Testimonial: My first IVF: Take 2

My next day 1 comes in mid-November. On the bright side, I started my period of unemployment, so no more stress due to my requests for time off.

The first ultrasound... everything is beautiful!! We can start the ovarian stimulation cycle, finally all hopes are allowed! The first IVF, the one where you have the impression that you will soon be caressing your big belly!

I remembered the lung problems caused by taking hormones during my inseminations. I am not taking chances, after validation with the doctors, I start taking preventive antibiotics simultaneously with my ovarian stimulation.

You start with a small dose of the hormone. Sometimes the body reacts too strongly to ovarian stimulation, which can lead to over-stimulation. This causes water retention in the ovaries and... lungs. In my case, we don't want that!

However, my follicular response is not optimal. For optimal IVF, we would like to puncture a minimum of 10 follicles. In my case, only 6 have developed. On day 15 of my cycle, the follicles are still harvested. It's THE stressful moment in IVF. I had my follow-up at the clinic in my region, but for the puncture, I had to travel to Ste-Justine, 1 hour 45 minutes from home. We have to be on an empty stomach (so as not to vomit in the face of the gynecologist because of the painkillers), we are given a good dose of painkillers, and once in the operating room, we are given a few good injections directly into the cervix to freeze it. Then, the doctor punches two holes between the cervix and each of the ovaries and sucks out all the follicles he sees.

Well, more fear than harm this time, it wasn't too painful, and darling was there to take care of me. I stay in bed for about ten minutes after the procedure and I am invited to go and have a little pee, to stretch my legs and to make sure that everything is fine on this side. Yes, really everything is fine, I don't have any pain at all! More fear than harm, I really waited 3 years for fear of that?!

The embryologist calls us the next day to give us news. In the end, 7 mature eggs were punctured, 6 were fertilized by microinjection of my boyfriend's sperm. Really these are great results! Then, we wait for day #3 to find out if we go back to St-Justine for an embryo transfer, or if we leave them in extended culture.

Day #3, crazy as hell, I'm answering the phone! Bad news, only 2 embryos developed while the other 4 had poor cellular development, called “fragmentary”. In addition, the 2 embryos that have developed are not of super good quality, they prefer to let them develop until day #5. Well, I'm going to bed again, my boyfriend is going to work...

Day 5, there is still hope! I answer the phone, crazy as hell, again, maybe this is the time when we will transfer my little baby inside my belly! Bad news, the 2 embryos did not develop as desired, one will be kept in prolonged culture, the other has also fragmented. It is certain that there will be no transfer, but if coconut is nice tomorrow, we will freeze it.

Day #6, I have no hope. As a matter of fact, the embryologist called to tell me that coco did not continue its development.

Good news, or let's say, “moderately good” news rather, this cycle will not be counted among my 3 free trials, because there must be a transfer for it to count.

I wake up, determined to make this day a good one, I open my computer and I read that the same morning the government introduced Bill 20, which will cut the free IVF program. It's definitely a shitty day!

But I have to hurry up, to get at least one more try before the cut.

I call the fertility clinic, and they tell me that I need to have a rest cycle before my next IVF. Another 35 days to wait.

A really shitty day.

And it's (again) waiting until my IVF #2...

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