The Official TTC Thread!

[ljmorgan]

Hey ladies, I''m 10dpo today, and I''m also pregnant!!! I got a nice positive on a FRER test yesterday and again this morning. Five days ago I was moaning about my low post O temps. I''m on my iPhone and I''m at a conference this week, I''ll post details tonight when I have real Internet access. I also wanted to reply to some of the latest posts and about the soy isoflavones. Have a great day!

 

[Mandarine]

Lindsey I am so happy for you!!!!! Congratulations to you and your husband!.

We all know it''s been a long road for you guys, so I wish you nothing but the best!!!

 

[Laila619]

Date: 10/6/2009 1:45:22 AM
Author: LAJennifer
Question - has anyone ever tried taking soy isoflavones (as you would clomid) at the beginning of your cycle? I tried that this month (cycle 6) and am not sure what to think. I took the soy on cycle days 3 - 7. I definitely felt something going on - on both ovaries (usually I feel twinges on only one side during any particular cycle). FF indicates ovulation on cycle day 13 (early for me - o is usually on day 17). I definitely had way more EW than any previous cycle. However, my temps seem low. My post ovulation temps are typically over 97.7 - but not this month. Also, today is 6 DPO and I can still feel little pains in both ovaries (I usually feel nothing during LP). Anyone have any thoughts? Here is my cycle, for your entertainment value.

Hi LAJennifer,

I have tried soy isoflavones for two cycles. I took 120 mg on days 3-7, like Clomid. It DID help me to ovulate on day 14 exactly, both times, with a nice 14 day luteal phase as well. A textbook perfect 28 day cycle, but no pregnancy obviously.

 

[Laila619]

Yay Lindsey!!

 

[KimberlyH]

Congratulations, Lindsay!

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Lindsey!!!

Congratulations, lady! Talk about an answered prayer! You, hubby and the little one will definitely be in my prayers! Congratulations again!!!

Eeek... what a lovely thing to come see after being away a few days!

Treasure the pregnancy, and don't let fears still your joy. (At least try, try hard!!)

****
LA, Never heard of soy instead of Clomid. I love the idea of it (natural is my preference over all things medicine), and will have to look into it. Thanks for telling us about it. I wonder why in all the research I've looked at, I've not heard of it? Hmm... probably because it costs oodles less than Clomid.

****
Pupp, Thanks for your encouraging words. It's important to us that we do things our way, and I appreciate having Drs. who know this and respect it, because it's not changing.

How are you doing these days? Hoping for good things to come for you!!

****
Had Dr. appt. today. The one I'd been dreading, but it really wasn't that bad.

Okay, the biopsy *hurt.* A lot. But, it was fast, less than 2 minutes, so that's good. The Dr. was very informative and spent a lot of time with me this time, so I'm feeling MUCH better about sticking with this facility, even though my previous Dr. will not be returning. (Still sad about that.)

So, we are sticking to 50mg with the Clomid, and as long as I'm not having any side effects from it (thinning lining, etc.) and I take a break every few cycles, there's no reason, the Dr. said that I can't continue on that through February. In the meantime, as many tests as can be performed under the diagnosis "irregular cycles" or "anovulatory" will be done, and we'll just keep waiting for God's timing to come along.

The Dr. said that 19.8 is a great number for progesterone at 7DPO and said that I have nothing to worry about with regard to sticking with 50mg of the Clomid, because I'm ovulating strongly on it. So yay! No more worries over increasing that... so I'm pleased. She said my ovulation was "phenomenal." Haha... that's such a great word to use with women who are feeling a tad defeated in their ability to grow a baby, I think.

I should know how the biopsy turns out in a week or so. The biopsy was much like a PAP, they do that stupid forcep thing and then suction out a portion of your lining and then they snipped something (not sure what it was, felt like a major organ being torn from my body, but the Dr. said it was just a sliver of my uterine lining). The point of the procedure is to have it evaluated to see if my lining is where it should be for the cycle. The Dr. said sometimes a woman's hormones will be a little out of whack and your lining will be too far advanced (like on day 21) when your actual cycle is at day 5, and that makes it impossible for a child to implant once the egg is released. So, this test will determine if my lining and my egg development are in harmony.

