The Official TTC for 6 Months or More Thread

[monkeyprincess]

SB, keeping my fingers crossed you get good news about your lining at your US today.

Random, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that you get pregnant in the next few months and still have a chance to take advantage of your endo surgery results. If it comes to it, is IVF even an option for you or is it out of the question? I agree with Aviastar, this whole thing just really sucks.

AFM, DH decided that we should just BD every other day for the next week or so to give ourselves the best shot possible of hitting the right time. Our effort this morning was pretty much hilarious. First of all, I was so not in the mood and preoccupied with other things and would have preferred to try this evening, but I didn't want to shoot him down, so I went with it. The baby woke up and started chirping, so the baby monitor was going off, my phone started beeping and flashing as work emails started coming in, and then DH's phone started ringing and ringing because one his apartment tenants had a faulty fire alarm or something. I have no idea how we managed to pull it off through all of that, but we did TTC is just so glamorous....

 

[random_thought]

MP that is hilarious and I can totally relate to all of that happening The other night our cat decided to jump up on the bed and watch the action haha

IVF is probably out of the question for right now, we just don't have that kind of money unfortunately. We could do a loan but our credit is in the toilet right now from the last 5 years, we're in the middle of building it back up but it seems like it's taking forevvver. I do know that we could financially handle doing a few iuis though if we decided to go that route or at least while we are saving up for ivf.

 

[royalasscherlover]

rt, so sorry about the endo news - i really hope you have success in the next few months and this isn't an issue for you.

mp, you are sweet to think of me - thanks. I'm impressed that you and your DH managed to pull it off with all the other distractions - good for you! I hope you can fun some fun with the TTC this month...

afm, so far, so good. My lining looks fine (hooray!) and I have two 13mm follies and a handful following behind at 10 and 11mm. Since I seem to be responding pretty strongly to the injects, they're decreasing my dose tonight and tomorrow and I go back in for another u/s on Friday. I'm not counting victory yet, but I'm happy that it looks like I'll at least be in the game this month.

 

[monkeyprincess]

SB, that's great news and such a relief after last month. Keeping my fingers crossed for you!

Random, I completely understand. I have never actually heard how much it would be to pay for IVF out of pocket at my clinic, but based on what I've read, I imagine it is quite expensive and undoable for many people, which is so frustrating. I am not sure how I feel about IVF these days. I used to think it was completely out of the question for me, but the closer I get to running out of other options, I'm a little more open to hearing about it. But it is so scary to even think about investing that kind of money without any assurance that it is going to work. Did you ever confirm whether you ovulated early?

AFM, I used an OPK last night and it was blazing positive and again this morning. Today is only CD10, so it looks like another early ovulation for me.

 

[aviastar]

MP- HAHA!

SB- this is great news! Hooray on the lining!

Random- We have clinics in this area that do Shared Cycle or Natural Cycle IVFs that are less expensive, I think. Anything like that in your area?

 

[random_thought]

MP- My temps have been low the last 2 days, hurrah!!! So we're just keepin on right now. Today is cd 14 for me so it should happen anytime now. My endo is acting up, I have bad back pain, felt my right ovary (thank god, because the other one is covered in cysts) get ready and I've been nauseous for about 2 days so I definitely know it's coming. I'm just trying to not think about ivf or iui right now and am holding on hope for things to happen on their own in the next few months. Hell, I did it once before, it's GOT to happen again!

 

[split_shank]

MP and SB looks like you both have promising cycles coming up!! Good luck!

RT endo is such a sucky deal! My case was very mild, so I can't speak too much about it but I know how much is messes up, well, basically everything! Best wishes and hopefully they can find a way around it.

AFM, I had an US this morning, CD11 as we tried to speed things up by starting Femera on day 2 instead of 3. I have 2 or 3 little follies on both sides. And I mean little, like 4-5 mm each. Not sure what happened but I'm nervous that we screwed mother nature up a little by starting too soon or something. They said its not too uncommon, like 1 in 4, who need a second round of Femera, which we're going to try. Also noted that there was a residual cyst from last cycle that might be causing some of the problems. She said it might be affecting the hormones a little bit. Stupid cysts. And follicles (just kidding follies, i love you) One month you can't get them to settle down, the next you can't get them to grow!

