I'm on the road to IVF. I have 1 boy 2 years old I got pregant 1 month before I was to start ivf in 2004. My husband and I have tried with no luck now for 9 months now. We have done 2 IUI and the next step is IVF. If any of you have gone through this procedure how have the progestron shots PIO in your butt been? That is the only thing that scars me.

I've had my j-pouch for 10 years. I problem with a fistula 7 years ago. But thank GOd everything has been fine since.

I had 2 children pre pouch naturally and then had to do IVF and had triplets post pouch. My husband was taught how to give shots and he gave them to me I just put ice on the site for about 5 min prior. The other thing to think about is what will you do with the leftover eggs this is something I really did not think about a head of time. I ended up donating 13 fertilized eggs since with the triplets we had 5 children. (They were in a frozen state for 2 yrs before we came to that decision) Best of luck

I just did an IVF cycle and I too was scared of the PIO shots. They're not that bad. They don't burn like the stim shots. My suggestions are:
1. Ice whichever hip you're going to use for 5-10 minutes before hand
2. Warm syringe with PIO to body temperature while icing. I did this under my breast. You can also hold the syringe in your hand.
3. Don't pinch skin like you would normally do. Leave it flat.
4. Inject SLOWLY. This stuff is thick and the more time you take, the less it will ache.
5. Once it's all in there, rub the shot area for a few minutes to distribute the oil in the muscle. I also walked around with a warm wet washcloth on it for about five minutes sometimes, but the rubbing is definitely beneficial no matter how you do it.
6. Apply heating pad for 5-10 minutes after to further distribute.

Don't be surprised if you get red, itchy welts. That's a common reaction to the PIO. If you follow the steps above, you will minimize reaction to it. If your reaction is severe, you have to call your clinic and have them give you PIO in a different type of oil.

Good luck!!

Shanali

I almost forgot. I found the best position for relaxing my hip was to lean over an island I have in my kitchen and take all the weight off the leg that was going to receive the shot. Just let it dangle there. It really relaxes the muscle so your tension won't make the shot hurt.

ZThank you very much. So the PIO shots don't go in you butt but in your hip?

How was your pregnancy with triplets and the pouch?

I also had IVF (pregnant now... with one. I was advised against carrying more than one, though sounds like others on this web site WERE able to carry multiples, which is very encouraging), and agree with all above that the shots weren't too bad. Not enjoyable, but definitely manageable and certainly bearable. Once you get over the fear of that first shot, it gets easier. They go in your hip technically, just high up on your butt. You should receive detailed instructions on where to inject (the upper quadrants).

Shots were not any worse than anything else we've been through, by any means, and actually, my husband and I sort of missed them when they were done. It was our necessary, nightly ritual and it made him feel useful in this whole process!!

Hey everyone! I am about to start IVF as well. I have had my pouch for almost 12 years. I keep getting dehyrated from pouchitis. Have any of you that did IVF had problems with pouchitis? I worry about getting dehydrated during pregnancy.

You'll need to be very careful during your stimulations with IVF if you already have dehydration issues. One of the potential complications of the stim cycle is Ovarian Hyper Stimulation Syndrome (OHSS) and one of the issues with this is dehydration. So, make sure the drs watch your cycle VERY closely and don't over stimulate your ovaries. It is very tempting to push the body to produce as many eggs as possible, but this can be very problematic for us because of OHSS and dehydration. Make sure everyone knows about your situation.

All that said, I had a successful first IVF cycle and did not get OHSS - I produced 15 eggs, 10 of which fertilized and 8 of which made it past the first day. 3 made it to transfer size, we transferred 2, one took, we have one frozen. DS is 14 months old and we're thinking of trying with our frozen embie in early May.