First egg retrieval q's

[DogMum7]

Hi all,

Firstly thanks to this wonderful community for all the resources, helpfulness and general support ♥️

I'm on a long protocol and at last scan 2 days ago I had about 7-10 follicles (3/4 too small) and potential for 4-6 to be collected. I have egg retrieval tomorrow and this is my first ever round. Couple of q's:

- if there are a few below 17mm do they still get collected? Obvs want the most possible opportunities to transfer/freeze as my numbers are so low!

- the nurse said the pain relief (administered via the bum?!) isn't suitable for asthmatics. Has anyone with asthma had it? I don't want to miss out on pain relief and I've got mild asthma, never had an attack so hoping its not too risky?

- We're you able to walk/work from home the day after? Genuinely nervous about all the stuff I have to do but don't want to push it.

- do you hear within a day or two if there's success and then have the next session booked? I'm guessing there's a chance none of them work so need to prepare for that

Sorry for all the q's, I just feel like a burden to my clinic like the appts have been so quick and there's no time to ask q's like this I should be a bit more pushy I think... Xx

[Tiger37]

Hi,

My clinic said as a guide they estimate any follicles 14mm or above at the last scan will be mature when collected as they do continue to grow, however it is not an exact science. If your clinic has said potential for 4-6 they have more information than we do so it is probably unlikely more will be collected. However this still gives you a number of chances and remember it only takes one.

I also have mild asthma, never had an attack and it is well controlled with my symbicort inhaler and I was fine to have the diclofenac suppository so no having asthma does not mean you can’t have it, but I would call your clinic to get clarification before tomorrow.

Yes, I was fine the next day but the sedative can affect people differently so it is probably not a bad idea to take the next day off. You can’t drive for 24 hours.

They should tell you on the day how many eggs collected. Our clinic has always then called the next morning to say how many fertilised and then we have done day 5 transfers so they call the morning of the transfer 5 days later to confirm how many get to blastocyst stage. I would check with your clinic tomorrow as different clinics may do things differently.

All the best xx

[DogMum7 in reply to Tiger37]

Thank you so, so much for taking the time out to respond 🙏🏼 All of it that is very helpful and I'll certainly ask them tomorrow too. Best of luck with your journey xx

[Hopewhite]

hi lovely all the best of luck for the collection tomorrow , I’ll try to answer what I can.

All eggs that they can access get collected, however they’ll tell you how many of those are mature enough to be used. At our clinic they tell you how many they have collected on the same day before you leave , and call you next day in the morning to tell you out of the mature ones how many fertilised successfully. Then they call you again on day 3 and day 5 (blastocyst), depending on how the embryos are developing they can advise a day 3 or 5 transfer. Our clinic prefers day 5 , and they also leave some embryos until day 6 if they think they have a chance to get to blastocyst with one day more. Try to stay positive hopefully you’ll get at least 1 viable embryo for transfer 🤞🏼🤞🏼.

I’ve felt ok and walked back home slowly after retrieval ( under 1 mile), I have tried to take things easy afterwards, I’ve been lucky enough to have my collection on Friday and had the weekend to recover and mostly wfh the week after with 1 or 2 days at the office. Try to work from home and not to stress too much , hopefully you’ll feel fine but you also need to take care and allow your body to recover.

Wishing you all the best of luck ! It’s a really quick surgery , if you’re under heavy sedation you won’t feel anything hopefully 🤞🏼 and remember is quality over quantity, so hopefully you’ll get some good strong eggs 🥚

[DogMum7 in reply to Hopewhite]

Thank you so much Hopewhite ♥️ I genuinely have felt in the dark throughout the process to date so really appreciate people's support and responses. That's great news, I'm really just keen to walk the dogs as I'm already going mad not being able to exercise 🤣 Here's hoping those few are little fighters and I can at least have a first round and see how it goes! Hope your journey is going well and wish you all the luck xx

[Hopewhite in reply to DogMum7]

hi no worries at all, happy to help. This forum is very helpful for any questions, you should also ask your clinic if there's a nurse advice line?, the treatment can be a bit daunting so better to ask even if it's just for reassurance. Gentle exercise like walking it's ok, after transfer our clinic said just carry on as normal whatever your body is used to, e.g. don't start doing a 10 k if you have never ran, however I just kept it to lots of walking, just ask your clinic as each body is different but hopefully they'll say the same. Sending you tons of good luck, i hope everything goes well.

[Hopewhite in reply to DogMum7]

Hi how are you feeling? I hope everything has gone well on your egg collection xx

[DogMum7 in reply to Hopewhite]

Hey! So kind of you to check-in. Yes actually went ok and they collected 8 I know most likely won't be mature but it was just great to hear considering I was expecting 4-5. Now for the next steps and unbearable wait of hearing how they do 🤣 I hope everything is going ok your end. Sending all the positive vibes xx

[Hopewhite in reply to DogMum7]

Glad it all went well , 8 is a good number , I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you ! Hopefully you’ll get some strong embryos from there ! It is like a lottery, so fingers and everything crossed xx

[Rubylou01]

Hey - just to say that I was on long protocol and had 4 follicles drained that at the last scan were 10 and 11mm (I was struggling) and managed to get mature eggs from two of them (I think as long protocol they get a bit more time to develop) so I'd just ask your clinic before the procedure if they can collect as many as possible? But they will likely know best. Good luck xx

[DogMum7 in reply to Rubylou01]

Thanks so much. That's great news ♥️ xx