Friday I'm scheduled to go in for the HSG. *Very* nervous about this... I mean, it's putting iodine and radioactive materials into the very pouch where a baby is supposed to grow, and that just terrifies me. Plus, isn't the point of x-ray lead pads to protect your baby making areas from being scanned? It just has me worried. I don't want to do anything at all that could ever potentially hazard my child, future children. It's not rational, I know, since so many women do it and go on to have totally healthy children, but it's still an internal struggle I'm working through right now. Because the test is labeled as a means of diagnosis, I should be covered under insurance for the test. Gosh, I sure hope so. The test is something like 600 bucks! Eek!

Dr. also gave me a prescription for the glucophage (Metformin), 500mg, one time daily. She said that this is taken daily, and it can help with egg quality. I've honestly not read as much as I should have on it, because I was hoping not to need it. I'm not PCOS, so that's why I thought I'd never need it. Oh well... she said it would be a medication that would have some vomity side effects to begin with. Yippee!! This is the lowest dose of the medication and she said I shouldn't have strong side effects at all. I won't start this until Friday, after the HSG, though, if we decide to start it at all.

It's funny, I feel like we tried so hard *not* to get to this point of all this testing, but at the same time, I'm feeling a small sense of relief that maybe soon we'll know what's going on, and how to help this child of ours to come along. I'm glad that the new Dr. is as willing as she is to explain everything, and that she's understanding of our point that we're not looking to be pumped with medications, nor to do any procedures with potential to harm. I'm glad she's understanding that for us, it's a matter of knowing that God creates every child who is conceived, and we're willing to wait for our turn to come. In the meantime, learning as much as we can about my body and finding ways to gently help the process is comforting. Makes me feel like I'm at least doing something proactive, at least.

****
Thinking good thoughts for everyone here. 2009 has many blessings yet to come, be it babies, pregnancies, strengthening our marriages through this process, or something else entirely. Times of struggle always offer us the opportunity to grow and learn...

 

[AmberWaves]

Coming out of my cave to say: YAY Lindsey!!!!! Many thoughts and prayers for the stickiest baby ever.

 

[nycbkgirl]

Omggggg. Linds im sooooo happy for u guys! Congrats,congrats!!

 

[lovelylulu]

lindsay - I''m beyond thrilled for you and your husband!!! so many congratulations

 

[Loves Vintage]

Lindsey!!! Congratulations!!!!

I'm very happy for you and your DH!!

 

[cara]

Lindsey, what awesome news! Congratulations to you and your husband. And fingers crossed for smooth sailing with the pregnancy....

 

[LAJennifer]

Lindsey, wonderful news!!!

 

[TravelingGal]

Congratulations Lindsey, I am thrilled for you. I will keep you and your baby in my thoughts and look forward to meeting him/her in 9 months!

 

[lili]

What wonderful news Lindsey!

I''m so happy for you and congrats!
Wishing you a smooth and uneventful 9 month

 

[fieryred33143]

Congratulations Lindsey

 

[mia1181]

OMG Lindsey that is awesome!!!!!!!!! Congratulations!

I''ve been following your story and wishing you and your husband the best. You guys will continue to be in my thoughts! Congrats again!



*******************************************************************

OPK Help/Interpretation needed:

Hey ladiesI picked up some OPK''s to try out today for fun. I have a few questions... The instructions say equal or darker than control line is a positive. Do these look positive to you? they are all pics of the same test. It looks positive to me but it is veeery unlikely that I will ovulate because I am on CD 47 and the 2 cycles before this were anovulatory. Do some women always have with dark lines and the line just gets a lot darker with the LH surge? I''ve always heard OPKs were hard to interpret but this is confusing.... Is there a site where I can get more info on OPKs? I''m off to google now....

