TTC #1 AL Buddies 2016 Newcomers Welcome

[mrs unicorn]

Dsmith - hope you have managed to get to see someone. I'm with the girls here, be as pushy as you have to be to get what you need.

Les - fab looking chart. Keeping everything so tightly crossed for you my dear! How are you feeling about a full TWW? How does it work, do you take the meds for 14 days and then af should (or not) turn up pretty quickly once you stop? And are you going to test before that time or stick it out?

Aayla - hope you're managing to find plenty of distractions whilst you're waiting o. Not too long now though is it?

Richiees - I cannot believe you haven't tested yet!! Well done though! You are a stronger woman than me. Hope you're ok.

AFM - loving my relaxed cycle. Not even bothered by no temping. I might do an opk or two though. This cycle/month DH and I have been feeling almost normal again. I don't want to say happy, but not far off. There are times where we are happy though and it's so good to feel that again. I've started exercising and have shaken up my diet and I just feel amazing at the moment. So I'm pretty relaxed. I actually feel like 'it can happen if it wants to, if not, well, whatever' and I have never felt like that about anything in my life!!! Just hoping this continues and I don't get my epic meltdown post ov

 

[Aayla]

I am ending cd 13 as I write this. Ovulation will happen between cd 17 and 19. Likely 19 as that is what it has been the last few cycles.

 

[BronteForever]

Hey ladies. I missed you all and was really hoping there would be some positive announcements while I was away.

I'm officially back from my trip and we had such a blast. I ate horribly though and my miles of walking each day didn't help much. So must buckle down and get serious in the next few weeks before IVF starts.

I also caved and bought a cute kids outfit while on vacation to give me good luck. I never buy anything like that but I have a good feeling about IVF. But that also means I'm going to be devastated if it doesn't happen after multiple cycles. I'm realistic enough that it might not happen the first try which is why we paid upfront for multiple cycles but I'm still hopeful it will happen. Can't believe I'm finally starting soon.

Anyway missed you ladies.

Looks like most of you are in the TWW.

Les - I'm so hopeful the progesterone works for you.

mrs u - yay for mostly coming to peace with everything and getting a more relaxed outlook this cycle. You sound happy and healthy and that's so wonderful. I wish nothing but success and happiness for you!

Aayla - hopefully the meds do the trick and work this time.

Richieesmom - man I have no idea how you aren't testing. But go girl. Do what you have to. Fingers crossed for you.

Bee - Madrid was fabulous and I loved it there. Though I think I enjoyed the smaller Aviles more. Had so much fun though. We tried Vega and loved it and almost went to one of the others which was two steps from our hotel but didn't want to pay that much money for dinner at the end of our trip. Boy did we eat a ton though and had far too many cocktails!

Raine - good luck!

Dsmith - welcome and good luck to you.

 

[mrs unicorn]

Bronte!!! We missed you too. So glad you had a fab trip and indulged - that's what they're for, and now the excitement continues with starting IVF!!! Yey! Hey, don't worry about buying the baby outfit, I bought loads of clothes....I shouldn't have I suppose, but I'd been desperate to do that for years so I enjoyed every second of it. I hope it brings you all the luck in the world, you certainly deserve it! So excited for you! When do things officially start?

 

[beemeck]

welcome back bronte!!! eek so glad you had a great time and Vega - yes!! we just loved it there - yum yum yum. what did you get? I got the BBQ seitan - yum! and if you are talking about the restaurant that I recommended to you that I said was pricey, then you had a great hotel location! so, so excited for you to start IVF. I have such high hopes!

richies - any news??

les - I'll try not to get your hopes up but I just really have a feeling that this is going to be your easy fix. in fact, that awful pregnant SIL that I wrote about in my journal - my friend confronted her saturday night about her comments to me and she said that she struggled for a few months to get pregnant too until they realized she had low progesterone and then she got pregnant the first cycle....chart looks amazing and I just have this feeling girl....

mrsu - so glad you are enjoying feeling relaxed! although I'm still temping and charting, my obsessiveness is just gone. prob bc it's not sustainable for a year even if I had tried. I feel very laid back about it, albeit sad. but I just feel like it's totally and utterly out of my control, so I'm just sitting back trying to enjoy the ride

welcome dsmith! good luck to you!

my chart has be intrigued and I'm annoyed bc I know it'll turn out to be another BFN. but I've never had a dip like this before. leaving for our last trip this weekend and packing the thermometer. need to see what it does the next few days....

