Still At it - SPRING '06 edition

[tigerest]

Has anyone gotten to the point with this whole IF thing that you just want to give up?

Oh I definitely have. It's like an unending nightmare that keeps on going and going and the only way to stop it is for me to give up. I have been so upset at times that DH tells me we can stop if that is what I want, but it always seems like there is one more thing we can try, so I keep extending my personal deadline.

[julesp313]

Tandis - fluid running into body clevages is nothing new with all this IF and TTC business, is it? ;)
JJ - the frustration level associated with IF is unbelievable, isn't it? We've been trying for 18 months now and although we're only just starting with an RE, it's so horribly depressing to know that my body just can't do what it should do so naturally. I think only you and your DH can decide when enough is enough - we all reach that point at such different times.
Taz - I'm really concerned about Clomid too - I have no issues with CM right now but if I go on Clomid, which is likely, I'm worried that CM will suddenly become an issue. Unless we do IUI, which bypasses the CM anyway... :)
Gym - that's good news, right? Maybe your body kick started itself from the drug cycles! I looked at your chart and I would say maybe CD19 for an O? A little hard to pinpoint but that would be my guess.
Lucy - we're working on 18 months of TTC and I sympathize totally with you... thank goodness we're here for each other.

Me - went for my physical with the RE today. Always a joyful experience. My blood pressure is very good (worries me as I'm overweight) and everything appears to be fine physically. The boob exam hurt like hell but that's because my poor boobs are post-O and they always hurt. Now I wait for CD1 to call and schedule CD3 blood work, initial b/w which they can do at the same time, and a CD3 ultrasound. Then assuming the b/w is all normal, the RE will put me on BCP (my god, after so long off them!) so we can better schedule treatment - I like that idea but at the same time, going on BCP while TTC seems so stupid! I'll also schedule my sonohysterogram at the time I get my blood drawn. Some good news - DH can go direct to the lab for his b/w and SA. This is good for two reasons - one, the SA is $82 at the lab and $398 at the RE's and the b/w is cheaper though I don't yet have an exact figure; and two, DH's insurance *just might* cover the lab work. We have to call tomorrow and find out - they may deny us as he's with an HMO and I don't know if they are affiliated with this lab. But hey, a saving is a saving, right? I'm just really happy to be doing something finally!

[polkadot]

Would you guys mind checking out my chart and adding in your $.02?

Gymwidow~ my vote is for last Tuesday as well...the temp dip them jump and the EW you recorded...YAy for finally Oing on your own...many people say that beginning the whole bloodwork and meds discussion really does something to your body. I hope that is the case for you!! You've got good bding too!;)

Me~ Have been getting high rating on my monitor for the 5th day in a row....still waiting for my peak....i took an OPK today and it was negative so i guess we will have to see about tomorrow...i did have a drop in my temp which usually happened pre-O but that was all before the chem pg...so who knows whats going on in there...good news...we are just gonna keep on Bding...until I am 100% positive I Oed and I have cycle day 21 bloodwork on Friday!!!

talk to you ladies soon....

[Asha]

jjsanner - i felt this way a couple of months ago when i got some not so good news about the shape of my uterus. i was really in bad shape then. now, i am plugging forward again. its pretty much a roller coaster of emotions with me. sometimes i am so hopeful, and think this is definitely going to be the month for me, and the next i am thinking that we will never have a biological child of our own.

[Tandis]

Gymwidow - I would say last Tuesday as well. Congrats for O'ing on your own! :)

JJ - {{HUGS}} I feel like that pretty much anymore when AF arrives. However, after a couple days I begin to think that if I take a month off that might be the month all the planets align and the stars come into harmony and I could have gotten pregnant. I would like to think that maybe we're just optimistic people who haven't given up on hope yet. It's not a bad thing, because no matter how depressed I get when I see Spot, I would hate to think of how I'd be if I gave up on hope.

Jules - That is quite a bit of a savings betwen the two places. Makes you wonder what the RE's office does that is so special to make them charge so much ;) That seems kind of weird that he's putting you on BCP - I hadn't heard of that outside of IVF, cysts and/or maybe PCOS - but not to schedule treatment. Seems counterproductive to everything. But then, that's why he has the medical degree, right? To know all this stuff. ;)

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

As for me, I'm resuming my acupuncture on Thursday, which makes me feel good as I've missed doing it. DH and I also have an appt. on Thursday to discuss IVF with my new RE. I'm hoping we won't have to wait long, and maybe we can start everything with my next cycle around May 20th, but I guess we'll have to see what he says. More than likely it will probably be sometime in June.

We also got back from our vacation we take every year to celebrate our anniversary. While the vacation was nice, and we came back well rested and relaxed, AF showed up the day after our anniversary (4/26) - two days after the unofficial two year anniversary of the day we tossed aside all protection and offically declared ourselves TTC. Nothing sucks worse than to get AF on vacation - except for maybe suffering through the cramps and back ache that accompanies her while you're trying to walk all over God's green acre. :rolleyes:

[polkadot]

Well...i think i finally Oed....or maybe will today...this is my first cycle using the monitor and I got a peak reading this morning....my temp has already shot up though...i know that i was tossing and turning this morning befor the alarm actually went off so that to be what is making my temp sooo high today....we will have to see what tomorrow brings...but i am pretty sure I O'ed or will O today....we had a pretty good BD schedule so....fingers crossed...

[gymwidow]

Random responses as I catch up:

Bellefior, I'm sorry your HSG was so awful. Mine was pretty bad as well, and I really wouldn't wish that on anyone. Thank goodness it's over! I'm also so sorry that your DH hasn't been more supportive and understanding. I hope he gets over his issues and is able to be a better partner.

katmg, I caught that same Friends episode last week. I watched it a lot more carefully this time than when it first aired, and I definitely felt a lot differently.

SA and other samples - my DH complained a lot at first (he had to do two), and then as we started treatment and he saw how hard it was for me, he was less vocal about it. Every month we weren't pregnant he would tell me not to worry, that he had plenty of "baby juice" and would provide it wherever and whenever necessary. Now he revels in telling his war stories to friends over dinner!

jjsanner, I don't think I've ever thought about giving up, but I have wondered what would happen if we exhausted all our options and none of them worked. I'm 100% sure I want kids, but not sure I could deal with adoption (more like I'm not sure I could deal with feeling like I was a failure and couldn't have my own). I had a hard time at first when we decided to take this cycle off, but after a few days of that I felt better and am so glad we did (even if I hadn't O'd on my own, I'd still be glad we took the month off from treatment). Maybe if you take a break from it for a while you'd feel better about it and able to try again?

TazLuv, I had no CM on Clomid.

Jules, thanks, I set FF to a CD19 O date. BTW, your DH always cracks me up! I hope that your RE works his magic on you right away!

polkadot, thanks! I've heard of a lot of women who O on their own after a few cycles of Clomid. I guess the drugs remind the body of what it's supposed to do!

Tandis, thanks! What a sucky anniversary present Mother Nature gave you this year. I hope that you get a quick go-ahead from the new RE!

[Asha]

bellefior - i am sorry you got that news about the your dh's sa results. that blows that your insurance doesn't cover treatments. mine doesn't cover any treatments or drugs either. it only paid for the diagnostics. keeping my fingers crossed that your dh passes his bar exam - you really need some good news admist this other stuff.

[gymwidow]

Bellefior, I am so sorry that the news wasn't good. I hope that the rest of your news comes back positive today, and that you're able to come up with a good plan soon. Many hugs to you and I'll be thinking about you!

[tigerest]

Bellefior - I am sorry about all the bad news! I really hope you DH gets good news tonight about his exam! Hopefully an RE can discuss your options with you. Good luck!

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Bellefior - sorry about the bad news. Hopefully better news is right around the corner.

I went for a follie check today. I have one at 19.5mm that I could have triggered if I had REMEMBERED the shot instead of leaving it at home AGAIN. :mad: I took an opk at the office and it was negative. Now I will just do daily opk's until I get the happy face.

We also talked to the nurse about IUI. If we are unsuccessful this month, we will probably start iui's next month.

[Thea]

Belle- I am so sorry about your bad day and the SA results. HUGS to you and hoping for good news for your DH


Everyone else....I had a long post with shoutouts eaten last night, and I just don't have time this evening but am reading along and thinking about you.

Me...finaly had CD1 yesterday. Spotted for 4 days first. This has become somewhat of a norm for me, and makes me wonder if my progsterone level is high enough. My RE and the nurses have blown me off before in this question, saying that being on Clomid will fix that problem. My 21 day progesterone (way back when we first started all of these tests) was at 5.1 which is not necessarily low, but not super high. Anyway, I convinced RE;s office to let me get a 7DPO level drawn just to ease my mind. They basically said that it is not neessary, but if I really want it they would order it. I just want to make sure that we are not getting pregnant, then the egg can't attach. Probably just being paranoid, but to me early spotting can be a sign of low progesterone and I would like to rule out any possible problem.

Day off tommorow after 8 days of work in a row and I have a million things going on, but I will try to get back for SO's.

[TazLuv]

Thea, I think you're good to be concerned. This is my third cycle of Clomid, I had to start the cycle with Provera and only had two VERY light days of AF. The only "normal" AF I've had since I went off of my BCP's a year ago was after my first cycle of Clomid when AF showed on her own. Sometimes docs just think we're over-educated but there is nothing wrong with that.

Bellefior - sorry to hear about your test results, I hope you're out celebrating your husband's bar results! :)

[gymwidow]

Thea, low progesterone can still be a problem even if you're on Clomid. On my first two Clomid cycles, my progesterone was high enough at 7DPO (over 9 the first cycle and over 15 the second), but my LP ended up being less than 10 days. My level would be quite high, and then 2 days later AF would show. My body made the progesterone, just not for long enough. So on my third cycle of Clomid I started taking progesterone supplements 2 days after O. And I STILL started spotting even while taking them during my 2nd month on them. Last month my doc increased my dosage and that didn't happen. This month (no meds) my progesterone was 15.9 at approx. 6-7DPO and my doc still okayed me taking the supps just in case. The nurse said there's no harm in it - that you can't have "too much" progesterone. So I say you should definitely push for it!

Threadmistress, would you please update my stats with the following: "4/06: no meds, O'd on my own on approx. CD19". Thanks!

[polkadot]

Well i hope i caught the eggie but i am still very confused...i got another high reading on my monitor this morning...even though my temp is up for the 2nd day in a row. I am going for cycle day 21 bloodwork tomorrow...but i am wondering if i should have told them I think i only ovulated two days ago...i guess i will see what happens with the results of that test...anyway...i was so aggravated with hubby last night b/c we were arguing over who should do what housework that we both went to sleep mad, which meant no BDing...oh well...be back to check on you girls later.. :D

[tigerest]

There's a kind of freedom in being completely screwed, because you know things can't possibly get any worse."

OMG! That is a perfect quote, and describes me exactly!

[Thea]

Belle I love that quote. I am so sorry for you guys and sending big hugs your way. You guys definitely need to treat yourself to something fun this weekend! BTW, my husband has had 3 different SA'a and all three have come out a little differently, so I think a repeat is a great idea.

gymwindow, and tazluvThanks for the reassurances. With how hesitant they were I was sure I was just being overly paranoid...but I'd really just like to know what is going on.

polka don't you just hate bedtime arguments! Arrrgghh! Hope you got the eggie. :)

[skb]

Just a fly-by.....but I am super aggrivated today. I know I have better things to worry about but honestly.....my weight is driving me crazy. I hate going to my closet and struggling to find something to wear. My weight has always been stable and not a probelm but it seems the last 3 months I've just been up, down and more up. I'm curious if I can *blame* my HRT or clomid/HCG cycles. Argh! Anybody else?

[TazLuv]

skb, its actually funny you say that. This is my third Clomid cycle and I just started noticing this week that my pants aren't fitting right. Didn't realize weight gain was a Clomid side effect! :mad:

[Asha]

well, i have been noticing on clomid that i have the bloated/fat feeling i have around the time of my period. i am going to meet up with some work friends i haven't seen in awhile, and i am sure one of them is going to make some sort of remark about me being pregnant bc i'm pretty bloated right now.

[GA_GAL]

I'm right there with you girls on the weight gain. Like you, SKB, I hate going to my closet. We're going to a wedding this weekend and I've spent the past two nights trying on clothes to find something to wear. I workout a lot and I'm very active. I'm doing the same things at the gym and in my life, but I feel like I'm still gaining weight. I'm blaming it on the meds and also on the stress! I seem to feel like a bowl of ice-cream or a cookie will cheer me up. So bad, I know...

[SAI Ladies]

Updated to here

Think I got everyone's changes.

Thanks!

[gymwidow]

Count me in on the weight gain, unfortunately. I'm up almost 10 lbs from my pre-Clomid weight, and while I know that part of that is because I wasn't eating right all the time (I "treated" myself to a lot of cookies and ice cream whenever I was down about all the TTC stuff), I think that some of it is also due to the extra hormones. I'm doing WW now and hoping to take a few lbs off before we get our BFP.

[skb]

bellefior I'm sorry to see that you are having such a bad week. There have been times in the past when I felt like I was just treading water....to which a friend once responded, "good for you....I'm just taking big gulps of air and going back down." Made me laugh. That's a pretty tough post to respond to but I'll take a crack at it. I agree there is no need for toxic people especially during difficult times. I also agree that nobody can really *understand* unless they've walked in your shoes. If this man is generally a cruel person and intended to be cruel toward you and your husband then I wouldn't call him a friend of mine. I typically prefer to surround myself with friends that are supportive, thoughtful, trustworthy and whose company I enjoy (I'm sure you do to). However we can't always pick our DH's friends. It is your choice to separate yourself from his compnay and a wise one if he upsets you so much. But try not to let the remarks of a cruel, beer-drinking man that has no experience with infertility get the best of you. He has no context for what you are going through with your husband and family. Not to mention he clearly has no common sense. I am not defending him or his comments. I just wouldn't waste anymore of my energy on it....even if he is an easy target. I hope you have a good weekend and some better news next week! Take care.

[Patience]

Bellefior I think I would have done the same thing you did. What an ass he is! I agree with skb that someone who has not dealt with infertility cannot truly understand what we go through. But some compassion would be nice. :rolleyes: I hope you're feeling better.

*******
As for me, I think I O'ed yesterday. I'm supposed to go for CD21 testing on Monday, but I wonder if my results will show low progesterone because I O'ed on CD17. This cycle I took 100 mg Clomid and didn't have headaches because I took them at night. I did notice some bloating the day before I O'ed (not sure if it's related to ovulation).

I would love to get a BFP on Mother's Day to surprise my mom, but it's only 10DPO for me, so I really doubt I would get a BFP by then. Trying to keep positive, but it's really tough after so many months of trying with negative results.

Well, I wish everyone a great weekend. We need some good news in this thread soon!

Threadmistress: Could you please add the following for me? Thanks!

4/06 100 mg Clomid

[Asha]

bellefior - what a horrible friend!! i have discovered with my dh's own friends that guys can be very cruel and mean to each other. that's why my dh has very few friends bc he has cut a lot of them out bc they were so mean.

[papergirl]

First off, why does it feel like we haven’t had any good news in here since forever? If I can’t be the one with a BFP then I want it to be one of you.

With that said, this was our first cycle doing clomid – iui and it was a total bust. Spot visited me this week so we are off on another round of the same thing. I am SO tired of the constant doctor appointments, co-pays, watch stalking to see how late to work I will be and then frantically dashing to my desk. This totally blows. I think we will be doing this whole TTC-via-monitoring-RE-visits-medication-IUI-and-maybe-IVF until August – September and I can’t wait for it to be over.

In better news, a few Sundays ago the Reverend at church gave am amazing sermon that really put into perspective for me my life, this experience, my emotions and the constant wondering of “why me.” The experience hasn’t resolved me of the pain and sadness I feel over this problem but I finally feel like I have an answer, that I can accept, as to why I’ve had to experience this. Right now I am just holding on to that because finally I feel a little better about all this mess.

Bellefior – Goodness, I am so sorry to hear your HSG was painful. It sounded like a really horrible experience. I have to say mine was great. Going in I was a total mess. I think reading all the stories for those who had a bad experience here on CC really freaked me out. Fortunately, I had no issues and the cramping I experienced lasted all but 15 minutes. Hopefully you never have to go through that again.

katmg – I’m really sorry to hear about your m/c. May marks one year since my m/c. I know this won’t bring you comfort now but it does get easier. It took me a long time to get to a better place and often when I thought I had reached my low I would somehow find a way to get lower BUT the pain has lessened. Just know it’s a long road and when people in RL don’t understand there are people here who do. I will keep you in my thoughts.

Thea – I’m sorry to hear that spot has arrived – it has for me, too. You are absolutely not pathetic for crying at work. I know that this has been such an emotional experience for me, as I’m sure it has been for everyone in here. It doesn’t get easier and sometimes we just need to let it out – even if the location doesn’t seem adequate.

Suz – My heart breaks reading about your Sunday School class with all babies. For a long time I was jealous and envious of those around me (even some online) getting pregnant. Now I’m more sad and frustrated. It’s so disappointing to know where I am at and see so many people move on.

jjsanner – Yes, I often feel like I’m ready to give up. I have now reached a point where I had to develop a long term plan (in my head) that actually has an end. Personally, I just can’t go on month after month, being unsuccessful, disappointed, heart broken, mad, angry, sad, frustrated and a crying freak. This just can’t be my life. I have so many amazing things going on, which I am so blessed to have, and for several days each cycle I feel like I’m drowning in sorrow and misery. When I read woman here who’ve been at it for two – three years all I can think is how much stronger then me they are. We each can only do what works in our lives and this isn’t working for me, which I say because I’m depressed way too often and I think it’s begun to take a toll on me.

With that said, I know I want to exhaust all options before throwing in the towel so that there is never and wondering on my part. Not that anything will ever keep me from thinking “maybe one more try would have been it.” I’ve had all my test done and nothing has come back negative. I do have PCOS but woman with PCOS have babies everyday. Our RE is aggressive which I am thankful for because I just want to forge ahead and fast. Right now I am doing clomid/trigger shot/IUI. I figure we will do this three cycles total. If that does not work I will take 1-2 months off to really focus on dropping more weight and preparing for IVF. We will then do one round of IVF just so I can have a peace of mind that I tried. If that fails we will then move on to adoption. If we move on to adoption that would be just shy of two years TTC. Now, I just need to figure out how we can afford it – but that’s another issue.

Lucy – You forgot your shot? That has to be so damn frustrating!!

Ahsa – I never get bloated.. well that was the case before I took clomid. This cycle I am like a freaking house. It sucks!

Patience, skb, gym, gal, taz, poka dot, tigger and anyone else I may have missed (sorry) – best of luck to you wherever you are in your cycle. I hope to have some BFP’s in here soon. At this point I think we are due for several.

[Asha]

If I can’t be the one with a BFP then I want it to be one of you.

that was so sweet. it brought some tears to my eyes. in fact, your entire post was so moving and thoughtful. we are really blessed that we have this forum in which to support each other.

[katmg]

Asha - I totally agree, Bumble - your post was really sweet. I don't post in here much so it meant a lot that you remembered my m/c.

Since you brought up the subject of BFPs, I got one last Friday! We technically weren't supposed to be trying so soon after the m/c. We were just seeing what happened (thinking since it took a year the first time, that we wouldn't get pg that easily this time). If I go by my last period date, I should be due New Year's Eve or Jan. 1. I go to the doctor on Thursday for bloodwork and an ultrasound - my doctor currently has me on progesterone suppositories to help this one stick. I'm not joining any due date threads or updating my stats until I see the doctor. I'm definitely trying to take this one day at a time. Tomorrow I'll be 6W - I'm hoping I can make it through this week, as I m/c'd last time at 6W4D.

