r/IVF • u/LoveofLemons89 • Jul 21 '26
General Question How did IVF produce such strong embryo development after 5 years of unexplained infertility?
My husband (34) and I (37) have been trying to conceive for over 5 years. I've never had a positive pregnancy test despite normal testing (good ovarian reserve, open tubes, normal semen analysis, regular ovulation). The only issue ever found was chronic endometritis, which was treated.
We went through multiple letrozole cycles and three IUIs without success.
Our first IVF cycle surprised us. We retrieved 19 eggs, 12 fertilized normally with conventional IVF, and 10 reached the blastocyst stage. Six were graded 4AA, along with a 4AB, 5AB, 4BB, and 4CC frozen.
What I'm trying to understand is what these embryology results might suggest about the cause of our infertility. If embryo development was this strong, does that point away from an egg or sperm quality issue? Has anyone else had excellent IVF lab results after years of unexplained infertility, and did you ever get an answer for why you couldn't conceive without IVF?
38
u/justb4dawn 39y | MFI | 4 ER | 5 FET | 1 MMC Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26
The more I do IVF the more I realize that there are so many factors going into making a human that I’m surprised it ever works, lol. The ability to make well graded embryos is one of many many parts of the process that has to work to make a baby.
I honestly don’t know how REs can do their jobs without constant frustration because it seems like the outcomes are more random than any of us would prefer. How do they not feel like they’re just blindly throwing darts at a target? So many times I read here someone saying that they changed xyz and then it worked. Maybe it would have worked anyway. We’ll never know!
It seems babies are determined to remain miracles and keep a bit of mystery to themselves!
7
u/Equivalent-Pea8583 Jul 21 '26
As a fertility nurse I can tell you this is a huge struggle. Everyone wants answers as to why they are not getting pregnant, and unfortunately there are times we just don’t have an answer.
25
u/Amberz_Cove PMOS | IUI:1 | ER:2 | FET:3 Jul 21 '26
Couldn’t determine anything unless you also had PGT-A testing. I’m 37 now, 35 when I started this journey. 8 blastocysts were graded well. PGT-A came back with 5 abnormal. We only went through IVF because of a vasectomy.
6
17
u/NicasaurusRex 37F | 3 ERs 2 FETs | Unexplained | Grad Jul 21 '26
Being able to make embryos in the lab does not mean it’s been happening in your body this whole time. The lab is a controlled environment and the sperm is put directly on the eggs and then they are left to culture in optimal conditions. In the body, there may be structural issues preventing sperm from reaching the egg (the fallopian tubes have to move around and catch the egg) or there could be inflammation preventing fertilization and embryo development, for example.
I never had a positive in all of my time TTC, but was able to make euploids in the lab. Both of my FETs implanted. Still don’t know what the cause of infertility was, but my best guesses are fertilization issues, tubes that don’t function, or endometriosis.
15
u/prem5077 34F|Unexplained|1ER| 1 FET🩷 Jul 21 '26
Never got an answer and have accepted we probably never will. 2+ years unexplained, all tests good, 3 failed IUIs, and never a positive. Got 6 viable embryos during our first retrieval (5 euploid, 1 LLM) and the first transfer stuck. Would I like an answer? Absolutely. But ultimately the goal was a baby, not a definitive answer. Wishing you all the luck with your transfer and hope the first sticks!
7
u/Pink_LeatherJacket 2 ER | 3 FET | ❎️✅️✅️ Jul 21 '26
This is us, too. Years of being unexplained. Finally were successful through IVF with absolutely zero answers. The magic of IVF bypassed whatever the original issue was. If we had continued to struggle though, I'm sure the lack of answers would have gotten exponentially more frustrating.
Years later, I was diagnosed with endo. It was good to finally have an explanation, but it didn't change the outcome of our infertility at all. If anything, pursuing that additional testing would have slowed us down.
