Planning IVF Abroad for February

I finally made contact with our consultant from Reprofit in the Czech Repulic regarding our IVF procedure using donor embryos. She informed me that we will not lose the embryos we selected if we postpone because they are reserved through the end of February.  However, my monthly cycle started on the 30th of December, which would have me starting my cycle for February around the 28th of January.  If that should happen, my transfer would have to take place over the weekend of February 17th and 18th.  In the past, all of my past IVF procedures scheduled the frozen embryo transfers on the 19th day of my cycle.  I'm not sure if the 20th or the 21st days will work because I had to come in the day before the transfer for an ultrasound, then the next day the transfer. I will have to check with the clinic to determine if they can do the ultrasound on Friday the 16th or possibly Saturday the 17th.  Honestly, I'm not sure if I want to twist fate, since the 19th day was successful for our last transfer. Not that I'm superstitious or anything;) 

Now here I am again wondering if I will need to postpone our embryo transfer for another month.  There are things you can do to hold off your cycle.  However, I'm not sure I want to risk it or if I can now.  I used birth control for our last transfer to control when it started.  I also ended up using an herbal remedy to start my cycle on the exact day we needed it to start for scheduling.  We lucked out and everything worked out well.  I'm worried for this time around because we are using airline miles for this trip to the Czech Republic.  I'm not sure how easy it is to reschedule my ticket if the timing is off and we have to postpone. We would also like to save as many miles as possible in case we need to make the trip again. I may have to use more miles for the trip if I have to go in March. 

There are other medical options that can be used to hold off your cycle for an IVF procedure. Although, it is recommended that you plan ahead of time for this. Unfortunately, I missed the window of opportunity for this.  These options have also never worked out for me because I have not been able to find a doctor to prescribe the medications needed here in the US.  Since we are doing our IVF abroad, the prescriptions written by the foreign doctor have not been considered verifiable her in the US.  Albeit, I would have had to go through Reprofit's pharmacy and have them send me the medications.  Frankly, my husband the attorney has never been too keen on this idea so I have never done it.  Up til now I have been able to plan our transfers around my regular cycles.  However, I did have help from our consultant with Miracles Waiting, Paloma. Something to keep in mind if you are considering IVF abroad, going through the clinic vs. a private service such as Miracles Waiting or My IVF Alternative.

It's frustrating to think that I may have to postpone again.  If my cycle can hold off for one day everything will be fine!  Or if it wants to start a couple of days early, that would be great as well. So I will be crossing my fingers.  If we have to postpone, then there's also the fact that our donor embryo's are only reserved until the end of February.  While my husband and I understand that we may have to go with a different set of donor embryos, we feel connected to these  and would like to hold on to them. We will see what happens.

As for now, I will schedule my flights as if everything will go as planned.  Wishful thinking at this point is better than negative thinking, right?  I may hold off on the hotel reservations though, because its harder to cancel or reschedule the hotel arrangements.  There's always a big risk in losing your money. I can hold off and hopefully still find some good rates as we get closer to the date. 

Please feel free to email me with any questions you may have about IVF abroad, Reprofit or Embryo Donation or if you are looking for a cycle buddy. My email address is  WeTravelledforIVF@gmail.com. Until next time....

More Information about Reprofit International in Czech Republic!

I recently stumbled upon a few Reprofit videos on YouTube.com. For those of you who are researching IVF clinics abroad and are still making a decision, I thought you might find them informative.  The video's were actually created by MyIVFAlternative.com a consultant service that appears to have a direct link with Reprofit.  If you are not sure if you want to work directly with the clinic and would like someone to coordinate services and help with travel arrangements, then they are good a choice.  They have a very informative website and also provide several testimonials. While I did not go through My IVF Alternative, I have seen many very favorable reviews on several IVF discussion boards about their services.

The first video is of Dr. Mark Koudelka, he is the head physician of the Reprofit clinic.  He actually performed our first frozen embryo transfer (FET) back in February 2013.  He was very nice and spoke perfect english. He was also very professional.

The second video is Dr. Stephen Machac. I interacted with Dr. Machac via email for both of our embryo transfers, our first in February and the second in October 2014. He was responsible for evaluating my medical files and creating my treatment protocol prior to the transfer. He is the head physician responsible for all clients coming to the clinic for treatment.  We never met face to face.  However, what limited communications we had with him were very pleasant and professional.

The last video is a fun video that includes the entire Reprofit Team. I actually recognize several of the nurses and staff in the video from our time at Reprofit. 

If you are in the process of researching IVF clinics abroad and are not finding much information online, I highly suggest checking out YouTube.com.  I found all of the videos above as well as several others and a few patient testimonials.

Good luck with your IVF abroad research and please feel free to contact me via email at WeTravelledforIVF@gmail.com if you have any questions about travelling for abroad for IVF, embryo donation or would just like to chat.

Postponing IVF Embryo Donation Procedure to February

I wrote another post about a week ago.  Unfortunately, I accidentally deleted everything I wrote over the course of a week and had to start over.  I was so frustrated that it's taken me a little while to muster up the nerve to type it all over again.  So, I apologize for the delay in posting.

A few weeks ago I posted about how we were contemplating postponing the embryo  transfer to February. After a lot of  thought, we decided to postpone the procedure.  I have not received a response to my email from our Reprofit consultant. I completely forgot that the clinic closes over the holidays.  I'm sending another email today to see if I get a response.  If I don't get a response, I will try calling the clinic sometime next week or the week after.

The consultant mentioned in a previous email that they would hold the embryo's until the first of February. I am hoping that when I make contact with the clinic, that a couple of weeks will not matter.  We would hate to lose these embryo's due to our inability to make everything happen in January.

As for getting ready for the procedure, I have already started eating healthier.  Although, it has been difficult over the holiday season.  I will let you know how I do tonight for Christmas Eve dinner and over the weekend with all of the holiday events we have scheduled.  As I've mentioned in previous posts I have a terrible sweet tooth, and the holidays are a difficult time for me to try and avoid them since they are EVERYWHERE;)

I have also managed to get back into my regular exercise routine.  I've only been able to manage three miles four nights a week.  However, anything at this point is better than nothing.  It's good to exercise and get the blood flowing.  My OB told me while pregnant with my daughter that exercise improves circulation.  The more blood circulating throughout the body, the greater my chances are for embryo implantation!  And we want that:):)

As far as travel arrangements are concerned, I have managed to save up enough miles for two round trip tickets to Europe.  Our plan is for me to travel by myself this time around. If this transfer is unsuccessful, we will have the ability to try again without "breaking the bank".  I'm hoping I'll be able to use my miles to fly directly into Prague, and then use a Student Agency bus to travel into Brno.  If I'm not able to fly into Prague, I will also try flying directly into Vienna then taking a Student Agency bus from there.  Not sure what I can get for miles, so we will see.

Flying into Dublin is the most inexpensive option.  However, to fly into Brno requires that I fly into Dublin, then into England and then into Brno.  Three flights is a lot considering I will be trying to squeeze all of this travel into four or five days. I actually would not mind the 3 hour bus ride from Prague into Brno, or the 1 hour bus ride from Vienna into Brno....over multiple flights.  I would be able to use the time to catch up on sleep and just relax before the procedure. 

I'm planning on making my travel arrangements within the next week, so I will break out my itinerary for you and will let you know what I end up doing.