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First time going to an RE
Hi ladies :) Have read this forum forever and never joined. So.. this is my first question .. You ladies always are so sweet and positive and I am looking for some of your experience in the RE dept :) I am 42 will be 43 in June, and TTC since last May. Had a early miscarriage in Sept, and have not been able to get pregnant since then. Before my miscarriage always got positives OPKs only cycle day 10. Since my miscarriage I have only got two positive OPKS. Not sure what's going on but made an appointment to see an RE, and really have no idea what to ask or what to expect. We are thinking of trying IVF first w/ my eggs and if it doesn't work to go for a donor. But I have no idea what the doctor will say or tell us to do? DO they tell you what to do or do we tell them what we want? I am so nervous about going and so disappointed we have to see an RE at all. I was so praying it would just happen naturally but I am thankful that we do have this opition. Thank you guys so much for any advice you can give me. My appointement is Thursday and I don't really want to go in there not knowing anything :) Praying you all get the babies you are trying for!
Thank you so much for taking the time to send me all your wisdom !! ! I will write down those questions and am so thankful for all your advice! Congrats on your baby :) !!
Your initial visit, he/she will likely take a history of both of you, written questionaire. He may have even sent this to you by mail ahead of time. My RE did this history on both of us, then he ran over all of our options and what they would supposedly achieve.
I consider us lucky because our RE was honest enough with us to day, unless you have a perfect cycle, everything is aligned, all the fertility meds in the world won't help. I am not putting down fertility treatments because we tried everything, even IVF. We ended up getting pregnant w/o any fertility whatsoever at age 40, I will be 41 at delivery (next month).
I would say with you starting a couple of years beyond where we started, he might stress to you the donor egg route simply because of your age. But the fact really is, only you and your DH can decide what the best decision is for both of you. If you have regular periods, ovulate regularly, sperm looks great, tubes are open, FSH looks great, etc. then you are in great shape. Would fertility treatments increase your chances of getting pregnant, and sooner, quite possibly. Is it a guarantee, not at all. Your body has to cooperate.
Ask your RE:
1. What he would advise you to do if you were his sister?
2. Ask about success rates, sometimes they are posted on the website, be sure to pay attention how they "qualify" those rates, pay attention to live birth rates within your age group.
3. Ask about pricing and even refund rates, some let you do so many IVF and will give you a refund on some or most if you don't take home a baby. Ask for a specific recommended game plan for you before you leave the appointment, he may likely start by suggesting a battery of tests, but go beyond that and ask about scenarios if those tests come back good or if they come back sort of dismal.
4. Be sure to check his certification, national and state, he will probably even have this posted in the front office.
Hope this helps a little. Good luck!!
I consider us lucky because our RE was honest enough with us to day, unless you have a perfect cycle, everything is aligned, all the fertility meds in the world won't help. I am not putting down fertility treatments because we tried everything, even IVF. We ended up getting pregnant w/o any fertility whatsoever at age 40, I will be 41 at delivery (next month).
I would say with you starting a couple of years beyond where we started, he might stress to you the donor egg route simply because of your age. But the fact really is, only you and your DH can decide what the best decision is for both of you. If you have regular periods, ovulate regularly, sperm looks great, tubes are open, FSH looks great, etc. then you are in great shape. Would fertility treatments increase your chances of getting pregnant, and sooner, quite possibly. Is it a guarantee, not at all. Your body has to cooperate.
Ask your RE:
1. What he would advise you to do if you were his sister?
2. Ask about success rates, sometimes they are posted on the website, be sure to pay attention how they "qualify" those rates, pay attention to live birth rates within your age group.
3. Ask about pricing and even refund rates, some let you do so many IVF and will give you a refund on some or most if you don't take home a baby. Ask for a specific recommended game plan for you before you leave the appointment, he may likely start by suggesting a battery of tests, but go beyond that and ask about scenarios if those tests come back good or if they come back sort of dismal.
4. Be sure to check his certification, national and state, he will probably even have this posted in the front office.
Hope this helps a little. Good luck!!
Thanks.. All of this is so intimidating! We are interviewing them also, that's a great way for us to go in there! Thank you also for the advice on the book :)
No we don't have any tests done at all. This will be our first time going to see an RE. So I guess they will have us do those tests then!? Okay so ignore the donor speech :) Awesome.. thank you so much! We are trusting God :)
Keep in mind you are interviewing the RE too. If you are not comfortable with them- interview another! After my exam, my RE did not tell us what we needed to do- but he encouraged us go the donor route. I was also concerned about the quality of egg at my age. I was sure this was the right path because I had been off bcp and trying for a couple of years. I did not want to waste our $. I have never even done ivf- we went straight to donor
There is a great book "The Baby Solution" that goes over all the tests, questions to aks, etc. for IVF- IUI, donation, etc. But I am sure there are plenty of good books out there!
Have your questions in mind. You might also ask them about their success rates. Your plan should be something you all feel good about! SSBD! Best wishes!
There is a great book "The Baby Solution" that goes over all the tests, questions to aks, etc. for IVF- IUI, donation, etc. But I am sure there are plenty of good books out there!
Have your questions in mind. You might also ask them about their success rates. Your plan should be something you all feel good about! SSBD! Best wishes!
Hello,
Have you taken blood test & given a sperm sample yet? Did you do an hsg sonogram to see if your tubes are open? Usually on your first appt the doctor would go over your results. Then doctor would decide what is a best plan. If your FSH is under 10, clomid or fermara is likely with timed intercourse or an IUI. If you FSH is over 10, then you will get the donor egg speech, ignore it please. Too many time doctors give us no hope and many women have gotten pregnant with a elevated fsh. Let us know how it goes!
Risa
Have you taken blood test & given a sperm sample yet? Did you do an hsg sonogram to see if your tubes are open? Usually on your first appt the doctor would go over your results. Then doctor would decide what is a best plan. If your FSH is under 10, clomid or fermara is likely with timed intercourse or an IUI. If you FSH is over 10, then you will get the donor egg speech, ignore it please. Too many time doctors give us no hope and many women have gotten pregnant with a elevated fsh. Let us know how it goes!
Risa
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