IVF/ICSI Support Group


FighteBattle said:
Hi Ladies,

I'm a new member. Have been ttc for almost 2yrs. Menses didn't come after I got married and tot was preggie but wasn't.
Did blood test twice and result showed my ovarian reserve is super low, in the range of MENOPAUSE. I'm only 34yrs old :(
Seeing a fertility doc in KKH, he told me 90 over percent won't be able to retrieve any egg. But the med he gave me to induce my menses work.
Currently I'm being very kiasu here as I feel my time is running up, seems like I'm really otw to menopause..so I started to go for acupuncture, took royal jelly and Blackmores Conceive well gold plus TCM medicine.
Doctor has also given me some contraceptives as he says it will help to thicken my lining. I will be gg to the briefing session in Jan and will be scheduled for IVF in Feb.
Has anyone come across similar experience? Is it alright to take all those supplements together with TCM and acupuncture?
Click to expand...
It really depends on your doc, but usually as a general guideline, try not to take TCM when you are doing the jabs or eating hormonal pills like progynova etc for fear of interference.
 
Celestialbaby said:
Hugs. I'm sorry you are going through this. Although I can't exactly advise what to do, my thoughts would be to have a discussion with your doc about what can be adjusted for next round. Also ask him what supplements you can take. I'm taking DHEA, COQ10 Ubiquinol, Omega 3-6-9, prenatal and folic acid. Dhea and coq10 is supposed to improve egg quality. But clear with your doc first before taking them especially Dhea. It takes 3 months to build up the quality, ie. What we eat now impacts the quality of the eggs 3 months later. Also do try TCM if you haven't. I'm with Dr Zou and she encouraged 2x per week of acupuncture to improve blood circulation to our uterus which help in eggs development and implantation. In the meantime, take heart. IVF is both an emotional and financial journey. So be strong and hold on to your dream of holding your baby for strength.
Click to expand...
Hi, do u take any tcm meds forms dr zou?
 
rossoracer said:
Your bt on 12dp5dt, sgh arrange for me bt 2mrw which is 9dp5dt, I wonder if I will end up negative bec it's early?
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Like towkayneo mentioned, won't be too early for BT to detect hcg on 9dp5dt. A healthy blastocyst is likely to have implanted and enough hcg would have been produced by then to confirm implantation. I did Fet at TFC. TFC's protocol is to test at a later date (17 or 18 days post ER or ovulation equivalent day) and requires the standard of 3-digit hcg level to confirm likelihood of a stable implantation thereby no need to re-take BT another 2 days or 1 week later, just arrange for 1st scan 2wks later. Only if hcg less than 3-digit, TFC will require patient to retest 2 days later. I understand that SGH follows a different protocol. All the best for your BT!
 
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FighteBattle said:
Hi Ladies,

I'm a new member. Have been ttc for almost 2yrs. Menses didn't come after I got married and tot was preggie but wasn't.
Did blood test twice and result showed my ovarian reserve is super low, in the range of MENOPAUSE. I'm only 34yrs old :(
Seeing a fertility doc in KKH, he told me 90 over percent won't be able to retrieve any egg. But the med he gave me to induce my menses work.
Currently I'm being very kiasu here as I feel my time is running up, seems like I'm really otw to menopause..so I started to go for acupuncture, took royal jelly and Blackmores Conceive well gold plus TCM medicine.
Doctor has also given me some contraceptives as he says it will help to thicken my lining. I will be gg to the briefing session in Jan and will be scheduled for IVF in Feb.
Has anyone come across similar experience? Is it alright to take all those supplements together with TCM and acupuncture?
Click to expand...
Dearie, low reserve doesn't mean no eggs while you may be more challenged and may need more cycles to get to that one quality and chromosomally normal egg that will work. As for supplements, I continue throughout the Ivf cycles after clearance from my doc. You can also consider adding CoQ-10 which helps to combat oxidative stress on our cells. Both hubby & myself took this. I was initially taking Blackmores Conceive Well Gold then switched to Rainbow Light Just Once Pre-natal One bought online from iHerb as it has good reviews and I realised it is much cheaper and has better supplement contents than Blackmores.

