Gender Selection advice - am based in London

Hi all, I am looking to do PGD for a girl, I have two gorgeous boys already and having lost my Mum whilst I was pregnant with my second I'm desperate for a daughter. I understand that I will need to travel as no option here in the UK, and have requested a free consult with Dr Potter. What I'm trying to work out is the timescales, and how I would be able to plan a trip when I have two kids to ensure that it works lol. Can you do it at any time or does it have to work with your cycle? Or am I being thick? I've done my research and understand the science behind it, what I'm now looking at is the practicality!
Thank you so much in advance x

Hello and welcome. Logistics and timescale are really straighforwards as you simply go on BCP to control your cycle meaning that you can travel pretty much whenever is convenient for you. You can do all of your monitoring in the UK, apart from last scan, which ideally is good to do at the clinic before trigger, and as you are based in London it's very easy as there are a few options of people you can use and bloods can be done so easily at the Drs Lab in Harley Street. I think Dr P only does ER at certain times, so obviously you need to find out what would work with him. Good luck xx

Hello! With the logistics bear in mind that if you go to HRC for ER then fresh transfer straight after (I think most people do) then you'll need to be in California for almost 2 weeks (factoring in a day's travel there and back). If you've got childcare for that long then fantastic but if not you need to think about whether you make it a family holiday (expensive but many have done), whether you and DH fly out separately (DH can leave a sample for freezing) or whether you do 2 shorter trips - 1 for ER and 1 for FET (frozen transfer).

Depending on when you're thinking of cycling you may also want to do pretesting before your free consult with Dr P. HRC seem v happy for you to do this (just ask them for pretest orders) and it means Dr P has more info in front of him when you discuss the way forward.

Happy to answer any questions you want to post or PM. I'm due to ER next month so I've been working my way through the logistics for the last few months with lots of help from the amazing ladies on this site x


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Thank you so much for this!!

Firstly, help, what is ER?!

Secondly are you British?

I've filled in the form for the free consult but have heard nothing yet. Could definitely do a family holiday next summer, may as well make the most of it! I've also been in touch with Dr Steinbergs office in NY, also meant to be good, and they say you only need to go for 5-7 days? They deal with a lot of UK patients

So what is your plan, are you going out to LA? Did you do the pre-testing first? And do you literally just request the pre-test form and go off to Harley street and get the tests done?

I'm 32 currently and my husband is 34. I got pregnant first time trying both time with my two boys. So hoping that helps! xx

Also what does the pre-testing involve? x

Sorry, ER is egg retrieval!

Yes I'm in the UK. I am booked in for ER at HRC in Newport Beach with Dr Potter next month. We couldn't manage a 2 week holiday (it was working out crazy expensive) so we're doing ER now and then I'll have a frozen transfer (FET) later in the year if there's a girl to transfer. That's the other reason for going for ER and FET separately - if it doesn't work and there's nothing to transfer I'd rather be at home than in the US with the boys.

Yes I did pretesting first. Once you hear from HRC (they took a while to reply to my form) just tell them you'd like to do pretesting before speaking to Dr P and they'll send you the info you need. Pretesting is basically several blood tests and 2 scans (which can be done at the same time if timing works out) some of which have to be done on certain days of your cycle. If you're near London then HRC will probably refer you to Dr Lower at Nuada - he and his secretary Ruth are lovely and can help you with all the pretests.

Like you I got pregnant really quickly with both my boys but from what I've read on here that doesn't necessarily mean that you'll get pregnant easily with IVF. But fingers crossed for both of us that it helps - it certainly can't hurt!!! X


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This is all so helpful thank you! Do you know if the results are lower with a frozen transfer?

We go to Orlando every year in April for my work but there are no decent enough clinics there which is a shame. We could go over to LA from there if timings worked out but pretty sure we wouldn't be able to stay for 2 weeks!

How much did the pre-testing cost and how much is the ER?

