Clomid Buddies (moved to LTTTC board)

[sarah2211]

Belle, yes definitely everyone's different. They've been trying for over 2 years on their own without trying Clomid or Femara. She said the odds for IUI weren't that high and she had been told that people who opt for IUI sometimes wish they'd spent their money on IVF instead. But we all make our own decisions based on what we know, money, what our doctor is ok with etc.

Nita, I'm sorry you had a bad experience with your blood test. That was cruel of her to do it in your hand, that really hurts! I use to be scared of needles and then I got diagnosed with juvenile arthritis (before it changed to Lupus) when I was 8 and had to have injections into my joints, blood tests really frequently and in the past had to inject myself with chemo drugs. Once a phlebotomist quietly asked me if I needed support for a drug addition because my veins were so scarred....! But I can empathise because I hate the dentist like you hate needles.

 

[Ask4joy]

Just came out of my appointment. One mature 21mm follie on right ovary. Lining is a nice 10mm. Got trigger shot. FX this is our month!!!

 

[MsAC]

Oh my gosh!!!!

I knew it, I KNEW it!!! CD 14 ovulation confirmed. Had a spike today at 3:30pm.

BDing every other day, (so last night) and now to BD tonight and tomorrow.

I am so very, very excited. My first real ovulation in 10 months. I could just cry.

Hugs all around.

2much - And friggen congratulations to you!

 

[Ask4joy]

Congrats, MsAC! That's wonderful! Sounds like your odds are good this cycle! FX for you (and all of us)!

 

[Nita2806]

Just got my result from the lab for my 21 day blood test, 100mg Clomid didnt make me Ovulate.

 

[Ask4joy]

So very sorry to hear, Nita. Will you up the dose next cycle?

 

[Nita2806]

So very sorry to hear, Nita. Will you up the dose next cycle?

I am not too sure, will have to hear what my doctor says.

 

[Norelisa]

Oh Nita, sorry to hear that! You should come here to Thailand - they are super gentle (dentist too for that matter, I was super scared for the dentist too!!) , here they have enough people around, one to hold your other hand if you are scared, proposed to put on numming agent and use thinner needle if they know you are scared.. (with dentist it's the same, they are super gentle and have dentist +3 helpers for all patients!)

Afm, I'm boarding to go to chiang mai now.. Hubby is flying from another airport (he is flying and work booked him on expensive airline), only spotting a little, but a little heavier af compared to last month, but shorter than before clomid.


Staminogro, yes, only in SA then.. Ah well, I'll be looking for good alternatives, but at least now he gets zinc, copper, vit c, vit b and vit d and e more or less covered. Will try to get hubby to make more yoghurt for calcium and dark chocolate for magnesium, and Brazil nuts for selenium. I have been searching for red raspberry leaf tea but no luck so far.. Looking for one more supplement for hubby, but not sure which to go for..

 

[sarah2211]

Yay good luck Joy!

MsAC, yay! I know how good it feels to just be in with a chance. It sounds like you've had good timing and now you're just in the dreaded TWW. I hope it goes quickly.

Nita, I'm so sorry that just sucks big time. It might pay to go back and see your doctor and get some more thorough testing done. I don't think I'd want to go much higher than 150mg. Maybe Femara will work for you? Thinking of you.

Norelisa, have a nice time! It sounds like we all need to go to Thailand. My DH takes this - https://www.blackmores.com.au/products/conceive-well-men. No complaints but we don't really know if it's making any difference.

AFM, I've lost 4kg since deciding to be a bit healthier. I haven't made huge changes and to be honest, I'm not feeling like the weight loss is that obvious. I'll just keep at it. Ideally I'd like my BMI to be under 22 (apparently that's ideal for PCOS) and it's 23.5 at the moment.

 

[Norelisa]

Sarah: all welcome here

I think more and more to get coenzyme q10. I'll do a little more research first, if I can find with Co q10+ arginine or whatever it was called it would be awesome!

Now waiting for hubbys flight who got delayed..

My bmi is 20.9 but I don't really work out too much, only walking around.. So maybe that is something I should work more on.. But going to the little gym in our building alone.. Not sure I'll make it.. We also have a pool, but it closes before hubby gets home and I'm not too good at going alone. Maybe I'll start kitty lifting at the cat shelter I'm volunteering at.. I'm also forcing myself to make more healthy choices, but I'm not good at that.. :/ upsi..

Oh and for us, I don't think we'll adopt..

As per now the plan is xray (hsg) next week and take it from there if tubes are blocked. Otherwise we try to prepare for iui, I think for us its worth it with sperm problems. Just going to check out that nothing else is wrong (acidity, can that play a role?)

