Shot Count = 55 (first shot on 10/1, last on 11/27)
Follicles = 12 ranging from 11-19mm Eggs = 6 Fertilized = 6
Embryos = 3 transferred at day 3, 2 remaining didn’t grow to blasts
Poke-n-Prods = 6
Blood Draws = 6 Vials of Blood = 6
Estradiol = 580 on stim day 6
Trips to/from RE (175 miles each way) = 4
…
Expenses (our insurance doesn’t cover infertility) = $6003:
- Meds = $486 [$27 for new BCP; $129 for new lupron; $54 for new low dose hcg; $46 for hcg trigger shot; plus leftover meds from last cycle that I never used: $13 for methylprednisolone, $23 for doxycycline, $46 for progesterone; plus $77 for a back up trigger shot just in case!!; $25 + $46 for progesterone refills]
- Blood work = $292 [Baseline on 10/21; Estradiol levels on 10/26, 10/28, and 10/31; Beta on 11/19 and 11/21]
- IVF consultation = Paid last cycle
- Ultrasounds = estimated $375 [Baseline on 10/21; Follicle scans on 10/26, 10/28, and 10/31]
- IVF = $4500 plus $350 for anesthesia
…
IVF #3* Timeline:
9/24 ~ First day of cycle #56
9/28 ~ Start birth control (BCP)
10/1 ~ Start Lupron (10 units each morning)
10/5 ~ Last day of BCP, thank goodness!
10/9 ~ Started cycle #57!
10/21 ~ Had the baseline ultrasound and estradiol blood work done this morning. The u/s was clear except a 7.8mm follicle left over from IVF#2, but thankfully looked hollow, not fluid-filled. The blood work took 60 minutes this morning: 55 minutes of paperwork, 5 minutes of set up and blood drawing. RIDICULOUS! Last of the meds arrived this morning, so we now have all the meds we need, including replacements of everything used or expired from last cycle. Long story, but switched to Follistim instead of Gonal-F
10/22 ~ Switched to doing shots at night so that I can have scans in the morning and then adjust meds as needed.
10/23 ~ Start Follistim (175u) and low dose hcg (10u) and continue Lupron (10u).
10/26 ~ The meds are working! Had my second scan this morning and had lots of nice follicles. Several large on right side along with several smaller on both sides (left ovary has some catching up to do!). Waiting to hear from Dr. B if dosages will change for tonight and tomorrow night’s injections.
10/27 ~ Wake up feeling sick. Tough it out at work for 3/4 of the day. Go home and take lots of homeopathics and vitamins trying to stave off any illness. I’ve avoided getting sick so far, WHY NOW?!?
10/28 ~ Ultrasound this morning went very well. I’m very excited to say that I have about 20 follicles ranging from 7-14mm. Estradiol at 580, Follistim reduced to 150u. Still hoping for a Monday or Tuesday retrieval! Staying home from work today to rest and relax this cold away!
10/30 ~ Still feeling pretty sick… stuffed up, itchy throat, sapped energy. Feeling my ovaries more and more, too.
10/31 ~ Last u/s of this cycle! RE found 12 really nice follicles ranging from 11-19mm. One last set of stims tonight, reduced to 75u because estradiol levels were almost too high, trigger shot tomorrow night. Retrieval scheduled for Tuesday!
11/1 ~ TRIGGER!!!! Went ahead with two shots to calm our fears about the trigger shot not working again.
11/3 ~ Egg retrieval at 8:30am, six eggs retrieved!
11/4 ~ All six eggs fertilized!!! WE HAVE SIX EMBRYOS!!!
11/5 ~ Got word that transfer will be tomorrow morning, 10:45am. Dr. B wants to transfer three embryos… EEK!
11/6 ~ Transferred 3 embryos. To ward off OHSS, I’ve been advised to drink V8 and Gatorade, two of my least favorite drinks!
11/7 ~ Last shot of IVF #3, switching from progesterone in oil (PIO) shots to suppositories tomorrow to prevent an allergic reaction like I had to the PIO with the three previous embryo transfers.
11/10 ~ Found out the two remaining embryos did not make it to blastocysts. I’m pretty stinkin’ bummed. If this cycle doesn’t work, it means I will most likely never be pregnant.
11/17 ~ 14 days post ovulation (DPO), still not spotting… never made it this far without spotting before!
11/19 ~ Positive on CBE Digital, beta comes back at 42! I set up our first OB appointment and our ultrasound with the RE.
11/21 ~ Second beta comes back at 98!
July 2010 ~ We become parents!
…
*Disclaimer: Although we technically haven’t gone through two complete fresh IVF cycles (from BCP to embryo transfer), I thought I’d go ahead and call this new IVF cycle #3 because we made it through egg retrieval last time, even though no eggs were retrieved, and because, well, because I can. And because they say the third time’s a charm, and I need all the charm I can get.
…
IVF #1 (April-May 2006) Meds: Bravelle and Menopur 23 follicles 14 eggs retrieved 8 fertilized (57%) 5 transferred (36%) [2 in April 2006; 2 in August 2006; 1 in January 2007]IVF #2 (September 2009) Meds: Gonal-F and low dose hcg, stimmed for 8 days
15 follicles, 8 to 10 eggs anticipated
ZERO eggs retrieved due to defective trigger shot**
**That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
