Donor egg waiting lists and general advice needed please

[Clarence80]

After having 3 IVF cycles our fourth and final cycle was cancelled due to a poor response. My AMH was re-tested & it has dropped from 15.8 in December 2016 to 5.8!!!

I'll put up a different post about clinics that may specialise in low AMH treatments to avoid confusion but we are now looking at the possibility of donor eggs. The two clinics we've looked at so far are quoting waiting list times of 3-6 months which is understandable but far too long for us (we're now on year 6 of TTC and nearly 40!). Is this the norm? Are there quicker routes? Does going abroad make a difference?

We really want to look at all the options thoroughly before we make a decision of doing that, another IVF round or adopting. I'm not too sure about donor eggs for me (but have no judgements on other women doing it) so genuinely any thoughts good or bad would be welcome.

Thanks!

[Abaco]

I am in my 40's and was devastated to be told my chances using my own eggs were low. I grieved over this for a good while before eventually getting my head around using donor eggs and have never looked back. our desire to have a family is stronger and means more to us then looking at the genetic links but saying that donor eggs are not for everyone.

We are using a clinic abroad, there was no waiting times and we were matched up with a donor really quickly we were recommended the clinic by someone who had success there and haven't looked back. We are still on our journey, I have various immune issues but we are determined to get there with this. Let me know if you need anymore help, advice. Not saying I'm an expert or anything but happy to help! All the very best xxx

[Clarence80 in reply to Abaco]

Thank you so much for your kind reply.

I'm really glad you're having a positive experience now and sorry it didn't work out originally for you. I totally understand you needing to grieve for a bit. We've definitely been there and are still firmly in that area but time will heal it I'm sure!

Not sure if we can name clinics on here but would love to know which one you're using.

Feel better knowing we could move on with DE quickly as that was certainly one of the disadvantages of it. We're so fed up of life being on hold that the thought of waiting potentially another half a year was just devastating!

[Sausage11]

5.8 is good!!!i Know you’ve had a drop but 5.8 is still good! I’d give anything for a 5.8!

[Clarence80 in reply to Sausage11]

It's so subjective isn't it!

Unfortunately it's hard to be positive when your cycle was cancelled & your clinic have run out of ideas!

What's your AMH and what protocols have you been on? I need inspiration! Xx

[jengi]

Hi! I’ve been researching this too. We have decided to go the donor route if next cycle fails. There is a fertility expo in London in Nov that we plan to attend to explore option. We’ve had private implications counselling which we’ve found very useful. Our councillor suggested a few clinics abroad and strongly advised we go abroad. Can I private message you with more info?

[jengi in reply to jengi]

fertilityshow.co.uk/

[Clarence80 in reply to jengi]

Of course, that would be great. Sorry that you're going through this crap too!

[jengi in reply to Clarence80]

It is crap but at least we still have options! Xx 🙂

[Sausage11]

1.9 and I’m early 30s. First cycle failed and on second cycle now, got 8 eggs- 1 to blastocyst. Have you got a second opinion?

[Clarence80]

Am going to look at different clinics. The problem is we have to book consultations with each one we're considering to find out if they could help us which works out at £250 each time!

We've had 2 fresh rounds where I've always produced lots of eggs & 3-4 blastocyst embryos but they've not always been great quality.

This time I only got 3 small follicles & a large one during stims so cycle got cancelled and my AMH was re-tested. The clinics suggestion was to do 3 rounds in 3 months to get a sufficient supply of eggs but at a cost of £20k (ignoring the impact on my physical & mental health!) we just couldn't entertain it.

[7AVA]

Hi Clarence, we are now at the point after 4 failed transfers where our best hope of conceiving is with donor eggs. The clinic we are currently with has a 6 month waiting list and another in the area has no waiting list but realistically have said that it takes around 3 months to find a match. I have heard of a clinic that specialises in low AMH and will pm you the name as we’re not allowed to post details on here due to risk of advertising. Xx

[Hidden]

Hello I'm so sorry to hear this I'm in exactly the same boat. We are in Spain and should have a donor in 1-2 months xxx good luck on ur journey xxx

[Hollibob]

Hey.

I’m 39 at the mo, was told amh was low for age, have endo, TTC for 5.5 years, had 3 fresh and 1 frozen cycle which resulted in two miscarriages...

After the last round, the consultant said that they weren't sure why things didn't work out. They suggested we could get a second opinion from a clinic in London, but didn’t say what difference they would be able to offer. They also suggested looking at donor eggs increasing our chances from 10 to 50%.

We went to the fertility show and got talking to one of the consultants from the possible second opinion clinic and with discussing our history in basic detail, she said sometimes a couples dna just doesn’t work together..eventually you have to think, what is the best way for us to get to the end result that we are looking for.

For me, of course I’d always want us to try with my eggs, but we can’t keep throwing money at something that hasn’t worked so far. Donor eggs may not have my genes, but will have hubby’s and I know that it would have been safe and sound inside me for 9 months, given the best start in life and hopefully reducing the risk of things like endo and a family history of cancer etc. It’s definitely a big and personal thing to decide.

We are currently looking at the donor refund packages with access fertility. Big initial payout, but worst case scenario, if it doesn’t go according to plan then there is a % refund. If it does work first time, then maybe some people would feel done out of some money, but who wouldn’t pay x amount of money if they knew you were guaranteed a baby?...

Never simple hey, but there are lots of ladies who can tell you about their journeys around the world 🙂 x

[WeeMrsH]

If you go abroad you probably won’t have a waiting list. This was a major factor for us. Lots of pros and cons both to UK and abroad so you’d need to do your research as to what as right for you. The big difference being a few countries operate on anonymous basis so you would not know your egg donor (UK not anonymous). But I found this website invaluable - eggdonationfriends.com

It compares clinics across Europe (and within each country); if abroad was what you decided.

Good luck x

[LegoBatgirl]

I've not got any experience of it but wanted to wish you the best x

[Hidden]

Hi Clarence80,

I'm so sorry to hear that you haven't had any success.

I'm 41 and my first IVF cycle was cancelled due to being a poor responder,I have high FSH levels and was told the only way moving forwards would be with donor eggs. I took time to look at my options and decided to go to a clinic in the Czech Republic,from intial contact to transfer it took approx 3 mths, I did get a BFP but sadly miscarried. We are now going back in Dec for a FET. I found clinics abroad had shorter wait times, less expensive and very good success rates.

Good luck with which ever route you decide to take xx

[Rose89_]

Hi! I personally don't have experience yet, but friend of mine went abroad - to Czech Republic (at medicaltravelczech.com/), where the whole IVF process is cheaper and she was not even on waiting list... I wish best of luck!