The Official TTC Thread!

[ChinaCat]

Congrats TIFFANY!!!!! So so so excited for you. Keeping my fingers crossed for you.

 

[tiffanytwisted]

Thanks China!!

HM You are NOT a dork. I''ve always found crosshairs exciting!! Even when you know exactly when you ovulate it''s exciting to see it in print.

 

[ljmorgan]

It looks like I''m out this cycle or had a chemical pregnancy. At 9dpo I started getting faintly positive HPTs, and last night at 10dpo I got a nice positive that wasn''t faint at all. But my temperature has been dropping, and this morning the HPT was fainter -- and it looks like AF has shown up. Good times... I''m a little frustrated with my body right now -- one stillborn baby, one chemical pregnancy. Very irritated today! Will probably feel better tomorrow.

 

[tiffanytwisted]

Lindsey I''m so sorry.

 

[KimberlyH]

Ugh, Lindsay, I am so sorry.

 

[cara]

Ugh, Lindsey, what way to start off TTC round 2. But don''t be mad at your body! Its really really most likely wrong # of chromosomes, if it was a brief pregnancy, and that is sad but so common. Your body is just doing its sad job of dealing with the outcome.

Houmed, its good to be dork! Well, some of the time. Congrats on getting the cycle back on post-bc.

Fisher, I think DrK mentioned that femera is an off-label use while clomid is the old standby for fertility treatments? In which case, makes it more likely that the ob-gyn would be more comfortable with the old standby and the RE would be more up on all the latest and less common drugs in their narrow specialty area. Best ask your dr what their thinking is (which will also reveal what they are comfortable prescribing), as it sounds like s/he''s been pretty good at giving you explanations thus far?

As for your dislike of a certain diagnosis, completely understandable but remember nothing in the definition says is a *permanent* condition. That''s why one might seek treatment, to relive this temporary condition. Oh, and this is probably most unhelpful but please forgive my own dorkiness here. I looked up the definition of fertile in the OED to see if it would give any relief and here is what it came up with:

fertile:
1. Bearing or producing in abundance; fruitful, prolific. Const. of, in, rarely to. a. lit. of the soil, a district or region, rarely of animals.
b. transf. and fig.
c. fertile crescent (see quot. 1914).
d. Nuclear Physics. Capable of being transformed into a fissile isotope by the capture of a neutron.
2. Causing or tending to promote fertility.
3. Copiously produced, abundant. Obs.
4. Comb. fertile-brained a. = fertile-headed (b); fertile-fresh a., having luxuriant foliage; fertile-headed a., (a) many headed; (b) rich in expedients.

Interesting the production of human children is not specifically mentioned, but nuclear physics is. My favorite is #4: here''s hoping none of us are fertile-brained.

 

[HOUMedGal]

Lindsey, I''m so sorry.

I hope you''re feeling better tomorrow.

 

[Pandora II]

Oh Lindsey I''m so sorry - I was really sending you BFP dust for yesterday (the anniversary of my BFP). I know it''s not really comfort, but at least your body is working in the right direction.

Huge hugs

 

[ljmorgan]

Pandora I agree, and believe it or not, it is a consolation that my body is getting back on track. This was my first postpartum cycle, and it''s been 21 weeks since I had my daughter. If I hadn''t induced this cycle with birth control/provera, I could still be annovulatory right now. So I am happy that at least I ovulated this cycle, and I know that chemical pregnancies are very common.

My husband let me go out and buy my dream food processor this afternoon, so I''ve been busy playing with it this afternoon. Small pleasures! CD 1 here.

 

[ChargerGrrl]

Hi gals- just popping in with another random update. I''m on cycle 4 of TTC-ing and no luck. Age is not on my side (turned 38 last month), so I need to think about getting some help. My gyno happens to be a fertility specialist, so the next step is to meet with her and get checked out. I''m taking it all in stride...

CONGRATS to Swimmer and Tiffany! Here''s to a healthy and happy nine months.

I''m sorry to hear your news Lindsey. HUGS, hun!

Fishie, I have to tell you that your posts put a HUGE smile on my face!

Sending good vibes to all the TTCers. I lurk often, but don''t post much- please know that I''m thinking of y''all.

 

[blushingbride]

Lindsey - I'm sorry to hear that news. I, unfortunatley, am in the same boat (minus the chemical pregnancy) - AF arrived this morning for me.

The good news is that my LP was a solid 12 days!

