Hi Trixielox
My lp is 6-8 days long and it has been an absolute nightmare to get anyone to listen to me so I understand your frustration!!!
I understand that treatments vary according to what is causing the problem. I found the following info on line which helped me to get my head around the problem and enabled me to ask the right questions! I have cut and pasted it below:
A Cycle with LPD
A normal cycle can be disrupted in several places. Three causes of LPD include poor follicle production, premature demise of the corpus luteum, and failure of the uterine lining to respond to normal levels of progesterone. These problems can also be found in conjunction with each other.
Poor follicle production has its origins in the first half of the cycle. The body may not produce a normal level of FSH, or the ovaries do not respond strongly to the FSH, leading to inadequate follicle development. Because the follicle ultimately becomes the corpus luteum, poor follicle formation leads to poor corpus luteum quality. In turn, a poor corpus luteum will produce inadequate progesterone, causing the uterine lining to be adequately prepared for the implantation of a fertilized embryo. Ultimately progesterone levels may drop early and menses will arrive sooner than expected.
Premature failure of the corpus luteum can occur even when the initial quality of the follicle/corpus luteum is adequate. For reasons not wholly understood, the corpus luteum sometimes does not persist as long as it should. Initial progesterone levels at five to seven days past ovulation may be low; even if they are adequate, the levels drop precipitously soon thereafter, again leading to early onset of menses.
Failure of the uterine lining to respond can occur even in the presence of adequate follicle development and a corpus luteum that persists for the appropriate length of time. In this condition, the uterine lining does not respond to normal levels of progesterone. Therefore, should an embryo arrive and try to implant, the lining will not be adequately prepared, and the implantation will likely fail.
Diagnosis and Treatment of Luteal Phase Deficiency
With the above information, it is easier to understand the many symptoms associated with LPD. Progesterone is responsible for the rise in basal body temperature during the luteal phase. Women who monitor their basal body temperature will thus often note that luteal phase temperatures do not stay reliably elevated for twelve days. Additionally, women who monitor the time of ovulation often notice that their next cycle begins sooner than the normal 12-14 days after ovulation.
Once a diagnosis of LPD is suspected, a serum progesterone test will often be performed at about seven days past ovulation. A level less than 14 ng/ml indicates that progesterone production in the luteal phase is inadequate.
Should progesterone levels prove to be low, the temptation is often to "treat the symptom" by giving the patient progesterone supplementation during the luteal phase. In the case of inadequate corpus luteum performance, progesterone support may indeed be the appropriate solution. However, inadequate follicle development may also be causing the low progesterone levels. Thus, it is important to measure midcycle follicle size (via ultrasound) and estradiol levels (via a blood test).
If follicle development is normal, then progesterone supplementation during the luteal phase is normally the correct treatment. If follicle development is inadequate, an ovulatory stimulant such as Clomid or an injectable drug may be in order; these drugs help the follicle to mature more appropriately, which has the double benefit of producing a higher quality egg and a better-functioning corpus luteum.
Women whose linings fail to respond to normal progesterone levels often have normal follicle development and adequate progesterone levels at 7 days past ovulation. An ultrasound image of the lining at seven dpo, however, will show a lining that has failed to convert from the triple layer lining typical of the time of ovulation. In this case, women are often given additional progesterone supplementation in the luteal phase in the hope that a higher level will be the push that the lining needs to convert appropriately. Some doctors use injections of human chorionic gonadotropin to further stimulate the corpus luteum. However, these injections can cause false positive pregnancy results.
