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IUI Frustration

My husband and I just had our third IUI. We went into this thinking it would go smoothly since it is my husband who has the fetility issue and not myself. The two week wait is the worst- it always ends in disappointment. We really thought this time was going to work, but then I woke up this morning with the sure signs of a period. Any stories from people who have gone through a similar experience would be appreciated!

Comments

  • prattygirl28prattygirl28 Junior Member
    Jill,
    I totally understand where you are coming from. It's the same thing with me, i check out all good and you would think that it would not be a problem ttc. But i have been through 11 iui's(so i really feel your pain) and have got a BFP once, only for it to end in miscarriage. :(
    Well now that we have put like 40 grand into all the treatments, we cannot afford them anymore. So i had two vials left in storage and i wanted to use them. So i am doing at-home-inseminations with the last two. I am now 8dpo with the first one and i feel way too normal to be preggo , but i guess we will see!

    April
  • erikim21erikim21 Junior Member Junior Member
    My husband and I are in the same boat - and I feel your frustration! We have gone through 4 IUI cycles and I'm about to begin our 5th. I just had an HSG done today - and all is clear - but still waiting.... After our 3rd IUI, I had a positive pregnancy blood test, but when I returned 3 days later my levels dropped and I got my period :-( I keep telling myself that we are just experiencing what every other normal couple goes through when trying to naturally conceive... but it just costs us a whole lot more money. Stay positive - and wishing you and your husband the best of luck! ~Kim
  • farm1229farm1229 Junior Member
    I just wanted to wish you good luck. We are in our first cycle of IUI. I have read that it is normal to take several cycles... not like that helps. :)
  • shajen04shajen04 Junior Member
    jill,
    try to be positive even when its hard. me and my husband had the same problem. we worked with a fertility doctor for 1 1/2 yrs. we used our first doner for 3 rounds with IUI and it was not successful. we ended up waiting 2 months and used a different doner and on the next IUI (the 4th IUI total) and it worked! it is hard to be patient and positive the whole time ( i am not a patient person) but i total feel your pain and just wanted to let you know it does happen. we now have a 7 week old baby that we both prayed for.
  • KJtrips+KJtrips+ Member Member
    I know how you feel. We tried for over a year before my husband got tested, and found out his SA came back at 0, my tests were all normal. Once we knew the problem we thought for sure the first IUI with donor sperm would do the trick. I even only bought 1 sample LOL. Try 2 and 3 we were just as positive. Try 4 I went on Clomid to give us a little boost, the same for try 5. By IUI #6 I was still on Clomid but figured it wasn't going to work, so I ordered injectable meds for the next IUI. I was totally surprised that IUI #6 did work and we were expecting 3 babies.

    When the triplets were almost 2 we decided to try again. I had 1 sample left over and went back on the Clomid fully expecting the first IUI to work. Nope, you would think I would learn not to get my hopes up. That was our last sample of the same donor and the bank had no more so we had to pick someone new, we bought 2 new samples. I tried Clomid another month or two but was not responding and had cancelled my IUI's. We decided to use the injectable meds I had bought just before getting pregnant the first time. That IUI on injectables worked and we are now expecting 1 baby. We have 1 sample left and have decided to give it a shot in a couple years, though if it doesn't work we will happily be done and will not try anymore.

    Good luck to you...I hope you have success very very soon!!!

    Kat
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
    The success rates for IUI seems to be under 17%. (http://www.shadygrovefertility.com/iui-success-rates) For me, it took 6 tries for success - the first four were natural (no drugs) and the final two I used some meds (gonal-f, ovidril, and clomid).

    It was really hard for me - each month I felt like a failure and my husband had to keep putting things in perspective for me.
  • hyphenatedladyhyphenatedlady Junior Member
    I just wanted to say good luck. It took us four IUI's to conceive our twins.
  • T&KT&K Junior Member Junior Member
    Keep the faith! My wife and I went through 6 tries and finally got lucky on the 6th. The pregnancy has totally be :D en worth the wait. Good luck!
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
    T&K wrote:
    Keep the faith! My wife and I went through 6 tries and finally got lucky on the 6th. The pregnancy has totally be :D en worth the wait. Good luck!

