Any advice welcome :)

[sugarjules]

Hi Everyone.

I have been TTC for 1 year after coming off the dreaded Depo. Af came back Oct'10 and been having regular ever since, but all opks are negative.

I have been taking Angus cactus, but not very good at remembering to take them everyday so not sure if that is helping or not. Cm does seem to change around when I should be Ovulating.

I have been to the doctors and they did do some blood tests which came back normal except low levels of progesterone which apparently tells the doc's that you are not ovulating? but the Doc said it was normal to have that after Depo.

Anyway was hoping I would be prescribed something that would kick start Ovulation but was told that due to NHS cuts ....the docs aren't allowed to refer people for fertility issues at the moment and they said just come back for some more blood tests in Oct 2011...which of course upset me. I understand there are people TTC longer than me, but I think its awful to make someone wait if there is something that can be done to help much earlier in the process.

I was thinking about the possibility of going private but not too sure how that works.

I have also heard that Soy can be helpful, but again not too sure how!

Any comments, thoughts or experiences with the above much appreciated...

Many thanks in advance.

x x

 

[Mama627]

I am a big believer in temp charting. It tells you so much about your cycle and gives you a place to start from. For example, maybe everything is working fine, but you're not ovulating when you think you are. Maybe your luteal phase is too short. Maybe you're not ovulating at all. These are all questions that can be answered by 1 or 2 cycles of temp charting. Once you know what's going on you can fix it. If nothing else, it gives you more information to bring to your doctor.

 

[sugarjules]

Thanks :

Forgive me for being green, but exactly how does charting work? How will it tell me the luteal phase for example.

Does it have to be specific routine with it? Willing to try of course!

 

[Mama627]

No problem, I'd be happy to share what I know...

First of all, let me plug a website that I absolutely love... www.fertilityfriend.com It's a free site that you input your temp data into and it automatically pinpoints ovulation for you.

So now onto your temp charting lesson in a nutshell:
1.) Buy a digital basal thermometer. They're really cheap.
2.) Place the thermometer near your bedside.
3.) Take your temp every morning before doing anything else (drinking, speaking, peeing, etc.). Write that temperature down. You can take the temp any way you like (orally, vaginally), but it has to be consistent every day. It also helps if you wake up at a consistent time.
4.) Input your temperature data into fertilityfriend.com or onto a piece of graph paper (date on the X axis, temp on the Y axis).

At the end of the cycle you'll immediately be able to see if you're ovulating or not. Ovulatory cycles are biphasic. That basically means you'll have a set of temps, then a dip, then a sharp rise to a higher set of temps. The dip is the day you ovulate. The higher temps during the 2nd half of your cycle are your luteal phase. This part of your cycle needs to be at least 10 days (don't quote me on that one) for the egg to have time to implant. You'll notice a drop in temps to your pre-ovulation temps the day you start your period.

If you're not ovulating, the temps will not show a pattern. Like I said before, fertilityfriend.com is great because they automatically detect ovulation for you based on your temp data. They also offer a free e-course to teach you how to chart your temps.

 

[sugarjules]

Wow.....thank you very much!

I had heard of it but wasnt so sure how it all worked.

I will buy a digital thermometer tomorrow, but I guess its better to wait until Cd1.

Thanks again your a star!