OK, SO WE RECENTLY NARROWED DOWN OUR CHOICES TO A TOTAL OF 4 - THEY ARE NOT ALL FROM THE SAME PLACE - THERE ARE 3 PLACES.
SO QUESTION 1 IS DO ANY OF YOU HAVE ANY PLACES THAT YOU SUGGEST WE STAY AWAY FROM?
OUR #1 PICK, WHO ON PAPER SEEMS ALMOST TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE MAY HAVE TO BE TAKEN OFF THE LIST COMPLETELY B/C IT TURNS OUT THAT HIS PLACE MAY NOT ACTUALLY SHIP TO NY. SO WE ARE WAITING TO HEAR FROM THE PLACE.
SO QUESTION 2 IS... HOW WERE YOUR SHIPPING EXPERIENCES? ANY NIGHTMARES? ANYTHING I SHOULD ASK THAT COULD MAKE OR BREAK THE DEAL?
OUR 2ND CHOICE WHO MAY BE MOVING TO THE #1 SPOT IS NOT WITHOUT PROBLEMS EITHER. ALL HE HAS AVAILABLE ARE IUI SAMPLES. BUT HE SEEMS MORE LIKE US, AND HIS BABY PIC COULD EASILY BE PUT RIGHT NEXT TO DAWN'S AND THEY COULD PASS FOR SIBLINGS.
SO QUESTION 3 IS... CAN YOU USE AN IUI SPECIMEN FOR AN AT HOME ICI ? WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS OF TRYING THAT?
WE HAVEN'T REALLY LOOKED INTO THE LAST 2 BECAUSE WE ARE REALLY ATTACHED TO THE FIRST 2. WE ALSO REALLY WANTED TO TRY TO DO THIS AT HOME INSTEAD OF AT A DOCTORS OFFICE BUT WE HAVE A LIMIT AS TO HOW MANY TIMES WE WILL TRY AND (BECAUSE OF A FEW CIRCUMSTANCES) WE WILL ONLY HAVE A WINDOW OF A FEW MONTHS DURING WHICH TO TRY.
SO QUESTION 4 IS HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE ONLY TRIED BUT HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL AT HOME? HOW MANY HAVE TRIED BOTH AT HOME AND DOCTOR BUT HAVE ONLY BEEN SUCCESSFUL AT DOCTOR?
A FEW PEOPLE HAVE SUGGESTED THAT WE DOUBLE UP SAMPLES TO INCREASE THE NUMBERS AND OUR CHANCES -
SO QUESTION 5 IS DID ANY OF YOU HEAR THE SAME THING? DID ANY OF YOU TRY IT AND FIND SUCCESS?
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST... ANY ADVICE AT ALL THAT YOU CAN GIVE ABOUT THINGS THAT WE SHOULD LOOK FOR OR ASK ABOUT WHEN DEALING WITH A SPERM BANK WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY OF YOU EVEN READ THIS - I KNOW I READ ALOT MORE BLOGS THEN I COMMENT ON - BUT ANY HELP WOULD BE HELPFUL.
SO MY LAST QUESTION IS MORE A POLITE REQUEST... CAN YOU SHARE SOME OF YOUR EXPERIENCES WITH US?
THANK YOU ALL FOR EVEN STOPPING BY AND READING THIS - IT IS NICE TO KNOW FROM OUR VISITS TO ALL OF YOUR BLOGS THAT MAYBE WE DO NOT HAVE THE SAME STORY AS YOU ALL BUT THERE IS A PIECE OF US THAT WE CAN RECOGNIZE IN ALL OF YOU AND THAT TAKES AWAY SOME OF THE FEAR AND DOUBTS. ALL OF YOUR STRENGTH AND DETERMINATION AND LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER IS UPLIFTING AND SO IMPORTANT TO US. SO WHILE WE MAY NOT COMMENT MUCH AND DO NOT HAVE THE FRIENDSHIPS THAT SOME OF YOU HAVE CREATED... WE JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU... THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING SUCH AMAZING PEOPLE... THANK YOU FOR FIGHTING FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE IN... FOR BELIEVING IN YOURSELVES AND EACHOTHER... AND FOR SHARING YOURSELVES . ALL OF OUR GOOD THOUGHTS ARE WITH YOU ALL NO MATTER WHERE IN YOUR JOURNEY YOU ARE. WE ARE RIGHT BESIDE YOU IN SPIRIT.
3 comments:
I don't have a lot to offer to your questions, mostly wanted you to know that I'm here cheering you on.
We did this 10 years ago, so I'm sure much has changed, but here's what I've got...
We used the California Cryobank and were very happy with them. Their customer service was professional and very helpful and shipping was right on time. We only did our insems at the doctor's office, and it worked on our second try. But I didn't have any fertility issues to deal with either so we were lucky. We used one sample with each cycle.
Hope this helps ~ Good luck!
Ok, let me see if I can give you some answers here, lol. I know I'm a little late in answering, but my partner just found your blog. Ours has been a 2+ yr journey, so what you're doing is really smart. I'm thinking that by place, you mean sperm banks? The best and easiest we found to use by far, was Fairfax Cryobank, and they ship anywhere.
Our shipping experience was great. This, however, we think, has to do with having a great sperm coordinator at our fertility center. Make sure you have a good connection with them and are clear about your goals and objectives and things should go smoothly.
You CAN use an IUI specimen at home for an ICI. We actually did this 3 times. However, the downfalls are that you're getting a really clean product, thus, smaller. Less of a mode of transportation if you will, and it's not suggested. The pros - 100% product. The cons - difficult not to waste. After trying forever, in center and at home, we actually got pregnant at home, with an unwashed specimen. Poof. Pregnant. I think it's a comfort level with a lot of people.
We were upset after a year of unsucessful tries at our center, even though they're great. And, we couldnt understand, why, when all was great, and they were inserting healthy sperm past my cervice, I still wasnt getting pregnant. I'll tell you what finally worked for us.
When they say it's relaxation, and forgetting it, they arent kidding. We took a months vacation (we know not everyone can do that, but a week would probably work well) and decided that we would try one more time. We inseminated FAR from home (mid West, we live in Cali) and did it at home, at the end of our vacation. We knew within ten days that we were pregnant. We're still amazed by this.
So, scorecard. Fertility center, at many thousands of hard earned dollars and many tries = 0
Home insem X4 while working and dealing with life = 0
On vacation insem with stress relief and high sperm count donor = 1
I know this is getting long, but we wanted you to know that there are others out there who have been trying to survive this exhausting process and finally made it. One of the big changes we made in addition to taking the vacation, was diet. We went all uprocessed and organic. This is an extreme change and not for everyone, but our 15 yr old son seemed to love it, and I love to cook, so it was pretty successful.
Please, feel free to contact us at any time if you have any other questions, or just need to vent. It's been a long ride, and we'd be happy to share with you anything you'd like to know. Good luck and take care, Michelle and Jen :)
Just some thoughts....we have been trying for 2 years and used California Cryobank in the beginning and then switched to Xytex. We love them both, but what we like about Xytex was the option not ony for baby pictures, but adult pictures as well. We came to realize that there are some really cute babies, but the adult pic...some not so much, and that was ok. We also learned to ask questions about "live" births and what we were dealing with as far as meeting future siblings. It also helped to know pre and post thaw counts with his sperm. We actually got pregnant from a donor with very high motility....we miscarried that baby at 11 weeks. Our current donor has very high counts too...so whatever it's worth...we pray postive results and minimal stress on your journey. Relaxaton is key.
Post a Comment