Weird to go straight to FET without TTC naturally?

[Anonymous]

I was fortunate to get pregnant from my first IVF cycle 2 years ago and have my wonderful DD as a result. We would like to have another baby soon and have 3 (tested) frozen embryos. We're considering going straight to frozen embryo transfer without actually trying the old fashioned way. Has anyone else taken this approach?

Our diagnosis was "unexplained infertility" so in theory we could get pregnant naturally but who knows. I'm 39, DH is 37. Things I like about FET are that the embryos are already tested, and also we would love to have another girl and our clinic is fine with transferring a girl since the embryos are of equally good quality (yes, I know some people object to selecting).

I'd like to hear from anyone else who made a choice about going straight to FET versus trying on their own for #2 after infertility treatments.

[Anonymous]

My friend at 43 went straight to IVF with frozen eggs without even trying the first time. Still lost her first pregnancy. In your situation, I wouldn't hesitate unless money was a concern.

[Anonymous]

I’m not there yet, but that would be my plan mostly because I’d want the certainty of a tested embryo. So I don’t think it’s crazy at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My friend at 43 went straight to IVF with frozen eggs without even trying the first time. Still lost her first pregnancy. In your situation, I wouldn't hesitate unless money was a concern.

Thanks for the reply. We could use the $5K for other things for sure, but it does seem like a small price for the certainty it offers (of course not certainty that it would successfully implant though).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m not there yet, but that would be my plan mostly because I’d want the certainty of a tested embryo. So I don’t think it’s crazy at all.

Thanks for this, PP.

[Anonymous]

Yes, definitely. Who knows how long it might take the old fashioned way? FET are also not a guarantee, but it could potentially help get you to your end result quicker, along with knowing that you are working with a healthy embryo.

[Anonymous]

Nothing wrong with going straight to FET if you have a previous history with infertility and remaining embryos from a previous cycle. My only consideration would be whether there are any health considerations for mother or baby conceiving naturally versus via an FET (but I don’t think that’s been extensively researched.) otherwise I think it’s actually more ethical to use an remaining embryo versus intentionally conceiving naturally- I personally have some ambivalence about what will happen to my remaining embryos when I’m done having children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nothing wrong with going straight to FET if you have a previous history with infertility and remaining embryos from a previous cycle. My only consideration would be whether there are any health considerations for mother or baby conceiving naturally versus via an FET (but I don’t think that’s been extensively researched.) otherwise I think it’s actually more ethical to use an remaining embryo versus intentionally conceiving naturally- I personally have some ambivalence about what will happen to my remaining embryos when I’m done having children.

OP here, thank you for this perspective. I do have some concern of what will happen to the remaining embryos, if there are any, once we are done. DH and I call them "the maybe babies."

I called my fertility clinic today and got on the schedule for an FET for next month. Fingers crossed.

[Anonymous]

Yeah I know a few folks struggling with what to do with their leftover embryos. I’d transfer them to possibly avoid that issue. Unless you could see yourself wanting a third, then definitely save those healthy young embryos if possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nothing wrong with going straight to FET if you have a previous history with infertility and remaining embryos from a previous cycle. My only consideration would be whether there are any health considerations for mother or baby conceiving naturally versus via an FET (but I don’t think that’s been extensively researched.) otherwise I think it’s actually more ethical to use an remaining embryo versus intentionally conceiving naturally- I personally have some ambivalence about what will happen to my remaining embryos when I’m done having children.

OP here, thank you for this perspective. I do have some concern of what will happen to the remaining embryos, if there are any, once we are done. DH and I call them "the maybe babies."

I called my fertility clinic today and got on the schedule for an FET for next month. Fingers crossed.

Best of luck, op!

[Anonymous]

Absolutely. If I done the hard work of going through the process of creating the embryos, which are several years younger than you and your husband currently are. Why bother screwing around with TTC when you don’t have a lot of time on your hands? Good luck with your transfer(s)!

[Anonymous]

We did this (just very briefly tried TTC). I didn't want to go back to the OPKs and all that stress. FET frankly seemed more straightforward and the likelihood of success so much higher.

[Anonymous]

If you're not on a schedule you could try for 3-6 months. If you're going to get pregnant naturally it would probably be within those 3-6 months. Sometimes a IVF pregnancy does seem to fix people's problem (maybe silent endometriosis).

To answer your question, I don't think it's weird because I would want closure on the status of the embryos. I have 6 in a freezer myself and I want them to get a "home" either with me or someone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nothing wrong with going straight to FET if you have a previous history with infertility and remaining embryos from a previous cycle. My only consideration would be whether there are any health considerations for mother or baby conceiving naturally versus via an FET (but I don’t think that’s been extensively researched.) otherwise I think it’s actually more ethical to use an remaining embryo versus intentionally conceiving naturally- I personally have some ambivalence about what will happen to my remaining embryos when I’m done having children.

have to weigh the older mom issue against IVF conception

probably a wash

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was fortunate to get pregnant from my first IVF cycle 2 years ago and have my wonderful DD as a result. We would like to have another baby soon and have 3 (tested) frozen embryos. We're considering going straight to frozen embryo transfer without actually trying the old fashioned way. Has anyone else taken this approach?

Our diagnosis was "unexplained infertility" so in theory we could get pregnant naturally but who knows. I'm 39, DH is 37. Things I like about FET are that the embryos are already tested, and also we would love to have another girl and our clinic is fine with transferring a girl since the embryos are of equally good quality (yes, I know some people object to selecting).

I'd like to hear from anyone else who made a choice about going straight to FET versus trying on their own for #2 after infertility treatments.

We didn't try the natural way at 41 (for our first IVF) and not at 45 for our second. Like, why would you? Why bother?