I lurk in this thread all the time and keep you ladies in my thoughts and prayers. I don't know why we are on this long journey, but I'm glad there are such wonderful women to support each other on it.

[Asha]

katmg - congrats!! wishing you a healthy pregnancy.

[skb]

bumble I'm glad you have found some perspective. We are in a similar place right now re: management plan. I've just finished my second cycle of clomid/trigger/timed bd. If this cycle is unsuccessful we will complete 2 more cycles of the same thing and if still no sucess we will be referred for IVF. While we wait to get in for IVF we will do 2 more cycles of clomid/trigger to make a grand tally of 6. Gheesh. The good thing is that there is a finite time frame in which we are working before IVF or anything else. I think it helps me to cope. My husband tells me to pray to St. Anne and St. Jerard.

patience It's you and me in the famed 2 week wait. I am 4 days post trigger and on CD 16. I feel like I have PMS and will expect AF on Mother's Day if this cycle is a bust. Gee.....it would be so nice after so long to have some good news on Mother's Day!

katmg Stick Stick Stick! We'll be expecting some more good news in this thread once past 7 weeks and/or you've seen your doc. Don't forget to update you stats when your're ready so that we can have some more inspiration on the first page. Congrats!

[udsweetpea]

I'm in no way trying to conceive at this point, but I figured this thread would be a good place to ask my question. I've been searching for a while now to see if there's a thread for women with PCOS, and I can't find one. Is there one? Thanks!

[Thea]

bumble I agree with eyerone else that your post was really thoughtful and sweet. I really do know most of the time that I am not pathetic, but that definitely wasn't a better day for me!

katmg thinking very very sticky thoughts for you and I have all crossables crossed!!

udsweetpea I really don't know, but I am sure someone in here does.

Me. Great big headache from Clomid this am. Have any of you girls found anything that helps the HA go away? 2 Tylenol and some caffeine kind of helped, but not really. I think I may O right around mother's day, but hoping for Monday at the earliest as we will be out of town and unable to do an IUI if it falls on the weekend.

Have a great weekend everyone else.

[suzfuzsunflower]

Wow, I go out of town for a few days...and have to go back 6 pages to get caught up! A lot of activity going on in here. :)

gymwidow - Wow! Congratulations on ovulating on your own! That is huge and exciting! I haven't looked at your chart yet - I'll have to do that later. Good luck! :)

Polka - How frusterating to keep getting high ratings on the monitor. I hope that you have confidence that you o'd soon. Until then, have fun bd!


Bellefior - I'm so sorry to hear about your DH's SA counts. And I'm sorry that your family is going through a rough time with this, your MIL's health, and your DH's bar exam results. :( My heart goes out to you during this difficult time.

skb, and everyone else on the weight issue - I hear you! Since beginning this TTC journey, and I have gained a *wee* bit of weight. I attribute it to both the drugs and the stress....and the ice cream! :rolleyes: I went to a wedding this past weekend, and had a difficult time finding something to wear.

kat - Congrats on a bfp! Hope everything is going well!

bumble - You are so sweet. Thank you for listening to all of us, and for understanding. I'm so glad that we have this thread for that very reason.

udsweetpea - There is a thread on PCOS and TTC. Is that what you are looking for.

I know that I missed many people..sorry! I hope that you are all doing well, and are having a peaceful weekend.

Need to get ready for church. I'll be back with an update later today!

[Asha]

I have gained a *wee* bit of weight. I attribute it to both the drugs and the stress....and the ice cream!

me too. i have gained about 10-15 lbs since we have been starting ttc. like others have said i have no impulse control for my sweet tooth cravings bc i feel like it is justified bc of the ttc stress and sadness. now, i realize that it is just making me feel worse. because i have been feeling less sexy and womanly bc of these feelings of infertility and being slightly pudgier isn't helping with that either. though, its so hard to listen to that rational side of me when there is a jumbo container of ice cream in my fridge.

we rented "abraham: the bible collection" from netflix, and it completely reminded me of gods miracles bc of the story of sarah and her battles with infertililty. i related to her story so much this time bc i remember learning that story as a kid and i wasn't too impressed with that miracle. also, the sacrifice she made by having hagar give birth to one of abraham's children touched me also bc i have always said that i would never be able to use a surrogate mother to give birth to one of our children. it would make me feel so jealous inside, so identified with sarah's feelings of jealousy towards hagar. also, abraham was such an awesome husband. even though it was normal to take second wives at the time, he would never do so, even though, sarah couldn't get pregnant. he was so devoted to her.

[julesp313]

Quick update as I wait for our SoCal friends to arrive for a couple of days...

Weight - I haven't gained any while TTCing but as I'm already 50+ lbs overweight, that's a really good thing. I'm doing Weight Watchers and the only thing that will stop me reaching my goal is that I'll have to suspend the program when I get pregnant which WILL be soon. (Am practising my positive thinking).

Current plan - I go for b/w and and u/s on CD3, DH will do his b/w and SA around the same time, and I'll get the sonohysterogram done. Then the RE will figure out what's the best course of action. One thing I know for almost-sure - he won't be having us do anything that someone here hasn't been through, so I'm hoping I can get some advice and experiences once we know what's in store for us.

Today - had some brown CM, which has never happened to me before (except 1-2 days pre-AF) so I'm curious. Of course, I forgot to temp today so that didn't help. Am putting absolutely no faith in my body though I really should - that positivity thingy and all... :)

And, like Bumble, I think it's high time we had a BFP or some great news in here - Kat started it, for which I congratulate and thank her, but let's see if we can't have some more to get us all back on a good note. Fingers crossed for everyone! :)

[suzfuzsunflower]

DH and I went to a wedding this weekend for one of his best friends from childhood and high school. Wonderful wedding, we had such a good time.

We had a few hours in Raleigh before the wedding started, so we got some lunch and then sat at a park and watched children play. DH and I had a good talk about our infertility, and about the future. We talked a good bit about adoption, too. I'm so glad that Matt is with me through all of this. It helps a lot to talk with him. When we first started going through this he didn't want to talk about it at all. He just wanted to ignore it. I think he was in denial.

I've been thinking a lot about why this is all happenning. Not "why me"...but "what is the reason." I believe that there must be a purpose for all of this, but I have yet to figure it out.

We find out DH's SA results on Wed. We're going to get the numbers and (if there are problems) ask about what treatment needs to be done. I will be so happy just to know, but I'm also dreading it. I'm afraid that there could be a problem, I don't want anything additional to add to our difficulties, and I'm worried about how it will effect DH. I'm praying that there is not anything wrong with him.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday afternoon! :)

[Patience]

Congrats katmg! That's wonderful news!!! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this baby will stick and you'll have a wonderful pregnancy. :)

[la_bride_2004]

katmg oh this is wonderful news! Sending cautious good vibes your way.

[la_bride_2004]

Weight gain- well, after IVF, FET, and 3 m/c I am up about 15 pounds :( Sucks, but I am finally at a point where I am able to go back to the gym so I am sure it will come off in time.

Onto second IUI/injectable cycle this week..

[la_bride_2004]

bellefior I know I am a bit behind, but that former guy sounds like a piece of work. :( Hugs to you. After an experience like that (but not as severe!) I decided not to tell anyone in real life about what we were going through besides 2 very close girlfriends and my support group. This was over 2 years ago, and I have no regrets. Many people just don't understand male infertility, unfortunately.

[Alioop12345]

threadmistress- could you pls update me to back to TTC..

I have recovered enough from surgery to feel that I am ready to TTC again...I just need MIL to go home ;) I am truly thankful for all her help though.

So, I am waiting for AF

Hope all are well

[Patience]

Bellefior I hear ya! Everything you said should be printed on a T-shirt so people will stop with their insensitive comments. :rolleyes: Sorry to hear that you're not having a good day. *Hugs*

[gymwidow]

Just a quickie post... I don't feel much like "talking" right now.

Even while taking the progesterone supplements, once again I started spotting yesterday. I missed one of my 3 doses on Sunday, but I'm not sure if missing just the one would have caused this to happen. I emailed my RE and am waiting to hear back from him.

I'm really starting to get scared that this progesterone problem will prevent me from actually sustaining any possible pregnancy. I hope to hear some reassurance from the doc soon.

I'm planning to go in for a blood test tomorrow to rule out pregnancy this month, and then start injectables with my next cycle.

Hugs and love to all. I know a lot of us can use it!

[Patience]

gymwidow I'm sending hugs your way too. I hope your RE has some answers for you the next time you talk to him. Hang in there.

Bellefior I picked my screen name to remind myself that I need patience in this TTC journey, but I find my patience wearing thin as the months go by. :( I'm happy to hear that you're feeling better than last week. :)

As for me, I'm in the 2WW. It's 5DPO and I'm not feeling any FPS. I'm going to stop temping in order to take my mind off the 2WW. I'm not sure if I'm going to test this cycle because I get more depressed with seeing the BFN than I am with actually getting AF.

skbHow are you doing in your 2WW?

[Tandis]

Threadmistress - please update my stats:
Clomid challenge 5/06
IVF starting 6/06

Thanks.

I'm sneaking in at work, so I'm just waving HI to everyone else. :D

[polkadot]

Gymwidow....please dont give up yet...ya never know..I am thinking nothing but positive thoughts for you...i hope you will get some answers with your RE....just a thought...my aunt had to have Prog. to sustain her first pg...then she went on to have 3 more healthy girls with nothing....Thinking positive!!!

Just a little update on me....

Well, i called about my cycle days 3 &21 bloodwork....the cycle day 3 bloodwork was normal..which i expected...the 21 day bloodwork was sent for the wrong test. The nurse apologized said it was her fault and that she was sending it to be retested with the correct orders and that she would call me tomorrow with the results. I am kinda prepared for her to come back and say that my proges. was low and that i may not have Oed. I only say this b/c I know that i didnt O until day 18 which meant that at day 21 i was only 3DPO instead of 7 like it should be. I am ok with this b/c i told him that i usually Oed later and he said that if my Progest. was low and I was Oing later then I had two things workign against us...so i will probably be spending my summer on Clomid and progest. suppositories...but i guess it culd be worse....i'll let yall know when she calls me tomorrow...

[skb]

Welcome back alioop. Glad to hear the shoulder surgery went well and you are feeling up to TTC again. May your stay be short!

gymwindow I'm sure the reassurance you are looking for is right around the corner. I can't say if missing 1 dose has anything to do with your spotting. But if I recall, missing once birth control pill can lead to mid-cycle spotting. So maybe it sometimes doesn't take much. If there is a progesterone problem your RE will be able to deal with it. Keep faith!

patience 7 days past ovulation for me. I don't temp and no plans to test. I don't even have a pregnancy test kicking around if I was tempted. A couple days ago I felt PMSy and today nothing. Last clomid cycle was only 24 days long with a 14 day luteal phase. So if that's any measure I'll probably have some news early next week or possibly the weekend. So in other words.....just hanging out. Anybody else hanging with me and Patience in 2WW???

[jjsanner]

Hi ladies! Thanks for all of your responses to my "giving up" tangent. After my meltdown last week, I am feeling much better. DH and I had a good talk on Sat. night about this infertility journey. Of course I was in tears, but I think he finally now understands how hard it has been on me. Since our talk he has been super supportive and even offered to go to my follicle check on Sun. I told him no, since it was an ultrasound, but he said he wants to go to all the appointments going forward. And we talked about what we would do if this current clomid/trigger cycle fails. We talked about IVF and adoption. So I feel better about that.

My follie scan on Sunday was a bust :mad: . Doc said she didn't see any activity on either side. Which is weird because I am feeling very crampy, especially around my left ovary. So I am to continue the OPK's and call if and when I get a +. Suprisingly, I am OK with that. We are leaving next Thursday for Hawaii and I am planning on not even thinking about TTC while we are gone. Mabey the stress-free vacation is just what we need to kick-start my body.

In other general health-related news, I had to go to the Chiropractor on Sat. because I was having terrible neck pain. Actually I have had this chronic neck pain for awhile (it comes and gos), but Sat. it was especially bad. The doc took and x-ray of my spine, and holy Moses, it is in terrible shape:eek: ! It's all crooked and my neck arch is about 2 inches too far forward. So I am getting adjusted 3x week for now, with physical therapy and deep tissue massages thrown in for good measure. Luckily it's all covered by insurance.

So my body is officially a mess. I honestly think a big part is the stress from work. But like I said above, I am just looking ahead to our family vacation and hopefully I will come home achanged woman!

I hope everyone else is doing well. I will be back later for SO!

[TazLuv]

Glad to see everyone is giving some updates, hopefully we'll have some positive news soon.

As for me, I'm in the 2WW as I think I O'd yesterday. So DPO 14 would be the 22nd and we will be on vacation so I'm not going to stress about it. If AF doesn't show up while we're gone I'll test the Saturday after we get back which would put me at 19 DPO. Our timing was good, not great, this month so we'll see. At 19 DPO I'll either get a BFP or I'll know that the Clomid didn't work this month, like last month, and it will be back to the doctor we go.

Hang in there everyone! :)

[skb]

Here's a thought......I know the clomid has worked because I've had "good" follicles on ultrasound, I know the trigger worked because I've had the follow-up ultrasound and I know my timing has been good because of the above already mentioned. Keeping in mind.... DHs SA was normal. Last cycle was a bust and if this cycle is another big goose egg.........makes a gal wonder what is the problem? Hhhmmmmm.

[Asha]

at least you can deduct the IVF expenses off your taxes as medical care (gee that makes me feel real nice considering that if I worked for any other employer in my state other than the Federal Govt. I'd get full IVF coverage under state mandate. I'll start picking the bills of the money tree in that grows in my back yard)

arrgggh - to that one. its not even true for everyone anyways. we tried to deduct it off our taxes and our acc't told us we didn't have enough medical bills to qualify for the tax deduction.

another one that is annoying me is when people talk so condescendingly of having timed sex. they were like you just have to relax and it'll happen when you are not expecting it. well, no, if you can only get pregnant 2-3 days a month, then you better do it that way since a whole year of the waiting to see what happens mode didn't quite work. arrrggghh...

anyways, my dh and i have tentatively decided that if after 6 mos of clomid with no success then we will just stop trying. we are becoming really tired of having our lives revolve around this and getting our hopes up every month and then nothing.

[jnshanna]

Hello everyone! :) I've been lurking here for a little while keeping up with you all. You all seem quite knowledgable and a great group of ladies so I'd like to join if that's okay.

I've taken the plunge and we're moving on to testing now with an RE. We've been trying for 10 months now without success. In those 10 months I've had 7 cycles and 2 of them were annovulatory. I just had my first appointment yesterday and will be starting Clomid as soon as AF gets here. I'm on CD48 now, which is my longest cycle ever. The RE wanted to prescribe Provera to bring AF on but I decided to give it a little more time first. Plus I'm going on vacation starting tomorrow so it's bad timing. She also wants to do an HSG but I want to wait on that until next month (mostly because I'm scared!) I guess that's it in a nutshell. I look forward to getting to know everyone better. Good luck to all!

Me: Shanna (30)
DH: Jose (31)
Married: October 1, 1994
Charting since: August 2005
Off BC: July 2005
Issues: Don't know yet. Starting Clomid this month and DH is getting SA.

[gymwidow]

Just wanted to let you all know that the bleeding continued and is actually heavy enough today for me to count it as AF. Also, I had a blood test this morning that confirmed no pregnancy.

I can deal with the no pregnancy part okay, since we weren't even really trying this month and didn't expect me to O without any meds. It's the bleeding even while on the supplements that has me upset. I'm afraid that no amount of extra progesterone will help. My RE says not to worry, that it shouldn't affect my ability to conceive, but I'm not convinced. :(

Anyway, I go in for CD3 b/w and an u/s on Friday and if all checks out, will start the injectables that night.

Thanks for all the good wishes ladies! I may not be posting much, but I read every day and am always thinking of you all. :)

[polkadot]

ohhhh i am so sorry...but you sound like you are OK with it all....i cant believe this wasnt it for you...your chart was promising...but remember the progest. wont keep a PG that wasnt there...but it will keep one that is there...so dont look at it as the progest. did work...look at it as not actually concieving...i know that doesnt make you feel any better but at least its something to think about....we will get PG...i can feel it..;)

((((hugs))))

[jnshanna]

I'm so sorry to hear that, gymwidow. {{{Hugs}}} from me too.

[julesp313]

Shanna - welcome! I think you'll find a lot of knowledge and support here - I know I certainly have. I hope your stay is short!
Asha - we are becoming really tired of having our lives revolve around this and getting our hopes up every month and then nothing. I am SO there with you. DH and I are trying not to get too far ahead of ourselves but I don't know that I can take a lot more of this trying and failing... it's just too awful.
Gym - ah, crap. I'm so sorry to hear this cycle was a bust - though as you say, you weren't actively trying (but still - you always hope). I guess if your RE says the spotting isn't an issue, that's a good thing, though the pessimist in me would still worry - I worry about everything with TTC these days... :(
SKB - we have no known issues and yet here we are, 18 months of TTC and only one failed pregnancy to show for it. So very, very frustrating...

Me - well, got my usual pre-AF temp drop, spotting and cramping today so I'm probably calling tomorrow CD1 and will call the RE's office to arrange for CD3 bloodwork and u/s on Saturday. DH will do his b/w and SA next weekend, assuming the lab will be available on the weekend to take both samples. And I am digging very deep to try and find some positivity but it's seriously lacking. So instead I'll just go away for Memorial weekend and have some girl time with one of my dearest friends. Gotta do something and shopping may just help... :)

[suzfuzsunflower]

Hi everyone. I am not having the best day today.

We got my DH's SA results. I couldn't go to the meeting b/c I teach and we have standarized testing this week... Anyway, it's not good.

I don't have all of the results in front of me, DH is going to bring them when he comes home. But from talking with him I got this...

abnormally high count (125 million) HOWEVER...
only 1% of the sperm are mature...

We are going to do a repeat SA. They want to do genetic testing. They are putting DH on medicine (I think it's called Proxed?). Later this month he has to go and have all of these needles stuck in him for a hour and measure his hormone levels before and after.

This sucks.

With my issues and his issues, I feel that the best thing might be just to go straight to IVF. Even if we did a IUI, I don't think there would be enough mature sperm.

I am really hurting today.

[Tandis]

Happy birthday Polkadot! Hope you have a great one! :D

Suz - {{{HUGS}}} Did the doctor recommend a urologist? I have heard of other people's DHs getting better results after seeing one (and doing the medicine and whatnot). I hope the next SA produces better results,

jules - Sorry to hear about the impending arrival of AF

gym - Sorry to hear about AF from you too! Good luck with the inj.

Shanna - Welcome! Hope you stay is short and sweet!

Asha - My Mom used to be a big proponent of "just relax and it will happen" - but she also wanted me to give up charting. :rolleyes: Thought that it was too stressful for me to take my temp every morning, so maybe that was why I wasn't getting pregnant. Gee, let's *stop* the one thing that is telling me when to have sex so we can just start guessing every month. Yeah, *that* will work.

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

As for me:

We had the IVF teaching/blood work appt. yesterday. DH is super nervous about needles, so he didn't sleep well the night before. I found out afterwards this was the very first time he has ever given blood! Previously, during physicals and whatnot, he would flatly refuse to do them. However, for me, he sucked it up, worked through his fear, and gave blood - without ever complaining! I didn't know how deep his fear of needles went until *after* we got back from the appt! Now if that isn't love, I don't know what is.

