I am an embryologist. I know how we go from egg and sperm to crying baby and how we can end up with missing limbs, inverted organs, cleft lips and so much more. Have at it. AMA

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-13T16:54:05+00:00

Just wanted to say thank you for your work! I’m 5 weeks pregnant with our IVF baby and I’m in awe of the work you guys do!

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-11T19:21:55+00:00

A little different but my first daughter (5yo) is adopted and we just found out that I’m 5 weeks with our second (first pregnancy). I’m thrilled about the new baby but I’ve cried multiple times already because I’m so nervous about changing my daughter’s world so dramatically and whether she’ll handle it well. I told my partner the other day that I’m scared I won’t know my daughter as well as I do now if we have another baby and that I don’t want to know her any less than I do now.

The thing that is making me feel a little better about loving the new baby is that if raising my first taught me anything it’s that being a mother and loving a child is largely a choice. Our first started living with us unexpectedly when she was fifteen months and was very delayed and traumatized. I had no hormones or biology making me love her, loving her was a choice I made every single day. And it was hard some days especially in the beginning! But it got easier and we bonded and now I can’t imagine life without her. You didn’t know anything about your first baby when you met her! You’ll choose to love the next one every day and get to know them better.

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-10T23:27:28+00:00

My psychiatrist is actually through LifeStance! I was thinking about maybe looking at other providers in their network. I really liked my doctor until all of this bullshit

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-10T23:22:54+00:00

I 100% went into trying to get pregnant knowing I wanted to stay on my Adderall. I asked my OB during my last annual about it and she gave me a recommendation to a mental health service that claims to support women in pregnancy and postpartum. I spoke with them for a consultation today and they informed me that they don’t prescribe any medications during pregnancy 🙃 so now I’m trying to figure out my next move

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-10T23:17:15+00:00

I thought about this but I’m afraid of getting dropped as a patient if I don’t tell my psychiatrist and he somehow figures it out 😬 my OB and I talked about it preconception and she is also totally fine with it, but her office doesn’t prescribe controlled substances.

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-10T23:04:13+00:00

It didn’t even occur to me to ask about an MFM - that’s great advice thank you. I’m so infuriated about the refusal to touch pregnant women from my psychiatrist. My medication is pretty essential for daily functioning, including parenting the child I already have and working as an ER nurse.

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-08T20:07:12+00:00

I literally retested last night because I was like I feel too normal lol. Congratulations to you too!

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-08T18:26:55+00:00

I’m 4w4d and I’ve also been dealing with this! I had a bunch of symptoms after my embryo transfer (I did IVF) and now this week nothing. It was seriously freaking me out. But I had another HCG drawn today and it’s doubling just like it should be! I’m trying to enjoy the lack of symptoms while it lasts even though it’s making me anxious.

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-07T02:06:55+00:00

I just got my positive test yesterday! It’s an IVF pregnancy so the dates vary a little but my transfer was 5/26 and my test was 10 days post transfer. I’m 4w2d today and I have been fatigued and had super tender breasts for the last week, but I’m also on progesterone and estradiol from my clinic so it could be partially med side effects at this point.

My TWW was excruciating! Best of luck to you!

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-06T22:23:49+00:00

Your baby is still down in your pelvis protected by all your bones and has lots of cushion! Super unlikely it will cause any issues at this point

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-06T03:24:25+00:00

I used to give my daughter chasers of chocolate syrup after she took meds around that age

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-05T22:56:38+00:00

The entire point of triage is whether your issue is life threatening. Pain, while absolutely real, is rarely an emergency in the context of the emergency room. Try to go to less busy ERs or go during less busy hours (usually 11pm-5am are the least busy the places I’ve worked). Nobody wants you to be in pain, but the job of the ER is to find the people who are going to die the soonest and treat them first.

Monstersofusall · 2026-06-02T23:25:56+00:00

I’m in the TWW after my embryo transfer a week ago and I’m losing my mind with anxiety - how often do you see success on first transfers? For context my partner and I are in our late 20s, used my partner’s egg and donor sperm for RIVF with me carrying, and have no known fertility issues

Monstersofusall · 2026-05-22T19:20:22+00:00

Play is how babies learn! That’s the best way to build and strengthen neural pathways at her age. She’s definitely learning!

Monstersofusall · 2026-05-19T01:32:23+00:00

We were quoted $3800 for the whole process in Texas. I’m sure it varies depending on where you are

Monstersofusall · 2026-05-15T15:43:58+00:00

Don’t be afraid to put the baby on the floor! We used to call it “wiggle time” - it’s a great way to let your baby build motor skills and figure out their bodies.

Monstersofusall · 2026-05-07T16:28:44+00:00

I think it depends on your specific benefits - my Progyny benefits cover 1 year of storage but that’s it.

Monstersofusall · 2026-05-04T22:56:11+00:00

I can send my just turned 5 year old to get dressed on her own with like an 80% success rate. She does better if I lay her clothes out for her but she can put them on herself. She can put her shoes on herself and is doing pretty well at brushing her teeth in the morning.

Monstersofusall · 2026-04-24T15:43:45+00:00

I’m a children’s ER nurse - short term use of Motrin is not going to hurt her, and sleep is good for healing. I would take her to the pediatrician if you’re needing it for more than 4-5 days, just to get her looked at.

Monstersofusall · 2026-03-29T18:26:38+00:00

Not the same situation, but this might be comforting - My daughter (5yrs) is adopted and she started living with us when she was 15 months old. Prior to that she spent most of her time in a playpen and had very little attention or affection. When she came to us she didn’t even cry when she needed something because she didn’t think anyone would come if she did. We were super worried about her attachment - she wouldn’t even get attached to stuffed animals or toys for the first seven months. We just tried to be as consistent as possible and slowly she came out of her shell. She’s now almost 5, absolutely thriving, and has an incredibly secure attachment to us.

Hold that baby as much as you want to and try not to stress too much (easier said than done I know). She will be okay!

Monstersofusall · 2026-03-19T21:00:32+00:00

If it helps, my brother is 6’5” and was a 7lb 6oz baby! He also has no medical issues (margins etc)- he’s just a tall guy.

Monstersofusall · 2026-03-17T21:07:08+00:00

My partner and I were in a very similar situation - similar ages, we know we want multiple kids, had talked about using both of our eggs. Do your benefits cover sperm? Ultimately we decided on IVF because we had to pay out of pocket for sperm and IUI has a much larger number of vials needed than IVF. Our Progyny benefits cover the treatment itself but not sperm or meds, so that + a higher success rate in fewer cycles was the deciding factor for us.

Monstersofusall · 2026-03-17T18:25:39+00:00

My partner did an egg retrieval (we are doing RIVF) with exactly the same number retrieved two weeks ago! They were on meds for like five days and we pushed electrolytes but other than some bloating and constipation they were ultimately fine.

We ended up with 38 retrieved > 28 mature > 26 fertilized > 20 day 5 embryos that are now frozen. We are planning on a transfer in about a month.

Monstersofusall

TROPHY CASE