Beginning donor egg cycle? Anyone?

[bubba329]

Dana-Thanks for the shot expertise. I will definitely try that. I watched a few youtube videos last night of Lupron shots and one was so funny. It was her first shot and she was freaking out big time!! It took her about 10 tries to get the needle in and she had a nurse/friend there to help her. I'm looking forward to getting the first one over with. I emailed the clinic with questions about the meds my contact there (who is very nice), told me nicely to slow down and take it one med at a time. Lol! She sensed my panic! So I told her I would definitely do that!

Speriamo-I've heard about the ethyl oleate and asked for it, but they still sent it in Sesame. I think if I get pg they will order the ethyl for next time (I asked again). It's uncanny how much our dh's are alike. Really! Today was especially stressful cause I made the large donor payment and got more meds. I think at this point they are more scared than sure about this or excited. But I am positive that we both know that once they lay eyes on and hold their babies in their arms, they will melt and all that worry and fear will melt away. If we weren't so sure about that, I don't think we'd be able to do all this. And every woman I've heard from who has had a baby from donor eggs say that the donor fades away usually around ER. From that point forward, she's gone and it's just us, our baby and our crazy dh's. Lol!

AFM-So, like I said, crazy day running around to the bank and buying meds. Thought I lost my brand new cell phone in the mix and had a panic moment, came all the way home, couldn't find it anywhere-was in my car buried in the seat. Duh! Now I'm home looking over the new batch of meds and see that the Estrace warns against taking it while pregnant. I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to take in for a few weeks into the cycle after ET. Anyone know about this or have any thoughts? I've looked at other sites and it appears that everyone takes it pretty much for at least up to 6 weeks. Anyone worried about this or have any experience?

[vacationqueen]

Hi Bubba!
My nurse told me not to worry about the warnings while I was going through my ivf. I started to post what I thought I remembered her saying but I was afraid my ramblings would just confuse you as much as me! lol! I cut and pasted this from CNY's website.

The hormone preparations, estradiol and progesterone are identical to the hormones which your body would naturally produce during spontaneous pregnancy. There is no need to worry about their possible adverse effects on the developing fetus because these hormones are exactly the same as the one produced in all human pregnancies. Unfortunately, the FDA requires that a warning about be included in the package about the use of any hormones during pregnancy. However, this policy does not distinguish between artificial hormones (such as those found in birth control pills) and natural hormones necessary to prepare the uterus for embryo implantation and pregnancy.

[CJ29]

I have not been on this site for some time but thinking of moving forward with DE. My clinic does not test for fragile X I find that strange because I always was tested in past with OE. I heard this test is very $$. My RE does not think I need to test donor because she is proven twins her last cycle. She is from an agency. Thank you

[bubba329]

Vacationqueen-Thank you for the post. Definitely helped! I figured it must be ok since that's the protocol for so many women, but it's frightening to read that warning and not freak a bit.

CJ29-Welcome! I am pretty new at this myself (first any kind of cycle), but as far as I know donor's eggs are coming from such young women they don't feel the need to do any of that testing. How far into this are you?

[kukuko]

CJ29 - As someone who had a young donor have a Fragile X test come back positive, I would recommend it. I pushed for the test and I'm so glad that I did. It did cost about $400 but compared to having an affected child that's nothing. Fragile X is a spectrum disease so even if there are healthy twins at this point, there's no guarantee. I'm not trying to scare you because most likely the donor is fine but knowing she is negative would be worth it to me.

[kimic101]

wish you lots of luck, i started lupron on 11/01/10 and e2 im injections on 11/10/10 im trying ivf with donor egg donor Retrieva should be around 12/01/10 to 12/05/10 the transfer should be around 12/05/10 to 12/09/10 this is also my first ivf cycle and once again i wish you lots of luck and i know how stressful this can be

[bubba329]

Kimic101-Welcome! You're about 2 weeks ahead of me, if all goes well. Wishing you the best of luck. How are the drugs treating you? I start Lupron tomorrow. Keep us posted on your progress. We're following in your footsteps!

