Metformin & PCOS

[babyjla]

YAY REXY! Congratulations!!!! You must be over the moon ecstatic!! Thats wonderful! And so encouraging!

MamaMac, how bad was the temp drop this time? Maybe its a sign that the soy is working?? And thank you! I'm curious to see if the Clomid works too. I know by itsself we didn't have very much luck (of course we only got to try for 3 months on a low dose)...but maybe with the added Metformin in my system it'll help!! I'd loooove nothing more than a BFP for Halloween!!

 

[meli1981]

rexy congrats! its so great whenever i see a lady with pcos conceive, its a little miracle!

 

[krissie328]

RexyI, please let us know if you get your BFP!!! Fingers crossed you get a DARK second line soon!!! .

Hello, sorry for the delay, I had a couple more days of lines getting darker. I just did a clear blue test that actually says if ur pregnant, and I got my BFP!!!!! I'm so excited!

I seriously believe metformin, chlomid and accupuncture made it all happen. Stick out and fingers crossed it will happen for u all soon!

X

Congrats!!!

 

[krissie328]

Well, I have been on the Met for a month. I also took soy at the start of this cycle. I finally got a + opk on Friday. I am so excited. I have never got a +, or even close to one before. So hubby and I had a fun weekend.

So I guess now its just a wait game. I am trying so hard not to be get my hopes up because the chances are stacked so high against us. But getting that + was really quite a mood booster.

 

[Karynmski]

Congrats Rexy! How exciting! I've had PCOS for awhile and I'm taking metformin as well as clomid. This is the third cycle with meds. My first month was clomid 50mg days 4-8. I didn't ovulate. The second cycle, I had started the metformin and used clomid 100mg same days. I finally had a positive OPK! I ovulated but didn't get pregnant. FX'd that this month it all comes together and I get my BFP. Good luck everyone!

 

[babyjla]

Yaaaay Krissie!! I'm gonna keep my FX'd that you get a BFP in two weeks!!! Let us know if you have any symptoms! So exciting when you get a positive OPK!!! I remember the one time I actually got a full +OPK I was dancing in the bathroom...Of course we missed the egg, but it was still exciting lol!

 

[krissie328]

Yaaaay Krissie!! I'm gonna keep my FX'd that you get a BFP in two weeks!!! Let us know if you have any symptoms! So exciting when you get a positive OPK!!! I remember the one time I actually got a full +OPK I was dancing in the bathroom...Of course we missed the egg, but it was still exciting lol!

I am so excited... I can hardly think of anything else. This is sooo bad! And my hubby who is usually the calm one is wound nearly as tight. So its gonna be a long TWW.

 

[babyjla]

Aweee, its always sweet when your hubby is just as excited as you are. My hubby always is! He wants a baby sooo badly he gets so excited every month he knows there might be a chance that this is THE month lol. Yes it is going to be a longggg tww!! I can't wait, I hope you get that BFP!!!

 

[MamaMac123]

Krissie - Yay for the positive Opk! I want one so bad!! May I ask which cycle days you did soy and the dosage and also what cycle day you got the positive opk? Be nice to have another met/soy buddy to compare notes with

 

[krissie328]

Krissie - Yay for the positive Opk! I want one so bad!! May I ask which cycle days you did soy and the dosage and also what cycle day you got the positive opk? Be nice to have another met/soy buddy to compare notes with

The start of this cycle was really weird, I am not sure exactly what day it officially started. I was shooting to do soy CD 2-6, however, I am pretty sure it was CD 3-7. I took 120, 120, 120, 160, 200. I didn't actually get my +OPK until CD 32/33. I had pretty much given up hope of getting it, but I kept testing anyways because I had read on a soy thread that some women didn't get their positive until into their CD 30+.

 

[laurac1988]

I've heard so many good things about soy

I took it a couple of cycles days 3/7 160mg which shortened my 36 day cycle to 29, but the second time I took it I did 3-7 200mg and it completely screwed me. Ended up having a 60 day cycle which not so much as a near +opk.

Do many of you ladies not get +OPks? I get one every month but heard that's fairly unusual with pcos?

Started Metformin last week and the side effects are finally stopping thank goodness. Have to up my dose on Thursday though

 

[MrsAM]

Hi Guys

I have been diagnosed with PCOS and I was not told about metformin at all and it took me 6 months to lose enough weight to start clomid treatment. I am had 2 cycles of clomid (1st I didnt ovulate) and 2nd I ovulated but didnt conceive.

So when I start my next treatment do you think i should ask the docs about metformin just to keep my wieght stable as I find it very hard to not put weight on unless i starve myself 3 days straight.

I have read so much good stuff about metformin and i dont get why my doc didnt put me on it or tell me about it

 

[laurac1988]

Definitely ask the question Hun

Welcome

 

[babyjla]

laurac, I've only had a true +OPK one time. Every other time I'm not sure what happened.. like the line would get darker for a few days, and then WHAM, its gone back to super light. So maybe I just tested at the wrong time of the day or something...

