What are the 5 Stages of IVF?

Understanding IVF: The Five Key Phases from Stimulation to Transfer

When natural methods of conception do not work, doctors often recommend in vitro fertilisation (IVF) to help individuals and couples start a family. Here, the eggs are taken from a woman's ovaries, fertilised in a lab using sperm, and subsequently transferred into the uterus. Many people in India have found success with IVF. There are 5 stages to the IVF process. This starts with ovarian stimulation and ends with embryo transfer. 

Step 1: Ovarian Stimulation 

Typically, in a healthy menstrual cycle, one egg becomes mature enough for ovulation. However, if a woman is infertile, this process is inhibited. Therefore, the first step involves injecting the woman with hormones that stimulate egg maturity. 

Through this process, doctors ensure that all the eggs in a particular cycle mature simultaneously. Doctors prescribe this hormone according to the woman's age, medical history and anti-mullerian hormone (AMH). 

These steps include the following actions:

Monitoring Response

With the help of ultrasound and blood hormone levels, doctors measure your body’s response to the injectables. However, ovaries are too small to be visible with ultrasound. Therefore, doctors measure ovarian follicles’ size and number to determine maturity. 
This process lasts between eight to fourteen days. After this, doctors move to the following process. 

Finalising Maturity 

You will be administered a ‘trigger shot’ if you are ready for final maturation. The doctor will perform this procedure 36 hours before the egg retrieval.

Step 2: Retrieval of the Egg

Your doctors perform the following steps:

• Your doctors will use a thin needle to reach your ovaries through your vagina. With the help of ultrasound and a suction device, they will pull out each ovary from the follicle. 
• Doctors put the eggs in a dish, which is then kept inside an incubator.
• To assist you in this process, doctors use mild sedation and certain medications. 
• The whole process takes 20 minutes to complete. 
• You may experience cramps after this procedure. 

Step 3: Retrieving the Sperm 

Women can opt for their partner's sperm or a sperm donor. When using your partner's sperm, he will be asked for a semen sample. This is typically done on the morning of the procedure. A centrifuge spins the collected sperm at great speed to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy sperm. 

However, if you are using a donor’s sperm, they are first thawed before following the above process. 

Step 4: Fertilisation Process

You can choose from two methods of fertilisation: 

• Conventional Insemination: In this process, a healthcare professional mixes healthy sperm and eggs in a petri dish. They are left overnight for natural fertilisation.
• Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI): This process involves injecting each sperm into individual eggs. 

According to statistics, 70% of eggs are fertilised with this process. This means 7 out of 10 eggs have completed fertilisation with ICSI or conventional insemination. 

You can choose to store your eggs for future use if you do not want them to be fertilised. 

The scientists monitor the fertilised eggs for 6 more days before moving to the last step.

Step 5: Embryo Development and Transfer

Embryo development is the most crucial stage in the IVF process. To transfer the embryo back to the uterus, it has to progress to the blastocyst stage. This is the most suitable stage for transferring. 

Embryo Transfer

50% of fertilised eggs successfully transfer to the blastocyst stage. However, the rest are discarded. They freeze the remaining eggs for future embryo transfers.

A doctor performs embryo transfer on day 2 or 5 after your egg retrieval. There are two types of embryo transfer: 

• Frozen embryo transfer 
• Fresh embryo transfer

Doctors begin by inserting a soft and flexible tube called a catheter into your uterus. An ultrasound procedure guides this. Two weeks after transfer, your doctors will test you for pregnancy. A follow-up test is conducted to confirm the pregnancy if you are pregnant. 
Therefore, couples suffering from infertility can take the help of IVF to experience the wonder of childbirth. 

 
To sum up, IVF offers hope to couples facing fertility issues through a structured, five-step process—from ovarian stimulation to embryo transfer. While it may seem complex, each stage brings you closer to parenthood. With expert guidance, emotional support, and medical care, IVF can be a successful path to achieving your dream of starting a family.

What is IVF Treatment Used for?

Doctors may suggest IVF for several health-related reasons, such as:

1. Damaged or Blocked Fallopian Tubes: This situation makes it difficult for the egg to meet sperm.
2. Ovulation Problems: When eggs are not released regularly.
3. Endometriosis: A condition where the womb lining grows outside the uterus and affects fertility.
4. Low Sperm Quality: A situation where men suffer from poor sperm movement or low count.
5. Unexplained Infertility: This means that there has been no clear reason found behind not getting pregnant.
6. Genetic Disorders: IVF allows testing embryos before they are placed in the womb.
7. Fertility Preservation: Eggs or embryos can be frozen before cancer treatment.
8. Use of a Gestational Carrier: If pregnancy is risky or impossible, another person may carry the baby.