We also found out that the insurance that I re-picked back up from my work is covering all of the IVF medicine, minus the co-pay! :D I had initially dropped it after we got married, since I have to pay a portion of the premium every month and DH doesn't. In December, I decided to get it again, because frankly, it wasn't doing me any good by saving my job the portion of the health insurance they used to paying for me (and they ticked me off, so my motives were purely vindicitive ;)). Thank God I did! It's going to save us almost $4000! I'm so happy that for once, something is actually going right for us.

[Asha]

suz - i am sorry to hear about this other challenge you and your dh are facing. i hope that you get some answers during this next round of testing and the meds help his situation.

jules - i actually like that we have now come up with a "deadline." i like to know that this uncertainty will not be forever and we can move on.

tandis - luckily, my mom doesn't give unwanted advice during this whole thing. i don't hold it against my friends too much who say these things bc they just don't understand and thats okay.

[Thea]

gymwindowshucks. That really stinks. Hugs to you.

suz Oh, that really stinks too. I do have to say that my DH has similar numbers (abnormally high count but the morphology has been low, as in 1 to 3% normal) and they still recommend trying IUI because the count is so high and 3% of over a million is still a lot of normal sperm. (That is how the urologist explained it.)

tandis yea for good insurance!!!

jules so sorry about spot and her evil twin AF on the way. Shopping is ALWAYS good for the soul. :)

jnshanna Welcome!

Well we are off on a long weekend tommorow. I will be doing OPKs this weekend and think I may peak Sunday or Monday so I expect to do an IUI at the beginning of the week. Been having really bad headaches this time with the clomid. Not looking forward to doing OPK's at the hotel, but am looking forward to in-laws taking our foster son at least 1 of the nights and DH and I having a night to ourselves (and hotel room bd! :))

Have a good weekend everyone and I'll update next week. Keep your chins up...we have to have some good news in here soon!

[julesp313]

Suz - I'm so sorry the SA news wasn't good. That sucks. I really hope your DH gets advice from a urologist and there's a plan of action. Like Thea said, I think often IUI is recommended for male-factor because they only need a very small number of good sperm (in comparison to how many need to get swimming in good ol' fashioned BDing). Fingers crossed for you.

Tandis - my DH is also nervous about the blood work, more than doing a repeat SA, actually! He doesn't like needles, apparently, yet he mocks me for having to lie down for a blood draw as I get woozy... Good news on the insurance, though!

Asha - deadlines are good. For me, one of the hardest parts of this IF battle is not knowing where the end is. In most difficult things I've faced so far, there's usually an end to the difficulty - with this, who knows? It's frustrating.

Me - still at work. Waiting for the client to come answer some questions - they've all locked themselves in a conference room and won't come out. Rude people. And now I'm really crampy and bitchy - they're going to regret avoiding me, lemme tell ya! ;)

[polkadot]

So..the nurse called...she said that my bloodwork showed I did not O. Which is not what my chart showed...as you can tell .....the only thing that worries me is that I know that I was only 3DPO on the day of the draw instead of 7DPO..but even still shouldnt it have showed I Oed at all...and just have had lower levels of the hormones....i am so frickin confused...i cant believe that 11 months of charts could be wrong....well this birthday has sucked...

[suzfuzsunflower]

I'll be back to catch up on everyone later this week/weekend. :)

Just wanted to update.

SA 5/06 - 1% normal sperm - count 1.25 million

OK, so I guess that gives us 12, 500 good sperm. Is that enough for an IUI?

[SAI Ladies]

I think I got everyone updated!

Gymwidow Sorry to hear about AF - {{{{{{{HUGS}}}}}}}
Welcome JNSHANNA

Happy Birthday Polkadot!

[suzfuzsunflower]

Hi everyone. Hope that today is going well for each of you.

Ali - Welcome back! MIL leave yet? :D

Bellefior - You hit the nose on what not to say to people that are having difficulties conceiving or maintaining a preg. It's beginning to bother me when people (who really are trying to help) tell me about how someone that their friend knows was not supposed to be able to have children and now as 3...doesn't help me. My arms are still empty.

Patience and skb and Tazluv - Good luck in the 2WW!

Welcome jnshanna! Have fun on vacation!

gym - I'm sorry. :(

Tandis- My DH feels the same way about needles and blood as well. He's going to have to suck it up too, b/c he's going to get a lot of bloodwork done later this month. Is IVF teaching just going over the whole IVF process?

polkadot - I'm so sorry that your bloodwork showed that you didn't ovulate. I don't either, and it was difficult and painful to come to the realization that I don't. Hopefully it's just a fluke this month, and you really do ovulate. Happy birthday, by the way.

[suzfuzsunflower]

I'll be back to catch up on everyone later this week/weekend. :)

Just wanted to update.

SA 5/06 - 1% normal sperm - count 1.25 million

OK, so I guess that gives us 12, 500 good sperm. Is that enough for an IUI?

oops...I made an error. Could you please update my stats to say:

SA 5/06 - 1% normal sperm - count 125 million

That gives us 1.25 million normal sperm...that's enough for an IUI, isn't it?

[Alioop12345]

suzfuz- yup! she left tue morning! ;)

[knoelani]

I've been MIA for awhile, but wanted to come in and update.

Suz~ Those should be good enough #'s for IUI, but only your dr can tell for sure. I'm really sorry that those were the results you got.

Polka~Happy late birthday! Maybe because you o'd later than they thought the numbers were just too low to show ovulation? I remember my RE saying that anything below 5 they said showed that you didn't ovulate, but I think that's skewed by how many days past ovulation you are.

Gym~ I'm really sorry about your SA results too. I hope you're both doing ok.

Jules~ Girl time sounds like a great idea! Sorry AF found you.

Tandis~ That's really awesome of your dh to be so willing to deal with one of his greatest fears for this. That's awesome about your insurance too!

Kat~ Huge sticky congrats to you dear!

JJ~ You asked about giving up. There have been more days in the last five years that I've wanted to throw in the towel than there have been good ones. I think about it all the time. And then I think about what having a family means to us, and maybe we'll try just one more thing. This journey is such a roller coaster and hopefully there will be a happy ending for all of us, you just never know. Take care of yourself and allow yourself to feel all the emotions involved in this journey, both the good and bad.

As far as weight gain...I'm up 10lbs in just the last year. I'm blaming it on the meds and the emotions!

As for us, we had to take the last two cycles off because of my lap and then because of cysts that decided to reappear after my lap. We started a new cycle on 5-2 and we're doing an injectable/trigger/2 IUI cycle. I have been doing either 100IU or 75IU injections of follistim for the last 8 days and I go back to the RE tomorrow for another follie check. I'm really hoping that we can trigger tomorrow night and do the IUIs Saturday and Sunday. We leave for vacation next Thursday and want to be done with all this before then.

I know I missed a lot of you, sorry about that! I am lurking and thinking of everyone.

[knoelani]

Threadmistress, please update my stats to read:
4-2006: Injectable cycle cancelled due to cysts

May 2006- Follistim injections/trigger/ 2IUI

[purplesunshine7]

Just wanted to stop in and say happy birthday to polkadot.

[Tandis]

Suz - Our first IVF appt with the doctor, he went over the general idea of IVF (the steps and whatnot), and asked us general questions that will help him during the procedure (our feelings on selective reduction, etc.) The mtg we had on Tuesday was with the IVF nurse, and she did the bloodwork and the urine test, then the doctor did the ultrasound to get a general idea of what my uterus looks like and did a mock transfer. The nurse then took us into her office, discussed what the insurance would cover, told us a prelim. calendar of events, and showed us how to admin. shots. She also gave us some paperwork to fill out at home (release forms and whatnot), and then just talked to us about any concerns we had, ideas we had heard, etc. to make us comfortable with the whole process. :)

I would also think the 1.25 million sperm would be good enough for an IUI. Especially since they shoot it so high up in there, the sperm don't have far to travel, and get lost ;) :)

knoelani - Good luck at the RE's! I hope you'll be able to do the IUIs this weekend.

[SAI Ladies]

Gotcha Suz!


knoelani Good luck w/ the IUI this weekend!!! I hope the follicles look good & you can go and enjoy your vacation with the prospect of a new little bun in the oven when you get back.

[jjsanner]

Happy belated B-day, Polkadot!

Knoelani, I am the same way. Every cycle I want to give up. Then I think mabey we will try just ONE MORE TIME....only to be disappointed again and again. Deep down I know that we will get prgnant if it's meant to be, so that helps get me through. Good luck with your trigger/IUI this weekend!

Ali, so glad to see that you are feeling better! How's Jake doing?

Quick update....

I got a + OPK on Wed. and went in at 2:00PM for a follie check. 1 @ 30, 1 @ 20 and 1 @16. I triggered Wed. night around 10:00PM. Was feeling like absolute crap yesterday (both sore from the injection and crampy/bloated from the 3 large follicles), but I feel much better today. The bloated feeling is completely gone, which leads me to think that I O'd yesterday. Does anyone know if it's possible to o approx. 24 hours after trigger instead of the 36-40 that the doctors say? Mabey because I surged in the morning but didn't do the trigger until later that same evening? I dunno, but either way our timing should be good ;) .

We are leaving for Hawaii on Thursday (gone for 8 days), so I will be expecting AF toward the end of our trip. Hopefully she stays away completely. That would be a nice. I have made a vow to not think about TTC the entire trip. Stress-free, right?

[Asha]

jjsanner - have a great time in hawaii! you deserve a little r&r.

polka - happy belated bday!!

[knoelani]

JJ~ I think we're living almost parallel lives. We leave for Hawaii on Thursday too and we're gone fo 12 days :) Have a great trip and good luck with the 2ww!

Thanks ladies for the well wishes. I'm not progressing as quickly as the RE (or I) would like, I have two strong follies at 14.5 & 13, so she's upping my does a bit and I'll go back Sunday. Hopefully we'll trigger Sunday and be able to do the IUI's Monday & Tuesday.

[polkadot]

thanks to all of you who thought about me on my b-day...:D

Good luck to all of you who are about to O and have triggers and IUI and everything else we crazy girls do...all for the beans!!!:D :D

[julesp313]

Very quick update (am trying to leave work for the first time before 10pm this week). Tomorrow I go for CD3 blood work, Monday I go for a pseudo-CD3 ultrasound (seeing as I'll be CD5 but the RE doesn't have any space tomorrow) and Friday I go for the sonohysterogram. Oh joy to all of that...

[Asha]

about a week ago i had a dream i was pregnant with triplets!!! i have never had a dream that i was pregnant before, so i hope it is a good sign. i could probably do without the triplets part and would be quite happy to be pregnant with one. have you all had pregnancy dreams??

[papergirl]

Shanna – welcome to the group. I hope you stay is short.

Gym – i’m sorry to hear you are having issues with bleeding. Is it possible you can seek a second opinion? If nothing else, maybe it will put you at ease. If multiple doctors said it wasn’t a big deal I would tend to believe them though I know when it’s only coming from one doctor you may doubt what they are saying.

Polkadot – happy belated birthday!



Not a whole lot to report on my end. This week I go in for u/s monitoring, trigger shot and IUI. I’m not looking forward to the soreness I feel after the shot, which lasts for two days, BTW, but I will deal.

Surprisingly, I got on the scale and my weight is down. Now don’t go congratulating me, it’s not by much. However, I am about four pounds less then I was when I got pregnant a year ago (then m/c). I am so happy to finally be shedding some weight even if it’s a small amount. If I can just keep it up cause I know if we do IVF I really have to drop some major pounds.

Good luck to those approaching O or testing!! :)

[Asha]

congrats on the weight loss, bumble!!

[Patience]

Asha I had a pregnancy dream when we first started TTC. Haven't had one since. I hope your dream will come true (with just one baby). :)

bumble That's great about your weight loss. We all need encouraging news like that to keep us on this crazy TTC rollercoaster. Good luck on your IUI this week.

jjsanner Have a great time in Hawaii!

knoelani Good with your IUI and then enjoy your trip!

polkadot Sorry I missed your birthday. Hope you had a good one. :D

[julesp313]

Please update my stats:

May 06 - elevated FSH levels, decreased ovarian reserve

Had my CD3 blood work today - the RE called around noon to tell me I have elevated FSH levels, which usually indicates a decreased ovarian reserve - basically, I don't have enough eggs and the ones I do have might not be good enough quality. So, I got my first answer and while it's not great, at least it's something. After we've done all the testing, we'll see where we stand and what our options are.

[skb]

jules Funny how during this process we're always waiting for the answers and not necessarily expecting them to be good. But it's still hard to hear. I had a "bad answer" at one time but once there was a plan I felt better. You seem to have a positive outlook. Take care.

We'll I'm having a bit of a sucky Mother's Day. Given my CRAMPS I'm pretty sure to be moving onto clomid round 3. Ding ding. I'll keep you posted.

[CTs_Punkin]

Jules Hugs to you! I understand what you are going through as I was diagnosed with a high FSH (Clomid Challenge: CD3 9.5 CD10 14) and very low AMH and low resting follicle numbers.... so I am in premature ovarian failure... So hugs, I know it's a difficult diagnosis and one that my hubbie and I aren't ready to move forward with donor eggs yet (this is what our RE suggested as our best shot at getting pregnant)


Hugs to all us wannabe mammas!! May this time next year bring us lots of joy in holding new babies or knowing we'll be holding one soon.

Cheers!

[gymwidow]

Morning everyone! I started off my week with good news - I went for a blood test and follie check this morning and after only 3 days on Gonal-F, my body is already responding! Each ovary has 4-5 good lookin' follies growing and my uterine lining is already at 6 mm. Depending on my b/w results, I might have to decrease my dosage for the next couple of nights and then I'll go back on Thursday for another check. Hopefully I'll be ready to trigger and we can IUI on Friday!

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes. No one except me seems concerned about my bleeding, and what polkadot said makes sense and put my mind at ease a little (thank you!!!), so hopefully it won't be an issue. I'm not going to worry about it (I worry about plenty else!) and am just concentrating on positive thinking for this cycle, for us all!

[gymwidow]

jjsanner, I hope the vacation is just what you need!

skb, I've had those same thoughts. I KNOW I O'd with at least 1-2 eggs each of my Clomid cycles, and we did IUI for 3 of those, so one wonders what it is that makes it so pregnancy doesn't result. Sometimes I wonder how anyone can't get pregnant with all that we do, and other times I wonder how it ever happens at all.

jnshanna, welcome!

polkadot, thank you again. You definitely made sense and that's how I'm going to choose to look at it.

jules, I'm glad you're finally getting some answers. Not that I'm glad you're finding out everything isn't 100% okay, but sometimes it's better to know what is wrong so you can treat it. I hope that made sense!

suzfuz, I'm so sorry. I think that you're still a good candidate for IUI and I hope that your doc comes up with a treatment plan soon.

Tandis, yay for your DH facing his fear of needles for you! That's love! That's also great news about your insurance coverage!!!

Thea, thanks. I hope you enjoyed some hotel sex this weekend!

knoelani, thanks, but our SA was fine! We did two actually, back in the fall. The first one was low, but we think we didn't, erm, get it all in the cup, and the repeat was normal.

bumble, this bleeding has happened before with me; it's actually the reason I went to the doc to get checked out in the first place last summer. No one seems to be worried about it except me, so hopefully it doesn't mean much. Good work on your weight loss!

[kazata]

Hey all, just wanted to drop off a quick link, I attended a RESOLVE support group meeting over the weekend and they mentioned that INCIID has a "scholarship" program for IVF - basically, if you are in financial need, an RE suggests IVF and your insurance does not cover it, you can apply for donated services (apparently they have a large list of participating doctors, which is ever-expanding - if you are selected you can choose any participating clinic). The applicants outweigh the recipients, but I thought it might be worth looking into if you meet the criteria.

Here's a link to information I found about the program:

http://www.inciid.org/article.php?cat=&id=239

Hope everyone managed to have a good weekend.

[gymwidow]

Quickie update..... the doctor wants me to decrease my dosage of the Gonal-F tonight and come back in tomorrow for another round of b/w and u/s. I'm guessing that if all looks good, they'll have me trigger tomorrow night or Wednesday and IUI before the end of the week!

[polkadot]

Whooo Hooooo!!!! Good Luck girlie!!!

[kazata]

Gah! Can I complain for a moment? I made it through mother's day okay this weekend, and then just now some guy walked by my desk (he just moved to this floor) and asked me how my weekend was. I responded "fine" and then he proceeded to ask "are you a mom?" I immediately felt like somebody punched me in the stomach. I know there was no malicious intent, but it took me by surprise. No. Sigh.

[polkadot]

i totally understand...i felt that way the whole day yesterday everytime someone would say Happy Mothers Day...then they would just look at me and smile....its still killed me..i am glad yesterday is over....

I know thatmost people dont mean it maliciously...but maybe we should have little buttons that say TTC....please dont ask me about it today....;)

((((hugs)))

[gymwidow]

More hugs.... Last year on Mother's Day my grandmother told me that this year I should be a mother. I had hoped to at least be pregnant this May. I realized last week that next month it will be a year since we started trying. Like most of us, I never imagined it would take this long.

My best friend called me last night to tell me that next year on this day I'll be celebrating b/c next year I will be a mom. It was sweet of her, but bittersweet, b/c last year I thought the same thing.

p.s. thanks some more polkadot! you are an awesome cheerleader!

[julesp313]

I hate to bring this thread down, but I'm absolutely miserable. The blood work on Saturday and the ultrasound this morning suggest that we may only be able to have a child through IVF. My FSH level was 11.3 - that's borderline IVF-only, not even allowing for IUI. The u/s showed that I have fewer than expected follicles starting to ripen and that I also have a number of small fibroids that (thank god) do not seem to be intruding into the uterine cavity, which means that they shouldn't interfere with pregnancy, if it ever happens. But with the FSH levels and the diminished follicles, it's possible that IUI won't be worth trying and that even IVF may not work unless we opt to use donor eggs.

I'm numb. I'm just trying to get through the day without falling apart and then I'll go home and fall apart to my husband.

[tigerest]

jules - Oh no! I am so sorry for your news!!! Hang in there until you get home with hubby and then have a good cry! {{{HUGS}}}


Re: Mother's Day...mine was ok. Except when I was at the store buying roses for MIL, the cashier said to me, "Happy Mother's Day....if your a mother!". Not only did it feel like a punch in the stomach, I felt like punching her!

[gymwidow]

Jules, I am so sorry to hear that. I hope that there's still some good news to be had and that you'll be able to come up with a good plan. I'll be thinking of you!

[polkadot]

thanks some more polkadot! you are an awesome cheerleader! your are making me blush...:o thanks sweetie!!

Jules~ sending you virtual (((hugs))) I know this wont help today but try and think of IVF as a way to bring a new babe into this world no matter how it works and dont look at it as an end all...but a begining to the plan....

((((hugs)))) again

[suzfuzsunflower]

Jules, I am so, so sorry. I hope that you and your husband are able to come up with a plan soon. :(

Mother's Day: It wasn't that bad. I cried for a few minutes immediately upon awakening, but then I was OK after that.

DH and I are having a problem. I thought that DH was taking the news of his SA very, very well...but he's not. I think that yesterday might have been more difficult for him than for me. Just like we sometimes feel a little less womanly due to our issues, I think he feels like less than a man. He has not been interested in sex or cuddling much at all since he gave his specimen for the SA...and it's been worse since we got the results back...and I'm really trying not to mention it or to pressure him. Anyway, all that rambling just to ask...those of you with DH's that have sperm issues - how do you help them through all of this? Right after we got the results DH wanted to talk about it, but he has since shut down.

Also, DH's issue is sperm maturation arrest...is anyone familar with this?

Thanks!

