115 replies to this topic

[ociwoman]

Thank ladies. BTW, love your quotes Bubby99. So positive and forward thinking!

[Faile]

I just wanted to send you the best of luck xx you are the one that inspired me to go to Europe to do my Donor IVF you deserve the best !!

I start my journey on the 13th the day I hope starts the beginning of you next 9 month journey

xxFaile

[Adventure]

Good luck with your beta tomorrow. I hope you get a beautiful Valentine's day surprise!

[miracles2323]

Hello,

This is my first time writing a post on a forum so please forgive me for mistakes etc.  I had to write because I was so inspired by Ociwoman's story.  I first read it in September/October 2013 when I was considering the use of donor eggs. I am 44 years old and have been trying to have a baby for the last 4 years.  I started my first IVF in February 2012 and had 3 subsequent IVF's until May, 2013.  It was excruciating!  

 

I thought I would do another IVF in September, 2013 but my husband told me that he wanted to move on to donor eggs.  I had just turned 44 and was still reluctant to do it hoping that I could have a biological child.  However, I started researching online and came across Ociwoman's post.  I live in France where it is illegal to use donor eggs so I had the choice of going to Greece or Spain.  I decided on Greece for a few reasons.  First, I thought the Greek would look closer to me and second, I liked what Ociwoman had said.

 

I was so glad that she mentioned IVF Treatment Abroad (http://www.ivftreatmentabroad.com). I contacted Ruth (the ivf nurse coordinator) who I feel like I have been in contact with everyday since October.  Ruth is AMAZING!  She is more than competent.  She is personable, understanding, kind, encouraging and supportive.  I can add many more adjectives to describe her but none would be able to tell you how much I appreciated working with her.

 

Like Occiwoman, my first FET cycle was canceled because of lining issues.  We started the second cycle about 4 weeks ago.  Ruth switched me to estrogen patches, gave me a longer period to take them and I had the transfer done on February 7th.  We transferred 2 embryos (one was already hatching).  I found out yesterday that I am pregnant!!  This is the first time in my life that I am pregnant and it feels wonderful. I can't thank Ruth or Iakentro enough.

 

I want to tell you about the clinic.  At first, I was so scared to go away to a country I had never been to and get medical treatment.  But again, reading Ociwoman's post I felt more comfortable.  Everything she said was right.  It was clean and professional.  We gave the sperm in Athens and did the transfer in Thessaloniki.  We chose Thessaoniki because Ruth recommended a 4 star hotel where we could stay at a discounted rate.  Taking no chances, we stayed for 5 days after the transfer just to relax.  The Hyatt Regency was great.  The clinic was great.  It was state of the art in terms of the equipment, the transfer technique and the people.  Vasso was the coordinator in Greece.  She explained the transfer process and stayed in the room when we did the transfer.  I cried and she told told me that it was ok.  She reassured me that a lot of women do. I have the first pic of my kid(s) at 5 days blastocyst! We also met with the embyologist who created our baby(ies).

 

The other thing that I liked about Iakentro was that there is 1 price for everything.  It is not like in Spain where you are given a list of prices and you are not sure how much it will be in the end.  With Iakentro, it is all included (except for your medication).  Even the freezing is included for 5 years.  We still have 2 embryos that we can use later.  This took the pressure off of me.  In Spain, I felt like I was a number.  It seems to be the highway to donor eggs.  In Greece, with IVF Treatment Abroad and Iakentro, I felt like a person.

 

I guess I should stop now.  My fingers are crossed for Ociwoman.  I hope she gets positive news.  But I must tell her that I am FOREVER grateful to her for helping me by posting.  I intend to post everywhere I can so that I can do the same for others.

[ociwoman]

Hi miracles2323,

 

Congraluations on your BFP! That is beautiful news!

 

I am truly touched by your post. Thank you for your kind words, and ABSOLUTELY spread the word about Iakentro and ivftreatmentabroad.com. Ruth is a lovely supportive woman. I wish every person requiring treatment had a person like Ruth on their side. I really don't know how we would have done it without her.  

 

I continue to have nothing but INCREDIBLE things to say about Iakentro. We received such personal care and I know that my treatment was very carefully considered - especially when my lining was not cooperating. Unlike many other clinics, Iakentro was not complacent and did not just keep trying the same thing over and over. They adjusted my protocol each time and for this last cycle we had a kick-asse lining due to their top-notch protocol. (If some of you recall, I had to cancel two cycles since October due to my resistant lining.) 

 

Sadly, I got a BFN this cycle (have done one fresh donor cycle and one donor FET now). We have three embryos left and are not sure we will continue trying. There are possibililities to do other tests to figure out what went wrong (bad luck? immune issues? sperm issues?) but my heart really isn't in it right now. I miss living a normal happy life - free of drugs and schedules and tests. I know that everybody knows exactly what I mean by that. Perhaps time will tell us what to do next.

