FET PROCEDURE.

[Hope85]

Evening!! Can anyone please go through the FET procedure with me please? I’ve got an appointment with the clinic a week Monday has anyone got any suggestions on questions I should ask?

Much appreciated 😊

Xxx

[Lynnr54]

I'm just going through FET at the moment so can tell you what I know about it based on my protocol.

There are 2 types of FET, natural and medicated. With natural you monitor yourself for ovulation the transfer takes place x days later depending on what day your frosties were frozen (so 5 day blasts would be transferred 5 days after ovulation). Sometimes they will put you on progesterone supplements after transfer. The pros are that your body isn't full of drugs so you are going with your natural cycle. Cons are that you can't time ovulation which could result in a transfer on a weekend when your clinic is likely to have skeleton staff on (my clinic refuse to do natural cycles for this reason), if you don't have regular periods you could potentially miss your window and if you have certain hormonal conditions then your natural hormones may not be of the right levels to support pregnancy.

With medicated you use medication to override your body's natural hormones. Pros are that you can time ovulation to suit you and your clinic and that the medication in you should get your hormones/lining etc to be the right level for pregnancy. Cons are you're pumped full of drugs with all the side effects.

there are a couple of different protocols for medicated FET. You can ether start your cycle on day 21 or day 1. I don't know the difference between each or what the advantages are of one over another. I asked but didn't get a proper answer and I wish I knew the difference. Your clinic will suggest one and I'd ask why they think that is the right one for you. I'm on day 21 cycle so can tell you about that. I don't know how day 1 cycle works.

So on day 21 you'll have an injection to switch of your hormones (essentially put you into fake menopause). Between 2 and 3 weeks later you will have a scan to check that everything is switched off and your lining is nice and thin. You will have bled before this point. The timing of this did confuse me as my clinic changed the timing of mine a few times. I've read a lot which says it will be a 2 week scan but my clinic said they couldn't guarantee it would have worked by then so wanted to scan me the week after. Once the scan had taken place and the clinic are happy you will start taking oestrogen tablets to build back up your lining. I think your clinic decide what day you start these so that they can time transfer. My clinic told me that regardless of what day I went for the scan I would start the tablets the following weekend. I think the start of the tablets becomes CD1 and you're on the tablets for 12 days. At some point you'll have another scan to check the tablets have worked and your lining is thick enough for transfer and when they are happy with that you'll then add progesterone into the mix. You'll also agree a date for transfer based on when your Frosties were frozen. I think you keep taking oestrogen and progesterone right the way through until OTD and then for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

I should add that this is how my clinic does it but I've seen others say that they have injections every day rather than a one off to down reg so it may be that other clinics have different ways of doing it.

Diane Arnold has a list of questions which she will happily email you if you send her a message.

Good luck with your cycle!

[Hope85 in reply to Lynnr54]

Thank you so much for your comments. I just wanted my appointment to hurry up & I can get started 😊 xx

[7AVA]

Just wanted to add to Lynnr54’s excellent information that I had injections of buserelin every day for about 5 weeks. After being on short protocol for initial cycle, it actually felt like more medication this time! We weren’t given the choice of natural but I felt that it would have been less intrusive so I’d ask about that if you can xx

[Kimross1]

Hey hunn! First of all good luck with your next cycle 😊

I have just completed my FET currently 3dp5dt 💕

On day 2 of my AF I started progynova 2mg 3xa day then on day 13 I whent for a scan to check my lining wich was 8.5 they saw they want to see at least over 7 so I got the go ahead to start my ultragestan (pressaries) 5 days later I was on 2x200mg capsules at 7am in the morning and another 2x200mg at 7pm (they get pretty messy) and then I whent for my transfer 5 days later 😁.. transfer whent great except from they only managed to have one embie survive the thaw so I'm hoping and praying this works for me 🍀❤️

Again Good luck for your cycle xx

[Hope85 in reply to Kimross1]

Thank you! And I have my fingers crossed for you! 💕