Getting Fit Before Baby

[ireadyermind]

IRYM - I'd love to know more about your fertility massage as well? Were you going to go to a specialist or do self massage. I watched a few videos on you tube to try to do some self massage techniques. I've been doing a few of them but I need to get better at it.

I'm going to try it myself, first. I already do something like it when my ovaries are aching due to cysts, and it does help! So I figured, why not learn how to do an actual fertility massage and kill two birds with one stone?

I don't know how to measure success or failure with it, but I figure the fact that it eases some of the pinching and cramping can only be a good thing.

 

[Mrs. Tigger]

Hi Ladies

ireadyermind - I have never heard of fertility massage, but I just looked it up. It looks very interesting! How often are you doing it? Do you think it will help with ovulation?

beccabonny - Good to hear from you! I really hate how visits and other things can really just throw eating plans totally out of whack, and it takes days to recover. Good job on not going too far off track, though -- I wish I had your self control!

swimmyj1 - Thanks I'm doing a lot better since having seen the scan and saw/heard that everything was just perfect. I'm getting less anxious and more excited over time, but still wanting to just get to the 12 week milestone and get that scan out of the way (and also be able to tell everyone!)

AFM - Scan was fine, no problems at all, and saw a very healthy little baby growing right on time. But I saw the doctor on Friday to get referred to the endocrinologist to monitor my thyroid, and they told me about how my care would be different due to being considered "high risk" due to a BMI of 36. One thing is they recommend an epidural, which I have always not wanted. Something to think about. However, all doctors so far have given me a big for losing so much weight before getting pregnant. It's nice to be told you've done something right for a change

However, in relevant news, they have suggested I gain no more than 9 kg. Going to have to work on that, i think. I think I'm going to have to go back to calorie counting as soon as I can (right now I still have a lot of appetite problems, but I assume/hope they'll be gone soon). Unfortunately calorie counting is so hard if you want to also have a social life and not always eat at home, etc. Not to mention if you have lack of energy to cook everything, etc. Does anyone have any recommendations for alternative plans that are easier to maintain?

I also really need to do at least some exercise again. I feel like I've been soooooo lazy (basically all I do outside of work is sleep and rest, and fit in housework when I can). I think I'll make it a goal this week to get moving -- at least start walking again, if nothing else. Perhaps I should take my Fitbit off my shelf and start wearing it again

 

[BronteForever]

Mrs. Tigger - sorry you are considered high risk, but sounds like they just don't want to take any chances, which is good. Glad they are on top of it and good luck staying within your recommended weight gain amounts. I'm sure it's tough, but you can do it! Sounds like you have a good starting plan.

AFM - finally seeing weight come back off and headed in the right direction. I've almost lost all the weight I gained in late 2015 and early 2016 after switching up my workout routine extensively and putting on extra weight super quickly. Now that it's almost shed that, I feel like I'm starting from scratch a bit on the weight loss front, which is both good and bad I guess. Really hope to see the weight keep coming off. Trying to do good with my workouts this week since I've been struggling getting them in after some emotionally draining days last week.

 

[swimmyj1]

bronte - i was on 100mg of clomid and doing follicle scans, also on metformin and progesterone. my DH was taking fertility aid (herb supplement) and clomid. So we were able to really bring his count up and increase his swimmers. With him having a genetic issue though it really was just super lucky that we got pregnant with a healthy baby as quickly as we did with treatment. If we were pregnant with a boy though the chance of genetic issue would be much higher. I think im gonna get acupuncture for increase milk supply I'll let you gals know if it works lol.

IRYM - im sorry for your sister I know nurses/doctors can be super big bullies about breast feeding. Yes everyone knows breast milk is best but in the end babies just need to be fed! with multiple other kids in a house heck I don't think i would have time to breast feed. It takes up a ton of time! seriously like 5 hours of my day is spent feeding her haha. I'm sure when I go back to work she will end up getting a mix of formula and whatever I can pump. Medical staff need to understand every patient is different and they need to treat them that way!

AFM - weight is still coming off yay! now I'm down to 217 I wish normal weight loss was this easy lol. I'm waiting for it to sneak back on
had a crazy weekend with my mom here. We took elizabeth to a yarn festival on Saturday having a great time. Until the weather went very south and a tornado ended up touching down and we had to book it to a bathroom and hide in there for over an hour! our area had 4 tornado's touch down yikes!!! the fire department after they passed had to help us all get out and around all the down trees. Thank goodness she slept through the whole thing and didn't wake up until we were safe in the car headed back home lol.

