u/Daisy491

Trying to understand whether my slow-rising E2 may have affected egg maturity in my second IVF cycle.

I’m 39 with AMH around 0.8 and AFC usually 8–11. My first cycle I got 3 eggs, all mature/fertilized, but no blasts.

Second cycle was a different protocol (Clomid + Omni + gonadotropins) and my follicle cohort actually looked more even this time. By trigger I had follicles around 18, 15, 15, 14, 13. But after about stim day 9, my estrogen stopped rising quickly and was only going up around 100/day instead of doubling like earlier in the cycle up until day 9.

My clinic said the plateauing E2 was part of why they triggered on day 13 instead of pushing longer. Outcome was 3 eggs retrieved but only 1 mature/fertilized no blasts

Now I’m wondering:

* can follicles still gain meaningful maturity even if E2 is rising slowly/plateauing?

* do you think another day of stims might have helped the 15 mm follicles mature more?

* or does slow-rising E2 usually mean the cohort has kind of stalled biologically already??

I keep going back and forth between “maybe trigger timing hurt maturity” vs “maybe those follicles were never going to catch up anyway.”

Would especially love input from DOR patients who had borderline follicles + low maturity and whether changing trigger timing/trigger dose helped in later cycles.

I just turned 39 and I’m feeling really discouraged after two back-to-back IVF retrievals, and I’m trying to understand whether this sounds more like protocol issues, egg quality, or just bad luck with small numbers.

My numbers:

AMH: 0.80

AFC: 6–10

FSH: 10–16

I’ve always had regular cycles, I’m a healthy weight, never smoked or drank, and my husband is 35 with an excellent semen analysis.

Cycle 1 (natural start)

Protocol:

Menopur 150 → 225

Follistim 300

Ganirelix

Dual trigger: 5k HCG + Lupron

Stimmed about 9 days.

Follicles at trigger:

20, 13, 12

Results:

3 eggs retrieved

All 3 were mature and fertilized normally

None made it to blast

Cycle 2 (started 10 days after first retrieval, natural start)

Protocol:

Added Omnitrope for 9 days

Clomid 100 mg daily

Follistim 300

Menopur 150 (later increased to 4 vials)

Ganirelix

Dual trigger: 5k HCG + Lupron

Stimmed about 13 days.

This cycle initially looked more promising:

5 follicles at trigger: 18, 15, 15, 14, 13

E2 reached 1100 (vs 589 the first cycle), though they said it plateaued

Results:

3 eggs retrieved

1 egg appeared abnormal

1 was immature

Only 1 mature egg for ICSI

It fertilized normally

What I’m struggling with most is the maturity issue in the second cycle. My doctor now wants to continue using Clomid but move toward more of a mini-stim approach. I’m trying to understand whether Clomid could actually have contributed to worse maturity.

In my first cycle, I didn’t use Clomid and although I had fewer follicles, all 3 eggs retrieved were mature and fertilized. In the second cycle, I had more follicles and higher estrogen, but most of the eggs were immature or abnormal.

So I’m wondering:

Has anyone had Clomid seem to negatively affect egg maturity?

Did switching protocols improve maturity or blast rates for you?

Has anyone had two cycles with low egg numbers/poor maturity/no blasts and later gone on to make blasts or euploids?

Did embryology ever identify a specific issue that helped explain outcomes?

I know age and ovarian reserve are factors, but after two difficult cycles back-to-back, I’m feeling really discouraged and would appreciate hearing from anyone who’s been through something similar.

I just turned 39 and I’m feeling really discouraged after two back-to-back IVF retrievals.

AMH: 0.80 AFC: 6–10 FSH 10-16 Cycle 1 (natural start)Menopur 150 → 225, Follistim 300, Ganirelix, dual trigger 5k hcg lupron. Follicles were 20, 12, 13 Stimmed about 9 days.

Results: 3 eggs retrieved all 3 mature and fertilized none made it to blast

Cycle 2 (natural start, 10 days after my first retrevial )Added Omnitrope for 9 days, Clomid 100 mg daily, Follistim 300, Menopur 150 (later increased to 4 vials), Ganirelix. Dual trigger 5k hcg and lupron. Stimmed about 13 days.

