My IVF Journey Part 1: How It All Started
I thought of starting each post of this series with ONE key takeaway I have from this part of the journey. For Part 1, it is to get fertility checked, even if you aren’t thinking of trying yet (or even at all). Your reproductive system is part of your overall health. I wouldn’t have known about my PCOS and polyps if not for this, and that PCOS can develop from stress.
My Health and Lifestyle at the Start
I started this journey feeling completely normal, fit and healthy. I have always been active, and am naturally inclined towards a healthy and balanced diet (love vegetables, don’t really like sweet things, drink lots of water…albeit cold water haha).
But I did have an extremely stressful job, sometimes working 18 hours a day, with predictable peak periods at work where I know my cycle could last past 40 days.
Tracking at the Start
When I started my TTC journey, it was full of tracking and planning (which is very me). I bought a Tempdrop (armband temperature monitor) and a whole bunch of ovulation strips. I kept a notebook and I made sure I never missed a window.
(Side Note: I do highly recommend the Tempdrop for its ease of use and simple UI even for future cycle tracking. It predicted all my periods very regularly after the algorithm kicked in and I didn’t have an unexpected period and the unceremonious panty staining for awhile.)
Proactively Checking and Treating
I didn’t wait for things to not happen first. I proactively went to get a full body and fertility check at a gynae nearby where I met a really condescending doctor who told me pregnancy “just happens”, that my charting was pointless, and that there is no way to tell if one has ovulated. He didn’t pay attention to my medical (personal and family) history, primarily that I go in and out of being borderline hyperthyroid. He also didn't recommend any further tests I could do, such as checking if my tubes were blocked.
But it was through these checks where I learnt I had PCOS.
I also started acupuncture to prep my body and womb, and hopefully improve the PCOS, and started reading up about getting a referral to a public hospital for assisted procedures.
Getting a Referral for IVF via the Public Healthcare System
Nothing continued to happen, so I finally made an appointment at a polyclinic to get a referral for Assisted Conception Procedures (ACP) at a public hospital. You will need to do this if you want to go through Assisted Reproduction (IUI or IVF) in a public hospital to utilise the government co-funding.
What they asked me:
- How long you’ve been trying.
- If you have any existing medical results. I brought my scans and blood test results from my checks with the private doctor.
- Which hospital you would like to be referred to. You can choose KKH, SGH or NUH. I chose KKH.
The GP will write a referral letter to the hospital of your choice, and you will get a call sometime thereafter with your appointment date which you cannot choose, although if you’re lucky and/or you stalk the booking system every minute once your appointment is in the system app, you might be able to change your slot.
My appointment was about 3-4 months from my visit to the polyclinic. You will be assigned a doctor at random.
Do note that you can actually book an appointment directly with a specialist at your preferred hospital (after my KKH experience, I did this with NUH, though I did not follow through with them). This will be faster but you will be charged private consultation prices, and when you move into IVF proper, you will be queueing for the next available slot with everyone else who came through the public route.
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As with many bouts of guilt and doubt about the lack of fertility we get going through IVF, I often irrationally wondered if I cursed myself by proactively researching about IVF, like I couldn’t be positive enough to somehow change my body and make a miracle happen.
Please don't feel this way. It is no one's fault, especially not yours, that this has happened to you. Baby dust to all!
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