What else can we try before having a Laparoscopy?

Hello,

My dh really doesnt want me to have my scheduled Laparoscopy. He wants us to try a bit longer and less medical, so he has asked me to give it until september before going in for the lap. I think I understand his point of view though I would rather get it out of the way myself!

What I am wondering is,IF we wait is it worth seeing a fertility specialist through one of the IVF places right now to talk about non surgical proceedures we could try in between? OR, will they want a lap as routine before trying clomid or any other hormone treatment?

Love to get some advice.

I am getting acupuncture, opk-ing and charting.

thanks, sassba

Hi Sassba,
Generally the non-invasive tests such at blood tests to see if you are ovulating (eg. the 21 day progesterone test) and the sperm tests for DH would be done prior to a laparoscopy. also probably an ultrasound for you. Have they happened?
If they have happened, they may have shown that you are ovulating fine and everything else is fine so clomid won't really help you. therefore they need to move onto a laparoscopy to rule out any problems such as blocked tubes.
Personally I think the disappointment of getting AF each month is worse than the invasiveness associated with the laparoscopy so I would just move onto the laparoscopy.
Are you seeing a FS at an IVF place for your laparoscopy? If not, it might be worth going to the FS and talking about options and then having them to the laparoscopy, then they get the full picture. I was sorry I stuck with a gynaecologist that was not attached to an IVF clinic. I think things would have happened faster if I went to an FS at an IVF place straight away. It does not mean you have to do IVF, it just means when the time comes it is all there for you.

Wow thanks anney,
You have given me something to think about. I was wondering about seeing a fertility specialist bc everything seems be dragged out with gynie and I thought perhaps a FS would be wholeistic perhaps?
I rang on of the IVF places just now and I have to get a ref from my gp asap so I'll do just that, Thanks.
I havent been sure how to proceed and wasnt sure if I could see a FS unless I was finished being checked by the gynie. But now that I think about it he said if theres any prob he'll send me off to someone else (a FS?) so maybe I should just go there now?
Yes, I have had external & internal ultrasounds & blood tests. Dh has only just had his side of things tested and we are waiting for the results now.
From the look of my charts, my gynie said they looked very postive and that I most likely do ovulate. I am guessing if theres something wrong then it might only be found via a lap but I want to respect my Dh's opinion and wair a couple more cycles, he is nervous about the medicalisation of babymaking. I on the other hand I am getting on fertility-wise so I want to do what needs doing now!
Thanks again, great advice!!!:)

Howdy Sassba32,
I am seeing a FS and he tried me on Clomid before suggesting a Lap....but I have PCOS so already know that I dont ovulate.
But I know of a lot of women that do ovulate and take Clomid for LPDs and just a little hormone nudge to help things along...maybe that is all you need.
Good Luck
SAM :)

thanks sam!! I am going to FS asap! Maybe I could try that between now and lap?
I am quite excited, I want to take control and do whatever I can. The ttc waiting is so hard! thanks again, sassba

Hey Sassba,

Sorry...just saw your thread. Have been away :D

I have been seeing a fs for approx 4 months now after trying "naturally" for approx 2 years. I have done practically everything else other than a lap....so I guess now is the time to go ahead with it. You certainly need to explore your options but I have found through talking to allot of girls in BB that after doing several blood tests, HSG, semenanalysis, few cycles of clomid having a lap may have to be your next option.

Hope this helps girlie. Good luck :pray:

Considering your age I would not leave it any longer to get the lap done. A word of warning though.... it is very disappointing to put yourself through the lap and then be told there appears to be nothing wrong. That's what happened to me years ago and it's like you are actually wishing for them to find something that they can try and fix, and when they don't it's a huge let down. Just thought I'd warn you of that.

I'd also definately recommend going to an FS, so I'm really glad you are.