[katmg]

DH and I are having a problem. I thought that DH was taking the news of his SA very, very well...but he's not. I think that yesterday might have been more difficult for him than for me. Just like we sometimes feel a little less womanly due to our issues, I think he feels like less than a man. He has not been interested in sex or cuddling much at all since he gave his specimen for the SA...and it's been worse since we got the results back...and I'm really trying not to mention it or to pressure him. Anyway, all that rambling just to ask...those of you with DH's that have sperm issues - how do you help them through all of this? Right after we got the results DH wanted to talk about it, but he has since shut down.

Suz - when we first got DH's SA back and it indicated problems, all he could say was - "I'm broken." :( It just broke my heart and we talked about the fact that he is not broken and that there are steps that we can take to make this happen for us. He seemed to feel a bit better after we were able to talk to the doctor about what the results meant and what steps we could take.

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Jules - so sorry about the news. *hugs*

My "Mothers Day" basically sucked. I got to go to breakfast with my parents, brother and SIL, and her parents. The highlight was sitting there while they made their pregnancy announcement, complete with an assortment of u/s pics. I knew about the announcement so I thought I would be able to keep it togehter, but I just fell apart. I had to excuse myself from the table and ended up in the bathroom crying for about 20 minutes. It was so much more difficult than I thought it would be.

My friend, Shannon, decided to treat me to the Sharks playoff game. Well, OSH decided to have a Mothers Day giveaway so there were flowers for all of the moms and they made several announcements. To top it off, the Sharks got their butts kicked. Overall, not a fun time.

I am in my 2ww...actually about 7 days into it. I am going to try to wait until Wednesday or Thursday to test. I had positive OPK's a week ago Friday and Saturday, bd'd Friday and Saturday, but I just don't feel very hopeful.

If we are unsuccessful this cycle, we are moving on to IUI. We got all of the paperwork last week. I didn't realize how much there is to do to prepare for this. Dh has to get some blood work and stuff taken care of and I have several consent forms for us to sign...oh yippee.

[polkadot]

oh lucy that sucks....sorry you had to sit thorugh that announcement...:( (((hugs))) to you...i was just sick of getting that **poor thing** look everytime one of my realtives told my sister hppy mothers day...they know I would be right about where she is right now...i am gald its over...

((((hugs)) to everyone...we will all get there...we just need to believe...

[knoelani]

Jules~ I'm really sorry about your results. I hope that you and dh are able to find the best way through all of this. Take care of yourself and I'm sending warm thoughts your way.

To all the ladies that had a rough mother's day, we will get through this and I'm sorry it was so tough on everyone.

[Hangin'in]

I hate to bring this thread down, but I'm absolutely miserable. The blood work on Saturday and the ultrasound this morning suggest that we may only be able to have a child through IVF. My FSH level was 11.3 - that's borderline IVF-only, not even allowing for IUI. The u/s showed that I have fewer than expected follicles starting to ripen and that I also have a number of small fibroids that (thank god) do not seem to be intruding into the uterine cavity, which means that they shouldn't interfere with pregnancy, if it ever happens. But with the FSH levels and the diminished follicles, it's possible that IUI won't be worth trying and that even IVF may not work unless we opt to use donor eggs.

I'm numb. I'm just trying to get through the day without falling apart and then I'll go home and fall apart to my husband.

I'm so sorry. I am familiar with the high FSH numbers and the donor egg speech..... the punch to your gut is so hard it takes your breath away. There are some high FSH *friendly* RE's. I don't know where you are, and whether you are self pay and/or willing to travel..... but there are some awesome ladies on this board that are in that situation too. I personally have yet to decide how we will expand our family..... and I got my diagnosis 2 1/2 years ago.......

[polkadot]

hey girls remember what i said yesterday?...screw it...:mad:

My temp dropped this morning and i am not one to belive today. Af stillhasnt shown but its killing me....if shes gonna show i wish she would and just get it over with

[TazLuv]

Well ladies AF will be here this afternoon or tomorrow AM, I'm cramping and spotting as per usual.

Threadmistress, please update my stats:
Clomid 50 mg, 3 failed cycles (31 days, 43 days (Provera induced), 28 days)

So once we get back from vacation it will be back to the doctor to see what is next. I think my DH's SA is next.

[knoelani]

Taz & Polka~ Hopefully the witch will still stay away for ya'll!

Well, we're on to the waiting now. I just had IUI's yesterday and today. We did a sonogram at both of them and the egg was still there yesterday and today's showed that it had released, so at least we know the timing is right. Luckily for me, I'll be in Hawaii in two days and will hopefully have a carefree vacation without having to think too much during the 2ww.

[gymwidow]

Another good follie check for me today..... About 4-5 maturing eggs on the right (biggest was up to 14mm) and about 6-7 on the left! :eek: My lining is thickening and all looks good. I'm decreasing my dosage all the way down to 37.5 mg tonight (from an initial dose of 150), am taking nothing tomorrow night, and going back on Thursday for another check. They wanted me to come in tomorrow, but I have an all-day business meeting out of town and can't, so Thursday will have to do. I'm figuring we'll IUI on Friday (only CD10!). :)

suzfuz, when we did our first SA it came back with negative results and my DH was devastated. I just kept trying to reassure him every day that I love him and it doesn't matter who has the problem (since at the time we already knew I had a problem, too, and he kept telling me not to worry about it), that we're going to do everything we can together to make this happen. Also, I, erm, tried to show him how virile he was ;) , no matter what the test results said.

Lucy, I'm sorry you had such an awful Mother's Day. I can't believe your brother and SIL were so insensitive as to announce that on that day in front of you! Hugs to you..... Don't worry about the IUI - it's actually really easy and pain-free.

Bellefior, it's possible that the test was wrong. It turns out ours was, and our second SA came back totally normal. Since then we've done 3 IUIs, so we know for sure that DH's numbers are quite good. I'm not saying it's good to pin all your hopes on that, but it is possible, and I will still hold out some hope for you. I'm sorry Sunday was rough for you, too, and am glad you're feeling better.

[alliannie]

Hello..Can I join? We have been trying for about 1 1/2 years. We had a m/c by d&c in June of last year and no success since then. I finally went to the dr. today due to not period in 8 weeks and have accepted that we need help and it isn't working....

Alliannie
Me: 22
DH: 23
Married: 08/04
TTC: 1/05
Charting: 5/06
M/C: 06/06 10wks-D&C
Issue: Anovulatory cycles or very weak ovulation, delayed ovulation
Treatment:
5/06 start Provera to induce period and then Clomid 50mg


I have to admit I feel strange joining mostly due to the fact I am so young compared to most around here that are trying and I feel like people will think oh she is to young to worry(I hear it a lot)...so I hope you all are okay with me joining.

[polkadot]

welcome annie...hope you arent here long...

Girls~~ the spotting started this afternoon...i am sure i will wake up to Af tomorrow morning...oh the joy :rolleyes:

I am calling the doc tomorrow to see about him giving me Clomid for this cycle...i am so sad that this is offically going to be our 12th cycle...this sucks...:mad:

talk to all of you soon...

[TazLuv]

Alliannie, welcome - age is just a number when it comes to this. You can have issues at any age. Hopefully you're not here long. :)

[suzfuzsunflower]

Thank you everyone for sharing your stories about your DH's reaction to their negative SA results. DH still isn't interested in sex. I'm trying to give him space in this area, while still being affectionate so that he doesn't think that I'm not interested...

gymwidow - That's wonderful that you are responding so well ot the medication! Wow! You'll be ready on CD10! That's great!

knoelani Hope you have a wonderful vacation, and that it keeps the 2ww out of your mind! :)

Taz - I'm sorry that the clomid didn't work. It didn't work for me, either. Did you ovulate on it?

polka - I'm sorry that this cycle has been a disappointment. It's tough passing the 1 year mark. No one ever expects that it will take that long, and when it does, it hurts.

I have had the tiniest bit of spotting today - no cramps though, which I usually get before AF. I don't know whether to be happy, sad, or hopeful. Why happy? Well if AF really is coming, this will be my first none provera induced AF in over a year!!! That's something to be excited about. Sad? B/c it will mean that I'm not pregnant (which I've come to expect not to be, so it's not that big of a let down). Hopeful? Little bit of spotting, no cramps....maybe it could be good? But with DH's SA results that we got last week, there is basically no chance that we could be preg. I would have had to ovulate as well, which is a feat in itsself. Oh, well. AF is probably coming soon. :) :(

[suzfuzsunflower]

I have to admit I feel strange joining mostly due to the fact I am so young compared to most around here that are trying and I feel like people will think oh she is to young to worry(I hear it a lot)...so I hope you all are okay with me joining.

Welcome! Please don't feel strange. Infertility hurts at any age. I hate when people say that I'm young, so I have plenty of time to figure everything out...doesn't help!

[alliannie]

Thanks for all the warm welcomes!!

[TazLuv]

suzfuzsunflower, I did ovulate on the Clomid, definitely cycle 1 and most likely cycle 3 b/c it was the same length, etc. I've put in a call to the doctor to see what she wants to do next.

I was actually pretty bummed about this cycle b/c I thought we had good timing, I'm not optimistic that I didn't have toxic CM though. I'm just ready to move on to what is next. :)

[skb]

Welcome alliannie. I agree with Tazluv that when it comes to matters of fertility you can have difficulties at any age. And although I am older than you, my age has nothing to do with our TTC problems. The only thing I may find myself thinking....in general terms....when somebody discovers potential TTC problems in their early 20s, thank goodness for them because hopefully they will be able to avoid that race/pressure with the biological clock that we always hear about. Anybody else been seranaded with *tick-tock, tick-tock* ???? Lovely isn't it. So no, you're not too young to be smart about your own reproductive health. Glad to hear you've found a doc that can help.

[jnshanna]

I'm sorry about Mother's Day for everyone. That's such a tough day. :( I took it surprisingly well but I think that was just because I was on a plane part of the time and was distracted.

I'm so sorry about your results, Jules. {{{Hugs}}}

Sorry about the temp drop, Polkadot. I hope that AF stays away. Fingers crossed!

Sorry about looming AF, Taz.

Good luck with your 2WW, knoelani. That's great that you're going to be having a great time on vacation during it. Have fun!

Yay for progressing so fast this month, gymwidow! :)

Welcome Alliannie. It sounds like we're on the same plan this cycle.

AF still hasn't showed for me and I'm on CD54. So I called in my presc. for Provera and will take a pg test tomorrow. As long as it's - (and I'm sure it will be) I'll start it then. And after that I'll start 50mg Clomid on CD3.

[jodylovesscotty]

I haven't posted much if at all, but I've been lurking. It is so hard to read bad news, we really need some good news around here.

As for me I believe I oed yesterday. My temp went way up and I could feel the ovulation pains on my left side. I am hoping that this will be our magical month. If not next month we move to IUI.

[polkadot]

So, I called the doctor...I have an appt. at 2:30 this afternoon....i am kinda worried that maybe this was another chem pg. This is the longest i've gone without a period including Jan when I had the chem pg...and like Jan, it started with some spotting for a few days then af arrived. I really thought i would wake up with AF today but nope...and the spotting has pretty much stopped...i hope its not another chem pg and that its just my body acting weird....but at least I will get to talk to the doctor and see what his next step will be....

So everyone....fingers crossed this is not another chem pg and that somehting good comes out of this appointment....

[Asha]

polkadot - if you don't mind answering, what is a chemical pregnancy. good luck at your appt today.

for those of you on clomid, did you experience your side effects while actually taking those five pills or later in your cycle? my body has been acting kinda funny and i am wondering if its the clomid. i am in the 2ww and i have this dull pain that has persisted in the center of my stomach area. also, i keep waking up at 4 am in the morning. i am waaaaay more bloated than normal.

[polkadot]

Asha~ the way my doc explained it was that the egg and the sperm met and fertilitzed but never implants..so all the chemicals that the HPt's pick up are present but the eggs eventually dies b/c it is not implanted...does that make sense....i hope so...so technically its just the chemicals and not a viable preganancy....i hoep there is something they can do to fix this...i cant do this all the time..its killing me...i am much better this time b/c i never got the +hpt i think it would be worse if i did....

i'll keep you all posted...:(

[Asha]

polka - oh, that sounds like such a disspointing experience to go through. i am sorry.

[DallasLady]

DH and I are having a problem. I thought that DH was taking the news of his SA very, very well...but he's not...those of you with DH's that have sperm issues - how do you help them through all of this? Right after we got the results DH wanted to talk about it, but he has since shut down.

We were also male factor and it was hard on DH when we found out. It's as if that SA was a nurmerical measure of his manhood or something. Our sex life went to nothing, TTC became a dirty word in our house. Our communication was terrible. It was hard. It took about 6 weeks for it to really sink in and for things to get better.

What really helped was getting a plan of action. I think men like to feel like they are doing something, like they are fixing whatever is "broken." Once we went to the RE, he told us that he'd dealt with people like us before and that there were steps we could take, DH felt a lot better.

[SAI Ladies]

Alliannie - Welcome to our humble thread!! I hope the support of these fine ladies will help make this journey a little easier!

Dallas Lady Thanks for dropping by. You're having a girl! How fantastic.

Polkadot - Hugs!!

Updated to here - Let me know if I missed someone!

[jnshanna]

I hope your appointment goes well, Polkadot. Hang in there.

jody ~ I hope this is your magical month! Those pains sound promising.

So I have a question, for those of you that have taken Provera in the past, how do you decide when to take it? My plan is to start taking it tonight but I'm a little conflicted about it. My temp went up again today and I can't help but be hopeful that my body is trying to O. I'm sure it's unlikely though. And if I did O, it's been quite a few days since we BDed. Do you think based on my chart that now is a good time to start taking it? I don't know why I'm so worried about taking it but I am for some reason and am looking for a little bit of encouragement from your experiences. :)

[skb]

Unfortunately ladies I will not be the one to pick up the thread with some good news.

Threadmistress can you please update my stats...
04/06-05/06: 50 mg clomid/trigger/tracking

So on to round 3 for me and only 2 more attempts shy of an IVF referral. I'm not surprised but still a little cranky. I've already called my pharmacist to refill my prescription and my doc's assistant to set up the tracking appopintment. To my surprise he has a new younger assistant.....I really liked the old one who was very helpful.

asha While taking the clomid I have ridiculous hot flashes. I've been taking it before bed and it seems that about 5 hours later (around 4am) I awaken really overheated and just sweating like you wouldn't believe. I've also noticed 1 or 2 episodes of a doozy headaches later in my cycle that I haven't noticed before. And yup, the bloating is something else. Not to mention the cramps preceeding AF. Very different then before clomid. Oh joy!

Nonetheless....we are off to visit the twin babies this week and so I will hotflash among family who knows nothing of what is going on. Reminder to me......happy face. I will cross my fingers for everyone else in the 2ww and comiserate with the rest of you.

[kazata]

Bellefior I'm so sorry. I hate the cycles of emotions that happen - you sound just like me, always hoping against hope and trying to believe it might be it. I've had a lot of months just like that - where I convince myself that this just might be it right in time for AF (I've even been known to take a pg. test only to discover AF as I'm wiping after peeing on the stick! Gah, what a waste of a test those were). Anyway, my point is that I think it's completely natural to have these up and down emotions every month, on the one hand, you try to protect yourself by rationalizing that this isn't the month, but it's so hard not to get your hopes up, since this is what we really want. It doesn't make it any easier, but you are not alone. Sending hugs.

alliannie Welcome! I hope you find lots of support here. Infertility carries the same pain with it whether you are 22 or 32, so please don't feel like you are unwelcome simply because of your age. We all have different journeys, but it's not a competition as to who has the most "right" to feel pain.

[suzfuzsunflower]

So I have a question, for those of you that have taken Provera in the past, how do you decide when to take it? My plan is to start taking it tonight but I'm a little conflicted about it. My temp went up again today and I can't help but be hopeful that my body is trying to O. I'm sure it's unlikely though. And if I did O, it's been quite a few days since we BDed. Do you think based on my chart that now is a good time to start taking it? I don't know why I'm so worried about taking it but I am for some reason and am looking for a little bit of encouragement from your experiences. :)

I have taken provera at the end of each cycle for an entire year. How do I decide? When I first started taking it I would see a temp. rise or feel pains, and think "what if my body is actually going to do something!? Maybe I should wait." I'd wait and wait, and my body would never do anything. How do I decide now? I just wait until about CD50 or 60, take a preg. test, and then take the provera. I am very confident that my body isn't going to do anything.

I looked at your chart, and while you do have a temp. rise, you have had several temp. rises earlier in this cycle that turned out to be nothing. Do what makes you feel comfortable.

---------
Me: Teeny tiny bit of spotting today (2nd day in a row). Today is CD 47, so I'm going to wait about 2 weeks, take a preg. test, and then take provera.
Even though I know that there is no possible way that I am pregnant, the tiny bit of spotting is giving me a little bit of hope...

[MrsR]

can I join???

MrsR
Me - Jessica, 32
DH - Matt, 32
Married: October 18, 2003
Off BCP since: June 2005
TTC since: June 2005
Charting since: February 2006
Testing results: 4/06 bloodwork normal, HSG clear, SA normal
Treatment: 5/06 - clomid 50mg

I am starting clomid on CD 5 which will be Friday. I think I will take it at night in case of any side affects. My dr. told me to take it CD 5-9, wait 5 days and then BD every other day for 5 days. Hope that won't be too late to catch the eggie since I know clomid can make you O earleir and I usually O around CD 18-20.

[polkadot]

So here it is ladies.....

I went to the doctor..they did a urine test : BFN, so that settles that...he is convinced that I did not O this cycle no matter what the monitor or the chart says....when they tested my progest at cycle day 21 it was 4. which is like nill he says. So if i oed either on 18 or 20...still way too low...i am wondering how my temps go up all the time and etc...but i am going with him and agreeing that i didnt O. He asked me what my next course of action was...because i needed to make the decision. I decided to go with the Clomid (duh) so....i have my perscription for Clomid for days 3-7 and for Estrace for days 8-12, then on day 21 (here we go again) i will go for a blood draw to see if I Oed on the Clomid and to test my progest. If i have O'ed I get progest.! Yay! :D

SO thats the plan...i am very happy with it. The only thing I forgot to ask him was if i could take the generic for both the clomid and estrace...anyone had experience with those?

Now..all i have to do is wait for AF to arrive in full force....***tapping foot** never thought i would be so happy to see her ;)

Ohhh another question...do you think i should still temp...i wouldnt want to think that I am Oing when I am really not...by going with my temps...i am trying to decide if i should just use the monitor or do both. opinions please!!!

wow that was long...thanks again to all of you are sticking it out with me...couldnt do it with out ya'll!!;)


Threadmistress update needed:
5/06 bloodwork shows no O~Clomid 50 mg

[Lucy Van Pelt]

So, I think I am about 8 or 9 dpo. I have zero pregnancy symptoms, but since I am bored, I decided to test. I did a clear blue easy non digital test. It looked like there *might* be a VERY faint line so I chalked up to wishfull thinking and went on with my day. Well, DH is in Vegas and I remembered I have like 6 digital tests inthe closet so I grabbed one - why not? Well...

It says pregnant. I am in shock. I'm kinda freaking out. I want to be out of mind with excitement, but with my history of miscarriages, I am afraid to be happy.

[jnshanna]

Sticky, sticky vibes, Ginger! :D Congrats!

Sounds like you have a good plan, Lauren. Isn't it great to have a plan?

Welcome Jessica!

Thanks for sharing your experience with Provera, suzfuzsunflower. I decided to go ahead and get started with it tonight. Hopefully AF will be here soon so I can start the Clomid.

[polkadot]

Ginger....i am so happy for you...

Congrats & Sticky Vibes!!!!

[alliannie]

Congratuations Ginger!!!!

