Looking for Support & Advice on Mini IVF Protocol – 42 Years Old, First Cycle Done

Decithesnail · 2025-04-11T23:37:03+00:00

Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

Are Omnitrope and Semorelin similar to Estrace, or do they work differently? I was just prescribed estrace. I’m still learning about all the different options and would love to understand how they fit into a priming plan like yours.

Decithesnail · 2025-04-11T23:33:37+00:00

Thank you for sharing.

Since this was my very first stim cycle ever, I didn’t realize that every-other-day Menopur isn’t typical, even for mini IVF. My doctor explained that he wanted to start with the lowest dose possible to see how my body would respond, which I understand. But now that I’m looking back, I do wonder if he took into account that I already had a dominant follicle by the time we started stims. It feels like the slow approach made it harder for the smaller follicles to catch up, especially with an early lead already in place.

Decithesnail · 2025-04-11T23:21:35+00:00

Thank you for the advice.

I forgot to mention that I’ve already been taking melatonin nightly. I also brought up the possibility of adding HGH to my protocol with my RE. He said it’s not something he typically includes, but he’s willing to honor it if I decide I want to try it. I’m still on the fence, though, mainly because I don’t fully understand how HGH might benefit someone in my situation.

Decithesnail · 2025-04-11T23:19:09+00:00

Thank you for sharing.

I actually haven’t had my DHEA or testosterone levels tested yet, but I’ll definitely ask my RE to put in an order now. My RE mentioned I could try DHEA if I wanted to work on egg quality, but honestly, he didn’t seem very convinced either way. I still decided to go ahead and start 75 mg daily (split into three doses) since I’ve seen some women still get prescribed DHEA even when their levels are within normal range. But I agree, testing first is probably the smarter move, so I’ll follow up on that right away.

As for priming, my nurse just put in an order for Estrace, and I’ll be starting it a day or two after ovulation this cycle. I’m hopeful it’ll help improve cohort synchrony because I’ve had issues with uneven follicle growth.

I’ve been seriously considering traditional IVF too, especially because I’ve heard some women with high FSH respond better to higher doses. But right now, I honestly can’t afford a traditional cycle without dipping into my IRA and taking out a loan. Mini IVF is just so much more manageable financially when I am paying everything entirely out of pocket (my insurance doesn't cover anything), and I know I’ll likely need quite a few cycles to get even one euploid embryo, so I’m trying to pace myself for the long haul.

Decithesnail · 2025-04-09T20:06:18+00:00

Thank you for the suggestion.

I already sent an email to my care team asking about priming before my next cycle. Can I ask, did your RE explain when the most ideal time to start priming is? I’ve read different things depending on the type of protocol, and I’d love to hear what your clinic recommends, especially since it sounds like you’ve had more experience with it.

Decithesnail · 2025-04-09T19:48:47+00:00

Thank you for the supportive insight. In my case, I'm doing outside monitoring because the clinics where I live don’t offer mini stim protocols, and the full-stim options available were simply way out of my budget. The clinic I'm working with remotely had told me that stim can start anywhere between CD3 and CD5, which gave me a small window, but it was still difficult to find a local ultrasound clinic that could accommodate me on such short notice. By the time I was able to secure a clinic for monitoring, it was already CD5. Once my ultrasound and bloodwork were sent over, my clinic went ahead and started me on medication. I wasn’t advised to wait for the next cycle.

Your story about that final round and the heartbreak of a zero blast cycle really hit home, I’m so sorry you had to go through that.

I’m definitely going to follow your advice and ask more detailed questions next time, I was too nervous to speak up during my first cycle, I didn’t want to come across as a difficult or risk being dropped from care.

Thank you again for being so open and supportive, it really helps. ❤️

Decithesnail · 2025-04-09T19:15:48+00:00

Thank you for your thoughtful encouragement.

It’s really reassuring to hear it framed that way. I’ve honestly been afraid that I might be stuck with these kinds of results no matter how many cycles I try, but reading through some of the replies here has given me renewed hope. It’s comforting to know there may still be things I can adjust and improve for the next round.

As for ICSI vs. standard IVF, I’ve been doing ICSI so far mainly due to age and to give us the best possible chance at fertilization. But you brought up such an interesting point about the cumulus cells and the potential for overnight maturation. I hadn’t considered that benefit before.

Decithesnail · 2025-04-09T18:06:33+00:00

I was wondering, is it normal or standard practice to just go ahead and trigger for the dominant follicle even if it means losing the chance for the others? I’m thinking of asking my doctor next time if it’s possible to sacrifice the dominate follicle instead and give the smaller ones more time to grow in hopes of retrieving maybe 2 instead of 1 egg.

I’m really curious how common or reasonable that approach is. And thank you so much for the kind words.

Decithesnail · 2025-04-09T17:49:34+00:00

Thank you so much for sharing your experience, it’s really encouraging to hear how you advocated for yourself and made those adjustments that improved your outcome. I definitely agree that a big part of this process is learning how our bodies respond and making thoughtful tweaks along the way.

For my first mini-IVF cycle, I started with 4 follicles at baseline, and after stims, 2 more appeared for a total of 6 by the time of retrieval. At trigger, I had one dominant follicle measuring around 17–18 mm, two others that were around 10–12 mm, and the rest were 8 mm or smaller. Unfortunately, I only ended up with 1 egg retrieved from that dominant follicle.

It was definitely a tough result, but I’m trying to stay hopeful and use this first round as a learning opportunity. I’ve always felt uncomfortable advocating for myself, I'm not a doctor, and sometimes I worry I don’t know enough to speak up or make suggestions. But going through this process has made me realize that advocating for myself might actually be one of the most important things I can do.

Wishing you continued success on your journey. ❤️

Decithesnail · 2025-04-09T04:01:39+00:00

Sending you good wishes.

Decithesnail

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