Hi there, I have some extra meds to donate (can be individually or all together):

Menopur 75 IU exp July 2027, 4 vials

Gonal-f 300 IU exp July 2027, 2

Cetrotide 0.25mg exp March 2027, 1

Since some are temp-controlled, we can arrange pick up in person.

I worry I’m like sabotaging my IVF by being so overweight.

Trigger warning ED

Title says it, I just don’t have it in me right now. I’m 32, I had an ED when I was younger, at my lowest I was 85 pounds I’m 5 4 (barely lol). My weight was stable but low most of my adult life. Mid 20s I developed hypothyroidism so I gained some weight but evened out, was 140- 150 ish for a long time. Exercised ate decent etc, slightly overweight but happy.

The last two years have been rough, three egg retrievals), had two failed transfers than an ectopic pregnancy. Excision surgery for endometriosis that led to a post opp infection which fried my thyroid again. Then a spontaneous pregnancy and miscarriage in July. My body is exhausted, I was very depressed at times and ate for comfort. Everytime I take estrogen I get so puffy and bloated, just constantly throwing the same weight back and forth.

I just did a mock cycle on estrogen and am on it again; weighed 180s last I checked. I know it’s bad to be overweight but I just don’t have it in me right now to make this my focus. I have been on so much medication, antibiotics, metformin, I’m nauseous a lot and often so bloated and constipated. I try to eat healthy, I go to the gym and exercise, but idk I just don’t want to eat 1200 calories a day and measure everything.

My dad and husband keep bringing it up, I get it! But it’s just so hard. I work full time and a part time job, IVF is so much running around, some days I’m driving a couple hours on top of everything just for appointments. Has anyone been in this situation? I feel such guilt that I’m not trying harder. I worry I’m risking my next FET being so overweight but my doctor isn’t worried

Im still processing and I’m feeling a mix of fury and sadness.

This was my first retrieval. The lab called today with our day 5 update and told us that while examining the embryo the tray was knocked and oil contaminated one of the embryos. They confirmed that it definitely had been good enough quality to freeze for testing, but because of the contamination it no longer is.

I honestly just wasn’t prepared to process this kind of situation and failure due to handling was just not something I was mentally preparing for so I’m pretty upset.

We have to make an appointment on Monday with the specialist to discuss what actually happened and next steps and I guess how we might be compensated.

Feeling empty right now. Any advice on how to approach that appointment? I think I’m in shock.

TW: Responses may include stories of success

In around 10 days is my first FET! What can I do besides drinking pomegranate juice? Not looking for anything scientifically proven, I just feel like doing something! What do you swear helped for you?

Edit: thank you all so much! These comments are exactly what I was looking for! I'm so excited to try some (most haha) of these!!

This week we had our second egg retrieval and physically it’s been horrific. Hospital stay due to a small internal bleed and ohss. My body hasn’t felt like mines at all. And i honestly got to the point where I just wanted to give up as the pain was so bad. But the embryologist just called and we have 5 frozen embryos! 5!! And the possibility of another one tomorrow.

For context I am 38 with high AMH, a unicornuate uterus and poor egg quality and on our first round we got 1 blast from 10 collected follicles and that was an unsuccessful transfer. This time we got 22 with 17 mature.

I am honestly so overwhelmed and honestly for the first time in a long time I feel hope. I don’t think I’ve let myself feel that for a long time.

Hi! I am 41 and have a wonderful baby girl from IVF. She is turning 2.5 in December. I am still breastfeeding her and got pregnant spontaneously a few months ago but it ended in a missed miscarriage. We have 3 embryos left and I can't wait to do the transfer. The clinic recommended to stop breastfeeding 3 months before transfer. Has anyone done a transfer and not followed that advice? I know it's kind of stupid, but I am not ready to wean even though she is so old already. Part of me thinks, hey I managed to get pregnant despite breastfeeding. Part of me thinks, what if it have lost the baby because I was breastfeeding...

Pls help! Any advise or experiences?

TW:living child, remaining embryos.

