[Hayley86]

Hi Jessica,

I gave Mel a quick Google this AM, yes expensive indeed lol! I'm not too sure the other half and I can afford to pay for IVF, acupuncture and a nutritionist…
We're following a heathy diet, we've both not been drinking for some time as we were trying naturally before the diagnosis, I gave up caffeine months ago, and don't drink decaf (as of the last few months) we don't smoke.
We've stocked up on all the foods meant to help fertility and hoping it works… we'll also follow the food tips of our herbalist/acupuncturist.

Yes I heard of these acupuncture studies, I will definitely be doing it, I'm intrigued by it. Yes our lovely lady is former midwife of Kings College Hospital and was referred to us by a friend who is has conceive through IVF.

Thanks so much for the tips and well wishes…. Finger crossed

 

[Hayley86]

I see… I guess the saying stands "its quality not quantity" - You got there in the end and that's what matters

Royal jelly, I'll Google that, along with the Moxa Sticks I'm not familiar with them. Visualisation I've heard is meant to be beneficial I'll be doing that for sure, I've heard of the Zita West visualisation, is that what you used?

Thanks so so much for all tips

Hugs

 

[Hayley86]

Hi,

Aww, thanks for your opening message, I agree!

We have through one of the clinics however I'm not too sure the other half will be interested, he struggles to speak openly about how he feels. He has an older sister who he is close to, he reached out to her, his older brother too and they've been fab. So he may not be speaking to a professional but I take comfort knowing he has people he can speak with other than me.

Really, wow! See there is hope for us all lol! Good for her… , is this her first baby?

I'm a very sceptical person, when my friend initially told me that she was seeing a herbalist/acupuncturist, I dismissed it, months later when I found myself in a similar situation, I've softened lol. I'm still sceptical however after meeting with Lin and doing some research I'm open to it and keen to learn.

No, no needles in the stomach, that was my fear too, I can't remember where they place the needles but before and after pregnancy for my friend there were no needles on the tummy….

I've not heard of Reiki, I'll Google it.

Lin is based in Brockley, so near Hither Green not too far from Lewisham, this isn't near where I live however I work in London Bridge so it's only a couple of stops on the train from there. Lin works out of home during the week otherwise has a clinic in London Bridge at the weekend however that costs more.

There are some odd things that Lin has said. No cold foods, no lettuce, the womb needs to be kept warm, lots of warm foods, stews etc. No cold feet, wear socks. Avoid fruits except blueberries and blackberries! Lol! I haven't heard about the hair washing lol--- how long is a person meant to go without washing their hair lol.

I'll definitely let you know once we've picked our clinic 

She's arrived, aww  and so its begins, I'm so excited for you. Mine arrived today, the cramps 
Let me know how you get on today and if you're able to get a scan today, good luck 

Hugs

 

[Hayley86]

Hi,

Aww, thanks for your opening message, I agree!

We have through one of the clinics however I'm not too sure the other half will be interested, he struggles to speak openly about how he feels. He has an older sister who he is close to, he reached out to her, his older brother too and they've been fab. So he may not be speaking to a professional but I take comfort knowing he has people he can speak with other than me.

Really, wow! See there is hope for us all lol! Good for her… , is this her first baby?

I'm a very sceptical person, when my friend initially told me that she was seeing a herbalist/acupuncturist, I dismissed it, months later when I found myself in a similar situation, I've softened lol. I'm still sceptical however after meeting with Lin and doing some research I'm open to it and keen to learn.

No, no needles in the stomach, that was my fear too, I can't remember where they place the needles but before and after pregnancy for my friend there were no needles on the tummy….

I've not heard of Reiki, I'll Google it.

Lin is based in Brockley, so near Hither Green not too far from Lewisham, this isn't near where I live however I work in London Bridge so it's only a couple of stops on the train from there. Lin works out of home during the week otherwise has a clinic in London Bridge at the weekend however that costs more.

There are some odd things that Lin has said. No cold foods, no lettuce, the womb needs to be kept warm, lots of warm foods, stews etc. No cold feet, wear socks. Avoid fruits except blueberries and blackberries! Lol! I haven't heard about the hair washing lol--- how long is a person meant to go without washing their hair lol.

