alowicious_28
Posts 251

Scott's, I have heard about DHEA also being good for egg quality but the micronised DHEA which I don't think they have in Dubai so you would have to get it online. A pharmacist checked for me and said it would get through customs as no ingredients in it that are banned.
Also heard royal jelly, bee pollen and coq10, selenium are good too. I reckon anything is worth a try! If you google Ivf and poor egg quality you will forums with lists of what people have taken.
Lots of luck to you Hun
I had to cancel my Ivf appointment this week due to my DS being poorly with croup and a cold so rescheduled for next week. Read my insurance and it says it covers infertility treatment up to $17k but don't know whether this is diagnosis of infertility or for actual Ivf treatment?? Hoping it's both as that would be a real help!!!

Scotts1
Posts 7

Hi hilsbils,

Thanks for all the details! I used to live in Dubai but unfortunately had to move to Muscat last year as husband was relocated here. So I've been having my treatment in Muscat. Although I did take a trip to Conceive in March this year to have a consultation with Dr Pankaj but decided it would be easier logistically to just have the IVF here. I may reconsider that! I have had every test under the sun done, including all the tests you have mentioned and everything is normal except my AMH, although this is proving a tricky one to overcome! My protocol was very similar to yours in that I was on the short protocol but just different drugs, I respond slowly so took couple more days of stims than you.
CD 2-5 - Fostimon 450iu
CD 6-8 - Fostimon 450iu and Ganirelix
CD 9-13 Puregon 600iu and Ganirelix
CD 13 - HCG trigger

I made a mistake on my below post, my transfer was day 3 not day 5, although embryos were still not where they should be for day 3.

I've been on progesterone tablets and gel since egg retrieval and also junior aspirin and Clexane injection.

I have not taken DHEA although Dr Pankaj did mention this to me at my consultation my Dr here was not as supportive of it so I didn't take it. I think I will take it next time. I have been taking Pronatal vitamin (which contains folic acid etc) for 3 years, that is how long we have been try to conceive! I also did acupuncture and will continue with that.

Roll on 13th Sep for you!! Do you have the Zita West relaxation CD? There is a part you can listen to while in the 2WW, great for relaxing, sends you to sleep!!

Tashabegood
Posts 19

HB your news has made my day. I am so happy for you and your Hubby.
You've had an awful amount of support and advice from ladies on here and it's been so helpful to read. Thank you all for sharing.

Are you working?

@confusion, we have had initial consults at Fakih prior to our holiday and now it comes down to cycle and visitors!


edited by Tashabegood on 27/08/2012
edited by Tashabegood on 27/08/2012

hilsbils
Posts 1778

Ah DB. Thanks hon. I am not working so I dont commute or have to worry about office stress, so Im very lucky that way. I get to nap whenever I want. I lay by the pool and went to see Ted to have a laugh.
I am hoping and praying it all goes well. Scan at 7 weeks on 13 Sept - am worried about bad news there !
Am still totally symptom free but then again am only 4.5 weeks. I think its from week 6 it gets messy right? Am a little tired and have some reflux / heartburn but very seldom so no clear symptoms.
Delighted to hear that things are good with you. Have you put on a lot of weight? Women in our family blow up by 20-30kgs so I wonder how Ill get on.

The Dangerous Blonde
Posts 2145

Hey HB - how are you feeling? Did you have a lovely weekend basking in the glow of it all and letting DH run around after you? Hope so.
Any morning sickness? Tiredness? Yes the wait til week 12 is painfully slow and I was massively paranoid about m/c too after having had one 6 weeks prior so until about 20 weeks was constantly checking for blood but at least you have the same Dr to reassure you through the whole process.
When's your first scan? How exciting! xx

