Successful ICI?
bignight4
Posts: 38
I have been searching for successful ICI stories on this site, and have not come up with a lot (there have been a few). I am in my first TWW and hoping for some success stories and good vibes! So tell me success stories on ICI only!
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Since this didn't get a response, I will answer my own question haha
! I was able to get pregnant on my 2nd cycle of frozen ICI using a CCB donor. There are not a ton of ICI stories out there, so thought I would share some tips. I am not a doctor or medical professional, so this is only anecdotal!
Some tips:
Happy to answer any questions if there are any. Obviously I am just one data point, but I wanted to share in case there are women out there that are thinking about ICI!
Congratulations! Thank you so much for sharing! I’ll be trying my second ICI in two weeks. You’ve provided me hopes for trying ICI one more time before moving onto IUI.
@Dee28 of course! It’s easy to get down but sometimes it just takes a few tries. I had just contacted a clinic before doing my 2nd ICI and felt no symptoms and was pretty sure I wasn’t pregnant. But very much am haha!!
Could you explain how you use the TENS machine on your lower ab? Like placement of the pads? Thank you!
@Dee28 kind of hard to explain, but I put two pads on the underwear line with the bottoms angled to the inside of my legs.
That’s a pretty good explanation already lol. I’ll google some more to see what I can find. Thank you!
Congratulations to you @bignight4 ! When you did your first ICI did you do it in office? Was it easy to do at home. Would you do it that way again? I plan to have my 1st one in October. Trying to decide if I can just do it myself or if going to the doctor actually makes the difference. I also notice that you said you injected sperm 2 twice during this cycle do you think that is what made a difference. Did you try clear blue or any other ovulation test before buying Mira? It is cool that it actually show you the levels. Sorry for asking so many questions but I just want to give myself the best chance possible
What is a good LH level in order to conceive?
@Futuremom84 I did not do ICI in an office. I believe most fertility clinics will probably push you towards IUI in an office because it technically has better success rates (but there is just not a lot of data out there for ICI). I wanted to try in home because it’s much less expensive, more intimate, etc. Keep in mind I am under 30, healthy and no known fertility issues. Usually your gyno can do some prior tests if you want to get checked out before. I used the cheap pregmate OPK strips I got off Amazon. I think it’s important to use ones that have lines, not just smiley faces. I liked Mira because it gave me numbers back where sometimes on OPKs I would have positives for a few days. I don’t think there’s a magic LH number but my peaks were usually between 65-100.
Congrats!! This gives me so much hope. Me and my fiancé have done 3 IUIs at a fertility clinic and no luck. My fiancé has been wanting to try ICI at home but I just didn't think it would work, but you and I are in the same category (under 30 with no known fertility issues). I have had the HSG exam and other test done and checked out perfect. We were gonna give IUI one more shot before trying IVF, I just really hate to be $20k in the hole. Hopefully we can try ICI next month! Thank you for the tips! Keep us updating
@Paige94 good luck! I have heard of people who have done IUI and even IVFs, and then got pregnant just doing ICI, so ya never know! I would really recommend Mira, it helped me understand my cycle so much better. I don't have PCOS or anything, but my cycle is a little bit irregular (4 days give or take). The month I got pregnant, I ovulated 3 days earlier than I thought based on my Mira, and was able to overnight the sperm from CCB. I am 10 weeks pregnant today, and baby is measuring perfect on ultrasound!
@Paige94 checking in here since it has been over a month - any luck?! sending you baby luck dust!
@bignight4 so you inseminated 12&36 after surge, surge means when the test line is darker than control line right?
@Aqua123 not exactly sure what it would look like on an OPK test. I used a Mira analyzer device, so I could actually measure the amount of LH I was at. My peaks were typically between 60-100miU/ml for LH. I tracked my cycle for a few months beforehand, so I knew if I got a test in the morning that was starting to surge in LH, typically would be between 10-30miU/ml, I knew I was likely ovulating within the next day or so, so I would inseminate at night. With OPKs, I found that I would test positive (test line darker than control line) for 3-4 days sometimes. It depends on your body. I would say, when you can tell the test line is really starting to darken, and you know you will ovulate soon, to inseminate 10-12 hours after that. It is best to have the sperm already inside your system when the egg drops. Better to be a little early rather than late.