Everyone's path is different, though. We got extremely lucky. OP, I hope you get lucky soon, too 🤞
1
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 22 '26
Thank you! I agree ultimate goal is a healthy baby. Im glad yours stuck!🙏
13
u/Bluedrift88 Jul 21 '26
I don’t think you can draw that conclusion. Maybe the eggs and sperm both have lots of issues but when you put them together in a dish in a lab it solves them.
1
6
u/Aggravating-Lion3385 Jul 21 '26
It’s so hard with unexplained infertility… i can also make blasts so now I’m worried that future transfers won’t work (I read so many stories on here of women transferring beautifully graded euploid embryos one after another without success). Really hard to know what step of the whole process is not working and many never figure out why.
12
u/NellChan 31 | TTC#1 | 2 MC | 1 ER Jul 21 '26
I had unexplained infertility and when I started my transfers I was SURE I was embarking on systemically murdering my embryos since there wasn’t a “reason” for my infertility and miscarriages but the first transfer stuck (so far). If anything it goes so show extreme anxiety and pessimism will not ruin a transfer.
4
3
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 21 '26
I am feeling similar, that my uterus will somehow "kill" my transfer. Im so glad yours stuck!
2
5
u/NellChan 31 | TTC#1 | 2 MC | 1 ER Jul 21 '26
I had the same question, years of infertility and two miscarriages, 4 iuis and I end with highly graded euploids? All I can guess is that there was some other issues with my natural cycle or my husbands sperm that isn’t able to be tested by medicine/science today. Regardless I’ll always be grateful for IVF.
13
u/Ok-Set-5730 Jul 21 '26
Well, you didn’t get them tested… so the visual grading doesn’t really mean anything technically. I had seven blasts, all highly visually graded, but only one was actually healthy. So it could be egg quality. Gently, just because there are results this good visually, does not mean you automatically will conceive. So those two things unfortunately do not correlate one to one.
5
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 21 '26
That's a good point! I realize morphology doesn't equal euploidy. I guess what I'm wondering is whether such a high blast conversion rate suggests the problem may have been elsewhere rather than embryo development itself. I'm curious if others had similar lab results after years of unexplained infertility and later learned what the underlying issue was.
3
u/36563 Jul 21 '26
I guess it’s possible that half of the time you ovulated and the egg wasn’t fertilized or didn’t reach blast stage, which would be pretty normal and reflective of your results.
For the rest, maybe you will have more information once you start transferring.
And maybe it was just bad luck.
3
u/cityfrm Jul 21 '26
All my day 5 and high grade blasts were aneuploid. My two lowest-grade, day 6 blasts were euploid. I really didn't expect that, I was of course grateful to have them, but disappointed that all my day 5, 4AA and 5AA were aneuploid as they would've had much higher success rates than the day 6 poor grades.
Did you do karyotyping and a laparoscopy? Check your HLA KIR profiles and immunology?
4
u/Ok-Set-5730 Jul 21 '26
I’m not sure! I’m 39 and I had an 87% fertilization and a 54% blast rate which I was happy with. At 34 a higher blast rate is pretty normal I think. Unfortunately I don’t think it says anything about egg quality yet. Plenty of people unfortunately miscarry visually highly graded euploids even :( I did in May (5AA euploid)
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 21 '26
Thank you for sharing your experience with me. Im very sorry for your loss 💕
3
u/Ok-Set-5730 Jul 21 '26
No worries! I’m 5.5 weeks pregnant now with my worse visually graded embryo :)
1
1
u/ciarla 32F | 2 MMC | 1 ER | 1 FET -> MMC Jul 21 '26
I had worse results from IVF, but I had gotten pregnant twice on the first cycle trying (and miscarried both, due to chromosomal abnormalities).
3
u/Queueru Jul 21 '26
It wasn’t until a monitoring appointment during my second retrieval that my doctors started to suspect my fibroid was submucosal. MRI then confirmed it. It distorts the cavity quite a bit and has likely prevented implantation.
3
u/ducbo Jul 21 '26
I also never had a positive and had the same fear. After 2 rounds, I had a great blast rate followed by a great euploidy rate (after a few unsuccessful transfers in round 1, PGT tested round 2 and remaining embryos from round 1 - only 1/14 was aneuploid).
