Anonymous wrote:To the PP who wrote: "We took our time and found the right RE and paid OOP"

Who was the "right RE" and how was your protocol different?

that was me. I googled and searched forums for my diagnosis and got a feel for the protocols people were on. I then went to meet new RE's and asked them lots of questions. The one we went with was very open to estrogen priming and mid dose stims - something i had read good things about. She was also ok with doing 3 day transfers which some believe with DOR have better outcomes (this is controversial). My first RE was old school and would not even entertain the thought that I could possibly have any input in my protocol and honestly I didn't see him ever during monitoring. The RE we went with for our second IVF was with a smaller boutique type clinic and we saw her every appointment and for retrieval. She was also very responsive on email and was open to looking into immune issues as well.
What I also liked about her was that she was open to "waiting for a good month". I went in the day after ovation four months in a row for an AFC count - since it varies month to month and mine are usually low. She waiting until I had a resting AFC of 6 (which for me is great - it's usually 2-3), and that's the cycle we started estrogen priming and then stims. I liked that we weren't in a rush - she really wanted the best result and wasn't just cycling for cycling's sake.

To the PP who wrote: "We took our time and found the right RE and paid OOP"

Who was the "right RE" and how was your protocol different?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, if you are DOR than you probably do not have to worry about being distended and bloated before retrieval because you have 25 follicles.

I was DOR, retrieved 5, 3 fertilized, one transferred, one frozen. It is hopefully working, I am 10 weeks.

HI OP - I am also DOR. Please make sure your one shot is with an RE that specializes in DOR. Do not waste this attempt. I would look into Dr. Davis at Cornell, SIRM in NYC or CCRM in Colorado. I went with SIRM in NYC and even with a .4 AMH was able to get 8 embryos after fertilization. I am currently 18 weeks with a singleton after a 3 day transfer of 2.
I never did IUI because one of my tubes is blocked and the RE's didn't see the worth in it. I did take tons of supplements and track my cycles and try everything naturally for 3 years with no luck - i consider one IVF round a year's worth of trying naturally. Even though we transferred two none of the others made it to blast on day 5. So essentially we found the good one out of the batch. In reality that could have been one month out of 8 trying on our own we actually had a shot.
Look into shared risk packages - the two cycle plan at SIRM was what we signed up for. good luck!

OP here. Thanks for sharing your story. But here's what I don't understand--you said you were trying naturally for 3 years, how is it that your first IVF worked when 3 years of trying and that's like 36 eggs that you went through, didn't? You're saying that you found a good egg with IVF, but how come you (and I) can't seem to get that "good egg" with years of trying naturally?

I've been trying for a year and a half naturally and haven't found my "good egg" yet. Why would I think that one IVF would produce the good egg? This is what doesn't make sense to me about IVF when you've been trying for over a year or more and cannot get pregnant on your own.

this is just my opinion but it's not just getting the good egg - it's also making sure that egg is fertilized and in the best situation to implant. We learned so much from my IVF - out of 12 retrieved (8 fertilized) 11 were from my left ovary - which is also the side that has the blocked tube. So maybe once a year I ovulate on my right side - aka the only side that could get me pregnant - but 9 times out of ten the egg on the right wasn't going to be ok. DOR is not just a lack of eggs, it usually means a decrease in quality because the best eggs are ovulated first (like when we are teens) and the ones left are mostly sub par. It's not just getting the good egg, it's also having the perfect timing and getting it fertilized by the right sperm and then getting it into the uterus to implant - exactly why even perfectly fertile couples in their 20's still have only a 25-30% chance each month.
IVF is very much diagnostic and honestly once we were doing the shots we were in it. Yes the monitoring is stressful and annoying but retrieval was a breeze. And you have honestly no risk of OHSS being DOR.

It's up to you obviously but I would meet with a few more RE's that specialize in DOR and can give you an honest opinion of what to expect. I did have an IVF cycle before my successful one but it was a disaster - I went to the big clinic with all the reviews and got treated like a number. I was told not to expect more than 2 or 3 follicles yet I ovulated thru my meds and we lost all of our insurance allotment. That got me back on the natural supplement train and I was put off trying IVF again for about a year. It took a few other friends getting pregnant (and the sorrow and jealously that goes with that) to honestly try again. We took our time and found the right RE and paid OOP. Stressful - of course. But now almost halfway thru totally worth it. (I still worry every day that something is going to go wrong, but that's IF PTSD).

OP, it sounds like you need someone to say this, and so I say it with full support, sincerity, and hope that you find peace:


It is completely okay to decide that you do not want to do IVF.


Good luck to you in your journey.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you all had your wisdom teeth removed?
If that was an 8, IVF retrieval is a 3. Seriously.

OP here. I had my wisdom teeth removed in my late 20s and insisted on being awake with just local anesthesia. It was totally fine. It's the anesthesia that terrifies me.

I say this in the gentlest, non-judgy and most positive way: maybe find a specialist to talk to about this, like a therapist, or join meditation group?

Anonymous wrote:Have you all had your wisdom teeth removed?
If that was an 8, IVF retrieval is a 3. Seriously.

