DOR check-in 7/10

[lemonliz]

Hey gang! My apologies once again. I completely dropped the ball on posting this check-in. Cycling and moving are not very compatible, it's been busy.

This is a check in for anyone dealing with being labeled a poor responder, sometimes called diminished ovarian reserve but also called pof or poi. All are welcome here no matter where you are along your journey or what kind of treatment you're seeking.


amberr
babyhopes
bonzo
dp21
heartpresidents
Dogpaddle29
lemonliz
lillee
specter
woodenshoes

Check in with us whenever you feel like it!
amandaleigh
Shanangins
Ronniesgirl
Mushe


Grads:
gratefulandthankful -- LL cycle (#9?) with best unicorn BFP story ever

SPOILER: Click to show

fishchicks -- Round 2 IUI#1 with EPP and low stims
bootsorhearts — DE cycle
wannabmama - IVF#2
muscari - IVF#2
king26 - FET after 4 failed fresh IVFs
airbear916 — IVF#2
river — FET cycle
njnp528: surprise BFP after IVF#1
fishchicks: DHEA, TI#1 with EPP, low-stim + trigger
rslh10: FET cycle after IVF#1 w/PGS
wineandcupcakes: FET#1 w/depot Lupron treatment after IVF#3
runcici: FET#2 after DE cycle
roeni: FET#1 after IVF#4 and PGS
chrysanthemum: FET#1, 3 IVF banking cycles, CCS testing
sha259: FET#4 w/last frostie from IVF#1
emilie: IUI#4 with EPP and stims
unringthebell: IUI#2 after supplements and 2 septum surgeries
those3words: IVF#4 (no BCP) MDLF, supplementing DHEA and CoQ10
ronniesgirl: surprise BFP on DHEA after IVF#5
rn1175: DE IVF
katelm: IVF#3 FET#1 after PGS
tikoberry99: FET after IVF#1 w/PGS
pinotgrigio: surprise BFP after IVF#3
shananagins: FET, 2 IVF banking cycles, eSET PGS embryo
emmuffy: DW FET#1, IVF#2 w/HGH after DHEA and supplements
lilycakes78: IVF#2 MDLF
K1111K: IVF#3 MDLF, 2-day transfer of 4 embryos

[bonzo]

Thanks for the check in, lemonliz. I hope both the move and the cycle are going well!

I forget if I updated this check in after my WTF last week, so forgive me if this isn't a new update for some of you! Our one embryo had a trisomy 18. For next cycle, our RE wants to use estrace priming, and then do an all Menopur cycle. lemonliz, I'd actually like to get more of your thoughts on this. You said last week that all Menopur typically isn't a good protocol for DOR, but when I asked my RE about that he sent me a couple of newer studies that show it increases quality. So, his hope is that since I got 6 eggs but only 2 were good, all Menopur may decrease the egg count a smidge but would increase the number of useable. When he puts it that way, it sounds good, but with so many here saying that protocol didn't work, I'd love more info.

[specter]

Thanks for the check-in, lemonliz!
bonzo, I have no advice to offer, but I hope you find answers and a plan to move forward with.

AFM, not much happening. CD3 here, but we're still on the waitlist for my repeat SHG, as well as the waitlist for IVF.

We did get some good news a couple weeks ago. We have been approved for a family-building grant we applied for!!! I'm so excited, since we've been 100% OOP since day one. It's $2000, so it's not like a free cycle or anything, but a pretty significant chunk of one. H's parents have also offered to pitch in, I'm just not sure how much yet.
We had been thinking that we might be done with cycling, since my migraines make it almost unbearable without the good drugs, and we were at the end of our financial rope. But now that we have this backing, we're gonna give it one more go.

[bonzo]

Congrats on the grant, specter!

[birch113]

lemonliz thanks for the check in!

bonzo I think I missed the diagnosis of your embryo. I'm sorry. Interested to hear more about an all Menopur cycle.

specter congrats on the grant!!

I'm just hanging out at Day 6 totally calm and collected while waiting for our Day 7 update on our 4 embryos.

Just kidding. I've managed to accomplish a few things at work but I can barely concentrate.

[lemonliz]

Jul 10, 2017 7:20:52 GMT -6 bonzo said:

Thanks for the check in, lemonliz . I hope both the move and the cycle are going well!