 

Thank you so much for your post miracles2323. And a big thank you to a handful of women on here that have routed for me all along - you know who you are and I am so grateful to you for your encouragement.

 

Hugs to everyone.

[miracles2323]

Dear Ociwoman,

 

I am so sorry to hear about the BFN.  I wish there was something I could say to help ease your disappointment.  We all have been there and know what it is like.  We also know what it is like to want to have a normal life again. It is so hard. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.  Please know that you will always mean a lot to me even though we have never met. We all have our own story and you are a big part of mine.

 

Bon courage (as we say in French)!

[miracles2323]

Dear Ociwoman,

I told you before that everyone has their own story.  Mine continues. Today, I am having a miscarriage.

 

Two weeks ago, I went in for a scan and they detected 1 sac and the baby had a heartbeat.  My doctor thought that the heartbeat at 6 weeks and 5 days was a little slow (106) and advised me to have bed rest.  I did. I came back 10 days later and the heartbeat had stopped and the baby stopped growing.  Ruth asked me to get a second opinion 5 days later and it came back with the same result.  I stopped the medications a few days ago and today I started the miscarriage.

 

All of my doctors (my regular ivf doctor and the two ultrasound doctors) have told me that it was bad luck.  Many women have miscarriages and donor eggs makes it no different.  They said that everything about the sac, my uterus, blood etc were normal and that it was more than likely there was a problem with the embryo.

 

I went from complete bliss to utter hell.  What I thought was my solution (DE) seems to be a harder road than I thought.  I can't begin to describe the emotional pain in the last week and, today, the physical pain is just as great. I am thankful for this natural miscarriage but every time I go the bathroom my heart breaks.

 

Ruth is as always great.  I called her last saturday to tell her the news.  She picked up right away and gave me immediate advice and comfort. She has been supportive this last week and responds to emails very quickly.  Even today (Sunday) when I emailed to her that I began bleeding she responded quickly. I have not given up on DE (we have 2 embryos left) nor have I given up on IVF Treatment Abroad (Ruth).  

 

I don't know when I will do it again because you have to wait at least 2 more cycles before you try again.  I can't make any decisions now because it is just too raw. I just know that the story continues...

[ociwoman]

Oh Miracles, I am so sorry this is happening to you. This must be incredibly difficult. I hope you are taking good care of yourself and that you have support. From what I have read, it is good to wait a few months after a m/c to allow the uterus to rest. Perhaps you can take the time to collect yourself and then start to plan another transfer in late Spring?

 

I agree that Ruth is incredibly supportive and informative. We are all lucky to have her. Actually, I was just speaking with her on Monday about my own situation and she said a very similar thing: all boils down to having the right embryo. Even with donor eggs, there is no guarantee... We will be trying again in the early fall with our remaining embryos. Needed to have a break, but haven't given up!

 

I wish you all the best and please do keep updating your story. I hope that both of us will be able to finish our stories with beautiful babies in our arms.

 

Prends soin de toi et bonne chance. 

xxxx

[ideagirl]

I'm so sorry, Miracles. I wish you the best of luck with your remaining embryos.

 

In case anyone cares, I just wanted to mention that donor-egg IVF is actually perfectly legal in France--it's just that the law is stupid (much as it is in Canada) so in practical terms it is almost impossible to do DE IVF. As in Canada compensation is totally prohibited, so there is a severe shortage of donors. And then on top of that, absolute anonymity is required, so for instance, even if your sister or best friend wants to be a donor for you, she can't. All she can do is come with you to the clinic, donate her eggs to an anonymous couple, and as a result move you to the top of the list for getting donor eggs from some other woman. So, French women who need donor eggs generally go to Greece, Spain or the Czech Republic. I so wish the laws in places like France and Canada would change to make this more straightforward!

[miracles2323]

Thanks Ociwmoman and ideagirl.  It has been a hard couple of weeks.  The miscarriage started naturally (and painfully) but did not end.  I just found out today that even though I am no longer bleeding there is still some sac tissue remaining and I need to have it expelled.  Not looking forward to another round of pain.

 

Ociwoman, I, like you, need a break.  I just want to finish this process and return to normal.  I want to be who I used to be from a few years ago.  I want to stop being consumed by this whole thing. I am taking these next few months to "return to normal".

 

We won't start again until the end of summer and then back in Greece in September for the 2nd transfer. By then it will be 1 year since I read your posts online.  I can't believe it turned out that way.  I thought for sure that this was the solution. I still hope it is.

 

Ideagirl, you are right about DE in France.  What is illegal, though, is that a French doctor cannot advise you where to go in Europe (or elsewhere) to get DE. Doctors can face criminal charges and up to 80,000 euros in fines.  France needs to change.

