Sort of new and seeking advice

[harmonygirl72]

Hi,

My name is Mary, and I have been TTC for 15 months. I am 36. After a year, we went through all kinds of tests (blood, ultrasounds, HSG and SA) and all came back normal. I was diagnosed with "unexplained infertility". So, we did one cycle of Clomid and nothing happened. My insurance does not cover any of this, it only covered "diagnostics", meaning the testing but nothing more. So, to save money, we just did the Clomid, with no monitoring, shot, IUI, or anything. So, now, we are taking a month off the Clomid, because otherwise, I would have to have an ultrasound, and that's expensive. But, now, we have to decide what to do the next cycle. I am going to make an appt to consult with the doctor, but I thought I'd see what you all thought. I think we will do Clomid again, possibly with the shot, and maybe IUI? I really don't know. My current fear (I am a bit of a hypochondriac) is endometriosis. I have heard that they can not even diagnose that without surgery, and that scares me!

So, if anyone has any advice, experience, or just support, I would be most appreciative!

Thanks!!

Mary in the Chicago area

 

[Kiki09]

Hi, I was given clomid by my gp with no monitoring, he told me to take my temp everyday and that will tell me if/when I ovulate, he prescribed it as 2 months on and then rest a month, then 2 months on, in total 6 cycles of clomid. I have pcos and under active thyroid and do not ovulate on my own. I think you should discuss your worry re endo with your Doctor, I am sure they can help put your mind at rest.

Good luck

 

[rachelle1975]

Hey

Do you have any symptoms in relation to endo?
•Pain before and during periods
•Pain with intercourse
•General, chronic pelvic pain throughout the month
•Low back pain
•Heavy and/or irregular periods
•Painful bowel movements, especially during menstruation
•Painful urination during menstruation
•Fatigue
•Infertility
•Diarrhoea or constipation



Other symptoms which are common with Endometriosis include:


•Headaches
•Low grade fevers
•Depression
•Hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar)
•Anxiety
•Susceptibility to infections, allergies

I have had my tests and HSG done which showed i was ovulating and the hsg showed no endo or pcos. Endo can be diagnosed without surgery

 

[harmonygirl72]

I didn't know that endo could be diagnosed with the HSG! That's good news. I have a few of the symptoms (IBS type symptoms, and anxiety), but not very many of them. I will discuss this with my doctor. Thanks for the replies!!

Mary

 

[beauty]

I thought you had to have lap and dye for endo to be proven, well thats wot i have read on here

Alot of the symtons listed i cud say yes i have like the back ache, tummy pains etc. I have pcos and have tummy cramps and back ache however i have no reason as of yet to think i have endo..and i really thought it cud only be proven with a lap and dye test.

My consultant is doing a hsg next week for me, but i think they normally run a lap and dye to test for endo if they have cause to think you have it.. or if you think you have it.. (thats how i thought it worked anyway)
only i thought it was quite a serious operation as they have to go inside and remove it etc, and i think the cost of this operation is proberly a test they would want to run last resort for ladies who are ttc

This is only wot i thought, i may be wrong like i said i have no reason to know if my facts are correct as I have never had a lap and dye




xx



xx

 

[harmonygirl72]

What is a lap and dye? Is it surgery? That is probably the same thing I heard.

Mary

 

[kairzh7]

I have endo which was diagnosed in 2003 via a laparoscopy (lap). It is surgery, but a very minor outpatient one. It involved at that time 3 small incisions and they were able to remove the endo then. I had another lap Jan. 2009 due to my history and fertility problems this time only 2 small incisions and they did not find any endo. I have always been told that the only way to truly diagnose it was with a laparoscopy. I'm not sure what the dye part is. I have heard others say that they can diagnose it in other manners, but never heard that from a medical professional and it was only from someone who doesn't have and hasn't gone through the process.

For me my periods would present with flu like symptoms and were horrendous. My doctors suspected I had endo when i was 18, but didn't do the lap until i was 24 due to my age. They treated me as if it was endo based on the symptoms, but didn't want do do surgery to diagnose it at such a young age. The only reason they did at 24 was because I was having such intense periods and pain during sex.

