IVF - it doesn't just apply to the DHEA, but I just didn't feel comfortable with it after having done some research online and so I decided not to take it. I'm going to start Estrace on the 26th and pray that it will work the 1st cycle, and I wish the same for you

I just came back from my injection training...and my head is spinning.  I start my injections tomorrow.  The other thing I'm going to be doing during IVF is to go dairy and gluten free.  I hear it helps...especially with keeping any inflammation down.  Keep me posted on how things go with your IVF and I'll do the same.

Hi psjamie, how are your injections going?

[psjamie]

Going better than I thought! The needles are pretty small and they do not hurt that much. Menopur burns a little but I took other womens advice and went very slow when injecting and that helped a lot. My husband and I just realized we should have refrigerated Saizen once mixed but we have kept it out at room temperature. Oops! I have my blood test tomorrow morning to check my estradiol level. How are you?

[Lilly.moon]

Going better than I thought! The needles are pretty small and they do not hurt that much. Menopur burns a little but I took other womens advice and went very slow when injecting and that helped a lot. My husband and I just realized we should have refrigerated Saizen once mixed but we have kept it out at room temperature. Oops! I have my blood test tomorrow morning to check my estradiol level. How are you?

Glad to hear its going good so far, and I hope it stays like this. I'm supposed to start Estrace on the 26th and I'm nervous - I just hope everything goes well.
If I'm not mistaken, you're supposed to inject until you ovulate, correct? How many days do you have to inject for?

[psjamie]

I was told that they will see how my blood test goes to see how many days they need me to continue with injection and/or change up my mediCation. I also have ultrasound on Wednesday.

[Lilly.moon]

I was told that they will see how my blood test goes to see how many days they need me to continue with injection and/or change up my mediCation. I also have ultrasound on Wednesday.

I look fwd to reading your updates!

[psjamie]

The nurses just called to say my blood test from this morning looks "alright" and that they want me to stay on exact same dosage for all 4 injections and return to do ultrasound and another blood test on Wednesday.  Feeling a bit relieved that my body is responding to medications ok and that my cycle did not get canceled due to slow response or lack of response.  

[Lilly.moon]

The nurses just called to say my blood test from this morning looks "alright" and that they want me to stay on exact same dosage for all 4 injections and return to do ultrasound and another blood test on Wednesday.  Feeling a bit relieved that my body is responding to medications ok and that my cycle did not get canceled due to slow response or lack of response.

That's great news! Keep the updates coming.

[Thehappyvet]

The nurses just called to say my blood test from this morning looks "alright" and that they want me to stay on exact same dosage for all 4 injections and return to do ultrasound and another blood test on Wednesday.  Feeling a bit relieved that my body is responding to medications ok and that my cycle did not get canceled due to slow response or lack of response.  

I'm so glad to hear that! 

[psjamie]

Just had my ultrasound and unfortunately they only see 4 follicles....so I will be doing two more days of injections and coming back for one more ultrasound this Friday. I was hopeful that they would see more...but as they say quality over quantity and it only takes one.

[Lilly.moon]

Just had my ultrasound and unfortunately they only see 4 follicles....so I will be doing two more days of injections and coming back for one more ultrasound this Friday. I was hopeful that they would see more...but as they say quality over quantity and it only takes one.

How many follicles do they want to see? If it's quality over quantity, shouldn't 4 be okay?

[psjamie]

Well...given that all of the follicles don't necessarily yield 4 good quality eggs....and ultimately to top grade embryo.  I was hoping to see at least 7...which is the AFC before I started IVF.  

[Thehappyvet]

but as they say quality over quantity and it only takes one.

Keep that in mind, and keep your spirits high