I obviously didn’t have any qualms about anonymous donors (though it has been a lot of fun to find siblings, so if that’s a possibility through donor number or something, that’s nice to have). I’d have more pause at cross-ethnicity issues with an international clinic (don’t get me started about a friend-of-friend white family who “adopted” full African embryos without thought to their identity) but since a Mexican/Latina donor would be an inclusion criterion for you anyway and you can fulfill cultural/identity needs, I’d say it sounds great.
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Those are big questions for sure, but it does sound promising given your circumstances etc @wooljaguar !
Still here! Still somewhat on fence. “If it happens it happens” and a multi page document for my care if it does happen.
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Sharing for @LadyDuck and of course general interest. CW mention of pregnancy loss. (gift link is unpaywalled)
Found it interesting that metformin increases levels of the problem hormone. 
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The metformin info is new to me! This part is particularly significant:
"There is kind of an assumption made by many people that women should just be able to cope with this,” Dr. Freathy said. With this biological explanation, she said, “there will be more belief that this is a real thing rather than something in somebody’s head.”
Seriously WAY too many medical staff are unaware of the severity and management of it. If we can point to a blood test to “prove” we have it then that stops emergency departments from sending people home “just drink more water! With ginger! And eat tiny snacks!”
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I really don’t understand how background knowledge of these disorders is not a requirement for employment in the field. It’s your goddamn job, people! This isn’t even a rare issue! And not to mention all the other issues/disorders this happens with! 
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I am one of the lucky ones where the ED doctor told me if they let me go home, that would be a breach of their care/ duty. But my OB didn’t pick up on how bad I was because I was so desperate to be fine. Meanwhile, women begging for care worldwide - this isn’t a single country issue, and some you’d expect to be better have horrific care methods - are being turned away!
Which is because some nausea & vomiting is expected, and then without clear guidelines some medical staff make stupid decisions.
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Seems kind of similar to endometriosis. Some period cramps are normal and it seems like most docs will go to extremes to convince you it’s just that. You’re sensitive to prostaglandins. You’re constipated because of hormones. And if all else fails "… do you really want to deal with the hassle and risks of SURGERY to fix your LITTLE PROBLEM? Just take these hormones. "
… and in the meantime it’s debilitating several days each month. And it may be invading more organs and causing more scarring and damage and tanking your fertility… (HG is of course debilitating every day and life-threatening.)
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Yes its absolutely similar to endo in that way! Huge impact to quality of life and not always life-threatening, and sure you cant work and might lose your job (high numbers of HG pregnant people end up losing their job one way or another during or after pregnancy, hello it me) but you’re alive so quit complaining. 
(The facepalm is me. Also lol i have had to fight these thoughts inside my own head.)
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YES! We shouldn’t downplay this part, either. You get gaslit enough, you start to wonder if you’re crazy (or weak, etc)
It has real effects!
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Well damn I guess oats are out. (organic might be OK)
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I went and read the original study when someone I know shared this yesterday, and IMO a lot of the headlines I’ve seen about this are overblown. First of all the study was funded by the Environmental Working Group which is known for fearmongering about chemicals in general. Secondly this particular chemical has shown mixed results in different studies; sometimes it does cause reproductive issues in rats/mice, and sometimes it doesn’t.
It seems to fall prey to the common problem in safety studies where researchers will give the rats/mice a HUGE dose, way higher than humans would realistically encounter, relatively, and it shows a negative effect. But almost anything has a bad effect at a really high dose, even obviously safe things like water. The dose makes the poison. Studies with more reasonable doses did not show the same negative effect.
As with anything, it’s a balance. Companies have definitely been guilty of using too much pesticide over the years, but at the same time you don’t want bugs in your oats or your cheerios either. As long as the levels are within the regulatory guidelines, which were set for a reason, it’s unlikely that the trace amounts would have a negative effect.
Of course everyone can make a personal decision about what they’re comfortable eating, but I also don’t think people who have eaten oats and cheerios in the past or continue to eat them in the future have too much to be worried about.
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Thanks for the fact check, these are great points. I’m usually quite skeptical of EWG talking points, but also skeptical when USDA or US FDA claim things are safe that the rest of the world outlaws. Although in general I don’t find it practicable to avoid specific ingredients/additives. But usually it’s like, a preservative in processed food which we generally minimize anyway. Oats are kind of a basic element…
Anyway, thanks again for the voice of reason! 
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Yeah, the FDA has definitely earned some skepticism too over the years! As much as I disagree with a lot of the EWG talking points, I do think it’s good that there is a group who pays attention to chemicals and regulations and pushes back. As with most things, the best answer is probably somewhere in the middle.
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Calling all IVF grads! @Bracken_Joy @BiblioFeroz @Bernadette and sorry if I forgot anyone
Would you do a mock cycle?
I have 2 euploid embryos, and one with no data, basically “untested”. (And two with deletions that are complicated.)
Doc says there’s not a statistically significant difference between people who did and did not do one, and it’s up to me. Nurse says it predominantly helps them figure out exact progesterone timing.
I’m risk averse and well paid… So a predominant part of me would rather lose 1 month and a couple grand than 1 embryo (valued at $15k), even if it’s a small chance it identifies a problem/change.
But am I just burning cash if I choose to do this?
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I didn’t do one. I don’t think it was offered, actually? And I was at CCRM!
They didn’t offer, I inquired 
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Hi from post-IVF land, where I’ve let a surprising number of details erode from memory. I did not do a mock cycle for either of my transfers. They did do a mock transfer (no injection cycle, no embryo, basically a dress rehearsal for the procedure) both times. The mock transfer wasn’t presented as optional.
For what it’s worth, I found the injections leading up to the transfer to be much more comfortable than the egg retrieval cycle. No bloating, as it’s essentially simulating a single pregnancy and not 5x or 10x or 30x egg production. On the other hand, my clinic monitored almost daily; their timing was probably pretty precise.
There’s a Pandora’s box of optimizations, and no right answer.
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Same as BF, not offered and I didn’t ask about it.
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So I got a call from the doc (she’s great that way 
) and she explained that all the available data/stats does not support doing a mock cycle for the 1st transfer having any benefits/changing the outcome.
And based on the one medical article I had time to skim so far, maybe it was more important previously, but the tech available now (catheters, imaging) is much better? And I know my doc has lots of experience with lot of uterii, so… We boldly go?
I have long weekend travel planned Mar 7-11 so I was gonna start after that. Go in for a baseline ultrasound in the intervening week.
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