In these situations, IVF offers a possible solution by working around the natural barriers to conception.

Who is IVF Suitable for?

IVF can help people in different life situations, including:

• Couples who have tried to get pregnant for over a year without success.
• Women whose fertility has decreased due to age.
• People with certain medical conditions or treatments, such as cancer, that affect fertility.
• Couples where one partner has a genetic illness they do not want to pass on.
• Same-sex couples or single individuals who need donor eggs, sperm, or a surrogate.

This wide range of uses has made IVF one of the most common and trusted fertility treatments worldwide.

How Does IVF Fit into Modern Family Planning?

IVF is not just a medical fix. It is also a tool that fits into how people plan families today. It gives flexibility and control in a way that natural fertility does not always allow. Many people use IVF because:

• They want to delay starting a family for personal or career reasons.
• Earlier in life, they have frozen their eggs or embryos.
• They want to use donor options to start a family on their own.

What IVF Can Support Beyond Medical Needs?

Aside from health problems, IVF is also helpful in unique family-building paths, such as:

• LGBTQ+ Parenting: Where one or both partners may not be biologically involved without donor help.
• Surrogacy Arrangements: For women unable to carry a pregnancy safely.
• Second-Time Parents with Fertility Struggles: Where past childbirth does not guarantee future success.
  Points to Consider Before Starting IVF

Though IVF can be life-changing, it comes with challenges. Understanding these aspects early helps in preparing for the journey ahead.

• Emotional Strain: The process can be stressful, especially if it takes multiple attempts.
• Financial Cost: It may require saving or support, as multiple cycles can be expensive.
• Personal Decisions: Some may face questions about donor use or what to do with unused embryos.
• Physical Side Effects: Medicines and procedures may cause discomfort or tiredness.

How to Prepare a Body for IVF?

Here are the ways to make your body ready when it comes to the in-vitro fertilisation treatment procedure.

1.Maintain a Balanced Diet

What you eat can impact majorly on IVF outcomes. So, consuming a balanced diet is important. It ensures that your body is getting all the micronutrients essential for effective metabolic performance.

Try to incorporate nutrient-dense whole foods like fruits and vegetables into your diet. Opt for foods that are rich in dietary fibre, plant-based proteins, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins and minerals.

2.Limit Alcohol Intake

Regular consumption of alcohol has proven to be disruptive to reproductive health. It can significantly impact embryo development and lower the chances of a successful IVF process. 

As per medical findings, low consumption of alcohol (four drinks per week) can decrease the chance of IVF birth rates.

So, it is advisable to avoid drinking alcohol when preparing your body for IVF. You should avoid it during IVF treatment cycles, even.

3.Reduce Caffeine Intake

High caffeine consumption can reduce IVF success rates. It is reported that increased doses of caffeine during pregnancy can develop the potential for miscarriage. So, it is wise to limit any caffeinated drink intake (coffee, tea and more) before and during your IVF.

Developing a habit of reducing your caffeine intake not only helps you prepare your body for IVF. But it also helps you limit any of those associated risks.

4.Do Exercise Regularly

Moderate-intensity activities like walking, yoga, stretching, swimming, jogging and low-impact training promote fertility by managing weight, eliminating stress, and boosting insulin sensitivity. 

As per studies, regular light to moderate physical activity throughout treatment not only keeps your physical health at an optimal position. But it also helps create the appropriate environment for successful IVF treatment by balancing hormones and increasing blood circulation. 

5.Consider Your Sleep Quality

Reduced sleep quality is common when considering IVF and can impact the result of the procedure. According to a study, females with poor sleep quality do not produce fertility hormones LH and FSH as much as needed. And they tend to develop the stress hormone cortisol. 

On the contrary, women with good sleep quality tend to generate positive IVF outcomes. So, you need to take proactive steps to improve your sleep quality.

6.Avoid Tobacco Products and Harmful Chemicals

When trying to conceive through IVF treatment, lifestyle choices like smoking come sharply into focus. Research shows that current smokers face over a 41% higher risk of infertility when you compare them to those who have never smoked. 

How Many Days Pregnant are You After IVF Transfer?

The stage at which an embryo is transferred during IVF significantly influences how gestational age and the estimated due date (EDD) are calculated.

• Day 3 Embryo Transfer: Embryos transferred three days after fertilisation are considered to be at the cleavage stage. To estimate the due date, add 263 days to the transfer date. This accounts for the standard 266-day gestation period from fertilisation to birth, minus the three days the embryo has already developed before transfer.
• Day 5 Embryo Transfer: Embryos transferred five days post-fertilisation are at the blastocyst stage. For these, add 261 days to the transfer date to estimate the due date, subtracting the five days of pre-transfer development from the standard gestation period.