"Natural" IVF

Has anyone ever done this? No stopping your cycle-just maybe using injectibles and u/s and BW to confirm when your follies are developed. Before I had teh ectopic I always got PG very easily but had what we thought were miscarriages. Now we feel they might have been ectopics(my hcg would never go down on it's own, I always needed methotrexate)

I am so torn about what to do. I believe I have a tubal issue. I have to get one more hsg to find out for sure. If so, IVF is the only route for us. A natural cycle is much less expensive than a full blown one.

I am also concerned about it not working. I looked into the Integramed shared risk plan(NSUH participates) With insurance it costs approx. $15,000 but you get 6 tries and if you do not get PG you get 70% of your money back.

Then there are also places that will do IVF for a "bargain price" which I am very leery of. I just don't know what to do. What do you all think?

Re: "Natural" IVF

I'm confused. what would be the difference between a natural ivf cycle and a medicated cycle if you are going to use meds?

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I'm a little confused too. Are you saying there is a way to just monitor your ovulation, do a retrieval at the right time and put the embryos back in, without using the drugs to stimulate?

Re: "Natural" IVF

Message edited 2/14/2008 10:45:34 AM.

Re: "Natural" IVF

or this one

Natural Cycle IVF
The Gentle Choice

A cheaper, gentler form of IVF for those on a budget, or who are contraindicated to fertility drugs.
What Is Natural Cycle IVF?
Natural cycle IVF, also known as no or low stimulation IVF, is an invitro fertilisation procedure which uses no artificial fertility drugs, or very low dose ones.

Why Would I Want To Have IVF Without Fertility Drugs?
For some couples, the choice is financial, as NC-IVF is a fraction of the cost of standard IVF, so it may be their only chance at treatment. Some people prefer to try this method before moving on to traditional IVF.

For others, the choice may be medical. They may be contraindicated to fertility drugs (for instance, with a previous history of ovarian cancer or depression) or they may have reacted badly to a course of fertility drugs before. Women who have suffered with ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome may be offered this type of treatment as the syndrome is very serious and can be life-threatening so it may not be safe for them to continue with standard IVF.

Some couples just don't like drugs and prefer a more natural approach to infertility.

What Is Involved?
Prior to the procedure commencing, you would be asked to record your temperature daily and use an LH ovulation kit for approximately 3 weeks prior to your period starting. This will identify when your LH surge happens (when ovulation occurs). This is a test month to establish when your most fertile time is likely to be.

The following month, you will be given an ultrasound scan roughly 3 days before your expected LH surge to see if your follicles are indeed producing eggs. If they are, you will be asked to inject yourself with HCG that evening and then 36 hours later, you will have an egg retrival operation done (passing a fine needle through the vaginal wall to retrieve the eggs from the follicles). This will either be done with sedation and painkillers or under a general anaesthetic, whichever is your preference.

The eggs are then fertilized and if there are any embryos of good enough quality to put back, they will be implanted into your womb, also with a fine needle. You will be given progesterone pessaries to insert and will have to wait 2 weeks for a pregnancy blood test to see if the embryo transfer has worked.

This procedure is much gentler than standard IVF as you rely on your own natural cycle and don't have to do daily self-injections for weeks or months at a time. The downside is, it doesn't work for women who don't ovulate and it can be a difficult treatment to embark upon if the woman has irregular periods. It also has a lower success rate which is why doctors prefer drug-based IVF.

Re: "Natural" IVF

In my opinion if that is an option for you than I would definetly give it a try...if you know that you have no sperm issues then go for it......

Natural IVF still has better odds than IUI especially in women with tubal IF...

Re: "Natural" IVF

Message edited 2/14/2008 10:52:45 AM.

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the thing that concerns me is if you go through the whole process of the retrieval and only get 1 or 2 eggs and to not have them fertilize or not have them survive outside of the body.

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Re: "Natural" IVF

Here you go...one of the best IVF centers in NY...many Cornell patients that had prior failures go there....

they offer natural IVF cycle and mini-IVf cycle as well......(pretty cheap about 2300 per cycle)

http://www.newhopefertility.com/index.shtml

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Re: "Natural" IVF

Posted by melijane

Posted by MrsGreek

Here you go...one of the best IVF centers in NY...many Cornell patients that had prior failures go there....

they offer natural IVF cycle and mini-IVf cycle as well......(pretty cheap about 2300 per cycle)

http://www.newhopefertility.com/index.shtml

Thanks Anita

Re: "Natural" IVF

I have wondered about this too.

Re: "Natural" IVF

Posted by melijane

Posted by MrsGreek

In my opinion if that is an option for you than I would definetly give it a try...if you know that you have no sperm issues then go for it......

