IVF week by week

[Anonymous]

Hi all...
We've had several failed attempts at IUI and want to move on to IVF in the new year. Can anyone share what the week by week process is? I've read that it takes 8 weeks from start to finish. I have some travel for work in the new year and trying to figure out how to juggle this all.

[Anonymous]

My experience:
Baseline appointment on day 3 of cycle. Started 3 weeks of birth control that day.
At end of 3 weeks of BC, went back for another appointment for bloodwork/ultrasound, then started stims.
10 days of stims (to include daily ultrasound/bloodwork), then trigger shot the next day, then retrieval the next day.

If you are doing a fresh transfer, embryo will be transferred back somewhere between day 3 and day 6, depending on embryo growth and clinic protocols (I believe SG no longer does day 3 transfers).

I did a frozen transfer, so, once the retrieval was over, we waited until I got my period (1 week after retrieval), then started BC for three weeks, followed by ultrasound/bloodwork, followed by 12 or so days of estrogen, then another appointment for bloodwork, then 5 days of estrogen/progesterone, then the transfer. Beta was 2 weeks after transfer. For a frame of reference, I started stims in early March, and my transfer was mid-May.

I also traveled quite a bit for work at that point, and I found it easier to plan travel during the time period that I was on BC. No appointments to juggle during that time.

[Anonymous]

Not OP but that was very helpful PP. I'm in the same boat as the OP, about to do our third and final IUI and then move to IVF.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks very much. This was really helpful and quite the reality check on how time consuming this process is going to be.

[Anonymous]

I did IVF over a year ago so I don't quite remember a detailed week to week schedule but I do remember the many last minute appointments in the week leading up to the retrevial. Like daily appointments to check when things were ready. I almost had to skip a good friend's wedding. Cause my doctor was insisting on a Sunday appointment. I begged her to let me do it Monday and she reluctantly agreed. It was many more appointments than IUI for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I did IVF over a year ago so I don't quite remember a detailed week to week schedule but I do remember the many last minute appointments in the week leading up to the retrevial. Like daily appointments to check when things were ready. I almost had to skip a good friend's wedding. Cause my doctor was insisting on a Sunday appointment. I begged her to let me do it Monday and she reluctantly agreed. It was many more appointments than IUI for me.

NP here and OP, if you have something important like this potentially coming up during your IVF cycle, let your nurse know right off the bat. In some cases they can work with you on timing if need be in hopes of avoiding conflicts (e.g. put you on a longer or shorter course of BCPs). I found this out when I didn't want to miss a full cycle but had an important family event I was worried would fall during a crucial point and my nurse said no problem, they'd adjust the protocol to ensure I could be away that weekend.