Sooo.. back to Femera for 5 more days, another scan on the 4th. I guess this is good since DH and I aren't close by this weekend to even try to BD. And btw, he was finally willing to do the IUI tomorrow if needed. I tried to talk to him about it more, explain to him that its all they do there and not to feel ashamed or something, and he sounded like he was more bummed about not being able to 'do it himself' , in his own words. Not a fan of modern medicine I guess. I understand where he's coming from. I just added that after trying for a year next month, that we might need a little more help than we'd like to admit we need. He seemed ok for now.

 

[monkeyprincess]

SS, huh, that's strange about your follicles, especially since you usually respond pretty strongly. I normally get 3-4 follicles from 5 mg of femara, but I did have one cycle where I only had one follicle. So I agree that it's not unusual for your body to respond differently from cycle to cycle. Hopefully the next round will do the trick for you and the later timing will work out better. I completely understand your husband being frustrated about not being able to make it happen the old-fashioned way. I think everyone who elects to try IUI or IVF has to grieve the fact that they need intervention to make it happen. I still get sad sometimes when I think that DH and I may never have a baby just from making love. Sorry, that sounded a bit more corny than I intended , but you know what I mean.

Random, I figured that temp was probably a fluke. And yes, it should at least be comforting to know that you are capable of getting pregnant on your own. Hopefully all of the conditions will be just right one of these times for you.

Avisastar, fingers are tightly crossed for you. I've lost track what dpo you are, but it must be getting close.

 

[random_thought]

Maybe I need to do some sort of spiritual baby making dance before we bd each time, like a rain dance, but for babies...well just one baby preferably lol

S_S I'm going to send you lots of giant follicle thoughts! I'm sorry you have to do another round, that just...sucks

Aviastar- I'm not sure, I haven't looked into that. I'm thinking if we go that route that we might just throw it all into the wind and go to CCRM. It's about 10 minutes from where we live and I think our insurance would cover part of it if they were seeing me about my endo. Plus they are like, the best of the best lol

 

[aviastar]

Thanks, MP, I am close...but I feel like if I ignore the elephant in the room maybe I won't jinx anything. So I am ignoring I should know either way by this weekend.

And it's not corny! It's what we'd all prefer, especially, I think, our DHs who would vastly prefer to never give sperm samples ever again!

Random, if you find a good Baby Dance, let me know; I found myself giving my uterus a pep talk in the bathroom today. There was a little dance that went with it. Can't hurt, right?

SS, this is a good thing! How many times in this thread have we found that the timing miraculously works out so testing can get done before holidays or trips out of town? Your ovaries slowed down so you and DH could be in the same place at the same time! I bet they grow like crazy from now on.

 

[monkeyprincess]

Aviastar, good for you for not focusing on that elephant! Somebody is bound to get good news one of these days, and it might has well be you! I'll be keeping my fingers crossed.

Hope everyone else is doing well and has something to look forward to this weekend (other than snow which is what I apparently have to look forward to!).

LV, it's almost March, so not too much longer for you. I think you said you wouldn't be posted as much, but in case you are still checking, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you this month!

AFM, feeling a bit frustrated because I feel like our timing has been a bit off this cycle. I guess we have just gotten so used to IUIs, that we forgot about the pressure that comes from trying to BD as much as possible around O time. We used up all of our just for fun stuff early in the week, and it just didn't happen last night, which was probably our prime BD time, and I was pretty frustrated. Oh well. I doubt it would make much of a difference anyway, and it will take away some of the expectation and disappointment around AF time. I just hate the feeling that I'm completely out of the game this month, even though I guess there's still always that slim chance.