 

[Loves Vintage]

Oh, Mia, this is very interesting. If that were my test, then yes, I would interpret that as positive. So, if you can''t be about to ovulate, then is it possible for the test pick up LH, even though you are not going to ovulate? I have no idea, but I will try to look up some info for you. Question -- when you say you did not ovulate in your prior 2 cycles, you formed that conclusion based on charting?

 

[mia1181]

Thanks LV, Yes I assumed I didn''t ovulate based only on my temps on the two previous cycles. Cycle 7 of charting was a mess because I moved and my temps were all over the place so I didn''t record most of them. But cycle 8 had to be anovulatory because it was so short and there was lots of spotting throughout the cycle. I am on cycle 9 of charting now and my temps have been very flat. If you want to look my charts are here:
http://www.tcoyf.com/forum/chart.asp?id=mia1181

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Home today... had lots of time with the new kitty. Here she is in all her cuteness:

(The dogs are still warming up to her; will try to get a "family" shot of the furballs soon. The cat doesn''t seem too bothered by her, but then at random she''ll hiss. Silly pets!)

 

[Loves Vintage]

Hmm, it seems that most reports of False Positive OPKs are associated with Clomid use or PCOS. You are still TTA, right? Are you planning to TTC in the future? I don''t recall if you''ve stated that here.

I looked at your prior charts too. You were ovulating, but you haven''t for the past two months. Any ideas about why that would be? Is that a typical transition once you''ve stopped taking the pill?

 

[cara]

Mia, I would interpret that as a positive test. It's not impossible to ovulate that late in a cycle. In my reading a few pages back one of the studies showed a woman ovulating as late as CD60 and also showed reasonably good pregnancy rates for late-ovulation cycles (in couples with no known fertily issues). But that test is just showing the LH level at one point in time relative to a standardized baseline level, we don't know if all the other hormones are doing their thing appropriately or even if this LH level is a surge (a peak over a day or two) for you above a lower baseline level since you just took it today for the first time, right? I forget, have you gone to your doc yet about the irregular possibly anovulatory cycles? Cause you could probably do with some additional information... bloodwork is going to help clarify the picture.

Fish, cute kitty! And good luck with the test friday! I know its hard but hopefully there will be some plumbing-clearing-out magic from it.

ETA: mia, oh if you just went off the pill then maybe you are still settling out.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Date: 10/6/2009 3:45:40 PM
Author: fisherofmengirly
Home today... had lots of time with the new kitty. Here she is in all her cuteness:

(The dogs are still warming up to her; will try to get a 'family' shot of the furballs soon. The cat doesn't seem too bothered by her, but then at random she'll hiss. Silly pets!)

Fisher - She's very cute! I'll look forward the family shot. What kind of dogs do you have? I love, love, love dogs and will talk to people about my dogs any chance I can get!! I'm a greyhound girl at heart!! We do have a beagle-mix too! DH's choice. I would love to have more greyhounds, at least 2 total, but DH is not supportive of that idea, but I am working on him, slowly.

About your testing, Fisher, I tried to look back at your old posts, but did not get very far. Are you seeing a RE or an OB/GYN? I'm guessing a RE? Also, can I ask what prompted them to prescribe Clomid? Sorry, I should go back and read old posts, but as you know, this thread is so massive!! I'm glad you're glad that you having some additional testing done now, and hope you get some answers soon.

***************

I went ahead and called a RE today. They were a bit apologetic that I would have to wait until 11/11 for an appointment. I don't think that is long to wait at all, but I am glad that I called today. They said I will meet with a nurse at the first visit, then the dr will come in to discuss any questions and then the dr will order any testing that he deems necessary, beginning the following cycle.

