IVF and trying to conceive

[Soapsuds86]

I've been trying to conceive for about 3 and half years now and have just had one failed cycle of ivf, which I'm currently recovering from mentally and physically.
I've been told the cause of infertility was pco by the first clinic and then anovulation by the ivf clinic. I really don't understand if there is a connection between diabetes and infertility but my nurse said there are 3 ladies in her clinic going through ivf. Maybe a coincidence, I'm not sure.
I just want to speak to other type 1 diabetics going through this ir been through this as I feel so isolated.

 

[azure]

Sorry your first IVF failed. It's an extremely stressful thing to go through anyway.

I had IVF for my last pregnancy. I think it's largely a matter of chance if it works (mine did). It's a bit like trying normally - even if nothing's wrong ladies still don't get pregnant the first month. There are odds for success, so if yours didn't work the first time, then fingers crossed it'll work soon.

I don't know if there's a connection between diabetes and infertility, but it's possible, I suppose. I on,y know one lady in real life who has also had diabetes and infertility, and her doctor told her hers was not related and was just chance. 1 in 6 couples have trouble conceiving.

There's a lady here who has posted about IVF previously. Maybe you could do a search. I can't remember her name : (

Look after yourself and give yourself time to heal physically and emotionally. X

 

[Soapsuds86]

Thank you. Ah congratulations on your successful ivf. That's great news.
It's just so frustrating when it's all I want more than anything and it just seems to not want to happen for me. Throughout the ivf process I was fine until the egg retrival and I think I got mild ohs as I could not stand up for a week after. I had a 5 day FET and with a hatching zygote so had everything going well but I feel like I've filled myself with false hope and set myself up for a fall. Still early days, was only 3 weeks ago i found out it failed ( day before fathers day!! ). I haven't got an appointment until the end of the month.

I'm thinking of having acupuncture next time to relax me. Just frustrates me that the ivf clinic have no idea how difficult it actually is to keep hba1c that low for that long. 3 and half years is just tough going under such tight control and I daren't ease up atm cos I don't know when I'll start the next cycle. Should imagine I'll have to wait a couple of months or so.

My friends have taken 2 years to conceive and there is nothing wrong with them so that did give me faith that its just taking longer and that I'm just impatient, lol x

 

[Pooja80]

I can understand ur situation , but plz dnt loose hope ... In my case , when science could not do anything , then there is power up" almighty" did a miracle ...
Had been facing infertility for last 7 yrs , did everything IUI, ivf , but nothing happened. first I was diagnosed with one Fallopian tube blocked , then repeat test revealed both Fallopian tubes blocked ... So went for ivf last year , But ivf was not successful in my case , my a1c was 5.9 at that time , did accupunture as well with ivf .... Everything went well until egg reterival , after they things were not at the right place ...
This year in jan I conceived naturally .. And 26 weeks pregnant now .. So dnt loose hope ...doctor was shocked how can I got pregnant with both tubes blocked .. At time of conception my a1c was 6.5.

Just take care of ur sugar level as much as u can , u can also try acupuncture, my hormone level had improved a lot with acupuncture .... I know it's difficult but try not to stress urself ... Sometimes things will happen at their own time ...just keep trying ....

I wish ur next cycle will be a successful .....

 

[azure]

Thank you. Ah congratulations on your successful ivf. That's great news.
It's just so frustrating when it's all I want more than anything and it just seems to not want to happen for me. Throughout the ivf process I was fine until the egg retrival and I think I got mild ohs as I could not stand up for a week after. I had a 5 day FET and with a hatching zygote so had everything going well but I feel like I've filled myself with false hope and set myself up for a fall. Still early days, was only 3 weeks ago i found out it failed ( day before fathers day!! ). I haven't got an appointment until the end of the month.

I'm thinking of having acupuncture next time to relax me. Just frustrates me that the ivf clinic have no idea how difficult it actually is to keep hba1c that low for that long. 3 and half years is just tough going under such tight control and I daren't ease up atm cos I don't know when I'll start the next cycle. Should imagine I'll have to wait a couple of months or so.

My friends have taken 2 years to conceive and there is nothing wrong with them so that did give me faith that its just taking longer and that I'm just impatient, lol x

I didn't have acupuncture, but it's supposed to be very good and I know lots of ladies have it. I did concentrate on relaxing though. In preparation I started meditation for a few minutes twice a day and breathing exercises whenever I got anxious. I really felt this made me a lot calmer overall, and I do think it helped. I don't think its a magic answer, but I think stress can impact negatively on IVF ( and natural conception too).

Before starting IVF I also did a Tai Chi class for some months. I found that SO relaxing and it made me more confident in my body.

