ivf DAD
Fertility treatment can be a numbers game, like a cruel game of Roulette, which can, if you’re lucky, let you hit the ultimate jackpot. This is not meant to be a podcast about the miracle that is Rosie, it’s about the road Chris travelled with his partner Patricia and recognises that for many, dreams just don’t come true, but for some, they really do. It’s a very personal story, with some difficult and uncomfortable truths, expert comments, different male perspectives and facts that hopefully help anyone going through the highs and lows that Chris went through. Throughout the podcast we’ll go behind the curtain at the clinic and meet the consultants, embryologists and those who helped us through the whole process.
Episodes
As fertility treatment ends, pregnancy begins...
After another set back we finally get the news we have been waiting for and we are let out into the big wide world! It came as a shock leaving The Lister Clinic to go and deal with the normal pregnancy dramas that others go through. There are still lessons to be learned; this isn't a 9-month journey, this is a six years and 9-month journey, and there is a lot of anxiety and pressure ...
What do you do when you think that you are at the end of the Fertility Road and you have one last throw of the dice? In this episode Trish and I took the hard decision to put our fertility treatment on hold and recharge our batteries. We had one "good" embryo and we put it in the freezer. We get married, come back and go again but nothing goes according to plan. We were running out of time and cash, but remember "It only takes o...
We tried everything. Wacky diets, rituals, natural remedies, strange looking herbs. Some things for 2 days, some things for 5 years, will we ever know what made the difference?
I delve deep into the hit, misses and maybe we found throughout the process - and look at what did and didn’t work for us. We talk to a Reflexologist and the Doctors at the Lister Hospital to get their take on alternative approach.
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This episode discusses alternatives during fertility treatment. Adoption, sperm and egg donation - anything that may give us the family we so desire. The reality of this can be difficult, and there are a huge amount of emotions. At this point it’s easy to blame each other, but the blame game is a game no one wins.
Once more we found that that the decision making process is a difficult one with complicated legal or ethical issues....
You have to have something in the first place to lose it, and that in a way is crueller.
This episode discusses a difficult topic - loss. Nothing can prepare you for the pain of a miscarriage, but it is important to remain as a team at this time. Whether you feel strong or not, you’re in it together and the support of each other is vital.
But here's the but. There’s not much written on this subject from a male perspective and i...
Onto another attempt after a negative pregnancy, we fast forward through 3 years and countless rounds and embryos, it feels like an endless cycle. How do you sustain hope when your results and biological clock are heading in the wrong direction? In IVF what are the further tests to rule out other issues and what we tried to improve results (Genetic testing, Sperm DNA fragmentation test, Endometrial Scratch, supplements) Expert a...
As first timers, we couldn’t be anything but hopeful on our first Embryo Transfer day. I talk about the process of our blastocyst being transferred and how it can all seem overwhelming and confusing - especially when you’re looking at the screen and the doctor is asking “Can you see it?” (No is the answer, but I say yes anyway.)
It's not a straightforward stats game but I get an expert to help us make sense of the numbers as we b...
So we’re at the point in our IVF journey on Egg Collection day, there is a nervous wait as the female goes under anaesthetic, the man normally gets the call to do his bit and you anxiously wait. This is our story. How many eggs if any will they collect? Will they fertilise? Will they survive and reach blastocyst stage? Will we go through to the next stage? It's like x factor but even worse. We meet one of the Embryologists...
So we commence with the IVF/ICSI treatment cycle number 1 and I’m trying to work out what my role is, as well as grappling with handing over £400+ for a round of fertility drugs. I also outline the five mistakes that you can make when injecting your partner with a syringe.
We meet Liz Owen the Lister hospital sonographer (Ultrasound scanning) and ask what the hell you are meant to be looking out for on those first IVF scans. Fin...
Relationship advice on how to manage that “Cost of IVF treatment” conversation. Balancing the probabilities and uncertainty of fertility treatment with the cost. A look at what are the different types of fertility treatments. Some practical money saving tips from our expert Dr Alison Taylor.
- How to manage the cost of fertility treatment
- The Glastonbury headliners of...
Handling awkward questions in that fertility consultation. A look at when the infertility spotlight turns on the man and how that feels. That moment when you mentally go through your sexual and relationship history and realise it needs to be public.
Preparing yourself for that wonderful first sperm test. The lowdown on what tests to expect, what the results are and how to handle them. A great discussion about male infertility an...
What to expect in that first fertility consultation and how to make your choice of hospital for IVF Treatment. Working through the pricing, your budget and choices, it's not easy! Most importantly how you and your partner are going to get through this together. Oh and why no one was interested in my super-fertile 75 year old grandfather when the Doctor took my medical history.
- Your role as a ...
Where do you start on the fertility Journey? And who do you go with? Well we started at The Fertility Show in London. This episode looks at how that microcosm of weird and wacky practices, hospitals touting for your business and awkward couples summed up the next five years. A rundown of what to expect from a male perspective and how it all starts with a discussion around your desire to have children and setting a timetable.
Just an ordinary guy who is one of the thousands that go through infertility worries and IVF every year. I hope my experience can help you.
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