FET in 2009

[chiromama]

Hi all! Anyone else scheduling an FET in 2009? our first attempt starts when i start my next period.... which is sometime this week! Our embies are from a fresh cycle done in sept 2005 that resulted in my 2.5 yr old Ruby Violet. I am hoping I get lucky this time too.
I've not done an FET before, any advice or thoughts? we may have to do PIO shots instead of progesterone suppositories as when i did the supps during my fresh cycle i had some reaction to them and basically swelled shut. The prometrium is in peanut oil which i'm allergic to, so PIO it may be. oh well, life goes on!

who else?

[Pearl1]

hi! i'm doing a FET cycle too. we did our first IVF in the Fall. i got pregnant, but lost the pregnancy at 9 weeks. we had 6 frozen embryos, so we are trying again.

i started bcps on 12/30. right now, it looks like our transfer will be the week of 2/9.

the PIO shots aren't too bad. i posted some hints about them on the first page of the January IVF thread, if you're interested.

~s.

[chiromama]

I did PIO for 12 weeks with my fresh cycle... so i'm a veteran. just hoping to avoid them.

I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. I can't imagine.

I don't have to do bcp for this FET, just estrace and PIO. nice and simple.

[Pearl1]

oops, i read your earlier post wrong. sorry 'bout that.

just estrace and pio sounds nice. im kinda annoyed by these weeks of bcps. i wonder why protocols are so different. . .?

[chiromama]

Yeah I'm stoked i could avoid the bcp. I was told by my RE that since my cycles are spot on regular, they didn't need them. thank god, they made me insane during the fresh cycle.

[chiromama]

Well. I guess today is CD 1. that was fast.

[crazyrunningmama]

Me too! Day 1 here. My clinic only does bcp's when your cycle is irregular or long, which applies to me. Started them today. Pooey on waiting a month!

[chiromama]

so how long are you on bcp?

[crazyrunningmama]

21 days, then AF, then start estrace, u/s around 14 days later. The one good thing about skipping a month would have been getting a break from crazy-making hormones and constipation. Ah well, used to it now!

How are you two feeling? If you are not doing bcp's, are you on estrace already? Because of the bcp's, each FET cycle actually takes 2 months for me.

[chiromama]

Nope, not on estrace, we're doing delestrogen... injections. 2x a weeks for what looks like forever. Our clinic does FET the same way they do donor cycles because that gives them higher success rates. I'll do whatevs... cause success is what we want!
So i started delestrogen today, and will have a US on the 22nd for lining check. transfer is tentatively scheduled for the 30th. :

sorry your FETs take so long!

[chiromama]

Wow. the delestrogen is making me crazy already. I'm crabby, short tempered and spacey soooooooo spacey. I can hardly focus!

[OrganicSister]

Count me in!

I have 15 embies left over from a fall cycle. We had implanted only one and were pregnant but a second one mysteriously appeared in my fallopian tube, which caused a miscarriage between 5 and 6 weeks. This time we're implanting two.

I just got our meds ordered; they should get here Tuesday. I think I'm doing progesterone shots for a certain number of days then the suppositories after that. Honestly, I haven't been keeping track of much past what my next step is.

The next step right now is waiting for my cycle to start. I'm expecting it within a week, then I will go in on CD3 for the baseline stuff and start the bcp's. I think I was told I'd only be on the bcp's for a very short time (under two weeks, if I'm remembering correctly). I don't know how long after my cycle starts until the transfer though.

I've been doing amazingly well staying stress-free. I had some other major stresses threaten to buckle me and I just made up my mind to let go of any expectations I might have about this or the other stuff. I feel good. I'm going to set up a little meditation alter to spend some focused energy on these embies. Otherwise I'm just lettin' things unfold.

Here's my fertility blog: ourlittlebabyblog.wordpress.com Sarah, I have your blog bookmarked but does anyone else have one I can stalk?

chiromama: Take care of yourself. Can you slow down the pace of life any? Prioritize, ya know? I found myself to be very spacey with my IVF cycle (I thought it was just me coping badly but maybe it was the meds! lol). I fought it and tried to maintain normalcy in our life. But this stuff just isn't normal and I've decided to just go with the flow of it this time.

: to all of us!

[crazyrunningmama]

Timely advice, OrganicSister! I was just talking with my dh about what I can cut out of my schedule. I am stressed and a bit depressed and hating my job. And we have a 2 year old, who is a blessing and I am grateful for her every day, but she's a lot of work. I hate taking her to the babysitter, but maybe with crazymama (literally now!) I should just take as much time for myself as I can. She will probably have more fun there than with low energy me, anyway.