 

[Soapsuds86]

Did you do your acupuncture during ivf and at what stage? I've had reflexology while taking hormone tablets and I ovulated a few hours afterwards! I have read lots of conflicting things about reflexology. Not read so much about acupuncture.

My hba1c's have been swinging around 5-6% for the last 3 years. Only my last one crept up to almost 7% before starting ivf. I do feel a lot of guilt to this and wonder had I had it lower things would have been different. I'm still questioning everything at this stage.

What happened after ur egg retrival? If you don't mind me asking. It's after that where my problems began. That's amazing you fell with both fallopian tubes blocked! 7 years wow! You're amazing!

I do need to relax. Stress won't help anything, diabetes included. Just hard to when so down atm. It really is a full time job and wasn't expecting it to be this intense. I don't think I'm ready to go for a second round yet. I want to give it 100% but my head is not ready. xx

 

[Soapsuds86]

I didn't have acupuncture, but it's supposed to be very good and I know lots of ladies have it. I did concentrate on relaxing though. In preparation I started meditation for a few minutes twice a day and breathing exercises whenever I got anxious. I really felt this made me a lot calmer overall, and I do think it helped. I don't think its a magic answer, but I think stress can impact negatively on IVF ( and natural conception too).

Before starting IVF I also did a Tai Chi class for some months. I found that SO relaxing and it made me more confident in my body.

I think meditation is a good idea. I'm quite am anxious person n unsure if diabetes related ( low blood sugar ) or just me. I'm going to try this as I know I need to calm down.
I could do with going running or something. I don't do any forced exercise so a bit can help with stress. I just need to get motivated, hahaha!
I'd never even think to look at something like tai chi. Will have to check it out. x x

 

[Pooja80]

I started acupuncture 2 months before my ivf cycle , I used to go twice a week and once a week during the cycle because it was quite far from my place , so I didn't want to exert myself too much while on medication of ivf..
I also do meditation to relax my self , even in pregnancy it's helpings me a lot ....
If I talk about my ivf ... Egg reterival was good with 14 eggs. My doctor wanted to do the embryo transfer on day 5 at blastocyst stage , but only 3 were fertilized at stage of morula, none of them reached to stage of blastocyst .. Doctor went ahead n transfer the 3 embryo (morula) at day 5 But I did not conceived ... After the failed cycle doctor did a lot of egg quality test but all came back normal ... So he did not have any reason for the failure ...he was pleased with diabetes control as well ...

 

[Soapsuds86]

Did they do the tests on your eggs routinely or is it something he just did? Did u also have to ask for the 3 to be transferred? My clinic told me it will just be the one transferred each time. However i did only have one very strong and then the others stopped growing after 3 days. This worries me as I only get two goes nhs and I've had no frozen so the next go will be it.

I think I had mild ohs as they found fluid on my ovary and they were very swollen. All throughout the actual egg retrival process I felt everything! I felt the needle go in and pierce it. I still get twinges from the left sode every now and then. I was very stressed out during the actual process to the point that I want general anesthetic now for the next one. Was in so much pain.

I'm going to start acupuncture and then get myself into a routine of the meditation. I have an app which talks through breathing etc so gonna give that a go! If nothing else it should help to relax. Hopefully start running too to clear my head. Just really want to be able to tell my success story!

 

[Pooja80]

Egg quality test was not the routine one , doctor wanted to know the reason for the failure , but all came back good .
He gave me the option to transfer 2 or 3 , I chose 3 .... So had none to freeze ...
My egg reterival was not bad at all , I was sore on that day only , next day I had no pain ...
I wish you all the luck for future !

 

[mehhh2015]

Hi there, I just thought to drop you a line, I have a book called The Infertility Cure by Randine Lewis, that is all about acupuncture and infertility and it is a really good practical read, you might find it interesting although is not for diabetics it has loads of very good info.

I am coming back to my IVF journey after years of taking a break from the whole baby thing (and now diabetic type 2 and overwheight) and I definitely plan to complement it with acupuncture, if anything, just because it helps with relaxation.

 

[Soapsuds86]

Ah cool. Will have to check it out.
I've had reflexology and found that relaxing. Checked out the places nearby and £45 per hour sesh for acupuncture. So expensive so won't be having too many goes at it but will give it a try

 

[mehhh2015]

The book has instructions on which points to stimulate and everything, there is acupressure as well, the book is indeed very practical. Have a look, you might find it useful. And yes, reflexology is great to for relaxing too I'm a fan of all things relaxing LOL...

 

[Soapsuds86]

Haha don't blame you. I really need to learn relaxtion which is what I'm starting to do. Can't be a raging hormonal physchopath the whole time
I shall give the book a look!

 

[mehhh2015]

Hi soapsuds86

It seems that nobody with type 2 is or has gone through IVF in the forum, I was hoping to get some support but there don't seem to be many types 1 either.

