When I last left off, I had 3 genetically perfect embryos! The next step is to do the embryo transfer! The embryo transfer is where the body is primed to create the ideal environment for the little embryo. The embryo is then placed directly into the uterus and the female is considered “Pregnant Until Proven Otherwise.” It should implant into the uterus and begins to grow. About 2 weeks after the transfer, a “beta” HCG is taken through a blood draw. HCG is the pregnancy hormone and should continue to increase throughout pregnancy.
Priming Time
As with most things in the IVF world, it started off with birth control. Birth control is seen almost as a “reset” button with the uterus. I did the birth control for a few weeks, then about 2 weeks prior to the transfer, I stopped birth control and went in for a visit to make sure everything was normal (no polyps, cysts, etc). Everything was good to go and I started estrogen three times per day.
10 days later, I went in for another visit and started on endometrin three times per day (this is a vaginal suppository — honestly, THE WORST!) as well as progesterone in oil shots every other day. These shots are traditionally what all IVFers dread because it has to be intramuscular, rather than subcutaneous. In other words, a really big needle… in the bum. But, you do what you gotta do!
Embryo Transfer
On January 11, 2022, Charles and I went in for our embryo transfer! The process is very simple. When you go in, your bladder is VERY full. Then, they set you up like a PAP and do all the checks and measures to make sure the right embryo is going into the right female. The little tiny embryo is shown the screen in the room and then put it in a tube. They also put a tube into the uterus and then little embryo goes in! You get to watch the process on the screen, which is pretty neat. Then, it’s all over! They give you a picture of the embryo as well (taken from the embryo on the microscope). My sister in law made me a shirt that said “Wake, Pray, Transfer Day” with a pineapple. Pineapples are seen as a symbol of infertility.
Two Week Wait
The dreaded two week wait is the next step. (Although, it’s actually only about 10 days..). During this time, you just keep busy and pray that little embryo stuck in place and wants to grow. I slightly obsessively took a pregnancy test once (or twice…) per day, starting around day 5. Day 4-5 is typically the earliest a test will turn positive while day 9-10 is the latest. The beta test is done between days 9-14 and repeated every few days if positive to make sure that the HCG is doubling. Doubling means that the pregnancy is progressing as expected.
Results
I had taken enough pregnancy tests at this point to know that it was negative, but I still held some hope. Around 5pm (dreadfully late, if you ask me), the doctor called to say it was negative. It was expected, but still pretty devastating. The doctor didn’t have any strong thoughts on why the transfer failed, but assumed it was the endometriosis. Since we only had 2 embryos left and we want ~2 kids, the doctor thought it was best to “bank” more embryos. This meant doing ANOTHER round of the egg retrieval. It was hard news, but after a few days of mourning, I was ready to get back into it. So, in early February, we started the process all over again.
Any Questions?
While the IVF series isn’t over yet, I’m going to put together a FAQ on Infertility. Feel free to ask any questions, even if they seem silly. All responses are completely anonymous. Feel free to share with anyone you know who might be going through or starting the IUI/IVF journey as well!
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