# Natural FET - How was yours monitored?



## Nicnik (Feb 17, 2016)

Hi ladies,

For those who did a natural FET, can you please tell me how your cycle was monitored?

My clinic have suggested ovulation pee sticks from Day 8 of my cycle and then once I get a positive ovulation test, I have to book a scan for the next day to check that I have ovulated and the lining thickness.  Then 2 days after the scan they want a progesterone blood test, to ensure that I have ovulated and also to advise me of the embryo transfer day.

Would be keen to hear if this is how others did their natural FET......and also if you had success?  (My history is below in my profile).

Thanks in advance. xx


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## BEmama (Jun 24, 2018)

I hope you don't mind me adding onto this but I've been wondering the same - if you have treatment in a clinic in a different country, how on earth do you manage the timing on this? Do you then need to book a flight for the very next day? And stay there how many days? 

(I have had a successful FET before but only medicated, I would love to go natural next time but I have no idea how I could manage it)


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## Efi78 (Jun 26, 2017)

Hi

Natural FET requires very regular scans and monitoring. You need to go to the clinic on day 3 for the first measurement and the. Day by day or every third day to check how thick the endometrium is. Once it is 7mm+ and the follicle has grown to at least 14mm they provide you with hcg injection to trigger ovulation. It is very important to have regular scans because they need to pinpoint ovulation so that they transfer at the right time. 

I have done natural FET rwice and cancelled because despite regular monitoring I kept ovulating on my own and they didn’t know when to transfer.
Ovulation sticks are not reliable as they don’t work for all women. 
In the end I did a medicated FET and it was much easier. Too many drugs though.

Hope it helps.


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## Efi78 (Jun 26, 2017)

BEmama said:


> I hope you don't mind me adding onto this but I've been wondering the same - if you have treatment in a clinic in a different country, how on earth do you manage the timing on this? Do you then need to book a flight for the very next day? And stay there how many days?
> 
> (I have had a successful FET before but only medicated, I would love to go natural next time but I have no idea how I could manage it)


May I ask you what your symptoms with medicated FET were? I just did a medicated FET and I am on TWW.


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## Lanee (Jan 24, 2010)

Hi Nicnik 


I’m just in the middle of my FET now - it’s a modified natural but basically I went for blood test in CD8, blood & scan on cycle day 10 to ensure there is a leading follicle and check the thickness of the lining. I then went again on CD12 and confirmed that my follicle was large enough to trigger and that my bloods indicated that I was close to ovulating. The trigger is so that they can be certain that I have ovulated. I went back again to have a blood test to confirm that ovulation had indeed happened on CD15 and my transfer will be on CD19. 


BeMama - I guess for everyone the timing is different (I have a cycle of around 27 days) but I think if you wanted to do natural and have to travel to the clinic, you would either need to be ready to fly at relatively short notice (I guess if you can do monitoring remotely you can fly within the 5 days before transfer if you have a 5 day embryo. Or alternatively I would say you would need to fly soon after you had your period (perhaps day 5 or so) so that you can do your monitoring there. In terms of how long you would have to stay though, that is a tough one because it depends on your body and when you normally ovulate.  Hope that helps!


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## pookiepoo (Feb 25, 2014)

I'm considering doing a natural cycle instead of medicated. Basically because I don't want to do all the drugs. And I'm regular, so my doctor said we can try natural. 
Lanee, where are you doing your treatment?


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## BEmama (Jun 24, 2018)

Efi78 said:


> May I ask you what your symptoms with medicated FET were? I just did a medicated FET and I am on TWW.


My symptoms:

Day of transfer - very faint cramps, could have been all in my head though
2dp5dt - boobs suddenly about a cup size bigger, swollen and painful
4dp5dt - cramping on and off all day, definitely not imagined, enough to make me pause
6dp5dt - night sweats, spinny feeling even when sitting or lying down
10dp5dt - out of breath when doing nothing at all, dizzy, ringing in my ears

At 8dp5dt I got a clear positive on a FRER and a fast positive on a digital, at 10dp5dt HCG in blood was 370

There is a great thread for this here: https://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=49694.msg7548865#msg7548865

Lanee - thank you for the detailed summary! I think I would have to look into being monitored where I live, and then travel only for the transfer. I truly hated the meds in my medicated FET so I think it would be worth the extra effort to go natural, I will have a talk with my local gyno about what might be possible here in terms of scans and bloods. Thank you!


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## Nicnik (Feb 17, 2016)

Hi ladies,

Thanks for all your replies, much appreciated.  

My clinic has mentioned nothing about doing a trigger - they said that the scan I get (day after getting +LH on OPK) will show if I have ovulated or not (or am close to ovulation), followed by a progesterone blood test two days after the scan, which will confirm if I have ovulated?  I do have Ovitrelle (trigger) in the fridge, so I guess I could use this, if my clinic is in agreement.  Do you need to add in any meds after that though (estrogen tabs etc), if you do natural FET using the Trigger shot?  My cycles are very regular, usually every 27-29 days.  I'm on Day 5 at the moment.  

I don't really want to be in a position where we have to cancel the FET cycle, so perhaps using the trigger might be better, if my clinic agrees?

Logistically, yes, it will not be easy - considering I live in Scotland and have to book two flights to Greece, but on checking regularly at the moment, there appear to be plenty of flights from my home town to LHR - Athens.  

I've always done medicated, so it will be stressful doing natural FET, but we need to try something different this time....and my clinic thinks it's worth a try. 

Good luck Efi, when do you test?  Lanee, fingers crossed for a smooth transfer.  xx


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