Do you mind me if I ask you what did the doctors said to you about your blood sugar levels and the treatment, did they tell you to prepare somehow? When you talk about your egg retrieval do you mean that it affected your blood sugar levels?

I know type 1 and type 2 are different issues but I would like to have an idea of what to expect. Was yours a long or a short protocol? Pregnancy definitely won't happen naturally for me due to OH issues so IVF is my only way through but I am a bit concerned about BG getting out of control and about the process itself as it is so taxing emotionally, mentally and physically.

I need to achieve the weight first to be able to have treatment, so I just started to work on that, I was so close to the target weight 3months ago, but Ive been in the middle of a lot of stress and little time and half the weight came back up... and until I don't reach the 29BMI I can't talk about having treatment.

 

[Soapsuds86]

Hey

Yes there is very limited info for diabetics and ivf combined.
Tbh I haven't had any help from diabetic clinic for sugars during ivf treatment. They were happy with my hba1c and left me to get on with ivf. She said she doesn't want to stress me out with the appointments etc. My hba1c has been good for 2 years so I'm guessing she was happy I'd be able to manage it. I'm on the insulin pump which does make life much easier and I'm very insulin sensitive.
However during the treatment my sugars went sky high. I was on 150% basal and my reads were still coming up as 8 or 9. Not the normal 4-6. I do feel some guilt through this as I should have upped it even more to bring it down further, maybe it would have stuck.

Luckily I was on the short protocol. It's taking some time for me. 3 almost 4 years of trying and I've been told I have pco, which I know is very common. However I had my ivf report through yesterday which states I have a blocked fallopeon tube, a heart shaped uterus and my left ovary is sitting much higher than normal. Not sure if due to the medication or if I've just not been told. Still got to wait two weeks for appointment to find out

I will say it is hard work getting hba1c down. It takes so much out if you mentally and physically. I've had diabetic burnout a couple of times and seen a phycharist to help mentally. It's the whole trial and error process of diabetes but I've found now I'm there I'm ok. The hot weather doesn't help atm but again it's trial and error. I haven't even had an hba1c in a while but have an appointment 6th August.

I do find high protein less carbs help a lot and I have less carbs in evening meal to help night time and morning reads.
You will need lots of support. Do u have a good support network around you? x x

 

[Pooja80]

Hi mehhh2015,
I m type 2 for also most last 7 years ...my bmi was 30 , I did a lot of hardwork to loose weight n lost 25 pounds before ivf treatment ...I worked with my endo too before starting the treatment , I was on metformin only , but my endo put me on small dosage of levemir ( long acting ) only at bed time to control my fasting blood sugars ...
At the time of ivf cycle my blood sugars were very control , as I have very good supportive endo team here ... My diabetic nurse called me every 2-4 days to ensure my diabetes is under control n changed the insulin requirement accordingly .. Unfortunately my ivf cycle was not successful .. I got spontaneous pregnancy this year 27 weeks pregnant now ...

You can read my above comments for more detail ..
Let me know if u have more questions

 

[mehhh2015]

Thank you ladies,

I am type 2 since january and I have PCOS and have been insulin resistant and been on metformin for years.

I control the BG's with a very low carb diet and metformin (think Dr. Bersteins or Atkins induction) but whenever I leave the diet my weight creeps back on (I was finishing university and was under a lot of stress for the past 3 months and that's how my weight came back).

However, my BGs had remained stable after losing the initial weight since january. I have had my blood tests done this week and need to wait a couple of weeks to see how good or bad my hba1c has been, however whenever I random measure I am in the 5's or 6's, when I am dieting I can bring it down to the 4's.

I'm dreading IVF but I have to give it a go, my support network is mainly my husband, I will be moving soon so it will mean I will have a new diabetic nurse and people. At the moment I have no other specialist controlling me but it might be a good idea if I ask for and endocrinologist just to keep an eye on everything before embarking on IVF.

To both of you, did you keep a very low carb diet while having IVF? Or, in soupsuds86, did you have a normal diet plus insulin? I'm just wondering if the diet will be enough to keep BG's under control during the process.

Pooja80 how high were your morning BGs? mines are in the 5's

 

[azure]

@mehhh2015 I'm not sure if they'd have the same effect on you, but when I did IVF some of the drugs did push my blood sugar up. That might be something to ask your team about. I'm on insulin and found that I had to put my basal (background) insulin up. I wasn't expecting that so it took a few days to work out what it was.

Good luck with your HbA1C results.

 

[mehhh2015]

Yeah, that's what I fear, that the drugs, as they affect your whole endocrine system, will play havocs with BG's... I don't fancy to be back in the 20's...