October 15th will mark exactly 2 years of us trying to conceive our third child. In the world of infertility this is kind of a rarity. At my age, almost 36, and eager to have another child, most couples would have been moving up the ladder of infertility treatments. Granted we did do several attempts of clomid and a trigger shot but beyond that is foreign territory. I know quite a bit about the procedures and protocols of ART (assisted reproductive technology) but have never considered it for myself. Maybe one day I'll write about why the decision to move ahead with infertility treatments is such a difficult one but today is about hope.
Yesterday during a chat session, I asked a veteran a few questions about the IUI procedure. Then, just when I thought I had tried everything that we were comfortable with at this point, she shared with me a whole new option! Injectables.
I have just started researching injectable medications and why someone might choose them over clomid, and frankly, I'm shocked that my RE hadn't mentioned this as an option. A very expensive, but very effective alternative. It is my understanding that Clomid is good for stimulating ovulation because it tricks your body into thinking it is a hormone, estrogen. Injectable medications ARE estrogen. So, the advantages are that there are less side effects (I didn't have any with Clomid anyway), doesn't cause drying, and also can improve uterine lining.
The statistics for successes using injectables are more than double that of clomid. Also, probably due to the improved uterine lining, more pregnancies are actually carried to term. I have always had short periods and while I fall into the range of "normal," I can't help but think that I have a thin lining. If these meds could improve my chances for pregnancy, increase my uterine lining, AND potentially increase the odds of a happy ending??? I am willing to save up my money to try this!
Has anyone tried injectables? Any advice? Input? More pros? Cons? I am all ears!
| Tweet |
Femara + Gonal-f + trigger got us our boys. I'm a big believer in that combination! Femara works like Clomid but does not thin the lining, rarely causes cysts, and has few side effects.
ReplyDelete