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9828276 tn?1407171270

Anyone with IUI experience

Sooooo, we just started seeing a fertility specialist. Husband got his swimmers tested, he had above normal range of count, motility, volume...but a 0% morphology. Our doc didn't seemed concerned because we were able to get pregnant before (last Jan but it resulted in a miscarriage in April because of a huge fibroid I had not allowing any room for a baby to grow, so I had that removed in June 2013). So after my miscarriage I had a D&C, which I wish I would have done more research on, because that could cause scarring. Then shortly after I had a myomectomy (fibroid removal) via c-section. Since then, we haven't been able to get pregnant. HSG tests, MRI's...It finally led us to a specialist who did an ultrasound and saw that my uterus was mishaped but she doesn't think that's the reason why. Now she wants to draw blood. She mentioned IUI. It will cost us roughly 1k each time we do it and even then it has up to 18% or 20% of success rates which isn't high...
Just curious if any of you have had IUI, if so how many times, and have you had any success? Were your partners swimmers in good condition? It's a lot to take in, and IUI sounds like a good idea and all but not very promising. Then again what is without costing an arm and a leg ;). Any advice on this topic would be helpful! Goodluck to all trying to conceive!
21 Responses
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10645099 tn?1433258289
I live pretty close to all my doctor's but the running around ***** because I have to leave work to go to these appointments.  I just wish something productive would come from these visits because honestly, nothing has.  sure they found out I am hypothyroid and put me on medicine but thats about it.  Yes hopefully someday soon!!!!!!  
Helpful - 0
7634030 tn?1407358368
I am just seeing my specialist.  And it took a lot of strength to keep my sanity.  My doc is like an hour drive from me.  Driving back n forth took 2 hours for just a 15 20 mins check up.  Wish i had a fertility specialist close by.  Sigh.  Anyway.  Good luck girl.  Hopefully someday.  We be blessed with our little miracle.
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10645099 tn?1433258289
I started off with my gyno and they thought I had a thyroid problem so she referred me to an endocrinologist and finally after 2 years she told me to see a reproductive endocrinologist.  So now I see my regular doctor for yearly exams, my gyno for my pap smears only, my endocrinologist for my thyroid and my reproductive endocrinologist for infertility.  I have only been seeing the RE for a short time so it will be interesting how it goes.  This month I have a doctor's appt each week between my RE and endocrinologist!  AHHHHHHH, so many darn appointments!
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7634030 tn?1407358368
I feel you.  Last mth i was down with appendix and had to go surgery for it.  Took that mth off.  This mth.  My hubby is not in a good health.  Hes having some kinda very bad stomach bug.  So baby dance was not every other day.  Btw what kind of doc are you seeing.  Just a gynae or fertility specialist.  My first was just a gynae.  And he was not minintoring me that much.  With my 2nd doc, ohh boy.  I kept going to that office.  Im getting tired of it.  I wanna get preg already.
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10645099 tn?1433258289
I wish my doctors would monitor my cycle more.  Had one progesterone test a long time ago that was just barely enough to show ovulation.  This was another failed cycle for me b/c hubby and I did not get down to business at all.  TTC really takes a toll on the romance!  
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7634030 tn?1407358368
I know what you mean seeing family and friends saying they are pregnant.  And we can just smile on the outside but tearing on the inside.  Just got back from the doc.  Doc said my lining showed i hv not ovulated but my ovaries saying a diff thing.  Had to go for a progesterone
test.  Looks like this is gonna be another fail attempt.
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10645099 tn?1433258289
YES YES YES about hoping but not being hopeful.  I have watched 10 women at work get pregnant in just the last year and a half.  It's incredibly hard...there were 4 just in my office and they like to bring their babies in every now and again. The announcements on Facebook keep rolling in.  I just wish that one day, one of those would be mine.  I just hope that if I go with IUI, it will work because I don;t think I could handle the possibility it wouldn't.  
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7634030 tn?1407358368
I hope to be pregnant naturally too.  I dont wish to be broke trying to hv kid and IVF will do that or put a dent to our savings.  I think that be unfair.  We all know raising a kid is not cheap.  If i hv a kid, i will wanna set aside some money for him or her as a start up saving.  If i do ivf, it be tight.  Good luck to you. Im at a point that i am hoping but not hopeful.  I guessed being disappointed for the last 3 years will do that to anybody.
