monira
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Life is always exploring something new.
Posts: 117
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Post by monira on Feb 21, 2010 21:24:33 GMT -5
I am planning to go for IVF in April. I've already done the required surgery that my IVF dr. asked for. As I had sever endo in my left ovary and left tube, I had to go for a surgery to remove those last week after considerable thinking. They will not do the IVF in anyway with that condition as bad liquid were coming in my uterus from left tube and both where not identifiable according to my ob-gyn! I am continuing only homeopath for my endo and it was working fine controlling my pain. My homeopath dr also said I might require additional surgery depending on my condition. Now, here I am... MY IVF dr. has done all the blood test and now saying I've very low AMH (has done OAR too) which is 0.5 ( She seems very concerned about this and was talking about doner egg!!! It's very hard for me to accept doner egg. I really want to try my own egg. Although I might have few eggs but wondering if I can improve the quality of egg anyway. Bellow links are helpful to learn more about AMH- www.reprosource.com/forclinicians/publications.htmlwww.advancedfertility.com/amh-fertility-test.htmNow, anybody is facing similiar issue while considering IVF? Any suggestion? Thanks,
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Post by sequin on Feb 22, 2010 11:37:00 GMT -5
I did IVF in 2007 and am just starting the process again. I'm not a doctor, so I don't really know what exactly I was reading in your links. However, this is what my RE told me:
He said at the very beginning that women with endo tend to produce fewer eggs of lower quality. He also said that you won't have drastic differences in IVF cycles (i.e., the way you respond is the way you respond and there isn't much they can do about that.)
I don't know if the low-quality eggs are related to AMH level. If it's not, though, perhaps your doctor is concerned that the low AMH on top of the endo will make the IVF less than optimal for you. Maybe if you walked in with a list of questions she could help you understand where she's coming from.
When I did IVF in 2007, 11 follicles developed, 8 fertilized (with assistance), 4 developed, 3 stopped too early, and 1 was high quality. Luckily for us, that one embryo was all we needed and now we have our daughter. But that's a pretty low percentage if you think about it. It's definitely lower than non-endo IVFs (I don't remember the numbers but I think my RE said he likes to have 2/3 of the eggs develop.) Now, perhaps this is all just specific to me. But my RE didn't seem surprised by the results.
I know what you mean about not wanting to use a donor egg. I feel the same way. I have a younger sister, and occasionally I wonder if I could use her eggs if I needed to, but that still seems weird to me. I guess for me, it's not that I want to get pregnant - it's that I want it to be *our* child. And if it's not going to be both of ours, why not skip the whole pregnancy thing and just adopt? (Please note: these are my own feelings - I do not mean that as a criticism to anyone who uses donor eggs or sperm or embryos or whatever - and I'm certainly not saying that an adopted child wouldn't be ours. It's complicated and way off-topic, so I'll shut up now.)
I don't want to be a downer, but I don't think there is much you can do to affect your egg quality. Don't drink, don't smoke, all that stuff you've probably heard before - and I'm sure your homeopath can help get your hormones to the best state they can be. And who knows, maybe you'll be an IVF rock star and none of this will be an issue. I really hope so and I'll cross my fingers for you!
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monira
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Life is always exploring something new.
Posts: 117
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Post by monira on Feb 22, 2010 19:04:23 GMT -5
Hi Sequin, Nice to hear your experiance and wishes. So far, AMH level represents teh quantity of teh egg not the quality (I am not sure you can test the quality of egg before the retrival process). I am just keeping up my faith on the quality of the egg.
Have you took any preparation to get optimum health before the IVF. Do you've any suggestion for me?
Thanks,
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Post by sequin on Feb 25, 2010 11:42:37 GMT -5
The best advice I can give is to take care of yourself. Get lots of exercise, get massages, get lots of sleep, eat lots of good food - do the things that make you happy and relaxed. I think relaxation is really the key to surviving IVF. So, up until you start it, do lots of "you" things. Once you start IVF, you'll probably be limited from doing certain things (like most exercise and massages.)
My personal plan is: I'm in the very beginning stages (my RE started me with about 10 days of Lupron.) So I'm still exercising normally and I went to the spa the other day. I'll probably get an abdominal massage next week. I have a woman in South Africa doing a series of personalized meditations for me, and I'm working on meditating on my own. I also do reiki, so I try to do self-treatments once a day. I might see an acupuncturist a few times, and I might go to a reproductive reiki woman as well. I'm bringing out the big guns.
I read somewhere that fruit in the morning stimulates the lymph nodes and really gets your system flowing. So I leave a full glass of water on the counter overnight so it's lukewarm, and first thing in the morning I drink it. Then I eat some fruit (usually half an apple and a handful of blueberries) and then drink some more water or tea until I go #2. (TMI?) Then I'll have a real breakfast. I try to eat lots of whole grains and organic fruits and veggies anyway, so that hasn't changed. But I also don't deny myself anything either. Last night I had a fish'n'chips basket and a strawberry banana milkshake because I was just having one of those days. Once you're in the cycle, I don't think denying yourself is the way to go (within reason, of course.)
I don't know what you're into, but I would definitely recommend reiki if you can take a class. I have found it to be very relaxing. I balked at the cost at first, but I've done reiki almost every day in the past 5 months, so I think it has definitely been worth it. Meditating has been good too, but it hasn't come easily to me. I could give you the name of the woman who's been helping me if you're interested.
But do whatever *you* like, not what someone else thinks you should do. If ever there was a time to be selfish, it's now.
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monira
Full Member
Life is always exploring something new.
Posts: 117
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Post by monira on Feb 25, 2010 12:28:20 GMT -5
Hi Sequni,
Thanks for sharing you experience and plan. I know every individual is different and should find out the optimum place for her. But, sharing each others activities definitely a great help.
I¡¦ll try to add some of what you¡¦ve shared. 100% relaxing is tough to get for me as I am an IT consultant and doing my MMIS together. After a work day, I stressed out over my assignments and projects. Than, take care my family although 2 of us. Good thing that I am left out with 2 more classes to finish school. But, I will not wait till finishing those to start IVF. So, I am thinking how I can make my like more relaxing¡K
As you¡¦ve already know, I had my surgery and had to remove left ovary and tube ƒ¼, I am taking some time to recovery from that now. I know I should be doing exercise ¡Kbut don¡¦t get energy to do that except manage to walk sometime. I know that¡¦s not good enough. If I could replace some of my work with exercise, I would be proud of myself. But, don¡¦t want to wait for IVF after the surgery as warring about if end comes back.
Currently I am trying to relaxing and eating enough/ well which I had not done before. I¡¦ll increase mobility when I¡¦ll recovery from surgery.
Talk to you soon,
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