Spotting week before AF every month - anyone else?

[MrsHY]

Sorry Yum - not sure what happened to my text above - I meant 'glad to hear it made a difference! X

 

[_Nell]

Yum - yes some people do find NPC keeps AF away. Sometimes you just need to test at 14dpo and if you're comfortable it's a definate BFN stop the cream. For me nothing keeps AF away and she comes regardless!

MrsPTTC - 6% is good, My dh's is 5% and one fertility specialist has said it was 'perfect' SA and worthy of framing and another said it was 'fantastic' I haven't read about the 30-40% thing tbh, although I did here that used to be the measure and then they realised 90% of sperm samples were way under and so 5% or more became the new measure. It also has to bt taken in context with the total sperm count, because 5% of a high sperm count is obviously way better than 5% of a below average count.

Good luck with your tests too

IslandGirl - congratulations on the BFP Wishing you a sticky bean. It's so lovely when a fellow spotter get's pg

Happyshopper - good new on the referral to get things checked out and on the progesterone which was really good, I was told in the UK over 30 was ok, mine was 52 which sounds borderline from what you were told.

MrsHy - good news that clomi has extended your LP, that's impressive since you though it had done nothing for you. FX for you.


AFM, I'm having my first injectibles this cycle, it's not going very well as the idea is my follicles respond slowly to the drugs all together over about 10days of drugs, unfortunately 3 follicles on my right ovary went into overdrive after 3 days. I was hopig to make this an ivf cycle and maybe even get to freeze some of my eggs but it looks like it will all be cancelled and this will be a wasted cycle entirely.

babydust to all

 

[MrsPTTC]

Hi Nell, wow that's very encouraging!! His other results were concentration 90 m/ml when normal is 15 or over, motility 45% when 32% is normal, so all in all they're great! Well interestingly my friend who has just got her BFP says it was the only time she has done a handstand afterwards (yes really!!) . I'm hoping the softcups might work but we'll see. Sorry to hear about your wasted cycle x

 

[lotusflower]

Well it appears that I'm spotting a day earlier then usual as I have pink CM and it's now 5 days before AF is expected. I'm trying to be optimistic that it's IB and not my period on it's way. I've been taking a B50 complex this month as I read that some women have success with that, but not sure that it's done anything for me yet. I guess if AF does arrive, I can double my dose to 100mg of B vitamin. Just trying to be positive....

 

[_Nell]

MrsPTTc - this blog linky sort of explains how the criteria have got stricter and stricter for morphology over the years, from 30% to 14% to 5% - your DH's results sound great
https://infertilityblog.blogspot.com/2006/05/sperm-morphology-mythology.html

 

[IslandGrl]

Thanks ladies! I really appreciate the support. I'll call my doc tomorrow since they are closed today. So far I'm feeling ok. I'm keeping my FX all goes well. The spotting or should I say bleeding before hand is a bit concerning.

MrsPTTC - Good luck with the tests. Hopefully you get some answers.

MrsHY - Sounds like a promising cycle. You never know...I spotted this time and got a bfp.

_Nell - Sorry this cycle isn't going well. I know quite a few people who went through IVF and all were successful. 2 have twins.

 

[MrsHY]

Hi ladies

Nell - will they try again with the same injectibles next cycle or can they vary it? If they wanted to use your eggs for IVF and/or harvest them for collection, why were they worried about the three going into overdrive - is it because you would have suffered with some kond of hyper-stimulation effects?

As for me - ladies - I need your advice!

There was a fair amount of red spotting last night and this morning I experienced some AF cramping - so I popped a tampax in. The spotting has carried on today but by far most of it is still this beige/black old gunk and not 'full flow' of AF yet. No more cramping to speak of, or any of the other 'full' feelings I get before AF shows up.

I called the hospital because if AF shows later, or tomorrow, then I needed to know whether to up my dose of Clomid next time from 50 to 100 mg daily. The Senior Nurse I spoke to checked with a Gynae who said that because I ovulated, there would be 'no point' in upping my dose. I disagree - I think I need to try a higher dose to O earlier and extend my LP.

So - ladies - what would you do? You see - I have enough Clomid to up the dose myself - I have 2 more cycles at 50mg so effectively one more at 100mg. The nurse didn't say there was any medical reason why I shouldn't up it - just that there was 'no point.' But I kind of feel that if I don't try, then I'll never know.

So - up the dose to 100mg and then have to sit out the third cycle, or stay on 50 for 2 more cycles?

SOOOO hard to know what to do for the best!
xxx

 

[MrsHY]

Thanks ladies! I really appreciate the support. I'll call my doc tomorrow since they are closed today. So far I'm feeling ok. I'm keeping my FX all goes well. The spotting or should I say bleeding before hand is a bit concerning.

MrsPTTC - Good luck with the tests. Hopefully you get some answers.