 

[royalasscherlover]

rt, thinking good thoughts for you that everything comes together again!

ss, I hope the second round does the trick for you and hooray for better timing. I agree with MP that it takes some mental adjustment to get over needing extra intervention...it seems like it should be so simple since some people manage to do it by accident! My DH jokes that if we were one of those couples who named our children after the place they were conceived, ours would be called 'Exam Room 7'

aviastar, good luck! I agree that we're all due for some good news.

mp, I'm sorry about the disappointing timing. TTC the 'natural' way is hard and stressful too when you've been at it this long. Can you get in a quick session tonight just in case? In any event, you're doing the best you can and stranger things have happened!

Not much to report here, I had another u/s this morning and now my two biggest follicles are 15mm. Going back again on Sunday and hoping they're ready then. It feels like so much monitoring/blood draws with the injectibles (CD 3,7,9 and will be 11), but I suppose it's a small price to pay if it works.

Happy weekend all!

 

[choro72]

Hi, I'm a long time lurker of this thread. Mind if I join?

We're blessed with a 20 month son, and we started TTC#2 last year. DS was a jerkster, so I naively thought our parts are working well. Well here we are, having just failed our 7th cycle. I use OPK, and our timing have been great. I'm now desperate so I started temping last cycle, and saw the clear ovulation rise and the AF dip. I have clockwork cycles, EWCM, ovulation pain, positive OPK, the works.

My friend told me about an OBGYN that she likes, who does some fertility treatment also. I made the appointment but by the time we see her it will be in our TWW cycle 8. Hope to see if DS changed anything about my body, or if there is something wrong with DH's swimmers.

It feels good to let it all out here. I've been lurking here for a while but I'll be active now, if you don't mind. Good luck to all!

 

[random_thought]

Welcome Choro! I'm sorry you have to be here. Just my quick 2 cents, I had an ob-gyn that also said she did fertility treatments, well she ended up prescribing me progesterone and I later found out my levels were just fine and that the actual problem was endometriosis and insulin resistance. If something doesn't sound right, it probably isn't so don't be afraid to speak your mind too!

With that said, I hope you get pregnant this month

AFM, pretty sure I'm ovulating today. We BD'ed the last 2 days in a row and I'll see if we can get today in too, boy, that should really cover our bases lol!

 

[random_thought]

Vent

I ovulate today and my entire body feels like it is trying to kill me. I couldn't even bring myself to have sex I took a percoset but it didn't kill the pain, it did make me loopy though so I'm loopy and in pain.

At least I have an excuse to make frozen pizza for dinner and not clean right? Yes, I am feeding my child frozen pizza for dinner, mother of the year right here lol

 

[random_thought]

Come on! Are you freaking kidding me?!

 

[royalasscherlover]

Welcome choro! i'm sorry you find yourself here, but hopefully everything is working just fine and your stay is short.

random, so sorry about the pain at ovulation - that sounds rough. I don't know what to make of your chart, but I hopefully your temp will be back up tomorrow. Does your temp usually bounce around so much?

hi to everyone else!

Afm, more frustration. My u/s today showed that I have two follicles ready to go and couple more possibles, but my lining has shrunk (???) from where it was a few days ago and is only 5.5mm now. So disappointing, and I didn't know that this could happen. The only good news is that the lining looks great other than being thin, with a lovely triple layer. So they're having me go ahead and trigger tonight, then IUI on Tuesday. We're going to add progesterone after ovulation, since it can't hurt and might help.

I'm pretty bummed. I feel like my chances of having biological kids are slipping farther away and the only thing I can feel hopeful about is that someday I will get to stop taking all these drugs that make me feel like a crazy person and going to the doctor all the time. I have an appointment with my RE in another week to discuss - I don't want to keep using these expensive drugs and going in for monitoring/blood draws every other day when it's only half a step forward with the follicles but a step back with my lining. It doesn't do any good to fertilize more eggs if none of them can implant.

To add insult to injury, one of my best friends (who started TTC after we did) had her baby yesterday. I wish it was easier to feel happy for her.