 

[BronteForever]

Thanks for sharing swimmy, since I joined a bit later, I missed some of the details of your TTC journey! So glad it worked for you and you had a healthy baby girl! Sounds like you had a scary weekend though. Wow, 4 tornadoes? In Michigan? Scary.

 

[MissDoc]

Bronte, congrats on getting the weight off and now having a fresh start. At least it doesn't feel like you're trying to undo damage, and now you can move into the progress phase. You are going to be so well situated for your January IVF. I am really, really rooting for you!

IRYM, I'm looking forward to hearing how you like the fertility massage. About a couple times a week I've been doing abdominal massage (just started), circular motions following the tract of large intestine (more to help with constipation) but maybe it'll have a fertility benefit as well!

Swimmy, yikes you guys really had quite a weekend! I'm glad you're safe and sound. It must have been pretty scary hanging out in a bathroom with a baby in a possible tornado for an hour!

Tigger, I'm glad your doc is taking such a cautious and proactive approach with your pregnancy. It's nice to know you're in good hands and have someone whose job it is to keep you healthy and lead to a healthy happy babe in your arms at the end of this. And I love your ticker--- red pill or blue pill, haha!


AFM, I have my appt with the RE in a couple of hours. I'm feeling nervous but ready to get things moving. The diagnostic phase is covered by my insurance (all except a few tests, which may be about a thousand) so I am thankful to have any coverage at all. Once we have a diagnosis, it's all out of pocket, every little office visit, scan, test, med, everything. Not looking forward to that. The lady said it usually goes very quickly and they try to do all of the testing within one cycle/month so as to get a treatment plan in place by the following cycle. So that's good.

Overall, for today I want to know what treatment direction he thinks we need to go in (even though I know he'll want more tests first), if I should start taking DHEA for my DOR, if there are any specific lifestyle changes he recommends. I am not sure what else I should be asking at appt #1. I do know that my biggest hope is that he doesn't even mention donor eggs this early. I really don't want to be considering that yet. My second biggest hope is that if he mentions IVF my dearest husband doesn't pass out or shut down at the cost, lol.

 

[BronteForever]

Oh MissDoc - really hope it all goes well!!!

We are all self-pay too and my husband did shut down at the mention of IVF originally. But after he calmed down and we looked at everything super well, we proceeded. It's a heck of alot to take in at first. None of this stuff is easy, but once you process everything, it will feel more manageable. You already seem like you are in a much better place after the initial shock of finding out you had diminished reserve. It will all get better like that.

I hope you get some great info and a great game plan soon!

 

[beccabonny]

Swimmy, glad you are staying strong to your family trying to tell you how to eat. I guess they'll always tend to do that Congrats on the weight loss, great job!! Sounds like you had an action-packed weekend! Glad everyone was safe.

IRYM - fertility massage, eh? That sounds interesting! Is it something you do to yourself, or have somebody do to you?

Mrs Tigger - So wonderful you were able to see your healthy little bean! I don't know as far as plans go, I'm sure ladies on this thread will have suggestions! I know I would lose faster if I stopped eating so much cheese! What kind of fitbit do you have? Do you like it? I'm really thinking about getting one soon.

Bronte - Amazing job!! Despite that feeling of just getting back to the base, you have done work and deserve credit for that. I hope things continue in the right direction for you

MissDoc - I hope your appointment goes well! It's nice that you have at least some coverage. Hopefully you guys aren't too overwhelmed with fees later on!

AFM - Hoping AF shows up in three days like she's supposed to so I can have a normal cycle! I'll be calling the doc on Friday to go over my tests since I spaced out on Monday. Next time I'll set my alarms for exactly 4pm.

I'm pretty frustrated on the WL front since I've been pretty good and my weight is back to 220 after getting down to 215. I'm guessing it was that big plate of spaghetti last night and all that cheese last week. So...cutting down on the cheese and switching from pasta to spaghetti squash for the next month to see if that makes a difference. We've also recently discovered how amazing almond-coconut milk is.