Thanks everyone who welcomed me today. I forgot:o to pick up my medicine at the pharmacy so I guess I will start my Proveria tomorrow and not today. I did not even think that the meds might make me have side effects...I am a little worried now! And I have a question...why do some people take Clomid CD 3-7 and others 5-9(which is what I was told to do)? Just curious.

Sorry polkadot about the -:(. I hope this next cycle you O!!

Shanna-we do sound alike!

[jennylou]

So here it is ladies.....

I went to the doctor..they did a urine test : BFN, so that settles that...he is convinced that I did not O this cycle no matter what the monitor or the chart says....when they tested my progest at cycle day 21 it was 4. which is like nill he says. So if i oed either on 18 or 20...still way too low...i am wondering how my temps go up all the time and etc...but i am going with him and agreeing that i didnt O. He asked me what my next course of action was...because i needed to make the decision. I decided to go with the Clomid (duh) so....i have my perscription for Clomid for days 3-7 and for Estrace for days 8-12, then on day 21 (here we go again) i will go for a blood draw to see if I Oed on the Clomid and to test my progest. If i have O'ed I get progest.! Yay! :D

SO thats the plan...i am very happy with it. The only thing I forgot to ask him was if i could take the generic for both the clomid and estrace...anyone had experience with those?

Now..all i have to do is wait for AF to arrive in full force....***tapping foot** never thought i would be so happy to see her ;)

Ohhh another question...do you think i should still temp...i wouldnt want to think that I am Oing when I am really not...by going with my temps...i am trying to decide if i should just use the monitor or do both. opinions please!!!

wow that was long...thanks again to all of you are sticking it out with me...couldnt do it with out ya'll!!;)


Threadmistress update needed:
5/06 bloodwork shows no O~Clomid 50 mg


Polka - you were day 21, but IIRC, you said earlier that you only like 3dpo, right? If so, that's not a reliable measure of your progesterone. All it really tells you is that you did, in fact O. I only had a progesterone of 5.something with my first pregnancy at 8dpo. Just sayin'.

Many, many people don't O on clomid until a few days - week after CD14, so CD 21 progesterone draws aren't very accurate.

Allie - some people take clomid day 3-7 for better egg quality, and others take it 5-9 because they don't O on their own.

[Nigellas]

WOW! Congratulations Lucy V! :D:D:D

[Patience]

Lucy Van Pelt Congratulations! Finally we get some good news in here!!! Sending you lots of sticky vibes! :D

MrsR Welcome! My doc had me take Clomid on CD 5-9 also, but she didn't give me any BD instructions. BTW, this last cycle on Clomid, I O'ed a little later (on CD 17), so it's not necessarily true that Clomid will make you O earlier.

polkadot I agree with jennylou about the CD21 testing. I O'ed on CD17 this cycle (based on OPKs and temping), but I was instructed to do my CD21 testing (so that would put me only at 4DPO). Fortunately for me I was producing enough progesterone at 4DPO to convince my doc that I was ovulating. However, if she had told me that I didn't O, I might have asked for another blood test on the *actual* 7DPO. BTW, I've been taking Clomiphene for two cycles because it's a lot cheaper (my insurance doesn't cover fertility drugs).

alliannie A belated welcome to you!

A big hello to everyone I've missed.

*********
A quick update on me:
Today is 13DPO for me and so far I'm sticking to my promise about not testing. I did temp today to see if my temp is still high (I stopped temping after I confirmed my O date) and yup, it was still high. Not feeling anything (sore BBs, but that's usual). So, we'll see what the weekend will bring me. I expect to see AF on Saturday or Sunday.

[Thea]

Lucy CONGRATS!!! Sending lots of sticky vibes your way......

polka sorry about the BFN. I agree with the other posters that the day wasn't right.....did you discuss that with your MD. In any event the clomid will help. As a pharmacist I would definitely agree that the generic would be just fine (although there will always be people who tell you the brand worked better for them on a certain medicine this simply is not true in most cases.) I don't think it will hurt to temp or use the monitor as it will pinpoint when you O more definitely.

Welcome to the newbies...may your stay here be short.

MrsR I take mine on day 3-7 and I do not O any earlier...it is actually usually a day later.

Me...Had IUI on Monday (37 million with good motility, twice as much as last time, crossing my fingers). Have a lab sheet to get my progesterone drawn....I am almost positive I O'd late Sunday evening, and the nurse said I should get it drawn on Monday. Will just be glad to know what it is, and if it's OK, then thats another thing to cross off my list. My friend lent me her fertility frog for good luck. Not that I really believe in it, but I rub it every night before I go to bed, and I'm willing to try anything at this point!

[gymwidow]

Lucy, yay! Congrats and many sticky vibes to you. I'm so glad you were able to bring us some much-needed good news in here!

Quickie post before I go into a meeting..... I had another round of b/w and u/s done this morning. I have 4 mature eggs ready to release and will trigger tonight at home with either Lupron (sp?) or Ovidrel, depending on what my estrogen levels are. We'll IUI on Saturday.

I'm excited and hopeful that this will be it! :D

[polkadot]

GymWidow....Fingers Crossed....

thea~ thanks for the advice about the brand vs generic...i think i am going to go with the generic...its a difference of almost $45 at my pharmacy...insane I tell you ;)

patience~ i did tell my doctor that the monitor said i oed day 20 and my chart said 18 but he said that there is no way I Oed on either of those days with a level of 4 nanosomethings.(progest) So, i guess there is no way to know....either way my progest was way low....just waiting to start next cycle...;) **tapping foot** never thought I would ever want AF to start so much...:eek:

[jennylou]

polka - do you have a costco near you? You don't have to be a member to use the pharmacy there and they are the cheapest for clomid.

[polkadot]

nope no costco...i do have a discount pharmacy that is local and when I called yesterday they told me the generic was only $ 4.47 for 5 pills...i think that is what i will do...and since i am taking the Estrace too...i wanted to go the cheapest route possible...and the generic of that is only $7 so i think I will get it there...the brands are 50 something for Clomid and 40 something for the estrace...i talk to a pharmacist and she said that the generic will work just fine....

thanks for thinking of me!! :D

[skb]

Congratulations Lucy V. It must be so nice to see that "pregnant" window come up!

Welcome to MrsR. I take clomid day 3-7 and in the past 2 cycles have ovulated on day 10 and 12 as opposed to 16 or 17 as temping would suggest. However, my doc insists that temping is not an "exact science" since it may take a couple days for your body to respond to the hormones and show a temp increase. So who knows...maybe I always ovulated earlier then I thought in the first place.

gymwindow Things are looking good for you!!!

polkadot Sorry about your BFN. ME too. Holding out for Patience.

thea I'd be rubbing the frog too. Will cross my fingers.

[Tandis]

polkadot - Wow! :eek: That's like, crazy low for the Clomid - even being generic! I called around to some local pharmacies yesterday because I'm doing the Clomid Challenge next cycle, and the cheapest I found was $33 for generic at Sam's Club. Every where else was in the low $40s to high $50s for generic and above $100 for brand name! Darn, I think I need to go to your pharmacy ;)

Lucy - Congrats!!! H&H nine months to you and tons of ~*~*Sticky vibes~*~* :D

[julesp313]

Ack, I haven't updated in a while - been absolutely slammed at work, and really missed my SAI reading... :(

Welcome to Alliannie and MrsR!

Congratulations Ginger - fabulous news!

Everyone else - sorry I'm such a slacker but I am reading when I can...

Me - sono tomorrow to rule out any issues in the uterus (and hopefully to confirm that the fibroids I do have are not interfering). DH does his SA and blood work tomorrow - he's more concerned about the b/w because he hasn't had blood drawn in decades. He said (and I quote) any man with a working weiner can jerk off into a cup, but it takes a real man to let a chick shove a gigantic needle into your arm and suck all the blood out. Slightly prone to exaggeration, my husband. ;)

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Thanks everyone for your good wishes! I am a bit concerned/confused. I tested again last night after brad got home from Vegas so I could show him the test and it was negative. I was having a hard time sleeping so when I woke up and had to pee at 3am, I tested again and it was negative. I went back to bed and had the mose bizarre dreams, woke up around 9am and tested yet again and it was positive. :confused: :confused: I just got home from the lab for my bloodwork so I won't have the results until tomorrow...I'm just going to keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best.

[gymwidow]

alliannie, welcome. I'm sorry for your loss last year and hope that you won't be in this group for long! Some docs prescribe different days for the Clomid. Don't worry about it and just follow your doc's instructions. I never had any side effects from the Provera, except for a really really heavy AF once that didn't want to stop (almost 10 days). The doc said that was b/c my lining had built up so much over the 60 days of my cycle.

suzfuz, hugs.

jnshanna, I know, it's crazy! The doc who did my u/s this morning said, "So, I hear you're making a lot of eggs and we need to watch you carefully!" I'm glad I respond well to the meds; I just hope the sparks fly inside and it all works! Each time I took Provera I just sucked it up and took it. I think after that many days in a cycle, even if you do O, chances of it being a viable egg are low.

Asha, the only s/e I had from Clomid occurred while I was taking it - hot flashes at night and some moodiness. I didn't notice anything different during my 2WWs.

DallasLady, men love to be fixing things!

skb, hugs to you.

Bellefior, hugs to you, too. I always end up with high hopes, even after I start spotting. It sucks.

MrsR, welcome. I see no reason to BD earlier, even if it's just for fun!

polkadot, I posted to you over in TTC. I'm glad you have a plan now!

Patience, you're living up to your name this month! I hope it pays off with a BFP this weekend!

Thea, great on the IUI! I hope your Monday prog. level is nice and high and that this is it for you!

jules, I hope your tests lead you to a good plan to get you pg!

Lucy, I'm crossing everything for you!

[pocahontas]

Hi ladies...can anyone tell me where I can find a thread with info about laparoscopy (sp?) I could have sworn I remembered one of the SAI ladies starting something like that awhile back, but I could just be having a brain fart. :confused: Who knows? :p Thanks in advance!

[jnshanna]

I hope AF stays away, Patience! Keep thinking positive.

Aw, that's sweet about the fertility frog, Thea. I like that. I'd rub it too! ;)

I'm going to be taking the generic Clomid as well when AF finally shows. That was automatically what I was given. I didn't really notice it was different until you guys mentioned it. The cost was $15.

OMG, I lauged so much at your post about your DH, Jules. That is sooo funny! Thanks, I needed a good laugh.

Fingers are so crossed for you, Ginger! I really hope you have high numbers! And even if you don't try not to stress too soon. It may just be a little early. Hang in there.

So I made an appoint. today for DH's SA for next Friday. He seems to be as anxious about it as I am so he took the next available appointment even though it's not really a good time for him at work. I started the Provera last night and didn't notice any se's. I worry that Clomid will be a different story though. But I don't care as long as it works! :)

[suzfuzsunflower]

Just wanted to say: Yay Ginger! Sticky, sticky, sticky thoughts!! :)

[Alioop12345]

Keeping fingers crossed for you Ginger!

[Asha]

I called around to some local pharmacies yesterday because I'm doing the Clomid Challenge next cycle, and the cheapest I found was $33 for generic at Sam's Club.

it could be the amount of clomid you are taking. the generic at costco cost me $12 for 50mg. i'd imagine it would be twice the price if you were taking 100mg.

While taking the clomid I have ridiculous hot flashes. I've been taking it before bed and it seems that about 5 hours later (around 4am) I awaken really overheated and just sweating like you wouldn't believe. I've also noticed 1 or 2 episodes of a doozy headaches later in my cycle that I haven't noticed before. And yup, the bloating is something else. Not to mention the cramps preceeding AF. Very different then before clomid. Oh joy!
for the past week, i have been waking up at 4 am!!! i have already taken my pills and it sucks. hmmm..i am now wondering if the horrible cramps i have been getting are pms cramps. i can't even wear most of my pants bc the bloating is so bad, so i have to wear skirts and everyone keeps asking why i am all dressed up. its not really like i can tell them i have become a hormonal monster. in addition, to all the side effects i have noticed a tightness in my chest and i am getting out of breath easily.

lucy - a big congratulations!!!
***
well, for the first time since i have been ttc i got the ewcm. it was cd 24, so i am now wondering if the clomid made me ovulate much later than usual and there were questions if i was ovulating at all without the clomid. you better believe we jumped on the opportunity.

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Hi everyone! I just got off of the phone with my doctors office. My beta is 45 and my progesterone is 47.9. I can't even tell you how much I was shaking when I called. I was sooo very scared to hear the progesterone numbers. I had really low progesterone the last two times I miscarried so the supplements have obviously helped that. I go back for bloodwork tomorrow and call Monday for the results and to schedule an u/s. So far, things look pretty good, but I am still nervous as heck.

Thanks to all of your for your prayers and positive thoughts. I will continue to pray for all of us to have many healthy babies in the very near future. Bless you all!

[jnshanna]

Yay Ginger! I'm still sending sticky, sticky vibes your way. I'm so glad your numbers were high. :D

[kazata]

YAY! Lucy Van Pelt that's good news, I'm very excited for you. Holy high progesterone levels, batwoman! Keeping everything crossed that the repeat betas come back great. ****Sticky vibes****

[kazata]

Pocahontas I don't know if this is the thread you are thinking of, but there is one titled "tell me your experience with laparoscopy" in the family planning section.

Here's the link:
http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=5657&highlight=laparoscopy

[polkadot]