 

Thanks a million for all of your support.  Let's keep on keeping on...

[ideagirl]

That's completely crazy that French doctors can't advise you where to go! They can certainly advise you where to go to get an abortion after 12 weeks (the limit in France)... or maybe they can't legally do that either, but they certainly do it.

 

Some things about French law are incredibly progressive and then others are incredibly paternalistic. It's an odd mix.

 

I wish for you the "break" you need... some R&R as we say (rest and relaxation). And best of luck with this journey.

[manhattangirl]

Hi Ociwoman and congrats on your plans!!

 

We are headed to the Czech Republic for donor egg IVF in the fall, and I totally agree with all of the points that you have brought up in your post about cost of IVF in North America vs. in Europe.

 

One question for you - which dr wrote you a letter stating that it was necessary for your to leave Canada to find an appropriate egg donor program?  I was wondering if it would be the dr's at the fertility clinic, or your family doctor?

 

Good luck!!  July is coming right up!!

I certainly have no idea but would it be a good idea to get one from each doctor?  The more documentation the better when it comes to government stuff.

[Patty1]

Hi all. Please let me know how Greece rates in terms of egg donor and so forth I am considering going next year to Thessaloniki my parents are both Greek so hopefully something works out.

 

I am still trying to do my IVF cycle here in Toronto I find that I am so emotionally drained from this I don't know what to do.

[Tess]

Hi all. Please let me know how Greece rates in terms of egg donor and so forth I am considering going next year to Thessaloniki my parents are both Greek so hopefully something works out.

 

I am still trying to do my IVF cycle here in Toronto I find that I am so emotionally drained from this I don't know what to do.

 

We gave up on Canada and went to a clinic in Thessaloniki.  I recommend the clinic. Let me know if you want to chat about the cycle or traveling.  Feel free to PM me.  They have a lot of donors on file, and the match was fast.  The thing about Europe, is that you don't see pictures, and the clinic matches you to physical appearance, and you can also request educational level.  I trusted Chrysta, who is the embryologist who does the match, so I was comfortable with this. 

 

Our DE cycle was about 5,500Euros.  It looks like the current price at our clinic is 6000 Euros.  Everything is included, which is nice.  It's possible that you might get a discount if you go through the UK nurse coordinator that we used.  She's paid by the clinics, so you don't pay her anything for her services.   Let us know if you want info.   

Here's the link:  

https://www.newlife-ivf.co.uk/

 

Good luck, I know how stressful this is.  

[Patty1]

 

Hi all. Please let me know how Greece rates in terms of egg donor and so forth I am considering going next year to Thessaloniki my parents are both Greek so hopefully something works out.

 

I am still trying to do my IVF cycle here in Toronto I find that I am so emotionally drained from this I don't know what to do.

 

We gave up on Canada and went to a clinic in Thessaloniki.  I recommend the clinic. Let me know if you want to chat about the cycle or traveling.  Feel free to PM me.  They have a lot of donors on file, and the match was fast.  The thing about Europe, is that you don't see pictures, and the clinic matches you to physical appearance, and you can also request educational level.  I trusted Chrysta, who is the embryologist who does the match, so I was comfortable with this. 

 

Our DE cycle was about 5,500Euros.  It looks like the current price at our clinic is 6000 Euros.  Everything is included, which is nice.  It's possible that you might get a discount if you go through the UK nurse coordinator that we used.  She's paid by the clinics, so you don't pay her anything for her services.   Let us know if you want info.   

Here's the link:  

https://www.newlife-ivf.co.uk/

 

Good luck, I know how stressful this is.  

 

Tess please send me a pm I would like to speak with you privately.

[Tess]

 

 

Hi all. Please let me know how Greece rates in terms of egg donor and so forth I am considering going next year to Thessaloniki my parents are both Greek so hopefully something works out.

 

I am still trying to do my IVF cycle here in Toronto I find that I am so emotionally drained from this I don't know what to do.

 

We gave up on Canada and went to a clinic in Thessaloniki.  I recommend the clinic. Let me know if you want to chat about the cycle or traveling.  Feel free to PM me.  They have a lot of donors on file, and the match was fast.  The thing about Europe, is that you don't see pictures, and the clinic matches you to physical appearance, and you can also request educational level.  I trusted Chrysta, who is the embryologist who does the match, so I was comfortable with this. 

 

Our DE cycle was about 5,500Euros.  It looks like the current price at our clinic is 6000 Euros.  Everything is included, which is nice.  It's possible that you might get a discount if you go through the UK nurse coordinator that we used.  She's paid by the clinics, so you don't pay her anything for her services.   Let us know if you want info.   

Here's the link:  

https://www.newlife-ivf.co.uk/

 

Good luck, I know how stressful this is.  

 

Tess please send me a pm I would like to speak with you privately.

 

 

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