I'll definitely let you know once we've picked our clinic

She's arrived, aww and so its begins, I'm so excited for you. Mine arrived today, the cramps
Let me know how you get on today and if you're able to get a scan today, good luck

Hugs

 

[TierraFirma]

Haha tierra, I've got images of you in the garden trying not to set fire to your public hair! I wonder what your neighbours thought! Doesn't matter though, it worked right? What's the rationale behind it?
You did well to get your partner to agree to those treatments [emoji4]

Haha I was more worried of the neighbors thinking I was smoking marijuana, it's really a strong smell but yeah if things help then it's worth it. I believe the rationale behind it is that the heat stimulated blood flow to the uterus, I did it during 2ww
He was a little huffy about doing all that but I just said there's a chance it'll help so it's worth a go at least. The culling and acupuncture he liked as it was relaxing but he drew the line at the Chinese herbal tea 😂 that stuff tasted bad but then my hubby had a bad gag reflex so it probably wasn't actually that bad haha

 

[Montymoomoo]

Hi,

So I went for my baseline scan yesterday [emoji4] I was really anxious they'd say my ovaries had cysts and I would have to repeat the down reg stage but luckily all was fine! My lining was 3.6mm and needed to be below 5mm so all good.
They did give me dilapan to dilate my cervix a bit due to a difficult dummy embryo transfer. It sat in my cervix for two hours and then they removed it. Wasn't very pleasant having it in but hopefully it's done the trick!
I then had a meeting with the nurse who gave me my protocol, I start the menopur tonight around 8pm and go back for a scan and blood test on Tuesday. From there it's alternate day scans and daily bloods. Egg collection currently planned for 26th July.
She told me to eat plenty of protein and drink lots of water to keep OHSS at bay.
Glad to be able to get to this stage.. hopefully it'll continue to go to plan 🤞🏻

Hayley I'm glad your partner has got siblings he trusts and opens up to. He needs an outlet and I'm sure they're very supportive.

Yes it's her first baby! Was a very happy surprise [emoji4]

Yeah I get what you mean about softening towards these ideas. I'm now thinking it can't hurt to try it, I'll try and find someone a bit nearer to my clinic who does acupuncture.

No cold foods and socks! I feel that's difficult to do in this weather, the socks bit especially lol I've heard similar things about balancing yin and yang, spicy, hot foods increase your yang and cold foods increase your yin. So I'm guessing bubbas prefer more yang haha

I'm sure the lady I spoke to said she couldn't wash her hair until her baby shower! She said it derives originally from when women used to wash their hair in the rivers and would have to bend down etc, they believed it contributed to miscarriages so thought it was safer not to do it.

Good luck choosing a clinic this weekend, hopefully your cramps subside too, be kind to yourself. Let me know what you decide.

By the way Hayley, did they give your partner any indication of why he has fertility issues? Are they looking into it?

Tierra, I told my partner yesterday that you'd convinced yours to go for acupuncture and cupping and his face went pale thinking I was going to tell him he also had to go! Lol he feels he's getting off lightly just taking the supplements now.

I'm going to order some moxa sticks to try in the 2ww. Did you work at all during the 2ww?

Love to all xx

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[TierraFirma]

Montymoomoo

I was off the first week of the 2ww but worked the second week, I think you just need to do what feels right for you. I was told in a normal pregnancy you wouldn’t take time off so doing ivf shouldn’t be any different lol it’s not like walking or working can cause the embryo not to stick, I just tried to be as “normal” as I could just reduced the Weight I’d lift but it’s all about you feeling comfortable with what you do so if you want to be off then do it I was with my second icsi

X

 

[Hayley86]

Hello.

I didn't get an email notification of your message so I've only just seen your message. It's good to hear from you.

So it begins…

I've heard of down regulation- this is the long protocol? I think I'll be short protocol…

A dummy embryo transfer? - I've not heard of this, sounds interesting, what's that about?
There are some food that are meant to help increase the lining however these maybe old wives tales but there lots of information online; pomegranate juice (very sweet, I'm not a fan) almonds and Raspberry Leaf Tea, this is OK, it's drinkable (some of the teas are labelled not to take when pregnant, the Clipper Brand for instance however Holland and Barrett do one which is OK) however the tea should only be taken at certain times during your cycle so do some research if you're interested. I think my friend (IVF) said her nurse advised exercise to help the lining, nothing too rigorous just enough to increase the heart rate and blood circulation, so a nice brisk walk.