Ginger~ that is great news...you will be in my thoughts all weekend...

~~~~~ Sticky sticky vibes~~~~~

[SAI Ladies]

Okay - I think I got everyone.

Welcome MrsR

Lucy - CONGRATS ~~~~~~~~~SENDING LOTS OF STICKY VIBES~~~~~~~~~
Let me know when you want to be graduated!!

[pocahontas]

THANKS KAZATA!

[gymwidow]

Ginger, OMG, wow! Those are great numbers. I am sending lots of sticky vibes your way and can't wait to hear more good news on Monday!


I triggered last night and this morning with Lupron, as per doctor's instructions. He gave me that drug instead of the generic HCG or Ovidrel b/c my estrogen levels are really high. He's also going to do another u/s before our IUI tomorrow morning. He wants to make sure I don't have hyperstimulation syndrome. I better not have it, because I do NOT want to have to cancel this cycle! I've been stuck 12 times and had 4 u/s in 10 days - I deserve to finish out this cycle the right way! ;)

Anyway, one semi-nice thing that he also told me is that I should take a week off from the gym. :) I will feel guilty, but have to protect my "fragile" ovaries (his words), so I think I can live with being a couch potato for a while! :p

[jnshanna]

Question: Do you think it's a problem to take Midol when taking Provera? I doubt it would be a problem but I figured I should check just in case. My cramps are awful today. :(

Darn right, you deserve to finish this one out, gymwidow. And you get to be a couch potato? Niiice. :)

[Thea]

Lucy Van Pelt awesome numbers!!!! Keepng everything crossed for you!

jnshannaIt's fine to take the midol while on the provera...hope it helps!

gymwindow hopig your cycle is not canceled either and keeping my fingers crossed for you too.

Have a nice weekend eveyone else....I work all weekend, so I'll be back on Monday.

[julesp313]

Ginger - those numbers are great. Congrats again!
Gym - I hope the IUI went well and you're baking a wee one as we "speak". :)

The problem with waking up at 5:30am every day for work and then 6am on Saturdays to go to Weight Watchers is that Sundays usually involve an early wake-up call too. Like today. Ugh. Mind you, I did take a three hour nap yesterday so that could have something to do with it. :)

Had my final tests on Friday - another u/s that showed I have one dominant follicle on the right and lots of smaller ones (so much for my high FSH levels curbing my follicle production, as the RE said), and then the sonohysterogram that confirmed none of my small fibroids are in the uterine cavity so that's very good news. DH did his second SA and got his blood work done, after much confusion at the lab (silly people) so now we have a consult on Wednesday with the RE to determine what our game plan is. I'm nervous that he's going to say IVF is our only hope but I'm also hopeful that he'll have a solid idea of what will work for us. Thursday, I'm going out of town for a few days to visit one of my girlfriends - she's also having TTC issues so no doubt we'll vent to each other, in between shopping. :) Then when I get back, DH and I will decide what we're going to do. So that will be good - a game plan is better than just trudging along, not knowing what's wrong.

[suzfuzsunflower]

jules - Yay for getting close to having a game plan! We're going to be doing a second SA and bloodwork for DH soon, and then meeting with the RE to decide the best course of action. I too worry that IVF will be our only option, but it will be so good just to know one way or the other. Have fun shopping and visiting with your friend!


jnshanna, I'm sorry that you have cramps with the provera. I never had cramps while taking it. Hope they've gone away...

I'm so glad that your numbers were high, Ginger. It's nice to have some good news in here! Hope that you are doing well.

I started provera yesterday. Joy.
DH is having his bloodwork and SA completed on the 30th. They are sending his sperm off to some top lab in the country to have genetic testing done...anyone had this done? Then we're going to meet and find out what we need to do. I'm thinking it's going to be IVF b/c 1.5 million sperm doesn't seem like enough for an IUI. Everything that I've looked at says that it should be at least 10 million.

Oh, and DH is out of his funk now....back to bding. After over 3 weeks of no sex (very weird for us), he is suddenly very interested. The first time we had sex (after the 3 weeks), he did say that he was sorry that he only had 1.5 million good sperm. :( Poor guy.

Have a great Sunday!

[alliannie]

I am on CD 2. I started yestarday though I didn't even take the Provera yet so my body started all on its own. I was going to start taking it last night(in case I had cramps I could lay around today I had tons to do yestarday:) and I woke up with AF. I will start my Clomid on Wed!

jnshanna-Hope your midol is helping!

Ginger-lots of sticky vibes!!!

suz-poor dh:(...hopefully he will forget and not think about it.

gym-Thank you for the welcome and hope you are baking one right now!!

Off to clean house...

[gymwidow]

Yesterday went well. We got there and DH went in for his thing and they called my name right away. Turns out the doc had ordered another round of b/w and u/s for me. I did the b/w and was waiting for the u/s and then asked if we could just do that when we do the IUI and was on my out the door to get breakfast when they called me again. So I got all the way to undressed, sitting on the table with a paper sheet over me, when the nurse came in again and apologized and said I could go ahead and go and do the u/s later on. Hmph. I saw the doc on my way out then and he explained that this was unusual, that he doesn't normally do b/w and u/s on IUI day, but because of my high estrogen levels and copious number of eggs, he wanted to just check one more time to make sure all was okay. I said it wasn't a problem. So off we went to get food, and then back an hour later for the IUI. We talked again about my discomfort level and why I used the Lupron instead of the HCG and what I should be on the lookout for (any significant pain or discomfort in the next few days) and that I should go ahead and start the progesterone today. And then we checked my ovaries again - 4 on the right, about 5-6 on the left, and I got, erm, basted (as a friend so eloquently puts it), and that was that. I felt a little more discomfort than I have before (mild to medium cramps, but still not as bad as CD1 or 2 ones), so went to bed for a bit when we got home and just took it easy after that yesterday. Today I feel back to normal.

The doc was very sweet yesterday - said "we're going to get you pregnant already!" He said in a woman my age with my good health, he would have hoped I'd be pregnant already, but that sometimes it just doesn't happen right away. He said that infertility is still somewhat of an "inefficient" science. He said that he hopes this is it, as he knows that this hasn't been an easy cycle for me what with all the continuous testing, etc. He said if this isn't it, then we know next month to put me on a lower dosage to begin with.

So that's that. I feel very optimistic and hopeful this month and am keeping only those thoughts in my head. I go in on June 2 for a pregnancy test, so 12 more days to wait!

[polkadot]

finger crossed and lots of prayers....:D :D

[Patience]

Lucy Van Pelt Great numbers! Sending you good luck that everything will go well.

gymwidow I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you too! I hope your 2WW will fly by and you'll get good news on June 2. :D

********
AF came late Friday night. :( I thought I wouldn't be so upset but I had a breakdown on Saturday while I was talking to a friend who knows about my TTC problems. It's just so hard to continue being hopeful when we've tried for so long. It doesn't help that we've spent all weekend with different friends who have babies so all they talk about is what their kids did. My poor DH doesn't know how to make me feel better because one minute I'm feeling sad and the next I'm angry that we're in this situation.

[Thea]

gymwindow unds like it went wel...thanks for joining me here in the 2WW. Hope it goes fast for you

patience HUGS. I hae CD1...and CD 2 for that matter! :(

alliannie yea for not having to take the provera

jules
yea for the good news, the consult, and the chance to vent in real life!

Nothing new here. Hugs to everyone else.

[polkadot]

gymwindow ~ hope it went great and we both get BFP's really soon....

patience ~ sorry Af showed...she sucks...(((hugs)))

alliannie~ I am gald your body regulated it self and you didnt have to take the meds....sorry she showed though...(((hugs))

Me~ Cycle day 4 and 2nd day of clomid...i am actually terrified that i will have horrible side effect or totally freak out ...i also dont want to miss my O since i usually dont O until day 18-20 I am not too sure when I should start the bding...hoping that the monitor and the OPk's give me a good idea...

Fingers crossed in here...for everyone..we need some more happy news i here!!

[la_bride_2004]

just peeking in-

Gymwidow Sending good thoughts your way- sounds like your doctor is really on your side.

Patience hugs to you, I can definitely relate.

Polka sending you good luck with the Clomid. I know, from experience, I wished I had asked for a trigger shot because the med can definitely change the date around (sooner or later). Just an idea for you. I ended up having 3 IUI's that cycle because they couldn't pinpoint it exactly.

[MrsR]

gymwidow -- sending good thoughts and sticky vibes to you!!!

polkadot -- hoping you have no bad side effects from the clomid.

Sorry, guys work is crazy here so no real time for SOs. On CD 8, day 4 of clomid, so far my only side effects are absolutely NO CM, a few mild hot flashes and a slight headache in the afternoon . . . Hoping the CM comes back after I stop taking the clomid tomorrow, but I bought another round of pre-seed just in case . . .

[gymwidow]

Thanks, everyone, for all the good wishes. I am very lucky to have a great doctor and an incredibly supportive DH. Hopefully all our prayers will come true this month!


Jules, I'm glad to hear that something seems to be working right. I hope you get some more answers this week!

suzfuz, wow for the fancy testing! I hope it brings some good answers and a gameplan. My RE did say on Saturday at my IUI that anything over 10 million was what they look for (this was after I asked him what my DH's count was that day). But for IVF all they need are a few, right? I'm glad your sex life is back on track again!

alliannie, that's great that you didn't need to take the Provera! Good luck with the Clomid. I didn't find it that bad, really. Other than the nighttime hot flashes (ugh), I didn't feel any real s/e.

Patience, I'm sorry you had a rough weekend.

Polkadot, see my post to alliannie - I didn't find Clomid that bad at all. Drink lots of water and grapefruit juice and all that (Robitussin, too, maybe?) if you're worried about CM, but hopefully none of your concerns will come true!

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Well, everyone, I got the results from my second round of bloodwork. My betas went from 45 on Thursday to 120 on Saturday. The doctor is happy with these numbers so I guess I will "officialy graduate" myself. Thanks to all of you for the support over the past year or so. I will still lurk to see how you are all doing and continue to pray for all of us.

[julesp313]

Ginger - sorry to see you go, but I'm thrilled WHY you're going. :)

Me - I don't remember the last time I was on BCP but this time, I'm feeling exactly like I normally do around this time. Meaning, I'm seeing EWCM, feeling a bit tender around my ovary (and I know the right one has the dominant follicle, thanks to my U/S). But isn't the point of BCPs to prevent O'ing? My poor confused body... ;) Can't wait til Wednesday to get some plans in mind!

[Patience]

Thanks for your concern and hugs everyone. I'm feeling better. Called in for my Clomid prescription today. I think this will be my last cycle before I start IUI. I haven't discussed the cost with my doctor yet, but all I know is that my insurance won't cover any of it. Grr...:mad:

Lucy Van Pelt Congratulations on graduating from this thread! I hope we can all join you soon.

[jnshanna]

Official congrats, Ginger! :D

My cramps subsided last week thankfully. I ended up just toughing it out and didn't take any Midol. Since that day I've only had mild cramps here and there. One thing I've noticed is my CM is completely non-existant! Good thing I bought preseed for this month because I've never been this dry. The Provera still hasn't worked so I'm just waiting for AF. DH has his SA this Friday.

Oh, I do have another question: We BDed Sunday night but haven't since. The office told me that we would need to abstain 2-5 days before the test that is at 11am Friday. So I'm not sure what to do. If we BD tonight won't that be too close to his appointment? That would only be 2 1/2 days before his test. What do you ladies think? Boy, this is such a funny thing to ask about. :o But I figure nothing's really off limits here, KWIM? :)

How was your shopping and vent session, Jules? I would love to do that! I wish I knew someone IRL that was going through the same thing.

Aw, I'm sorry your DH still feels bad about the low counts, suzfuzsunflower. I'm so nervous about my DH's test this week. I really don't want him to feel bad if the numbers are not good and I know for a fact that he would feel that way.

Yay for your body doing its thing, Annie! Good luck with the Clomid!

Oh jeez, gymwidow, you were on the table and everything? Hmph is right! That's pretty annoying. Anyway, your dr sounds like a nice guy. :) I'm feeling very positive vibes for you too!

Sorry about AF, Patience. :( And your insurance not covering infertility. That's so frustrating! I checked mine and it isn't much better. They cover $2000 per year.

I hope you get an indication on your monitor or OPK's too, polkadot. You've definitely got your bases covered. I'm a little conflicted about how to time BDing when I start Clomid too because my O date is not consistent. I know we can't keep up with an every other day routine for weeks on end.

I had a weird dream a couple nights ago. It was about my boss. She emailed me that she was pregnant in big bold letters and I totally lost it. Bawling my eyes out. And I turned to my DH for support and he said he didn't know why I was so upset. Man, that dream was awful.

[skb]

Very hopeful for you gymwindow. It seems as though all is going quite well. Crossing everything.

Gheesh...sorry you're joining me patience. I'm on cd7 and my last day of clomid. My dh keeps asking if I've called the doctor for IUI. I remind him that the doctor doesn't recommend IUI but feel free to call the doctor and discuss it. This is our 3rd round with the clomid and timed BD. I hope it turns out to be the *charm* because I really would love to avoid the IVF.

Just thought I'd mention for those of you concerned about clomid side effects.....This cycle I haven't had the hot flashes to the same extent like the first 2 cycles. I'm not sure what to make of it but I'm not going to complain either. Fortunately I wasn't flashing amongst the family. We spent the weekend visiting family and hanging out with the twin babies. ~sigh~ Our family had company, a 40 year old woman in her second trimester......non stop complaining about being *fat and unfit* She was quite upset that she is unable to particpate in her regular exercise and recreational activities and also feeling very hard done by because she was unable to drink alcohol and was missing the buzz. My dh and I sat horrified. I'm sure all of us here are promising not too complain! ~sigh again~

[Patience]

jnshanna Yes, my insurance sucks. Hey, at least yours cover $2000 (which I know isn't much considering all the expenses that goes along with a seemingly simple procedure). What a horrible dream you had! I would be very upset too, especially with DH not understanding. Luckily it was only a dream. Good luck to your DH for his SA on Friday.

skb I guess we are at the same stage of TTC. I'm at CD6 - started my third Clomid round last night. I'm with you on the wishing that the third time is the charm. Fingers crossed for the both of us. My hats off to you for not completely losing it when that lady was complaining about her pregnancy. Unbelievable!:rolleyes:

[julesp313]

Well, we had our consult with the RE about our options. Basically we have two - IVF or not having children. I wasn't upset by this - I'd already figured that IVF was going to be the suggestion, due to my reading about high FSH levels. In addition to that, the RE thinks I may have some tubal damage - although my tubes are clear, he thinks the egg may not be getting caught by the frondy things (no clue of the real name) at the end of the tube. And obviously, if the egg doesn't get into the tube, no amount of sperm are going to help that! Given that we've been trying for about 16 months and we got pregnant once in that time (and miscarried), our chances of getting pregnant without assistance are about 1%. Not great odds.

So, we got a lot of paperwork to read. I made a copy for DH - I'll take mine with me on my trip and he can read his while I'm gone. I've also left him the book "What to do when you can't get pregnant" which lays IVF out in detail. When I get home, we'll make a decision. Apart from the cost (about $16k including meds), there's the time factor (many, many visits per cycle), and the concern about all those meds being pumped into me. However, if we decide to go ahead, we will go educated and with eyes wide open. I told DH, we will only do this if we are both 100% committed - if either of us is unsure, we will not pursue it. But we owe it to ourselves to make an educated, thoughtful decision.

With that, I think I may move over to the IVF thread. I shall probably still lurk here but I can barely keep up with posting in one thread, let alone two, and if IVF is in our future, I think it would make sense for me to be part of a thread dealing with the intricacies of that.

I wish everyone the very best of luck and I hope to see everyone here graduate very soon!

[gymwidow]

Ginger, congrats grad! I'm so excited for you!

Patience, I hope this cycle does it and you don't ever have to worry about IUI!

jnshanna, sorry I didn't get back here in time to answer your question. I hope his test went well today and you get good results back soon. Thanks for all the good vibes!

skb, thanks, I hope so!

Jules, I'm sorry to hear that there was additional not-so-good news, but glad you still have options. I hope you and DH are able to make your decision together and support each other throughout. We'll miss you in here!


5DPO for me and I had a bunch of brown CM today. I also feel like I'm coming down with a head cold = yuck. I emailed my RE and he said it was okay for me to take Tylenol or DayQuil, so I just popped a couple of Tylenol Cold and hope that they work soon. I need my body to be 100% to work at growing a different kind of bug inside! ;)

[skb]

Slow thread these days............

jules Just a little bon voyage to you on your new TTC journey. Interesting about the fimbriae. At one time I was reading up on unexplained infertility and they listed nonfunctioning fimbriae as a possible problem. It didn't seem as though there was a way to test or image it but perhaps with tubal damage they speculate on the condition of the fimbriae. Nonetheless it sounds as though you will be well informed and ready to proceed with IVF. Best wishes to you!!!

gymwidow 5 DPO....oh the suspense....

As for me, off for follicle tracking tomorrow. I hope I get a capable and friendly tech. I'm tired of being probed already! I know, boo hoo.

Yeah...it's almost the weekend!

[Thea]

Has been a slow thread in here.

Ginger congrats again!

jules so sorry. looks like you have a good plan.

gymwindowyuck! a spring head cold is the worst.

skb crossng fingers for a good tech!

ME....10-11 DPO. My FPS is exhaustion...every day this week at 3:30 or 4 in the afternoon I really feel like I need a nap. Even on my off day today. Who knows. Might test on memorial day. Might wait. Have a great weekend everyone.

[polkadot]

thea~ exhaustion can be good ;) goodluck testing...

jules~ sorry the news was not as great as you had hoped...but at least you have one

gymwindow~ uhmmm could be some implant spotting maybe...figners crossed girlie...

skb~ hope you have lots of follies and a good tech...

Me~ waiting to O hopign to O early...but terrified to miss the O...finshed my last pill of Clomid last night...so i guess i will start OPK's on Sat.along with my monitor...just to be safe, i have never Oed early...i am so scared to miss it...:o

[suzfuzsunflower]

gywidow - How are you holding up in the 2ww? June 2nd is coming up fast! :)

Hi Lauren[B], how is the clomid coming along? Did you escape any bad side effects. I had so se on 50mg, so hopefully that has happenned with you . But of course I didn't ovulate on clomid, so maybe I should say that I hope you have a headache and aren't feeling well. ;) About missing o...since you don't know when you will ovulate, maybe you could just bd basically the entire cycle until you get confirmation of o. That way you won't miss it, and you will always have plenty of swimmers there for the egg!

[B]And MrsR, how is your clomid cycle going now?

Congratulations, Lucy! :D

Jules - Just wanted to wish you well on whatever you decide to do. Good luck.


School's out for summer! Wahoo! This was such a stressful year with my students, and all of this mess didn't help any. So I have one week off, then I am taking a class and teaching summer school. I'm actually happy that I'm going to be busy this summer. When I have nothing to do I start to think [I]way too much[I] about IF.

Second SA, bloodwork, genetic testing is next Tuesday. I will be so happy to have it done, find out the results and where we stand, and (hopefully) be able to develop a game plan.

:cool: Have a wonderful weekend everyone!:cool:

[MrsR]

Hey ladies, sorry I have been MIA -- work has been crazy and I got the dreaded client call last night -- yup, have to work all weekend:mad:

Anyway, lots has been going on, I am CD 12 and got my first high reading on my monitor today together with a temp drop -- let the BDing begin!!! Also, I called last week to make an appointment with the RE I want to see -- usually there is a three month waiting list for a new patient to see him, however, they had a cancellation next week so I am going to see him Thursday!!!!

It was weird, the nurse who makes the appointments claims to know my dad -- not sure how she put two and two together since my maiden name is nowhere on my chart, but if that is what got me in early to see the RE, then I'll take it;) however, the weird part is my dad has no clue who this woman is . . .

polka -- hope you catch your eggie!

gymwidow -- fingers are crossed for you!

skb -- how did things go yesterday??

Sorry, gotta run to a meeting . . .

[jnshanna]

*sigh* skb. That must have been so frustrating listening to the pg woman complain. If she only realized just how lucky she truly is.

It sounds like you're approaching things so well, Jules. I'm impressed. Lots of luck to you and DH with making this decision.

Are you feeling any better today, gymwidow? I'm thinking implantation too. Fingers crossed for you! :D

I hope you get/got a better tech today, skb! Yay, 2 day weekend! And I get off 2 hours early. Woo Hoo!

Good luck with testing if you do, Thea! I hope the exhaustion is a + sign! :)

Good luck with pinpointing O, polkadot. You're definitely doing everything right! I hope one of those options indicates O for you. :)

As for me, still no AF. I'm now on CD64, the 10th day after taking Provera. :( Should it take this long? My dr said it can take up to 2 weeks but I'm getting very nervous. What the heck is wrong with my body? Today is DH's SA and we argued this morning before I left for work (an unrelated topic). So I feel awful and I'm pretty sure he won't call me on his way or after his appointment because he'll be mad at me still. What a bad day to have an argument! Jeez.

Oops, ETA:

Yay for school being out, suzfuzsunflower! Have a great week off.

Congrats on the RE appointment, MrsR! That's awesome that you were able to get in because of a cancellation. But I agree, I bet it had something to do with her knowing your dad. It's not usually that easy to get in when someone cancels. But cool for you! :)

[suzfuzsunflower]

As for me, still no AF. I'm now on CD64, the 10th day after taking Provera. :( Should it take this long? My dr said it can take up to 2 weeks but I'm getting very nervous. What the heck is wrong with my body? Today is DH's SA and we argued this morning before I left for work (an unrelated topic). So I feel awful and I'm pretty sure he won't call me on his way or after his appointment because he'll be mad at me still. What a bad day to have an argument! Jeez.


I have taken provera each time I want/need to start a period for over a year. I have also heard that it can take up to 2 weeks to begin, but I always start 3-4 days after (once it was 7). You must be very frusterated. :(

Hope that your DH's SA goes well.

[knoelani]

Hi ladies, I just wanted to check in briefly while I'm on vacation.

Jules~ Good luck with the continuation of your journey. I hope that you and dh find the best answer for you both and wish you much luck moving forward.

Gym~ Good luck w/ the 2ww

Lucy~ Congrats again!

Thea~ Early exhaustion is an early sign...good luck to you.

Mrs. R~ good luck with your RE appointment

Hope everyone else is doing well and I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend.