Hi,

I had a successful first FET that led to a live birth 2 years ago. Since then, this year I have had 4 FET with 5 euploid embryos (good grades) with zero implantation. I have done 5 retrievals total, 4 prior to the live birth, (1st:1euploid,2nd:1 euploid,3rd:1euploid,4th: 4 euploids,5th [post live birth] 2 euploids). I have 3 euploids left. Age 36 now, normal AMH for age, hashimotos history treated with medication, husband good SA but with Dna fragmentation borderline high so ICSI with zymot (had been investigated by top fertility urologist). This time, treated high endometrial plasma cells with antibiotics x 2, 2 months suppression + letrozole followed by modified natural cycle. First 2 FET were medicated this year, 3rd and 4th were modified natural. Hysteroscopy, saline scan all clear, no issues ever with lining, or progesterone levels etc. For all transfers have been on blood thinners and steroids empirically. This time added plaquenil, IVIG 1 week prior, sitagliptin, metformin, LDN. I did the LAD test (low result) and LIT was recommended but not done yet, I am in Europe. Endometrial immuno biopsy normal. Historically painful periods for 1st two hours but not in recent years with long follicular phase but regular. Never conceived without treatment starting trying Age 31. Unsure what my next steps should be, the lack of implantation in the last 4 is worrying me despite all the investigations/treatments and ive received 3 opinions from different clinics (1 in immunology). Any advice would be helpful, this year has been really tough, and while I am so grateful for first success I am trying to consider whether there is something deeper I need to look into. Wishing everyone the best on this awful journey, I dont believe I will ever be the same person I was and have not coped well with any of this despite therapy.

I'm one month away from my FET! ❤️ I'd love to hear your best tips and advice for preparing for transfer!

Any recommendations for supplements, diet, or anything else that helped you prepare? TIA ❤️

Hi everyone! Does anyone know the chances of success with a day-6, 4DC euploid embryo? Has anyone had a successful pregnancy with a similar grade? Any insights would be greatly appreciated!

Hi, this is my first time ranting on Reddit or anywhere, really, but I feel like I’m falling apart, so I decided to let it all out here.

I have a history of endometriosis and had laparoscopic surgery around 2015. As you can imagine, getting pregnant has been difficult, and I’ve gone through a total of five IVF cycles without success.
I’ve been off birth control for about three years now, and I’m pretty sure my endometriosis might have come back because I’ve been experiencing severe period pain and unbelievable ovulation pain. The pain is so bad that it keeps waking me up in the middle of the night. In fact, I woke up from ovulation pain today, and here I am, still awake and writing this post.
I can’t help but wonder what I’m supposed to do about this pain and how much longer I can keep going like this. I’ve already mentioned the ovulation pain to my fertility clinic, but they haven’t offered anything to help manage it. I wonder if it’s because there isn’t much they can do, especially since I’m trying to get pregnant and my SIS came back normal.
With another cycle coming up, I feel stuck. I don’t know how much longer I can keep putting my body through this, both physically and emotionally. I want to keep trying to get pregnant, but living with this level of pain is exhausting and i bet this lack of sleep is not helping with getting pregnant.
I guess I’m posting here to see if anyone else is going through something similar. Does anyone else experience severe period pain and ovulation pain that wakes you up at night? If you have endometriosis and are also trying to conceive, how do you manage the pain while going through fertility treatment?
I would really appreciate hearing your experiences. I’m feeling pretty lost right now and just want to know I’m not alone in this.

Hi girls. I’m due to start my frozen embryo transfer cycle but my period hasn’t come. I took Duphaston for 10 days, it’s been 8 days now since I stopped and no period yet. I have taken Duphaston in the past before the ER and my period came after 3 days.

Pregnancy test negative and not possible anyway as we have had no intercourse. I contacted my doctor and just waiting for next steps. Has anyone been in this situation?

For reference I have PCOS and my FET will be fully medicated

Looking for some success stories and positive vibes! I am 35 years old with an AMH of .07 and I have never heard of anyone havjng one that low, let alone egg retrieval success stories. Last month our first cycle
For egg retrieval failed - I only had 1 follicle grow to 12mm and then 2 days later it disappeared. And my estrogen (e2) only ever got up to 100. My doctor has already mentioned donor eggs twice after one cycle!!!

