From retrieving 7 eggs, with only 4 fertilizing, to retrieving 18 eggs, with 12 fertilizing!
Below I will walk you through my journey of 3 egg retrievals, leading to my best cycle and exactly what I did differently (and what I ate!) the last round that led to results I couldn’t have imagined from the first two.
If you’re anything like me, your journey to IVF wasn’t by choice. It’s a pleading shot at motherhood when all else failed and you would try almost anything to have it work! In my searches for things I can do to increase succes I found a variety of “old wives tales”, good luck tricks, diets, yoga poses, acupuncture and food recommendations. What actually worked makes sense in hindsight and makes me wish I had started there from cycle 1!
Let’s dive in so I can, hopefully, help you have a successful first or fifth egg retrieval.
My IVF Egg Retrieval Journey
Like every journey to IVF, mine was unique. I wasn’t trying to become a mom for the 1st time. I have a daughter who was 11, at the time, and had been trying for a sibling for quite some time. We also have the unique experience of being a same sex couple trying to navigate the path to parenthood.
Our path started in 2017 with home insemination attempts. Throwing money at ovulation tests and cryobanks month after month. Taking my BBT religiously every morning. Why wasn’t this easy? I swear high school sex ed made it sound like just once and we would be on our way to a new life, expecting a baby! After 7 timed home attempts, we knew it was time to seek a fertility doctor.
We began the process of medicated IUIs in June of 2019 with a fertility clinic in our area. After what felt like a million tests, it was time to start! Surley this would work! We started with a Clomid cycle and 2-3 good follicles. We did everything exactly as insuructed and also added in the well-known infertility world foods of pineapple core, pomegranate juice (ew, btw) and Brazil nuts… it was a fail. We switched it up to a Femara cycle next and during this round we learned that ovulation tests don’t accurately read my ovulation. During that 1st Femara cycle we went in for an untrasound to find out that I had already ovulated. Wasted time, money & energy! Three things that this journey really drains. After 2 atttempts with Femara, we still had no positive results and the doctor labeled it “Unexplained Secondary Infertility”.
In February of 2020 we switched clinics due to a change in insurance and started the process of IVF. On March 13th, 2020, after hysteroscopies, bloodwork and ultrasounds galore, we received the all-clear to start egg retrieval protocol and I started on birth control for cycle regulation. Such a promising and exciting step in our journey! That excitement was quickly squashed with… you guessed it… the Covid-19 Pandemic. April 1st, 2020 our clinic shut down. Luckily it was short lived and we got to resume prep for my first egg retrieval in June.
Leading up to that 1st egg retrieval, I had 5-6 follicles on the left and ~9 on the right. During retrieval my left ovary was sitting on top of an artery and they weren’t able to retrieve eggs from that side. This was a bummer but we thought we would surely be fine with the 7 they were able to retrieve from the right! We. Were. Wrong. Of the 7, 6 were mature, 4 fertilized and only 1 made it to blastocycst.
We decided to go straight into another round of egg retrieval since my eggs were only getting older! Doc put me on a more aggressive protocol which resulted in 12-14 follicles on the right and 7 on the left leading up to retrieval day. We were able to collect from both ovaries this time which resulted in 10 eggs retrieved. Unfortunately the excitement of a higher retrieval count was short lived when the embryologist called to let us know that “due to egg quality issues” only 2 of the 10 mature eggs fertilized. What. A. Bummer.
Of the 3 embryos we were lucky enough to get from the 2 egg retrieval cycles, 1 was a failed transfer, 1 was a ~10 week miscarriage and 1 is our perfect baby Ella. I’ll go more into the transfers in another post.
For now, let’s get to how I went from 1 & 2 blastocyst to TWELVE!!
The Foods I Ate to Boost My Egg Retrieval Results
Twelve embryos wasn’t even in my mind as a possibility, considering the results from my first and second retrieval! Aside from being older, which should have been a disadvantage, the only thing I did differently was add certain foods into my diet!
I consumed the foods listed below daily. I tried to work them into as many meals as possible during the 11 days leading up to retrieval.
- Avocados – A study done by the Harvard School of Public Health found that women who consumed the highest amounts of monosaturated fat before and during IVF treatment were more than three times more likely to achieve pregnancy and live birth! 3.4 times more likely, to be exact!
- Bone Broth – Not only does it add an extra 10 grams of protein but bone broth is chock full of nutrients that every cell in our body needs to survive.
- Berries – Berries also contain beta-carotene and anthocyanins, which have powerful antioxidant properties and may help with the production of hormones responsible for optimum egg growth
- Sesame Seeds – Sesame seeds are a great source of nutrients including zinc, iron, copper, vitamin B6 and vitamin E which are needed for blood cell formation and function. They also help with the production of hormones responsible for optimum egg health and are rich in the monounsaturated fats!
- Chia Seeds – Chia seeds are high in omega-3 essential fatty acids, which play a critical role in regulating hormones, increasing blood flow to the uterus and reducing sensitivity to the hormone prolactin (which can suppress ovulation). Chia seeds also contain fiber, protein, calcium, and antioxidants, which can help support overall health and studies suggest that consuming chia seeds improves egg quality.
- Nuts – The omega-3 fatty acids, folate, and antioxidants like vitamin E, zinc, and selenium in almonds, walnuts, and hazelnuts have been previously linked to healthier eggs.
- Water – Water is necessary for cell division, metabolism, and reproduction. Oxygen-rich blood flow to the ovaries is essential for good egg health!
Recipes I Used to Incorporate These Fertility Foods
So how did I actually incorporate these foods into my day? Let me share some of the ways I used them as ingredients in my meals!
- Overnight Oats (Chia Seeds, Nuts & Berries)
- Avocado Toast (Avocado & Sesame Seeds)
- Greek Yogurt Parfaits (Berries & Nuts)
- Teriyaki Bowls (Bone Broth, Avocado & Sesame Seeds)
- Creamy Cajun Pasta Soup (Bone Broth & Avocado)
Sending you all of the good vibes, baby dust & love on our IVF journey!
If you have questions or have an experience to share, please leave a comment below!