hilsbils
Posts 1778

I just wrote a LOOONG reply here only to get that super annoying alert from EW website saying “only authenticated users may post blah blah” I got signed out mid way through typing I guess.
So, yes. It’s great news but I am very anxious and still worried about the high risk of m/c. Holding thumbs. Every day I wake up and check my body to see if anything feels different and check for no bleeding. And I thought the 2ww was bad!
So I think the difference for me was that the doc ran early tests and delayed IVF until I was ready. She told me that Tyroid, Insulin and Age are the 3 most nb factors. So all my blood work was done and mostly fine but again my hypothyroidism was back and I had to take meds to stimulate production. Also prolactin levels were unstable. Had to be checked again for both and only when they were stable did we start around 6 weeks later.
She also prescribed DHEA which is a ‘master hormone’ which apparently can help egg supply and production. I have read a lot of success stories online about DHEA. But I had to buy it at a the Dubai Mall pharmacy (next to Waitrose) rather than the health shop variety. They take months to work effectively but I still took them for 6 weeks plus the IVF cycle but was told to stop at ET date. Folic acid for weeks and months in advance and still taking.
I also used Dr Ou for a few sessions of acupuncture and found her very knowledgeable.
My AMH was very low – only 0.35 so doc said my chances were low.
Meds were adjusted every 2/3 days after scans.
Day 1-5 : Bravelle x 4amp (75 x 4 300iu) plus Merpfin (sp?) x 3 amp
Day 6 : Gonal F 7 525 iu
Day 7- 10 : Gonal F 7 525 iu plus 1 x Centricide
Dady 10 – also at told to take an Ovitrelle injection at 9pm sharp. Apparently this causes ovulation precisely 36 hours later. My ET was booked for 9am 36 hours later. I believe that the Centricide prevented premature ovulation.
Started the 2 x daily progesterones from ET and still using them.
I did some research and decided to eat foods which have an alkaline effect on the body, to avoid an acidic digestion because disease only forms in acidic environments. I read that can also help to avoid m/c

Was your protocol different? Id be very curious to know how its done in other clinics.
Very best of luck! You are still years younger than me and I can only predict you will get lots of baby dust and love your way.
edited by hilsbils on 27/08/2012

Scotts1
Posts 7

Hi Hilsbils, I am new to this forum and just did an IVF search and found your thread. Wow, great news that you got a positive result, congratulations!

I'm 38 and also have low AMH, 1.02. I have had 4 IUI's, 2 resulted in early pregnancy loss at 6 weeks. I had first IVF in May which was cancelled after 5 days of stims due to poor response. I had my 2 IVF this month, increased the dosage this time and I got 10 eggs but all low quality which resulted in only 2 fertilising and producing 2 low grade embryos, one only 3 cell at one at 5 cell at day 5 but with lots of fragmentation. I had these transferred as there was nothing else but not holding out much hope. If trying again we need to try and improve the egg quality but I'm not sure there is much you can to do improve this.

As you got great embryos I wonder if you would mind sharing what your protocol was, the drugs used, dosages, any supplements etc for your cycle?

All the best :-)

plumie
Posts 2831

Hilsbils (aka Beachymaria?!) totally thrilled for you!!! I too was with Dr Munira with my first DD and can only sing her praises! Sooo compassionate (which is a rarity in Dubai) and very down to earth!

Wishing you all the best for the remainder of your journey! May you be blessed very, very soon xxx

Quicksilver6
Posts 584

Hi hilsbils, Congratulations!!!!!!!! I am so happy for you - now look after yourself and carry on relaxing xx

Mummabear
Posts 63

Hi Hilsbils, yep we did IVF with Dr Fakih clinic

Yeh everyone is different, my husband used to say to me that i had a iron stomach, i love really spicy food and normally could stomach and eat anything and never got sick when others did with food! But the minute that pregnancy hit that drastically changed, I have different friends, some that had nothing and others that also had horrendous morning sickness, so really depends on the person.

I had my first scan at 5 weeks when they told me how many sacks they could see, then the folllowing week I saw the heartbeats. So you should know soon enough if its one or two or maybe three!

