Surrogacy - harvesting eggs from Mech valvers?

[Elcarim]

Hi, I have been reading all the info on pregnancies with mech valves and decided that I don't want to take the risk.

I have read that some people on here have had babies using surrogate mothers and with their own eggs and husband/partner's sperm. That is something I would like to know more about, although I know the laws are different in Australia. I was mainly wondering how you went about harvesting eggs and dealing with the drugs involved and how much they interacted with your ACT. Also anything else that you may have found along the way that you were not prepared for or did not expect.

Many thanks!

Jodie.

 

[LUVMyBirman]

Wish you all the best in your search for info.

I apprecaite your concern for not attempting to carry a child with a mechanical valve. Decided it was way too risky myself!

 

[Gnusgal]

I had my egg harvest this past October. I'll tell you my experience.

The fertility drugs did not interfere with my heart meds at all.

A few days before the harvest I stopped coumadin and took lovenox. I started coumadin back up that night. No bleeding issues. I was incredibly sore, but that's to be expected no matter who you are.

All in all, the egg harvest was the least of my problems at that point in time. I was having issues with my heart that were completely separate from the egg harvest (defibrillator wire broke). That period of time is pretty much a blur! LOL

I also have an INRatio, so I was able to keep an eye on my INR. No major issues there.

Good luck! I know there are some people in Australia who have used a surrogate in the US, and there's always India. But personally, I love that I have a personal relationship with my surrogate. She lives 3 hours away, so I don't see her as often as I'd like, but at least I can drive up on the weekend if I want to. That's not to say you can't have a personal relationship over seas. You'd just have to work at it a bit more.

If you ever want to talk, feel free to email or PM me!

 

[TXGal]

Hi Jodie,

The fertility drugs did not interfere with my heart meds... A few days before the retrieval I stopped coumadin and took lovenox shots. I started coumadin back up that night after the retrieval. I didn't have any issues with bleeding at all and no cramping. I did however get a huge migraine right before the retrieval on the day of (my heart condition has given me the gift of migraines with aura) and I did get several migraines the week before my retrieval. But other than the headaches, all went perfect and no problems at all!

Now I did talk to my OB and he happened to be a lactation specialist and encouraged me to take Domperidone and go through the whole process to get me ready to breastfeed (followed the protocol at asklenore.com). After about 3 weeks of breastfeeding I started having chest pain & palpitations.. so I stopped the medicine.. but, there are women who successfully breastfed, it just didn't work very long for me...

Anyways, if you have any more questions, feel free to ask or PM me! Good luck! (I hope to have one more child through surrogacy one day once I win the lotto )

 

[Gnusgal]

Now I did talk to my OB and he happened to be a lactation specialist and encouraged me to take Domperidone and go through the whole process to get me ready to breastfeed (followed the protocol at asklenore.com). After about 3 weeks of breastfeeding I started having chest pain & palpitations.. so I stopped the medicine.. but, there are women who successfully breastfed, it just didn't work very long for me...

I am also planning to breastfeed. Only, after talking with my GP and OB, they both decided I should NOT take the domperidone. The GP wasn't very helpful beyond that. But my OB said that the lanoxin that I'm already on can have a side effect of lactation. So she recommended starting to pump now, instead of the 6 weeks ahead of time that is usually recommended. I started pumping three weeks ago and I'm already getting 2.5 oz in a day. My OB sounded very surprised when I told her this yesterday.

Oddly enough, I started having tons of PVCs last week. We can't seem to pinpoint the cause, though. I had been taking the herbs fenugreek and blessed thistle to help with the lactation, so we're going to try stopping those and see what happens. Also, my EP increased my toprol from 75 mg once a day to 50 mg twice a day. Strange that we both had issues with heart rhythm, even though we used different protocols. I wonder if it's the breastfeeding itself? I hope not! I really want to give this a shot!

 

[TXGal]

Oddly enough, I started having tons of PVCs last week. We can't seem to pinpoint the cause, though. I had been taking the herbs fenugreek and blessed thistle to help with the lactation, so we're going to try stopping those and see what happens. Also, my EP increased my toprol from 75 mg once a day to 50 mg twice a day. Strange that we both had issues with heart rhythm, even though we used different protocols. I wonder if it's the breastfeeding itself? I hope not! I really want to give this a shot!