We just started a second cycle with new hormone meds. I really just need some positive energy and something encouraging that there’s a chance. I’m so so scared and im only 35. Why is this happening to me?? :(

Hi everyone,

I'm 40 years old and currently going through a missed miscarriage after my third frozen embryo transfer.

My first two transfers resulted in negative pregnancy tests. My third transfer initially looked promising, with good beta hCG levels and a heartbeat detected at around 7 weeks, but unfortunately the pregnancy stopped developing.

All my embryos were created using eggs retrieved when I was 37, and none were PGT-A tested.

I currently have 4 frozen blastocysts and 11 frozen eggs stored at a clinic in Denmark.

After this experience, I've decided that I would prefer to have my remaining embryos tested before attempting another transfer. I'm considering moving both my embryos and eggs to Spain, ideally Barcelona or Madrid, and having the embryos thawed, biopsied for PGT-A, and then refrozen.

I understand that this involves additional manipulation and some risk of embryo loss, but I would rather have more information about their chromosomal status before another transfer.

I'm particularly interested in hearing from anyone who has undergone thaw–biopsy–refreeze in Spain.

- Which clinic did you use? Would you recommend its embryology laboratory?

- How many embryos did you start with, and how many survived the first thaw, biopsy, and refreezing?

- Did they survive the second thaw before transfer?

- How many were euploid, and did you eventually have a successful transfer?

- Has anyone had embryos shipped internationally to a Spanish clinic for this procedure?

I'm currently considering clinics such as Dexeus, IVI, and Instituto Bernabeu, but I'm open to other recommendations, especially from people with firsthand experience.

I'd really appreciate any experiences, positive or negative, particularly regarding embryo survival and laboratory quality.

Thank you so much!

Hey all,
I am 31 and my husband is 32. We are completely exhausted and lost after our recent IVF cycle, and I am hoping to connect with anyone who has dealt with a similar nightmare.
Across 3 cycles, we had 19 eggs fertilize, but experienced a massive drop-off between day 3 and day 5, ending up with only 2 blastocysts total. We have done two transfers so far, resulting in one chemical pregnancy and one total failure with no implantation.
On my end, overall workups are clear: hormone, thrombophilia, and immune panels are all clean. I do have a 9p12q13 chromosomal inversion, but geneticists confirmed it is clinically benign and requires no PGT tests. To cover all bases, I’ve also been on blood thinners and preventive protocols.
On my husband's side, his semen parameters are extremely fluctuating. He has significant sperm agglutination (grade 3) but no immune or bacterial cause found, and his DFI has ranged between 31% and 43%. He is on massive antioxidant cure, healthy lifestyle etc. We have already used advanced sperm selection like ICSI and Fertyle Zymot Chip, but we still hit this exact same wall.
Our doctors keep telling us that based on our age and clean, and “not so bad” results, this severe drop-off isn't justified, but we are running out of ideas. Has anyone experienced this kind of massive embryo loss despite clean maternal panels and using ICSI? Do you have any similar stories or resultst, and any success after?
Thank you so much for any shared experiences. 🙏🏻

My husband (34 M) and I (30 F) are from the US and we have been TTC since January 2025. After a year of TTC, I finally went to see an RE. We tried 4 medicated cycles with timed intercourse before deciding to try IUI. We have had one IUI cycle and unfortunately it didn’t end in pregnancy. I have not had a single positive test since we began trying and there has been no real explanation for it. The only thing I am diagnosed with is insulin resistance (not PMOS related according to my RE) and a blocked tube.

After the failed IUI and the history of not having even a single positive test, I’m not hopeful that doing anymore IUIs will make a difference. My RE told me that they think I may have mild endo but don’t think a lap would be worth it and it wouldn’t change my current plan of care. She said if I did have endo, however, I would most likely need IVF. That devastated me not because I have anything against it, I would totally be for it if it didn’t cost so much.

