I found it extremely distressing to read about this situation. I can’t begin to imagine enduring such a procedure without any form of anesthesia.
I received anesthesia and pain medication during the procedure. I experienced minimal pain afterwards, which only became slightly worse a few hours later, despite my high pain tolerance due to fibromyalgia and nerve damage. This is how I believe it should be.
I find it surprising that your clinic doesn’t offer full sedation for egg retrieval, as it wasn’t even an option for me at my clinic where I was fully sedated. Going through a fresh transfer without sedation was extremely painful for me, leading to concerns about implantation due to my body tensing up from the pain. After an unsuccessful transfer, I asked to be sedated for my second frozen transfer and I am now 6+5 weeks pregnant, so I am grateful for that adjustment to my protocol that I fought for.
I would be open to visiting a different location for the opportunity to undergo full body anesthesia. The anesthesia experience was truly enjoyable, leaving me feeling happy, relaxed, and amazed.
Today I had an awake egg retrieval and I found the pain to be very manageable. I was given Valium and Panadol forte, as well as gas and air during the procedure. The sensation of the needle piercing the vaginal wall was slightly worse than a blood test. Despite only having 9 eggs retrieved, I’ve heard from others with OHSS and more eggs that it can be much more painful. I’ve had a sedated egg retrieval in the past, and the recovery from the awake procedure has been much smoother. Pain tolerance levels may vary between individuals.
Apologies for joining the conversation late, but I wanted to share my traumatic experience two days ago with an EG procedure. The clinic didn’t use anesthesia, only morphine and a muscle relaxant, making it excruciatingly painful. Now on day two, I still can’t move without immense pain. The clinic didn’t prescribe any pain medication, just telling me to use over-the-counter meds. Unsure if this is normal, I feel miserable.
I wanted to express my gratitude for sharing your experience, as my recent egg retrieval mirrored yours. It was incredibly painful, and despite being told it was the “easy part,” I found it to be excruciating. Unfortunately, they couldn’t retrieve all of my mature follicles, and even with fentanyl and anxiety medication, the pain persisted. The nurses seemed surprised that I wasn’t sleeping in recovery like others usually do, but I found it impossible to relax. I don’t know if I could go through another retrieval.