I was actually told that I couldn't take any of the herbs that help with breastfeeding.. strange you're having PVCs and not on domperidone.. maybe it IS the pumping? hmm, well keep an eye on it and hopefully the PVCs lessen and you can continue to pump for those babies! Good luck!!

 

[Gnusgal]

I was actually told that I couldn't take any of the herbs that help with breastfeeding.. strange you're having PVCs and not on domperidone.. maybe it IS the pumping? hmm, well keep an eye on it and hopefully the PVCs lessen and you can continue to pump for those babies! Good luck!!

That's odd that you were told not to take the herbs, but it was okay to do the domperidone, while I was told to not take the domperidone, but it was okay to take the herbs...

I'm hoping that upping my toprol and cutting out the herbs will do the trick. I SOOOO don't want to stop pumping. I've been really successful so far and it would really pi$$ me off if my heart got in the way once again. It's bad enough I couldn't carry my own children, but to be denied this form of nourishing them as well? Just cruel I tell you!

 

[lcwhitney]

God luck with the harvesting, from what
I have heard that will be the easy part. The difficulty comes with syncronizing your cycle with the sarrogate.
We will keep you both in our prayers.

Lettitia

 

[TXGal]

That's odd that you were told not to take the herbs, but it was okay to do the domperidone, while I was told to not take the domperidone, but it was okay to take the herbs...

I just looked back at my email from Lenore from AskLenore.com which is the protocol we went off of and seems to be the most popular.. Now, I learned that I could breastfeed only 4 weeks before my son was born, so I needed an accelerated protocol.. here is some of the response from Lenore to questions that I had for her:

"American Academy of Pediatrics ruled domperidone compatible with breastfeeding years ago. If you want to breastfeed you can. You can simply eliminate the fenugreek and blessed thistle, just maintain the domperidone. Follow the accelerated protocol modified for your situation (omitting the herbs). The medications recommended by Dr. Jack Newman and the doctors at our breastfeeding clinic are Ortho 1/35 (once daily, only active pills, no sugar pills, no periods) and domperidone (10 mg 4 times per day for the first week and then increase to 20 mg 4 times per day). "

The email is pretty long, but the above quote is where she informed me to not take the herbs and my pedi said so as well.. I believe they aren't compatible with blood thinners.. I'm pretty sure that's what my pedi said.. ugh, I wish it wasn't so confusing! I hope all works out for you!

 

[Elcarim]

Wow, thanks for that info, guys! I am looking at a year or so before getting serious about this, but being the sort of person I am, I like to plan ahead.

I am hoping that a family member will step up to be a surrogate, I also have a close friend who has said that she would do it. Surrogacy laws in Australia are currently under reform, which would make things a lot easier.

 

[Gnusgal]

Wow, thanks for that info, guys! I am looking at a year or so before getting serious about this, but being the sort of person I am, I like to plan ahead.

I am hoping that a family member will step up to be a surrogate, I also have a close friend who has said that she would do it. Surrogacy laws in Australia are currently under reform, which would make things a lot easier.

That would be great if you can get a family member of friend to help you out. My surrogate has become my best friend. We actually knew each other (through a surrogacy message board) for 4 years before we talked about working together. And it was another 7 months before we transferred. So as you can see, I also spent a LOT of time planning ahead. It's a lot of information and jumping in without preparation can lead to confusion, hurt feelings, and a lot of mess no one wants to deal with. Take your time and follow your heart (no pun intended ). Remember, any questions at all... You've got two great resources!!!

 

[TXGal]

Wow, thanks for that info, guys! I am looking at a year or so before getting serious about this, but being the sort of person I am, I like to plan ahead.

I am hoping that a family member will step up to be a surrogate, I also have a close friend who has said that she would do it. Surrogacy laws in Australia are currently under reform, which would make things a lot easier.

Yes, Best of luck to you! It does take a lot of preparation, but of course WELL worth it! Keep us informed and if you have any questions I'll definitely do my best to help you out!