I've had two laps - one to remove a large cyst from my ovary (absolute nightmare, the pain afterwards was unbelievable) and a second to see what was going on in there after the first lap. Before the first one I'd fallen prg easily twice, had no issues with my ovaries, tubes, cycles etc but after the lap everything just went pear shaped. So I went to see an FS after a few months with the gynae (who'd done the first lap) and after an u/sound showed a few abnormalities, we figured the best thing to do was a second lap. After my first experience it was the last thing I wanted to do, I was terrified of going through that pain again. But to my amazement, the second lap was a totally different experience, the pain afterwards was minimal. It also saved me months of heartbreak because we discovered that I had extensive adhesions from my first surgery which had actually blocked one of my tubes. At this point we decided to cut to the chase and went straight to IVF.

So in hindsight, the second lap was the last thing I wanted to do (especially only 6 months after the first) but it was the best decision I could have made. There are some non-invasive things you can do like the girls have mentioned, blood work, ultrasounds, HSG but sometimes a lap is the only way to know exactly what you're dealing with.

Good luck!

Hello all,

Thanks so much for all your replies!

I am going to see a FS next week.
I am hoping that the Fs will give me a bit of an idea what my options are. I tend to agree that the lap is a logical step to take, I am nervous about it but all worth it I hope. Both my GP and my acupuncturist told me that many women get pregnant quite soon after a lap so that confers with all your great advice!
My Dh still wants to go a few more cycles before surgery so I'll give him two more months and then I get the lap!
thanks again!

Anytime hun!I've taken something from this forum too...not to get your hopes up too high in case you don't get the answers you were after..even though I know it is MUCH easier said than done!

Good luck :goodluck:

I had my Lap done today, internal U/S and bloodwork showed nothing unusual however I had 3 areas of endo removed and a sizeable adhesion removed as well. Considering they took about 2 hrs, I am in minimal pain and only discomfort when moving around. Not even any shoulder tip pain really, remember with that to stay elevated and not lie flat as that encourages left over gas to push the diaphragm and cause the pain.
I have an FS attached to IVF and I feel its much more comprehensive in investigating issues and without the Lap, I would never have known about these issues hindering my ability to conceive.
Good luck and I hope its a quick and painless journey for you.

Hi Sonya!
That is great news :)

I am booked in for a Lap and Hyst on Thursday July 12th. I am a bit nervous about it. But yuo have made me feel a lot more at ease about it. THanks.

SAM :)

Hi guys, some wonderful info from everyone, thanks!

I am now really hoping that I dont need it for financial reasons. I just found out I'll be out of pocket $1800!!!! & thats with private hospital cover! It sounds wrong!
I am seeing a FS soon so I hope that he offers some other options or at least cheaper options.
A good friend has suggested I just push for IVF to save time and money. I suppose there could be reasons that ivf may not be effective and you need to have a lap first? not sure?
Wow sonya, you sound pretty happy with your lap, hopefully you'll get pregnant really fast now!
Good luck for next week sam, hope you get answers and it goes as well as sonyas did.
thanks for all your feedback rara, willow, satya and anney!

Sassba,
From what I understand from talking to lots of people doing IVF, a large percentage of FS will do a lap before moving onto IVF. I think endometrosis (SP??) needs to be ruled out as it contributes to infertility and so getting rid of the endo. could mean you don't need IVF and IVF drugs can make it worse and I think a lap is the only way it can be diagnosed.
$1800 sounds alot of money. There was a thread about this a few weeks ago as someone had been quoted about $3000 out of pocket but I think that was with some endo removal as well. I had an exploratory lap and hysterosalpingraphy (ie. where the put dye into your uterus to see it go up the tubes to make sure tubes are unblocked) they usually do that with a lap if you have not had the dye test done before. anyway, I had this done in late 2004 and had limited private health insurance that did not cover the hospital stay for the lap so I had to pay about $600 to the hospital for the bed, $200 to the anaesthetist and about $200 for the pathology lab but the doctors charges were fully covered by my PHI.
good luck.

Hi Anney,
it does seem too high doesnt it? I initially worked out that I would only need to pay $700 or so out of pocket but I was told yesterday that it's approx $1800, depending on what needs to be done, ie endo removal. That does include dye study which i am definately having done.
I dont know what to think?
I'll just see what the FS says next week I guess. thanks again, sassba