Welcome! And good luck to you on this journey. We did 4 iui's. The 3rd worked (my obgyn said the 2nd & 3rd tend to work more) but I miscarried early. Still, it did work. We have just moved to IVF (my egg retrieval will be tmrw!). This really is an awesome place to come for support and just to find people who understand what this is like. I'm 36 and most of my friends who want kids have one. One is literally giving birth today. No one knows what this is like unless they've been in our shoes. (Oh, and some days I literally don't go on FB, b/c I can't stand the kid pics and updates. Ugh.)

Welcome to the group! I just joined recently myself and have found the women on here to be extremely open, supportive, informative and caring.
Not sure I can offer any advice, because what works for me won't work for everyone and the way I handle this rollercoaster changes almost daily! haha
I can however tell you that what you are feeling is completely normal and I hope you know that you are not alone! This journey can be so isolating, especially when immediate family and close friends have never experienced it. So you have come to the right place!

@hbpdx...Thank you so much for the kind words, I am very happy that I found a safe place to vent and to share and learn about women going through these IUI's. That's so refreshing to hear that you did get pregnant. I'm sorry that you miscarried, but the fact that you were able to get preggo was def a positive. Did you doc say that all you could do was three IUI's? Did they add Chlomid to the mix?

@CaliCutie81..Thank you so much for the support! Have you been trying for a while too?

I did 4 iui's b/c that's all my insurance covered. (And given my age, low amh, and probably endo, I didn't want to spend more time on them. Dr told me they don't work as often after 4th one, but I know someone who has a 1 mo old daughter from her 9th iui!) We are paying (well, mostly financing) for IVF out of pocket. Super nervous about what we'll do financially if this doesn't take. (I tend to be a worrier.)

I took Clomid with each IUI cycle. It helped me just as it was supposed to in terms of follicle development. :)

I started my IF Journey in February 2011. The first year was mainly dr appoinments, blood tests and ultrasounds to see why I didn't have a normal cycle. Then I moved onto accupuncture and medication to help me get a cycle. When all of that came up without answers I went for more tests to see if my tubes were blocked and to check for a septum in my uterus. All of that seemed normal so we had our first round of clomid with a trigger shot in April 2013, that ended with a chemical pregnancy, 2nd clomid round was a negative and now I am in the TWW of my third round. We opted for timed intercourse but dr has already told us that if this round is a bust then we move onto IUI.
I can totally relate to your current feelings...I am totally detached from this cycle and struggling to stay optimistic. Some days are easier then others and I just kind of roll with it and find things to distract myself as much as possible.
One thing that really helped me was deleting my facebook account, I just got so overwhelmed seeing all the wedding announcements, baby announcements, vacation photos, etc etc and realized that in order to focus on the good in my life I had to stop being envious of the good in others lives. It has completely turned my attitude around. I am now a bit isolated and a few friendships have burnt out as a result but I tell myself they weren't strong friendships in the first place if thats all it took to snuff them out!
I would be interested in hearing about your journey as well, if you feel comfortable sharing.

Welcome to the group! I am really sorry that your first IUI failed.

I am in the same situation as you.. I just completed my 2nd IUI after a failed 1st IUI and I'm terrified as each day moves forward, because I feel almost sure that its not going to work! But still trying to keep my sanity and even though I look normal, its a tornado going on in my heart and head.

But as it seems, this is a very tough path to tread and we have to collect all our strength and move forward with utter determination even though there are so many downs more than ups...just keeping the thought that you will fall pregnant one day is what motivates me.

Hope you find your strength and courage to keep moving forward. Some things that I found helped me with this journey were yoga, writing a journal, participating in DS discussions and recently being addicted to a game to keep my mind off from thinking crazy thoughts.. :)