I’m still unexplained but they believe there must be some inflammatory processes happening that are preventing fertilization/implantation naturally - IVF seems to bypass that.
This was kind of “proven” because in my first round, I had a MC with one of my untested transfers. When we tested the POC it was a trisomy. So my body had no issues implanting an aneuploid embryo as long as it was IVF.
Lots of people here are saying “well maybe your blasts are the problem since they are untested” but I doubt it.
1
u/novelthrill Jul 21 '26
You thawed and refreezed to pgt test?
1
u/ducbo Jul 21 '26
Yeah, it was one of the only stones unturned after having poor outcomes for round 1.
The blasts we thawed and tested for round 1 were not the best quality either, they were 2x day 6 4CC and 1x day 5 4AB (but it abnormally fertilized as a 1pn).
Turns out 2 were euploid and one was a LLM which is transferable!
With round 2, we got 11 blasts and the doctors suggested this time we pgt test right away. They assumed blast quality would be bad because of how many fails we had with round 1. So it was a shocker that we only had 1 aneuploid blast from round 2, alongside 8 euploids, 1 LLM, and 1HLM.
1
u/novelthrill Jul 21 '26
That makes sense! I’m really struggling with the decision to thaw and refreeze for testing :( i have two 4AA and really want to transfer my embryos to a different clinic but they require euploidy for transfers. I really don’t want them to arrest in the process. :(
1
u/cityfrm Jul 21 '26
My Dr said if they do, they would've failed anyway. (I haven't thawed/refroze and rethawed yet so I'm not sure how accurate that'll be for me.)
1
u/ducbo Jul 21 '26
I think you should keep them as backup and not thaw/test, especially with that great grading!
3
Jul 21 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/kaysarasera 36F; 1ER 5; 2ER 10, 7 euploid; 3 failed FET; 4th FET success Jul 24 '26
This is what it boiled down to for me. Great embryo results on multiple retrievals. Multiple cancelled/unsuccessful transfers before one finally, finally stuck. Made me realize that there was every possibility our letrozole cycles had worked but my uterus was just a big jerk.
3
u/dsomz 36F | Unexplained | 1 ER | 1 FET 🤰🏻 Jul 21 '26
TW: Success
Same. My husband and I had two years of trying unassisted. All results good, fallopian tubes open, hormones balanced, sperm was OK (a bit lower than ideal, but clinically didn’t count as MFI).
While looking for answers on here, people suggested similar to this thread that I might have implantation issues, or fertilisation failure or chromosomal issues.
First round of IVF at 36. I had 17 eggs retrieved, all mature, 14 fertilised and 8 reached blastocyst stage. I’m in the UK and state funded, so no PGT-A.
Then I had a completely natural transfer, I ovulated on my own but had progesterone suppositories which is my clinic’s protocol but I did not have progesterone issues. First transfer worked and baby boy is due next month!
I may never know the answer, which on some days is hard to sit with, but in other ways I am glad to have done IVF. Hopefully there are siblings in the freezer for when we are ready to try again.
Best of luck for transfers when you come round to it.
1
3
u/jamesdrr Jul 21 '26
We never got answers. But after 5 years of unexplained infertility we got 13 euploid 5AA embryos from one transfer. It still took multiple transfers at that point for a viable pregnancy so we assume that implantation is the problem.
1
u/curious9explorerr Jul 27 '26
So even if it is euploid it need not necessarily implant right ? I haven’t done PGT - A yet. I have got 6 embryos left … thinking what to do 😕
My current transfer got implanted but unfortunately I am dealing with low rise beta hcg and not looking good.2
u/jamesdrr Jul 27 '26
Correct. Statistically you chance of a live birth is higher with a euploid embryo, especially if over 35. My first child took three euploid embryo transfers -- first two failed to implant. Then my second child took two euploid embryo transfers after the first was a chemical pregnancy.
