move to ivf?

Question

I have been ttc for 3 years now on and off. It started in aug 08 with hsg and laprascopy. They found endometriosis but the tubes were clear. In november 08 i had a natural iui. My cervix is extremely tight and curved so doc couldnt get the tube all the way in. It ended up unsucessful. My husbands mother passed away in december so i didnt start ttc again until march of 09. I started with 50 mg clomid. that month i had only very small follies 13mm and 14mm i believe. the doc put me on clomid, and repronex in april with the same result. follies were too small. in may we did 100mg clomid, repronex shots, and an ovadril trigger. that month i had 3 follies 15mm, 18mm and 20mm. doc scheduled the iui. i was extremely nervous for the iui since the last had been so painful. this was no different. lots of screaming and bleeding. she actually told me she was just going to shove the tube through my cervix and did so. she got the sperm in but in the end the iui didnt work. i decided to go to a fertility specialist after i had been butchered by my obgyn. my first appt at fs told me that i had cysts from the repronex and that i needed to take a break from meds for a month to recover. i decided then that i would take a year off. the stress and depression was really wearing on me. so this july i went back to the fertility doc to start again. i had my iui on july 31 with 100mg clomid and ovadril trigger. today i started spotting so i know that the iui didnt work. this technically means ive had 3 iui's and dont know whether or not to move to ivf. im only 25 but its so hard and emotionally draining that i dont know if i can go through the dissappointment again. has anyone else had an experience similar to mine?

sweetpea84 · Answer

i totally know how you feel. we are kinda on the same page. the next step according to my RE is IVF, but he also said because of my age that its really up to me what i want to do. i know how everyone says to be paitent and it will happen when its supposed to happen, but im getting really tired of hearing that. i want it to happen yesterday, last year, heck 3 years ago. hopefully this one worked for you and you wont have to worry about another cycle. just keep thinking that you are pregnant and hopefully your mind will take care of you body and make it happen. good luck to you!

jessting · Answer

Goo dluck to you, I was 26-26 when i first started IVF..now 28 and getting ready to start my 3rd cycle. Its def a rolelrcoaster...but once you go down the hill its all worth it. IVF was alot more emotional then i expected. Thoguht i was a strong girl..but play with my hormone and emotiona and Im so not! Lots of Good comes from IVF everyday..but just know its not a sure thing..and sometimes patience is needed. ..as i have been taught! Good luck and keep us posted

aliaa82 · Answer

i am trying to have my 2 nd child for 1 year and still nothing i did iui 3 times before an operation done to me 6 months ago and they find out that i several problem inside me including curve cervix and blocked and attached tub to qolon they said that they fixed the problem and i did the 1st iui after the procedure with clomid and gonal f and profasi enjuction and its failed i rest for 2 months and tried it again with the same medication and did the 2 nd iui after procedure last week and still waiting for the result i hope i am pregnant because i had enough from failed iui procedure and i don't know what is the next step after iui ?

sweetpea84 · Answer

actually yes the iui with my RE was much less painful. they did try using a small flexible catheter at first to make it less painful. after lots of coughing and moving to the us room to help guide they decided to numb my cervix with lidocaine and use a stiffer catheter with a balloon at the end. it was kind cool because on the us i could see the catheter moving through and actually saw the sperm get injected....it was a little white splash. haha the RE said that the next iui if that one didnt work(which it didnt) they wanted to use sedation and dilation. i was just thinking about asking the RE what the cost difference would be since i would be paying for sedation anyways. i know that the rest of the work, transfer, fertilization, meds and us really are a majority of the cost but my insurence wont cover me because of existing conditions(endometreosis)...so if im gonna pay a bunch for the iui, i may as well just go for the gold! I really appreciate the reply. i just joined yesterday and i was scared no one would answer me...haha so thank you and congrats on the baby girl!

Heather5 · Answer

I'm so sorry you've had to go through all this. Whether or not to move on to IVF is of course a personal choice...but there are pros and cons to both. It's a lot more successful (especially at your age), but it's also more expensive and involves a lot of meds and monitoring. I did IVF last year, after TTC for several years. I had gotten pregnant on my own twice before then, but both ended in early miscarriages. The IVF, on the other hand, was successful, and I now have a beautiful 7-month old baby girl! So in retrospect, IVF was definitely the right choice for me. 

As for the cervix, I too have a curved cervix (it's not that uncommon), but my IUIs were never that much of a problem. It could be that your cervix is just more curved, of course, but hopefully, it has something to do with the inexperience of your obgyn. A fertility specialist may not have as much of an issue getting the catheter in. Oh and just FYI, the embryo transfer in IVF is done the same way as an IUI, with a catheter through the cervix.

Since you just now started seeing a specialist/RE, I personally would probably give it a couple more months before considering IVF...but that's just me. Best of luck to you!