I'm having my first EPU tomorrow morning and since my trigger last night i have been sooooo nervous about it so im just gonna ask some questions .... hopefully it'll calm me down abit
What exactly do they do???
Does it hurt while you are having it done?? Or do you just get pain afterwards? (if at all)
Is the pain bad???
What pain med's can you have if you do get pain?
How long does it take?
Ok thats abt all i can think off..... im sure i'll think of some more soon tho
Personally, I didn't want to know what they were going to do... and I was more scared when I actually saw the picture of the ultrasound probe they use with all the egg collecting bits attached... Just know that it involves a big needle... and if you really want to know more, I'll tell you.
Mine were done under general anaesthetic so it didn't hurt at the time, and I have no idea how long it actually takes.
However as I had quite a LOT of eggs, I would often be in a heap of pain afterwards. I recall being given some really great painkillers while in recovery twice, and being sent home with panadeine forte the first time (26 eggs). The second time I wasn't sent home with any painkillers at all (32 eggs) and landed in hospital and spent a week in there - both times I had OHSS, so definitely not normal.
The third time, with no OHSS, I think I just had some panadol for a few days and was pretty much fine. I had 20 eggs collected, which is still on the high side of things.
If you do have pain, anything with paracetamol and/or codeine is fine. Ibuprofen and aspirin are out.
I am no expert on the matter but I think it is soooo different for every women not to mention from cycle to cycle. We had our first collection when I was 21 and I was terrified beyond belief. I think I cried the whole way in the car and was crying like an idiot until they gave me a sedative (or something like that)! I had not recovered at all well from my laparoscopy and had worked myself into an absolute mess. My first full cycle we got 5 eggs and to be honest I did not feel a thing! The second full cycle I think we had 7 eggs but oodles of follicles and the procedure itself was a little uncomfortable but not painful but had slight OHSS and that wasnt nice and the 3rd 17 eggs and again procedure was fine, I was nauseous before then was admitted to hospital for OHSS. I think what I am trying to say that in my experience and it is only my experience the procedure was not painful for me and the OHSS was the worst part. Ive since had another laparoscopy and I still think it is much worse.
All my collections took about 10- 20 minutes each, I was put on an ultrasound table with my legs in 'leg huggers'. We were able to watch each follicle being drained. Our Nurses were extremely beautiful and until I started poking around and being nosey I didnt even know the tubes sitting on my belly were being filled with stuff from inside me! And to be honest it wasnt until my 2nd cycle that I was 'aware' enough to realise my Dr used an ultrasound probe, sounds stupid but I hadnt thought about how he could see my insides on screen!
If you want to know whats going on in there, ask your nurse while things are happening. Im sure I drove them nuts with questions but I was very curious. I also made a point of walking in and 'saying G'day' because everyone was being so serious and I didnt like that atmosphere either.
Good luck with it sweetie and I hope it isnt as bad as you think. I do hope this is the start of a very quick IVF encounter and you have a bub on its way soon......
Good luck with your EPU today!! I was extremely nervous the first time, as like you I wasn't sure what was going on. I was under a general anaesthetic both times and believe the procedure only took about 20 mins (by the time I was brought to recovery). My DR said most people do it under a genereal, only because some women can jump at the thought of their ovaries being punctured. I felt so horrible before I went in because I had heaps of follicles (can't remember the number), and as soon as I woke up it was instant relief. I couldn't believe how much better I felt. I did have a little bit of cramping (and I'm usually a wus with pain) for about a day or two, but only took panadiene or panadiene forte. Good luck with your journey, I hope it brings you a healthy bubba soon!! Let us know how you go.
Like Bub4me and Lilydust, my first experience was fear before EPU and once I woke up I was absolutely fine and mightly relieved.
I had slight discomfort and felt like I had a heavy period, but sometimes the discomfort experienced is a lot better than the anticipated fear of the pain .
It is unlikely you will experience OHSS due to your follicle numbers but keep an eye on how you go afterwards.
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