Another thing, just FYI, if you want to get an appoinment with Dr Elsa at City Hospital then it would be good to ring now, she has a really long waiting list, we just had our first apt with her last week and literally rang when I found out I was preggers to get on the waiting list.

Feel free to private message me with anything - utterlucy@yahoo.com

So happy for you, great to hear positive IVF stories x

hilsbils
Posts 1778

@awayfromhome15 - thanks for that. I feel reassured and have now just been reading about HCG and it seems that sometimes readings can conflict with the real situation. She didnt seem to suggest another test and feels its a only 1.

@dallydoo and mummabear - amazing how different your symptoms were! Wow arent we women all so different? I believe it can also happen from one pregnancy to another. Mummabear - yours was also IVF but with Fakih right? Glad to hear another success story

@Alismum... yes, he was looking very earnest last night and did all the dishes (maid is awol) and told me to 'rest' Poor man has had a hard time the past 2 weeks as I was a grumpy goat.

Aryanwynn, DB, zoco, gud and all the other lovely lovely ladies who are being so supportive - its nice to be able to offload and e-talk somewhere as we haven't breathed a word to anyone. Our friends and family have presumed that we have chosen not to have kids as we never talk about it and dont act broody in public. If only they knew. In fact in my family of 5 adult siblings, none of us has children and I know the others aren't planning families (I think) so our news is going to shock everyone. My mum will be hysterical.

Holding thumbs for the next 7 weeks... and beyond!

Aryanwynn
Posts 1921

Well done, you did it! All downhill now, don't worry, that little sucker is stuck for sure. Enjoy being pregnant

hilsbils
Posts 1778

alowicious_28 - Yes, its our first attempt. I felt very in control of the whole process because she does loads of blood tests and will take time to balance things out, and get you ready. I felt rushed at Fakih as he wanted to start before running any checks. But he has good stats. I like that Munira is a also a specialist obs doctor so I can carry on seeing her for the next stage. She is very calm and her nurses very good. But you may just want to take all your blood test results etc along to Fakih when you have a clear picture of your situation. Very good luck to you both!
Im still feeling terribly normal and looking forward to feeling sh!tty asap

alowicious_28
Posts 251

Hilsbils - HUGE congratulations to you and your DH/OH

We have just booked our IVF appointment with Dr Munira. We are going to do the initial tests and consultation with her to make sure my DH gets clued up on the process and also for him to get some tests done but not sure if we will go the whole route with her or Dr Fakih yet.
You've had a brilliant outcome! was this your first attempt at IVF? I am so pleased for you and fingers crossed Dr M can work a miracle for us too

Awayfromhome15
Posts 48

Hey hilsbils, hope you're feeling good this morning! Just wanted to share with you that I have had a symptomless pregnancy (apart from heartburn) no boobs getting bigger or feeling sick so I was so worried that something was wrong! lourdes was always shocked when I told her no nausea and that made me feel worse but dr. M said nothing to worry about. I had a high one too, 83 at just under 4 wks but am preg with one. I went in for hcg doubling tests and it didn't, it hardly reached the 60% Mark so dr.munira had me in at 5 weeks as as she was concerned might be ectopic after the first high score, we only saw gets. Sac at that stage not yolk sac so we were concerned for a blighted ovum, then when I went at 7 weeks a beautiful heartbeat. So I guess what I'm trying to say is don't go for the doubling tests like I did (dr.m didn't advise, I was just paranoid) and try wait it to 7 and don't worry about lack of symptoms. Xx

Dallydoo
Posts 98

Hilsbils,
HUGE congratulations! I have been away on leave but have been following your thread and just saw your fabulous news this morning!
I am almost 25 weeks gone after treatment too - I also had 3 transferred and have a lovely singleton onboard. I remember feeling horribly normal too coming up to my test date with awful AF type cramps and pains. I was convinced it hadnt worked but my test was obviously positive!
My symptoms didnt really hit til about week 7 but everyone is different. By week 6 I was feeling scarily normal and then the next week it hit with a vengeance LOL! I was quite ill until about week 14 but it was unnervingly reassuring!
Anyway, just take good care of yourself, mind what you eat, no heavy lifting etc and just ENJOY! If you want to contact me about anything, please feel free. I would be delighted to share any info if I can be of help!
x