I hope the injection went OK…. And you're all booked in for your egg collection… its real now

Cool, there's no harm looking into it and you may decide it's not for you.
Yes what you mention about the yin and the yang that's how a colleague explained it to me at work! I know right, in this weather it's not great but the warms foods aren't a bad idea… however still this isn't soup or stew weather… but if it helps

Will do! We've got a consultation booked in for 23rd July, we we're hoping it would be next week but there's a busy schedule and lots of people away on leave…

No, no real indication, he had the mumps last year, a mild form and they said that this could have caused the issue. A colleague of his came to work when they were ill and passed it on; we're trying not to focus on its, at first it made him angry however what's done is done I guess and it may not have been the case. He may of already had a low count and the umps may not of helped. He doesn't smoke, before we started "trying" he would drink, but nothing out the ordinary and his diet is very good, he's very healthy unlike me… I love my carbs, chocolates, crisps and all the rest lol. So maybe it was the mumps, but we'll never know
- What about your partner?

I just told my partner about your other half's face going pale at the thought of acupuncture and cupping, made us chuckle. Absolutely he should go, look what us ladies are having to go through lol! (only kidding, all in the name of love) Mine was told he doesn't really need it but is considering it anyway out of curiosity!!

Have you told many of your friends and family about the IVF? When we start, I don't think we'll tell many. I don't think I'd want all the questions and the constant asking of how it's going.
I'll tell my mum and my IVF friend, and my Fertility Friends buddies however he isn't sure if he'll tell people.

 

[Montymoomoo]

Hi,

Sorry for the delayed reply. Been trying to keep things normal this weekend, went to the beach yesterday with the dogs and OH which was lovely, luckily I'm not bloated yet so still feel pretty normal.

Did the second injection last night in the other side of my tummy which I found more painful but it might've been the angle. I'm still going to alternate sides and hope it gets easier over time. I prefer to do it myself and do it slowly as otherwise I find it stings a bit. My partner does the pinching bit as my nails dig in!

My clinic deceived it as down regging and they never said anything about a long or short protocol but I've read on here norethisterone isn't the proper form of down regging and still counts as short cycle? So I'm not sure but I'm just following what they tell me.

A dummy embryo transfer was one of the tests they did when I was first referred to the clinic. They ask you to come in on a certain day of your cycle to pretend to simulate the embryo transfer (but without actually anything in the catheter), just to see if they foresee any problems so they've got time to rectify them if they do.

I've ordered pomegranate juice and I heard Brazil nuts are good. I'm wary of raspberry leaf tea as it is used to bring on labour if used over a period of time. I wouldn't want to cause a potential miscarriage :/

Ok, exercise sounds good, I'll continue to walk the dogs twice a day so hopefully that'll be enough to help. I imagine it'll get harder the further we get if I start to feel bloated.

We're driving down to our air bnb tonight so once settled we'll see if there's an acupuncture clinic nearby.

23rd July! Exciting! Write down all your questions so you won't forget to ask anything

Oh no, that's so cruel if it was the mumps! Were you trying before the mumps? Did they examine him?
With my partner they told him he's in a male menopause. His body will continue to make less and less sperm as he gets older (he's younger than me at 25) and they couldn't say if it'll be one year or ten years before he has nothing.
They did find a varicocele by his testicle though which they treated and apparently it's now gone. There's some research to suggest it may help sperm quantity but more Importantly quality. Waiting to see at the f/u appointment if it has actually helped. The f/u appointment currently falls on egg collection day so we'll need to ask them if we can move the time if that is going to be our actual collection date!

Haha make him go! It'll be a laugh [emoji6]

I didn't tell many people at first.. now I'm having treatment I've told my work colleagues (we work in a community team) so they understand why I'm having time off. I've told some of my friends but they often feel uncomfortable and don't really know what to say. My mum guessed pretty early on in the process and we told OH's family the beginning of this year. It's hard though cos once it's out, it's out. It's nice not having to make excuses at work though.
I think it depends on you as a person, if you feel comfortable people knowing or not.

Good luck at your appointment on the 23rd, hope it goes well xx

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[Montymoomoo]

Hi TierraFirma,

At present I’m due to work both weeks. I was just anxious regarding stress more than moving around. If I’m stressed at work could that affect the implantation? My body might think it’s not a safe time and abort..! I think I’ll have to see nearer the time how I feel and go from there...

Thanks xx


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[Hayley86]

No, no worries at all for the response, take your time; I thought I'd respond now as I've got a free minute at work.
Me too actually, Friday and yesterday were probably the best days since we got the diagnosis. We went to the park yesterday, had a picnic, went for a stroll , it was nice, nice to feel normal, despite all the prams that went by!
I'm back at work today and have probably done the most work I've done in ages. I've been getting by doing the bare minimum, I've found it hard to focus and not think of anything else but todays been a good day.

The beach, that's nice. I love being by the water… Brighton is nice. What dogs do you have? My parents have a little Bichon called Marley, he's adorable… I love dogs, they're hard work though.

