Ladies.. I'm sharing my story .. copying and pasting it from another forum so you may see it else where, sorry it's way to long to retype lol
Hey ladies! I wanted to share my clomid story because a lot of these forums are out dated and when I was TTC I was always hopeful with the outdated posts but always wanted a current one... This may get long so sorry in advanced !!
Just a little history my husband and I are both healthy young adults now 24 and 25. I battle with being underweight, I'm a very small person. Due to this I have never been able to hold a proper cycle. I started birth control at age 16 and took it until I was 22 and seriously only took a pill late only a hand full of times (I married my high school sweetheart, we were so afraid to get pregnant when we were little).
Anyway, once I got off the pill at 22 I never got my period on my own. So after three months (I read online to search medical help after 90 days of no period after birth control) I went to a new OBGYN. She pretty much told me my hormones were just adjusting and I could either wait it out or take some progesterone pills and that should kick start my cycle. She did warn me it could take a few tries to get it going. So, my husband and I decided we wanted to start a family and I started progesterone.
So in Nov. of 2011 I took the pill for ten days and then a few days later I should of started... didn't. We would wait until what we discussed was cycle day 31 and I called back to let her know nothing. She would then give me the pills again and we would restart. I did this for three months and nothing.
My OBGYN called me into her office so we could talk about the next step. Again, she still said she really thought it was because my hormones were all out of wack because of being on birth control for so long and during puberty. *Side note: In fact, she told me MOST doctors require a six month to a year break after 3 years of being on birth control if you started taking it as a young teenager.* So she said I could keep trying progesterone pills and eventually my cycle would kick into place or I could do a few other tests. She did my BMI which was extremely low (I'm 5ft 3in and I was only 98lbs on a full stomach). She said that my BMI could be playing a huge role in not getting a period. So she suggested gaining weight (which by the way I was already trying to do). She also suggested a CT or MRI of my pituitary gland to make sure it was working properly and there were no tumors which would cause me not to have balanced hormones. And finally she said lastly we could be a HSG (Hysterosalpingogram) BUT she would save that for very last because she didn't think anything was blocking my ovaries since I lacked pain and there are risks for infections, scarring, etc.
Well, I myself have been doing research on the case and I told her I would really like to try Clomid. She explained the risks, first off to much use has shown to have an increased risk for cervical cancer (which was scary for me because literally every female [grandma, all my blood related aunts, cousins both whom were older and around my age] have all either had cervical cancer cancer or had cancer cells which resulted into removing part of the cervix. She also explained the increased risk for multiples which lead to an increase risk of miscarriages, premature birth, and other pregnancy and baby health problems. Then she explained the horrible side effects. After she went through everything my husband and I decided I would try clomid. Even though I knew it could take several times to figure out my dose and possibly not even work.. So before we started she did a ton of blood work to see where I was with all my hormones so we could see if it was working (I can give you all my numbers if you're interested.. they were VERY low).
The first month (Feb of 2012) I did progesterone for 10 days, then five days later on cycle days 15-19 I took 50mg of clomid. I ate a very well balanced diet and on cycle day 21 I had to get blood work done to see my progesterone levels. They didn't go up and I didn't get a period. Second month I did the same thing but this time 100mg of clomid. Nothing. The third month I did the same thing but this time 150mg of clomid. On my blood work it jumped way up to 144!! But I NEVER started a period. My levels actually dropped down to below what my progesterone levels were prior to starting clomid. So tried it again.. my levels were so close to ovulation numbers but then I never started. We did this until July... nothing.
My doctor called me back to tell me she honestly believes now that I have PCOS and need to see a specialist to get pregnant. She said she could no longer help me but I was not responding to either progesterone or clomid... wow I couldn't believe it. I was in such shock and pain I couldn't stop crying on the phone. First off, being told at 22 that you have to see a specialist was beyond scary.. especially since I knew I could NEVER afford it.. which means I could never have kids. All our savings for our what we thought was going to be our soon to be baby would go towards treatments that may fail..
Oh and another side note.. we had sex EVERY OTHER DAY! We would stop on cycle day 21 because at that point I was already getting blood work which showed I had already ovulated so there was no point... And then afterward, I would lay on my back with my knees to my chest for almost an hour (some studies show it helps others show it makes no difference, so if it didn't hurt I was doing it!)