I forget if I updated this check in after my WTF last week, so forgive me if this isn't a new update for some of you! Our one embryo had a trisomy 18. For next cycle, our RE wants to use estrace priming, and then do an all Menopur cycle. lemonliz , I'd actually like to get more of your thoughts on this. You said last week that all Menopur typically isn't a good protocol for DOR, but when I asked my RE about that he sent me a couple of newer studies that show it increases quality. So, his hope is that since I got 6 eggs but only 2 were good, all Menopur may decrease the egg count a smidge but would increase the number of useable. When he puts it that way, it sounds good, but with so many here saying that protocol didn't work, I'd love more info.

Interesting! I'm always interested in hearing more about new research for DOR! The Menopur stuff is basically just observation here from all-Menopur cycles (they seem to do it a lot at this one clinic here in the city I live in and there are at least 3 people who were on TCF there who had complete bombs of cycles that way -- in fact, on one of their second attempts, the clinic agreed to give her a significant discount because of the potential that the results from the first cycle were from Menopur protocol). But also there's another wing of REs Dr. Sher, who believe that LH is damaging to egg quality for ovaries that are already stressed, like ours. I'll have to see if I can find the link to his blog post about it now that they moved everything around on the website. For every Sher, though, there's a Silber (the low-stim guy in St. Louis) who think that Menopur is the answer!

It's honestly so hard to say! I'll have to ask Dr. W what his thoughts are about Menopur. He has me taking it but in small amounts and only in this second half of the cycle.  

[pandora89]

bonzo - I cycled with just menopur in December and my follicles all grew in at different sizes, with one lead follicle. We ended up cancelling that cycle. I know they say all menopur is not good for women who are older (something with too much LH can be bad for egg quality) but I see you are only 29 so I don't think you would fall in this category. Priming with estrogen worked for me (higher afc, lower fsh, more eggs retrieved). We ended up cycling again the following month with gonal-f and menopur and had the best response to date.

Hi, mind if I jump in? I was Pandora89 on TCF as well. Took a break from posting after fresh transfer in March ended up being an ectopic. The pregnancy took more than 2 months from when we found out it was ectopic to when it finally resolved itself. Since my beta numbers were so low they were hesitant to give me the shot. We have been prepping for FET since late June, doing the long Lupron protocol. Started progesterone yesterday and transfer is Friday. We transferred a 3AB embryo in March and will be transferring a 3AA Friday. Still will have a 2BB and 4AC in the freezer, feeling very fortunate to have so many blasts with DOR but still panicking none of these will give us our take home baby.

Also, I have come to realize that priming and getting my estrogen up the month before cycling really helps with AFC. We originally cycled in January but was cancelled due to lack of response, AFC was 12 and FSH was 13. We jumped into another stimming cycle in Feb and my AFC was 16, FSH 5. I was on estrace the last week and a half and when I went in for baselines for the FET, my AFC was 16 again. 13 was my previous highest AFC amount. Not sure what my FSH was but I am sure it wasn't as high as previously since my AFC was higher.

[bonzo]

Jul 10, 2017 11:21:20 GMT -6 lemonliz said:

Jul 10, 2017 7:20:52 GMT -6 bonzo said:

Thanks for the check in, lemonliz . I hope both the move and the cycle are going well!

I forget if I updated this check in after my WTF last week, so forgive me if this isn't a new update for some of you! Our one embryo had a trisomy 18. For next cycle, our RE wants to use estrace priming, and then do an all Menopur cycle. lemonliz , I'd actually like to get more of your thoughts on this. You said last week that all Menopur typically isn't a good protocol for DOR, but when I asked my RE about that he sent me a couple of newer studies that show it increases quality. So, his hope is that since I got 6 eggs but only 2 were good, all Menopur may decrease the egg count a smidge but would increase the number of useable. When he puts it that way, it sounds good, but with so many here saying that protocol didn't work, I'd love more info.