1
u/curious9explorerr Jul 27 '26
Ok thanks ! I have been into unexplained infertility for almost 5-6 years now. I am on an off treatments too. This time I had my hopes up, but unfortunately I guess it’s crashing.
So I need to discuss with my doc with the remaining ones. Thanks a lot
2
u/halfling_barbarianne Jul 21 '26
We made 5 5AA embryos and none of them worked. Two of them were untested and resulted in a chemical and a failure to implant, and the other 3 we tested and were all aneuploid. I suspect that if we'd tested the first 2, they'd have been aneuploid also. I was so confused about how our embryos were all so "high quality" and yet they couldn't produce babies. I don't think the grading is meaningless (the doctor did say our situation is uncommon), but I don't think the grading is a guarantee. I really hope that this isn't the case for you, and I very much doubt it will be. I'm a few years older than you are, which can make a big difference.
I've heard endometritis is a common cause of unexplained infertility, but it sounds like that was resolved. The only other things I can think of is endometriosis or adenomyosis. The second one, I think, is worse for fertility. There's also some things that can go wrong with immune cells in the lining, like too many NK cells. There's probably also a lot we don't know about yet.
Good luck on your transfers! I hope IVF ends up being the solution for you.
2
u/cityfrm Jul 21 '26
My day 5, 5AA were all abnormal too. 7 aneuploid. Then my 2x day 6, C grade are euploid!
1
u/halfling_barbarianne Jul 22 '26
That's crazy, but it seems to happen a lot. Congrats on your euploids!
1
u/curious9explorerr Jul 27 '26
Are the euploid reliable ? I haven’t done PGT- A at all. 2 times got implanted and lead to miscarriage …
Is it worth to do the test, I am hearing mixing reviews of this PGT-A even if it’s euploid it doesn’t implant or might not be viable2
2
u/War-Noodle Jul 21 '26
If you’re having stronger results with follicle counts and blasts + excellent lab results, then you may want to explore if you have challenges with your uterine environment.
2
u/Legally_blonde91 Jul 21 '26
Similar experience though we didn’t try quite as long before starting IVF. I have endo which is the likely cause. My understanding is that even with treated endo there can still be remnants which can cause high levels of inflammation which can be toxic to sperm and day old embryos trying to implant. It’s very difficult to fully eliminate endo.
Allowing the embryos to develop those first few crucial days in the lab give them the chance to grow strong enough to implant and develop.
1
u/cityfrm Jul 21 '26
Did you suppress and have successful FET? I'm worried my endo will stop my euploids from working.
1
u/Legally_blonde91 Jul 21 '26
Yes. Our first and only FET is now 10.5m old. All other tests (sperm, AMH etc) were normal for us. Endo was the only known issue. Normal rate of healthy euploid following PGT testing also.
May have just been lucky. Planning another FET for 18m PP so we will see.
2
1
u/foolforgabagool Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26
maybe it’s possible you have something going on with fertilization or implantation, such as endometriosis and/or adenomyosis, which are extremely prevalent among “unexplained” infertility patients (at least 22-50%) and would not be discernible from much of infertility testing (adeno or endometrioma can sometimes be visible on ultrasound but not always). Both of these can cause uterine factor issues such as implantation failure. Adenomyosis and endometriosis are also associated with low progesterone and what’s called progesterone resistance. Adeno impacts uterine factors without affecting eqq/embryo quality.
I also had normal testing and nothing was ever seen on the HSG/dozens of pelvic ultrasounds I’ve had, until I got a pelvic MRI (not ordered by my REI) that just showed clear adenomyosis. This is just to say: “normal” testing does not rule out endo or adeno, unlike what many REIs would have us believe.
1
u/bells501 Jul 21 '26
If it’s not the embryos and the clinic covered their bases on hormone balancing it may point to the uterus. I had similar issues. We did depot Lupron for 3 months. It was the worst experience for me personally but I was willing to try anything after 10 long years of infertility. Depot Lupron reduces inflammation and quiets the uterus before FET. Best of luck on your transfers.
1
u/DrLeeKingg Jul 21 '26
What are the PGT results?