I really appreciate your help on this. I was really up in the air about whether we should take this route but I've decided that we should absolutely go for it now. I will always regret it if we don't. Just really tricky to work out how and when we can make it work

Also how long after you completed the form did you hear from Dr Potter? X

There's lots of arguments either way for fresh vs frozen transfer. With fresh your body can be overwhelmed from all of the meds but with frozen there is more risk of some embryos not surviving. When I spoke to Dr P his attitude seemed to be that results are very similar from fresh and frozen because of this but tbh I haven't done a huge amount of research. For me it was primarily a question of what worked for us from a practical perspective.

Think my pretesting was around £800 all in but I'm lucky that I have a v understanding GP who ordered some of the blood tests on the NHS.

ER costs $15,900 (plus meds) with the $1000 discount you get via this site plus $700 for cryopreservation. The FET is $3500 plus meds. All v eye watering!

I think it was about 10 days to 2 weeks after I completed the form x


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So so helpful, thank you!!!

I think I am going to suggest to my husband that we turn it into a 2 week LA holiday with the kids and do a fresh transfer then, if unsuccessful and there is another XX I can go back on my own another time I guess!

Now I need to tell him all the options and hope that he is definitely on board, we've talked about it a few times but this is now actual commitment so hoping he doesn't change his mind. Also need to work out time scales as that is another massive headache I guess!

I'm also going to look at Dr Steinberg in NY as it's a little closer xx

Thanks for creating this post!

I'm based in London too, also I have 2 boys and thinking of going to HRC next year!




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...just one thing to think about - whilst some people do combine HT successfully with a holiday, please don't underestimate the emotional stress of this coupled to the fact that you need to factor appointments in, can't really go swimming between ER and ET or do anything too hectic after ET. Good luck x

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Originally Posted by MrsE

There's lots of arguments either way for fresh vs frozen transfer. With fresh your body can be overwhelmed from all of the meds but with frozen there is more risk of some embryos not surviving. When I spoke to Dr P his attitude seemed to be that results are very similar from fresh and frozen because of this but tbh I haven't done a huge amount of research. For me it was primarily a question of what worked for us from a practical perspective.

Think my pretesting was around £800 all in but I'm lucky that I have a v understanding GP who ordered some of the blood tests on the NHS.

ER costs $15,900 (plus meds) with the $1000 discount you get via this site plus $700 for cryopreservation. The FET is $3500 plus meds. All v eye watering!

I think it was about 10 days to 2 weeks after I completed the form x


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Hi MrsE

Do you mind me asking - for the pretesting, what do you tell your GP, in my case, if i dont have fertility issues but would like to try PGD/IVF?

We don't have any fertility issues but when I was pregnant with DS2 I had to have a harmony test as his Downs risk result was high. Worst 2 weeks of my life waiting for the results. I told my GP that this was one of the reasons we were looking at IVF with chromosomal testing (and actually it has contributed to our decision to go down the HT route).


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Hi squigglepink, I think you can choose whether or not to tell your GP. My sister-in-law is a GP and she said that a lot of the blood tests requested for pre-testing are standard tests and if she had a patient ask for them and said they were going for IVF/PGD that she would be sympathetic and agree to do the tests.

So we decided to give it a try and ask the GP, ours was sympathetic and nice, said we could do the bloods through them, but we would have to pay what they would have paid. It turned out that meant have the nurse draw blood at our local surgery and us then take it to our local hospital. I decided instead to go to a local pathology place (County Pathology in Guildford, if anyone lives close, I'd recommend as they're cheaper than most clinics and take & analyse the blood right there).

I've read other people post that if ever they're asked, they say they're going abroad for IVF - unexplained fertility issues. Apparently as IVF is cheaper in lots of countries outside the UK, this is pretty common.

Hope that's useful, good luck!


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I'm not far from Guildford, when did you get the bloods done in terms of the whole process? Was it after a consult and they let you know what you need?