[kimic101]

bubba the meds are not so bad just a little emotional, but i was before the meds with all the excitement and fear about ivf and donor egg, lupron is really easy to give yourself but with e2 im injections i was worried to give them myself so i have a friend that helps me, i thought they would hurt before or after the injection but as long as you rub the spot really good afterwards you wont evan remember what side you got the injection, i use the 1 1/2 inch 22 gauge but i do get a little more emotional the night of the e2. i go in tomorrow for us to make sure the meds are working, iam a little worried hopeing everything goes well i dont want the cycle to be canceled this is my first try with ivf and possabley my only one.

[bubba329]

Kimic101-Where do the E2 injections go? Is it the belly like the Lupron. For some reason I'm not too worried about the Lupron shots, it's the PIO that I'm a little apprehensive about. I was a little queasy from the pills at first, but they've been fine. Feeling some cramps the last couple of days like AF is coming, but I have another week of bcp's, so who knows? Are you having your blood and lining checked tomorrow? I go in 12/2 for the check up. Wishing you good luck tomorrow and I hope everything looks great. It's very stressful hoping everything goes as it should, but as we all know, the IVF train kinda takes on its own course. Did you wait too long to try with your eggs? That's my situation. Well, best of luck tomorrow!

Speriamo-Thinking of you and hope you get great news tomorrow. Best of luck that you get the green light!

[speriamo]

VacationQueen - Thanks for the info on the warnings. I read them, too, and freaked out a little. But, I really trust our doctor. He has an 82% success rate with fresh DE, so I decided he wouldn't give me anything that would negatively affect the cycle or the baby. Besides, I ask my nurses just about a million questions, so I wanted to spare them that one! Nice to know the true reason behind the warning.

CJ29 - Our clinic screens for so many diseases - some I'd never heard of. Fragile X is one of them. I agree that the test is between $350 - $500 depending on the lab and is worth it. It's an obscure disease, but it's better to be safe than sorry. And, with the $$$ we're all spending on DE, what's another couple of hundred dollars? I'm dizzy from all the money going out (and not a lot coming in!!). At this point, a few hundred here or there seems like a drop in the bucket!!

Kimic101 - Welcome and I'm glad you joined our thread! Our timing sounds to be about the same. If my cycle proceeds (we're waiting to find out if our donor's cysts have diminished enough to go ahead), we're scheduled for retrieval around 12/2 and transfer around 12/7. Glad to have a cycle buddy!!!

Bubba - I think we're DE twins. So much about our lives and DH's are identical. It's kind of crazy!!! I hope you're right about the donor fading into the background after transfer. DH is so uptight about her. Today I went through all the money we've spend (I put it out and he pays me back). I thought he was going to flip out, but he surprised me and was really calm about how much we've spent. He knew it was coming, but it's tough to swallow all at once!! Don't worry about the Lupron. I think you'll find the shot is pretty easy to do once you get used to it. In the beginning I felt totally bloated, tired and fuzzy in the head when I started. But, I was on 10 units a day and also waiting for AF to start all at the same time. So, it was just uber PMS symptoms. Now, I'm down to 5 units a day with the estrogen patches, so I feel pretty normal (puffy, but normal).

AFM - Spent the weekend getting ready for end of year taxes for my business (UGH!!). Now, I'm facing a big tax payment on top of all the donor expenses and feeling extremely tight financially. When it rains, it pours, and it's all happening at once. Tomorrow we find out if our donor got a green light to go forward with the cycle. Our nurse sounded very optimistic last week when we spoke, so I have hope. They also want me to go in for another lining check in the morning. I'm a slow lining grower and the last time we looked, it was thin, so I'm hoping all the estrogen I'm taking is working it's magic!!! I hope everyone had a great weekend!!!!! So happy to have all you girls to chat with!!!!