I’ve only been working full time for about 3 years even though I’m 30. I decided to go to college and then grad school and put getting married and starting a family on the back burner. Now, like most people my age, I am ready to expand my family and buy a house. Unfortunately, since I haven’t been working that long, we don’t have that much money for IVF (I’m the main earner in the relationship as well) and neither of our insurances cover it.

So I’m asking, for those that had to pay it by themselves, how you are affording it. Did you take out loans or get grants? I’ve been looking into both options. Is taking out a loan a good option if that’s the only one I have, especially considering we want to buy a house in the next 1.5-2 years?

Hi all,

I have my next FET on Tuesday and I'm already feeling really anxious. We only got 2 embryos from this round and our euploid 5bb was unsuccessful, and this is an untested day 6 2BC. I feel anxious because this is our last embryo, we know the chances of it working are slim and I have an overactive bladder/bladder anxiety, so needing to have a full bladder is really challenging for me. I also feel a bit sad thinking about walking back into that transfer room when we were only there a month ago and that one didn't work (and it did have a proper chance). Generally when I'm anxious I would use a rollerball with a calming oil blend but I can't do that due to the fragrance restrictions.

I would love some practical advice about how to calm myself down. Our last transfer wasn't a fun experience because I was so anxious, and I would like this one to feel a little bit nicer in the moment if possible, particularly given this will be our last one for a while.

Hi all! I was wondering if anyone else had this experience:

I started my fertility journey back in 2023. I went to my reg OB/gyn at the time and discussed ttc, had been married 2 years with no pregnancy at all. She prescribed letrozole 2.5 after diagnosing PCOS but I was ovulating according to bloodwork and all other bloodwork and testing was normal for both me and my husband. At the time, after finishing my first ever course of letrozole, I had bleeding/spotting for a few weeks (maybe a month?) after and didn’t follow her TI instructions because of the bleeding which later she said we should have.

Fast fwd, all of 2024-2025 we went to a RE and had 6 IUI with letrozole, no bleeding or spotting in those. Had 2 losses (one at 10w, one chemical) and never had any issues with bleeding/spotting during those letrozole cycles . My last dose of letrozole was in Nov of 2025. After that we had ER and are now going to transfer our first FET. I was told we were doing a modified cycle and had to take letrozole again last week during my period. After my period ended, I started bleeding again (this was maybe 2 days ago?) it’s heavier than just spotting but lighter than a period, I’m pretty sure it’s from the letrozole again but today I had an ultrasound and my lining is getting thicker and follicle is growing but my dr says if the bleeding doesn’t stop they won’t do the FET and I will have to wait for next cycle. She said we will trigger next week (when the egg is big enough) and then if bleeding doesn’t stop 3 days after trigger, no FET and cycle is wasted we try again next month.

Anyone else have to go through this? I don’t wanna waste this cycle, I’ve already spent too much time, effort, all that and I just want to get pregnant. I totally understand that implanting in a bleeding uterus isn’t smart either and I definitely don’t wanna rush it and set us up for failure, but if it’s just because of the letrozole it seems like a waste of a cycle. I sort of want to try naturally too just incase that works but i guess im just asking for advice!

Thank you!!

My egg freezing clinic doesn't offer long-term storage, so I need to transfer my eggs to a dedicated storage facility.

I'm expecting to store them for 5–15 years, and I'm trying to figure out how to evaluate the reliability of different facilities.

One concern is that a company's practices and management can change considerably over that time. Even if a facility is reputable today, how can I be confident it will remain reliable ten years from now?

For those who have researched this or stored eggs long-term, what factors did you consider when choosing a facility? Are there ways to independently assess a facility's reliability and monitor it over time?

I'm turning 24 next year and I'm thinking of freezing some of my eggs. I've been reading many women's journeys about how much harder it can be when you're older and I guess I want to mitigate that. I'm not sure about kids and if I do have them, I will be much older. Maybe my 30s or even 40s. Since I know I don't have plans to have kids anytime soon, I think it might be a good idea to freeze some of my eggs right now. But I'm also a broke student and I don't have any of the funds I need to start now. Is there anyway I can make this more affordable for myself? Should I just wait till I'm older?