I'm guessing if you do bloods and pre-testing privately you have no need to tell your GP?

I'm waiting on a consult with dr potter, I spoke to my husband and he is on board (yay!) think we will look to travel to LA next October and hope for the best!

I'm just not sure what else to do until we get the consult. Some have suggested to get pre-testing done first with sr lower in Harley street. Any one had experience with that? Xx!

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Originally Posted by ever hopeful

...just one thing to think about - whilst some people do combine HT successfully with a holiday, please don't underestimate the emotional stress of this coupled to the fact that you need to factor appointments in, can't really go swimming between ER and ET or do anything too hectic after ET. Good luck x

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That's really helpful to know, didn't think about that. At the same time not sure how we could do it otherwise! It seemed the best way to make it work. But I can imagine it is very stressful. Is there anything else you can't do other than swim and try and rest? And how many appointments are there whilst you're there? Xx

I had my pretesting done before my consult with Dr P in order to make the most of the free consult. My GP ordered some blood tests and I had the rest plus the scans with Dr Lower. They can do all the blood tests if you'd rather not mention it to your GP, it'll just be a lot more expensive.

In terms of appointments, I am currently in Newport Beach cycling and I've had 2 appointments so far - one yesterday, one today both of which took about an hour or so. You could easily go by yourself if DH was with the kids. No more appointments now before ER on Friday. I'm not sure about the time between ER and transfer as I'm not transferring this time around, I'll hopefully have an FET later in the year x


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Good luck hun... can you tell me how long you need to be over there for if your having a fet another time x

Hi Flynn's Mummy, I emailed Lori directly loriw@havingbabies.com explaining that I'd been on this site and asked for pre-testing ahead of my consult with Dr P. After doing some preliminary paperwork she sent me pre-testing orders for blood tests & ultrasounds (these are standard forms signed by Dr P). With these I could then call around explaining I was having IVF abroad and these tests had been requested by my doctor and ask for prices.

County Pathology in Guildford was the cheapest for bloods & very easy (book an appointment, park right outside, no queue, done in 5-10 mins).

I also had on my pre-tess that I needed to have a Sonohysterogram (type of ultrasound where they look at the anatomy of the uterus, I think requested because I have had 3 caesareans). I was nervous of whether having #4 was a good idea (as in could my body cope with a 4th pregnancy & C-section) so wanted this done by Mr Lower (clinic in Queen Anne St in London). He was great, probably not the cheapest but gave me piece of mind.

Fast forward and I've had my consult with Dr P and am about to start meds at the end of next wk (ER booked for 10 June). Lori sends you a schedule of when you need ultrasounds & bloods. I've booked the bloods at County Pathology and the ultrasounds round the corner (both places in the research park near Guildford Hospital) with The Surrey Park Clinic (who I think are a women's health clinic) and are currently trialing very early (07:30) and very late (19:30) scan times, so have been able to fit them around childcare more easily [emoji3]

I have told my GP (who was nice about it) but so far I haven't seen a reason to tell them. The only thing I needed from them was to go on the birth control pill, but as that's free on the NHS I don't think that would cause any problems.


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Originally Posted by fiveboys

Good luck hun... can you tell me how long you need to be over there for if your having a fet another time x

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Thank you! I arrived Monday and could have left Saturday but the flights were crazy expensive so we're flying out Sunday. I don't actually know how long I'll have to be here for FET - hopefully not as long as I'll be on my own

Thank you everyone!!

MrsE/ 1282 what is the process pre-egg removal? I'm in the states next april (florida) for work for 10 days and my husband and kids come with me. Ideally we would go from there to LA for the treatment as that would be ideal, easier and cheaper, but other than the three weeks of meds do you have to have scans or anything? As in would it be a problem me being away before heading to Newport?

Thanks for the email! Am going to get in contact with her and get all the pre-testing sorted. Not doing it till next year but want the consult so we have as much info as possible. I still haven't heard back after filling in the consult request form 6 weeks ago!

