New with questions

appleboom

Hello! I'm glad to have found these boards.
I am just getting started in the process. Have been looking at donors, have an appt with ob/gyn in two weeks.
How long between your first doctor appt. and when you tried your first IUI cycle?
Did you start taking pre-natal vitamins before even trying?
Now that I have made this decision, I am anxious to get started - although I do know there will be a lot of waiting/hoping in my future.
Any tips would be greatly appreciated - Thank you and best wishes.

alivin

Hi Apple,
Welcome to the board. This is a wonderful site with a wealth of knowledgeable ladies. Your Dr. will probably suggest that you begin keeping track of your periods and when you ovulate (which is usually 14 days after day 1 of your period) You would start tracking with an ovulation kit, which are sold in Target, walmart, cvs down the same aisle as pregnancy kits. I love the digital clearblue easy kits.
Make a list of questions to bring to your dr.
I started taking prenatals in Feb and will haev my first IUI in June. It doesnt hurt to start now.

Good luck!!
Have you picked a donor yet??
And remember to ask lots of questions on here, thats what we are all here for!!

appleboom

Hi Alivin,

I have picked a donor...I think!

Are the ovulation tests or the fertility monitor better? I see clearblue easy makes both.

Thanks : )

MistyandCarla

appleboom...Welcome to the boards. As I did, I'm sure you will spend lots of time on these boards reading over old posts...I have to say that reading other stories is how I gained most of my knowledge.

You need to start a prenatal vitamin and folic acid right now! Don't wait any longer...get these in your system. At this point, I would also cut out all caffeine and alcohol. You want to prepare your body for carrying a child.

You may want to search this site and the internet on the benefits of taking a baby aspirin, Mucinex and eating raspberries. They are all supposed to aid in conception. I did all of these and got a BFP on my first IUI. Call it coincidence if you want, but hey...something worked! :)

I saw my OB one month, was referred to my RE and had an appointment within a couple weeks. My RE made me have one cycle as a trial run to insure that I ovulated and then the next month we did the IUI. I also used the Digital Clear Blue Easy OPK's and I have to agree that they are well worth their money! They take out all of the guessing. I would suggest that on the month that you are doing your IUI, that you test more than once a day to insure that you don't miss your window of opportunity. Do a search under my name and you'll find many posts on how I tested my ovulation. Just so you know...I tested positive at noon on a Friday and was inseminated at 9am on Saturday...less than 24 hours later.

I am now 21 weeks along and getting more and more excited to hold this precious baby in my arms!

Good luck and KUP!

Oh, sorry about the acronyms...I know how it is when you are new to these boards...here's a key...

RE = Reproductive Endocrinologist
OPK = Ovulation Predication Kit
KUP = Keep us posted
BFP = Big Fat Positive

appleboom

MistyandCarla,

Thanks for all the great advice! I am reading a lot of old posts! It's so helpful to read about different ladies' experiences.

I need to pick up some prenatal vitamins - are the brands all pretty much the same?

Congrats on your success! That is so exciting!

MistyandCarla

Yes, any will do...and don't forget the folic acid. It's very important too.

KUP!

Mom4Kiddos

Appleboom, I am currently pregnant and taking Women's One A Day prenatal, as they come with a multivitamin and am Omega 3 capsule. You want to make sure that the folic acid content is at least 400 micrograms, but during pregnancy would will need 600-800 micrograms. I was taking Women's One A Day regular vitamins until I got pregnant, so I switched for the higher folic acid content, plus some other subtle differences.

Green tea is supposed to aid in conception, as well as berries (because of antioxidants). I would definitely consult your doctor before using baby aspirin or Mucinex, not because they aren't safe, but just because you want to take what's best for your individual treatment plan. I also highly recommend acupuncture!

As far as when I started trying after my first doctor's appointment, it was probably 1-2 months. Certain tests need to be done and they have to be done at particular times in your cycle. Plus, if your insurance pays for anything, approval requests will have to be submitted.