So I begged my doctor to do an HSG. She said she would do it once last time with another round of clomid... So middle of August 2012 I went in and had an HSG done... of course there was no blockage and everything was normal. So I ate a well balanced diet and I took my progesterone and then my 150 mg of clomid and... I OVULATED!! My doctor called and said my numbers showed ovulation.. but then cycle day 28 came and no period and a pregnancy test showed BFN .. I waited and waiting and on cylce day 33 I started! Now, of course I wanted to be pregnant but I was BEYOND excited to get a cycle! So my doctor agreed to go ahead and keep taking clomid since the flush worked.. but I only had five months of it because of the risks with clomid I could not take it any longer than a year.
So the next month (Sept).. same thing. I ovulated and got a period but not until cycle day 34.. So even though I was taking clomid as directed my cycles were long. So again, not pregnant she advised me to take clomid on cycle day 14-18. So Oct. 2012 I did so and my levels dropped dramatically, I did got a period (which again was at cycle day 33) but barely ovulated. So in November I went back to taking it on cycle days 15-19 and again, as before got a period on cycle day 33.
So Dec. of 2012 we realized this was going to be our last month of clomid and then it was time to take a break from it and try another medication or just take a break from trying for while. The side effects of clomid for me personally were horrible with the hot flashes, mood swings, and night sweats. Then having sex every other night for a year sounds great.. unless it's planned and then it gets very tiring hah.. So I did everything the same except before after my bloodwork (cycle day 21) we decided to keep trying every other day until my period came..
On Sunday Jan 5th 2013 I was on day 28 of my cycle... I took a test.. BFN
I cried and cried and cried.. I always cried after not getting good blood work or failing a test.. but this time I really cried. I was very very upset. My worse fear came true..
So I gave up. But my husband still wanted to keep trying. He kept telling me we would have kids and everything would work out.. even if we adopted. He was so positive ladies, I can't even begin to explain. I didn't get into the emotional and very stressful journey of my story because it is simply way to much to write in a forum.. Just know I understand what you're going through and many others do too..
So anyway............. Wed. Jan 9th, 2013 I woke up feeling like I had a sinus infection. So I went back to sleep. I woke up a few hours later feeling even worse! So I went to grab some over the counter sinus Tylenol meds and right before I took it I thought... Jeez, what IF I was pregnant and tested to early? This could really hurt a baby.. I better just check one last time..
So as I sat on the toilet lid trying not to watch as only one line appeared on the test and feeling helpless I played with my cell phone. After three minutes I took a deep breath knowing it would be negative and.. IT WAS POSITIVE! I immediately started shaking uncontrollably and blinked over and over and even rubbed my eyes like a cartoon character to see if I was really seeing what I thought I was seeing.. and yes I finally got my BFP!!! I ran into our bedroom and woke my husband and he said "I told you!"
I got bloodwork done a week later and results showed I was barely pregnant.. I literally found out I was pregnant at 3 weeks. I had a healthy pregnancy (I gave birth on 41 weeks) but I did spot the entire time (which is a whole other story and scary in itself). I had a healthy baby girl who is now four and a half months old. I have never felt so lucky in my whole life.
Now I breastfeed so I do not have a cylce.. I am hopeful that I will once I stop but it will be a while before I know.
So, sorry for the book ladies but I wanted to share my journey. Because like I said before, when I was going through this I could not find any updated sources that were helpful.
So, it took me a year to have my sweet pea, and it may take a while to for you too. However DO NOT GIVE UP!!! Nothing is impossible! I wish you all the best of luck and baby dust. Oh, and once last piece of advice keep a well balanced diet, try every other day with knees up, try until your cycle comes (because even if your blood work says you already ovulated I'm proof that it can be off a few days), keep positive and try not to stress out (that will only make it harder), and finally don't be afraid to be firm with your doctor if you feel you need a different way of treatment. If I wouldn't have pushed for an HSG I may not have been given the chance to get pregnant.
One last side note... Most people who don't ovulate do so after an HSG and even more get pregnant within six months after getting a flush. So keep that in mind and talk with your doctor about it. It is painful and scary but it is beyond worth it.
to all