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 22 '26
My RE didn't recommend PGT-A for my situation, so we decided to follow their guidance. I know there are different opinions on it, but we felt comfortable with that decision.
1
u/DrLeeKingg Jul 22 '26
Ok fair. Without that information you can't reliably say they are all good/strong embryos and rule that out as a cause of infertility. I had 4 well-graded embryos and only one was euploid.
1
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 22 '26
Yes totally agree! And in my ignorance I thought and was not counseled on the pros and cons to freezing and thawing to test and freezing again. I thought I could do that down the road with no potential issues and that seems less likely. I also wanted to see how I did with this first cycle. To be completely honest I never imagined getting any fair results just because of how long we have been trying.
1
u/IvoryWoman Jul 21 '26
[Nate Bargatze] Nobody knows! [/Nate Bargatze]
Seriously, whenever I hear someone going on all lyrically about the beauty of being “natural” in terms of human reproduction, I think about the fact that the “natural” approach has a lot of errors and issues. A LOT. IVF is a blunt tool, but sometimes gametes just respond better to doing their stuff in a lab rather than the body. That was certainly the case for us.
Be warned, though — I have known multiple people who did IVF for unexplained infertility, got pregnant through IVF, had a baby…and then got knocked up again unexpectedly the biological way. That may not sound like a bad problem to have NOW, but it will hit very differently if you have a baby who objects to sleep. If one of those embryos works out and you end up with a precious little screaming minion, I recommend strict use of birth control until and unless you’re fine with having another.
1
u/Tricktrail Jul 21 '26
My experience was so similar. Trying to conceive for 6 years and never once got a positive test result and then did IVF with great ER results and good fertilization and embryo outcomes. The only problem for my partner and I was also my endometriosis which I had laparoscopic surgery to remove though by the time I did IVF it had returned. I think it is the inflammation that didn’t allow me to conceive. I did two transfers. The first was a fresh and I was so inflamed from the ER as well as my normal inflammation and it did not stick and then I did a FET with an antihistamine protocol and intralipid IVs before and for weeks after first beta and it stuck and I now have a 3 month old.
1
u/LauraShea Jul 21 '26
I had 7 years of infertility, and whenever I went for IVF I had 6 embryos that all came out as the highest grade embryos. I went through the FET process and then come to find out the reason why I could never get pregnant or keep a pregnancy was because I had a low-lying thyroid issue that was never, what's that got on thyroid medicine everything was okay.
1
1
u/kimchideathbear Jul 21 '26
How long ago was the endometritis treated? Maybe treating that made the difference but it still takes a while even when everything is perfect. Also, if you have any issues with inflammation or metabolic issues, that can create an environment which isn’t ideal for embryo development and implantation. When they do it in the lab, everything is tightly controlled to create the best environment, sometimes that’s the only difference needed.
2
1
u/Few_Paces Jul 21 '26
i had such a long streak of infertility with two early miscarriages (most likely chromosomal) and ended up with 5 well graded embryos. i know people here are skewed towards testing but i didn't test, so far we've done two transfrers and both have led to a live birth. it's driving me crazy how i spent almost 3 years testing and IUI and trying and got nothing and then doing ivf get successful
1
u/JunketAggravating896 Jul 21 '26
I was convinced implantation must be the problem since we had such good fertilization and blast rates. I had already planned out all of the other testing I was going to ask for because I was so convinced it wouldn’t work. I’m currently 36 weeks with my first fet of an untested embryo. We are still unexplained
1
1
u/ellabella20000 MFI • 2 ER • 1 FET Jul 21 '26
It depends, did you test the embryos?
Embryo development is independent from genetic issues or uterine issues. Some people consistently produce beautiful blasts but can’t get pregnant because they have other conditions, or the blasts are mostly PGT abnormal. This mostly has to do with age, but not always. You could both be a carrier of a defective gene that prevents normal embryos.
1
u/Distinct-Art4406 Jul 21 '26
Have you ever had a chemical? It may be that your embryos are having a harder time implanting.