..hubby arrived.. Ciao for now, I was just babbling anyway

 

[Ask4joy]

Nice job on the weight loss, Sarah. I am trying to do the same. I've gained 10-12 lbs. in the last year or so since getting married which is very upsetting for me as my weight was stable for many years. My BMI is 24 - I'd like it to be 22. I've recently cut out most dairy, red-meat and all gluten (not sure if I have a sensitivity to it but I've read if you do, which is fairly common, it can cause infertility so giving it a try and already feeling less bloated). Also started drinking turmeric-ginger tea which is supposed to help inflammation and dandelion root tea as a liver detox. DH and I both take coq10.

Norelisa - I've read that for optimum fertility your BMI should be between 20-25 so I wouldn't lose weight if I were you, but light exercise is always good for the body!

Question for those who got a trigger shot - does it make your OPK turn positive? I took one this a.m. and it was positive...I guess it doesn't matter either way as I know I'll ovulate today or tomorrow since I got the trigger.

 

[BelleNuit]

Awesome Sarah! I've lost a bit of weight too since we both started making healthier changes. I'm down 7 pounds just from eating at home for lunch! We are heading into winter though and I always put in a bit of weight in the winter as I start craving heavy calorie food. We'll see if I can keep the positive momentum going forward.

Norelisa hope you enjoy Chiang Mai! I spent 3 months there a couple years back and have been itching to take DH to visit. He's never been!

Ask I hope those changes work well for you and that you see some positive results soon! Is DH taking any supplements? Sometimes the DNA in swimmers can suffer from microfragmentation due to age or lifestyle factors, which can make it much harder to get pregnant, and it's not picked up by a standard SA. I've been wondering if that's part of our problem as DH has some bad habits (weed, alcohol)

 

[Ask4joy]

I've read about that as well, Belle. I read an article which said that researchers believe DNA fragmentation in sperm could be the leading cause of unexplained infertility. DH takes a men's organic multivitamin (Rainbowlight), D3 and CoQ10. If no BFP this month next step will be HSG and seeing a fertility specialist (DH saw one to get his SA order but that's it).

I wonder if IUI or IVF is able to separate the DNA-fragmented sperm?

 

[LoveCousar]

Hello Ladies! I have been watching this thread since the beginning (I'm more of a lurker since I'm pretty new to this). I am on cycle day 8, I just finished my 1st round on clomid (cycle days 3-7) & I am feeling pretty excited & scared of the outcome. I had to take Provera for 10 days to bring a period & my diagnosis is PCOS, due to elevated testosterone, multiple small follicles on my ovaries, & absenteeism of period so often. :wave:

 

[Ask4joy]

Welcome, Love! I'm feeling excited and scared too! This is my 3rd and final round of clomid (for now) but first time getting a trigger shot and really knowing we are timing BDing correctly. Hope this is it for both of us!

 

[BelleNuit]

Ask, I think IVF with ICSI might work in cases with fragmented sperm. But I honestly don't know if they screen the swimmers for that before they select the one to put into the egg. I read that same article about unexplained and wonder if that is what is going on for us. I think after my femara cycles I'm going to ask about that test to see if we can get that checked before IUI. I'm not sure if an IUI would work with fragmented sperm or if their screening process removes them or not. And I don't want to waste my $$

 

[LoveCousar]

I am sorry to ask, looking at your signature it states you have unexplained infertility issues. Is that still true as of today? The doctors don't know why its hard for you to conceive & carry?

 

[BelleNuit]

Hey there Love, if you are talking to me then yes we have unexplained infertility. All my bloodwork, hormone levels, and HSG was normal. DH had a fantastic SA (very high count, high motility, and normal morphology). There is no indication that I have endometriosis, I have normal ovarian reserve and ovulate regularly every month. They don't know why we can't get pregnant. That's the case in about 20% of people with infertility. Sometimes its just a matter of bad luck and sometimes its because there is a problem but the tests aren't sensitive enough to pick it up. We have been trying for an entire year and I have never seen a positive hpt. I've never had a chemical pregnancy, or a miscarriage. And you can't even say its age related! We started trying when I was 26. #unfair

 

[LoveCousar]

Oh no Belle. I know that feeling! I haven't seen a + HPT yet either. I really question if it'll happen to me sooner than later. DH has been really supportive though but he has 2 children already so even though he tries to comfort me sometimes, I know he doesn't know truly how I feel. I don't even feel like this Clomid is working. I haven't had any side effects except some nausea here & there which could be from me taking 1,000 mg of Metformin #sigh

 

[BelleNuit]

Well I hope the clomid works for you, and if not they'll probably up the dose and then it should work for pcos clomid improves your rates to about 20% which is as good a rate as anyone gets. I'm sure it's just a matter of time for you once they get you ovulating