MrsHY - Sounds like a promising cycle. You never know...I spotted this time and got a bfp.

_Nell - Sorry this cycle isn't going well. I know quite a few people who went through IVF and all were successful. 2 have twins.

Islandgirl - I have heard lots of stories about women who have bled in early pregnancy on this forum and out of it - including my friend who bled and cramped for days (in fact she was convinced she'd miscarried until a scan showed that the foetus was still very much there - in fact she was born a VERY healthy 9 pounds in weight a fortnight ago!). So try not to worry yourself xx

 

[_Nell]

Nell - will they try again with the same injectibles next cycle or can they vary it? If they wanted to use your eggs for IVF and/or harvest them for collection, why were they worried about the three going into overdrive - is it because you would have suffered with some kond of hyper-stimulation effects?

I think annoyingly how our bodies respond to injectibles can vary slightly from cycle to cycle, so it might just be a case of better luck next time. the 3 going into overdrive is a problem because 3 isn't really enough to warrant the op to remove eggs and do ivf (3 is ideal for IUI), they typically want 5 + as in reality they will lose some in the op, lose some at fertilisation and then lose more over the few days wait before they put them back.....so there's a good chance of 0 embryos with 3. The overdrive bit is a problem because excessive response can make the eggs poor quality, ideally they are to grow just a little each day over 10 days.
It's all technical stuff
_______-

If I were you I would do one more cycle at 50 and thr next at 100, but I see you don't have that option as you don't have enough drugs. I'm sure I read somewhere that it's the 2nd cycle thats more commonly effective as it takes a while to fool the body that the oestrogen receptors are shutdown or something , that's why they recommend doing clomid back to back on cycles and not taking a month off inbetween.
Will this next cycle be monitored also?
I'd maybe stick at the 50 and then ask for more drugs for the 3rd to then do 100 if you then have 2 cycles that are not an improvement. Are you only trying it for 3 cycles?

There is no wrong answer though, go with your gut!

 

[MrsHY]

Thanks Nell...
Well AF got me good and proper today...so I need to make a decision! Think I am going to up the dose - otherwise I'll just think 'what if.' And if it does work in the way I want it to, by moving O forward and extending my LP even more, then at least I can tell the hospital that (although they might be cross with me!).
As I am 'off protocol' for the hospital - in that I ovulate on my own - they only wanted me to try 3x50 mg cycles to begin with, then they want to review it. I think after 3 cycles they'll probably fob me off trying any more, and push me down the IVF route again.
I have, however, had a telephone consult with a very nice private GP in London who, as I have had a monitored cycle with Clomid through the hospital, is happy to prescribe more cycles of Clomid should the hospital say 'no' to any more. Obviously not loads of the stuff - but perhaps 3 more months.
Might not need that though - if 100mg doesn't make a difference. I guess we shall soon see!

 

[yum]

hello all, hope all had gud weekend !

hs- how did the appnt go ? hope u got some ans !

lotus- any updates ? did u test yet ? fx 4r ya !

nell - sorry abt the wasted cycle dear thanks 4r the info ! hope u have better cycle next time & meanwhile can u ttc on ur own ?? r u goin u try the same proc next cycle too ?

mrshy- sorry abt the wat ever ur gut says,v r with u to support every decision is this cycle a monitored too..incase, i guess u'll have to tell the hosp abt upping ur dose on ur own ! ur plan abt private gp sounds promising but hope u'll not get to that ! gud luck dear !

 

[happyshopper]

Hi Yum, my appointment went badly. I had a pap and she said I have an inflamed cervix so all testing is put on hold until I get it checked out so I have been referred for a colposcy. I just hope its nothing serious. Do you think it is a sign that I have cervical erosion? She did say that it was probably the reason why I was spotting but when I asked why it would only be in the luteal phase she said that sounds more like a hormonal issue so I'm a bit confused xxx
Sorry MrsHY, the nasty witch got you. If I was in your position I think I would try the 100mg and hope for the best. Good luck with whatever you decide xxx

 

[lotusflower]

Well the spotting is so incredibly minor that it's barely there, just off coloured CM. So much better then this time last cycle! So maybe the B50 complex helped?!? I sure hope so. I'm trying not to test until Thursday morning as my LP is short and it'll only be 10 or 11 DPO then. Boy am I ever hoping that this is a good sign toward a BFP!!!

 

[MrsPTTC]

Thanks for the link Nell! I did read that last week but couldn't find it again when I googled it, I've had another read through it and I'm sure DH morphology is fine, though I do find it odd that they've decreased the normal figures so dramatically!

Happyshopper, sorry to hear your results and I hope your next appointment comes through quickly.

Good luck with testing Lotusflower!