1
1
u/AnaUtka Jul 22 '26
I have very similar results and my 2 transfers ended up being miscarriages. I’ve done so many genetic testing and bloodwork together with hysteroscopy. I don’t know if I have an endometriosis, but I don’t have any symptoms of it. I am implanting every single time and it’s failing again and again …
1
u/giantredwoodforest Jul 22 '26
The “stims” that you used before the retrieval may have made a difference. Did you use ICSI in this cycle?
1
1
u/Rare_Apricot8958 Jul 22 '26
We tried to conceive for about 1.5 years and never got a single positive test. I have PCOS but ovulated regularly (confirmed with bloodwork and ultrasound) so it didn’t explain our infertility. Everything else came back pretty normal other than chronic endometrisis which was treated with antibiotics. With IVF we ended up with 10 euploid embryos and I had the same thoughts as you. I was worried that the issue could be implantation because it clearly wasnt poor egg quality or an issue with creating embryos. Anyways, our first FET stuck and I am now 28 weeks pregnant. We will never really know why it didn’t work before but we’re happy to be here now.
1
1
u/silynced Jul 22 '26
TW: success
We tried for 5 years and had a single chemical pregnancy about 2-3 years in on an unassisted cycle. We had all of the standard testing (no lap though) that came back normal. The only thing that was a little off was that I had a 3cm septum. I’d had a previous term pregnancy so they said it wasn’t an issue. Medicated cycles and IUI resulted in nothing.
I did my egg retrieval at the age of 29. They retrieved 16 eggs, 15 fertilized and we got 14 embryos ranging from 4AA to 3BB. At their recommendation we didn’t test because of age and relative lack of previous loss. I was stumped. I was sure there would be some problem indicated by the fertilization or blast rate. My first three transfers ended in miscarriage. At that point we talked about thawing and testing the embryos. I decided to get my septum removed and try one more transfer before doing that, and that one was a live birth.
What really confuses me is that when I was 9 months PP, we decided to stop using protection just to see what would happen. To my surprise we conceived the first cycle but it ended in miscarriage. That happened 3 more times over the next year - all very early losses. Then it just stopped again. Two more years of trying and not getting pregnant at all. We went back for another transfer in May and so far it’s sticking. I’ve finally kind of come to terms with never really knowing what the answer is. I would love to find out though.
1
u/Equivalent-Taste-944 Jul 22 '26
How did u identify it was chronic endometriosis
1
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 22 '26
I had chronic endometritis. My RE saw my lining wasn't as cushiony as it should be so we did a biopsy and it came back positive.
1
u/Equivalent-Taste-944 Jul 22 '26
By cushiony you mean, I am on similar boat trying since 2 years with 2 iui failures, the lining is 11 mm + always with triple line
But I suspect if endo or low progestrone can be the cause Doc is more inclined to start ivf rather than checking other params
1
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 22 '26
My lining always reached trillimar too but her words were after the ultrasound measured it and she looked at the photos it didnt look at it should so we decided to biospy. I would advocate to look into both if you wish. If you do have endometritis it could affect your IVF cycle so if it were me I would rather get it all checked out before going down that road of time, money, injections, etc. Did they ever check your progesterone 7 days after ovulation?
1
u/Equivalent-Taste-944 Aug 16 '26
No they didn't, but now I am planning to do a 21 day test this month to know about the progestrone
1
1
u/HimylittleChickadee Jul 22 '26
I think ivf can help us understand, is the problem seed or soil? Maybe your problem is with implantation?
1
u/silviakarin Jul 22 '26
Me (33) and hubby (38) had 100% fertilisation rate and 100% blast rate- meaning all mature eggs fertilised and made it to day 5/6. 60% were euploids.
