Back after first failed ivf...about to start frozen embryo transfer ...... And extremely scared.

[Mellisa1983]

Hi ladies its been a while since my last post. As those of you who have read my past post would know i had a failed first ivf and luckily had two eggs frozen so now in the process of doing a frozen embryo transfer. It has been a frustrating four months, physically and mentally. I really want this treatment to be sucsessfull.

In my last appointment i was told that if i wanted i could have both my eggs put in so Im considering Doing just that even though im 31 and generally clinics dont advice this.

Has anyone had a frozen embryo transfer? I would love to hear from you if you had.

I am also now considering having myself checked out thoroughly privately. I was diagnosed with unexplained infertility. Has anyone else been diagnosed with this but with further tests done privately actually found the real cause of their infertility. If so what kind of tests should i be thinking about doing privately?

Thanks ladies and i hope everyone 's treatments are going according to plan .... Its great to have this support. And i will keep you posted on any developments.

[everab]

Hi,

I have had to Frozen Embryio Transfet (FET). I think they are 'easier' on your body than fresh cycles and have a slightly higher success rates, so good luck!

Do you know the quality of your embryos? Is an important factor to consider bro decide how many you should transfer.

[Mellisa1983 in reply to everab]

Hi everab thanks for your reply. Yes i was told that they are A grade and have been told throughout that i have very good quality eggs and so on. i hope it works as im contemplating putting them both in so i guess fingers crossed. How did you respond to your treatment if you dont mind me asking?

[Hidden]

Hi Melissa yes I have experienced being told by the nhs it was unexplained and found out from a private clinic it wasn't at all unexplained.. At the private clinic I discovered I have a premature aging left ovary a really low amh and an underactive thyroid which is being treated with thyroxine and is fine now.. Also hubby was told although his count was within normal range was at the lower end of normal and he has. 83% of abnormal sperm and my clinic said up 75% is ok so it's slightly raised and when we have ivf next year we will have Icsi unless his sperm improves doubtful tho..which instead of sperm having to find sperm in a dish the dr selects best sperm and injects sperm into my eggs.. my point is none of our infertility was ever unexplained and sometimes these doctors need to look harder to find the reason.. Lack of resources and money I guess with the nhs and from my experience their definition of wots normal differs to wot private will call normal sadly.. It took over 3 years of ttc to get to the bottom of it all was a big relief when we did.. I always knew there was something wrong and I think we do know when something's not quite right with our bodies.. If you got that gut feeling go with Hun you know your body better than any doctor does Hopefully starting my egg sharing ivf early next year.. I want to wish you the best with everything and hope you get some answers soon good luck X

[Mellisa1983 in reply to Hidden]

Hi jess thanks for your comment, to be honest i feel exactly as you have explained i just feel like theres something not quiet right but i keep getting positive responce from the clinique which is making me feel even worse. I feel like theres something seriously wrong and they just cannot detect it hence the reason why in my next appointment im gonna discuss the possibility of going private to do certain tests. im so sorry to hear all the crap you had to go through, i mean this treatment is bad enough without being given the wrong diagnosis

[Hollibob]

Great news that you are at the next stage and I think it's natural to be scared when you want something so much.

Before TTC I knew I had endo, so after trying for a time we got referred back to the gyne who diagnosed me previously to begin the process.

I agree with you that with the nhs it feels like they just do the basics to tick the flow chart points and refer you on. You don't want to question/argue with them as they are the "experts".

I could go on forever on the blood tests/tests I think they should do earlier on in the process which might help...

From the tests that we were having, they showed as fine, so how was nothing at all happening????

I think you need to speak with your clinic consultant to say you are not happy with your nhs diagnosis and ask them if in their opinion you should have further tests. They know how expensive and stressful things can be.

Just from my clinic doing the AMH and sperm test at the start of the referral we were given new and different results to before. I was told my AMH was low for my age (it had never been tested before) and my hubby that his sperm count was lower than what they would like so we'd be looking at icsi.

Definitely speak with someone, otherwise you'll just be thinking about it and stressing yourself out more.

Good luck x

[Mellisa1983 in reply to Hollibob]

Hi hollibob thanks for your advice. I am definately going to speak to my consultant in my next appointment to clarify why certain tests have not been done because like this im getting even more stressed out.

