# Side effects of Buserelin / Gonal F and couple of other quick Qs for a newbie!!



## BeckiOz (Jan 9, 2013)

3rd and final question for tonight!!

I am due to start my 1st IVF in a couple of weeks and I am trying to get a feel for what symptoms may come up / when I might have trouble being at work.
I have earmarked scan, EC, ET and end of 2WW as days that I don't want to be working, but want to give work realistic idea about whether there are any other days that I might have trouble getting in (It will be helpful so they can hold my appointments to release on the day / once I know I'm likely to be in).

We are doing "Gentle IVF" (at Exeter), so I haven't down-regulated, approximate timeline = Buserelin and Gonal F from D2-D11 then have scan, otrivelle injection then EC, then ET, then 2nd otrivelle 1 wk after 1st.

What sort of S/Es can I expect on the Buserelin and Gonal F (FSH)?
Are there any other S/Es to anticipate after Otrivelle (HCG) jab?

How long were you sore after EC and when did you / could you have worked following EC?

If your cycle didn't work, what cycle day did you know it was all over?


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## Seroster (May 5, 2013)

Hello BeckiOz

I'm sure there are lots of other people with more experience than me who can add to this answer but as I'm sitting at home resting after EC it's all pretty fresh in my mind  

I had all those worries too as I'm on a relatively short contract at work and didn't want to make too much of a nuisance of myself  

I warned my boss that I might have to take days off if I had any symptoms -I was on Nafarelin (not Buserelin so can't help with that) and Gonal-F, long protocol.  In actual fact I was completely fine all the way through and didn't have to take any days off work, and it was the downregulation that was the main issue (just tiredness and a bit spaced out) so sounds like you might avoid that.  No noticable symptoms from the Gonal-F apart from the effects it's supposed to produce!  You definitely need to drink the extra water they recommend but as long as you do the symptoms should hopefully be pretty mild.

No symptoms from the Ovitrelle (unless you count bigger boobs but I doubt you'd need to tell your work about that   )

I was pretty bloated and uncomfortable on the Friday before EC (Which was on Tuesday so I was lucky not to have to go to work for 3 days beforehand- yay bank holiday!) but still fine to be at work.  Depends what you do though- I certainly wouldn't have wanted to have been running up and down stairs or lifting anything heavier than my laptop!

I had EC and the day after off work but hadn't really thought I might need any more time off after that- it's worth considering that you might, as it depends how you feel after EC- you could still be sore after the compulsory 48-hours to recover from the sedative (if that's how it's done with your clinic).  Personally I had almost no pain but a lot of bloating and discomfort, and didn't feel ready to go back to the office today but am lucky enough to be able to work from home and continue to rest. 

Can't help with knowing when it's all over- embryo transfer is tomorrow or Sunday


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## Roribeat (Sep 12, 2012)

Hi BeckiOz!

I've never used Gonal F on my cycles but I take buserelin (Suprecur) for both of my cycles (for down regulation). I am now on my 2nd IVF and in stimming stage, so still taking suprecur nasal spray. Side effects on my 1st cycle was pretty bad, including increase of appetite, headaches, hot flashes, forgetfulness, VERY emotional (crying, feeling frustrated and angry) and the last one was the worse side effect. My husband said I was a nightmare  This cycle, fortunately, buserelin has been easy on me, so far I've only had few lightheadedness (nothing really bad) and increase of appetite - this one seems to be persistent. I'm not moody like I was last time . Maybe because I drink more water this cycle or maybe it's due to the acupuncture I've been having (or maybe both!) 

As for ovitrelle, It made me have big boobies!  The morning after I took ovitrelle, I woke up with these heavy, enlarged, VERY sore breasts. 

I had a pretty easy EC - in terms of soreness/pain - Only felt sore on the day of EC and maybe in the next morning, but nothing too painful. Maybe this was because I only had 8 eggs collected. 

With my last cycle, I started spotting on beta day (14 days after EC), so I had a feeling that it wasn't working for me, and that's exactly what happened, my beta HCG was<5 and I started bleeding the next day.

Best of luck to you!!


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