Interesting! I'm always interested in hearing more about new research for DOR! The Menopur stuff is basically just observation here from all-Menopur cycles (they seem to do it a lot at this one clinic here in the city I live in and there are at least 3 people who were on TCF there who had complete bombs of cycles that way -- in fact, on one of their second attempts, the clinic agreed to give her a significant discount because of the potential that the results from the first cycle were from Menopur protocol). But also there's another wing of REs Dr. Sher, who believe that LH is damaging to egg quality for ovaries that are already stressed, like ours. I'll have to see if I can find the link to his blog post about it now that they moved everything around on the website. For every Sher, though, there's a Silber (the low-stim guy in St. Louis) who think that Menopur is the answer!

It's honestly so hard to say! I'll have to ask Dr. W what his thoughts are about Menopur. He has me taking it but in small amounts and only in this second half of the cycle.  

My doc does a lot of research specifically on women who are younger (under 35) with DOR, so that may be part of the difference. There's a lot of info out there about what works well for older women with DOR, but less research on those of us who are younger. He called this protocol a Dragisic protocol, and when Googling I've found some papers by a Dr. Dragisic detailing why he felt this worked. I haven't found much written for the layperson though, which is what I really need to find! I have poked around Dr. Sher's website some, but it's not always easy to find what I'm searching for there.

If only it wasn't so expensive and time consuming to experiment with our bodies, I feel like I wouldn't over think every little detail so much!

[lemonliz]

Jul 10, 2017 12:54:38 GMT -6 bonzo said:

Jul 10, 2017 11:21:20 GMT -6 lemonliz said:

Interesting! I'm always interested in hearing more about new research for DOR! The Menopur stuff is basically just observation here from all-Menopur cycles (they seem to do it a lot at this one clinic here in the city I live in and there are at least 3 people who were on TCF there who had complete bombs of cycles that way -- in fact, on one of their second attempts, the clinic agreed to give her a significant discount because of the potential that the results from the first cycle were from Menopur protocol). But also there's another wing of REs Dr. Sher, who believe that LH is damaging to egg quality for ovaries that are already stressed, like ours. I'll have to see if I can find the link to his blog post about it now that they moved everything around on the website. For every Sher, though, there's a Silber (the low-stim guy in St. Louis) who think that Menopur is the answer!

It's honestly so hard to say! I'll have to ask Dr. W what his thoughts are about Menopur. He has me taking it but in small amounts and only in this second half of the cycle.  

My doc does a lot of research specifically on women who are younger (under 35) with DOR, so that may be part of the difference. There's a lot of info out there about what works well for older women with DOR, but less research on those of us who are younger. He called this protocol a Dragisic protocol, and when Googling I've found some papers by a Dr. Dragisic detailing why he felt this worked. I haven't found much written for the layperson though, which is what I really need to find! I have poked around Dr. Sher's website some, but it's not always easy to find what I'm searching for there.

If only it wasn't so expensive and time consuming to experiment with our bodies, I feel like I wouldn't over think every little detail so much!

Remind me again, what was your first protocol? 

[bonzo]

Jul 10, 2017 14:58:22 GMT -6 lemonliz said:

Jul 10, 2017 12:54:38 GMT -6 bonzo said:

My doc does a lot of research specifically on women who are younger (under 35) with DOR, so that may be part of the difference. There's a lot of info out there about what works well for older women with DOR, but less research on those of us who are younger. He called this protocol a Dragisic protocol, and when Googling I've found some papers by a Dr. Dragisic detailing why he felt this worked. I haven't found much written for the layperson though, which is what I really need to find! I have poked around Dr. Sher's website some, but it's not always easy to find what I'm searching for there.

If only it wasn't so expensive and time consuming to experiment with our bodies, I feel like I wouldn't over think every little detail so much!

Remind me again, what was your first protocol? 

We did a basic antagonist. BCP to start, then 2 vials Menopur and .7cc Omnitrope AM + 225 IU Gonal F PM until day 6. Day 7 on, we added 1 Menopur in the evening too, and increased the Gonal F dosage by 75 IU most days. Added AM cetrotide on Day 8. Dual trigger on the evening of day 12.

[amberr]

Hi all. I've been mostly absent here. I spend all my free time deleting my posts, one by one, on TCF since N is no longer doing content deletions. I over 6500 posts!