ETA - one strange thing to note was that my bbs were not sore at all during my 2ww. This was my first month on clomid (only 50mg) - does anyone know why that would be? Normally, my bbs hurt a few days before AF. The month of my BFP, they didn't hurt until after my BFP. Just wondering if it was a progesterone issue or not since I wasn't tested at 7DPO.

 

[vespergirl]

Date: 9/8/2009 8:50:42 AM
Author: blushingbride
Lindsey - I''m sorry to hear that news. I, unfortunatley, am in the same boat (minus the chemical pregnancy) - AF arrived this morning for me.

The good news is that my LP was a solid 12 days!

ETA - one strange thing to note was that my bbs were not sore at all during my 2ww. This was my first month on clomid (only 50mg) - does anyone know why that would be? Normally, my bbs hurt a few days before AF. The month of my BFP, they didn''t hurt until after my BFP. Just wondering if it was a progesterone issue or not since I wasn''t tested at 7DPO.

Hey blushing, I can''t answer your question, but I just wanted to wish you luck now that you''re on Clomid. After 10 months of TTC and finally being diagnosed with PCOS, I conceived during my second cycle of 50 mg Clomid. I just wanted to share that with you and wish you luck now that you''ve started your Clomid - hopefully you''ll see results very soon!

 

[Loves Vintage]

ChargerGrrl - I''m in a similar situation. Cycle 5 of official timed trying will come to a close in the next week or so, depending upon how long my cycle takes this month. Grrr. I finally have my appointment with my new gyno tomorrow, and I''m really looking forward to it.

Vespergirl - I''m not sure if you posted all of the details of your diagnosis with PCOS on here. I''m curious what you meant when you said you were finally diagnosed with PCOS after 10 months of TTC''g. Were you diagnosed right away after you went for a dr''s visit, or had you been to the dr previously and there was some delay in diagnosis?

My update: I''m on CD26. I had an OV date on FF, but after recording some wonky post-OV temps, FF took my crosshairs away!! So strange, but I still think I ov''d on CD14 (particularly because I had a positive OPK two days prior). Anyway, I took a POAS this morning, which was negative. Temps are still high, but have been very, very wonky - a range of 97.3 to 98.1 after OV! I have not had any alcohol during this time period, so that is not the cause. I do not, however, take my temp at the same exact time every morning, but within an hour range. My sleep has also not always been perfect. Oh well -- I am going to print off all of my charts to bring to the dr tomorrow and hope she will do an ultrasound for diagnosis.

 

[lovelylulu]

lindsay - sorry about the chemical.

blushing -

. i normal don''t have that symptom - even with progesterone supplements.

 

[Laila619]

I am not positive, but I think sore boobs during the 2ww can be a sign of low progesterone. They can also be a pregnancy symptom though, so who knows.

 

[Sha]

Date: 9/8/2009 11:21:52 AM
Author: Laila619
I am not positive, but I think sore boobs during the 2ww can be a sign of low progesterone. They can also be a pregnancy symptom though, so who knows.

Sore boobs in the tww are usually a sign of high/rising progesterone, as far as I know. That''s why most women report that symptom after ovulation - since progesterone kicks in then.

Blushing - the only time I didn''t have sore boobs in the tww was the cycle I got my bfp. I''m not sure why that was - my temps were pretty stable that cycle, albeit a bit lower than some of my past cycles.

 

[vespergirl]

Date: 9/8/2009 10:04:34 AM
Author: Loves Vintage
ChargerGrrl - I''m in a similar situation. Cycle 5 of official timed trying will come to a close in the next week or so, depending upon how long my cycle takes this month. Grrr. I finally have my appointment with my new gyno tomorrow, and I''m really looking forward to it.

Vespergirl - I''m not sure if you posted all of the details of your diagnosis with PCOS on here. I''m curious what you meant when you said you were finally diagnosed with PCOS after 10 months of TTC''g. Were you diagnosed right away after you went for a dr''s visit, or had you been to the dr previously and there was some delay in diagnosis?

My update: I''m on CD26. I had an OV date on FF, but after recording some wonky post-OV temps, FF took my crosshairs away!! So strange, but I still think I ov''d on CD14 (particularly because I had a positive OPK two days prior). Anyway, I took a POAS this morning, which was negative. Temps are still high, but have been very, very wonky - a range of 97.3 to 98.1 after OV! I have not had any alcohol during this time period, so that is not the cause. I do not, however, take my temp at the same exact time every morning, but within an hour range. My sleep has also not always been perfect. Oh well -- I am going to print off all of my charts to bring to the dr tomorrow and hope she will do an ultrasound for diagnosis.