In the meantime, I am hoping to hear back from my ob/gyn re: my 7DPO bloodwork, and maybe she will prescribe progesterone for my next cycle. CD27 here and hoping for AF asap so I can report the date to my dr so she can tell me what her interpretation is of my 7DPO. I am very, very, very moody/cranky today, so I'm hoping that's my classic PMS kicking in!

 

[mia1181]

Hey LovesV. Well I guess technically we are TTA right now, I started charting a while ago so that I could prepare for TTC. TTC keeps getting pushed back (we moved and are getting settled into a new city, apartment and jobs) but it is just on the horizon at this point. I thought it would be fun to track my ovulation so we could "get right down to business" when the time came. But now I''m starting to realize it might not happen as quickly as I thought.

It sure appeared like I was ovulating for a while there, but the last time I may have ovulated was May 27. It has been transitional time in our lives because DH moved first and I was living with my former boss for a while (I was a nanny) and then I moved and now I am started a new career. But I am at a point now where I am unwilling to blame it all on stress. I''m not a really stressed person and it''s not like I have been under constant stress since May. I just don''t buy it.

I did read on this site www.peeonastick.com that OPK''s can appear to be positive when your body is "gearing up" to ovulate but doesn''t. I guess this makes sense to me since I have had a few small patches of EWCM. So for me it is looking like BBT and OPKs tell me nothing... unless for some reason I actually do get a temp rise in the next 2 days.

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Mia, looks like a positive OPK to me. It''s not unheard of to ovulate that late in your cycle; I regularly did that prior to starting Clomid. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few days for you!

********
Cara, thanks for the thoughts. I know it''s worth it, if for nothing else than peace of mind knowing it''s one less thing to worry about. I''m tough, it''ll be fine. I read that most of the time, Drs. use oil based dye now and it''s not nearly as potentially harmful as the dyes used in the past. So, I hope the hospital uses the oil-based.

(There sure are a lot of stories out there on the net about getting pregnant soon after HSG... sure hope it''s not all hype!!)

How are you doing these days? It''s good to see you around again!

*********
LovesVintage, We have a black cat and two chihuahuas. Flip is solid black, and is a mixed breed who was rescued as a puppy. TaDah!! is a full blooded chi and full of himself. He''s daddy''s baby and he''s having a hard time sharing the love in the house. Maybe this is a good precursor for him of what''s to come when our baby comes. He needs to learn to share the attention.

Here are the pups a couple of Christmases ago (2007) and Boo lounging on the bed, her favorite spot.

(Paul wants a big dog some day, but we''ll likely wait to get that doggy when our child is a toddler or a little older, so they can grow up together.) In the kitty''s picture you can see my BBT... man I''ve been doing this thing for way *too* long!! That was like June 08, when we first moved into our house. Time flies when you''re baby dancing, I suppose...

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Hmm... didn''t load. I''ll try again later.

*****
Lindsey,

Excited to read more about your big news... wondering how you told the hubby!! Very happy news, indeed!!!

 

[mia1181]

Cara- I have been off of BC since December. But I have read for some women it can take a year to get back to normal. Although I'm not sure if that is the case for me because it appeared that I ovulated the first month off the pill. Who really knows? I actually think it is very possible to get KTFU as a late ovulator because there are many many charts on Ovusoft of late ovulations that resulted in pregnancy. But if I don't ovulate at all that would be a problem.

I haven't made it to the doctors yet. DH is getting different health insurance through work and I want to wait for that to pick my doctor. I also am pretty sure that most Dr.'s would like us to actually TTC before coming in with complaints of fertility issues. So I think I will make an appointment to discuss TTC and seeing what the doctor says. These OPKs will certainly add another interesting piece to the puzzle.

So you are saying that in reading OPKs you have to compare across a few days, right? Yes, this was my first OPK ever so we will see what it looks like from here on out...




ETA- Fisher awwww that Kitty is sooooo cute. Thanks for looking at my OPK. Good luck on the HSG. That's the one where the dye itself can help clear tubes right? I'm always hoping for you girl!

