Surrogate medication plans often include estrogen and progesterone before and after embryo transfer. Some medicines may be pills, patches, vaginal products, or injections. The exact plan depends on the fertility clinic and treatment cycle.
Do not copy another surrogate’s calendar. Take only the medicine prescribed to you and call the clinic when instructions are unclear.
Maya’s first question was about the needle
Maya was comfortable with the idea of embryo transfer. She was not comfortable with giving herself an injection. She worried that one mistake would ruin the cycle.
Her nurse reviewed the calendar, showed her how to store each medicine, and watched her practice with the supplies. Maya also chose her sister as a backup person. The needle did not become pleasant, but it stopped feeling mysterious.
Medicines you may hear about
- Estrogen: may help prepare the uterine lining.
- Progesterone: helps support the lining around embryo transfer and early pregnancy.
- Cycle-control medication: may help the clinic control timing.
- Other clinic-directed medicines: may be used for a specific protocol or medical reason.
Progesterone can be given in different forms, including injection or vaginal medication. The clinic chooses the route, dose, and timing.1
Your calendar should answer six questions
- What is the medicine called?
- How much do I take?
- How and where do I take it?
- What time does it need to be taken?
- What should I do if a dose is late or missed?
- When do I stop?
Set up a simple medication station
- Keep the printed calendar with the supplies.
- Set alarms that match the clinic’s time window.
- Store medication exactly as instructed.
- Keep the clinic’s after-hours number nearby.
- Write down each dose after taking it.
- Ask how to dispose of needles safely.
If injections make you nervous
Ask for a live teaching session, video instructions from the clinic, and written steps. Practice opening the package and identifying each supply before the first dose. Decide whether you will give the injection yourself or use a trained support person approved by the clinic.
Do not rely on a friend’s old medication or online dosing advice. If the syringe, needle, amount, or injection site looks different from the instructions, pause and call the clinic.
Plan around work and family
Some doses need consistent timing. Monitoring results can also change the calendar. Maya placed a small travel kit in a safe place, arranged privacy at work, and gave her sister the clinic number. She asked how to travel with medication and what to do if delivery was delayed.
Tell the clinic about every prescription, over-the-counter medicine, vitamin, and supplement you already use. The transfer calendar should fit with the rest of your medical care, not sit in a separate world.
Call the clinic instead of guessing
Call for a missed or late dose, wrong dose, storage problem, lost medicine, allergic reaction, severe pain, trouble breathing, or any symptom the clinic marks as urgent. Do not double a dose unless the clinic tells you to do so.
Questions women often ask
Will I definitely need injections?
Not every protocol is the same. Ask the clinic which medicines, forms, and dates apply to your cycle.
How long do medications continue?
The clinic sets the stop date based on the protocol and pregnancy monitoring. Continue until the clinic gives written instructions to change or stop.
Who pays for the medication?
The program and contract should explain ordering and payment. Do not pay an unexpected amount without checking the approved process.
The plan should feel clear before the first dose
Maya still preferred not to use needles, but she knew what to do and whom to call. Review monitoring appointments and the full embryo-transfer process.