Loves Vintage, it took them a long time (5 months) to diagnose my PCOS for several reasons - first, I have a 2 year old that I conceived accidentally while using condoms, so doctors didn''t think that I had fertility issues. Second, the doctor I was going to at the time was ignoring all of the PCOS symptoms that I was complaining about because I wasn''t overweight. (I had gained 15 pounds in a year despite daily workouts but was still a healthy weight (I was quite thin before), had acne and some hair loss, and didn''t have a period for 5 months, and whatever periods I had previously were very irregular (long cycles), but I also have Hashimoto''s Thyroiditis, so those could be symptoms of the thyroid disease as well.

I finally pushed for an ultrasound of my ovaries after 5 months of no period while we had been TTC, and the doctor was shocked to see that my ovaries were loaded with cysts. Then she finally put me on 50 mg Clomid, 8 months after we had started TTC, and on my second cycle, I conceived. I am now 8 weeks pregnant with one baby (Clomid increases the chance of multiples).

I actually ended up switching OB/GYN as well, because even though I had been presenting classic PCOS symptoms for months, they wouldn''t believe that''s what I had because I wasn''t overweight and had conceived my first child with no trouble. It really bothered me that my doctor didn''t take me seriously and I have a new OB/GYN practice now that I love.

 

[Loves Vintage]

VG - Thanks for the details. It will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow. I do have many of the symptoms of PCOS, and though I do recognize it could just be coincidence, I will push for an u/s.

It's a good thing you switched doctors when you did! I am only switching because my doctor, the only gyno I've ever gone to, does not do obstetrics, so I figured I should make the switch now. My friend went to this ob/gyn for both of her children, and she highly recommends her. She is difficult to get an appointment with, so I am just glad that I was able to schedule one with her!!

Interesting about the Hashimoto's Thyroiditis too. Were you diagnosed well before TTC? I had bloodwork a few months ago as part of a general physical because I always suspected that I have a thyroid issue, but the dr. said my bloodwork was fine.

 

[NewShiny]

Lindsay and Blushing, sorry to hear your news this weekend.

Lindsay, new kitchen toys make me happy too. What did you whip up with it? I''ve had a fancy food processor on my wish list for long time now.

Sparkly, welcome!

LV, try to get your thyroid lab numbers if you can. I was told mine were fine too, but I asked for a copy of the the lab workup and discovered I had slight hypothyroidism. I was having hypothyroid symptoms (exhausted all the time, could not lose weight no matter what I did, and a few other things) so I convinced my Dr. to treat me. If your TSH is below 1 or above 3, it is possible it can affect TTC.

CD 9 here. Guess this is the week to break out the OPKs for the first time.

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!

 

[Laila619]

I'm on CD 23. Yesterday and today (6 and 7 DPO) I have had spotting.

I do NOT think it is implantation bleeding (although that certainly would be incredible!) I am pretty sure spotting means low progesterone, correct? I usually do tend to spot in the 2ww but never this early.

Wishing everyone else lots of baby dust.

 

[Puppmom]

Laila, I always spot in TWW too. It usually starts around 9/10 DPO. It''s annoying for many reasons and now obviously a concern that I''m TTC. I go to my regular GYN in a few weeks and I''m going to ask about the possibility of low progesterone. Dreamer mentioned a few posts ago that there are some PS success stories of folks with low progesterone and/or shorter luteal phase.

CD1 here...bleh!

 

[vespergirl]

Date: 9/8/2009 2:28:09 PM
Author: Loves Vintage
VG - Thanks for the details. It will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow. I do have many of the symptoms of PCOS, and though I do recognize it could just be coincidence, I will push for an u/s.

It''s a good thing you switched doctors when you did! I am only switching because my doctor, the only gyno I''ve ever gone to, does not do obstetrics, so I figured I should make the switch now. My friend went to this ob/gyn for both of her children, and she highly recommends her. She is difficult to get an appointment with, so I am just glad that I was able to schedule one with her!!

Interesting about the Hashimoto''s Thyroiditis too. Were you diagnosed well before TTC? I had bloodwork a few months ago as part of a general physical because I always suspected that I have a thyroid issue, but the dr. said my bloodwork was fine.

Hey Loves Vintage, regarding the Hashimoto''s, I was diagnosed at the age of 12, so I''ve been managing it for over 20 years.

