I spent a huge amount of time searching for real IVF stories from women using their own eggs in their early 40s, so I wanted to share my complete journey so far - including all the attrition between eggs, blastocysts, PGT-A and transfer.

This is only my personal experience. It cannot predict anyone else’s outcome, but seeing other people’s actual numbers helped me when the published percentages felt abstract and overwhelming.

Starting the journey

I began investigating IVF in May 2024, shortly after turning 40.

During the initial investigations, a uterine polyp was identified. I had it removed in September 2024 and then waited before beginning retrievals.

All four retrieval cycles used my own eggs.

The first two cycles used sperm from a known donor. My circumstances later changed, and the final two cycles used my partner’s sperm.

IVF 1 — February 2025, age 41

Known donor sperm.

• 9 eggs collected
• 9 mature
• 8 fertilised
• 8 reached Day 3
• 1 Day 5 blastocyst
• 0 Day 6 blastocysts
• 1 blastocyst tested
• 0 euploid embryos

This was my first experience of producing what appeared to be a promising embryo, only to learn after PGT-A that it was chromosomally abnormal.

IVF 2 — August 2025, age 41

Known donor sperm.

• 17 eggs collected
• 13 mature
• 13 fertilised
• 13 reached Day 3
• 2 Day 5 blastocysts
• 0 Day 6 blastocysts
• 2 blastocysts tested
• 0 euploid embryos

This cycle was especially hard because 17 eggs initially felt like an excellent result. We had strong fertilisation, but only two embryos became blastocysts, and neither was euploid.

After two retrievals, I had collected 26 eggs and still had no embryo suitable for transfer.

IVF 3 — November 2025, age 41

Partner’s sperm.

• 5 eggs collected
• 5 mature
• 4 fertilised
• 4 reached Day 3
• 1 Day 5 blastocyst
• 2 Day 6 blastocysts
• 3 blastocysts tested
• 1 euploid embryo

The blastocysts were one Day 5 5AA and two Day 6 4AC embryos.

Our only euploid embryo came from this cycle: the Day 5 5AA.

Interestingly, this was the retrieval with the fewest eggs, but it produced more blastocysts than either of my first two cycles and gave us our only euploid embryo.

IVF 4 — March 2026, age 42

Partner’s sperm.

We decided to do another retrieval before transferring our only euploid embryo, hoping to bank another embryo in case the transfer failed or we wanted another child.

• 15 eggs collected
• 13 mature
• 13 showed fertilisation, although one was abnormally fertilised
• 11 reached Day 3
• 1 Day 5 blastocyst
• 4 Day 6 blastocysts
• 5 blastocysts tested
• 0 euploid embryos

This was emotionally difficult because it was my best cycle for total blastocyst numbers, but all five came back abnormal after PGT-A.

It reinforced for me how unpredictable individual retrievals can be. My cycle with five eggs produced our only euploid embryo, while my cycle with 15 eggs and five blastocysts produced none.

Why PGT-A mattered to me

I had to research PGT-A myself and raise it, rather than having my doctor clearly discuss it with me from the beginning.

I wish it had been proactively explained as one of the decisions available to someone starting IVF at 40.

I understand that PGT-A is not perfect. It does not guarantee implantation, prevent every miscarriage or necessarily increase the cumulative chance of having a baby. There are also complexities around mosaic results, testing accuracy, embryo biopsy and embryos that may never reach the blastocyst stage for testing.

However, for me personally, it was important.

At 41–42, I wanted to reduce the likelihood of transferring an embryo identified as aneuploid and then experiencing a failed transfer, an affected pregnancy or the physical and emotional trauma of a miscarriage.

Without testing, we could potentially have transferred several of the ten abnormal blastocysts before reaching our euploid embryo. There is no way to know exactly what would have happened, but knowing their chromosome status helped us make decisions that felt right for us.

I am not suggesting everyone should choose PGT-A. I simply think patients - particularly older patients - should receive balanced information about its potential benefits, limitations and risks early enough to make their own informed decision.

Transfer

We decided to transfer our only euploid embryo: the Day 5 5AA from IVF 3.

I underwent a stimulated natural frozen-embryo-transfer cycle, with hormonal monitoring and progesterone and estrogen support.

The embryo was transferred on 26 June 2026. At transfer, it was hatching and we were told everything looked very good.

Testing out the trigger and home urine tests

I actually began taking home pregnancy tests before the embryo transfer because my trigger injection contained hCG and could initially create a false-positive result. I wanted to watch that medication-related line gradually fade - often called “testing out the trigger” - so that if the line later returned or became darker, I could feel more confident that it was likely coming from a developing pregnancy rather than the medication.

I knew urine tests could not confirm that the pregnancy was progressing normally or replace beta-hCG blood tests and ultrasound. However, following the pattern gave me something tangible during an otherwise uncertain wait. For me, the tests reduced rather than increased my anxiety and helped me manage the long gaps between appointments.

The wait and early results

My first blood test confirmed pregnancy.

• Initial beta-hCG: 270
• Approximately two weeks later: beta-hCG 21,600
• Progesterone and estrogen levels were also reassuring

The waiting between blood tests and the first scan was extremely difficult. Even after finally obtaining a euploid embryo, I remained very aware that PGT-A does not guarantee implantation or an ongoing pregnancy.

We have now had our first reassuring scan and seen the heartbeat!

It is still early, so I am sharing this cautiously and with enormous gratitude.

Our complete IVF funnel

Across four retrievals at ages 41–42:

46 eggs collected
→ 40 mature
→ 38 fertilised
→ 36 reached Day 3
→ 11 blastocysts
→ 1 euploid embryo
→ 1 transfer
→ 1 heartbeat

The biggest lessons from my experience were:

A high egg number did not necessarily mean a euploid embryo.

A low egg number did not mean the cycle was hopeless.

Zero euploids in my first two rounds did not mean I would never obtain one.

Blastocyst appearance alone could not tell us which embryo was chromosomally normal.

And sometimes, one embryo really can be enough.

I hope sharing the full numbers helps someone else aged 40+ understand what the journey can look like. I also hope it encourages people to ask their doctors about every available option - including the possible benefits and limitations of PGT-A - rather than assuming everything relevant will automatically be raised with them.