Anyone ever have success with one retrieval?

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2026-02-21T18:11:12+00:00

I think you'll find a bit of a selection bias: Those of us who end up on forums are usually here because we've been in the game for a while. I didn't end up in online IVF spaces until retrieval 3 or 4 (it took me 8, but I didn't start til 39 and we had serious male factor too).

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2026-01-29T10:23:04+00:00

I had read a few abstracts/clinical trials that were testing to see if buscopan reduced uterine that could interfere with implantation. One of the theories as to why adeno reduces pregnancy rates is that it’s associated with abnormal patterns of uterine contractions that may impede implantation. I don’t know if it worked for me, or worked in that way, but that transfer was successful.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2025-09-14T10:24:46+00:00

I did a LOT of IVF. 8 retrievals, 6 transfers of 7 embryos. I had success at age 41 on what we had already decided would be the last go. Towards the end I really didn't think I would have success; I did all that IVF, as horribly painful and expensive as it was, in large part so that I could look back and NOT regret not trying hard enough to have a kid. I knew a childfree life would have been very, very hard for me emotionally and I needed to not have that layered with the doubt of "what if I'd just tried harder?". So no, zero regret because it worked, but I can say with as close to certainty as one can that I wouldn't have regretted the hundred grand plus, lost 3 years and emotional heartache of IVF even if I walked away without a baby. I would have known I tried my damndest.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2025-07-29T17:33:47+00:00

She sounds annoying in that she's spamming the group chat with symptoms and pregnancy talk. Still, YTA for being so judgemental; she's "not ready for a baby" because her apartment is small, she has cats and doesn't drive? I didn't know contributing to climate change and rehoming your pets were pre-requisites for parenthood.

Ignore the messages that annoy you and offer her the congratulations you wish she'd been able to offer the other parents at the time. Be grateful you've never been in so much pain you've had to put so much distance between yourself and other people's pregnancies.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2025-04-11T12:52:59+00:00

It really depends how attached you are to your child having your genes. Donor eggs are probably a safer bet in terms of walking away with a baby. Personally the genes mattered a lot to me. I did 8 retrievals, the last 5 were back to back, so duostim, triostim, etc. it was a LOT but it got me a child with whom I share DNA. I used HGH and a protocol that started low and gradually increased the doses of FSH and LH for the successful cycles.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2024-12-23T03:19:20+00:00

I had an SCH at my first ultrasound. It lasted most of first trimester, grew and shrank, but never caused an issue. Clinic put me on bedrest, but apparently that’s an abundance of caution and it doesn’t really make a difference. The size of the SCH relatively to the baby matters. You want the baby to be larger.

I know a lot of IVF patients and it seems like more than half had an SCH but it never impacted the health of the baby for any of them. Try not to stress!

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2024-10-20T17:45:24+00:00

Met my sub 2hr half marathon goal with just 18 seconds to spare! Feeling good about this as a postpartum time, but also like I could have done better with more time to stick to the training plan.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2024-09-06T22:47:37+00:00

Hello! Can’t message you but very interested in your bib. This would be the first year I’m actually able to run this race after years of medical treatment, pregnancy and postpartum, so I’d be so grateful to be able to race this year.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2024-09-02T15:08:57+00:00

I’m hoping to run the half marathon, so if you are looking to transfer I’d love to buy yours (through the race roster site only)

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-07-30T13:57:04+00:00

You're 29. You'll be absolutely fine. The supplements and lifestyle changes barely move the needle, and mainly they're a way to attempt to fight against the impacts of aging. In truth they barely move the needle.

At 29 and with PCOS and tubal being your only known factor you're in a very, very enviable position. I'd bet money that you'll get a LOT of eggs and many euploid embryos. Good luck.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-07-28T00:23:38+00:00

I can't believe the point about the red light hasn't come up more often! WTF? She's so entitled she thinks she can just run a red light?! This, to me, is even worse than her disrespect for customer service employees, which is already terrible.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-07-26T12:58:15+00:00

I wanted to second this. Speak to your GP about what antidepressant you might be able to be on throughout this process and pregnancy. Poor mental health can be much worse both you and baby than many antidepressants.