As for TCM herbs, if you need it, you can take before or in between Ivf cycles. Not recommended to take once you start stim jabs and throughout Ivf cycle. If you must take, please do ensure that your Ivf doc gives you the green light to take. This is to avoid any risk of unknown contraindications of the tcm herbs with your Ivf medication. Acupuncture is fine to continue but please ensure that you inform your tcm physician where you are in your Ivf treatment so that she can apply the appropriate acupoints to complement your Ivf cycle.
Don't give up hope. This journey needs a lot of perseverance and positive energy to help you tide through the physical, mental & emotional challenges. Jia you!
 
Dreamscometrue said:
Actually I've read somewhere, in order to have matured eggs, follicles need to be at least 16mm, some say at least 18mm.. Which proved to be quite true in my case..
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babyloveyou said:
I read that with stim jabs, follicles need to be min 18mm, if natural min 16mm.
Click to expand...

It depends on the experience of the doctor on the triggering. I only had 1 20mm and 1 19mm on my last day scan. Rest were 6 x 10 to 14mm ones. That time I thought I die liao, only had 2 follicles to place all my hope on, furthermore the eggs retrieved are not guaranteed to be mature.

I was advised to take one extra shot of Puregon as a last rush when I go home before I take pregnyl that night. Then boom, 35h later I had 8 eggs retrieved and 2 follicles were left unretrieved because they were hiding behind my uterus and the doctor didn't want to damage it. So which means I actually had 10 follicles which were large enough.

Simulating follicles is more of an art than science. If the doctor is experienced enough, it will really help to increase the IVF success rate.
 
Lufie said:
It depends on the experience of the doctor on the triggering. I only had 1 20mm and 1 19mm on my last day scan. Rest were 6 x 10 to 14mm ones. That time I thought I die liao, only had 2 follicles to place all my hope on, furthermore the eggs retrieved are not guaranteed to be mature.

I was advised to take one extra shot of Puregon as a last rush when I go home before I take pregnyl that night. Then boom, 35h later I had 8 eggs retrieved and 2 follicles were left unretrieved because they were hiding behind my uterus and the doctor didn't want to damage it. So which means I actually had 10 follicles which were large enough.

Simulating follicles is more of an art than science. If the doctor is experienced enough, it will really help to increase the IVF success rate.
Click to expand...
Wow! May I know which doc are u with? all eggs retrieved were fertilized?
 
I'm into my day 4 stim. Experiencing a dull throbbing headache and nauseous when I smell certain stuff like durian. Anyone has side effects w gonal f too?
 
Thanks DawnBB for your advice! My hub took the sperm test and result was ok so guess he doesn't need to take the supplements. I will take a look at the Rainbow light :)

DawnBB said:
Dearie, low reserve doesn't mean no eggs while you may be more challenged and may need more cycles to get to that one quality and chromosomally normal egg that will work. As for supplements, I continue throughout the Ivf cycles after clearance from my doc. You can also consider adding CoQ-10 which helps to combat oxidative stress on our cells. Both hubby & myself took this. I was initially taking Blackmores Conceive Well Gold then switched to Rainbow Light Just Once Pre-natal One bought online from iHerb as it has good reviews and I realised it is much cheaper and has better supplement contents than Blackmores.

As for TCM herbs, if you need it, you can take before or in between Ivf cycles. Not recommended to take once you start stim jabs and throughout Ivf cycle. If you must take, please do ensure that your Ivf doc gives you the green light to take. This is to avoid any risk of unknown contraindications of the tcm herbs with your Ivf medication. Acupuncture is fine to continue but please ensure that you inform your tcm physician where you are in your Ivf treatment so that she can apply the appropriate acupoints to complement your Ivf cycle.
Don't give up hope. This journey needs a lot of perseverance and positive energy to help you tide through the physical, mental & emotional challenges. Jia you!
Click to expand...
 
babyloveyou said:
Wow! May I know which doc are u with? all eggs retrieved were fertilized?
Click to expand...
I'm with Dr Hema in SGH. She was recommended by a friend who successfully conceived a girl and then, a pair of twins through her via just 2 fresh cycles.

