Hi,
My husband and I are waiting to see our FS as we have decided to try IVF .

I was hoping someone may be able to tell me how long it took you to get started on your first cycle after you saw your FS - I am trying to work out the timeline so I can get a better understanding of what to expect. Thanks heaps!

When I started, I saw my fs in November and started the first cycle in January, so it can be very quick. I was at IVF Australia. Mind you, my fs had a comprehensive history on me from my gynaecologist, complete with history of operations.

IVF info night, two weeks later first FS appt, then started first cycle two weeks later.

So from not doing IVF to the first drugs a month.

Guess it depends how busy your FS is, what kind of tests they want to do prior to starting and where you are in your cycle.

The last time I saw my FS was back in late September after I had a Lap, D&C and Dye test (all clear). He wanted us to try for a further 6 months and if no luck to go back and see him, as he would then get us started on IVF.

we first saw our FS in December, waiting a month to do further SA tests, then signed up ready to go in January. Unfortunately due to my not ovulating over the next 3 months and then the worldwide antagonist drug shortage, we are only starting next week....

Hi OP - we first saw our FS in June then 'thought about our options' till early August when we decided to go ahead with IVF - it was then only 2-3 weeks before I starting jabbing. As PP said, it depends on how busy your FS is and when they can 'fit you in' (and to a point, where you are at in your menstrual cycle). HTH

Firstly sorry about my byline, I can't remove it for posting in this area.


I saw my FS on 6th July 2009, and started IVF on I think the 22nd July. So I just had to wait for the cycle to finish and we were underway. That said, between those dates they did our SA and our issue was detected. So for us there was no point in trying naturally, little point trying IUI, just went straight to ICSI/IVF.
Good luck OP, I hope things move quickly for you.

Hi,
Unfortunately in Victoria there is a requiremen to get a police check and child protection check done before you can begin treatment. You also need to have a councilling session.
We had our ititial appointment with the clinic to complete consent forms get all info etc early Dec, filed our police check requests that week and had them back just after Christmas so started our first ivf cycle mid Jan when I got my period.

So even for us it was only about 2 months from making the decision with our FS to go to ivf, and starting the cycle.

Good luck!

I have now made an appointment to see the FS on April 27th and from your responses I hope to be started by May/June. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences, it has helped a lot .

Good Luck to you all!

Our first FS appt with Sydney IVF was May 2009 and our first ICSI cycle was August 2009.

I think our FS arranged more tests for us after the initial consult.

Hope that helps!

For us it was 11 months. We first saw our FS in December 09, he did a Lap, HyCoSy, Hysteroscopy and D&C in January 10 (all clear), did DH testing (super swimmers) then advised us to wait another 6 months trying naturally.

We went back to see him in October 10 (we were away in Sept and didn't want to start the process before we went away) and then did out first round in November 10.

You didn't mention in your post if either of you have diagnosed infertility or how long you have been trying... A good FS will send you off for more testing to try and diagnose what the problem might be and if you've been trying for less than about 18 months they will likely suggest you need to wait it out a bit longer. There might also be other things they might suggest other than IVF so don't automatically assume that that's what they will recommend. With Sydney IVF they do a lot of testing to make sure they don't send all and sundry off for unnecessary procedures.

Good luck on your journey and hopefully you'll get the answers you need soon.

We have been 'diagnosed' with unexplained infertility. DH had a sperm analysis done - all was fine. I had numerous blood tests, an internal ultrasound, lap, dye test, D&C and pap test - all clear except for a fibroid which I have been assured by FS is no biggie.

We have been 'actively' trying for a baby since April 2009 so it's just clicked over 2 years. We initially saw our FS after trying for 12 months. He sent us off to have all the testing done. When the results all came back 'normal' he then sent me off to have the lap etc done. We have seen the specialist 4 times this past year.


After the lap he told us to keep trying for a further 6 months naturally, which we did, and to go back if unsuccessful. He outlined our options (IVF, AI, talked about success rates, cost) and basically sent us off with a choice to make. We are now going back to the FS to tell him I am not pregnant and that we are now ready to try assisted conception.

