11 follicles on first stimulation check should I be disappointed??

[Eat-sleep-ivf-repeat]

hey girls!

So this is my 3rd ivf cycle.

My first cycle was successful and I’m blessed to have a 3 year old.

My second cycle gave me two transfers, one a single fresh and one a double frozen- both failed.

This is my 3rd cycle and my medications been changed slightly and at my first stimulation check I only had 11 follicles of varying sizes.

I can’t remember last cycle how many I had, but I know with my son I had 23 at this stage! This is a huge difference and I can’t help but feel deflated 😟

does anyone know the average or if this is unusually low?

Thanks in advance from a stressed tired hormonal woman 🙋🏼‍♀️

[Kitkat10]

That sounds pretty good to me. I only had 7 follicles but still had success, although I was 40 at the time so I think it sometimes depends on age.

My consultant told me that if the ovaries are less ‘pushed’ and therefore produce slightly fewer follicles, the eggs which are there are more likely to be mature and therefore more likely to get to blastocyst stage 🤷🏻‍♀️

Wishing you the best of luck. If I had 11 follicles, I’d be very happy with that 🍀🍀 good luck, hope everything goes smoothly x

[Eat-sleep-ivf-repeat in reply to Kitkat10]

Brilliant I’m so glad you had success ❤️

Thanks for the positivity & your good wishes, hearing your story has given me some relief 🥲 xx

[WillowPark in reply to Eat-sleep-ivf-repeat]

I was also told that sometimes it is better to get lower numbers of higher quality follicles. We had ten follicles, 9 mature eggs and ended up with 6 blastocysts! So success is definitely possible with your results at this stage. Good luck! x

[Sja1981 in reply to Kitkat10]

That's really interesting. I wonder if that's why my clinic seems to have changed my protocol to 7 low dose Gonal injections for the stimulation.

I'm still waiting to hear back about why they've changed it. Initially it was 3 high dose shots of Pergoveris - which would have been far cheaper!

[joanne2024]

That's a good number. I know people who have only got 2 or 3.On one of my collection I got 11 and 5 made it to blasts. Hope that helps reassure your mind a little xx

[Christianbaby]

I know it can be discouraging to see a different number than you expected, but 11 follicles is actually a good number! Follicle counts can vary significantly from cycle to cycle, and what really matters is the quality of the eggs, not just the quantity. Sending you lots of positive vibes and strength! x

[K_LNB]

I agree with the quality over quantity comments. I had 40+ follicles and 33 eggs collected but ultimately ended up with one (failed) blastocyst so not convinced more is better!

[Connie290]

I definitely wouldn't be disappointed, that's a good start. On my day 8 scan I only had 3 follicles and was devastated thinking they'd cancel my cycle, then I went in on day 11 and follicles had gone up to around 14, so they can also catch up really quickly, and I actually ended up with 19 eggs (7 day 5 blasts), so you're far from out ☺️ x