Peestick report

Here's my long-overdue peestick report.  This cycle, I didn't even try to resist testing early, so I tested every day starting on transfer day.  I started out on the cheapie strips, then broke out the FRERs starting at 9DPO.  Lines got lighter and lighter from 7DPO to 9DPO, then started darkening again at 10DPO.  So, it's looking like I'm pregnant.  At least for now!  For those of you who love POAS pictures, my progression is below.  My beta is on Tuesday morning.

3DP 3DT

Here it is, only 3 days past the transfer and I'm turning into a bundle of nerves.  I had company this weekend (my MIL, who doesn't know about this cycle) plus Bunny's best friend who's in town for work.  So I have been totally overdoing it - cooking for everyone, dishes, etc!  I'm worried that I'm screwing up my cycle.  I managed to put my feet up as much as possible and I went to bed at 8:30 last night but it's hard because I need to try to act "normal" around my MIL.  I'm SUPER constipated, bloated, and crampy.  Ugh, I hate the progesterone side effects.  I've been POAS since transfer day and the trigger is still there, hopefully in a few days I'll see my "real" result.  I'll keep everyone posted!

Transfer

The transfer went fine.  They transferred two "perfect" 8-cell embryos.  (Heh, "perfect", I've heard that before...)  One will be frozen, two others were showing signs of abnormality (multinucleation) so they will not be frozen.  Now I'm trying to get some bed rest, though unfortunately due to a lack of assistance from my husband, I had to pick my son up at daycare and feed him dinner.  Sorry, I'm in a cranky mood.  Beta will be February 4.

Day 1 fert report

All 5 (yes, there were 5) have fertilized!

Retrieval

Just got back a little while ago from the retrieval.  It was very far away - my RE is borrowing another doc's lab while his new one is being set up.  So, we had to drive an hour and a half in each direction.  It all went fine, they got five (or six?) eggs.  I thought the doc said six, Bunny thinks it was 5 - I was dopey from the meds when he was talking to us.  I'm a little disappointed, I was hoping we would have a little more to work with.  My hope is that we will have two to transfer and at least two to freeze.

This cycle has been very different emotionally for me.  I'm much more relaxed, just going with the flow and hoping for the best, while being completely aware that this may not work.  I think that part of the relief is that we already have our sweet boy, so while we would like for him to have a sibling, we're also happy if he's our only one.  We have decided that this will be our last IVF.  If we don't get pregnant from whatever embryos result from this cycle, we're done.  Transfer is Thursday, beta will be February 4th.

Retrieval is Monday

My retrieval is on Monday!  I'll do the HCG trigger tonight at 2AM, then I'll be at the doc on Monday at about 11:30.  My RE is borrowing another lab while they build a whole new one, so I'm going to a different RE's office for the retrieval and transfer.  That makes me a bit nervous, but I looked that RE up and he has good results.  Wish me luck, I'll update on Monday.

Stimming away...

Today is day 2 of stims.  This is actually considered a "low stim" cycle (my doc is one of the few that does them) so my wallet is happy.  I'm taking 225 of Bra.velle currently and I guess I'll also take Men.opur at some point, since there is some in the box of meds.  Things are going fine so far.  I'll post again on retrieval day, whenever that is - no one cares about how many follicles I have and what sizes they are!

It's on like Donkey Kong...

Here we go with IVF #2.  Baseline u/s will be Wednesday....

Updated to add - gosh, what a tired old cliche - just realized I used that same title on an earlier post!  1990 called, it wants its joke back!

IVF #2, coming soon..

We're in the final stages of preparation for IVF #2.  We're doing it with great reluctance, because we were really hopeful for a natural BFP this time.  Alas, it was not to be.  The meds are on their way, bloodwork and testing is almost done, so it will be "all systems go" in about 3 weeks.  This time, I'm doing a Ganirelix / Menopur protocol rather than the old Lupron / BCP lead-up cycle.  That is fine with me, it means less meds and a shorter cycle.  This doc also only does 3-day transfers.  At first, I was a little skeptical.  Then I remembered that I did two 5-day transfers with no success, so I guess I'm OK with it.  If this IVF and its resulting embryos don't result in a pregnancy, then we are done.  We are very happy with our little guy, we were just hoping to complete our family with a sibling.  Wish me luck!

Decision: made

We thought about it over the weekend and have decided to go ahead with the FET.  If this one doesn't work, we'll decide whether to switch clinics.  I'll be starting BCP's in a few days.  We are telling NO ONE in real life, not even our parents.  (If anyone I know IRL reads this please keep mum).  Transfer will be some time in May.

Finally saw the doctor...

We finally had the follow-up consultation with the RE today.  It only took a whole month after the IVF failure. *sarcasm*  My questions and his answers were as follows:

Why is their FET success rate so low?  (In 2009 it was only 18%).

Answer: Doc said that they had some issues with the lab which have now been resolved - something to do with chemicals seeping over from a neighboring office unit (!!!)  He also says that they have taken some "borderline" cases, I guess meaning women who have a low chance of success, which other clinics don't take.  With frozen transfers, it doesn't really matter who does the transfer, but rather the embryo quality and how they were frozen.  I've also heard this from another doctor.

What's my AMH level?

Answer: They've never checked.  They find that FSH is a better indicator of egg quality, while AMH reflects merely the quantity of eggs.

I asked if maybe my polyp has come back.  Maybe there's something wrong with my uterus preventing implantation?

Answer:  Sonohysterogram done in January indicated that there is nothing in there.  The embryo makes its own environment, so as long as the lining measures OK, there should be an implantation problem unless there's a problem with the embryo.

Were my embryos good quality?

Answer:  Yes, they wouldn't have been frozen if they were not.  I have 4 5-day frosties and 1 6-day.  (I thought it was the reverse).  They'll freeze and transfer 2.  If one of the 2 doesn't survive the thaw, then they'll thaw another one.

The doctor was very sympathetic of our situation and said that above all, they want us to succeed.  They encouraged me to seek a second opinion.  Now I need to decide whether to start the FET cycle right away or get another opinion and maybe switch clinics.  Time is of the essence, as AF is (over)due and if I get it in the next few days, I'll have to start BCP's.  Bunny wants to stick with the clinic and start right away.  I'll think about it and decide in the next few days.  What do you guys think?