And when I am stalking IVF threads, I am always piping up to say "this is a crazy time, cut stuff out of your schedule, take care of yourself" etc etc. Especailly since stress decreases success. Taking my own advice now.

[Pearl1]

hi tara!! thanks for your comment on my blog today. i don't think there is any such thing as TMI anymore. my life (at least as far as ttc) is an open book!

i started AF on tuesday, dec 30 and started bcps the same day. i continue the bcps through jan 17 (which is total of 19 days of bcps) and add in lupron beginning jan 14. my RE's IVF nurse told me to call when AF arrives next (should be 3-5 days after stopping bcps). she said i'll have to be on estrace for at least 14 days and then 3 days of progesterone before transfer. so, we are looking at transferring some time the week of feb 9-13.

i'm really hoping my body cooperates and is ready to go by that week. if it isnt ready, i have to wait for a march transfer (due to their scheduling/closing). it sucks, but i am trying very hard to trust that it will work out as it should.

im so envious of your 15 embies. we only had 6 to freeze after our fresh cycle. ive heard stories of having to thaw up to 5 to get 2 of proper quality to transfer. i really hope i am able to get at least 2 FETs out of the six we have (if necessary).

i'm glad to be cycle buddies with you again. this time around, sticky babies, eh?!?

~s.

[chiromama]

Ok so this is my 3rd and final attempt to post tonight. MDC keeps eating my posts!

I was soo spacey during my fresh cycle, and in the midst of moving my practice and staring a new business. : even my RE lectured me to take it easy! This time I'm in the middle of big business changes, but fortunately patient visits are slow so I have time to relax. I'm also taking full advantage of my sitter time... and trying not to use the big box too much, but by mid afternoon I'm spent!

I have many more fears than I did with my first IVF cycle... probably because now I know what I'd be losing, you know? I try to acknowledge them and move on... not to let them fester or pretend they aren't there.

So my cycle looks like this: increasing delestrogen every thurs and sun for 2 weeks. Lining check on the 22nd, and if all is well we'll start PIO 5 days before the transfer on the 30th. I'm hopeful, cautiously.

glad to be here with all of you. :

[OrganicSister]

Sarah: Seems like such a long cycle for you! I'm wondering if mine will be that long now. Also wondering why different protocols are different - if it's the doctor or the patient?

Does anyone know exactly how they do the thawing? I mean, if they thaw two 5 day embies and one doesn't make it, how do they have time too thaw another? Is it done really fast so it can all be done in one day? It seems like they wouldn't have much time between thawing and transferring either.

Yes, stickies this time. For longer!

P.S. I started spotting today but no real period yet. Eek! I don't get my meds until Tuesday. Hope I don't need them before that!

[crazyrunningmama]

Yes, it is weird how different each clinic does things. Because my cycles are both long and irregular, I am on bcp's for a full 21 days, then wait for AF, then do estrace for at least 14 days before they do an u/s.

Regarding thaw, I can tell you what happened with my last FET. Two days (or 3?) before my scheduled transfer, they thawed a couple of Day 2 embryos to give them time to start dividing. I think one didn't survive the freeze and two didn't keep on dividing. The day of my transfer, they had one that had thawed and was still dividing and they thawed another one that morning (so they could say that it had survived the freeze, but they didn't know yet if it was going to divide). I transferred 2, but 5 had been thawed to get those two good ones. Hope this makes sense.

Part of the "thaw plan" depends on what stage the embryos were when they were frozen. I had a lot of fertilized embryos, so they froze quite a few at days 2 and 3 (apparently the earlier they are frozen, the more likely they are to survive the thaw).

[chiromama]

Interesting about hte thaw, I assume ours will thaw a very short time before transfer, as they are 5 day blasts. I remember my doc saying something about not messing around too much with them, just thaw em out and pop em in.

[OrganicSister]

I think I have 5 day blasts too. I'll have to pick the RE's brain on how it works. I'm really curious now.

Oh. I started my period last night. It was like an instant gush. I'm glad I was home. Also glad I didn't start bcp's last month like they offered. I think it would have slowed my flow and apparently it didn't want to be slowed!

The sucky thing is I have jury duty tomorrow. My RE is squeezing me in tomorrow morning at 7am. I hope everything looks good - whatever good is!

[chiromama]

WTG on bleeding tara! HOpe your US looks good tomorrow. Our RE looked for cysts and my uterine lining.