We leave Hawaii for home Sunday night, so our vacation is almost over. I got to spend the last two days with my 18 month old nephew who is just wonderful. I'm 10dpo today and will go in for my beta on Tuesday.

[jnshanna]

Thanks for the info on your experience with Provera, suzfuzsunflower. I couldn't wait and called my dr office this morning. They still haven't called back though. I hope they call soon. I'm guessing the only thing they could do is put me on a higher dose, right? I'm just so confused. I don't understand why my cycle is so long to begin with but the meds aren't working either? And my temps are crazy! Up and down, up and down. I took a pg test the other day just because I was feeling really dizzy and I wanted to make sure I wasn't just in case. It was - of course. Deep down I was hoping for a miracle. :o

Well, on that note... LOL I hope everyone has a nice 2 day weekend! :)

[skb]

I can't say much for my tech except that she was fast and unfriendly. Thankfully more competent then the last who took forever and was less than professional. Anyways....follicles on both sides. The right side being closest to mature. So I will have a follow-up ultrasound Monday morning and likely trigger thereafter. No harm in BDing over the weekend though.....do you suppose?

[Patience]

jules We're sorry to see you go, but I want to wish you and your DH the best. Please come back to update us on your IVF progress (hopefully with good news soon! :) ).

gymwidow Good luck on your 2WW. How's your head cold?

Thea Exhaustion sounds like a promising pregnancy symptom. All my previously pregnant friends have complained about being exhausted the first trimester. Fingers crossed for you.

polkadot So, have you started the BD fest yet? ;) I hope you catch the eggie on your first cycle of Clomid! Good luck!

suzfuzsunflower That's great you get to start your summer break (well, not actually a break, but at least your stressful year is over!). I feel the same way about wanting to keep busy to keep me from thinking about IF. I can't even remember back to the days when I didn't really care when my EWCM will show up and when AF was going to show up. Sigh...

MrsR Woohoo on the BD!! ;) Wow, I can't believe you got an appt with the RE that quickly! Good for you. I hope your RE is good and will be able to help you graduate from this thread.

jnshanna Sorry to hear that Provera hasn't worked. Maybe a couple of more days? If your doctor isn't worried, maybe it does take longer for some women. Hopefully AF will come by this weekend. So, did you patch things up with your DH?

knoelani You're making me so jealous by telling us you're writing from Hawaii. Good luck on your beta on Tuesday.

skb Good news about the follicles. Sending you good luck vibes for a nice healthy eggie. If you doctor didn't say to abstain, then I don't see why you can't celebrate the long weekend with some BD. ;)

------------
I'm on last two days of Clomid. No headaches this time (taking it at night), but I think I've been having hot flashes more. Although it might be due to the warmer weather. Because I've noticed less EWCM with Clomid, I start my BD by CD12 because I've never ovulated before CD14. I still do the temping and OPK's, but I want to cover all the bases. What, me have a Type A personality? No way! ;) :D

[suzfuzsunflower]

Thanks for the info on your experience with Provera, suzfuzsunflower. I couldn't wait and called my dr office this morning. They still haven't called back though. I hope they call soon. I'm guessing the only thing they could do is put me on a higher dose, right? I'm just so confused. I don't understand why my cycle is so long to begin with but the meds aren't working either? And my temps are crazy! Up and down, up and down.

From what I have read, you will not be put on a higher dosage but may be given 10 more pills or a progesterone injection. Or your doctor may give you estrogen supplements and then provera again. This is your first time taking provera, right? Maybe your body just takes a few days to respond to the withdraw.

Regarding crazy temperatures.....during annovulatory cycles temperatures can be erratic, rocky, and not follow any pattern. I have given up on temping.

I hope that your doctor called you back.

[polkadot]

well i was having lots of pain this morning in my back on the right side but my guess is that its my eggies getting ready? I am hoping so....i got a - OPK but i think we may start the bding anyway...i am just too scared to miss the O.....

hope everyone is well...:D

[jnshanna]

Well, my dr called me back but not about what I expected. It turns out DH's SA results were "quite abnormal". She said that they were unable to find any sperm. We have an appointment with the RE for next Thursday but I'm not sure why. She said DH would need to see a urologist now. I'm just trying to figure out why she needs to see us if it's obvious what the problem is at this point? I'm really pretty sad but I'm trying to keep it hidden from DH because I don't want him to feel bad. When she said that it was abnormal I felt sick to my stomach. I feel so helpless. I don't even know if there is anything they can do to fix this. So I need to do some research to see what the possiblities could be. I've heard of low counts but nothing? :(

[polkadot]

Shanna~ ((((hugs))) i am sooo confused as to how there could be none? That doesnt make sense...i hope you can get all of this in clear language and they can find a solution to the problem....((((hugs))) again....

its ok to be upset...be upset here...thats why we are here....i am sure DH isnt too happy either....

you are both in my thoughts....

[jnshanna]

Well, I've been reading up on it and I guess there are a couple reasons there could be no sperm. Either a blockage or a genetic disorder that prevents sperm production.

A zero sperm count may be due to either blockage in the tubes or to the failure of sperm production. A testicular biopsy, often using a fine needle under local anaesthesia, with microscopic examination readily clarifies whether sperm are present in the testis. In some cases of blockage, further tests such as ultrasound of the prostate and bladder region is performed.


Thanks for the hugs. We're hanging in there. Trying to keep ourselves occupied watching movies right now.

[Patience]

jnshanna (((Hugs))) to you. I'm sorry you got such bad news. :( Perhaps this is a temporary problem? I'm going to think positive thoughts for you that something can be done to correct this. Please take care and keep us updated.

[skb]

jnshanna

Eek. Sorry for your upset.

I saw a program a few months ago on the Discovery Health Channel about an infertility specialist in Colorado. The show documented several couples who were struggling with infertility and treated by this specialist. There was one couple who underwent the procedure you quoted. I believe the DH had a zero sperm count. They took a biopsy of his testical for microscopic exam. Within the tissue they found several sperm that were used for intracytoplasmic injection into the egg.

I'm sure your urologist will be able to shed some light and help you guys out.

Take care.

[jjsanner]

Hi ladies. Just back from the airport. We were in Kona for 4 days and then on to Maui for 4 days. Absolutely fabulous vacation except that AF paid me a visit yesterday. I didn't even have the opportunity to test. I was pretty upset, but managed to take it better than last cycle (which was quite terrible IMO). Of course I tried to put on a happy face and finish out the vacation on a positive note.

DH and I havn't really talked about next steps. I do know that we're taking this cycle off. I think we both need a break from the drugs and the crazieness that they bring. We will be meeting with the RE before the end of the cycle to come up with a new game plan. I've now done 4 cycles of clomid, all with timed intercourse; 1 @ 50mg where I didn't respond at all, the 2nd @ 100mg w/no monitoring, the 3rd at 100mg with u/s and trigger (I think possible chemical pregnancy this cycle) and then another at 100mg (this past cycle) with u/s and trigger. I seem to be responding well to the 100mg as this past cycle I had 4 eggs. DH's SA was fine. So I'm not quite sure what the problem could be. That's the worst part. I feel like I am pushing forward with the drugs when perhaps the true problem hasn't really been diagnosed. I am "unexplained". Very frustrating.

Lucy, a big belated congrats to you! We needed some good news around here! H&H 9 months to you!

Gym, I am so hoping that this is finally it for you! With all those eggs the odds have got to be greatly in your favor! So the injectibles aren't that bad, huh?

Polka, good luck cathing that egg!

Shana, I am so sorry to hear this. Hopefully the urologist will give you some answers.

[suzfuzsunflower]

shanna - I'm sorry that the SA results were not good. We recently got some not so good news about that too, so I've been doing a lot of research...here's what I know. Like you said, 0 sperm count could be due to a blockage or a chromosomal abnormality. A blockage can be fixed, but chr. abn. cannot.

To check for a blockage they will do a biopsy of the testicles. If there are sperm present, and a blockage/problem cannot be fixed, then you can have children genetically related to both of you through ICIS IVF. It's invitro BUT they inject the sperm directly into the egg (they get the sperm either from a biopsy or ejaculation).

I also wanted to add to not do too much research. Yes, we all need to be educated about our problems...but there is a lot of scarey information out there about male infertility problems. I hope that Thursday comes quickly. And I hope that your DH takes it ok.

[skb]

I've just got to complain.......

So my girlfriend calls me. She lives in another city and is the only friend in the real world that knows of our infertility struggles. So she calls to see how things are going with the clomid. And here's what he says, "has anybody talked to you about how to have sex?" So I'm perplexed and can't figure out what the heck she is talking about. I'm 31 years old and figured out how to have sex years ago. She goes on to ellaborate...."maybe you just need that little magic something....did your doctor talk to you about that stuff." WTF???? Turns out that I should have sex misssionary style, and plop myself up for gravity afterwards. I repeat...WTF???? Are you kidding me? I would slap her if she was closer. But instead, since I've known her for 26 years....I just let it slide. When I end up pregnant...don't forget to remind me to thank her for her tip. I'll be like, "thanks, you were right....all I had to do was have sex on the right day, the right way and keep my legs up in the air." :rolleyes:

[Asha]

skb - that was a very stupid thing for her to say. i would think for the long duration of time we have all been trying that we could safely say that we have had more sex than most people in probably every way imaginable.

shanna - i am sorry you got that news. i think its okay to show you are upset about the whole ttc. its very normal to be upset about the whole process.

jj - i am glad you had a good trip to hawaii.

****
well, evil aunt flo made her dreaded arrival. the only good thing i have to say about that is that i could celebrate the end of finals with a beer and not feel guilty about it.

[gymwidow]

Hi all. Just a quick post - I'm not much in the mood for chatting right now. AF arrived this weekend, only a week after my IUI and while I was taking 800 mg a day of progesterone. I'm totally confused and upset (and the nurse I talked to this morning was just as confused) and I have no idea what's going on. I'm really worried that there's something else that might be wrong, that's either causing this consistently early bleeding or preventing us from getting pregnant, or both. I'm supposed to go in Tuesday for CD3 b/w and u/s to start a fresh cycle, but I'm not sure I want to right away. It hasn't even been 2 weeks since I finished the last round of shots and I think I might want to give my ovaries a break before I start overstimulating them again. I emailed my RE and am going to try to talk with him tomorrow to get his opinion, and then will discuss with DH and make a decision.

Sigh. Here we go again.

[polkadot]

gymwidow~~~~ I am so sorry you are having to deal with this. I think it maybe a good idea for you to stop and give your ovaries a break...maybe they need it. Let us know what your RE says...until then.....((((hugs))))

[skb]

gymwidow Very sorry for CD1. My first thoughts were, "what....oh shoot." No doubt some confusion. That was a tough cycle...I'd be upset too. I hope your RE will reassure you. Take care.

[la_bride_2004]

gymwidow just sending hugs your way. It does sound like a break may be in order to figure out what is going on with the short luteal phase, even on progesterone.

shanna I can relate how unexpected and what a blow it can be to recieve a diagnosis of severe male factor. If you go to a urologist (which does seem the next step, before another RE appointment) I would make sure it is one who is a reproductive urologist and has all the special training neccessary to identify and treat the issue. This is key. Also, keep in mind that many male factor issues can be treated, in fact, the majority of them can be.

[jnshanna]

I'm so sorry gymwidow. :( I was really hopeful for you this month. {{{Hugs}}}

Thanks for the support ladies. This is such a huge blow to us both. Just seeing a baby in the store kills me. I happened to walk by a photo place while we were shopping yesterday and there was a baby getting his first pictures done. *sigh* that hurts so much. It gets a little easier each day but it's hard not to cry myself to sleep every night. I'm still feeling hopeless but I think that will pass. Maybe there is hope...

I appreciate the advice on our next steps, la bride. I feel like I'm so unsure about what to do. The RE appointment really didn't seem right though. It seems to me that going straight to a urologist is the best idea and I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks that.

[Alioop12345]

I am so sorry Gymwidow and others who have had a tough weekend.

AF arrived with a vengence yesterday after almost a week of spotting... (this cycle was without the progesterone).....Without progesterone I almost always start spotting around CD 18-19.... Anyway, I call my RE on Tuesday and will likely go in on Wednesday for an U/S. I have already started the Estradial and will wait for the instructions on the Viagra and Gonal F

[suzfuzsunflower]

Ali, gym, and shanna....:( I hope that you all feel better soon. I am so sorry.

[Asha]

i am sorry gymwidow. its understandable that you would want to take a break.

[Elenna]

Sorry I haven't been here for quite a while. I totally left all the family planning boards I belonged to because it was too stressful for me.

Threadmistress, can you update my stats to include:
4/06: 50mg Clomid days 5-9, 5/06: 50mg Clomid days 5-9 ---BFP 5/26

I just had a blood test today. My HCG is 288 and progesterone 52.6. So, I guess that confirms it (besides the 5 pregnancy tests I took between Friday and Today:)). I go in for a repeat beta on Wednesday.

Can you graduate me? My EDD is 2/1/07.:)

Thank you.

[Asha]

congrats, elenna!!! i am hoping clomid is works magic wonders for me too.

[MrsR]

congrats elenna - like asha I am hoping clomid works for me this cycle however it has totally dried up my CM -- very annoying but we are using pre-seed to compensate:)

CD 15 for me -- BDing has begun -- I had a temp drop again today but only a high reading from my monitor -- hopefully I will get a positive opk tonight b/c my temp has only been lower once before . . .

[Asha]

however it has totally dried up my CM -- very annoying but we are using pre-seed to compensate

considering that i didn't really have any cm to begin with, i think that it actually helped me in that dep't. though, it was optimum on day 22, and i only had a 28 day cycle. if that happens again, i will talk to my gyn about it. does low progestrone account for a short luteal phase? when they took my blood work, progestrone was fine, but estrogen was a little low.

[Thea]

First off BIG hugs to Gymwindow and shanna. That really stinks for both of you.

Congrats elena!

I want everyone to know that I typed a long post,with SO's to everyoe Saturday morning and then my post was eaten. I was already frustrated b/c of a BFN that morning, plus a call from a good friend telling me she was pregnant, that I just didn't have the heart to retype it.

The good news is that my 7DPO progesterone level came back at 19.8. So, I guess that is not a problem. I have had very light spotting since Friday though, 2 (why I tested twice, I'll never know!) BFNs, and am still just waiting for AF. DH and I are trying to decide if we want to do another cycle of IUI, or look at IVF.

Managed to have a fairly relaxing weekend. Hugs to everyone.

[Patience]

gymwidow I'm sorry. I hope taking a cycle off will help you mentally as well as physically. Take care.

Alioop12345 Sorry about AF.

Elenna Congratulations! Wishing you a happy and healthy pregnancy.

[skb]

So I had my repeat ultrasound and was instructed to trigger. Again, follicles and lining good. I went to my docs to get the shot and ended up discussing our management. If the third time does not result in pregnancy he is referring us on for IVF. He reveiwed all of our exams. DH's SA is normal, my blood tests on cd3 and cd21 are normal, HSG showed clear tubes and normal uterine cavity, ultrasound and charting pre-clomid showed ovulation......blah blah all normal. So basically he reiterated the "unexplained" part in unexplained infertility. At which point my questions began. This cannot be attributed to a prior septum, and I do not have dysfunctional fimbriae. NO. In most cases "unexplained" is attibuted to immunological reasons. What does that mean? There is a "sperm or egg sensitivity." G-R-E-A-T. He reassured me that we are good candidates for IVF. I have responded well to the clomid and trigger and demonstrate a lead follicle that releases. He has no doubt that egg retrieval will not be a problem. The thing is to see if viable embryos will form and if they do, will they implant. It went something like..."sometimes you get to IVF and there aren't viable embryos and sometimes there are embyos but for whatever reason they just won't implant." G-R-E-A-T. "But you have a 60% shot (why does that sound crappy) and sometimes they will try 1 or 2 frozen embryo tranfers." Hmmm. There is a minimum 6 MONTH wait list. Seriously, we likely wouldn't get started until January 2007. I am not a happy camper and cannot help to think that "unexplainable" is not a good thing. :mad:

[polkadot]

skb~ I am so sorry that everything is so "Unexplainable" I mean who came up with that crap anyway? They must be something...its not like you can just stop wanting a baby and say hey...its unexplained let deal with that...Doctors can be so sucky sometimes...I hope you get some better news very soon...adn maybe this month will be YOUR month...figners crossed....bd girl and bd a lot!!! :D

Thea~ I hope you and Dh come to a good decision. and let us know how it turns out....I am having a feeling about this thread that good things are about to happen....

[Elenna]

Thank you Asha, MrsR, Thea, and Patience.

MrsR: I hope Clomid works for you. The Clomid had the opposite effect on me. I had a ton more CM while on it.

Asha: I hope Clomid works for you, too. I've always thought that low progesterone was the cause for short LP. But if your progesterone levels are good, then I don't know what the cause would be. I hope your GYN has some answers for you.

[SAI Ladies]

Congrats Elenna!! Happy & Healthy 9 months to you!!

Sorry Gymwidow - Hugs - I thought this was your month.

[gymwidow]

Thanks, everyone, for all the good wishes. It's been a pretty sucky few days. I talked to the doc this morning and he says it's odd, but that a 9 day LP (counted from my date of trigger) isn't too terrible, and that we should still be able to treat it with drugs. In short, he wants to do another injectables cycle with a more traditional trigger (instead of the Lupron) and have me take Cronine instead of Prometrium during my LP. He said if that doesn't work, we might have to consider IVF. DH and I are going to talk today and discuss with our family friend the OB/GYN and then decide what to do. I'm going in tomorrow for b/w and u/s just to see what's up and will speak with the doc again and then decide if I want to start right back up or take a couple of weeks to a month off. I'll keep you guys posted!

Elenna, yay, something for me to smile about today! I'm so happy for you and am glad that we finally have some good news to celebrate in here!

jnshanna and skb and alioop, hugs all around. This stuff really sucks, doesn't it?!

Thanks, everyone, for being such a great support system.

[suzfuzsunflower]

Congratulations, Elanna!

Bellefior - Good luck at your appointment! Since it has already been established that you are ovulating and your tests have come back normal, your RE will probably not care to see your charts. I would probably bring the charts - you can never be too prepared!

SA results - someone on here told me to ask for the numbers of DH's SA, and I am so happy that I have them. Ask for the numbers - count, concentration per million, motility, morphology.

I would also ask what the next step is. Get a game plan.

-----
DH "produced a sample" to be sent off to Repromedix (I think that's the name of it). He was not a happy camper this morning. It was actually more difficult for him to do than the last time. He also had his bloodwork done this morning. It took more than 2 hours to complete. Pretty horrible. We go back to the dr. on July 1st to get test results and formulate a game plan. I'm thinking that it will probably involve IVF with both of our issues.

[Elenna]

Bellefior: Our RE gave DH's SA results an "abnormal but with good prognosis" reading. Meaning it was abnormal, but his count was so high that even with the lower motility and morphology percentages his "good" swimmers were still very high in number. Now, even with that prognosis our RE wanted to go straight to IUI. Our insurance doesn't cover it, either,...and DH and I wanted to try to stay as natural possible for as long as we could. The RE put me on Clomid to possibly give me stronger ovulations since my cycles were on the short side (25-27 days, with 12-13 day LP). The clomid did make me ovulate stronger. I had more CM and of much better quality than the whole time we were TTC.

If the Clomid hadn't worked this cycle in two more cycles we would have gone on to IUI at the RE's insistance (didn't want me on Clomid for too long).
I hope that helps.

I hope your DH's next SA comes back normal. And good luck at the REs. Don't be afraid to ask any questions you think might be stupid.

[jnshanna]

I'm glad you had a nice vacation even though AF showed, jjsanner. :mad: "unexplained" must be so frustrating. I hope the break does you both good. It sounds like you could use a break.

I don't think I thanked you for your advice, suzfuzsunflower. I appreciated your post since you're having a similar struggle right now. I hope you get some encouraging news from this latest sample. Sorry DH was not happy. I was talking to DH about getting a biopsy if needed and he totally freaked out. He said can't they just do an xray or something? :rolleyes: I feel bad for him but we need to figure out what's wrong.

OMG, I can't believe what your friend said to you, skb. Jeez, what was she thinking? Why is it that everyone thinks they know everything there is about conceiving? Do they think we just sit around and don't do any of our own research on this topic? Sorry about your bad appointment with the dr. I have all crossables crossed that you won't have to go the IVF route because you'll get lucky this month.

So sorry about AF, Asha. Enjoy your beer!

Sorry about AF for you too, Alioop! Grrr!

Thank goodness we got some good news in here. Congratulations, Elenna! :D

Oh man, Thea, I hate it when my post gets eaten. Especially if it's a big SO post! Sorry that you're feeling like AF is going to show soon. :(

I hope your feeling is right on, Polkadot! We need more good news!

Sorry that you're now in the unexplained group too, the doorchick. There are too many right now. :(

Well, I'm hanging in there. It seems to get a little easier each day but I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop. Not the best attitude, I know but I can't help it. :o I did finally start AF this morning on CD67! And it was different than I'm used to. No cramps or any indication, it just suddenly started. I usually get a little spotting or cramping first so that was odd. I'm sure it's because of the Provera.

You know, my biggest worry right now is money. How in the world are we going to afford what could be a long time of infertility treatments? I checked DH's insurance and they cover nothing so all we have is $2000 per year from mine. What if we have to do IVF? What if DH has to have surgery to clear a blockage? Is all of this really worth it? Is this a sign that we should move on to adoption? The cost for IVF or adoption are both very high for us and there is no guarantee that IVF will work. 20% or so success rate is not very good, IMO. I know, I'm getting ahead of myself since we don't even know what's wrong yet but I can't help but think ahead. I'm a planner! And we've spent years saving money for our future and it's still not that much compared to others, I'm sure. So how can we justify using most or all of that savings to get a baby when once the baby is here, I won't be able to be with the baby because I'll have to go back to work because we can't afford for me to be at home? This is all so frustrating!

