Medication in Ovarian Stimulation Treatments

Most likely, NO. It might sting a little with some medications. Pharmaceutical companies strive to introduce pens with increasingly simpler and finer needles to the market, so the pain is likely to be almost imperceptible or very tolerable.

Most of the time, the inconvenience is more psychological: many patients fear needles and don’t believe they can inject themselves. However, the vast majority, after a good explanation and some time to familiarize themselves with the medication, manage to do it on their own at home without any problem.

Most people have never injected themselves. Moreover, each preparation is different, and some are more complicated than others. All of this makes the anxiety associated with the moment of injection always high, and that’s normal. It’s important that your clinic explains you how to administer the prescribed medication and demonstrates it to you with a test vial. There are also many videos on the internet and YouTube that can help you at home if you have doubts about how to inject the medication. In some cases, partners, mothers, siblings, friends can help administer the medication, but most women manage to do it on their own. Something you can do to “make sure” is to ask a nurse to help you on the first day.

The medications used during ovarian stimulation are injectable hormones whose action in the body lasts about 24 hours, which is why it will be necessary for you to inject the medication every day. The concerns that usually worry most are whether they can cause long-term problems such as cancer, premature menopause, or decreased fertility. The answer is NO. As long as the number of treatments are reasonable (as there is no data with more than 7-8 IVF cycles), no harmful effects on your body in the long term have been observed.

The emotional state can vary greatly from one woman to another. Assisted reproduction treatments are challenging and normally they will always generate uncertainty, fears, stress… and some women may be more sensitive than others to hormonal treatment. In any case, it’s common to feel emotionally disturbed throughout the treatment. It’s important that you seek support from your loved ones or engage in any activity that makes you feel better.

Regarding the physical state, how you feel will largely depend on your ovarian reserve and whether or not you have an underlying condition. It’s common not to notice significant changes during the first 5 days of stimulation. From the 6th or 7th day, you may feel more breast tension, increased vaginal discharge, and mild abdominal swelling. These symptoms may be more significant the better your response is. In any case, all discomfort will improve a few days after ovarian puncture when your period starts.