Accepted for IVF - so many questions!

[thepregnantpause]

After trying for 2 years and having a non-conclusive Laparoscopy back in March, we had an appointment with our specialist on Friday and he has approved us for IVF! I pretty much expected this would happen, but thought it would take a while to actually get going, which is why I was surprised when he said it would probably only be a couple of months! He's referred us back to a local clinic to actually carry out the treatment, so we are just waiting for a letter to come through. Being the obsessive researcher I am, I was wondering if anyone can tell me what to expect when we get the appointment through - do we just get started straight away or are there more tests to do (we did all the relevant tests about a year ago, including sperm sample, will we need to re-do?)? How long does the entire process take after we get the appointment? We only get one go on the NHS (bloody IVF lottery, makes me want to scream), will they freeze embryos? At what stage does it have to 'fail' for it to be considered a 'go' (e.g if they can't retrieve eggs, do we get another shot on the NHS)? Is there anything I can start doing now to improve our chances?

Sorry for the long post, I'm really anxious/excited!

[Minnie92]

Hey, I’ll add our timeline to try and help answer a few questions:

December 2018 - accepted for 3 rounds and had bloods, internal scan and semen analysis (hadn’t seen consultant yet)

Jan 2019 - met consultant for results of above tests and decided to go for icsi rather than standard ivf due to male and female factor infertility

End of Jan 2019 - group session with 30 other couples, PowerPoint presentation about ivf and what to expect/protocols etc

Feb 2019 - met with consultant to sign all consent forms and told to ring next period

End of Feb 2019 - started period so rang and requested to be booked onto injection teach session

March 2019 - got a date for teach session and we were asked to go back for further bloods for myself and husband

Mid March 2019 - had teach session, got medication and told to ring next period to request treatment to start

End of March 2019 - period started, rang clinic and got a call back next day to inform us accepted that month and to start injecting.

With regards to the cycles, if you have for example 5 embryos at the end, one is transferred and 4 are frozen, until you have a live birth all those embryos are classed as one cycle. With regards to cancelling cycles etc, I’m not too sure it depends on how you respond but I guess each clinic is different and have different procedures with this. Hope this helps but feel free to message with any questions as I know how daunting it is starting this process! (I’m no expert just happy to help) xx

[thepregnantpause in reply to Minnie92]

Thank you so much this is really helpful!