 

[random_thought]

random, so sorry about the pain at ovulation - that sounds rough. I don't know what to make of your chart, but I hopefully your temp will be back up tomorrow. Does your temp usually bounce around so much?

Never!! That's what has me so baffled lol

 

[Loves Vintage]

SB - I'm really sorry to hear about your lining. I really thought you would see a difference when taking injectables. I hope the RE has some good advice for you. I really hope you don't need it though. So frustrating. I wonder if estrogen would make a difference. I know your RE has advised against it, but I wouldn't hesitate to again. I wish you all best luck that you get a happy bfp in 2 weeks!!

MP - Sorry to hear that your timing might be off. Sounds like you are still in the game though!! Sending you all the best luck too!!! Thanks for asking about me. I'm still on bcps, so pretty much status quo here!

 

[monkeyprincess]

LV, thanks for checking in. Not too much longer for you until the whole process begins. Sending you good thoughts for the upcoming process.

Random, hoping you get clear signs of O soon. That must be frustrating!

SB, I'm so sorry. How very frustrating. I didn't even know that was possible for the lining to decrease. Hopefully the trigger and a couple more days helped it thicken up a bit. It's interesting you seemed to have better luck with femara in that regard. I wonder how common it is to have injectables interfere with lining. I wonder if there is a better protocol for you. I really hope you are able to conceive this cycle or sometime soon. I just have to believe that you will have a child one way or another, but it is so frustrating not to know how or when that will happen.

Choro, welcome. I think I remember you from the TTC threads last time around. I'm so sorry you're having a harder time conceiving this go around. Really hoping it is just a matter of bad luck, but I think it is a good idea to get an appointment just to rule out some of the more common fertility issues. Keep us posted!

AFM, nothing new to report. I assume I ovulated on Friday, and we didn't Still keeping my fingers crossed there will be a cancellation at the RE's office because April 15 seems so far away!

 

[aviastar]

Welcome, Choro, sorry you have to be here, but we try to make your stay as entertaining as possible!

SB, sorry to hear about the lining, but the triple layer sounds great! Odder things have happened than conceiving in less than ideal circumstances. Fingers crossed for you this month! ( I'm typing on an iPad and it wanted to change 'fingers' to 'gingers'. Well, gingers crossed for you, too!)

MP, it does seem far away, but it will happen sooner than it feels. I don't know about your area of the country but we are snowy again today and if it would just get sunny and a leeeeetl warmer already the time would feel even faster. This is always a tough time of year for me, when I just ache for some sunshine and some green in the landscape and Mother Nature is just yanking everyone around. But I look back and think, whoa, Valentines was two whole weeks ago? It's MARCH? Time moves on and six weeks is plenty of time for another cancellation to happen!

Random, your chart is...random ( ). I hope it calms down and you get some clear O patterns soon!

LV, good to hear from you! Keep us in the loop about when you start your treatment so we can all cheer you on!

CD3 here for me. Le sigh. It was an odd cycle cause I was so hopeless, then the lining plucked up and two eggies popped, and I thought, oh maybe I'm in the game! Hope snuck in a little. But realistically, I knew the odds were not in my favor. I did have an extra day in my luteal phase and no preemptive spotting at all, which I imagine is a result of having two CL cysts producing progesterone rather than one. But I got a BFN on Friday night, so I was prepared and AF did show up Saturday.

We decided to skip any meds this month, it just doesn't make sense to be out the $450 when I can easily do another round of clomid after we see if there are any endo issues. Appointment with the surgeon in a week. A lap is outpatient so if she thinks I qualify ( please, dear Lord, let her think I qualify!) I am hopeful I can have it scheduled before the end of the month, in time to be back in the game for real in April. We will see in a week I guess!

Numb isn't something I had ever hoped to feel while TTC, but I have to admit that having a break from the roller coaster of hope and fear and worry for a month is going to be awfully welcome.

 

[random_thought]

So spent the whole day with the pain again, along with a handful of nausea and exhaustion. Went home early at 12:30, bleh.

