#ohss

We had another appointment at the clinic today & finally left feeling like we actually knew what was happening!

The nurses have labelled us as a complicated case because we both have irregular periods as a result of PCOS, so it makes things a bit more difficult in relation to synching things up.

But we finally had a nurse who sat down with us & actually went through dates of when things would happen, and gave us a written schedule.

We’ve ended up booking dates at the end of October/beginning of November for egg collection & embryo transfer, which falls when I’m back at university (not ideal) but I have time off work that weekend, so hopefully it won’t be too much of an issue.

My wife is going on a lengthened cycle of Buserelin, and because of my PCOS & many many follicles, I am doing an antagonist cycle for egg collection to lessen the likelihood of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. Nothing like making things simple is there! 

Three days ago, my SO and I went to the fertility clinic for our consultation. It was the start of our return to treatment and intervention. I had a pretty good feeling in the week leading up to the appointment that the doctor would ultimately tell me that IVF would be our next course of action, and that I needed to take three months to lose some weight before we started anything.

Well, I was right on both counts! He prescribed Metformin again, telling me that I need it to help manage my PCOS, and said he wanted to see me again mid-October. That’s only about two months away. He’s optimistic that I can make enough difference between now and then that we can start a cycle before the end of the year. He did look me up and down towards the end of our meeting and say “you’re done a good job taking care of yourself,” so I suppose he expected that after two years off Metformin and not under treatment that I would have ballooned up quite a bit more. I did get some optimism from that.

The current plan is that when I return mid-October, we will induce a period, and start in on follistim. Once my follicles are looking ripe, we will trigger with Lupron, harvest all available/mature follicles, attempt fertilization via intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), and freeze all the resulting embryos. Due to an increased risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, we will not do a fresh cycle. We’ll take another month to prime my uterus and do a frozen embryo transfer at that point.

In addition to the metformin, I am also taking Ovasitol (an inositlol supplement) and NeoQ10 (a CoQ10 supplement) for the next two months. Both are new pieces of protocol at the clinic, and have been proven to increase egg quality and overall success. The company that makes these two products, Theralogix, is rather new. I had heard about them on some podcasts that I listen to, and thought it too good to be true. I was very surprised to see a whole display of what they offer sitting at the clinic last week!

In non-IVF related news, the day after the clinic consultation, my SO and I met with the lawyer who arranged our nephew’s original guardianship agreement for my mom and I. We are pursuing his formal adoption! His biological mother has gotten to the point where she is comfortable with the idea, and we are so excited for the opportunity! I don’t know if she and I will ever talk honestly about how we got to here from where it all started, but I am extremely grateful that we have.

So...who knows, but perhaps we will end up with two kids next year! Keep a good thought on both accounts, if you feel so inclined. <3

me: 

There are things that one should avoid during and after the procedure of IVF, a patient undergoes a lot of medical procedures during the process as IVF is not a single-step procedure. The couple needs to visit the Ivf clinic in Delhi a lot of times for various procedures, tests, and so on. Therefore, Ivf doctors in Delhi suggest few things that must be maintained throughout. These are the things that may not be right and eventually bring complications. Let us read about some of them:

Performing Intercourse

It is ideal to avoid intercourse for many couples for a couple of days after the procedure starts. Intercourse will make the uterus contract which can eventually damage the embryo that is implanted in the body very recently. There are also many other side effects of this procedure such as failure in implanting the embryo which may result in miscarriage.

Do not take a pregnancy test right away

Anyone who is opting for this procedure always has a high expectation. Therefore you will be pushed mentally to take a pregnancy test just after the embryo transfer takes place. There is always a thought in your mind that you might get pregnant. But it is always better to give time and not disappoint your own self. Ivf specialist doctors in Delhi always suggest it takes a few days. It is just a simple pregnancy test and requires two minutes time. But the process of getting pregnant takes time itself. It requires a few weeks for the placenta cells to produce some hormones that can confirm whether you are pregnant or not through the help of a blood test.

Do not underestimate problems

Always try to take good care of yourself after several days of embryo transfer. This is very much essential. When you are consuming fertility drugs during the procedure, you have high chance to develop OHSS or ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. This is a condition where swelling of the ovary starts and at the same time, it starts to leak. Abnormal abdominal pain, abdominal bloating, nausea, and diarrhea are the results of OHSS. Therefore, whenever you are visiting the infertility clinic in Delhi always make sure you tell your doctor about all the small problems that you are facing.

You might think that feeling slightly uncomfortable is a phase and it too shall pass by. But do not make the mistake of ignoring the fact of even slight changes. Always consult the infertility doctors in Delhi even if the pain is mild and you gain weight suddenly. Call your doctor right away.

The bottom line

It is a very good idea to go through the IVF treatment in Delhi and know properly the do’s and don’t to make the cycle a success. It will also make you feel confident that whatever you are doing is right. You must take the prevention of all the possible wrongs because IVF is itself a vast step to take on.

After my procedure, they warned me about Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome (OHSS).  this syndrome sometimes occurs when the ovaries are intentionally over-stimulated to obtain a maximum number of mature eggs. The ovarian stimulation process causes the blood vessels in the body to become a little leaky and sometimes the protein leaks out into places like the abdomen and lungs. It’s fairly rare but can become serious pretty quickly.

Mild symptoms are pretty common and include:

Lower abdominal discomfort

Abdominal distention (bloating)

Mild nausea

Moderate or severe symptoms include:

Vomiting

Severe pelvic pain

Severe abdominal bloating

Weight gain of 4-5 pounds per day for more than 2 days

Difficulty breathing

Decreased urination despite usual or increased fluid intake

Chest pain

OHSS  normally resolves on its own but can be managed by resting with your legs elevated, monitoring fluid and electrolyte balance, and managing any pain symptoms.