The Dangerous Blonde
Posts 2145

Hey Hilsbils,
You may not see a "baby" shape on the scan but should at 7 weeks be able to see the yolk sac and possibly a small dark blob surrounded by a white ring. I cried when I saw the blob and think I actually said "that's the most beautiful blob I've ever seen". A few weeks later the blob was much bigger and bean-like with a tiny sesame seed inside. Miraculous!
Imagine you might have a blob with two little sesame seeds! Wow!

Mummabear
Posts 63

Hi Hilsbils, just saw this thread and that you are pregnant!! A massive congratulations to you I am now 20 weeks with twins, I remember I started feeling really nauseous from the very beginning and couldnt stomach stuff, literally at 4 weeks preggers. This is because the HCG levels are high, so if they are high then it could be double trouble for you and if they transferred three there is a good chance that two have stuck, thats one of the plus sides of IVF.

Wishing you all the best and a happy, healthy pregnancy.

MB xxxx

Gud83
Posts 25

congrats hilsbils

I am very happy for you. I think this is most babulous news of your life. take care yourself and be happy.

confusion
Posts 213

End of 7 week mark sounds just great, yes I know all those emotions and think discussing the 'what-ifs' is a natural instinct, however, here you are and no need to!! Now you can have a lovely weekend and relax and look after yourself and look forward to holding that much wanted bubba in your arms. Take good care of yourself xx

hilsbils
Posts 1778

confusion
Posts 213

Would be so lovely if multiples Hilsbils but even if not you are so so blessed. When is your first scan?xx

hilsbils
Posts 1778

The Dangerous Blonde
Posts 2145

Congrats Hilsbils!!!!
Fabulous news, you must be on top of the world!
I am sure no one on this forum will be more pleased to welcome morning sickness, aches and pains, heartburn and fatigue!
Praying all goes smoothly and yes, the wait til 12 weeks is oh so long but taking it one day at a time helps. Have lots of rest and nothing strenuous at all.
When is your first scan? I wonder when they will be able to tell if it's multiples (they might be able to tell on how quickly your bHCG rises as with twinnies it's obviously a lot more hormone, so the levels increase quicker).
Yaaaaay! So happy for you

zoco
Posts 111

Ah what great news Hilsbils! Thrilled for you and your hubbie :-)

DH and I start our journey into IVF tomorrow with our first consultation at the fertility clinic and I've been scouring the boards here over the last couple of months and have learned so much... thanks for everything you've shared, your openess has helped me so much. You're in my thoughts and prayers xx

confusion
Posts 213

Oh wow wow wow Hilsbils!! Am SO thrilled for you!! Such wonderful and uplifting news!

HUGE Congrats from me! Absolutely fantastic!! Sending you massive hugs xxxxx

hilsbils
Posts 1778

Thanks so much ladies. I have to tell someone right?
I was so unhappy and certain of a negative result this morning, and didnt want to hear the news from doc, so did a clearblue test in the mall toilets an hour before my appointment. I was really shocked then as the urine tests are less accurate and I would be 1 day early. Blood test confirmed it. Whew .... Im 41 and Dh is 43 so no time to waste
Now to hold our thumbs and breathe until week 12 and beyond.
Yay!!
edited by hilsbils on 22/08/2012

dorisdaydream
Posts 57

Been following your thread HB and absolutely thrilled for you. Fantastic news!

Awayfromhome15
Posts 48

Aaahhhhhh! Hilsbils, that's amazing news, I've got goosebumps! Congratulations! Now to find out how many stuck!

hilsbils
Posts 1778

its a big fat .... POSITIVE !!!

we are in total shock.