FET and short cycles

[Uggggh]

I have a slightly short cycle of 25-26 days. Would this make any difference to any part of a medicated FET cycle?

[MariaHdz]

Hi

I don't think so. If you are following the medicated cycle (estrogens and then estrogens and progesterone), they will check your endometrium thickness around day 14 (it is the standard... sometimes it could be before). Then if it is the right thickness they will ask you: is it ok to have the tranference on this or that date or would you prefer it later? And if it is not thick enough you will checked up a couple days after. And then start the progesteron 5 days before the transfer. Then you need to wait 9 to 12 days for the blood test (depending on the hospital). Your cycle will be replaced by an artificial cycle, which makes it easier to follow up and because of this, what your natural cycle usually last won't matter much. The medicines will be replacing that (in a way, they "silence" your body and do the work themselves).

In a natural FET or a modified natural FET (with no estrogen pills and just progesteron and or pregnyl) it does matter much more, because they will track your natural ovulation time... but still the luteal phase tends to become longer than usual because of the extra progesterone (you usually don't have a period until several days after you stop the meds, which is around 17 days after your "ovulation").

[Uggggh in reply to MariaHdz]

Hi, that’s great, thank you for explaining and setting my mind at rest. I’m having estrogen then progesterone and asked to have a scan of day 7-9. Would you know when my progesterone levels would checked - or would they just go ahead with the transfer based on the lining thickness?

[MariaHdz in reply to Uggggh]

You are welcome i have had all the types of FET, natural, modified natural and last year I had 2 HRT FETs (hormone replacement treatment), like you will have. In my case they checked the endometrium at day 14 and sometimes it needs more time to get thicker. For some people, the doctors check their endometrium on day 9 (in case it is ready, or to check how things are going or if you need more hormones or more time. My advice: don't stress too much, each cycle is different. In some cycles you need less or more time). If the endometrium reaches a good thickness (some clinics say 7 mm is the mininum, others try to get to 8 mm or close to it), then you start progesterone. They did not check progesterone by blood with me. The reason is that the estrogens in the first half of the cycle "silence" your ovaries. Also because you won't ovulate, you won't have a corpus luteum that produces progesterone. So just based on the thickness of the endometrium (at least that was with me) and based on when you are all available for the transfer, you will start progesterone 5 days before the transfer (or 3, if you have 3 day embryos). The idea is that in a natural cycle, after ovulation happens, you get a "surge" of progesterone... because you won't ovulate this time, themedicines are going to "trick" your body and give you that surge when your doctor says that the thickness is "ok" (estrogens make your endometrium grow and get thatbnice trilaminar shape doctors and embryos like... but the progesterone, finishes the "maduration" of the endometrium and makes it receptive for your embryo) . They will measure everything again by blood (lh, estrogens, progesteron and HCG) when you get your beta to see if you are pregnant (around 9 to 12 days after the transfer). Some clinics measure your progesterone during the 2ww to see if you need more or if the quantities are fine, but in my experience, you are over with the blood tests and can rest the inside of your elbows, until the end of the 2ww. I hope it was helpful, sorry for the long answer

[Uggggh in reply to MariaHdz]

That’s so helpful especially with as you have given me so much detail and now I feel so much better going into this next stage and understanding it. Thank you so much x

[MariaHdz in reply to Uggggh]

You are welcome, maybe yours will be a bit different, but in general I see that it goes more or less the same. Don't get stressed out and I wish you all the luck in your fet