Natural IVF still has better odds than IUI especially in women with tubal IF...

Thats what I'm thinking...seems like it would be a good choice for me. Now to find a Dr that does it

Oh and NO sperm issues-he has passed every test with flying colors

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Honestly, I would do a regular IVF cycle before doing the "natural" one. For me, I ended up responding very well to the meds and we have 11 snow babies so if this cycle hadn't worked we would have a bunch of tries before moving on. My total cycle (including anes., ICSI, and a few other things) cost $11,250. ALL my meds were given to me by the clinic from women who had donated their extras back to them. If we had needed to do a FET it would be about $2-3k more. I don't know, I guess I just wouldn't want to go through the retrieval with the possibility of only getting one, maybe two eggs. It stinks that cost plays such a big role in what we decide to do. Have you looked into finding any 0% credit cards? This is how we are paying for ours, carrying that balance on a 0% card until June at which point it should be paid off. Best of luck to you, I know you have put a LOT of research into this

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Posted by mcl916

Honestly, I would do a regular IVF cycle before doing the "natural" one. For me, I ended up responding very well to the meds and we have 11 snow babies so if this cycle hadn't worked we would have a bunch of tries before moving on. My total cycle (including anes., ICSI, and a few other things) cost $11,250. ALL my meds were given to me by the clinic from women who had donated their extras back to them. If we had needed to do a FET it would be about $2-3k more. I don't know, I guess I just wouldn't want to go through the retrieval with the possibility of only getting one, maybe two eggs. It stinks that cost plays such a big role in what we decide to do. Have you looked into finding any 0% credit cards? This is how we are paying for ours, carrying that balance on a 0% card until June at which point it should be paid off. Best of luck to you, I know you have put a LOT of research into this

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I have definitely heard of IVF using only ovulation drugs like Clomid/Follistim but this is not the usual protocol. I think you will have to find a doctor willing to go outside the box and work with you.

Re: "Natural" IVF

Posted by CAH127

Posted by melijane

Posted by MrsGreek

In my opinion if that is an option for you than I would definetly give it a try...if you know that you have no sperm issues then go for it......

Natural IVF still has better odds than IUI especially in women with tubal IF...

Thats what I'm thinking...seems like it would be a good choice for me. Now to find a Dr that does it

Oh and NO sperm issues-he has passed every test with flying colors

Do places do this or you have to go to a specific place, such as the link provided?

Re: "Natural" IVF

Posted by melijane

Posted by CAH127

Posted by melijane

Posted by MrsGreek

In my opinion if that is an option for you than I would definetly give it a try...if you know that you have no sperm issues then go for it......

Natural IVF still has better odds than IUI especially in women with tubal IF...

Thats what I'm thinking...seems like it would be a good choice for me. Now to find a Dr that does it

Oh and NO sperm issues-he has passed every test with flying colors

Do places do this or you have to go to a specific place, such as the link provided?

Some do, many don't from what I understand.

Anita-I have a consult with New Hope. Thanks! I have to wait a month though!

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I wouldn't do it only because it would be such a risk to try to do IVF with only one egg as opposed to the 5 or so you would get with traditional IVF. You also have to worry about the egg/embryo surviving outside the uterus.
Plus, if you don't get PG on the first cycle...you would end up spending any IVF $$ you have on the next cycles.

Someone was on here a few years back who did "natural' ivf and I believe it was with New Hope. She ended up doing three cycles (I think) with no success and she was done. I don't even know what happened to her because she dropped off the board after her last unsuccessful cycle.

To me it was would be worth the meds to have enough embies to make the IVF successful.

Good luck with your decision!

Re: "Natural" IVF

Posted by Gertyrae

I wouldn't do it only because it would be such a risk to try to do IVF with only one egg as opposed to the 5 or so you would get with traditional IVF. You also have to worry about the egg/embryo surviving outside the uterus.
Plus, if you don't get PG on the first cycle...you would end up spending any IVF $$ you have on the next cycles.

Someone was on here a few years back who did "natural' ivf and I believe it was with New Hope. She ended up doing three cycles (I think) with no success and she was done. I don't even know what happened to her because she dropped off the board after her last unsuccessful cycle.

To me it was would be worth the meds to have enough embies to make the IVF successful.

Good luck with your decision!

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I found this site that provides some infor about what's called minimal stimulation IVF

http://www.sart.com/Guide_MinimalStimulationIVFET.html

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I went to New Hope for a natural cycle, since I"m a poor responder to meds.
I did no medication, even the HCG was a nasal spray - it didn't work for me but at the time it was the right price and a good break for my body from the meds.

Dr. Zhang and his staff was very nice too.

Good luck!