And to top it off, here's my %T#%#*@&#%ing chart. Seriously did I piss off the universe or something?
Anyone wanna try to make heads or tails out of this?

 

[monkeyprincess]

Aviastar, darnit, I was really hopeful for you this cycle. But I do think your plan is sensible. Because you know everything else appears to be working and you had good timing, it probably makes sense to figure out the extent of your endo before moving forward. I hope you are able to get your procedure scheduled soon and that it holds the key to getting you pregnant. And you're right, 6 weeks isn't that long for me to wait for my appointment in the grand scheme of things. I'm just constantly wanting to kick myself for not taking that appointment on February 13. I really don't know what I was thinking in that instant because, duh, I could have cancelled if necessary, but maybe that is just the way it was meant to be. And yes, even though I'm really annoyed that we didn't manage to BD at the optimal time this month, I'm really relieved that we at least are getting a break from the appointments and monitoring. It all starts to feel so clinical after awhile, and I kind of feel more human this month. Hope you are able to enjoy your med/monitoring free cycle.

Random, huh, your chart is very sporadic. Is that typical for you? Really hoping you get some clarity soon. Looks to me like maybe you are gearing up to ovulate soon though. Good luck!

 

[random_thought]

Well, my temp went up today, just like I thought it would. And guess who didn't want to BD last night, just like I knew he wouldn't. I'm getting so effing frustrated with all of this. I have depression, I have anxiety. My doctor won't prescribe anything because it would hinder me getting pregnant. I can't afford to go see a psychologist right now because I'm paying for the effing surgery that hasn't managed to get me pregnant yet. It's like a never-ending cycle. I almost want to just quit trying but I know 20 years from now if I had only one child I would regret that. I just don't even know how to function anymore, I hate this.

 

[royalasscherlover]

random, I'm sorry you're feeling so down. This process sucks and I think depression and anxiety are normal when you're going through so much. I don't know details, but I am certain that there are some meds you can take while TTC, so I wouldn't give up on pressing that issue if you need them - MP's sister is/was taking them, so she might know more. In the meantime, is there something relaxing that you enjoy doing that you can treat yourself with? It is hard to keep your hope up as the months go by - I'm right there with you.

Mp, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you can get in with the RE sooner, or even better, don't need your appointment at all. Enjoy your break - if this cycle doesn't work, and depending on what my RE says next week, I think I need a break soon - I've done 6 cycles in a row and the monitoring and meds are really frustrating me. I just wanted to cry every single day last week.

aviastar, I hope your appointment goes well next week. I really think that clearing up the endo will be the key for you and hopefully you'll have success within the next few months thereafter.

LV, I really hope IVF works for you. I'd love to hear updates if you'd like to share them.

Thanks ladies for the support. We did the IUI this morning and DH's sample looked good, so I'm just keeping my fingers crossed. And very relived to not need to do any monitoring or needles for two weeks! I do plan to ask my RE about estrogen supplements, but I'm not sure lack of estrogen is the answer - my blood tests were consistently over 300 from CD7-11, which is a huge jump from my levels in the hybrid cycle, but my lining still wasn't better. I think my lining was thicker on Femara because the monitoring was later in the cycle - I didn't go in until CD 14 and triggered between CD14 and CD18, but with the hybrid/injectibles, monitoring starts CD7 and I've triggered on CD11 both times. So the injectibles seem to be pushing my follies forward faster and my lining doesn't have as much time to develop. I don't know, that part makes sense but I still don't understand about my lining shrinking even as my estrogen went up. Frustrating.

 

[monkeyprincess]

Random, argh, I know how frustrating it is not to BD at the right time because the same thing happened to us this month. It was a combination of illness, a teething/sleepless baby, and just stress and pressure to make it happen. We BD'd the day I got my positive OPK, so we're not completely out, but I really would have felt better if we BD'd once more afte rthat. I'm not sure why your DH did not want to BD, but whatever the reason, I'm just so sorry. And I know the frustration must be even greater because you know that you need to take advantage of the first few cycles after surgery. Hopefully, you two can have a good talk about this and work it out for next month.