We are past the point of the initial consultation and the initial tests - our fertility specialist has all the results he needs and he told me that at my last consultation.

Thanks. I guess I will know what is our next step on the 27th - I just have to be patient!!!

Thanks for clarifying! It sounds exactly like our experience with the FS. In that instance, we waited til the end of the current cycle and then started on the meds at the beginning of the new cycle. We did an antagonist cycle which appears to be the standard for most people with unexplained fertility like us.

I wish you the very best of luck with your appointment and hopefully you'll be able to start ASAP!

I believe this will be the same course of action taken by our FS too! Are you able to share with me please Miss Kitty-Kat your experiences of this cycle and whether or not you were successful.

Thanks heaps!

Happy to!

We did ours through Sydney IVF (I can PM you the name of the Dr if you like).

My cycle was this:

Prior to cycle: have meeting with Clinic nurses where they take you through the cycle, medications, EPU process, transfer etc. They gave us the medications at that meeting which need to be stored in the fridge for the duration.

Day One: once you get AF, ring the clinic. They will tell you when to come in for your first blood test.
Day 2: First blood test (SIVF does blood testing at their Kent St offices between 7 and 9am). The clinic usually rings with results around lunchtime. We got the all clear to commence the cycle - a small percentage of people don't due to higher hormone levels etc, but the vast majority are fine to start.

Day 3: Commence injection of FSH - I was on 150 of Gonal F but some clinics also use puregon. We injected every morning before work - it was like an epi pen with a pre-set dosage. Mr K was in charge of injecting. Most of the time it wasn't too painful - mostly uncomfortable.

Day 4: Blood test to check hormone levels

Day 6: Blood test to check hormone levels

Day 8: Blood test to check hormone levels and ultrasound to check follicles

I can't remember when we started the other set of injections - may have been around day 7 or so? We were on Orgalutran which is quite common. A single dose injection - a little more painful than the Gonal F but nothing to worry about. One in each butt cheek in the mornings!

Day 10: Blood test to check hormone levels and ultrasound

Day 12: Blood test to check hormone levels. Call to confirm my follicles are ready. Trigger injection at 7pm (36 hours before EPU). Cease all other meds.

Day 14: EPU at 7am - the process itself was uncomfortable but it didn't hurt. There was more discomfort after the process than during but I didn't feel I needed additional pain relief other than a panadeine which they gave me after the procedure. Relax for the rest of the day. We were lucky - 16 follicles with 12 mature looking eggs.

Commence Progesterone gel (Crinone), use twice daily. Messy - see if they will let you use pessaries instead.

Day 15: Call from clinic - of the 12 eggs, 8 fertilised.

Day 16: Call from clinic - of the 8 fertilised, 6 made it to day 2.

Day 18: Call from clinic - of the 6 remaining, 4 look good, one of those a bit slow to divide but still coming along.

Day 19: Call from clinic - two embryos look very good, two a bit slower. Arrange appointment for transfer on day 20.

Day 20: 11am transfer. Not with my FS as he is away but with another Dr. I didn't like her but that was beside the point. Transfer feels like a pap smear. Single Embryo transfer, as it was our first try. Whole process takes about 45 mins from start to finish with the transfer taking 5 minutes max.

Day 21: call from Embryologist - two remaining embryos mature enough to be frozen (yay)!

Day 31: Blood test for pregnancy - BFN Discussion with clinic - need to take a month off to let all the hormones out of my body before recommencing with FETs.

Due to other factors (Christmas, sickness etc.) we ended up taking two cycles off before doing an FET. I can type out the cycle of the FET a bit later if you like? It was a lot less intrusive and for us, successful.

The only side effects I felt were bloating from the FSH (but it wasn't too bad) and some bruising from the injections and blood tests. It was a lot better and easier than I anticipated. I was lucky though. I didn't find myself overly emotional and I felt like I got lots of support from the clinic.