 

[BronteForever]

Becca - sorry the weight crept back on. It might have been the cheese It's so hard to pass up I know. Or it could be where you are at in your cycle or left over hormones. It normally takes my body a bit to even out and I always notice a bit of a gain just before my period as well.

I love spaghetti squash and am excited to eat it again. What do you normally put on yours? I'm having to give up cheese and I used to like to mix it with a bit of that and some seasonings.

And almond-coconut milk is the best. I use that for my protein shakes sometimes!

 

[beccabonny]

Bronte - I bet my cycle has something to do with it as well. I am so bloated! I'm totally cool with that if it is. I just got a tape measure and will do measurements tonight to hopefully be able to gauge WL in multiple ways.

The way you prep spaghetti squash sounds delicious! It's so good any way. Last time I made it, I did it stuffed with meat and rice and other veggies. To prepare, I usually bake it in the oven first, but I haven't made it too many times, so this will be my early attempts at scraping the "spaghetti" out of it. I've had it prepared like this at restaurants, though, and found it delicious. The recipe I have in mind for tonight is an alteration of a pasta recipe, Creamy avocado fettuccine with sauteed garlic beef. I've got some lean steak I'm going to sautee up in strips, then add with sliced tomatoes to the "spaghetti," which will all be tossed in a sauce made from avocadoes, lime juice and yogurt. Fingers crossed it works out!

What kind of protein shakes do you like? I was thinking about doing a powder or something, but I'm curious about what works for other people before I commit.

 

[MissDoc]

Okay. Done with my RE visit! The picture is much better (so far) than we expected. Just looking at my AMH of .6 he said I likely have the reproductive system of a 42 yr old, and he expected to see 6 follicles in both ovaries combined. BUT I had 12. Which is exactly what I should have at 32. He said this is more important than the AMH, and he'll repeat it next month to be sure it's stable. He does not recommend IVF. Said my ovaries, lining, follicles, uterus, and cervix are "textbook beautiful", lol. I will do more bloodwork, an HSG and fluid sonogram, and hubby will do a semen analysis. If all that looks good, then we try naturally for 3 months (more if we want to) and then start meds and trigger shot with IUI to increase chances. He said the only way we'd move to IVF any time soon is if hubby's results come back abnormal or if my tubes are blocked. He's also doing genetic screening on both of us. So lots of testing over the next month, but the picture is so much better than my bloodwork suggests. I feel so relieved! Hopefully nothing else wacky shows up in our work ups. I was so so prepared to hear we needed IVF, but the doc says we are far from that at this point in time, and we'll try other things first. I feel really relieved, especially financially. Meds and IUI would be more like 1k a month, which we can deal with.

 

[BronteForever]

Becca - oh my gosh that all sounds amazing. Yum. Yum. I'm probably going to have to try something similar. A lot of our dishes we like to do a base and then separate toppings sometimes since my husbands vegetarian. This might be a easy one for us to customize our toppings.

I order Shakeology right now. It's kind of expensive but it's my small way of helping my sister-in-law pay off her cancer bills since she gets part of the money. However it has whey protein and I just switched to try the vegan one so we'll see how it is. It's easy for me to do in the morning and make quick. Otherwise I was eating even worse in the morning.

MissDoc - this is wonderful news. So glad it's better than what you expected. Getting thoroughly checked out so you know exactly what you are working with it a big relief. Hope everything else is looking good!!

IUI will be much softer on the bank so it's great to hear you can start there if needed and have some wiggle room with time. Yay!!

 

[beccabonny]

MissDoc - that's amazing news! I'm so glad to hear it! I'm glad your repro system is "textbook beautiful" - such a cool compliment. It's great you're able to move forward to testing, hopefully it will all go well. What a great visit!

Bronte - it worked out pretty well! My avocadoes weren't super ripe, but whatever...the squash was delish! I can see doing a lot with it - it would definitely lend itself to customized toppings. I hope the vegan shakeology turns out to be good! There's so much delicious vegan stuff now We just stick with oatmeal in the am. I just switched to making it with (dun. dun....) coconut almond milk!

 

[ireadyermind]

Hey ladies. Sorry I've been MIA for a bit! PMS was super gnarly this time around, since it's been almost 2mos since my last AF! Ugh. She arrived yesterday, SUPER heavy, tons of cramps.. I've been essentially holed up all week so I don't bite anyone's head off accidentally.