    Wow - maybe six is the lucky number! Congrats!
  • hoppingpenguinhoppingpenguin Junior Member Junior Member
    Hang in there. I know it's hard but try to remember that the average is 4 - 6 cycles before success.
    We're rooting for you!
  • JillJill Junior Member
    Wow- thank you for all of the responses! It really does help to see responses from other people! We are going to have our fourth IUI (if all goes well) next Monday. We did choose a new donor, somebody who has had reported pregnancies and has his own children, so I feel better about that. I do take Clomid, but it is a very small dose right now because I reacted very strongly to a regular dose (7 follicles!!!). Thank you so much for all of the well wishes and hopefully it will be good news soon!
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
    I think what also helped me was using the Ovidril (I forget how to spell it) so the doctor knew exactly when I'd ovulate. Before, I was just using the ovulation kits.
  • babyboundbabybound Junior Member
    I know how some of you feel. My hubby and I have been trying for over 3 years. We began our journey with my obgyn who answered my concern with statement with statements like "Just relax, it will happen. You'll be pregnant before you come back to see me next year." When the time came around for my yearly appointment, I asked if he would advise me in TTC. After all, I have 2 kids from a previous relationship-what could be the problem? He referred me to a MD in Jackson Mississippi. Our problem, so it seems is male factor. We did 5 IUIs with my hubby supplying the semen, no success. I don't think anyone who is outside of this situation can understand how devistating it is to see your period come every month after taking the pills (Femara) and injections (Ovidrel). The guilt is so heavy, and as a wife knowing that the problem is not mine, it was difficult to keep my chin up for him. He has wanted kids of his own for his entire adult life. He adores my kids, he calls them "our kids". Just melts my heart to see him hurt. So, we kept going for each other. He lost his job and we had to stop trying. We are at the point where we could either use a donor or do IVF. My insurance does not cover fertility assistance at all, and IVF is very expensive and we were not sure how we felt about using a donor. We are back, hubby has new good job and has decided that we should give it a go with a donor. We researched a few companies for donors and were very happy with what Fairfax has to offer. We feel, and I know this sounds crazy, like we know this donor. There is ample information for us to make this choice and we are excited about the try. I saw my doctor in August, ordered the semen, am taking my Femara days 4-8, am scheduled for sonogram of follicles on Tuesday and we'll go from there. Wish me luck, send me all your prayers-and I will be praying for you as well!
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
  • GabesmomGabesmom Junior Member
    I am 2 for 3 getting pregnant after IUI. Here's what I learned: have an HSG right before your cycle begins in order to clear your fallopian tubes. It works! Also, don't mess around doing an IUI without drugs. Follistim works! Why spend all that time and money doing an IUI with only one follicle?
  • amyswvamyswv Junior Member
    It is so hard to wait! The frustration is terrrible! Hang in there. I don't know what you have already tried, but I tried IUI 6 times. I had worked with my regular OB/GYN for the first five tries. She is a wonderful OB, but her speciality is taking care of pregnant women, but not getting them pregnant! Finally, I was feeling terrible (and running out of funds) so I decided to see a specialist (which is about a two hour drive from home.) That did the trick. He did some minor testing with me, put me on clomid for one month, monitored the potential eggs via ultrasound and did the IUI on the day I ovulated. (one of my problems was that when you use the home ovulation test most of the time the average person ovulates within 48 hours. By the time I was getting a positive on the home ovulation test, I would ovulate in about 12 hours) --his method worked and I have a beautiful 18 month old son! (Donor 2539 rocks!)---don't let it get you down, it will happen!
  • clarapippaclarapippa Junior Member
    I'm going to do my first attempt at insemination next month, and this thread is a little intimidating to me. I am planning on purchasing 4 "samples" of my chosen donor, but it sounds like I may need to do 6! I haven't gone in for my xray/ultrasound yet but past tests have all looked to be in my favor. Still I have this overarching, everpresent dread that this will not take. Our savings account is tight, so every try counts. I know that being worrisome is the worst thing to do, as the stress will affect my body throughout the process, so how do I think positive?
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
    Thinking positive was the hardest thing for me - I relied on my husband to help me when I was feeling down.

