Considering IVF

I've spent countless hours reading, researching, comparing numbers, odds, costs & treatments & even with the enormous price tag, our odds of conceiving another child are more favorable with IVF. This is the hardest decision I never thought we would have to make.

Under normal conditions a couple has about a 80% chance of conceiving in a year. With my tubes being so severely blocked, the odds are little to none. I was quoted $5600 for a hysteroscopy/laparoscopy to remove my polyp & investigate why my tubes are blocked & see if they can be opened at all. There's a chance the damage is beyond repair or any repairs made will only be temporary & the surgery itself could cause more scar tissue & damage. Even if the laparoscopy is successful, it barely increases our chance of conception, from my research a 20-30% chance at best because of where my tubes are blocked, as well as there is a high risk of ectopic pregnancy after tubal corrective surgery.

On the other hand, given I am under 35 & have no health conditions & all other tests for my husband & I are normal, I would be a great candidate for IVF. At least 50% if not more chance of success in just one cycle. But that comes at a price tag of $15,000.

I'm looking at ways to reduce the cost, but even so, it's a lot of money. I can tell my husband is having a hard time with spending such a large sum for a chance at a bigger family, although he is supportive & wants what's best for all of us. I too never thought we would be discussing assisted fertility treatments. It's still a shock to be told such an unfavorable diagnosis. But here we are.

I've searched my heart & I still deeply want another child & am willing to sacrifice to take a chance. I know this for sure: If I don't take a leap of faith, I will regret it the rest of my life. And I believe if we go for it & it fails, I will at least know we tried everything we could & it just wasn't meant to be & I will be able to accept it & move on. I have nothing to lose because no matter what I have a beautiful family & an abundance of love.

Infertilty Diagnosis

The new year marks 18 months trying to conceive. I finally gathered my strength to see a reproductive endocrinologist (RE) & had an HSG done today to see if my Fallopian tubes were open. I'm completely heartbroken by the results. The RE said it usually takes less than 1 round of dye to go through the tubes. He pushed 3 rounds & couldn't get through my tubes. The catheter came out twice because he pushed the dye so hard, but it only puddled up & flowed back out. The RE also found a large polyp in my uterus. (I can't believe the 3 OBGYN's I've seen in the past 2 years at Kaiser missed this!!) The next steps are to schedule a Hysteroscopy to remove the polyp & Laparoscopy to see why my tubes are block & if it can be fixed. If my tubes can't be corrected, we'd have to do IVF which I was told we would have a high chance of success with as I'm otherwise healthy besides the tubal obstruction.

Right now I'm just in shock & grieving. I'm waiting to hear pricing & figure out the best route to go about getting the procedures done. My RE said he'd rather me get it done with him because both procedures could be done all at once & give me the best fertilty outcome, but it would cost around $7500 & there's a chance we'd still end up needing IVF on top of that. The polyp I can most likely get removed at Kaiser, but that means a longer wait time & having the procedures done separately. There's a lot to consider & I'm completely caught off guard. Part of me is relieved to have a diagnosis & know why I haven't conceived, but I never anticipated a diagnosis this bad. At least now I can really start moving forward to fill my heart's desire.

I am just truly grateful with all the tremendous support I've received through this difficult time & blessed to have the wonderful family I have including our 2 new fur babies, Fred & Ginger, 2 beautiful 10 year old cats we rescued last weekend. You all give me so much strength when times are tough. This whole experience has taught me a lot, the biggest being the power of love.