No joke, once you get a calendar and start medications and have the date of the transfer, the excitement gets insanely increased! The embryo transfer is, hands down, one of the most exciting parts of any surrogacy journey. This is a huge milestone, you have successfully jumped through all the hoops, the in-take part, medical screening, legal contracts are complete and you are pumped up with hormones now – it’s OK to cry or laugh, or both.. This is a HUGE step!

Where does the transfer take place?

The transfer will take place (likely) at the same place you went for the medical screening. Having been there before it takes a layer of “unknown” out of the equation. The embryo transfer will always take place at the clinic the IPs are working with adn where their sweet embryos are being stored. If this clinic is not local to you, you will fly in the day before and can often leave 24 hours after the transfer.

Blood draws and medication changes at transfer

They will draw your blood before the transfer, this is so that they can edit your medication doses if needed to give this embryo the best place to implant and grow. The actual embryo transfer is very quick… shockingly quick! Behind the scenes, the IVF lab and the doctor and the phlebotomists and nurses are thawing the embryo, getting the transfer room ready, outlining your medication next steps, etc.

Inside the transfer room…

Once you are in the transfer room, they will place a speculum in place, very similar to a pap smear, they will verify the IPs name with you, they will confirm the number of embryos everyone agreed to transfer (they already know all of this information, but this is part of their due diligence) they will insert a small catheter that has the embryo(s) inside, they will get the catheter in place by visual guides from an ultrasound – they will count down, release the embryo(s), you will see the fluid/air from the catheter in your uterus – it’s fun to imagine this is the embryo BUT the embryo is very small at this stage. The actual procedure is less than a few minutes. You will spend more time waiting for the doctor to come in for the procedure, then after they will ask you to lay there resting for 15-20 minutes before you are able to get dressed and head home.

Each clinic has their own specific transfer protocols

Some clinics have the requirement of a full bladder, some will ask you to stay on bed rest for 24-48 hours after, all of this information will be provided to you at the time the transfer is confirmed – about 1 week before the transfer, so you can plan ahead. Once the procedure is complete, now you can rest, relax and just zen out in bed somewhere (home or hotel). The goal here is to just stay as calm and “chill” as possible. You can experience some cramping, bloating, twinges after the transfer – all of these are normal. You will be in the dreaded Two Week Wait (TWW), typically 10-12 days after the embryos transfer you will F I N A L L Y  be able to go to your local lab and have your blood drawn – they sure like taking your blood! The goal here is to see your HCG level ABOVE 100, although anything above 50 is “pregnant”. This number is just a number, the REAL test is the repeat labs 7 days later – the goal is to see the HCG level rise every 24-48 hours. You can use this fun little calculator to see how fast your numbers are rising! Once you have both labs completed and the IVF doctor is pleased with the levels, you will be scheduled for your first ultrasound to confirm if there is a growing fetus and hopefully… a HEARTBEAT!!

Advice from someone who has been there…. FOUR times

I have undergone 4 IVF transfers, one was a double embryo transfer, all the others were single embryo transfers. My advice to you is to come into this as relaxed as possible, follow all the advice and direction from the clinic, stay on top of your medications and follow the medication plan exactly as it was provided to you. Drink plenty of water and try to get a good night’s sleep before. Once the transfer is complete, I always encourage everyone to take the first 24 hours as slow as you can, if things went well – your body is doing a TON of work – and the least you can do is be kind to her. Listen to your body, if you are feeling tired.. REST. You are an incredible human, don’t forget that.