Well, I'll end this on a good note because I was able to get us an appointment with the urologist tomorrow afternoon because of a cancellation! Yay!

[Asha]

skb - i too hate not knowing why we can't get pregnant. i have a uterine anomoly but my gyn said that doesn't explain why i can't get pregnant.

thedoorchick - we are usually changing what we will do next too.

gymwidow - it sounds like you are taking good stepst to figure out how to make it work.

jnshanna - we have the very same concerns about the cost of ivf treatments. we could probably come up with the money, but it would just make it all even so much worse if we spent all that money and just end up where we started to begin with.

[Asha]

update
may 2006 - clomid 50mg

[jnshanna]

You know, I still haven't done an update on my stats. I totally forgot!

Known issues:
05/06 Annovulatory cycles
05/06 SA - abnormal, zero sperm count

[tigerest]

Hi everyone. Sorry to hear about the string of bad news some of you have been getting. Frustrating. I noticed some talk about IVF in here and thought I would speak up. I don't post much, mostly lurk, and cheer you all on.

Regarding the "unexplained category" and why IVF would be beneficial. The thing with IVF is that is allows the RE/embryologist to see what is going on with the egg and embryos up close. Although, I had completely blocked tubes and IVF was my only option it turns out it was not our only problem. When we did our IVF cycle I had 18 eggs (more than we were planning). We convinced my RE to ICSI(where the inject the sperm into the egg) half of them, and let the other half fertilize on their own. Then we would pick the best of those to put back. Well it turned out only 2 of the 9 that we allowed to fertilize on their own did. All of the ICSI's ones fertilized, and ended up being better quality than the other 2. I guess there are a number of reasons for this. In older women sometimes the shell of the egg is tough, so the sperm can't get in. My RE said I probably had anti-sperm antibodies. So even if my tubes were open we would pretty much have a 2 out of 9 chance of fertilization. Not that great! So from now on ICSI is the way to go for us.

IVF is scary, and no one fought it more than I did. The cost, the shots, the meds, lack of guarantee, are all very daunting. But now with my 3rd IVF(FET this time) I am doing my own shots! (I am proud.) And you know what, there is something a bit liberating about not having to worry the whole 2ww if the egg and sperm met up. By transfer I KNOW there are embryos in there and I know their quality. It is a little more heartbreaking when it doesn’t work. And I still have the little pics of my embryos on my fridge. My biggest fear was that we would spend all our money on IVF, have it not work, and then be out of money for adoption. I have become way paranoid about money. Whenever DH wants to buy something I say, "But what if this IVF cycle doesn’t work?" I am just so afraid of running out of money before we are ready to give up. But there are financial plans they offer….like packaged deals to help with costs. Also, there are some things/procedures that can be billed to your insurance without it being labeled as IVF and some meds as well.

Its not an easy choice. I cried for days because I didn't want to do it. I cried everynight the first week of my shots because I was afraid. I am not trying to talk anyone into it. I just wanted to pass on a little information on to you guys. Good luck with your hard decisions. Hope I didn't overload you guys with info. ;)

[Asha]

thank you tigerrest for sharing your experience with ivf and being so candid about it.

[polkadot]

thanks tigerrest..for sharing it is a scary thing...but i am glad you felt compfrtable to share with us. :)

[la_bride_2004]

Shanna

I appreciate the advice on our next steps, la bride. I feel like I'm so unsure about what to do. The RE appointment really didn't seem right though. It seems to me that going straight to a urologist is the best idea and I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks that.

I've been to three RE's so far, and only one of them seems to have any idea about male factor. I am learning that for most RE's, it seems their specialty is treating female fertility factors, so they tend to lean towards what they know. Hugs and I hope the next appointment goes better. I've also learned to trust your instincts- if it doesn't feel right, keep asking questions until it makes sense!

Congrats elenna!

[la_bride_2004]

bellefior I mostly lurk on this thread- we have severe male factor(only), and moved on to IVF, FET and varicocele repair surgery in the last two years, and are now at IUI/injectables. I guess we've done it all! I believe my stats are on here, although I am on the IVF thread more.

I did want to respond to your post. First, I found it really helpful to come in with a list of questions when you see the RE, and some RE's do like your charts so I would bring those. If the SA was not done at the office, I would get a copy of it. From everything I have read/researched/heard from our RU (reproductive urologist), Elenna is correct- a high count can overcome a multitude of other issues. Also, the recommendation to pursue IVF or IUI will probably depend on the count and your age. (FWIW, our counts were under 5mil when we were referred to IVF, and I was 30.) I think the biggest indicator is probably your age. If you are younger (under 35), I'm guessing the RE may have you try IUIs first, either with Clomid or injectables. If you are over 35, the RE will be more likely to suggest IVF. I know it's a hard call with the finances.

As to seeing a RU, I'm guessing it depends how "abnormal" the SA results are (and you do need more than one to tell- the numbers can fluctuate a lot.) If they are borderline you may be just fine sticking with the RE.

[la_bride_2004]

ITA with everything tigerest said about IVF. It is tough and stressful, and if I never see another needle in my house again it will be a joyous day- I am all to familiar with them now. However, IVF has brought some silver linings- I didn't realize how strong our marriage was, how dedicated my husband was to me and to building a family, or how tough I could be. I've also learned the importance and benefit to saying "no" without feeling guilty. I don't do baby showers any more. I'm not in situations (by choice) where it's awkward for me to be around pregnant people, and it's truly ok.

I will say that going through IVF for male factor is also a little different. Everyone will automatically assume you have some "issue". The ignorance out there is astounding. Because it is male factor, you have your husband's privacy to take into account- it isn't always "your" story to tell, if that makes sense. Plus, it can be very hard for your husband to see you go through the pain of needles and surgery. It took mine (and me) a long time to realize it wasn't a matter of "fault"- it was just the way things were, and that I didn't love him any less. Also, you may realize you are the odd woman out in fertility support group meetings because technically, there isn't anything "wrong" with you. The way I look at it, is yes my uterus is ok and I can crank out eggs, but it hasn't brought me any closer to goal. You learn to find common ground.

I am one of the unlucky ones- we did a fresh IVF cycle and a frozen IVF cycle and both times I ended up with chemical pregnancies. I always thought IVF would work, or not work, not "sort of work" and it was a painful experience learning about that third option. I never realized the extent that male factor can cause miscarriage- even with perfect embryos, and young-ish eggs. It does take two to make a child. DH since went on to have surgery and it was a very difficult thing watching him get sliced and diced- if I could have traded places with him on that gurney as he was being wheeled into surgery, I would have. I realize I truly love him, and this is our shared journey.

Somehow, I have to think that all this heartbreak will serve me in the future; that I am learning life lessons that will be useful later on. For a long time, I was stressed and worried and depressed and heartbroken, but I finally feel I am coming out of it. We will have our family somehow, someday-were are not done trying. I'm amazed how you an re-examine alternatives that were once out of the question. I was completely opposed to adoption, but now, it makes sense to me and I'm not. I know it's there if I want to look at it again in the future.

The money is a huge concern. I don't like thinking about all we've spent. It's frustrating that my state has zero mandated coverage. But, I suppose we are one of the "fortunate ones" in that we've been able to shell it out. Our savings are less than I'd like, I won't be buying a new car anytime soon, but at least we did buy our house before all of this and it's not breaking the bank (yet). If that day comes we will have to take another hard look and re-evaluate.

And that's all I have for now :) Hopefully some of this will help someone. I do understand how frightening it all is in the beginning.

[jnshanna]

Thanks for the IVF comments, tigerest and la bride. I know it helps me to hear how someone who is going through it is handling (or has) the process.

So our urologist appoint. was pretty good. We both really liked the dr so that's a very good thing. Everything he said made sense to me because it matched the research I had already done. He checked DH out and he does not think this is a blockage issue. He either does not produce sperm period or it's a hormone imbalance and they can try to treat that. So they took blood and we'll get the results on Friday. That can't come soon enough! I pray that this is an imbalance that can be corrected. One he mentioned is common in overweight men and my husband is. So we'll see.... We just have to wait (not so patiently on my part). ;)

[julesp313]

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes and support. DH and I talked tonight and have decided to go ahead with IVF. Right now, we're going to consider one fresh cycle and one or two frozen cycles, if we get lucky enough to have enough eggs to freeze and unlucky enough to not have a successful first cycle. I'm going to mosey on over to the IVF thread where I think I will find all the information I could ever need - and one thing I need if we're going through all this is information!

Good luck to everyone in here - I hope I can come back soon and find you all moved on!

[tigerest]

I am glad I didn't offend anyone. Its SUCH a sensitive issue. I just hope by sharing it can make it a little easier for someone else.

LA_BRIDE - Thank you for sharing too! WOW, you really opened my eyes to a whole different side to IVF. And I guess is sort of helps me see a little of what my DH may go through too. GOOD POST! :)

[Patience]

jnshanna Let's hope that your husband's problem is due to a hormonal imbalance and nothing more serious. Fingers crossed for you on the test results.

la_bride_2004 & tigerest Thanks for sharing your stories. You ladies have opened my eyes to issues related to IVF that I would have never known. I'll definitely be more sensitive to anyone I know that is undergoing IVF treatments.

[suzfuzsunflower]

tigerest and labride
Thank you so much for sharing your experience and some thoughts on IVF. I found it comforting to read.

shanna
I really hope that the problem is due to a hormone imbalance. That's great that you find out this Friday...that's tomorrow! :) For some reason we don't find out the blood results and repromedix thingy results for one month. :( I guess it's b/c of the repromedix test thing? I am really not happy about that. :mad:

jules
Nice to see you! Good luck!

[Thea]

tigerrest and labride Thank you so much for your posts. They were extremely thoughtful and really helped. As this option is most probably in our future, I find myself kind of shutting down when I try to think about it. I really appreciated what you both wrote.

shanna I am keeping my fingers crossed for you that hormones are an issue.

jules good luck to you

Me. CD2. AF came full force yesterday. Even after 2 BFNs and knowing it was coming, I was still pretty bummed. DH and I ended up emailing about the subject back and forth most of the work day yesterday. We have decided to do at least 1 more IUI and then go from there. If it doesn't work, we would like an appointment with our RE to discuss before we make anymore decisions. I am a little frustrated. We have now finished 2 IUI cycles and have not yet received a bill. We had an estimate before we bagan, but they said the cost varies from cycle to cycle depending on what is done. So, my RE's office has a financial counselor who I called yesterday to get info on how much we have spent so far. She wasn't in, so I left a message first thing in the AM. She still hasn't called me back! Aaaggghhhh. We have decided to do 1 more try no matter the cost, but I would still really like to know!

Hugs to everyone.

[jnshanna]

That's a bummer that you have to wait so long suz. I'm thinking it's probably because of the repromedix thing too. I hope at least after the long wait, you'll get some good news. :)

Sheesh, I hope your dr office gets back to you about that cost soon, Thea. That's annoying! I think there should be a deadline for that sort of thing. If they told tell you within a month of the procedure you don't have to pay. :p

I wish I could remember the name of the hormone the dr mentioned yesterday, Bellefior. When I get the results tomorrow I'll try to figure out which one it is. I've been looking on the internet but I can't seem to find the name of it. I think he said it might have something to do with the pituitary gland? But I might be getting it mixed up because he talked to us about 4 or 5 different hormones. I knew I should have taken notes! BTW, 10 pounds is awesome for your DH. :D Mine is finally getting on board with it...sort of. He's going to start an exercise routine for 20 minutes each day. I think that will really help him. I'm sorry about all of the bad news all at the same time. Good luck to your DH on his next test. I bet he'll pass it for sure this time considering he barely missed the cut off last time.

I have to share this site I found. Maybe some of you have already seen it? It's so interesting to me. I've been reading the following links for an hour now even though I should be working. :o I knew most of the female part but the male link really helped me understand how sperm is produced and a lot of other things about male fertility!

Male Fertility (http://www.ivf.com/ch8mb.html)

Female Fertility (http://www.ivf.com/ch9mb.html)

[Thea]

Had to post. I'm doing the happy dance right now. I received in the mail an EOB from my insurance that is dated 4/16/06 and it says my insurance paid in full. That was Easter Sunday and the only thing we did that day was an IUI. That means at least part of my IUI was covered!!!!!!! :D :D :D It is only listed as $240, and I know the whole procedure was estimated at $580, so it is just part of it, but I was told my insurance wouldn't pay anything! Wooohooo!!!

[Asha]

bellefior - i am sorry your dh is not being more understanding. though, i think he thinks he is being supportive. many men think of their role as being the provider. by pasing the bar exam, he thinks he will be able to be a better provider for your family and future baby bc he will be able to get a job as a lawyer. i know that when i was studying for my final exams, i put off a dr's appt. my dh got pretty upset bc he didn't understand how i could compromise my own health for the sake of exams. i am just very one tracked when it comes to studying, and i can't deal with anything or anyone else. perhaps, you could suggest he can bring along a study book while you wait in the waiting room and you can drive so he can study in the car. i know it sucks to have to deal with so many stressful things at one time.

[suzfuzsunflower]

Bellefior - I'm sorry about your fight with DH. That's a tough one. My DH and I went through something similar with our consulte appointment. We had to schedule ours for almost 2 months later. DH knew about the appointment. It was on the calender. As the time got closer, DH (who is in law school) asked if we could wait until he was done with school. I, like you, said no b/c we had already waited for two years! He also needed to leave the appointment by a certain time. He did a little complaining and gave me some grief, but in the end he stayed for the whole appointment. And he's glad that he did, b/c this is something that you are both in together. Good luck talking with your DH later today, and I hope that everything works out with your appointment.

Regarding your charts: If all of your charts are similar, then 6 months would probably be good. If they vary, then I'd take all of them.

Thea - That is such wonderful news about your insurance! :D Yay!

shanna - Ah, yes, the Miracles Baby Book Website. I've looked at that website MANY times. It has good information, and it's worth looking at. Thanks for posting.

I am a tad bit upset right now. Repromedix called me today to discuss the cost of the test ($650...but we only have to pay $150 - thank goodness!). While I was on the phone with them I asked when they would be able to send the results to my doctor's office. I was told June 11th! and my appointment is not until July 1st. I can't figure out why my appointment is so much later. Maybe it's b/c they want to make sure they REALLY do have the results in, or maybe it's b/c their schedule is busy (they told me that the weeks that they have IVF patients cycling - they try to coordinate them all together - that they try to leave most of the office time open for those patients. Maybe late June is a cycling time....? :confused: I wish that there was some way that I could get an earlier appointment, however, I probably shouldn't - DH is actually happy that we're going to have a month to relax about all of this....I'm not happy. :mad:

EDITED to add: Bellefior, my DH brings his lap top and books to the waiting room :)

[skb]

Thank you tigerest and la bride....some helpful information that I'm sure many of us will keep in mind.

bellefoir Oh oh. Yeah, I'd likely want to throttle dh too. I like the *consumer* part of his logic.....I've yet to see "customer service" be a priority in any doctor office. Wouldn't it be nice. I tend to think that studying for bar exams can tend to *affect* an otherwise sane, rational person. Especially when you consider the stories of grown men carrying full length body pillows and paper bags into the exam. Fun stuff. I'm sure he'll come around and you'll work it out.

As for me, I'm in the 2WW. I read somewhere that 80% of clomid users will fall pregnant in the first 3 to 4 rounds of clomid. I don't know how accurate that number is or where I found it. But it stuck in my head and I just pray that I fall into that category. Otherwise that's strike 3 and the referral process for IVF will begin. If that's the case I'll finish out 3 more clomid cycles while I wait for the 6 months. Can you hear that....????? Yup, that's me plodding along! PLease, please let this work already!

[gymwidow]

Quickie update and then I'll be back with SO's as soon as I can.....

So, yesterday I went in for CD3 b/w and u/s. My estrogen levels were fine and my u/s showed that I have a few cysts leftover from the hyperstimulation last month, but nothing to worry about - they'll be reabsorbed into my body. I asked the doc about taking some off before starting a new cycle and he of course said I should take as much time as I need. He said he just doesn't know why I get AF even while taking the Prometrium, but he doesn't see anything wrong with my physically and the only way to see if I have any further problems (like endo or scarring around my tubes) would be through surgery, which neither one of us wants. He said that other than a physical abnormality, the usual suspect for bleeding like that is hormonal, and we're treating that as best we can with drugs. So, we'll do another injectables w/ IUI cycle and this time I'll take Cronine instead of Prometrium following the IUI. I do want to give my body a bit of a break first, so I'm going in for a repeat b/w next Wednesday and will decide then what to do. Either my b/w will come back showing that I'm starting to make follies on my own, in which case we'll have a natural cycle this month, or it will come back showing that my body isn't doing anything, in which case I can choose to go forward with the shots at that time.

Last night DH and I had dinner with our friend the OB/GYN to discuss everything. He said after hearing what was going on and what my RE is doing to treat me, he feels that I'm getting good care. He also said he had recently been at a conference and had heard from a third party what a wonderful doc my RE is. That was nice to hear. He's going to call my RE himself tomorrow to discuss my situation, but he said that he thinks I should feel pretty good about the level of care I'm getting. He also said that if my next IUI fails and we have to move on to IVF, he's hopeful that it will work beautifully since I seem to be such a perfect candidate for it. And he said he'd speak with my RE and ask him to give me whatever discounts he can so that it's more affordable for us.

So, I'm charting again in case we get a natural cycle, and we're relaxing for the next week and not thinking about it. On Wednesday we'll see what's up and go from there.

[gymwidow]

Bellefior, I am so sorry. I've seen what the bar exam can do to people and relationships, but that is still no excuse for your DH acting the way he is. I hope your FIL is able to talk some sense into him. As far as whether he goes with you or not, if you want him there he should be there. I went alone to my first RE consult and DH has actually only gone with me to two other appts (we go separately for our individual IUI "treatments"), but that was my decision and I didn't really mind him not being there. I know if I ever ask my DH to go with me, he will w/o argument. I sincerely hope your DH starts being more supportive. Hugs to you!

[jnshanna]

I'm not very good with advice but I'm sorry your DH is giving you a hard time, Bellefior. I agree with gymwidow, if you want him there he should be there. Whether he wants to or not. And the reasons don't matter, IMO. This is a very emotional thing to go through and if it helps to have your DH in the room with you, he should be there. They did ask plenty of questions of DH and when I made my appointment they specifically asked for my partner to come in with me. I hope he comes around and it's just the stress talking. {{{Hugs}}} And that's nice that you can talk to your FIL about this. Hopefully his small comments will snap DH out of it. And I'm sure he doesn't think anything less of you for sharing. :) Oh yeah, and about the charts. I took all of mine in along with my notes on each cycle. It was probably overkill but I figured they cold throw out what they didn't want. ;)

Congrats on the insurance covering at least part of your IUI, Thea!! That's so awesome!

Oh man, suz! That would make me upset too! Would they make any sense if you asked them to fax them to you too? Or would it be too confusing? Just looking for an option to get you through the next month. :)

Oh, I hope that statistic is correct and it works for you, skb! Fingers are crossed for you!

That's so good that you heard through the grapevine how good of an RE you have, gymwidow. Very nice. :) I hope your body is cooperating this month!

[Thea]

bellefior oh, man. I would be mad too. At my first appt they asked that my DH and I come in together. Hopefully your DH was just having a bad day and he will come around. HUGS.

gymwindowyou are very lucky to have a friend looking out for you like that. Sounds like you have a good plan for this month.

skb I like the sound of that statistic! Hoping this is your month.

suz I know I would want to know the test results sooner, rather than later. That has got to be frustrating.

Thanks for letting me share my insurance news. Not sure anyone else woud understand how exciting that is. :) DH, the skeptical one, thinks it is a mistake, but I am being optimistic.

[Patience]

bellefior I would strangle my DH if he acted like yours. You have every right to expect him to be there for the appt. since you made sure to work around his schedule before you made the appt. I hope he comes around and sees that you guys are in this together. I think it's great that you can talk to your FIL about this. It seems like he really cares about you and will try to help you in any way he can.

gymwindow It's always nice to hear that your doctor is a good doctor. :) You're so lucky to have a caring friend who's an OB/GYN also.

Thea Wow, that's wonderful about your insurance! I would have done a happy dance also if my insurance paid for any type of infertility treatment.

skb I'm right there with ya on the 3rd round of Clomid. I'm praying that I'll fall into the 80% also. I'm rooting for the both of us this month (you're a little ahead of me since I haven't O'ed yet). Fingers crossed.

suzfuzsunflower That sucks that you have to wait so long for your appt.

I'm at CD14 - still waiting to O. I've gotten two negative OPKs and no sign of EWCM. So, I guess I wait.

[jodylovesscotty]

Well ladies, I know I haven't posted much, but have lurked. Anyway, this morning I was 17dpo and decided to test (longest LP is 15 dpo). I think I got a BFP. It had a faint + sign, so I will wait and do another test around lunch time.