My hubby and I started TTC about 18 months ago once we relocated back home from a four year military tour. We wanted to wait so that I wouldn't be stuck all by myself with a deployment and a baby with no family around me. Once we moved back to Texas I thought this is the perfect time. I got off the pill and had this belief that I was going to get preggo right away, boy was that a shock when months passed and still nothing. After a year, we went to the OBGYN and they ran tests. She referred me to a fertility doc and turns out I have low ovarian reserve and my hubby has a bit of morphology issue (doc wasn't too concerned about that). I also had an HSG to make sure my tubes were good and that was fine. I was put on the Chlomid to help my egg issue and that seems to have worked since I had a good follicle. When I did the IUI, I can't say I was completely optimistic since it's been so hard up to this point. You're right @CalieCutie81, it is hard to see facebook and literally everyone is pregnant and showing off thier babies. My hubby and I bought a big beautiful home in December and all everyone kept saying is "when are ya'll gonna have babies to fill up this house?" That really bothered me because I didn't know we had to have a tribe to have a nice home so my response was always "we like our space." I can't help but think that if I would have just tried when we were in the military when I was a bit younger maybe we would have become pregnant. I know 33 is still young, but it doesn't really feel that way. I cried all day Sunday after my failed IUI and you guys have really given me the strenght to keep going. You have no idea how much I appreciate your responses.

@Kattypuppy, thanks for the warm welcome! I'm right behind you on that second IUI and I hope you're going to have some good news soon! How long have you been trying?

I had done 5 IUIs. I also have low reserve, and my RE is expecting that my egg quality is not very good either. I'm almost 27. Been married almost 3 years, been trying that whole time. My RE told me that after 4 failed IUIs they tend to think IUI is just not a good option anymorem but I did a 5th because I knew 2 ppl who got preggo on their 5th. Anything can happen. But now i'm gearing up for a mini IVF cycle. Its all we can afford right now, but i'll take any chance I can get. This way i'll get the answers on what the quality of my eggs really look like. If it proves my egg quality is shit like expected, then DE is my only route, and we just can't afford that right now. So i'm in a state of limbo. Welcome to the group, so sorry you have to be here, and YES once you can't get preggo, a switch is flicked that everybody around you starts having babies. It's ridiculous.

I just wanted to say welcome to the group! The hardest thing about IF is seeing everyone else get pregnant so easily and you are struggling. For me I really struggle with the guilt of not being as happy for them as I could be because I am so sad for myself.

I hope you find all the support you need here. The past year on this site has been a life saver for me! The women here are full of lots of knowledge so ask anything!

Welcome to the support group that noone wants to have to join. Although infertility is awful, you definitely are NOT alone. This place has helped me soo much. I am hoping you will get your BFP soon but we will be here along the way to support you!

@Nellysgirl...Thanks for the warm welcome. At first I didn't even understand what the heck low reserve meant, I still don't know why when everyone in my family have no problem getting pregnant. Did they give you Chlomid to increase your reserve?

Welcome to the group! The ladies here are wonderful and very helpful! My DH and I have been TTC for 5 years now, 2 years with the aid of an RE. I've not done IUI yet, I started off with Clomid, but it wasn't working (I'm resistant) so now I'm on Letrozole (Femara). This whole journey has its ups and downs, seems to be more downs than ups though, but this group is great to talk to when you're unsure or upset! Best of luck with your next IUI and hope you get a BFP soon!

Question your doctor about his/her protocols, and be fearless about advocating for your own health and future! My first RE said that his practice did 6 IUI's before moving on to IVF. Each IUI cycle costs around $2,500. We discovered after the first IUI that they had mistimed it and did it a week early. Everything looked good for the 2nd and 3rd IUIs, but both failed.

Because of my growing concerns about the lack of attention my doctor and his staff paid to their patients, I got a second opinion. Dr. #2 said that statistically, the first one doesn't work (as another poster mentioned) but that if a woman doesn't conceive by the 3rd, or at most the 4th, IUI then the treatment isn't going to work for her. We also discovered that because my husband's sperm count is so low, our second RE wouldn't have performed the first 2 IUIs because Hubby's numbers just weren't high enough. But that still leaves us on the hook for $7,500 in treatment expenses from the 1st RE which we now know had very, very little chance of working in the first place.

It's definitely worth doing more than once if you and your doctor believe it can work for you (and if your hormone levels, etc. are being properly monitored). That being said, don't be afraid to ask about other treatment options and put your money elsewhere to get the best treatment you can afford for the money you've got to spend!

Good luck to you!!