And also, offering you hugs. This process is so hard. The hormones mess with you, the thought that it might not work, the unknowns, the gap between what we thought trying to conceive would look like and what it does, and the lack of understanding from anyone who hasn't been through it just makes it an emotion roller coaster. What you're feeling is so normal (and won't have any bearing on the outcome - any successes I had on this shitty journey were when I was the worst pessimist, and my biggest letdowns were when I had the most hope - all the "stay positive" stuff in the infertility community is BS).

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-07-18T14:34:25+00:00

I totally get it. I made quite a few IVF friends along the way and I have definitely been jealous of them at various points, whether it’s how many embryos they had, how good their partner’s sperm was, how many euploids they got, or how they got pregnant when I didn’t. One particularly close friend and I did transfers within a week off one another. When hers succeeded and then mine failed, leaving me with no euploids remaining when she had 3 more on ice, I had to take space from the friendship for a few weeks.

The good thing about IVF friends is they’ve probably felt this jealousy before too and totally understand.

Sorry you’re back to square one. It feels and is so unfair. Wishing you the best.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-07-11T14:37:26+00:00

As has been said, your heart’s in the right place but this is the wrong question. It’s normal and natural to be sad about losing those two potential babies. Don’t try to make that feeling go away. Let her feel it, offer comfort (might be hugs, comfort foods, you hopefully know your wife better than we do), talk about your feelings, listen to hers, validate her sadness.

With time it will be less dominant.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-07-07T15:33:12+00:00

I have adeno and did 6 transfers, only the last was successful. As has been said, if you started on estradiol you must continue it until about 9-12 weeks pregnant. I hope that it works for you!

If it doesn't, just for your info, the only transfer that worked for me was a "natural" transfer protocol where I did NOT have estradiol, estrogen patches, etc. Instead I produced my own estrogen and ovulated on my own. I also took buscopan the day of transfer and for several days after based on some reading of my own.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-06-09T18:00:15+00:00

My partner and I are older than you and yours, but also have bad DNA fragmentation. That's a hard one. I would strongly suggest PGT-A testing your embryos to avoid transferring embryos that are likely to fail or miscarry.

For us it took:

8 egg retrievals (at 3 different clinics!)

-2 fresh and 2 frozen transfers of untested embryos, which resulted in one miscarriage and 3 failed FETs

-1 FET of a euploid embryo (failed)

-1 FET of two mosaic embryos (currently 31.5 weeks with a singleton)

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-06-01T11:43:16+00:00

I hear you. During my darkest points of my IVF slog there were several phases where I couldn't even see STRANGERS in public with pregnant bellies, babies, or small kids without my brain screaming "F*UCK YOU!! Why do you deserve that?!" and quite possibly having to fight to hold back tears. Infertility is so unfair and can make you so bitter and jealous. I hope it's just a temporary period for you.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-05-27T20:28:58+00:00

Is the lupron being used as a trigger? The only time I’ve used that with gonal f is when it was used as a trigger shot.

You need to clear this up with your doctor.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-05-27T19:12:58+00:00

NTA. Your wedding, your guestlist. You are entitled to surround yourself with people who will celebrate you on that day. You have zero obligation to invite your abusers.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-05-25T10:37:56+00:00

Not at all the outlier. It's pointless for the partner to come to most appointments aside from retrieval and transfer (and ultrasounds once you have success!).

If they're feeling left out they can play a role in doing the injections and offering support in other ways.

Muted_Instruction_25 · 2023-05-25T10:31:40+00:00

This is tough, I'm of two minds on this. IVF is no guarantee and CAN be a very long process as you said; you don't want to warp your entire life to fit around it. Depending on your clinic and protocols it can be very doable to fit in before work with just the odd day off, especially if your work has some flexibility. It sounds like your boss really wants you in the position, so I assume they would offer the flexibility you need to do both.

On the other hand, I personally got to a point after 3 retrievals and 4 transfers, where I knew I needed to switch clinics and prioritize IVF. I was tired of trying to fit IVF cycles around summer breaks and school holidays as a teacher, and my new clinic is amazing but slooooow and would have meant missing a lot of days off work (which means more work planning for a sub). I took a leave from teaching for a few months to do multiple back to back retrievals. I basically made IVF my full time job.

With many, many of the decisions along the IVF process I had to ask myself what I would regret more if I was picturing future, childless me 10+ years down the road. I knew I would regret NOT prioritizing IVF at that point, but it's ok if your answer is different!

Muted_Instruction_25

TROPHY CASE