'Natural' iui

**MissM** · April 26th, 2010, 06:59 PM

Hi Ladies,

We are hoping to attempt iui before having ivf in hope to conceive.

Anyways - I ovulate every month on time everytime, and af is as regular as a clock, DP's spermies have been tested and we've been labeled 'unexplained infertility'

If I am reading the doco's right i would assume i dont have to worry about having any hormone stimulating drugs or the triger to release them?

My question is this - if you are like me, and ovulate regularly, and af is like clockwork BUT you were labeled with 'unexplained' and had to do iui were you required to have injections? or was the insemination the only thing you had to do? how many attempts did it take for you?

Did they check your tubes prior to doing the iui? or is this something they do at a later date?

I am hoping I dont have to play around with hormone stimulating drugs but if i have to i have to!

How did you find the procedure in terms of comfort? was there much pain? I have heard it is like having a pap? Is this true or is this something they say so women arent afraid to do the procedure?

Sorry for asking silly questions or q's that someone has asked before ..

TIA

**MaggiePie** · April 26th, 2010, 07:41 PM

Hi,
I may have to do IUI as Dr thinks I may not have enough CM. As my cycle is regular all I do is ovulation tests then on the

day on the test come into the clinic, DH gives a fresh sample and they do the IUI. I would also like to know how successful etc as we have a 4hr drive to do this.
I already had tube dye test done due to previous history of infection, have one blocked and one good so I think we would just do on the 'good' months.
Good luck with it! I think I will wait for a couple of months as have just finished antibiotics for the infection and hoping that will help....

**onthefly** · April 26th, 2010, 07:53 PM

Hi naenae,
I have no personal experience with IUI, but a few things occur to me.
You asked about having your tubes tested - does that mean you haven't yet had any of those sort of exploratory investigations? Personally, if you know your ovulating 'well' and DH's sperm is good, then that would be my next step. You want to know if there are any physical issues (espcially since they make IUI pointless anyway).

The other thing to consider is the success rates of IUI versus IVF. With much lower success rates, if you weigh the two options, IVF, even though much more expensive per go, can look like a better option. But of course you then have to weigh this against your (understandable) desire to avoid those awful drugs. Just a thought.

I would guess it would be similar comfort-wise to having an embryo transfer (?). The speculum can be uncomfortable, but otherwise it is ok for most women.

**briggsy's girl** · April 26th, 2010, 08:01 PM

you know your cycle is regular - do you know for sure your tubes are clear (as marcellus mentioned)?

if you have clear tubes and are ovulating (you may have scans and BT's to confirm things) in theory they can just do an IUI - however, they are more likely to trigger ovulation using drugs so that they can ensure the sperm are where they need to be when they need to be there. when ovulation is triggered with the shot, there is a certain window when they KNOW that ovulation will occur - if it's left to nature, they can only guesstimate and the actual procedure may not be at the right time, making it an expensive and pointless exercise. the monitoring will also tell you if your follicles are developing correctly...

good luck with whatever you choose to do - remember, an FS can't make you do anything - but they are trained in what they do - if you're concerned about treatment suggestions, ask them to write it all down and take it away and think on it - there are a lot of us who have been through IUI/IVF who can offer advice if you need it!

**MissM** · April 26th, 2010, 08:08 PM

Hi naenae,
I have no personal experience with IUI, but a few things occur to me.
You asked about having your tubes tested - does that mean you haven't yet had any of those sort of exploratory investigations? Personally, if you know your ovulating 'well' and DH's sperm is good, then that would be my next step. You want to know if there are any physical issues (espcially since they make IUI pointless anyway).

The other thing to consider is the success rates of IUI versus IVF. With much lower success rates, if you weigh the two options, IVF, even though much more expensive per go, can look like a better option. But of course you then have to weigh this against your (understandable) desire to avoid those awful drugs. Just a thought.

I would guess it would be similar comfort-wise to having an embryo transfer (?). The speculum can be uncomfortable, but otherwise it is ok for most women.

Thanks Marcellus - I was thinking of making another appointment and having my tubes looked at. The gyno i was seeing a few months back basically told me there was nothing wrong with me or dp and the only thing he could offer was a referral to an ivf clinic .. and it has taken me this long to even begin to start accepting it.

thank you. its so over whelming ..