MrsE - good luck with it all! Please share your journey, I'm still really confused as to how it all works!! xxx

I would fill out the form again- http://genderdreaming.com/forum/misc.php?do=form&fid=13

They get back to you the same day. Something happened with yours clearly.

I would think you could do the monitoring (blood tests & ultrasound) anywhere, as in, if you can do it in the UK, why not in Florida? I would do some googling for ultrasound places near where you'll be staying in Florida and ask Lori for any advice she has.

In terms of timing, I have put an outline of my dates running up to ER below;

- 20 May (this Friday!!!) - first Lupron inj
- 26 May, first ultrasound & bloods in UK (although I think this was brought forward because of a US public holiday, would normally have been day 7)
- 30 May, start stim meds
- 2 June, ultrasound & bloods in UK (again, looks like normally this would have been 3rd June?)
- 6 June, ultrasound & bloods in UK
- 7 June fly to US
- 8 June, scan & bloods at HRC (I think all being well my trigger shot will be the night of the 8th)
- 10 June, ER


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Thanks Flynns Mummy. Not sure I can add anything to 1282's comprehensive reply - I'm sure Lori can give you some guidance. As an aside on the pretesting I think HRC prefer you to have pretests done 3-6 months before a cycle so by all means get them done now so that you can have an informed chat with Dr P but you may need to repeat a few nearer your cycle.


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Thanks all, I will fill in the form again. I had a gender scan in Florida 2014 with my second son so I already know a good ultrasound place fortunately, would just need to find somewhere to get bloods done!

Hi all! After 6 months of trying to work out whether we should go ahead with this (worried about what other people might think mainly) we had a consult with Dr Potter and have decided to go ahead. Dates are booked in for october! Taking the kids for a holiday too, have only got the one chance so everything crossed, but I don't want to regret not trying and if it doesn't work then at least I know it wasn't to be and can move forwards from there.

Dr Potter suggested on the call that I have the ovarian reserve test now so we know what we're dealing with and everything can go smoothly. Have been in touch with Lori but find her answers to be a little vague.

She has suggested Dr Lower for the tests and then all other tests 3 months prior to ER as everyone else has said above - I can't seem to find a website for Dr Lower though, does anyone have an address?

I also haven't been sent final costs yet. Does anyone know if there is a deposit to pay or anything? x

Also, how does it work with moving back to NHS for pregnancy care if all successful? Do you have to tell them what you did, as I remember them noting down spontaneous ovulation with my first two? x

Exciting times FM!

You can find Mr Lower's details here: Nuada Medical

His secretary Ruth is lovely and so helpful. Her email address is ruth@adrianlower.com

In terms of NHS care, I've recently had my booking in appointment with my midwife and I just told her this baby was conceived via ivf in the US. Neither she nor my GP batted an eyelid or asked any questions about it.


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Hi lovely ladies,

I'm just finalising plans for my October trip and I have a couple of questions I wonder if you experienced girls would be able to help with :-)

Firstly I have all my dates (18th october scan, 20th ER, 26th transfer fingers crossed) so am getting flights booked now deposit only in case something happens and we have to cancel. We're taking our two boys and planning to make it into a little bit of a holiday as well as factoring in the necessary rest as we have no other option. Has anyone else taken their kids with them?

Should I start taking pre-nates and its now even though nothing is happening for 10 months?

Lori suggested June for pre-testing, when should I get in touch with Dr Lower to arrange this?

Guessing I stay off BCP until told otherwise and just carry on using condoms?

Thanks guys xx

Sorry one more thing, Dr P on the call said he wanted me to have an ovarian reserve test asap just to check, I'm 33 and fell pregnant with both boys first month of trying. Has anyone else done this test early or just waited and done all the pre-testing together 3-6 months prior? Not keen to shell out extra money only to have to repeat the test, guessing it wouldn't change the course of action, if they are bad I'm not going to start on meds any earlier right? x

Very exciting that you've started booking flights FM!

