What To Expect When You Go For an IVF Treatment? A Step-by-Step Guide

The IVF journey can be full of uncertainty. While experiences may vary, understanding what to expect can help reduce anxiety and make the process feel more manageable. So, what to expect when you go for IVF treatment?

At Bloom IVF, we want our patients to be comfortable and aware throughout their fertility journey. That’s why we’ve brought you this detailed guide on what to expect when you go for IVF treatment.

IVF is a proven fertility treatment with a high success rate. It is an extremely helpful procedure for couples who cannot conceive naturally. The steps in an IVF treatment involve:

Before Treatment: Consultation and Testing

To begin the IVF process, you’ll first set up a consultation with a fertility specialist at Bloom IVF. Our doctors will inquire about your general medical, surgical, and family medical history, and also discuss your fertility/pregnancy history.

After that, you may have to undergo a series of tests to examine the health of your uterus and fallopian tubes and identify any abnormalities. These may sometimes be followed up with a hysteroscopy, a hysterosalpingogram, or a laparoscopy if required.

If any cysts, fibroids, blockages, or scar tissue are discovered in these tests, your doctor may recommend treating the issue before moving on to IVF, as it could be the cause of your infertility or interfere with the IVF process.

Step 1: Ovulation Induction

What to expect when you go for IVF treatment? The first part of IVF is stimulating your ovaries. This process begins on day 1 of your natural monthly cycle and lasts for 10-14 days on average.

Your body naturally produces one mature egg in each monthly cycle. For IVF, doctors often recommend taking medication (oral and subcutaneous) to increase the number of mature eggs your ovaries produce. The greater the number of eggs, the greater the chances of IVF success.

Your doctor prescribes hormone medications based on a personalised treatment plan. You might need to self-administer subcutaneous injections throughout this phase, which provide your body with hormones naturally produced during egg development.

Once your follicles reach the required size, your doctor will administer a ‘trigger shot,’ which is often Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG). After the trigger shot, your eggs will be retrieved approximately 36 hours later.

Step 2: Egg Retrieval

You’ll have to then visit the clinic for egg collection. A fertility doctor will sedate you and then use an ultrasound-guided needle to collect all mature eggs from your ovaries. Since you’ll be sedated, this process is not painful.

After the procedure, you’ll be able to walk but not drive, so we recommend bringing someone with you to your egg retrieval appointment.

Step 3: Sperm Retrieval

If you plan to use fresh sperm, we will collect a semen sample from your male partner or donor on the same day as your egg retrieval. If using IVF with frozen sperm, our IVF specialists will carefully thaw the sample and prepare it for treatment.

The sperm is ‘washed’ with a mixture of chemicals to separate sperm from seminal fluid. Our fertility specialists then observe the sperm under a microscope and select the best ones for fertilisation.

Step 4: Embryo Development

In conventional IVF, embryologists place sperm and eggs together and observe them to determine whether fertilisation occurs. Once the sperm fertilises the eggs, the resulting embryos are placed in an incubator, which mimics the human body and provides perfect growth conditions. The embryos are then observed for a few days.

If you have experienced low rates of fertilisation in previous cycles, your doctor may recommend going through protocols like ICSI, IMSI, PICSI, or laser-assisted hatching.

Step 5: Embryo Transfer

What to expect when you go for IVF treatment embryo transfer? After our team feels like your embryos have developed enough, we select the best ones for transfer. You may choose to undergo PGT (preimplantation genetic testing) to test for aneuploid embryos, which will increase your chances of success.

The transfer is a quick and painless procedure in which the doctor gently places the embryo into your uterus using a thin catheter.

After the embryo transfer, you can stand up and move around as required—the embryo won’t fall out.

What To Expect When You Go For an IVF Treatment? Additional IVF Services

Depending on your infertility issues and treatment plan, our specialists may recommend combining IVF with other procedures. Here are some treatments you can explore:

ICSI

Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) is a slightly more advanced version of IVF treatment. In IVF, sperm and eggs are placed in the same dish, and fertilisation is allowed to occur naturally. In some cases, the sperm aren’t motile enough (active) and cannot swim to the egg on their own to fertilise it.

ICSI solves this issue by directly injecting the sperm into the mature egg. It is a popular treatment for severe male factor infertility.

PICSI

Physiological Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (PICSI) is an ART technique that relies on a mature sperm’s ability to bind with hyaluronic acid to select the best sperm for ICSI.

The sperm are placed in a coated dish, and the mature sperm that bind with the hyaluronic acid are used for the ICSI procedure. The immature sperm are discarded.

Laser-Assisted Hatching (LAH)

Women with advanced maternal age or high follicle-stimulating hormone may sometimes create eggs with a hard outer layer. Sperm needs to penetrate through this layer to fertilise the egg, which is not always possible, especially with immotile sperm.

In laser-assisted hatching, a precise laser is used to create an opening in the outer layer of the egg (zona pellucida) so that fertilisation can take place easily. LAH improves fertilisation and pregnancy rates, and it is often performed in combination with ICSI.

What To Expect When You Go For an IVF Treatment?

Most women describe IVF as being easy physically but challenging mentally. Here are some tips for you to get through the bad, the good, and everything in between.

Some privacy is deserved.

IVF is a delicate, deeply personal process. It is entirely up to you to decide who you want to share your fertility journey with. If you prefer not to inform certain family members and friends about your IVF process, don’t. This is your life, your pregnancy, and your fertility journey.

Don’t symptom spot.

Symptoms can mean a lot of things. Avoid making your own assumptions based on signs and symptoms; instead, report them to your doctor for a scientific analysis.

Delays don’t mean the end.

Unfortunately, you cannot control the IVF process. There may be surprises, delays, and problems along the way. Timelines are different for everyone, so be patient and trust your doctor’s plan, even if things don’t go exactly as expected.

Don’t compare yourself with others.

Your IVF journey is different from everyone else’s. Don’t compare symptoms, results, and due dates with others, and just focus on yourself. Even if it takes you more time, the result will always be worth it.

Consult your clinic for medical advice.

While it may be tempting to ask questions on forums and consult other IVF ex-patients for advice, only your doctor is acutely aware of your circumstances and medical history. Our doctors are here to help, so ask as many questions as you need to.

Frequently Asked Questions