Good luck with your new doctor - having a provider you trust makes all the difference. Regarding the PCOS, doctors sometimes look for a specific body type - very overweight, acne, and thinned hair. If you don''t obviously manifest those symptoms, some doctors may assume you don''t have it. So, an ultrasound is really the best way to check for ovarian cysts which can inhibit fertility - you can still have cysts without severe manifestation of the rest of the symptoms.

 

[bubbly1126]

Date: 9/9/2009 6:55:06 AM
Author: puppmom
Laila, I always spot in TWW too. It usually starts around 9/10 DPO. It's annoying for many reasons and now obviously a concern that I'm TTC. I go to my regular GYN in a few weeks and I'm going to ask about the possibility of low progesterone. Dreamer mentioned a few posts ago that there are some PS success stories of folks with low progesterone and/or shorter luteal phase.


CD1 here...bleh!

De-lurking to say that yes, Puppmom, there are a lot of success stories out there. My sister had to go through 4 (yes, 4

) miscarriages until the Dr's FINALLY diagnosed her with VERY low progesterone.

5 years later and she now has two wonderful boys. Of course, they didn't come easy as she had to have many treatments of suppositories and such. I remember her always being so scared b/c if you didn't catch the pregnancy early enough, well, then it would be too late and the pregnancy wouldn't stick. She hates that she had to go through what she had to (And I HATE that I had to sit by her side every time she got the bad news) but is very happy that she now has her two healthy boys.

So yes, plenty of success stories, so no worries!

ETA: her two boys, they were the only times my sister ever used the suppositories... so I'd say that's 100% success rate with her.

 

[Laila619]

puppmom, so sorry about CD 1.

What is with doctors? I have told my doctor about my spotting but he always brushes it off.

inhisarms, so wonderful that your sister has her two boys now! It is too bad she had to go through all that before someone finally helped her.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Date: 9/8/2009 8:22:02 PM
Author: NewShiny
Lindsay and Blushing, sorry to hear your news this weekend.

Lindsay, new kitchen toys make me happy too. What did you whip up with it? I''ve had a fancy food processor on my wish list for long time now.

Sparkly, welcome!

LV, try to get your thyroid lab numbers if you can. I was told mine were fine too, but I asked for a copy of the the lab workup and discovered I had slight hypothyroidism. I was having hypothyroid symptoms (exhausted all the time, could not lose weight no matter what I did, and a few other things) so I convinced my Dr. to treat me. If your TSH is below 1 or above 3, it is possible it can affect TTC.

CD 9 here. Guess this is the week to break out the OPKs for the first time.

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!

NewShiny,

Thanks for the info! I did call my primary care physician''s office this morning, and they faxed me a copy of my bloodwork. My TSH level is 3! I will be happy to have a copy of this to bring to my dr''s appointment today. I have never been so excited to visit the gyno!!!

Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[Loves Vintage]

Date: 9/9/2009 7:51:03 AM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 9/8/2009 2:28:09 PM
Author: Loves Vintage
VG - Thanks for the details. It will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow. I do have many of the symptoms of PCOS, and though I do recognize it could just be coincidence, I will push for an u/s.

It''s a good thing you switched doctors when you did! I am only switching because my doctor, the only gyno I''ve ever gone to, does not do obstetrics, so I figured I should make the switch now. My friend went to this ob/gyn for both of her children, and she highly recommends her. She is difficult to get an appointment with, so I am just glad that I was able to schedule one with her!!

Interesting about the Hashimoto''s Thyroiditis too. Were you diagnosed well before TTC? I had bloodwork a few months ago as part of a general physical because I always suspected that I have a thyroid issue, but the dr. said my bloodwork was fine.

Hey Loves Vintage, regarding the Hashimoto''s, I was diagnosed at the age of 12, so I''ve been managing it for over 20 years.

Good luck with your new doctor - having a provider you trust makes all the difference. Regarding the PCOS, doctors sometimes look for a specific body type - very overweight, acne, and thinned hair. If you don''t obviously manifest those symptoms, some doctors may assume you don''t have it. So, an ultrasound is really the best way to check for ovarian cysts which can inhibit fertility - you can still have cysts without severe manifestation of the rest of the symptoms.

Hi VG, Unfortunately, I do have some of those symptoms, so hopefully I will have an easier time of getting the US. I''ll let you all know how my visit goes today!

 

[Laila619]

Good luck Loves Vintage!