HTH

Kitty x


Forgot to mention, here is a good outline of an antaganist cycle:

http://www.ivf.com.au/ivf-treatment/ivf-ic...ment-cycle.aspx

To the OP,

We had been seeing our FS for nearly a year before we signed up for IVF. In that year, I had exploratory surgery (just to make sure that everything was ok) and also tried clomid (I ovulated every time but still couldn't conceive).

We bit the bullet in September 2010 and attended our initial appointment (Monash IVF in Melbourne). We had obviously got all of the paperwork square (such as the police checks etc) but weren't 100% sure that we'd start straight away.

We were excited and apprehensive about treatment but because of timings with my husband's business and a desire to continue with natural therapies (chinese medicine and acupuncture etc) for a little while we opted to delay starting treatment until the new year.

By the time I rang the clinic in December, to organise my appointment, they were closing for the Xmas break and also organising a relocation of clinics... so the earliest I could be seen (and also factoring in my cycle) was February 2011.

This allowed me a really nice, relaxed Christmas with my family and also a chance to celebrate my 30th birthday in January with a few champagnes and no guilt.

My first appointment at the clinic was in early Feb and 2 days later I got AF so I was into my first cycle straight away (antagonist). It was all done very quickly. We were extremely fortunate for it to work for us first time, but I know that this is not necessarily the norm. Trying to have a healthy dose of realism about my chances (easier said than done) probably helped me in the long run.

... continued ...

For our FET, it was a much simpler process.

Day 1: Call clinic, advise I had gotten AF.

Day 4: Blood test (tracking ovulation)

Day 8: Blood test and ultrasound.

Day 10: Blood test

Day 12: Blood test. Advised I had ovulated and started on progesterone pessaries that evening. They said one per day in the evening before bed. They are a bit messy but nowhere near as messy as crinone gel and none of the side effects either.

Day 17: Egg transfer day. This time it was done by my FS using a frozen embryo from our first cycle. The embryo had "rehydrated" or defrosted 100% of it's cells (80-90) which made us really hopeful that this would be the one for us!

Days 17-27: continue on progesterone pessaries.

Day 27: Pregnancy blood test at SIVF. BFP.

I have a theory that because the cycle was more natural and I wasn't pumped full of hormones it was potentially more successful (however, tis just a theory. No scientific basis whatsoever other than my FS said it's certinaly possible and he sees very good results with natural FET cycles).

I was also an awful lot more relaxed during the FET cycle because it was my second time around so to speak and I had no expectations. Do I think that made a difference? Can't say for certain. We were pretty relaxed while trying naturally and it made no difference for us for 2 years so I'm not really sure.

The FET was also a lot less painful than the fresh transfer, thanks to the pessaries. The Crinone gel artificially tenses up your internal muscles which makes it more difficult (and painful) to use a speculum. Not pleasant. I continued using the progesterone for another week or so but my Progesterone numbers naturally were always fine, from my BFP onwards so they let me stop them earlier than I have heard others do (some IVF patients use progesterone pessaries up to 12 week gestation, depending on their levels).

The pessaries are expensive at $5 a tablet but I think they are better.

Also, my clinic offers early pregnancy monitoring (weekly blood tests plus a few ultrasounds) for a cost of $335. I found it worth it just to track my progesterone and hCG levels to ensure the pregnancy was progressing normally (kind of nice after you have been so wanting to be pregnant for such a long time). I had a 7 and 8.5 week ultrasounds as well. Once you get that BFP, you might want to ask your clinic if they offer monitoring. For me it was better and more settling than waiting for your 8 week dating scan and 12-13 week NT scan.

So - a good IVF story from me. I wish you the very best of luck with your journey.

Kitty x

Hi all,
Wow, it's amazing how different each clinic is - even on the same protocol! I'm doing antagonist cycles and my month could not be more different from yours ktty! When starting this whole process I had a severe fear of needles - if I'd been told I had to have a those blood tests on top of the injections I think I would have lost it!

