Firstly my thoughts and prayers are still with Kacee and her family at this very difficult time and I will try and attend the prayer/reflection time with all the other board members today at 3PST.

I cycled in the Czech republic for our second fresh DE cycle - first fresh and subsequent frozen ended with positive betas that then kept dropping. I had done 4OE ivfs here in new york with my first having a beta of 218 to drop to 150 drs told me to stop the meds then betas kept doubling then u/s with heartbeats etc til 9 1/2 weeks then no hb. d&c done and normal fetus. I still feel that had i not been told to go off my progesterone that the outcome may have been very different. I was so naive back then ugh.

so anyway we transferred 2 blasts with none to freeze. the day after transfer while i was still in czech republic I received some terrible news about an older dog of mine that had to be put down. I was totally devastated and cried for hours. my poor dh was beside himself worried about me (i travelled alone this time!) thinking i would sob the embryos right outta my uterus. i had a glass of red wine i was so distraught. I arrived back the next day and fell sobbing into his arms. I sorta gave up on the cycle as I was so down in the dumps.

at 7DP5DT i started testing positive on the digital but i had been down this road many times before so I didn't get too excited. I had my first beta on monday HCg 127 progest 26. again I had been here before so we didnt get excited. second beta wed HCg 287 prog 20. was happy with beta not happy with progest!. third beta fri HCg 616 progest 18! so the beta is good and doubling but the progesterone is falling. My doc here said up the progesterone so I emailed the dr in czech and he seems to think that everything is fine! i am erring on the side of caution and i am taking more progesterone.

i am still very unsure and i haven't really accepted the fact yet that i am indeed pregnant. i have another appointment monday with a blood draw and perhaps an ultrasound. we are still in denial. i want to say a special word of thanks to my cheerleaders THK, thesameboat and Mary. and I want to thank hope2009 for opening me up to visualization even tho I suck at it! LMD sorry for the very long post!

I am so sorry about your dog. Congratulations on your bfp, I will be thinking positive thoughts for you!

I am glad that you posted. I haven't been on the boards much lately, but I have been wondering how you have been doing. I am so very sorry to hear about your dog and that you were so far away when he died. That must have been very difficult.

I agree with you that you should err on the side of caution and add more progesterone like the RE here suggested. It has been my experience that the REs in the CR don't really test for progesterone and tend to not deviate from their standard protocols much. From what I have read, there would be no harm, but it could very well help, to increase your progesterone. My guess is that you are on the suppositories if you cycled in the CR, is that right? Would your RE add the PIO in addition to the suppositories? I would maybe ask about that as well. I am not a doctor, I only know enough to be dangerous and enough to help you come up with a list of questions for your doctor.

I will hope and pray and keep my fingers crossed that your betas continue to double, your P4 increases and that you soon hear/see a hb and that your pg goes smoothly. I hope to see you cross over to the pink soon, and with NO DRAMA. You've had more than enough of that already.

I adore you, Margolis. I truly do!

And, if I remember correctly, once you asked for someone to bring Captain Crunch to you from the states, is that right? Well, ever since then, I felt like we were kindred spirits. I grew up on Captain Crunch, and it is my comfort food along with chocolate and cherry coke. IT brings me back to a time when life was great, and I had no responsibilities. I was an early riser as a kid, so my dad (also an early riser) would fix me a small bowl of captain crunch. Then I would sit on his lap and he would read me the funnies (sunday paper comics) while everyone else slept. I loved that time, when I didn't have to share my daddy with my brother or sister. When they FINALLY woke up, we would all have pancakes, or something together. But, I just loved my captain crunch time with my daddy. No wonder I was always a daddy's girl!!!

ANd yes, at least I admit I am dangerous and always run to a professional, armed with my newly obtained knowledge from Dr. Google. I always say, Dr. Google is a wonderful tool to gather info, empower yourself and give yourself enough information to ask the right questions from your doctor. But, it is quite dangerous to be an "armchair" doctor, much like an armchair quarterback, huh? At least i admit it. The only thing more dangerous is to not admit it.

of your fur baby. I think is is better to err on the side of caution when it comes to progesterone and am glad you are taking more. I believe that this one is going to be your miracle.

I'm so happy for you! Definitely up your progesterone. How do they have you taking it?

