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IVF short protocol UK

Harriet • Thu, Dec 10

UPDATE! I had an FET in April which has resulted in a pregnancy ☺️ I am 11 weeks tomorrow and everything is looking good. I’m still waiting for my official NHS ultrasound before we tell family and friends. The FET was a lot easier on the body. Just Oestrogen three times a day from CD1, and then I added in progesterone at CD16 once my lining was ready. Good luck to all you ladies going through treatment. It’s so tough emotionally and physically but keep going! Xx

Hi all

I just wanted to share my experience of undergoing a short

protocol in the U.K. with NHS funding. I had about 100 very random questions that I struggled to get answers for, so I wanted to share my

protocol to help others.

Me and my husband have been TTC almost 3 years - unexplained infertility. Only “abnormality” is a thinner than normal lining and some very very mild features of PCOS but not enough to be diagnosed. I’ll skip all the pre-tests etc, but all in all, it took exactly 12 months before we started our

cycle. Covid didn’t postpone anything for us.

consultation: our Dr explained how

works and we said we were happy to proceed. He said he would write a prescription for the meds and they would be delivered to my home address within three weeks. The company was Stork Fertility. The prescription was then sent to Care Fertility where I am having my treatment, who then pass it on to Stork. When Stork receive the prescription, they literally deliver the next day. The Dr decided a short protocol would be suitable for me, as he felt I would respond well to the meds, I had a good AMH, good Antral follicle count and he wanted to avoid OHSS.

CD18: I started Noresthisterone, which is a contraceptive pill. My understanding is that it makes your ovaries “quiet” so that all the follicles shrink down so that they can then ideally grow to at the same rate. I was on this for 10 days. I had extreme bloating and hunger but otherwise I was OK.

After 10 days of Noresthisterone, I got my break through bleed 5 days later. I called my clinic to book in for a CD7 scan.

CD2: First day of stimulation. I was on Menopur, one injection daily to grow my follicles. I did this in the evening. I was very very tired after the first day and lost my appetite, but I soon adjusted.

CD6: I added in a Cetrotide injection. I was told this must be taken at least 1 hour before the Menopur, but really morning would be better.

CD7: Transvaginal ultrasound. Lining 7mm. 9 follicles total, measuring around 9-10mm with a couple at 11-14mm.

CD9: Another ultrasound. Lining 7.25mm. 11 follicles, mainly 12mm -18mm.

CD12: Another ultrasound (would have been CD11 but that was a Sunday). Lining 8.9mm. 13 follicles: 3x 21mm, 1x 20mm, 3x 16mm, 2x 15mm, 2x 14mm, 1x 13mm, 1x 10mm. The nurse thinks 12 of the 13 follicles will contain a mature egg. I was told the criteria to trigger is 4 follicles >17mm and a lining of at least 8mm. I have taken my HCG trigger injection (Gonasi 10,000 IUs) tonight and will be having my egg collection in just under 36hours!

For my lining I have been doing acupuncture for a few months, which I promise you, has helped significantly. This cycle I also drank 150ml of pomegranate juice and 150ml of beetroot juice daily. I have also been doing Moxa every day (as recommended by my acupuncturist.

To promote the follicles to grow, 2-3 litres of water daily is a must. Plenty of protein, eggs and a glass of milk a day was also recommended. I was also told avacado helps but I only had one avacado this last 12 days.

Supplements include Pregnacare conception and a Vitamin D capsule (I’m deficient).

Feel free to ask any questions! 😊 I’ll try my best to help. When I was hunting the internet for answers, I found plenty of information for USA patients, but not for the U.K. I’ve very quickly realised that we do things quite differently.

Baby dust to you all 🎉

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