    I just bought he vials each cycle. I started with one donor, but after two cycles they didn't have any more so I had to switch donors, which is fine because I got pregnant with the second donor.
  • clarapippaclarapippa Junior Member
    You bought one at a time!? How did you cope with the shipping costs? Or, do you live close to the center and were able to deliver it yourself?
    ladymacb29 wrote:
    Thinking positive was the hardest thing for me - I relied on my husband to help me when I was feeling down.

    I just bought he vials each cycle. I started with one donor, but after two cycles they didn't have any more so I had to switch donors, which is fine because I got pregnant with the second donor.
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
    I live close enough, so I'd just pick them up each cycle. After seeing the behavior of one of the couriers, while waiting for an appointment at my doctor's, I'm glad I did that...
  • clarapippaclarapippa Junior Member
    ;O Uh oh! I wonder how professional FedEx is with the "samples." My doctor does not recommend using any of my local donor banks because they do not offer any sort of guarantee on the product, otherwise I would do the same as you.
    ladymacb29 wrote:
    I live close enough, so I'd just pick them up each cycle. After seeing the behavior of one of the couriers, while waiting for an appointment at my doctor's, I'm glad I did that...
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
    FedEx is probably better than the courier service! The guy double-parked, brought it to the wrong address, and then was fighting with the nurses because he was in a hurry to get out of there while they checked their records and the container to make sure everything was right.
  • clarapippaclarapippa Junior Member
    Holy cow! Well, I sure hope someone spoke to the courier service about that employee. (Am I the only one who speaks to people's bosses or managers when a situation is particularly bad or good anymore?)
  • angelica123angelica123 Junior Member
    I had only produced an average of three eggs. I did 11 inseminations, 4 in Vitro. What I know now, my protocol would be so much different. I would have only attempted 4 inseminations with no pill (except vitamin type pills) - all injections. My protocol for in Vitro: Low dose aspirn, progesterone, estrace, lupron. folic acid, prenatal vitamins, gonal-f, follistim, ovidrel, crinone cream, doxycycline after IUI only. No side effects from any combinations my doctor tried. Be positive and take more control of your protocol. Almost two years went by with 11 IUI. in Vitro is not difficult and shocking your system for only one cycle vs all the attempts at IUI. Hoping one cycle will be your blessing. My situation was only 3 eggs and age.
    Go to In Vitro!!!!
  • Vendesi23Vendesi23 Junior Member
    And here i was thinking that it would only take one cycle!..My Husband and I are about to use a donor sperm to get pregnant and we are trying to learn all that we can about the procedure and how it works. This is all new to us and we are a bit nervous. I have this belief that if we pick a donor with the closest characteristics to my husband the baby can look just like him. does anyone else agree with me?

    I am thankful for the information that is shared on this forum. We are praying that all goes well so we can have our baby soon. Best wishes to every other couple that is dealing with infertility.
  • ladymacb29ladymacb29 Member Member
    You don't need to pick a donor who is close to your husband's characteristics - you can pick any donor you want, really. My husband's a red head and Fairfax didn't have any red heads, so we went with someone who had the same ethnic background.
  • KatrinKatrin Junior Member Junior Member
    I feel for each and everyone of you! I tried to get pregnant using IUI with a donor and it took three tries and resulted in my DS. I went back to try again using the same donor and am now on try number 4 with no apparent success. I moved from NE to PA so I had to change DR and that is my biggest problem! My DR in NE was very aggressive using Folistim and an HCG forget the brand from the start working with 4-6 follicles. My DR in PA is so worried about multiples that they wouldn't put me on anything but Clomid until this last cycle and even now they won't use the dosage I had in NE, they think only one follicle is a thing to celebrate. I have PCOS so infertility is my issue so I can't understand why they won't use my prior DRs formula since I have living proof it worked. I know it's silly.. Believe me I am grateful and thankful for my Miracle everyday but wanted to give him a sibling. Just frustrated and thinking of going to new DR but that means starting all over again with all the delays again and I will be 39 this coming year.
  • knickyknicky Junior Member Junior Member
    We got lucky on the 6th try, too. Each time it was so difficult, getting your hopes up to be disappointed, but it was so worth the wait. It seemed like each time, they stepped up the tests...it finally worked when they gave me the shot, then did an ultrasound to see if i was ready, and i wasn't so they gave another shot and then did another ultrasound, and then finally did the iui and that time, it worked! Good luck to you in your journey...sending positive thoughts your way.
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