Anyway... I just skimmed everyone's posts. There's a lot to catch up on! If I missed anyone, I'm sorry.

MissDoc - That's excellent news! And it just proves that blood test results shouldn't be anyone's sole method of diagnosis. I'm glad you went in and got a thorough exam from someone who appears to be knowledgeable about such things.


Becca - I've never tried spaghetti squash, but I hear good things! You guys posting up your recipes and foods is making me hungry. I haven't had breakfast as of the time I'm writing this!

Everyone else (lol) - The fertility massage is something you can do yourself. You start it after AF ends and stop doing it a couple days before ovulation.

The idea is basically to increase circulation to those reproductive organs to help get them working properly. And as has been mentioned, it also helps relieve constipation too.


AFM - I'm back to Soy Isos this month, but trying 120mg instead of the 80mg I did before. Especially now that we know I'm low on Estrogen and my ovulation this month didn't happen until CD39! I'm doing CD1-5 this time in the hopes of getting an earlier O date and possibly more than one egg to increase chances of conception. We'll see!

If it doesn't work this month, then next month I'll bring it up to 160mg, and if THAT doesn't work, then up to the maximum dose of 200mg. Wish me luck. xD

 

[BronteForever]

IRYM - thanks for update! So sorry you had a bad AF and there was such a long time in between them. Really hope it evens out and the Soy Isos helps.

I've been trying fertility massage a bit as well - don't think it can hurt. Let me know if you've found any good videos on in or just instructions. I've been looking for some better ones, but not having much luck and I'm a super visual person.

 

[ireadyermind]

IRYM - thanks for update! So sorry you had a bad AF and there was such a long time in between them. Really hope it evens out and the Soy Isos helps.

I've been trying fertility massage a bit as well - don't think it can hurt. Let me know if you've found any good videos on in or just instructions. I've been looking for some better ones, but not having much luck and I'm a super visual person.

YouTube is excellent for that. Just search for Fertility Massage and browse the results. There are tons of 'em out there and I'm sure you'll find one that explains it to you in a way you can understand!

 

[BronteForever]

Thanks! I tried YouTube but didn't find any of them I really liked, but I don't think I searched very far, so I think I just need to devote sometime to looking. One of the videos wasn't too bad, so I've been using that one for now.

 

[MissDoc]

Hey ladies, thanks for the positive vibes. Glad to have some less than alarming news at least. I feel good about trying for the next few months and then doing IUI, and then going from there in regards to the big guns and when and how to move forward. It looks like I most likely ovulated yesterday. FF initially thought it was a few days ago, but I moved it as it tried to say it was Day 12 due purely to temps when OPKs were most glaring positive on Day 13 and still had EWCM up to yesterday. AND temp jumped much more obviously today. So yeah, I think I'm 1 DPO. We are going to go to dinner and have margaritas tonight to celebrate making it through the fertile week with our sanity and having had perfectly timed intercourse. Now the waiting period begins.

IRYM, I hope the soy isos work for you without having to jack them up to the maximum dose. And yay for FINALLY being on the next cycle. Sheesh, that last one was a long one for you.

Becca and Bronte, your food talk is sounding so good. I love anything with avocado. Yum! Tomorrow is grocery planning/shopping and I'll try to to be really mindful about this next week's eating plan.

 

[MissDoc]

Hey ladies. I haven't weighed, but I can tell it's not good just by how my clothes are fitting. I need to reign it in! I have good eats planned for this week, so should be on track. I made pre-prepped snacks for the week. Chopped various veggies and put them in little mason jars with a side of homemade (non-mayo based) ranch dressing, also have boiled eggs, fruit, and kind bars as snacks. That should help keep me from snacking on sweet junky foods.

 

[ireadyermind]

Good job, MissDoc - and thanks for the kind wishes. Today's the last day to take the Isos this cycle so wish me luck!

I've been weighing every other day this week because a couple days before AF started up, I put on water weight like you wouldn't BELIEVE. My weight jumped up five pounds!

It's starting to come off today now that AF has gone, so I'm hoping that by next Monday, it'll all be gone and I can have a more accurate way of telling how much I've gained or lost for the month. I wish water weight wasn't a thing! DH only has to deal with it if he eats salty food like french fries or chips/crisps. I'm so envious!