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10645099 tn?1433258289
IUI is our last shot really.  We cannot afford IVF and it would be another 10 years before we could (damn student loans) and I will be over 40 and don't want to wait that long.  I feel like IUI is a really good option for me but it adds up especially if I have to do multiple ones.  I think I will do up to 3 IUI and hopefully either that works or maybe I will just get pregnant naturally...stranger things have happened!
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7634030 tn?1407358368
I know what you mean.  My husband has 2 kids.  We had saved money for all this.  Even had money for IVF.  But i decided not to go to that route.  I dont think i can go through spending so much money and it fail you know.  So im just using this meds route first and my last effort will be another iuis and i be done if all that fail.
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10645099 tn?1433258289
At first my RE wanted me to do IUI but we are seeing about some cheaper options.  I feel like I've waited 3 years, I can wait a little longer and try out some medications or whatever.  Still trying to get back into see him!  Such an ordeal making an appointment!  $450 honestly isn't bad.  If it were just me and hubby I would definitely do it. But with his children in the mix and a home and such, I feel super bad spending so much.  I know that sounds crazy!
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7634030 tn?1407358368
My insurance covered meds and ultrasound too.  Not IUI let alone IVF.  My first IUIs cost me abt 370.  That failed.  Not sure how much my fertility specialist will cost me if i decided to do iuis with him as hes the 2nd doc i went too.  The first iuis was done by my gynae.  Now Im on Femara.  Day 3 to 7.  I also had menopur shot.  On the 1 st of Oct, going for my HCG shot.  So we will see.  Doing time intercourse for now.
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10645099 tn?1433258289
Just the procedure is $450 but if they add any medications plus ultrasounds, could be over $1000.  My insurance is great in that it covers all infertility testing and meds but not the IUI or related costs.  If it costs $150, I'd be doing it each month for sure!!!!!
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Avatar universal
Wow! i am on IUI#3 right now..i live in Canada and it costs me $150.00...I can't believe you have to pay up to $1000 !! Iam on Femera and Clomid.
Helpful - 0
10645099 tn?1433258289
I just stumbled onto this community and decided to join and get some support for my infertility journey and I was curious if you have tried the IUI?  I am trying to find more women who have tried it because my reproductive endocrinologist wants me to try it but it can be pricey and I read the success rate was only like 11%!  I think for us it will cost about $1000 for the procedure and the medications and misc things.  I read like 10 great IUI stories and then like 2 bad ones or women who have tried 5 or so IUIs.  I am ready to be a mom after 3 years but I want to exhaust other options first.  My doctor's never bring up Clomid or anything because my cycle are "normal". It's so frustrating! Anyway, just curious.  
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9828276 tn?1407171270
That's a good thing to like your specialist, I am glad I feel a connection with my doctors because good doctors are very hard to find and it's hard to trust them or wonder if it's all about $ for them ya know?
I agree, glad you got rid of that bad tube as well! Better chances without it anyway!
I've read the "bad side effects" of Clomid and it's enough to make me worried. But perhaps with only being on it for 2-3 months, I shouldn't be effected too much. I should know by then if it's not working for me anyway.
I heard Femara is the same type of medication as clomid but safer...Am I reading that wrong? So you're currently on medication that is like clomid correct?
IVF scares the crap out of me. I cannot see myself spending that money and having the chances of it failing. Would be nice if insurance covered portions of this at least. That's a bridge we will cross down the road. I am 30, husband is turning 33 soon. We never thought we would be in this position, but things don't always turn out as you planned.
Keep me posted, I hope to see a happy prego post from you soon. All the luck and baby dust to you as well!
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7634030 tn?1407358368
If i had known earlier, i will hv pushed to be seen by a specialist earlier.  9 cycles of clomid plus IUI and nothing.  And not forgetting the side effects.  Hot flashes and i believed it had made my uterine lining thin too.  I used to hv like 4 5 days of period.  The longer i was on Clomid, my period got shorter and when i researched abt it, it informed me abt Clomid could do that.  But now im glad my period is back to normal.