At my last doctor appointment, I convinced my doc to do an ultrasound for PCOS because I''ve always had mild acne and suspected hormone imbalance, and it was negative for cysts. I was actually disappointed, lol.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Thanks, Laila! I'm back already. I think I'll need to take some tips from you though because there was absolutely no way she was going to do an U/S today! When I mentioned it, she looked very taken aback and bewildered, and then said, "but you don't need an U/S!" in a very exclamatory fashion!!

She ordered some bloodwork to be taken on CD3 and 7DPO. She said that PCOS is diagnosed hormonally, through bloodwork, not ultrasounds (although there has been thinking in the past that number of follicles can indicate PCOS.) (???) So, I think the the CD3 and 7DPO bloodwork is to help diagnose or rule out PCOS? It is obvious to me, as I try to write this, that I am really not sure . . . . Anyway, she said that in a few more months, if not successful, then I can have some type of fasting blood sugar test, and DH will have his test. After that, they would do an x-ray of my ovaries, which would be very painful. (?) It is only after that that an U/S would be ordered.

I guess I don't have a firm understanding of what the next steps are, but I guess her thinking is that I don't need to know, unless I need to know, as in it is time to take one of the next tests. She was not terribly concerned about my inconsistent cycle lengths because I tend to OV on CD14, so at least I am ovulating consistently.

All in all, she said that we have not been trying for very long, and even if we have perfectly timed BD, then we only have a 20% chance of getting pregnant, so we need to be patient. The general message was to be patient, but that we will start with the more basic tests just to get things started in terms of diagnosis, if needed.

 

[ljmorgan]

Loves Vintage and Laila I am surprised at how many women have to beg and plead with their doctors to do this type of testing. I suspected I had PCOS because my cycles can be sooo long -- 47-60 days. Several months ago I had a consultation with a fertility clinic about IVF with genetic selection because of my last pregnancy. We have opted to conceive naturally once more, and then do IVF w/ PGD if we have another bad outcome. Anyway, the doctor told me that I could come in any time for CD 3 bloodwork, and wanted an HSG and semen analysis done even though I have no known fertility issues. One of the easiest ways that they can tell if you have PCOS is if your LH level is much higher than your FSH level early in your cycle.

Even though we're not going to do IVF now, I decided to call and schedule my CD 3 bloodwork for today because I was concerned that my cycles are so long. After the bloodwork and ultrasound, I mentioned to the nurse that we would like to conceive naturally (ie not IVF) once more, and she was like "oh sure, give us a call and let us know what you want to do, clomid, triggers, iui -- just let us know." I was so surprised at how casual she was -- considering I have no known fertility issues. Especially when I hear about so many women having to convince their doctors to help them along with treatment!

My ultrasound was fine, no cysts, no uterine fibroids, everything looked good. She said that my blood levels looked good, my estrogen was slightly elevated but probably from the clomid last month.

My levels including the ranges of what they like to see:

Estrogen -- 61.9 ( < 50 )
FSH -- 5.6 ( < 8 )
LH -- 4.85 ( 1.8 - 13.4 )
Prolactin -- 7.75 (1.9 - 25 )
Thyroid -- 1.70 ( .4 - 2.5 )

She said that there was no indication that I have PCOS and that I just take longer to ovulate...

My husband is dropping off tomorrow for a semen analysis, and my HSG is scheduled for Monday. They want all of this done in case we decide to go through with the IVF with PGD. I am just happy to know the results! I will be doing 50mg of clomid this cycle to help ensure that I ovulate.

 

[Laila619]

Date: 9/9/2009 3:44:26 PM
Author: Loves Vintage
All in all, she said that we have not been trying for very long, and even if we have perfectly timed BD, then we only have a 20% chance of getting pregnant, so we need to be patient. The general message was to be patient, but that we will start with the more basic tests just to get things started in terms of diagnosis, if needed.

Blah, blah, blah! That is what they all say, and it is so annoying, and not true. Many people get pregnant easily, on the very first try. My doctor told me in June to relax and it will happen, and that she would not do any tests. Now it's September, and still not pregnant! And my DH has super sperm, so I don't get why the doctors won't do tests on me. I had to switch doctors just to get one who would agree to write a prescription for an ultrasound and a semenalysis.

Weird that your doctor told you that PCOS is not diagnosed via ultrasound, Loves Vintage! Mine told me that if they see cysts on the ultra sound, you pretty much automatically have it. It's fairly easy and painless.

I think bloodwork would maybe tell if you have a hormonal imbalance. The day 3 test will test your FSH and see if you still have plenty of eggs left. The 7 DPO test will tell you if your progesterone levels are normal.