I am so sorry for the loss of your doggie. I truly know how horrible that is. We lost one of ours on the day of my transfer (2nd transfer) when we were out of country. It just put a dark stain on everything. I like to think to myself though that when/if there is a heaven, the people are going to have to wait in line to say hi to me, I'm going to be attacked by all my beloved pets when I get there! LOL!

Keep us posted about your u/s!

All my best!

ks

I really think it's the right thing to do. (Though I'm not a doctor. Ha!)

And don't forget, your chances with DE are much higher than with OE. This is not like that other time. It's a whole different ball game.

(( ))

I hope things will continue to progress for a healthy pregnancy. I agree with the pp about increasing your PIO. The RE I was seeing told me extra PIO does not do any harm but not enough can cause problems. Keep us posted on your progress.

So sorry about the loss of your dog.

Yahhhhh! So happy to hear that you have had a successful cycle and agree that you should up the progesterone. Keep us updated

I'm so sorry about your dog, but glad to hear your beta results. Sounds like it would be a good idea to increase the progesterone, though I know not all doctors agree on that. Do you have an OB here in the states yet? I'll be thinking of you.

and i am so sorry i subjected you all to such a long post!

i am definitely taking more progesterone as i have slept all afternoon since posting this!! i am doing the "cooch bullets" but i will ask my dr on monday about shots. he is just a regular ob who has helped me with my overseas cycles but his staff are lovely and they are all pulling for us!

Thanks again everyone and i will keep you all posted. LMD

I hope you can continue to hold the vision that all shall be well with your pgcy. (I don't think the Universe cares if you are good at visualizing or not...there is power in dreaming) Believing that our dreams will come true is difficult when there is failure and loss...and on top of all of this your beloved dog passes away. I'm so sorry to hear this news.

After our first fresh cycle that resulted in a chemical pgcy, we lost our siamese cat and I was just so very sad....during our following FET I had a hard time believing that something good for a change was going to occur...but it did.

And yet if you can hold your vision and believe, there is magic in all of that...I don't understand it but I've seen this happen again and again. After periods of devastating loss the sun comes out and shines. If we can hold on through the storm and remember this, it makes the path more bearable.

Congratulations again...enjoy the journey and the early days of this pgcy.

Blessings from Hope

And yes, upping the prog. cant hurt anything. Drs usually like to see prog. 15 or above for a single, 20 and above for multiple. So, while you are in the range, if it makes you feel more comfortable, then add more.

Also, keep in mind that the crinone (bullets) will not show up in your blood (only the pills/shots) as the crinone is absorbed right there where its needed. So you actually have a bit more than the blood work shows.

Another thing - you may want to continue on the baby aspirin - talk to your doctor. My Dutch drs had me continue one baby aspirin (or one lose dose tablet) per day until a week before I delivered. Again, probably cant hurt, might help, worth checking into.

Wishing you a very happy very healthy pregnancy!

Kay

" Some people built castles in the air. She constructed hers from mashed potatoes, which kept down demolition costs." Sarah Sloane, Borrowing Priviledges

Do they have you on Crinone, LMD? My sense is that the Czech RE's are far less anxious about blood P4 than U.S. doctors, but they really want it up near your uterus. That being said, my clinic (KRGM Zlin) has doubled the oral P4 in their "standard" protocol since I cycled in 2009. As far as I know, it doesn't hurt anything to take more P4, except to make you groggier and more nauseous and have more urinary urgency, so why not? I wish you all the luck in the world, and keep us posted! Take care, Maggie (in VA)

I hope you get good test results on Monday. And I also think it is a good idea to increase the progesterone. I don't know about crinone but my RE had me taking a dose of 200 prometrium suppositories three times a day as their standard practice for DE cycles. I'm not sure how that compares with your brand of meds.

I'm so very sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. It is very hard to lose a loved pet and I hope you wil be able to be at peace with that loss soon.

I need 2 cc progesterone to sustain a pregnancy. Some women only need 1 cc. 2 cc daily is the max my RE recommends and she says that there is no downside to having a lot of progesterone in your system, only downsides is in having too little so if it were me, I'd start taking more progesterone right now.

Good Luck

I'm glad that despite your expectations, that you are well on your way! I wish you continued best of luck for a healthy pregnancy.


Also, I'm sorry about the loss of your beloved furry friend.

Christine