I only have 16 follicles as I had 2 surgeries for severe endometriosis earlier on so it wasn't a big follicle reserve to begin with. Out of 8 retrieved, 7 are mature and 5 successfully fertilized. The fertilization part is done by the embryologist in the lab so don't think the doctor had a part to play in that stage heh heh
 
Pinkiebb said:
I'm into my day 4 stim. Experiencing a dull throbbing headache and nauseous when I smell certain stuff like durian. Anyone has side effects w gonal f too?
Click to expand...

Hi @Pinkiebb

I did not experience any side effects but towards day 8-11 of my stimms, I started feeling nausea and had slight headaches.
 
DawnBB said:
Hello Gracewithus! Thanks :)

My previous post you replied to actually talked about lying down after the Utrogestan vaginal inserts. If it is ET that you are talking about, it is not absolutely necessary to lie down 30mins after ET. The nurse may advise you to lie down 10-15mins but if you really can't hold your bladder any longer, it is ok to relieve yourself but just try to do it smoothly and not push too hard.

For my last ET, I drank 1L water upon waking up and relieved myself at least twice within 2 hours as per normal after breakfast. Then before leaving for the clinic, I drank about 1.5 full glass water (about 700ml) and I stopped. When the nurse did the first scan to check on my bladder, it was just nicely full so I didn't need to drink more yet I felt comfortable enough without the 'anytime can burst' feeling. So I was still able to lie down for about 15 min after the ET.

Of course everyone is different. You may want to do a 'rehearsal' to test your own bladder capacity before the actual ET day.

When is your ET day? All the best!
Click to expand...
Hmm.. rehearsal! Good idea, never thought of that. I just started my jab today. My ET will be done FET so I am not too sure when yet. Now I am just focusing on the ER which should be 8 or 9 or 11 Jan. Taking things on step at a time :)
 
pammm said:
Hi @Pinkiebb

I did not experience any side effects but towards day 8-11 of my stimms, I started feeling nausea and had slight headaches.
Click to expand...
For me, I had bad headache since the start of Gonal f injections. I also had bad eczema on my feet but the eczema should be the hormones and not due to Gonal f specifically.
 
Pinkiebb said:
Yes, the headaches are getting really quite bad yet I am reluctant to take Panadol. It's such a torture.
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Hi PinkeBB, actually it's alright to take panadol. It is pregnancy safe as long as you take the plain paracetamol. We should try to make ourselves as comfortable as possible now.
 
bbcaromel said:
Thanks babe...
I have been taking folic acid, royal jelly and calcium.. and occasionally vit C.
The thing is... my hubby probably take only vit C.
I dunno why... but it seems each time something happens, we generally think it's the women's issue.
I fear to hear what Prof is going to tell us... I fear the truth... indeed a very straining journey.
Click to expand...
I understand where you are coming from. Unfortunately, in ivf, it's more tricky on the women's side. Cos with guys, they can still do icsi to choose the best quality sperm even for people with low sperm count. There are many sisters who have shared here before that their HB's sperm quality improved alot with the right lifestyle n supplements. Egg issue is more difficult to overcome but still possible. Think of it this way, at least there is something we can do. Don't think so much for now. Try to enjoy the holidays and restore your emotional n physical health. New year new hope.
 
bbcaromel said:
Thanks babe...
I have been taking folic acid, royal jelly and calcium.. and occasionally vit C.
The thing is... my hubby probably take only vit C.
I dunno why... but it seems each time something happens, we generally think it's the women's issue.
I fear to hear what Prof is going to tell us... I fear the truth... indeed a very straining journey.
Click to expand...
Oh and do consider taking coq10 ubiquinol. It's a form of antioxidant and helps in egg quality. Your hubby can take too.
 