**leaves in deep thoughts ...

**onthefly** · April 26th, 2010, 08:51 PM

Just another thing (and yeah, sorry, it is really overwhelming isn't it?) you might want to consider looking into a fertility clinc/specialist now as there can be a wait to get an appointment at some places. It doesn't hurt to get some recommendations too - not all docs/clinics are created equally. They can handle further testing too and discuss your options.
But i'll leave you to your thoughts now...

**kyliealysha** · April 28th, 2010, 09:49 AM

I would definitely get your tubes checked. That is the first thing my fertility specialist did along with doind a whole heap of blood tests and a semen analysis for DH.

I was ovulating regularly, that wasn't our problem, but I still used the puregon injections and trigger. I guess so they could track exactly when things happened to get the insemination timing right. We were third time lucky

**milly's mummy** · April 30th, 2010, 02:13 PM

Hi naenae

I'm sorry I don't know anything about tubal issues or natural iui cycles.

I have had 3 succesful IUI's and 2 failed IVF stim cycles which is really quite confusing.

But when I have had my IUI's in the past I have only been on a very low dose of FSH to try not to produce many follicles. I know its different for everyone but I barely noticed the effects of such a low dose.

I also didn't find the speculum overly uncomfortable as I have found FS's to be quite skilled with them and I seem to have a lot more cervical mucous at the time when they do the iui so its not too bad.

I hope that helps. It can be a confusing time and I always hated the thought of wasting time if there was something else that needed to be done instead - best of luck!

**MissM** · July 24th, 2010, 08:10 PM

Thank you for your input, it really is appreciated!

One more month and we will be seeing our GP for a referral. We decided to give it a full 12 months of actively trying before seeking further medical treatment/advice.

Not long to go now, and by the sounds of it, IUI doesnt seem as bad as i initially thought.

First thing I will ask them to do is check my tubes (Im sure they will anyway - just to make sure!)

But once again - thank you

**kerbear** · August 17th, 2010, 05:31 PM

hi,

I have only done IUI 3 times and underwent the referral process which is easy, then when I saw my specialist he booked me in to check everything on my side as my partner was all good. They put me into surgery to check tubes etc, found a samll amount of endimitriosis and removed it. As soon as I had my fist cycle again we started IUI we are still trying.

We to are classed as unexplained infertility.
Good luck in your start on this journey.

**MissM** · August 17th, 2010, 05:44 PM

Thanks Kerbear - we've got a little hiccup that needs to be tended to prior to seeing a FS

Hopefully it wont be long before I can post in the PA!

**blinky76** · August 19th, 2010, 11:19 AM

Hi naenae,

My situation is a little different to yours (our problems aren't "unexplained") but I too ovulate regular as clockwork but My FS has recommended drugs to go with the IUI process (Clomid).

I am a little confused by why but am guessing it is something to do with the theory of "casting out many nets" to catch the swimmers

I start Clomid tomorrow for 5 days...........

After all we have "discovered" in the last few months from the tests/procedures conducted by FS we don't have a lot of time to waste.....hope your "hiccups" don't delay this whole process for you too long.
GL

**MissM** · August 19th, 2010, 08:31 PM

Good Luck TTC Blinky - I hope it happens soon!

**kerbear** · August 24th, 2010, 03:13 PM

Hi Naenae,

Hope your hiccup is sorted very soon so that you can start your journey with TTC.

Good luck
Kerbear

**MissM** · August 24th, 2010, 09:13 PM

Thanks Kerbear - us too!

**kerbear** · September 16th, 2011, 06:19 PM

Hi miss m thought I would see how you are going with everything, any luck yet?

**MissM** · September 16th, 2011, 07:46 PM

Oh wow - its kinda funny reading over old posts and remembering the emotional times you went through.

Considering this post was over a year ago this is what happened since:

September 2010 I went in for a lap - ObGy discovered I had a bit of endo and a stenotic cervix (cervix was closed) At the follow up appt ObGy told me to give it 3 months and if we didnt suceed to come back.

Well on our 3rd month we got our

!!!

Our little girl is now 4 weeks old

How are you going Kerbear? Have you had any luck? (im not on the boards much, read more than posting)