@bignight4 Ah I see, I also have Mira as well, but I don’t use it as often bc it can get expensive and I get confused. Like for example yesterdag afternoon Mira shows my LH level is like 62, and also high around 6pm too (I also use the cheapie and it’s super dark the whole day and today afternoon if Mira shows my LH dropped to 19, does that mean my egg already dropped?
@Aqua123 That is a positive peak most likely then! Usually your egg drops around 10-12 hours after LH peak.
@Aqua123 this article is helpful: https://helloclue.com/articles/cycle-a-z/ovulation-101-what-is-it-how-does-it-work
@bignight4 so if I had the vials with me, I would have inseminated last night and tonight?
@Aqua123 yes that’s what I did at least!
@bignight4 Thank you so much!
@bignight4 and you bought ICI vials right? Can I buy IUI and do at home? Will that work?
@Aqua123 sorry for the delayed reply! There are other posts on this site about using IUI vials for ICI. I believe you can, but IUI vials are already washed, and do not contain seminal fluid like ICI vials, so it is harder for the sperm to swim. I would use ICI vials if possible. I did that, but again, I am only one data point
I was finally successful on my 4th attempt of using ICI vials. I’m under 35yo, normal BMI, with no significant health issues, and have started taking prenatal supplements for slightly over a year when finally conceived. I had used a total of 6 vials (2 vials each for the first 2 tries, 1 vial each for last 2 tries). I used both the regular OPK strips and the Premom Quantitative strips, as I felt using both can pinpoint my LH surge more precisely. I was extremely stressful during the first 2 tries due to the costs of 2 vials per try. I had to find ways to calm myself and change my mindset. During the successful attempt, i inseminated 12 hours after my LH surge. I used Pre-Seed and made sure that I was aroused by my partner (I think this is the most important part, as I was by myself during my previous 3 attempts because my partner was out of town). After the little swimmers were in, I kept my hips elevated for about 30min then went to sleep, no bathroom trip and no softdisc.
Hope this is helpful and give those who are trying a bit of encouragement. ICI at home can work, just it may take several tries. Baby dusts to all future mama!
@Dee28 wow congratulations!! And thanks for sharing your tips. Just a couple questions.. did you thaw the vial via water bath like bignight lady did or leave it in room temperature for 20-30 mins? Also what does premom quantitative strip do?
@Dee28 congratulations, that is awesome!! Sorry to hear it took you more tries than you were hoping for, but it worked woohoo!! I think it’s very normal to take a few cycles (just like how sometimes for “normal” p in v sex, it could potentially take a few months!). I am 32.5 weeks now, can’t believe it will only be a few weeks until I am holding baby!
@Aqua123 thank u! I thawed the vial in room temp (I think it was high 60s to low 70s back in Feb in SoCal) for about 20-25min, then put it under my armpit for about 5min (YouTuber Mama Bethie’s method). The Premom Quantitive strips give u an approximate numerical number for your LH by comparing the darkness of the line to a reference chart. I bought these instead of the MIRA analyzer as they are much cheaper and they worked for me (only started using them during my 3rd and 4th/successful tries); however I do believe the MIRA analyzer is much more accurate than the quantitative strips.
@bignight4 thank u! And you are almost there! Excited for you & make sure to catch up some zzz while you can now☺️. Wishing you a safe and fast delivery! Even though it took more vials than I had planned, I’m just grateful that ICI worked for me after all. 😊
@Dee28 thanks! I looked up mama beth on YouTube, I don’t see it. Did you take any other supplements besides prenatal?
@Aqua123 sorry, the correct channel name is Mama Bethie. She took down all the videos already due to privacy concerns for her children, but you can go to the Community tab in the channel, her viewers have left comments to help those who have missed the videos/info.
I started with Vitex and raspberry leaf tea. After the 2 failed cycles in the span of 4mo, I just stopped and take it easy. I had blood work which indicated my Vitamin D value to be in the lower end of the normal range. I also read online that Vit E might help with conception, so during the last two cycles I added both D & E in addition to the prenatal. But I didn’t take the D & E everyday, more like 3 to 4 times per week only because there are already D & E in the prenatal.
Congratulations @bignight4 , so happy to read success your story and thank you for the tips. I will be on my very fist cycle this month using ICI. Did you do anything different on your second cycle that you didn't do on your first cycle?
@bloominglotus thank you! Only major difference was that I used 2 vials the 2nd round. I inseminated on a Wednesday night, and then did so again the next night before bed.