bbcaromel said:
Am with NUH Prof PC Wong.
Started duphaston on 27th Nov.
Started 300iu gonal F on evenings since 12th Dec and on 17th Dec introduced Cetrotide on mornings.
Dosage for both jabs maintained throughout.
Suprefact jab on 24th Dec at 10pm.
Every blood test and scans results were satisfactory according to Prof.
12 eggs with biggest at 18.5mm 2 days before oocyte retrieval. Lining at 9mm. No major issues between DH and myself.
Oocyte Retrieval on 26th Dec 10am. Harvested 7 out of 12 eggs.
Received call on 28th Dec at 9plus am... informing 3 out of 7 eggs matured but NONE fertilised.
Anyone been through the same? Embrologist only briefly mentioned problem lies with either the egg or the sperm... seeing Prof soon for detailed information.
I went through like 20 over jabs... plus 4-5 blood tests... total bill almost 10k... yet... NO FERTILISATION.
This cycle ended just like to.
I don't know what's going to happen next...
Failed 2 iuis then this 1st ivf...
Click to expand...
Hugs to u. It must have been a v painful phase now for u n your DH. My first Ivf also ended the same way. Doc only said sorry and no specific reason given.
Hope you recover from this soon.. both emtionally and physically. Perhaps seek opinion from TCM?

I had tried 2 more fresh n failed cycle then went to TCM. Only from tcm i realised other than the poor eggs quality told from doc, i have other problems such as cold womb and low blood will very much affect the possibility of getting preg.
 
pammm said:
Hi ladies

I am now at 4dp3dt and my body feels lousy. I felt ferverish yesterday and the nausea was really bad. Today, a was breathless, breaking out in sweat, and my appetite isn't very good. Ever since OR, my lower back hurts and I haven't had a good sleep for the past 6 days.

I really feel lousy and I don't know if it is due to an overdose of hormonal injections/vaginal inserts being introduced into my body.

Has anyone experienced these symptoms?
Click to expand...
Sounds like ohss.. ohss will cause nauseous, breathless and bloated. It happened to me in ny previous cycle when i had 25 eggs retrieved. Sis, drink 2litres of water and continue with egg white daily. Hope it will go away soon for u. All the best.
 
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Dreamscometrue said:
Hi, do u take any tcm meds forms dr zou?
Click to expand...
Hi, Yes I do take her meds between cycles and stopped durung stimulation or when on meds to prepare for FET. However last month I cut down cos' I find it quite difficult to time the 2 hrs apart with the other supplements I'm taking. Also not sure if I'm overdosing myself with all these nourishments. I think best is to listen to your own body...
 
rainflower said:
Hugs to u. It must have been a v painful phase now for u n your DH. My first Ivf also ended the same way. Doc only said sorry and no specific reason given.
Hope you recover from this soon.. both emtionally and physically. Perhaps seek opinion from TCM?

I had tried 2 more fresh n failed cycle then went to TCM. Only from tcm i realised other than the poor eggs quality told from doc, i have other problems such as cold womb and low blood will very much affect the possibility of getting preg.
Click to expand...

I really don't want to face the music. I dunno how well can I manage the blame.
 
bbcaromel said:
I really don't want to face the music. I dunno how well can I manage the blame.
Click to expand...
It can be worked out, really. I know the sucky "doctor tell you straight in the face" kind of feeling - it's damn sians and maybe thousands of thoughts may be flashing through your mind like, ""oh shit, my hubs sitting beside me, what is he thinking now? Is he blaming me right now blah blah blah"

Finger-pointing may happen, but can we control how our insides work? Who wants to have faulty "spare parts"?

At the end of the day, the more you know, the more you can work towards to finding a solution. For some lucky ladies, IVF is straightforward, jabs -> ER -> ET -> 2WW -> BFP, but for some or rather most, the doctor is constantly finding the best formula to yield more quality eggs, enhance implantation etc through numerous BFNs. You can say that it's like being a guinea pig, but what do you want at the end of the day?
 
bbcaromel said:
I really don't want to face the music. I dunno how well can I manage the blame.
Click to expand...
Dear, chin up. It is really not yr fault. Wats important is we tried our best.

If u intend to try again, try build up quality of both man n woman. N that includes stress free,sleep well,eat well. Quality n womb env is wat that will emerged champoin at e end of e day. Thats wat i feel.
 