AFM I got my smiley on Monday night and again yesterday morning. We used the softcups the last 2 nights and boy are they easy to use! I really would recommend them. No or lube came out overnight, and I felt so much cleaner the next day. Needless to say, I always shower, but it usually still comes out over the course of the next day, whereas it's now all contained in the cup. FX'd it helps me get my ! Also drinking Green tea from this cycle x

 

[_Nell]

Happyshopper - sorry to hear the appointment didn't go well. Where were you in your cycle? It's possible if just post O that your cervix is a little inflamed from a lot of BD'ing or like you say cervical erosion (which is harmless completely). Hope the coloscopy goes well - did they take any swobs asides your pap or will they do that at coloscopy? Hope you don't have too long a wait for the appointment.

Lotusflower = fx for you, sounds very promising!

MrsPttc - yeah I think the old measure for morphology was basically does it have a head and one tail, now the measures are very specific and to be considered 'normal' it's precise measurement for the shape of the head, length of tail etc hence the drop from 30 to 5%.
Glad the softcup use went well - was it fiddly putting it in after BD? Did you lose some semen in the process? I'm thinking of trying them on our next natural cycle, I like the benefit of not being leaky too! Were they easy to find in the UK - do boots do them?

 

[MrsPTTC]

Happyshopper - sorry to hear the appointment didn't go well. Where were you in your cycle? It's possible if just post O that your cervix is a little inflamed from a lot of BD'ing or like you say cervical erosion (which is harmless completely). Hope the coloscopy goes well - did they take any swobs asides your pap or will they do that at coloscopy? Hope you don't have too long a wait for the appointment.

Lotusflower = fx for you, sounds very promising!

MrsPttc - yeah I think the old measure for morphology was basically does it have a head and one tail, now the measures are very specific and to be considered 'normal' it's precise measurement for the shape of the head, length of tail etc hence the drop from 30 to 5%.
Glad the softcup use went well - was it fiddly putting it in after BD? Did you lose some semen in the process? I'm thinking of trying them on our next natural cycle, I like the benefit of not being leaky too! Were they easy to find in the UK - do boots do them?

Hi Nell, boots do the Mooncups, the reusable ones but have heard softcups are better as they're smaller so keep the semen nearer the cervix. I bought mine from Amazon. I practised with one a few weeks ago when sitting on the toilet & it was quite hard, but when youre all wet down there anyway after BD (I use conceive plus) it just slid right in!! No I hardly lost any semen at all & was sooo less messy! x

 

[_Nell]

Yes I bought a mooncup on a whim last cycle while buying OPK's in boots. It's not for me. I tried it once after BD but I didn't feel it kept anything near the cervix, I just had a moonful cup of BD juice!. It also leaked and sort of sat uncomfortably wonky inside me. I suppose I need to persevere and practice using it but the one try put me off tbh as like i say i felt it sat too low down to help keep semen near the cervix.
It also was sort of suction based, as in popping it in and removing had this big thwoooop noise/effect which was interesting.
Are the softcups similar to my experience with the mooncup - should i give them a try?

 

[Cosmos]

Hi gals,

Sorry, been gone for awhile and just caught up on the posts. It seems like everyone is still working towards their BFP, hope June is the month for us spotters.

Hard to believe, but my two weeks since AF has come and gone, got my smiley face today, so we're hoping for a BFP again this month. The 2ww officially starts for us tomorrow. What has me so confused is that my OV date has been 14-16 days since I've been using OPK's (4th month now, I believe) with an average LP of 14-15 days. My question is, are any of you gals here completely on time with your cycles even through the spotting? Spotting has begun from 5dpo to 9dpo for me, but it hasn't missed a single month since my MC back in January, it's so confusing.

Oh, and I also have a question about the softcups. Do you have a direct link to them from Amazon? I'm here in the US, so I'm not sure where to get them from... if this turns out to be another BFN month, then I think we just might try them as I've been hearing a lot of praise regarding them, but have never seen/used one myself.

Thanks in advance. =)

 

[_Nell]

Hiya Cosmos - I had a look on the softcups webby, there's a video of what they look like and how to use them. I gather they're easier to find in the US than the UK tbh and I think you might get them in most of the big pharmacies (on the tampon, sanitary care aisle as that's what they're meant for really!) if you didn't want to internet order.

Re my cycle, yes it's regular despite the spotting, My O is around Cd12 and my LP always 11-13 days regardless of when the spotting starts (usually 4-7dpo for me)

FX for your BFP this month!

 

[IslandGrl]

Hi ladies,

Thought I'd shed some insight into my spotting. I went to the doctor's today and my day 21 prog. was fine however I had a random blood draw a few weeks ago and my LH to FSH is 4:1. This is a sign of PCOS and I know spotting is common with PCOS. I have no other markers of PCOS but the bloodwork makes it fairly apparent. I had bloodwork done before I conceived my son and I had a high ratio then as well. So, at this point it looks like I have PCOS. I guess at least I have a diagnosis.