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Mia,
Yes, it's the dye test and *some* women have experienced pregnancy soon after having had the test. There is no official increase in chances of conception, but some studies say it can increase the chances by about 15%. Here's hoping that one: I'm clear, and two: I'm preggo shortly. Thanks for cheering us all on here... looking forward to you joining the ranks!!

****
LV, forgot to answer your questions: I was put on Clomid due to very late ovulation (between days 24 to about 40 or 45), and the lowest dose has been very successful in creating a more "regular" ovulation time-wise for my body (between CD14 and 18 or so). Now the goal is to see if my lining is also where it needs to be in the cycle timeline, and to see if my tubes are free and clear. I'm with an OB/GYN, but they do some specialization without being RE. We're holding off on the RE business until at least next year (likely springtime) for a number of reasons, mostly pertaining to our comfort level, our lack of desire to be pressured into medications or procedures we're not comfortable with, and because of insurance reasons. My current Dr. has several tests that can be performed under "anovulatory" or "irregular cycles" rather than "infertility," which will allow insurance to cover them. If we were to jump to RE, we'd no longer have any medical coverage for any of the tests. So, I'm a testing fool for the next several months, and we'll see what happens.

 

[ljmorgan]

LAJennifer -- I am really interested in the soy isoflavones. A lot of women on Fertilityfriend are raving about them. What dosage did you take? Women are taking such a wide variety of doses since it''s not prescribed. Soy has the same effect as clomid and causes estrogen levels to rise. I have read that women report much better ECWM with soy than with clomid -- clomid dried me out! I would not worry about your temperatures while on soy. Clomid can cause a huge difference and fluctuations in your BBT, and since soy is also altering your hormone levels, I imagine that it would have the same effect.

Everyone -- thank you for your kind, kind words and wishes. I am just... hopeful. I was so worried that I would be absolutely terrified, but I am excited. I am sure that there will be moments, but for now I am hopeful. I already feel better about this pregnancy because I got what I think is a pretty dark line for 9dpo, and the test line was darker this morning at 10dpo. Keep those hormones coming! Last month with the chemical I got a much fainter line later on, then it began to fade. I am out of town this week but I will go in for betas on Saturday when I get back and will get everything checked out. And remember when I was fretting over those low post-O temps? I was in such a bad mood last Thursday I actually stayed home from work! I am just pleased that the clomid seems to have done its job and made me ovulate early enough to have a decent egg.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Fisher - That makes so much sense! It hadn't occured to me that insurance coverage would be a main consideration in deciding whether to go to a RE or not. I understand that you have other reasons too. It sounds like you have a good relationship with your doctor, even though this is a new doctor to you. Communication is so important.

I was a bit taken aback when the RE office told me that they would also have someone come in to have a financial discussion with me on the first visit, but clearly, it is important to have that discussion at the outset, so that people know what they are up against in terms of cost. I have not given much thought to intervention, itself, at this point. I am interested in diagnostics, with a little bit of chit-chat to explain the results to me!

***********

I just looked at a chihuahua in a local shelter yesterday, with a friend from work. She just lost hers, after 14 years together. She is heartbroken and lost, and has been looking at chihuahua's on her own too. This chihuahua was perfect for her, but she couldn't see that. It is maddening to me!!! So, she didn't adopt him, and she's talking about looking at all of these different shelters (this shelter is in same town where she has lived her whole life!!), so I don't think she is ready to adopt yet.

It makes me sad, because that little dog has been in the shelter for a while (a few months) and my friend keeps talking about how lonely she is too.

They are spirited little dogs, though, aren't they?

 

[Pandora II]

Lindsey I am beyond happy for you!

I saw your chart the other day and showed it to DH and even he said he thought it was looking good (yes, my poor DH can now read charts...

) - I didn''t want to say anything to jinx it though.

Hope all goes well... are you getting an early US? Fingers crossed that you get what you said you''d like...