As for the meds issue, as SB mentioned, my sister is currently pregnant and taking antidepressants. I believe she has taken Lexapro and Wellbutrin. I'm not a doctor, but from what I understand, the concern with such meds is not that they will prevent you from getting pregnant, but that if you do get pregnant, they may pose a risk to the baby. So I'm not sure why your doctor is concerned they would keep you from getting pregnant. As far as the risk to the baby, I think you have to weigh the risk to the baby with the health of the mother. In my sister's case, she had a pretty bad depression/anxiety episode right before finding out she was pregnant, so her doctors both thought it was important she stay on medication. For what it's worth, she just had her 20 week ultrasound, and her baby boy appears to be healthy and doing well. Anyway, you have to take care of your health first and foremost, and if that means taking a break from TTC and/or going on meds, then you just have to do what you have to do. I know this is so hard. I have been feeling pretty down myself. I wouldn't say I'm depressed to the point that I need meds or anything, but I have just been really sad lately. It takes a lot out of you.

SB, I'm glad you were able to have your IUI and things were looking alright. Your lining should hopefully thicken up a bit more before implantation would take place, so I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you once again. Hopefully, if this isn't your month, your doctor will have a different plan/protocol for you to try next time. But first, let's just hope this is your month!

 

[random_thought]

I really wish I could find a hobby but we've just been having a hard time with only having one car while we build our credit back up. Also, DH and I work opposite days so that is a little stressful too. He has chorale practices M,T,W and then Sat and Sun he works at 4am so he needs to go to bed early so I have to watch C. So that basically leaves me Thursdays and so far I haven't found anything I like on that day or that is affordable right now (we are still paying off tons of fertility bills). So I just feel stuck, and disconnected. If it would just warm up at least I could take C biking or something.

I told DH if he can't get his act together and BD when we need to next month, that I'm done. I'm done trying. I hate that I have to nag my husband to have sex because his work hours are crap and all he wants to do when he gets home is sleep. I hate that he hates his job so that even if he wasn't tired, he likely would be in a horrible mood and then still not want to do it. I'm just tired of it all.

Thanks for the suggestions about the meds. The problem is that I can only take a certain type of anti-depressants because otherwise my blood pressure sky rockets and it's just a bad situation overall :-\

 

[monkeyprincess]

Random, it sounds like you are both under a lot of pressure right now, so it's understandable that you're feeling the way you are. And it sounds like all of your problems and solutions are kind of wrapped up in a unmanageable knot. I can definitely relate. Hopefully just having a good long cry about it will do you some good. Hang in there!

 

[JGator]

SB, good luck on this cycle! I think your lining could have been measured in a different spot and that could explain the difference over time. I think I remember my RE saying that a long time ago. I don't think lining thickness is consistent across the entire uterus.

 

[split_shank]

SB, good luck!!!!!!!

Who wants to read into things (play Dr) with me?

Had to do my followup US this morning, CD 16, 2nd round of Femara for the cycle. L follicles didn't change much, R side still had the cyst, but a follie at 12 mm. Then find out from RE that there was some free fluid suggesting something may have released? Cue progesterone test, which came back at 23.3 . Via email they said this suggests I am ovulating. Ok, someone please educate me on basic anatomy. How can a 12 mm follie be ovulating? Or is it shrinking already and released a day or two ago? Which brings me to my next question, how can follies that were 5 go up to ovulating size in 5 days? Does Femara cause progesterone increases like this? I didn't do OPK's this month because I was A)too lazy and B)figuring that the US's and triggering were info enough. These are the random things in my head. I doubt they can answer these for me with certainty because nothing about this cycle is normal. I do have some cramping right now. Only managed BD'ing 40 hrs ago and 6 days ago. We'll give it the old college try tonight too. Any thoughts? Ugh I'm going to go nuts this 2ww.