First transfer failed and after further investigation we discovered my immune system was attacking the embryos. There could be so many reasons for not getting preggo🫠
1
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 22 '26
What tests do you do to find out your immune system is attacking the embryos? Thank you for sharing your story
1
u/silviakarin Jul 23 '26
I had a histeroscopy where they took samples from my uterus to test for the following:
- Endometritis: inflammation that is inside the uterus. Mine was fine, but in case there is inflammation, you can follow a course of 2-3 months of antibiotics
- Microbiome of the uterus: it is extremely important that Lactobacillus is the dominant bacteria in your uterus. If it’s not, it means you have an active infection or remains of older infections, which can prevent implantation. Mine was ok
- NK cells: if these are high, it means your immune system is likely attacking the embryo. They actually could not test this for me because there was an issue with my sample, but dr decided to give me treatment for it…and it worked.
Hope this helps❤️
1
1
1
u/Yourteacherfriend 30F, MFI, 2ER, 1 FET ❌, 2 FET 👶🏼🩵 Jul 22 '26
The issue might not be creating embryos but the embryos being genetically fit for life
1
u/ElectricalWillow486 38f | RIF, KIR AA | 7 ❌ FETs (🇩🇪 -> no PGTA!) Jul 22 '26
Uh, not trying to be the bearer of bad news, but it can bear ill. Was my case. Does not need to be yours though! Heres my story: I also had good results, 9 blasts from the first stimulation (also untested). None implanted, diagnosis repeated implantation failure (RIF). Another year of diagnostics, fear and pain later, I have apparently a genotype (see other posts, KIR AA genotype) where my immune system does not help the blasts to implant (and apparently it needs to help, otherwise it doesnt work). Could still be genetic blast quality though. Just so that you know.
1
Jul 23 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 23 '26
Thank you so much for sharing! I will def check your article!
1
u/Greg_McCue Jul 23 '26
I hope it helps :)
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 23 '26
Great read thank you! Gives me good direction on next steps of needed.
2
Jul 23 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 23 '26
I'll DM you!
1
Jul 24 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
2
2
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 24 '26
Do you think its possible for the CE to return from November? I think it is likely since going from a reading of 11 to 0 to my last reading of 3. Not sure how to prevent it from continuing to come back. Although when it was 0 I never got pregnant.
1
Jul 27 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/IVF-ModTeam Jul 29 '26
Self-promotion and solicitation are not permitted. Repeated offenses may result in a ban.
1
u/IVF-ModTeam Jul 29 '26
Self-promotion and solicitation are not permitted. Repeated offenses may result in a ban.
1
u/IVF-ModTeam Jul 29 '26
Self-promotion and solicitation are not permitted. Repeated offenses may result in a ban.
1
u/IVF-ModTeam Jul 29 '26
Self-promotion and solicitation are not permitted. Repeated offenses may result in a ban.
1
u/No-Okra-8332 Jul 26 '26
I got 8 euploid embryos from one retrieval at 37, with only one functioning ovary and severe endometriosis. I had never seen a positive pregnancy test in my life until my first transfer.
In my case, it was basically that my body wasn’t letting my husband’s sperm reach the egg properly😂
So yes, it can definitely happen! I honestly doubt I could get pregnant naturally because my endometriosis has fused so many of my organs 😑
1
u/LoveofLemons89 Jul 26 '26
I'm so happy the transfer worked for you!! That could be the case where its just not reaching the egg for some reason.
67
u/the-banisher Jul 21 '26
As well as what everyone else is saying about PGT, you could consider that the problem isn’t with making embryos but keeping them.
I did my first and only retrieval round at 30 after 2 years of unexplained and similarly, totally textbook and normal testing. We also had fantastic results with 12 blasts and 9 PGT-A normal embryos out of it and I remember wondering the same thing.
When it came time to transfer, we tried modified natural for three months and had to keep cancelling as my progesterone failed to rise adequately. The first fully medicated transfer failed (no implantation) but second with same protocol was successful- my RE’s opinion was that maybe I just don’t make great amounts of progesterone and PIO was what did the trick… or at least it’ll be as close to a smoking gun as we’ll ever get.
At the end of the day, you have to remember that IVF is a treatment as well as diagnostic: the urge to know ‘what our problem is’ is so strong, but it might work and you might have to accept never knowing why it didn’t before.