We didn't take our boys with us but I know lots of people have.

In terms of the vitamins, I can't see any downside to taking them sooner than later (aside from cost!) and I think I've read that at least 6 months of coq10 is preferable if possible for egg quality. If DH is willing to take olive leaf oil it's worth starting this a few months in advance too - have a look at the olive leaf poll thread.

In terms of the bcp, it's probably best to check this with Lori. I'm pretty sure that it's best not to be on it for pretesting.

I didn't do an early ovarian reserve test but then I only got in touch with HRC in January with a view to cycling in August but hopefully others will have a view on that x


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Thanks for this Hun, really helpful!! Will have a look at the poll and next month start looking into what vits to take :-) not having the extra test now, Lori said I don't need to thankfully xxx

Hey guys im looking to do ivf / pgd this may / june . Im torn between Dr Savvas for convenience of Dr Potter . Does anyone have Dr Potters prices for this year >?

Hi Ladies have any of you cycled with Dr Potter yet ? If so how was it ?

Hello. Yes I did and I'm currently 15 weeks pregnant. The experience was full of highs and lows but I think that will be the case wherever you cycle. Let me know if you have any specific questions - I'm happy to answer if I can.


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Hi Mrs E , Thats fantastic news congratulations ! who did you cycle with Dr Potter or Savvas? How many cycles did you do before you fell and if you dont mind me askinf at what cost ? would love to hear back from you as this journey will be a tough 1 .

Hello. I cycled with Dr Potter - I had one egg retrieval then a planned FET that failed then a second FET which was successful. All of the details including costs are on my stickie:

Mrs E Cycle #1 HRC - ER in May, FET #1 August BFN, FET #2 Nov BFP

https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?sha...7&share_type=t

I'll reply to your pm when I have a bit more time.


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Originally Posted by MrsE

Hello. I cycled with Dr Potter - I had one egg retrieval then a planned FET that failed then a second FET which was successful. All of the details including costs are on my stickie:

Mrs E Cycle #1 HRC - ER in May, FET #1 August BFN, FET #2 Nov BFP

https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?sha...7&share_type=t

I'll reply to your pm when I have a bit more time.


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Hi Mrs E

I just wanted to ask if you wouldn't mind sharing with me your age /
Protocol / -no of eggs retrieved vs matured vs fertilised?
And how many made it to transfer?

I am currently in a very stressful ER wait with poor numbers & a disappointing result (in Dr Potters Words :( )

Would appreciate a positive story!

Thank you
mM

Hi girls
I'm currently at HRC for GS with Dr Potter.
Happy to answer questions if need be!
mM

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Originally Posted by MinnieMouse88

Hi Mrs E

I just wanted to ask if you wouldn't mind sharing with me your age /
Protocol / -no of eggs retrieved vs matured vs fertilised?
And how many made it to transfer?

I am currently in a very stressful ER wait with poor numbers & a disappointing result (in Dr Potters Words :( )

Would appreciate a positive story!

Thank you
mM

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Hi MM

Sorry to hear about your stressful ER wait - the process is really brutal but please don't give up hope.

My detailed info is in my stickie (link above). I'd just turned 38 at ER and I was on the long lupron protocol. In terms of numbers, I had 33 eggs at ER, 28 mature and 25 fertilised. Of those 13 made it to testing and we had just 2 normals.

My retrieval numbers were pretty high but that doesn't mean you can't succeed with lower numbers. As you can see we had a really low percentage of normals. In fact other ladies with way lower retrieval numbers (often single figures) went on to have just as many if not more normals than me. So please don't be disheartened. The wait for post ER results is so painful - I really feel for you - but low numbers certainly do not equate to lower chances of success. Quality really is key, not quantity.

Keeping everything crossed for you.


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