I'm at city fertity in Melbourne And my cycle is a little simpler:

Day 1 - call clinic and inform of AF. Arrange appointment to pick up drugs ( I always do this on day 3 some everything is fresh in my brain.
Day 3 - meet with nurse and get drugs/instructions etc. Start FSH (gonal f) injections @ 10pm nightly in tummy
Continue with nightly gonal f injections day 4 -6
Day 7 - start Orgalutran injections nightly at 10pm in tummy. Continue with gonal f nightly too
Day 8 - appointment with FS to scan and check follicles.
Continue with both injections day 9 - 11
Day 12 - appointment with FS to scan and check follicles. For me, this was friday and follicles were big enough to schedule epu for Monday. Have both injections as usual
Day 13 - Orgalutran injection in the morning due to epu time on Monday. Trigger injection @11pm for epu @11am Monday
Day 14 - Nothing!!!!
Day 15 - epu!
Day 16 - scientist calls with fertilization results
Day 17 - first cycle we did a day 2 transfer, so transfer was today. Start on 1 crinone daily at night.
One crinone nightly days 19 - 30
Day 31 - pregnancy blood test

Obviously epu etc depends on the development of your follicles etc however the nurses at my clinic said they like epu to be 10 - 12 days after you start injections.

For this cycle I'm in the middle of, everything up to epu was the same. We are doing a day 5 transfer this time. So the scientist called us on day 16 and 18 to update us on embryo development and we'll have our transfer on day 20 - tomorrow! That means I'll have a blood test on day 32 - day before good Friday!

What clinic are you with?

Take care!
Xox

I know SIVF does the blood testing to ensure they aren't over stimulating your ovaries which can be a serious issue, landing you in hospital. I know of three women who that has happened to - funnily enough none of them treated at the time through SIVF or IVF Australia. TBH I'd be worried if they didn't do the BTs because everyone reacts differently to drugs and they can adjust the dosage of each of the drugs they are giving you if they think you are on too much or not enough depending on your hormone levels. I also know of one women whose cycle was cancelled 5 days in because she reacted so badly to the drugs, something that was only picked up on blood tests.

From a diagnostic point of view, it also gives them a sense of how many follicles you are producing without having to do too many invasive ultrasounds so they can aim for the perfect amount. Knowing all that, I'd prefer the blood tests honestly, fear of needles or not! And I have particularly shy veins so giving blood was not an easy process for me.

I'm not particularly fond of needles either - that's why I got Mr K to do the injecting.

Thanks heaps to Miss Kitty-Cat and BJBubbles for outlining your personal cycles of IVF and FET. I am seeing a specialist in Melbourne, who is linked to Monash IVF.

MKC I hope the girls you know, who had severe side effects are in another state other than Victoria!!!

Since asking this question on EB I have done some research on the different cycles and whilst I am not a big fan of needles myself, I am willing to give it a go. I am hoping that like you MKC, we will have enough to freeze so they can be used later down the track .

My AF is due 15/4 (fingers crossed it doesn't come at all!!!) and the appointment with the FS isn't until 27/4 so I will only just be into the next cycle. I am guessing that it really wouldn't be until mid June that we start so I have plenty of time to complete paperwork and toughen up for the needles - ahhhhhhh just got to think positively!!!

Thanks ladies, as always your answers were really appreciated!

ETA: Good luck BJBubbles for the upcoming blood test - please come back and let us know how you got on

Honestly? You get used to the needles. You really do. I suggest you concentrate on the end result. It makes it all worth it.

Good luck on your first cycle. I hope you have a positive response to the drugs and get lots of little sticky embryos!

Thanks mrsmacamoo!

I'm slowly but surely sending myself crazy waiting for my BT next week! I had some very light spotting on Wed which the nurse ressured me was nothing to worry about - but can't help question what and why!?!?!

As Miss Kitty Cat said - you really do get used to the needles. They honestly don't hurt much - if at all.

Xox

Well AF turned up as usual, no surprise really! Less than 2 weeks to the appointment!!!