And yes now i hv only one tube.  I cant get pregnant with 2 tubes so why not try with one.  The right tube was bad anyway and it was preventing me getting pregnant.  My doc showed me the pic of my inflamed right tube.  Yeah it looked like it could burst at any moment.  Glad i got rid of that.

Btw the only reason my doc let me start on Letrozole aka femara was because i do not hv any cyst.  I was informed that if there were any, eating the medication that he will prescribed will just go down the drain.  I really love my specialist.  He is actually a friend of my obgyn.  My obgyn was the one who referred me to him.  Like you, i hv np ovulating.  I really hope this new med will help me.  I do not wish to go through IVF as i dont think i can be prepared with so much money being spend and it failed.  You know what i mean.  I really understand why you are a little hessistant abt IUI.  It hurts when AF comes after spending that money.

Good luck to you.  I hope those cyst goes away by itself so it will increase the chance of pregnancy for you.  Baby dust to you and everybody trying.
Helpful - 0
9828276 tn?1407171270
My regular doctor told me he will prescribe me up to 3 months of clomid, and even though I don't really NEED it since I have normal cycles and I am pretty sure I ovulate most of the time if not all, but even he said after 3 times and I am not pregnant then I need to stop taking it to get a break and that it's not working for me. Wow you were on it 9 cycles!!! I am currently seeing a fertility specialist now, and while I love my regular gyno, this fertility specialist is VERY proactive and getting crap done quickly. She isn't pushing for the IUI but thinks we should give it a shot if we decide to.
So you currently only have one tube now? My friend had an eptopic (spelling) pregnancy that resulted in a removal of one of her tubes. Which obviously decreased her chances of getting pregnant but still, months later...She had a successful pregnancy :)
Haven't heard of Letrozole yet, there are so many medications out there it's overwhelming. I go back in to my doctor on my next cycle from day 2-4 to get blood work to check my hormones. This last time I was in on my cycle, my doctor saw a cyst on my left ovary but didn't seem concerned. We have a prescription of clomid already from my reg doctor, but the specialist whom we started seeing recently said to hold off on taking it because of my cycst...that clomid could enlarge it and cause more pain to me if it ruptures etc. SO we held off. But now she said if I want to try the clomid rout, I should get an ultrasound prior to make sure all is well inside. Thing is...I don't want to spend the $290 to get one done because my insurance won't cover it if it's fertility related. And if I think about it, we would have been on clomid this last cycle had I not gone to the specialist and saw a cyst on my ovary ya know? We decided to go to the specialist to go over my husbands seman analysis and over my medical history (had a c-section to remove a large fibroid which is what caused our miscarriage) and better guide us moreso than my reg gyno could. And we were right, they are specialized with all types of situations to narrow down what the issue could be as to why we aren't getting pregnant.
So as of right now we are stuck on what to do, chance taking clomid even if I have a reocurring cyst (which is normal FYI to have cysts here and there, they go away on their own most of the time) all on our own, or listen to the specialist and come in for an ultrasound to see if I have a cyst and take clomid. Most people who take clomid don't get ultrasounds before hand... Of course I worry about crap like that though. We could try to do this ourselves, or spend the $ to get ultrasound then take it, OR just go forward with the rest of teh $700 and do IUI since you have to get an ultrasound with it already.
See my dilema? Clomid will be my first type of fertility medication.
I will keep you in my thoughts, praying that your ultrasound on Monday shows you have good follicles, lots of eggs producing and no cysts!!!!!
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7634030 tn?1407358368
Yes i know what you mean.  I had that one failed iui with Clomid.  Had 9 cycles of failed Clomid.  When i had it done, i kinda know it's not working.  True enough.  And my obgyn wanted me to go for a few more iuis.  I told him no.  I wanna be seen by a specialist which is a good thing.  Had a more thorough check up and went for a laparoscopy surgery.  I had an inflamed right tube and the doc believed it was preventing me from getting pregnant and it had to be removed.  Now i am taking Letrozole.  Going for an ultra sound this Monday to check on my follicle.  Did an Ultra sound last week too on CD2 to check for cyst.  So far so good.  What abt you.  What has your doc suggested?  Hv you taken any kinda medicine?
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9828276 tn?1407171270
Yea depending on how many ultrasounds we will need prior to insemination, it can cost up to a grand otherwise we can count on it being $700. Thank you for your input, so far there aren't many success stories with IUI's and I am wondering if it's a waste of $. Definitely don't want to get my hopes up...but of course we all latch onto what we can when we want something dearly.
Helpful - 0
7634030 tn?1407358368
I did one iui.  It failed but it doesnt cost me a grand.  I will say abt 371 if im not wrong.  
Helpful - 0
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