Yes my friend suffered quite badly with bloating when she was stimulating- I keep saying "my friend" her name is Laura. However it was worth it in the end.
I think I'll do my own too. I'm not too bad with needles however I've never had to self-inject, hopefully the needles won't be too big, I'll close my eyes when I push in…

I see. I didn't know about that, so it's to see if the catheter fits for the big day?- That makes sense. Laura initially started with IUI when that failed she moved onto IVF and I know before she started her IUI, they had to test catheter size so by the time she got to IVF they would already know the size from her previous treatment.

Yep you're right about the tea, you should only take at certain times during your cycle, taking later on can contract the uterus… hence why it's used by some to induce labour… Pom juice and nuts, I've heard beetroot too…

Yep it's a week today. We have a book where we jot all our questions down so we'll have lots for the consultant.

No, he got mumps last year- March, we started trying later that year. He was seen by his GP but it was only a mild form and given antibiotics

I'm sorry to hear about your partner, he's so young too however it's not nice at any age. I'm 32 and my OH is 31, 32 later in the year. How long have you been together? I'm sure they'll be able to reschedule his f/up appointment so it doesn't conflict with your egg collection. It's so exciting for you though, it's just so quick how quickly this all moves
Mine too has been offered to take another test in 6 to 8 weeks to see if there's some improvement since the taking of vitamins, diet etc.

I agree about telling work as it's not always easy juggling treatment . I'm quite fortunate that I can work flexi hours and work from home a day a week, I don't really want to have to tell work if I don't have to, so I may try to juggle it. I have lots of annual to use up before the end of the year so don't mind even taking a few days leave during the every other day scans.

Thanks for the well wishes. I'll keep you update
I hope you're having a nice time away

 

[TierraFirma]

Montymoomoo

they say to keep stress down but at the same time they say be as normal as possible. If it was a normal pregnancy chances are you wouldn't know you were pregnant that early so wouldn't be watching about stress. There's a good video to watch that actually makes a lot of sense and should help put your mind at ease, it did mine when I was going through icsi

 

[Hayley86]

I love Nurse Linda, she’s very good. I wish she did more vlogs!

 

[Montymoomoo]

Hi lovelies,

Hayley, that sounds like a lovely weekend [emoji4] the weather certainly helps too! Hopefully your OH is starting to come to terms with his diagnosis x

That's good that you're being productive too! Do you think it's because you feel like you're getting somewhere with deciding on a clinic?

I love going to the beach, really helps clear my head. We've got two dogs, a Pomeranian and a Scottie dog. They are a lot of work but I wouldn't be without them now. Our fur babies lol

Poor Laura, I bet she doesn't care about it now it's worked. I can feel my follicles getting bigger throughout the day, strange sensation. Like little tugs.

Hopefully you'll find the injections ok when you start. At least they don't last long. I start the cetrotide injections tomorrow morning also (to stop me ovulating) so I'll let you know how I get on with that one!

Ah that makes sense about the Catheter. Will you have a dummy embryo transfer with your clinic or is that something you'll ask them?

I've got some pomegranate-juice and beetroot juice I'll start today. I was being a bit cautious before my scan today. I didn't want to be encouraging/overstimulating if they were already getting too big! They measured today and found 3 in my left ovary between 8-9mm but my right side doesn't have any big ones yet. My womb lining is 6mm. He said it's ok and wait to hear what dose of meds to take tonight (dependent on my blood test results from this morning). I've a feeling they may increase it.

Oh that's so hard about your partner and the mumps. Not knowing if it was or not must be horrible. But at least you know now and can do something about it. Will they do any further investigations? Apart from the vitamins?

Yeah it hit him pretty hard, feels like an old man in a young mans body. We've been together 5 years now. In the beginning I was the one that was pushing for kids, then it switched to him and he got really broody. Then we found out the reason it wasn't happening.

Oh that sounds ideal about your work! Being able to work from home one day a week helps for sure. I'm using one of these two weeks as annual leave but I was told by my clinic that during the stim stage you're entitled to the time off for the appointments as they are monitoring you for medical reasons (it's no longer a lifestyle choice) but like you say, it's whether you want people to know or not.

It's strange that life is pretty normal still around all the scans and injections. I think when it gets to embryo stage I'll be a nervous wreck! It would be such a dream to get our first ever BFP!

I'll continue to keep you updated, I hope you do me too..! X

TierraFirma, thank you for recommending that video [emoji4] you're right. It really helps put it into perspective for me, thank you x

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