I've decided to try to squeeze in an IVF cycle this fall. Like November. And I don't even have a clinic decided in yet. I've found a few within my last minute-ish budget and I'm second guessing every little thing. It's information overload. SART data, protocol differences, google reviews, Facebook reviews, personal recommendations. It's too much. *sigh* and traveling out of state makes it even harder!

Love to you all!

lemonliz I hope stims go better this time!
bonzo I understand second guessing! Wishing you the best of luck this cycle!

[Dogpaddle29]

lemonliz you can take me off the check in please.

SPOILER: Click to show

And add me to the grad list. Betas came in good and after a scary morning with cramping and bleeding I had an early ultra sound and saw two yolk sacs. The bleeding stopped and they aren't worried at this point. We will go next week for another ultra sound and to see the heart beats.

Thank you all for the love and support. I hope to see you all on the other side very soon.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bonzo]

Congrats Dogpaddle29!

[lillee]

Congrats Dogpaddle29!

[woodenshoes]

bonzo, I don't have any insight on the protocols. My protocol was EPP MDLF. I didn't use any menopur with my cycle.

lemonliz, I hope all is well with you. Moving and cycling definitely would make things busy.

specter, Congrats on receiving the grant. Every little bit helps.

pandora89, I am sorry that you had to deal with an ectopic. I hope your transfer goes well on Friday.

Dogpaddle29, Congratulations!


AFM

SPOILER: Click to show

I am still in the game. I had my second beta yesterday at 15dp2dt and it was 201. So it quadrupled from the 44 last Friday (11dp2dt), which is what they wanted to see. Also, I haven't had any spotting in more than 48 hours. I am still extremely nervous due to my loss history and the fact that my beta levels are close to what they were when I had my loss in September. I have an u/s scheduled July 25th. The wait is going to be so difficult

[woodenshoes]

amberr, Good luck with deciding what clinic you want to cycle with this fall. I imagine it is overwhelming.

[specter]

Congrats Dogpaddle29 and woodenshoes!!!!

[amberr]

Jul 12, 2017 11:25:39 GMT -6 woodenshoes said:

amberr, Good luck with deciding what clinic you want to cycle with this fall. I imagine it is overwhelming.

thank you! It's VERY overwhelming. Especially since I'm firbsute going out of state, and OOP; there's literally nowhere out of the possibilities. I'm looking at cost, SART data, vacation rental cost, flight costs, etc. I need a spread sheet probably.

[bonzo]

Congrats, woodenshoes! FX all continues to go well!

[birch113]

pandora89 GL on Friday!

amberr FC for you this fall! The search sounds intense. It sounds like a spreadsheet is a must!

Dogpaddle29 Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

woodenshoes congratulations!!! I have everything crossed for you!

[birch113]

AFM, we ended up with one Day 6 blast, fully hatched. It was biopsied and frozen, and we should have the PGS results in 7-14 days. The other three arrested shortly after they were checked on Day 3.

[babyhopes]

Awesome news on the grant, specter.

Woohoo! Best of luck with transfer tomorrow, pandora89.

Yay amberr! I know it's stressful working out the details. I hope you are able to find an amazing RE that you are comfortable with.

Hope you have a H&H nine months, Dogpaddle29. I am so incredibly happy for you!

Congrats woodenshoes. Hope times flies by for you and things are perfect at your first u/s.

I am rooting so hard for your one, birch113. <3

AFM, I had my endometrial scratch yesterday and it was horrible. I'm glad it's over! I am ordering my meds today. Testosterone patches start Monday, baseline Tuesday, and stims start on the 22nd. Eep!

I am doing an antagonist cycle, but I start estrogen patches before transfer as apparently your estrogen drops a lot after you do your trigger. Anyone ever done or heard of using estrogen patches after trigger? My RE plans on doing a fresh transfer unless we have issues with my lining. ET estimated to be the second week of August.

[birch113]

babyhopes I'm so sorry the scratch was horrible! I am sending you all my good thoughts for this cycle!!

[lemonliz]

birch113, oh that's so disappointing about the 3 that arrested. I'm hopeful that your frosty is super -- hang in there!

babyhopes, my last cycle my estrogen dropped after transfer and we didn't get to add Estrace in time (we did add it but it was probably too late) because of a lab error but that was what we were going to do!

[lillee]

Congrats woodenshoes!