Hi!
I m 8 days post ET with 2 days old embryo(don't know the short way), when can I start poas? Or not recommended, just wait for blood test?
Thank u
 
babysoon said:
Hi!
I m 8 days post ET with 2 days old embryo(don't know the short way), when can I start poas? Or not recommended, just wait for blood test?
Thank u
Click to expand...
Currently you are on 8DP2DT, many will suggest go for the blood test, that's the most accurate. But if your fingers are itchy, maybe you can try on 12DP2DT or 13DP2DT onwards.
 
connie_hopeful said:
Dear, chin up. It is really not yr fault. Wats important is we tried our best.

If u intend to try again, try build up quality of both man n woman. N that includes stress free,sleep well,eat well. Quality n womb env is wat that will emerged champoin at e end of e day. Thats wat i feel.
Click to expand...

Thanks babe...still deciding whether to see Prof...
 
bbcaromel said:
Thanks babe...still deciding whether to see Prof...
Click to expand...
Need to see. At least for a closure n hear from him whats wrong n wat is his suggestion if for next cycle. Changing of protocol, simulation or add saizen etc. From wat i read,day 1 to 3 no fertilisation is egg problem. Day 3 to 5 fail is sperm problem. I had my fair share of failure so i understand e pain of no fertilisation n no embries to freeze.

Give yrself a pat on e shoulder. You are brave to go through this journey le. Jiayou
 
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bbcaromel said:
Thanks babe...still deciding whether to see Prof...
Click to expand...

Hi @bbcaromel , sorry to read what you’re going through. But I guess you should not be giving yourself the ‘death sentence’ since this is your 1st cycle. IVF is really about trial & error, perseverance, luck and some risk-taking along the way. Regardless the issue lies with whom, face it and tackle it if you really want a child. Avoiding it will not make the situation any better. Infact, by not facing it, you’re shutting the door on yourself to a beautiful baby who’s probably waiting for you behind that door. There’s no self-reproach or blame-game in this IVF journey. It’s about how badly you want something and your willingness to work towards it. Sorry if I may sound a little blunt but I hope you see where I’m coming from. Take care!
 
connie_hopeful said:
Need to see. At least for a closure n hear from him whats wrong n wat is his suggestion if for next cycle. Changing of protocol, simulation or add saizen etc. From wat i read,day 1 to 3 no fertilisation is egg problem. Day 3 to 5 fail is sperm problem. I had my fair share of failure so i understand e pain of no fertilisation n no embries to freeze.

Give yrself a pat on e shoulder. You are brave to go through this journey le. Jiayou
Click to expand...

Thank you for your encouragement...
 
milogal88 said:
Hi @bbcaromel , sorry to read what you’re going through. But I guess you should not be giving yourself the ‘death sentence’ since this is your 1st cycle. IVF is really about trial & error, perseverance, luck and some risk-taking along the way. Regardless the issue lies with whom, face it and tackle it if you really want a child. Avoiding it will not make the situation any better. Infact, by not facing it, you’re shutting the door on yourself to a beautiful baby who’s probably waiting for you behind that door. There’s no self-reproach or blame-game in this IVF journey. It’s about how badly you want something and your willingness to work towards it. Sorry if I may sound a little blunt but I hope you see where I’m coming from. Take care!
Click to expand...
Wow, I love this sentence "you’re shutting the door on yourself to a beautiful baby who’s probably waiting for you behind that door"
 


milogal88 said:
Hi @bbcaromel , sorry to read what you’re going through. But I guess you should not be giving yourself the ‘death sentence’ since this is your 1st cycle. IVF is really about trial & error, perseverance, luck and some risk-taking along the way. Regardless the issue lies with whom, face it and tackle it if you really want a child. Avoiding it will not make the situation any better. Infact, by not facing it, you’re shutting the door on yourself to a beautiful baby who’s probably waiting for you behind that door. There’s no self-reproach or blame-game in this IVF journey. It’s about how badly you want something and your willingness to work towards it. Sorry if I may sound a little blunt but I hope you see where I’m coming from. Take care!
Click to expand...

Thanks dear... I know what you meant...
 
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