[jenny34]

Hi, tests and results can be really confusing and misleading. My experience, starting with NHS then going private, is that the private clinics will want to do their own tests anyway, eg - sperm and AMH. With sperm for example, each time my partner had it tested there were different results, and it can change over time. With my ovarian reserve, I was told I had few follicles at first, but ended up with 17 eggs at egg collection! So it is misleading and confusing - and frustrating! The thing to remember with sperm is that with ICSI you only need one sperm per egg, so even with low/poor sperm count you can acheive good results.

With regards what the NHS test for initially, I would google the NHS NICE guidelines on fertitlity treatment. This should tell you step by step what they 'should' do for you before referring you on. With us, we knew what we were dealing with so having different tests was not as important to us.

Sorry to hear about your fresh cycle, it is devastating. Ours failed too, but we were lucky enough to have good quality eggs to freeze. Are yours blastocysts? If so, the success rate for a frozen cycle is pretty much the same as a fresh cycle, due to the quality of the embryo. Even if not blasts, the results from a frozen natural cycle can be great, as you are not putting all those drugs into your system. Our 1st frozen cycle has worked and I am now nearly 32 weeks pregnant. I knew the frozen cycle would stand a better chance of working because I felt so much better when i had the transfer, whereas when I had the fresh cycle and transfer I felt horrendous.

Good luck and lots of love xxx

[Mellisa1983 in reply to jenny34]

Hi jenny i totally agree with you about these tests being all over the place. I have been told so many different things by different doctors its turning in to an absolute joke. Me and my husband were initially told that his spirm count was fine but his spirm were not swimming, then some one else told me his spirm are fine...later we were told spirm will change from time to time.

My frozen eggs are blastocysts and im planning on having both of them put in. We were told that our embryos are very good quality but given that we were told so many different things i just dont have no faith and no trust in anything this clinic has to say.

My family is telling me that im being very pesimistic and im like can you blame me? My gut is telling me to investigate further because clearly what this clinic is telling me is just not satisfying me for some reason. Everything just seems to be contradicting the previous conversation i had with them.

So yes i will be having a look online and thank you very much for your responce and so glad you got a positive result from your treatment.. i hope the remainder of your pregnancy will continue superbly. Take care ans goodluck xx

[jenny34]

Hi, I dont blame you at all for being pessimistic when we are constantly told different things, as you say. It is such a difficult time and very emotional.

If your frosties are blastocysts then they ARE good quality, as they have to be good quality to make it to blastocycst stage AND to be frozen - clinics wont freeze embryos of lesser quality as they wont survive the freezing/thawing process.

Dont quote me on these stats, but as I say above, my understanding is that the success rate with a frozen blast is the same as with a fresh cycle. Plus I think you said you are below 35, so that is even better success rates! I was 36 when I had my frozen cycle back in May.

Other positives are that the investigations they have done so far have revealed no issues with you - so in theory once your little embryos are back inside where they belong, there is no reason why they wont grow there and be happy, as mine has done

The only thing I would say is I would look up the stats on blasts and putting two back at your age. I was advised to put only one back because the difference in success rates between one and two was so small - so was advised to save the others for future cycles. If that makes sense. That said, I totally understand why you'd want to put two back.

Good luck - I know it is so hard to be positive, but you have two amazing quality embryos and there is no reason why this wont work for you

xxxxxxx

[jenny34]

Sorry, I just thought of another thing to mention! This is just from my own personal experience, but if you are offered a 'natural' frozen cycle rather than using meds, I would go for that. With me, because I have no fertility issues and ovulate regularly, they simply monitored me (scans and bloods) to get the timing right then put the embryo back at the right time. I had to use pessaries but no injections or tablets, and as a result I was feeling physically really well when I had the embryo transfer. I'm convinced this is why it worked and would definitely recommend a natural frozen cycle if this fits with your situation xxx

[Mellisa1983 in reply to jenny34]

I was never offered a natural frozen cycle and thats probably due to the fact that i have irregular periods. Irregular in the sence that i do have a period everymonth just not on time. However this issue is genetic as both my older sisters and most of the women in our family have this problem but none of them have had fertility issues. Even if i had a natural cycle i dnt think that this clinic know what theyre doing so it wouldnt have made a difference. Im so angry with them at the mo and the funny thing is i have full funding and they still havent done their jobs properly. When i go in for my appointment next month they are not going to be seeing the sweet understanding mellisa they have been consulting believe you me. I am going to make sure that they fully understand that foe them this might just be a job but for me this is my life! This is what i eat sleep and drink every second of everyday!! And im not going to let them take the mick anymore!!!.

Thank you for all the advice its been really helpfull .xx