The IVF Journey: From First Consultation to Pregnancy
Written by Dr Eulalie Manket-Kouassi, obstetrician-gynaecologist, fertility and ART specialist, founder and medical director of CNDT, the first Ivorian woman trained in IVF in Strasbourg
Member of ASRM, ESHRE, SOGOCI, GIERAF and ANARA.
Updated on
Beginning an assisted reproductive treatment (ART) journey can feel overwhelming. The acronyms multiply — IVF, ICSI, IUI — and the number of steps between where you are now and where you want to be can seem daunting. Yet when you take them one at a time, each stage has its own logic, its own pace, and its place in a process designed to support you carefully and attentively.
The First Consultation
Everything starts with a conversation. The first consultation is not a commitment — it is a time for listening and assessment. Your doctor will invite you to share your story: how long you have been trying to conceive, your medical and gynaecological history, any previous treatments, and the questions you have right now.
A basic clinical examination is carried out, and investigations are requested to better understand both partners' situation. You leave this first appointment with a roadmap, not a constraint.
Initial Investigations
Before any therapeutic decision is made, tests help to establish a clear picture of your fertility. For women, a hormonal panel is requested — FSH, LH, oestradiol, AMH and TSH — to assess ovarian reserve and thyroid function. A pelvic ultrasound completes the evaluation by visualising the uterus and ovaries. Depending on the situation, a hysterosalpingography may be proposed to check that the fallopian tubes are open.
For the male partner, a semen analysis and semen culture form the basic assessment. These investigations are painless, quick, and provide decisive information about fertilising capacity.
All results are then reviewed together at a synthesis consultation, where your doctor explains them clearly, answers your questions, and outlines next steps.
Choosing a Protocol
This is often the step that causes the most anxiety, because it involves a decision. In practice, your doctor guides you through this reflection, presenting options suited to your specific situation.
Common protocols include simple ovulation induction (for irregular cycles), intrauterine insemination (IUI), in vitro fertilisation (IVF), IVF with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) when male factor infertility is involved, or egg donation when ovarian reserve is severely diminished. Each option is explained — its advantages, its demands, and its realistic chances of success — so that you can make an informed choice.
Stimulation and Transfer
In an IVF cycle, the ovarian stimulation phase typically lasts ten to fourteen days. Daily hormone injections encourage the ovaries to produce multiple follicles. Regular ultrasound scans and blood tests allow the doctor to monitor progress and adjust doses as needed.
Egg retrieval is performed under light anaesthesia, on an outpatient basis. In the laboratory, the retrieved eggs are fertilised with the partner's sperm; the resulting embryos are cultured for two to five days. The embryo transfer is a simple, painless procedure in which one or two embryos are placed into the uterus under ultrasound guidance.
The Wait and the Confirmation
The post-transfer period is often described as the hardest part of the entire journey. Ten to twelve days must pass before a blood pregnancy test can be performed. Those days can carry hope, anxiety, and uncertainty in equal measure — all of this is entirely normal.
During this phase, your doctor remains available. Psychological support can be offered if you feel you need it. If pregnancy is confirmed, close follow-up is arranged, in coordination with your obstetrician, to ensure the best possible start to the early weeks.
Every ART journey is unique. Yours will depend on your age, your ovarian reserve, your history, and your circumstances as a couple. What does not change is the commitment of the team to respect your pace, to inform you at every stage, and to remain by your side from beginning to end.
