Please Talk to Me About IUI

[genet313]

Hi ladies, questions regarding IUI experiences.  Just general.  

My history: TTC since August 2011, natural BFP in January 2012, miscarriage at 8 weeks, hysteroscopy to remove intra-cavity uterine fibroids in April, TTC again in June 2012, mostly constant since then, still no luck.

DX is unexplained infertility.  RE recommending 3 IUIs, with 50 mg Clomid.  It seems pretty clear I ovulate. I've stopped charting but I get positive OPKs, I get ovulation pain, I saw temp rises every cycle, although sometimes I get the slow rise. 

So we'll start IUI in a couple of months.  I'd love to hear your experiences, good and bad.  Particularly with clomid side effects, since I'm not 100% on board with taking it.  Thanks!

[changedname]

Hey genet, I did 3 IUIs in the fall. Oct + November I used Femara (same as clomid), Dec I used injectibles (gonal F).
I am also unexplained but have never had a bfp. I do ovulate like clockwork every month.

My RE does not prescribe clomid because of the side effects. Femara works the same but with almost no side effects (headache was all I had). The goal for me was to get more than 1 egg but the max dose of femara didn't acheive that so I moved to Gonal F. The other positive I can say about femara v clomid is that it is a breast cancer drug so 1) has no negative side effects/worries re: cancer (could even help as per my specialist at the breast cancer clinic), 2). As such, my insurance did not class it as a fertility drug so it was covered 100%.

The actual IUI takes less time and hurts less than having a pap done. I actually had a pap this week and couldn't believe how long it took compared with the IUI!!

All that said, IUI had a pretty low rate of success especially for us unexplained girls. I was given 8-10% for the femara cycles and 20% for the Gonal F. My RE recommended 3 x femara then 3 x Gonal F but due to $$ I have decided to move to IVF now.

Wow I wrote you a whole novel here, sorry! I don't want to put you off clomid as I have no experience, I was just hesitant like you and then happy I was given femara instead.

[ilovecandy]

i haven't done IUI but it has been recommended. I would do pretty much what Iced did if I do an IUI. that said because of the low success rate for explained and because I have to pay pretty much all of it as of right now we are not doing IUI.

[genet313]

Jan 18, 2013 15:25:46 GMT -5 changedname said:

All that said, IUI had a pretty low rate of success especially for us unexplained girls. I was given 8-10% for the femara cycles and 20% for the Gonal F. My RE recommended 3 x femara then 3 x Gonal F but due to $$ I have decided to move to IVF now.

Thanks so much for your response!

This is crazy, b/c my RE told me 60% chance of pregnancy for unexplained within 3 cycles of IUI....why is there so much misinformation out there?

I will speak to her about the femara and see what she says.

[mae141]

I'm getting ready for my 3rd IUI. I'm not sure if I have an official diagnosis at this point, though I do ovulate on my own.

It really was not a big deal at all. Instead of Clomid, I take Tamoxifen, another breast cancer drug. From what I've read, there are fewer symptoms and less chance of multiples. I had a mini breakdown about having to give myself the trigger shot, but DH did it for me and it was fine. I also do progesterone suppositories during the 2ww. They are gross, but not a big deal either.

I got pregnant on the first IUI. It was amazing for about 5 minutes My betas weren't great. U/s at 7 weeks and then again at 8 weeks showed a blighted ovum so I had a d&c. Second IUI was negative, and I was really disappointed since the first one had worked. I think my RE wants to move on to IVF if this one doesn't work.

[statlerwaldorf]

I don't ovulate on my own, so Clomid helped with that. I have taken 50, 100, and 150mg. The higher the dose the worse the side effects are. I had night sweats, crazy dreams, mood swings, and insomnia. I had similar side effects with Femara, but not nearly as bad. I only took Clomid for 5 days. The side effects lasted about a week after the last pill. With Femara, I didn't have side effects after I finished the pills.

I got pregnant with DD while on Clomid.

[crimson]

I ended up doing 7 IUIs, several w clomid. I didn't have many side effects from it except for a little back pain and some hot flashes. The more months I was on it the less the side effects but the more follicles I produced. At one point I had 7 follicles, but most were on a side with a blocked tube. None of them were successful. My RE said our chances were only max of 20% but more likely 8-10% success. I did develop cysts one month but they cleared up after 1 month off. The actual procedure wasn't too bad. A little crampy afterwards but better than what I expected.

[KaraOrNot]

I don't have any advice myself, but I did post about clomid a while ago and got some good info. Good luck!

pandce.proboards.com/thread/17065

[genet313]

Thanks ladies!  I appreciate the perspective.