Preparing for Frozen Embryo Transfer

It’s been a long journey, but you’re finally approaching your embryo transfer date! While no fertility treatment has a 100% success rate, following your doctor’s instructions and making healthy choices will help you go into your embryo transfer in the best shape possible. 

Frozen Embryo Transfer Success Rates

The pregnancy rate for frozen embryo transfers ranges from about 43% to 61%, depending on past pregnancy history and other factors. When preparing for a frozen embryo transfer, it’s important to remember that not all transfers will be successful. Your doctor can give you more information about your likely success rate, considering your personal medical history and risk factors. Even if your first transfer isn’t successful, it doesn’t mean that you won’t have a successful transfer in the future. Just as it takes time for many couples to become pregnant naturally, it can also take time to become pregnant through a frozen embryo transfer.

Follow Your Doctor’s Instructions About Preparing for Frozen Embryo Transfer

Whether you become pregnant naturally or through a frozen embryo transfer, your body must make certain changes in order to support a pregnancy. Your hormones need to be at certain levels, and your uterine lining must be thick enough for implantation to occur. And it’s absolutely essential that you follow all your doctor’s instructions about preparing for a frozen embryo transfer. 

In most cases, your doctor will give you medication to help prepare your body for the transfer. This includes estrogen to thicken the lining of your uterus, and progesterone to help your body prepare for pregnancy and increase the likelihood of implantation. 

It’s important that you take all prescribed medications at the time you’re supposed to take them! Follow all other instructions your doctor also gives you to give you your best chance for a successful frozen embryo transfer.

Some people choose to do a natural frozen embryo transfer cycle. If this is the route you prefer, you’ll be monitored for ovulation and your transfer will be scheduled about five days after you ovulate. 

Preparing for Frozen Embryo Transfer at Home

It’s always helpful to focus on your physical, mental, and emotional health when preparing for frozen embryo transfer. Making healthy choices and practicing self-care will help you going into the procedure and boost your chances of a healthy pregnancy, too.

Support Your Physical Health

The healthier your body is at the time of your frozen embryo transfer, the more likely it is to succeed. Here are some excellent ways to support your physical health when preparing for frozen embryo transfer:

• Eat a healthy diet
• Get plenty of sleep
• Take a prenatal vitamin
• Engage in regular moderate-intensity exercise
• Avoid environmental toxins, like pesticides and heavy metals
• Stop using tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs
• Cut back on caffeine
• Achieve or maintain a healthy weight

Support Your Mental and Emotional Health

While short-term stress isn’t likely to have a negative impact on the success of your frozen embryo transfer, chronic stress impacts your whole body and can interfere with your body’s reproductive functions. To help reduce anxiety and stress during this time, try these great ways to support your mental and emotional health when preparing for frozen embryo transfer:

• Participate in hobbies
• Spend time with supportive friends and family
• Practice yoga or tai chi
• Keep a journal
• Give yourself permission to say “no” to things that are emotionally taxing
• Try a mindfulness app
• See a therapist who specializes in fertility counseling
• Make time for rest and relaxation
• Join in-person or online support groups for people going through fertility treatments

Plan the Days After Your Frozen Embryo Transfer

As you prepare for your frozen embryo transfer, it’s easy to focus on the procedure and the time leading up to it, but you should also make a plan for the days following your transfer. If possible, take some time out of work to relax and nourish your body. 

You don’t need to be on bed rest, but it’s good to rest for a few days. Read a good book, enjoy your favorite movies, or indulge in a relaxing hobby. Consider having meals prepped ahead of time, asking your partner to take responsibility for the prep, or ordering healthy takeout. And don’t forget to keep up with your mindfulness exercises.

There are a few things you should avoid in the days after your transfer. Excess heat can be detrimental, so skip the hot tub and sauna. Strenuous exercise, alcohol, and smoking should also be off the menu. You should refrain from having sex until after your pregnancy test, though avoid the temptation to take one. It’s common to have false results if you test too early. 

If you have questions about what you should or shouldn’t do before or after your frozen embryo transfer, be sure to discuss them with your RHWC  team. We’re committed to providing whole-person care and a variety of wellness services to support you through your frozen embryo transfer and other treatments. Learn more about the RHWC difference here.