Archives for October 2009

IVF and Multiple Births

October 21, 2009 By Carol Leave a Comment

Recent news coverage has focused on high rates of multiple births in IVF. More attention than usual has dominated the news due to Nadya Suleman, otherwise known as Octomum, who gave birth to eight babies at the same time after having had IVF treatment. A Queensland couple have also sparked the debate with women giving birth to a set of twins after already having had 2 sets of quadruplets.

The impact of the news coverage has been to condemn IVF clinics and specialists. In truth, the majority of clinics only recommend implanting a single embryo. This is because multiple births can be more risky for both the mother and the infants than a single birth. For example, the risk of cerebral palsy is six times higher for twins, and twenty times higher for triplets. Infant mortality rates are also higher. Multiple births can also be a risk to the mother. Apart from the risk of high blood pressure, there is an increased risk of miscarriage and premature birth. If an infant is born too prematurely, breathing and feeding complications may arise.

Changing the Medicare rebate in Australia has now sparked concerns that there will be a two for the price on one mentality with more women rushing to have more embryos implanted so as to increase their chances of success. Whilst it is easy to look at these statistics, a greater issue may be the fact that increasingly women are delaying motherhood until well into their thirties where the chance of conception is lower. A women’s biological clock may just give greater clues to an apparent rush on transferring more than one embryo.

Breakthrough in IVF Technology

October 20, 2009 By Carol Leave a Comment

An innovative step forward in IVF procedures is offering fresh hope to thousands of women who struggle to conceive. According to the outcome of the latest trial in Britain, the new test significantly increases the possibility of a female achieving a successful conception.

British scientists assert that they’ve developed an embryo screening procedure which triples the likelihood of a woman successfully achieving pregnancy and giving birth.

The embryos are examined to rule out any potential hereditary abnormalities, which are a risk predominantly among older women. The screening checks chromosomes in the embryo and only those embryos with the maximum possibility of success are used.

Experts claim the technology will be up and running in 2-3 years. Being an “older” women myself, I for one think it is not soon enough. Bring it on!

Another IVF Failure

October 11, 2009 By Carol 1 Comment

Despite the build up, excitement and prayers, I have lost in another round of IVF. Cycle number 8 like every other cycle beforehand failed. We have now used the last of our frozen embryos. This means that I will be doing yet another IVF cycle which I will aim to do before Christmas.

Christmas is probably not the most ideal time to conceive, but it becomes a financial consideration. If I can get one more round of IVF before the end of the year then I will be eligible to get a higher level of rebate back from Medicare. Trust me, after eight rounds of IVF your finances do wear pretty thin.

Surprisingly I am not upset this time around. Maybe I felt that that since our other 4 frozen embryos no good, then this one wouldn’t be much chop either. I think my conclusion is that it was a bad batch! It’s big turn around from last time as the last few times was absolutely devastating. This time I have only experienced mild disappointment. Maybe I am starting to believe that I will never experience motherhood. On the flip side I am not totally ready to give up either. Here’s to another round! Any takers.

Embryo Transfer Entourage

October 5, 2009 By Carol Leave a Comment

On Saturday I had my last frozen embryo transferred into my uterus. Nothing unusual about that apart from the fact that were several people present during the transfer that normally would not be there.

Besides the usual suspects of having the Doctor, Nurse and Embryologist in the room, I also brought three other very important people in my life along – my husband, my mother-in-law and my mother who had flown in from Perth to help me celebrate my recent 40th birthday.

Picture this. Three scientists plus my two mothers and my husband all watching as I put my legs in stirrups and spread em! Who would have thought this was possible. After 7 rounds of IVF and several doctors, nurses and embryologists later, you become de-sensitized to normal thoughts of modesty. Seriously though, it wasn’t so bad.

My family had back row seats and were solidly behind me when all this action was taking place. They had the privilege of watching the big screen – only trouble was that there was no Gold Class seats. Lets just say that the tiny little room was somewhat cramped.

In any case, all went on without a hitch. My mother was treated to a once in a lifetime opportunity for watching her potential grandmother hood on the ultrasound. My mother-in-law got to see science in action. My husband on the other hand was over it.

Maybe having the support around might act as a good luck charm. Who knows – maybe I am suspicious but my mother is a devout Christian so I figured getting her and God into the act might help my cause. Am I clutching at straws? Probably!

Next steps – live in the two week waiting zone.

IVF and Embryo Donation

October 4, 2009 By Carol Leave a Comment

A curious fact, is that the majority of IVF couples decide to destroy their remaining embryos once they feel they have completed their family. Outside of the destroy option, the remaining choices of what to do with leftover embryos also include:

Donating them to another couple
Donating them for research

At the risk of being controversial, I think this is a poor reflection of society today. What I find surprising is that people who have experienced the hardship of infertility and then successfully conceive, are often unwilling to share their fortunes with others by donating their embryos. Either we are being selfish or fearful of the repercussions of choosing the donate option. Commons fears in relation to embryo donation include:

The child coming to look for their biological parents at some point in the future
The child suddenly having a relationship with half brother or half sister

I am not trying to paint myself as a Saint. I do however feel that I have a unique perspective and I am not scared of the consequences of donation. My unique perspective really comes from the fact that I am adopted. Embryo donation is a lot like adoption.

There are some really good benefits of being adopted. I have had a wonderful life and have a wonderful mother and father. I also have a biological mother and father. Whilst I will never know my father, I have met my biological mother and her two children. I am eternally grateful to her for the simple fact that she did not have an abortion despite the circumstances of how I came to be conceived. By giving me up, she made two people who were unable to have kids (my parents) very happy. She helped create me and I am glad to be alive and am happy.

Of course, my mother was upset when I went to look for my birth mother but she has long accepted this. Since she has raised and loved me from a baby, she will never be replaced with my biological mother. My biological mother and I also have a special relationship but it is not the same as the relationship I have with my adopted mum. Meeting my natural mother some 20 years ago was a blessing – not just for me but also for her.

In meeting her, my biological mum was able to release the guilt she felt for giving me away. She felt reassured in her decision and was pleased that I was brought up well and was happy. For my part, I was able to get some answers to some questions I had. I also managed to form a strong relationship with my biological sister and was even a bridesmaid at her wedding. In all, it has been a win win situation for both our families.

When I look at my life this way, I would certainly be happy to donate any embryos I had left over once my own family had been completed. Of course, my husband has the opposite viewpoint to me and so we not be going down this path. I respect his choices and anyone else who makes similar choices even if they are not my views.

As a compromise, we will donate any of our spare embryos to research in the hope that the research will help couples experience pregnancy in the future. I hope my story however does give readers some food for thought regardless of what choices you make. I am also happy to answer any questions about being adopted if that helps people in making their decisions.