I see that you are seeing an OB. I would HIGHLY suggest seeing an RE instead. This is a time consuming and expensive process, and you want to make sure that your doctor tests for EVERYTHING and treats you as aggressively as possible to achieve a healthy, singleton pregnancy. Good luck!!!

karenman

I just wrote a book to someone else that was new, so will copy and paste her for anyone else:
--------------

Well - I guess everyone is different. My "friend" amanda who is 23 got
pregnant her first time at home. She and I each bought 6 vials and got the free one year
storage. We're both using the same donor and met on the ccb website and she lives only
an hour from me.

I, however, am 39. I used all 6 of my vials over 6 months and so now am buying some of
hers.

Make sure you buy ICI vials not IUI vials if you want to do them at home. Also,
depending on your age you can check with your insurance company to see what they require.
I am about to submit all of my paperwork to my insurance to prove that I've been trying
for 6 months (younger women have to prove 12 months). Now the insurance will cover 3
IUI's at the doctor's office. The doctor I've been seeing is a fertility specialist
(endocrinologist)- call your insurance co and ask if they have a fertility dept and find
out what fertility specialists are in your network.

Before you start any of this - you might want to see if your insurance covers any other
procedures. Mine covered 80% of an HSG (I think that's what it was called) where they
put dye into your uterus and fallopian tubes. It shows any blockages (and sometimes
clears them away!). I also got two ultrasounds and several blood tests (hormone levels,
diseases, etc). One procedure checked the thickness of the uterine lining. I wanted to
make sure I COULD get pregnant before I started pouring all of this money into sperm.
Amanda actually had a fibroid or something she needed removed the month before she
started. It's a good thing she got the tests done ahead of time!

Anyway I am now after 6 unsuccessful months about to start my IUI's at the doctor's
office. I'll be taking shots to help me release more eggs and they'll do ultrasounds to
see how many there are and then they'll inject the sperm through my cervix up into the
uterus. I think it's about $3000 each time.

One thing that SUCKS is that my fertility doctor told me that the at home ICI's have only
a 3% chance of working each month. These IUI's have a 14% chance. In vitro ($15,000)
has a 50% chance. That and the fact that I have a 1 in 3 chance of miscarriage at my age
are not very good odds. But I'm trying to remain hopeful....I walked out of her office
crying the first time, but am getting less anxious as the days go on. The hardest part
for me was the beginning when I decided I wanted to do this and all of the prep trying to
find the right donor was a pain.

I can say that there are tons of girls on the website that I've talked to that were able
to get pregnant so that is good! And Amanda got pregnant her first time (and she
ovulated on day 28 which was insanely late). Oh ya, that is another thing we both have -
those little monitors that test your urine every day. We both have the clear blue easy
fertility monitor. I got mine used on craigslist!!!

Oh - my insurance made me buy an insemination kit - you might want to see if yours
requires.

Anyway I have to run. GOOD LUCK!!!!

Karen

karenman

Here's an email I wrote on the site when I was just starting:

Attempting home or self insemination? Me too!! I looked around a lot on the net and am now writing up my own experiences in hopes of helping someone else out. I haven’t tried this yet, but did put a lot of thought into it. I’ve got an engineering and biology background so have some experiences. I’ll know in two weeks how well it goes….

Syringe choices - If you’re lucky and have a partner to help you out and want to use a speculum, I recommend buying either of the insemination kits at this site: http://shopsite.nwcryobank.com/page3.html These are designed for fresh specimens. I don’t know if you called CCB yet or not, but they told me our ICI premium specimens (the ones we have to get) are less than 1cc. These kits are good in that we know that the catheter they supply can draw up the sample. The tip of a syringe won’t fit down into that tiny vial. I was struggling with how to get the sample up! Whatever you do, don’t pull the plunger out of the back of the syringe and dump the sample down in there. No matter how careful you are, and even if you put the cap on, you are guaranteed to lose some of the sample when you try to put the plunger back in. Practice with water and you’ll see what I mean. I, personally, don’t have a partner and am therefore going with a 30cc syringe. I haven’t seen the 5cc syringes that come with the kit yet, but I’m guessing based on my past experience that they’re only 2-3 inches long. My thought is that I want to get the sample as close as possible to the cervix because the vagina has been known to kill off the little guys. I think 5” is a good length. A 30cc Becton Dickinson syringe is about 5” long. I’m lucky in that I have a few at work to snag. I did find some syringes and needles in a catalog at work but am not sure if they sell to consumers, nor am I sure how long they are. I also read that syringes are available in drug stores and I’ve seen some in pet/vet supply catalogs. If I had to buy them I’d have bought these: www.mcmaster.com 7510A655 and 6710A24. I don’t know how thin of a needle we can use without it clogging or damaging the cells so was thinking the 17 gauge was probably the best choice. Anyway the needle is only to help draw the sample out of the vial – I doubt you’d want to attempt to use it inside of you.