MrsAm, your doc sounds like my old doc! Well, in the sense that he didn't tell you about Metformin and went straight to Clomid. I didn't have to lose any weight to start Clomid treatment (and I am NOT a small girl) so I'm not sure about that stuff..BUT after doing my own research online and finding out all these great things about Metformin, I was very peeved that my doctor didn't even mention it! I would think he would have wanted to try that first, especially since it helps with other things and not just ttc. So I would definitely ask your doc about it when you start your next treatments. I switched docs, and my new doc has upped my dose of Metformin from 500mg to 1000mg, and also prescribed me Clomid to go along with it. He said the Metformin should help me O on its own, but since we are actively ttc and have been for a while, he gave the clomid to make sure we O. He also said the Metformin should help with weightloss and keeping it off, so I would definitely ask your doctor!!!

 

[laurac1988]

My sperm donor is a dr of fertility (not practising - he lectures) and he said with Metformin and clomid you tend to get two "camps" within the medical profession - the Metformin camp and the clomid camp.

My doc is in the middle. hes started me on Metformin but said in three months if still no baby we will be moving on to clomid, but some doctors do it the other way around and some ignore one option completely in favour of the other.

Best to just ask your doc

 

[babyjla]

I agree, it all depends on the doctor. I'm lucky to have a doctor who likes both

 

[krissie328]

My RE (before I moved) said he would do metformin and clomid once I was ready. He has always been optimistic it was a great treatment for PCOS. But it always seems like I have been to scared to make that leap at my appointments. So I have just stuck with metformin. Which I haven't taken for long periods because I thought it was only for IR, and I was a bit in denial. But once I figured out that I do have some blood sugar issues and began taking it I started learning about the other benefits.

I do not ovulate on my own. At least not very often. I only have a few periods a year. When the doctor did my labs three years ago he determined I wasn't ovulating, and through attempts at tracking BBT and with OPKs I have never achieved a confirmation before now. And lets face it after nearly eight years of unprotected sex and being young and in love it seems unlikely we would keep missing it. And throughout the years we have TTC but stopped after a few months when we consistenly get nothing and just go back to NTNP.

Now I wish I lived closer to my RE so I could get this stuff going. But now I have to wait for my new ins to start up and find a doctor. Hopefully one that will be cooperative and understanding.

 

[MrsAM]

Hi Laurac1988 and babyjla

Thanks so much for the advice.

I will defo speak to the doc about this. Like you were saying there does seem to be 2 camps and as long as they don't cancel each other out it appears from reading other forums and posts that metformin and clomid could be quite potent when taken at the same time...lol that sounds a bit saucy

Sorry i'm feeling quite manic today i dont know why since i got AF yesterday and am having the worst of it today but i guess it beats being depressed.

I also feel like i am bothering the hospital when i'm always emailing, how british is that...worried in case i'm emailing them too much. But to be honest i was quite peed off with them when they told me to go and shift the weight without any advice apart from dont be eating too many carbs i mean what? how does that help

but anyway once i finally shifted it i found out about metformin but i'm just so grateful that i'm getting treated i haven't brought it up with them yet but i will now i got online peeps to back me up

Also they have told me that they will try me on clomid for a max of 6 months so for you babyjla it seems like that's not the case, you can continue clomid indefinitely?

I am a naturally anxious person anyway and have suffered from anxiety disorder before and i'm terrible under deadlines so now i think i have to get it right within the next 4 months (that i have left) and then when i found out that people needed both met and clomid, artifical insemination and suppositiries (sic) to get preggo i feel like why didnt they hospital tell me that why are they not being more agressive and its only been 2 months on clomid

ok you dont need to reply this venting is just to make me feel better but if you want to that would be nice

 

[laurac1988]

In theUK they will only treat you with clomid for 6 months - its pretty annoying

 

[happyandy]

Hey there - I'm also a PCOSer and take Metformin for insulin resistance.

I was diagnosed with PCOS in July of 2009. Started taking Met October of same year. I ovulated within 6 weeks of starting it, after having not ovulated in a year! I actually got pregnant on that cycle, but ultimately miscarried. I ended up getting pregnant in March of 2010 and keeping that pregnancy. Have a perfect little boy to show for it.

I still take the Met daily, although my dose was reduced from 2000mg to 1000mg daily. I lowered the dosage because I lost about 30 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight and was not needing quite so much.

I had the Mirena the entire year of 2011 and just pulled it this past March. After a hiccup with low progesterone, I just found out I was pregnant again last night. However, the Met has helped me regain regular ovulation and cycles. I usually ovulate on day 21.

Side effects will vary. Mostly they are upset stomach issues. Mine were never too serious, and after taking Met for about 2 weeks, you will level out and not have any side effects anymore. It doesn't typically cause headaches or nausea or any other unruly side effects. However, it does CURE the side effects of PCOS, like facial hair, loss of hair on your head, belly fat, acne, not ovulating, etc.

Good luck to you!