This cycle looked more promising — 5 follicles (at trigger 18,15,15,14,13) and E2 was 1100 (vs 589 last cycle). But they said the 1100 was a plateau

2nd results: 3 eggs retrieved (one looked abnormal other was immature) only 1 mature enough for ICSI And fertilized normally

I’m struggling to understand whether this sounds more like protocol, egg quality, or just bad luck with small numbers. I’ve always had regular cycles, healthy weight, never smoked or drank.

Has anyone had two cycles like this low egg numbers, poor maturity, no blasts and later gone on to get blasts or euploids? Did changing protocol help, or did embryology reveal anything important?

I’m feeling really in despair and discouraged right now. I have a regroup with my doctor on Thursday and looking for advice and what to ask and just hope.

I just turned 39 and I’m feeling really discouraged after two back-to-back IVF retrievals.

AMH: 0.80 AFC: 6–10 FSH 10-16

Cycle 1 (natural start)Menopur 150 → 225, Follistim 300, Ganirelix, dual trigger 5k hcg lupron. Follicles were 20, 12, 13

Stimmed about 9 days.

Results:

3 eggs retrieved all 3 mature and fertilized

none made it to blast

Cycle 2 (natural start, 10 days after my first retrevial )Added Omnitrope for 9 days, Clomid 100 mg daily, Follistim 300, Menopur 150 (later increased to 4 vials), Ganirelix. Dual trigger 5k hcg and lupron. Stimmed about 13 days.

This cycle looked more promising — 5 follicles (at trigger 18,15,15,14,13) and E2 was 1100 (vs 589 last cycle). But they said the 1100 was a plateau

2nd results:

3 eggs retrieved (one looked abnormal other was immature)

only 1 mature enough for ICSI

And fertilized normally

I’m struggling to understand whether this sounds more like protocol, egg quality, or just bad luck with small numbers.

I’ve always had regular cycles, healthy weight, never smoked or drank, and my husband’s semen analysis has been excellent and he’s 35.

Has anyone had two cycles like this low egg numbers, poor maturity, no blasts and later gone on to get blasts or euploids?

Did changing protocol help, or did embryology reveal anything important?

I’m feeling really in despair and discouraged right now.

I have a regroup with my doctor on Thursday and looking for advice and what to ask

I just turned 39 last month and I’m feeling really discouraged after two IVF retrievals back to back. I’m hoping to hear from anyone who had a similar start and eventually got blasts or euploids. AMH .80, age 39, AFC 6-10

Cycle 1 Natural start. Protocol was Menopur 150 IU, later increased to 225 IU, plus Follistim 300 IU, antagonist with Ganirelix, and a hcg/lupron dual trigger. I stimmed about 9 days.

Result:

* 3 eggs retrieved

* all 3 mature and fertilized

* none made it to blast

Cycle 2 Period Started about 10 days after retrieval with Natural start again. This time I used:

* Omnitrope start of stims for 9 days

* Clomid 100 mg daily (2 tablets)

* Follistim 300 IU

* Menopur 150 IU, later increased to 4 vials towards the end

* Ganirelix

I stimmed about 13 days. Everything was tracking great. 5 follicles e2 was 1100 this time vs 589 last cycle

Today I found out:

* 3 eggs retrieved

* only 1 was mature enough for ICSI today

* await fertilization report tomorrow

I’m really struggling. My RE thought adding meds like Omnitrope and Clomid might help, but this cycle feels even harder.

I’m trying to understand whether this sounds more like a protocol issue, an egg quality issue, or just bad luck with small numbers.

What’s confusing to me is that I’ve always had regular cycles, I’ve lived a very healthy lifestyle, never smoked, never used drugs, never drink, healthy weight, and my husband’s semen analysis has been excellent.

Has anyone started out with two cycles like this, low egg numbers, no blasts, poor maturity and then eventually had success?

Did you change protocol, keep going, or learn something important from embryology? I’m going to CCRM and they truly seem to have best labs in my area.

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