I guess I’ll quickly go over some safety (I’m thinking in my head of what I have to do in a couple of weeks when I do this). The vials are arriving in liquid nitrogen. Be sure to wear safety glasses when opening the dewar and don’t touch the vial with your fingers or you’ll be sure to get frostbite (or maybe get it stuck to you –ow!). Put on some ski gloves. I used to have to wear a face shield when handling at a previous job – be careful!

Thawing – get a few cups of water ready. I read somewhere to thaw slowly. Supposedly these are coming with thawing instructions. My doctor said she thaws in cool water first, which is what I read on another site. Don’t overheat them!! I’d get a few cups of 97-98F water ready (buy a thermometer!!) and move from cup to cup since it will cool down the cup as we go.

The procedure itself – I’m planning to lie in bed, inject myself, attempt to have an orgasm and then stay there for 30 minutes with my pelvis tilted up with a pillow. This is based on stuff I read as well as after talking to my doctor. I don’t know how I’m going to be able to have an orgasm with all of this work and thoughts of a child in my head, but the mucus stimulation and movement are supposed to help the sperm move up through the cervix. Good luck. I also bought some little caps which I read are supposed to help too: http://www.early-pregnancy-tests.com/softcup.html I figure after the 30 minutes I’ll stick that little cup in there for a few hours – couldn’t hurt.

Preparation – I bought some other stuff, too. I got a fertility monitor. The one I got is the clue blue easy fertility monitor. I figure if I’m spending all of this money on the sperm, I want to make sure I get the best possible day to inject it. I found one on www.craigslist.com from a woman only a half an hour from my house. She said she had a hard time conceiving and it worked on her first try! I don’t know much about the monitors out there but this one seems to be more accurate than just using sticks on your own because it tracks the info for you and gets to know you for 6 months.

I had a friend who just got an egg donor and is 8 months pregnant tell me to try yoga. So I got this http://www.early-pregnancy-tests.com/yoga-for-fertility-dvd.html I also read an article my mom sent me that mentioned vitamins and stuff. Her article said the only one that has had a lot of research and studies is www.fertilityblend.com . I also got some stuff that is supposed to help the mucus http://www.fairhavenhealth.com/fertility-fertilecm-info.html but after talking to my doctor am reluctant. She said be careful of anything containing estrogens and don’t spend too much money. So I’ll give it a shot a couple of times I guess. I also can’t have the estrogen screw up my fertility monitor hormone level.

My mom sent me a good article www.naturalhealthmag.com March 2008 that had a bunch of fertility fixes: elmininate or reduce white sugar and flour, eat enough protein. Try meat, fish , eggs, dairy products, lentils, beans, brown rice, quinoa, sunflower seeds. It suggested acupuncture, yoga, etc.

Okay, I have to go!! Good luck!!! -Karen



I just wanted to add to my post. I just saw one of these at the store for thanksgiving. Perfect size! The needle would need to be trimmed down with a hack saw, but is thin enough to fit into the syringe
http://www.conveya.com/euViewDetail.aspx?OrgSupplierId=1805&CurrentCategory=0&CurrentPage=1&ItemId=346952&CurrentIndex=7313

karenman

I keep adding to my posts. The sample can go up a thinner needle size (again this is just to get it out of the vial) into the syringe - the kit I got has a 3.5 french catheter.

OR you can use a disposable pipette. These are little cheap pipettes made of plastic that have a little bulb on them. Wow, I did a quick google search and found a 12 pack for $1.50:

http://secure.sciencecompany.com/Disposable-Pipets-Pk12-P6266C626.aspx

I was originally worried the cheap pipettes would have too much "hold up" in the pipette, but the sample we receive is thin and not too viscous. I used them 3 times and they were emptied just fine