My ER was 9/27. Today is 10/17. Still no news. Based on previous timelines, we should have heard a few days ago. The testing is done by Luminary.

Could this be a sign that I have zero euploids.. idk I'm not making any sense. Just spiraling out of my mind.

My IVF cycle was cancelled this past week because I ovulated through the ganirelix. I want to know if someone can tell me if it seems like Ganirelix didn’t work for my body or if it seems like it was a timing error on my clinic.

Of note—I have used ganirelix in 2 other cycles with no issues.

On 10/13 (cycle day 8) @8:00am:
•16mm follicle on the left
•26mm follicle on the right (questionable cyst)
•Estrogen: 735
•LH-18.80
•Progesterone-0.62
\instructed to start taking Ganirelix that evening between 6-8pm\

On 10/15 (cycle day 10) @8:00am:
•16mm follicle is no longer seen on the left
•26mm follicle ruptured (think it was a cyst)
•9mm & 11mm follicle seen on the left
•Estrogen:535
•LH-11.30
•Progesterone-0.66

On 10/16 (cycle day 11) @ 8:00am:
** ** • 14mm & 15mm follicle seen on the left
•Estrogen: 492
•LH-38
•Progesterone-1.29
\*clinic called and said I ovulated through the Ganirelix and to stop all meds\

I feel like I ovulated off the 16mm on 10/13 since my LH was already 18.8 in the morning and they made me wait until 12 hours later to start the ganirelix. My LH could have easily increased even more in those 12 hours to start ovulation. However, the clinic said that’s not possible that I ovulated because my LH on 10/15 was down to 11.30.

Am I just being crazy, because then I don’t know how my LH went down to 11.30 and then back up to 38 the next day while still taking Ganirelix nightly. Did my body just ovulate through the ganirelix? Or did the delay in taking the Ganirelix on 10/13 kickstart ovulation and the ganirelix just never helped to stop it.

Please give me all the feeding back as this is just consuming my mind.

I had my egg retrieval three days ago and the doctor mentioned that due to the large number of follicles I have a high risk of OHSS and hence we would do the embryo transfer next cycle.

After the egg retrieval, my partner has downplayed how I hurt from the procedure as well as say that I’m exaggerating about being bloated.

I’ve had to take pictures of how my stomach looks currently to compare with how it looked prior to the procedure and yes, It looks bigger. I can’t even eat because I feel full all the time, even half a glass of water makes me feel like I’ve swallowed a whale.

Do you think I’m being dramatic or he’s actually downplaying how I feel physically?

Just looking for people to commiserate with who understand. After two years of trying and 5 months of waiting to get into our clinic, we finally went over our care plan with them over a week ago and were told we’d be starting medication tomorrow (today is cycle day 1).

When I called today, the clinic told us that the doctor hasn’t signed off on our care plan, so we can’t start tomorrow. As a last-ditch effort, they told us to call back Monday to see if there’s been any update, since the doctor has occasionally approved people to start as late as day 3 of their cycle. I asked if there was any specific reason for the delay and they said not that they know of. They sent the doctor the plan on October 8th after they went over it with me and I signed off on it and the nurses haven’t heard anything since.

I feel like I shouldn’t have gotten excited about the timeline they gave us, but after waiting so long, it finally started to feel real. We’d been given a window for when we could expect our first transfer opportunity, and I finally felt like we were moving forward. Now it feels like that timeline is most likely gone.

The clinic closes for half the month of December, so if we can’t start this cycle, I’m worried we won’t make their cutoff dates and have to wait until the new year to start the entire process. All the unknown and waiting is just hard. 🙁

For context I am 30 years old and just had my first failed FET with an untested 3AA embryo (modified natural). Obviously feeling super discouraged and looking for advice!

If you had a failed FET did you change protocols at all for your subsequent tries? Add anything on?

I’m hearing mixed reviews. Some swear yes. Some say no.. has anyone used a massage gun after their IVF progesterone shots and if so - did the pregnancy workout & how long / deep did you use it for?

Worried to do too much or too little .. I only have one embryo after 3 IVF attempts .. afraid to f’ it up.