I really hope that you don't have it, but if you have concerns or symptoms then be sure to talk to your doctor. It can be a very painful thing to have.

 

[harmonygirl72]

Thank you for your reply! I don't have any symptoms like that, I just wonder because they can't find any other reason for my infertility.

 

[kairzh7]

I thought it was the reason for mine, but turns out I'm clear, so I understand the frustration of not being able to understand why can't get pregnant.

 

[BabyChristie]

I'm having a Lap op on 17th Nov - suspected endo as I have been TTC forever and have nearly all of those symptoms:
•Pain before and during periods
•Pain with intercourse
•Low back pain
•Heavy periods
•Painful bowel movements, especially during menstruation
•Fatigue
•Infertility
•Diarrhoea or constipation
•Headaches
•Depression
•Hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar)
•Anxiety

I'm sort of hoping in a strange way that it is endo as if they can remove it during the lap, I've heard that your chances of conceiving can go up by as much as 75%. I know how frustrating it is not to know WHY things aren't happening - sometimes even if its bad news it feels like just knowing something is a good thing because then you know what your options are.

Wishing you all the best.

x

 

[Toptack]

Hi

I'm having a lap and dye on the 9th Nov (the 'dye' part just involves flushing dye through your tubes to check they are open). I had a previous lap ten years ago, when I was 25, where they removed a small patch of endometriosis from my right ovary. At that point I had many more symptoms than I do now, but my FS wants to take a look to see if it's returned. To be honest, I can't decide whether I want them to find anything or not - as BabyChristie said, it's so frustrating not knowing why things aren't happening. But on the other hand, it could just be age related... apparently the conception rate for women aged 35-37 is just 60% after 1 year ttc, which is way lower than the 90% rate that is quoted for younger women (see https://www.fertilityfriend.com/Faqs/What-are-the-chances-of-conceiving-beyond-age-35.html). Not that statistics really help when you're feeling down, of course

Anyway, fingers crossed that you don't need to have the lap and dye, but if you do, it really isn't too horrible, and it should help you decide the best way to move forward.

xx

 

[harmonygirl72]

Thanks, and good luck to you!

 

[kairzh7]

I'm having a Lap op on 17th Nov - suspected endo as I have been TTC forever and have nearly all of those symptoms:
•Pain before and during periods
•Pain with intercourse
•Low back pain
•Heavy periods
•Painful bowel movements, especially during menstruation
•Fatigue
•Infertility
•Diarrhoea or constipation
•Headaches
•Depression
•Hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar)
•Anxiety

I'm sort of hoping in a strange way that it is endo as if they can remove it during the lap, I've heard that your chances of conceiving can go up by as much as 75%. I know how frustrating it is not to know WHY things aren't happening - sometimes even if its bad news it feels like just knowing something is a good thing because then you know what your options are.

Wishing you all the best.

x

Wow, that sounds very familiar. I have to say that I was disappointed that they didn't find any endo with the last lap as that was what I was convinced was the problem and figured they could remove it and bingo we'd conceive.

I hope things work out for you. My doc told me the first time that right after removal is the best time to conceive for a woman with endo, so I hope this is your solution and you get your BFP shortly after.

 

[brooklyn1]

Hi all,
I don't have too much to add, just wanted to say that I really relate to all of this. I've just turned 39, ttc for a little over a year, and unexplained infertility. Like harmonygirl, the hypochondriac in me has been thinking a lot about endo, but I don't have any of the symptoms and my HSG was all clear...It's so frustrating not knowing what's going on in there. But I do think that as annoying as it may be, being over 35 is a factor that might 'explain' why it's taking so long. I have a follow up appointment with my FS on Wednesday and I'm going to ask her if there is ANYTHING else they can test me for before moving on to IVF. I'll let you all know if she has any insights.

 

[harmonygirl72]

Yep, we sound very much alike, Brooklyn! Good luck to you!