OP here. I had my wisdom teeth removed in my late 20s and insisted on being awake with just local anesthesia. It was totally fine. It's the anesthesia that terrifies me.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, if you are DOR than you probably do not have to worry about being distended and bloated before retrieval because you have 25 follicles.

I was DOR, retrieved 5, 3 fertilized, one transferred, one frozen. It is hopefully working, I am 10 weeks.

HI OP - I am also DOR. Please make sure your one shot is with an RE that specializes in DOR. Do not waste this attempt. I would look into Dr. Davis at Cornell, SIRM in NYC or CCRM in Colorado. I went with SIRM in NYC and even with a .4 AMH was able to get 8 embryos after fertilization. I am currently 18 weeks with a singleton after a 3 day transfer of 2.
I never did IUI because one of my tubes is blocked and the RE's didn't see the worth in it. I did take tons of supplements and track my cycles and try everything naturally for 3 years with no luck - i consider one IVF round a year's worth of trying naturally. Even though we transferred two none of the others made it to blast on day 5. So essentially we found the good one out of the batch. In reality that could have been one month out of 8 trying on our own we actually had a shot.
Look into shared risk packages - the two cycle plan at SIRM was what we signed up for. good luck!

OP here. Thanks for sharing your story. But here's what I don't understand--you said you were trying naturally for 3 years, how is it that your first IVF worked when 3 years of trying and that's like 36 eggs that you went through, didn't? You're saying that you found a good egg with IVF, but how come you (and I) can't seem to get that "good egg" with years of trying naturally?

I've been trying for a year and a half naturally and haven't found my "good egg" yet. Why would I think that one IVF would produce the good egg? This is what doesn't make sense to me about IVF when you've been trying for over a year or more and cannot get pregnant on your own.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

The problem is that I have decreased ovarian reserve, and several RE's have told me that I will statistically only end up with one embryo to transfer (which may or may not be chromosomally normal) and none to freeze. I am not willing to do IVF more than once. So this makes the decision of whether or not to do IVF more difficult.

I'm also DOR, and more like POV. You should look into NC IVF.

NC IVF is not recommended for DOR. It's not a cookie cutter catch all.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

The problem is that I have decreased ovarian reserve, and several RE's have told me that I will statistically only end up with one embryo to transfer (which may or may not be chromosomally normal) and none to freeze. I am not willing to do IVF more than once. So this makes the decision of whether or not to do IVF more difficult.

I'm also DOR, and more like POV. You should look into NC IVF.

I did NC IVF, and I wasn't even sedated for the retrieval. I was also really worried about it. It was literally like getting your ear pierced. Maybe less pressure. Worst part was getting the iv out in.
Besides retrieval, I found the process to be the same as in medicated IUI.

Anonymous wrote:OP, if you are DOR than you probably do not have to worry about being distended and bloated before retrieval because you have 25 follicles.

I was DOR, retrieved 5, 3 fertilized, one transferred, one frozen. It is hopefully working, I am 10 weeks.

HI OP - I am also DOR. Please make sure your one shot is with an RE that specializes in DOR. Do not waste this attempt. I would look into Dr. Davis at Cornell, SIRM in NYC or CCRM in Colorado. I went with SIRM in NYC and even with a .4 AMH was able to get 8 embryos after fertilization. I am currently 18 weeks with a singleton after a 3 day transfer of 2.
I never did IUI because one of my tubes is blocked and the RE's didn't see the worth in it. I did take tons of supplements and track my cycles and try everything naturally for 3 years with no luck - i consider one IVF round a year's worth of trying naturally. Even though we transferred two none of the others made it to blast on day 5. So essentially we found the good one out of the batch. In reality that could have been one month out of 8 trying on our own we actually had a shot.
Look into shared risk packages - the two cycle plan at SIRM was what we signed up for. good luck!

Have you all had your wisdom teeth removed?
If that was an 8, IVF retrieval is a 3. Seriously.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster here - I'm also torn about IVF because I'm terrified of the anesthesia like OP. Anyone have this big fear ahead of time and get through it? I know lots of people said it was NBD and I'd love to hear some stories of people saying its NBD who were scared beforehand.

That part was no big deal. They give you an iv and the next thing you know you're back in the room.

I didn't even transfer rooms. Basically a dental chair that they shifted once I was asleep. Its not general anesthesia, just twilight. You will be awake in 30 mins and likely won't even feel groggy. My clinic requested I take the next day off (and my clinic was a five hour trip, one way) so I was off fir two days, but didn't need any time off.

OP, if you are DOR than you probably do not have to worry about being distended and bloated before retrieval because you have 25 follicles.

I was DOR, retrieved 5, 3 fertilized, one transferred, one frozen. It is hopefully working, I am 10 weeks.

OP here. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

The problem is that I have decreased ovarian reserve, and several RE's have told me that I will statistically only end up with one embryo to transfer (which may or may not be chromosomally normal) and none to freeze. I am not willing to do IVF more than once. So this makes the decision of whether or not to do IVF more difficult.