I was reading the IVF procedure conducted at TMC. I am considering of going there straight rather than to Dr Chen then to TMC. The procedure look easy enough but... at some stage it sounds painful. Do I have to remind you that I hate needles.
The IVF programme at Thomson is divided into 4 phases.
￭ Phase 0 The stage of ‘Preparation’ and spans 1 month. The first consultation is usually scheduled on one of cycle days 2-4 to assess the clinical situation and to allow final discussions and fine-tuning before embarking on the programme. A course of oral contraceptive pills (OCP) is usually prescribed to ensure hormonal stability as well as to facilitate scheduling of the IVF programme. Phase 0 may be omitted if certain conditions are fulfilled, whereupon couples can go straight into Phase 1.
￭ Phase 1 The stage of ‘Egg Growth’. You return on day 2 or 3 of the cycle following OCPs to ensure that all is ready to commence hormone treatment. Daily injections with hormones such as FSH, Cetrorelix and hCG are used to stimulate the growth of about 10 eggs. Pen injectors have simplified injections so that many patients are able to self-inject. Blood tests are rarely needed as you are assigned an IVF clinician who will perform all your scans and procedures. Phase 1 typically takes 10 to 14 days and ends when enough eggs are fully grown.
￭ Phase 2 The stage of ‘Procedures’. The first procedure is egg extraction or Oocyte Pick-up (OPU). OPU is typically a 10 – 20 minute procedure performed under a mild, short-acting anaesthetic. The presence of your husband is encouraged to provide emotional support. You are usually well enough to leave the Centre after 2 hours. The eggs in the meantime will be combined with your husband’s sperm in the laboratory. ICSI, where individual sperm is injected to each egg, is performed if the sperm count is very low. Otherwise the sperm and egg are allowed to fertilise naturally. The second procedure is Embryo Transfer (ET) where fertilised eggs are cultured for 3 days after which the ‘best’ 2 or 3 embryos are transferred back into your womb in a simple 10 minute procedure.
￭ Phase 3 The phase of ‘Womb Stabilisation’. Various hormones are administered for a 2 week spell to keep the womb stable until the pregnancy test.
Egg Extraction: 
Embryo Transfer:
So after reading all those information, AM I READY??? Physically, emotionally and mentally perhaps. But financially there might be a little problem. We'll see how it goes in the next few months. Insya Allah if everything goes well, I might be embarking on our new journey very soon...
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