Hi, my name is Em and my partner is Lou. We are both 25yo and live together in VIC with Lou's 2 children from a previous relationship and our 5 fur babies We've made the decision to have a baby together and are planning to start TTC next year. We haven't decided whether we will do a home insemination or AI at a clinic.
we are looking for some information from other couples, preferably in Melbourne, about clinics, home insemination and the general ups and downs of TTC
Welcome Lou & Em!
We had both our boys through Melbourne IVF, if you are looking at a clinic insem, it's probably a good idea to get the ball rolling now, as the waiting list for anonymous donor sperm is quite long. If you have a known donor you would like to use, there is still a wait of around 6 months for the sperm to pass quarantine.
The best place to start is a referral from your GP for a fertility specialist, they can answer all your questions including costs etc. John McBain at Melbourne IVF has helped loads of lesbian couples, he is probably a good person to get a referral for so he can give you more information.
Good luck !!
Thanks for the info Sally2. How long was the whole process for you? I'm assuming you used an anonymous donor (please correct me if Im wrong). Could you tell me a bit about your experience? eg: choosing a donor, how long it took from first meeting at clinic to actually conceiving etc
We snuck in before the laws changed & every lesbian in Victoria signed up for anonymous donor sperm so our wait wasn't very long. Yes, anonymous sperm for us & we chose a donor who was open to being contacted before the kids turned 18 & had the physical characteristics that we thought were important.
It's a total lottery though, we chose a dark eyed, dark haired 'donor dad' & both our boys have blonde hair & blue eyes
We were pregnant within 6 months of the first meeting with our fertility specialist, but don't forget the wait for anonymous sperm is a lot longer now, less donors since they made it compulsory for the sperm donor to go on a register so he can be contacted when the kids turn 18. It means there are both less donors & more couples waiting, cause the same sex parenting law changes meant that single women & lesbians can now access donor sperm & IVF treatment without being infertile.
Good luck girls, looking forward to your pregnancy announcement!
Hi, I'm a new member to this site, I realize this thread is old, but I was hoping Lou and Em would be able to confirm that you were successful! My partner and I are starting the process through Dr Melissa Cameron, hopefully going to be inseminated in January! Any replies would be appreciated!
Sorry for the huge delay in replies. We've had such a busy year since we last posted...so to update you on whats been happening...in April we had our first appointment with Dr Cameron at Melbourne IVF and after going through the process of choosing a sperm donor, counselling and check ups, we did our first cycle of IUI in May. I was taking a low dose of pregnyl injections for this cycle too, which threw my hormones out of whack and I was an emotional wreck for a lot of the time. Unfortunately, this first cycle was unsuccessful. Despite being "so sure" that I was pregnant, I got my period right on time. We decided to go ahead and try a second IUI cycle the following month. We knew that this would be our last chance at IUI as our Dr had explained that after two IUI cycles we would have to move onto IVF. We were both apprehensive and nervous but thought that we may as well keep going while we were on a roll I suppose. Our Dr agreed to increase my dose of pregnyl slightly but unfortunately, this cycle was also unsuccessful.
Needless to say, my partner and I were both devestated that both cycles had been unsuccessful because we knew that the next step would be IVF and that would be a challenge for us financially. So we've taken a few months off trying and focused on other things. I've recently been diagnosed with gallstones and will have to have surgery to remove my gallbladder before continuing with our baby making journey. We're planning on starting IVF early next year and hopefully we're one of the lucky couples that have success first time.
Kayenkay, great to hear that you and your partner are going through the same clinic and Doctor as us! Are you doing IUI or IVF? I'd love to know a bit about you and your partner and your situation. It's always exciting to find another couple in the same situation as us.
Newbies!
We've made the decision to have a baby together and are planning to start TTC next year. We haven't decided whether we will do a home insemination or AI at a clinic.
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Welcome 
I'm not a part of this area of the forum, but welcome to BB in general 
so our wait wasn't very long. Yes, anonymous sperm for us & we chose a donor who was open to being contacted before the kids turned 18 & had the physical characteristics that we thought were important. 
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