 

[mrs unicorn]

bee - that's exactly how I feel. Nothing I do or feel will change the outcome (apart from the obvious!) so I need to try and live happily during this time. I've always felt like this but it's so so hard to actually BE like that. I am, for now, anyway! Who knows how long it'll last. My plan is if it hasn't happened by Sept/Oct I'll be heading to the docs - although I'll be prepared for them to turn me away and say keep trying til the new year as I was pregnant in December.

Try try try not to let your temps stress you out hun. You know what it's like. You see something different and think 'oh, could it be..' It may well be this cycle for you - and I really really hope it is, love, there's no reason timingwise why it shouldn't happen (my bfp we bd day before and after ov) - but temps can be misleading too. I know you hate testing and don't like doing it, but if your temps are making you really anxious maybe think about doing one in a few days then you can either celebrate or forget about those temps?

 

[beemeck]

that's a good idea mrsu - I have thought of that too. and I might. I'm going to see what temps look like on 10dpo - 3 days after possible implantation dip. I'll decide then.

as for the docs - mine tried to do that to me too. having me wait until I started back up trying again. but I was feeling empowered after reading "taking charge of your fertility" where the author states that if after a year you have not had a sustainable pregnancy, you should seek some help (if you want). so I pushed and they reluctantly gave me the referral to the RE. I can't say how glad I am that I did that. I've been with the RE for 3 months now and still not pregnant so I just keep imagine adding however many months it ends up being to my total time waiting. an extra 3 months (possibly more) waiting for my baby would feel like eternity! And I think les is a great example of this - there are so many quick tests that can done with "easy" solutions so I don't understand why docs are kicking and screaming to avoid running a hormone panel on someone who desperately wants children. it's awful. so you got this girl - if no baby by Sept then you put your fist down. we want our babies - damn it!

 

[mrs unicorn]

You know, seeing what you and many others have been through has made me determined to put my foot down and push for tests etc to be done, if I get to September. It's not like I don't know when I ov, all the timing is right, we're not just 'giving it a shot'! I don't believe if you are timing things right it should take a year, but what do I know....

 

[beemeck]

actually funny you say that because that same book said that if you are charting and timing BD perfectly for 4 cycles without a BFP, to seek answers. she talks about the biggest reason for people taking so long to get pregnant is not knowing when they O and timing things wrong. that really motivated me too and when you think of it, it made sense to me. granted they STILL haven't found any answers for me, but at least I have people trying to help me! although I get so annoyed with my doc, it's still so much better than going through this alone (medically).

 

[BronteForever]

Bee - yes our hotel was right next to the La Huerta de Tudela which was the expensive place. I couldn't believe it when we searched for directions and it was so close. It looked yummy but we decided to save some money that night. We went up the street and some amazing vegetable tart. It had Brie on it though. I don't know how you can manage without cheese. I could give up all the rest. At Vega we just got the meal of the day and split our entrees which was some avocado salad and a rice and pepper dish. Both were great.

Our hotel was a great location. We lucked out and just picked one that looked central and it was. It was an Ibis which we have stayed at several times. No frills but they are always clean rooms and we are never there much anyway. It was so easy to walk everywhere which we did a ton of, mostly just looking at buildings and the tons of plazas. We went to the Prado after it was free so got a quick tour but after studying abroad in Paris and visiting what felt like 10 art museums back to back I'm not a huge art person. My husband had never seen a lot of earlier European art though so we went. Great way to see it for free! We had a blast and his race was such a cool experience. They new how to throw a celebration filled with tradition. Lots of fun.

Anyway so sorry your cycle is throwing you some curves. I hope it's a good sign. But I know you don't want to get your hopes up and like to remain realistic. Especially given the timing of everything. Really hope you can get into the other RE sooner. I was surprised when they had a cancellation at mine. So hopefully there's an opening. Or this cycle ends up being good news.

Mrs U - the outfits are so hard to resist. They had cute Spanish baby clothes everywhere and I just couldn't stop myself. Hope the clothes bring both of us luck. I start on CD3 of my next cycle. Should be in about two weeks, give or take.

 

[BronteForever]

Ladies - I'm a firm believer in being strong and seeking answers that will help you as well. There are super easy tests to run so I have no clue why they wait sometimes. I'm sure it's insurance which irritates me even more. And I do know stressing about pregnancy can make it worse. I'm assuming the doctors want you to cool it before jumping to conclusions. But for most people not knowing if something is wrong causes more stress.

Anyway I know personally I waited because I knew something was wrong and I wasn't mentally ready to move forward yet. It's taken me a hell of a lot to get over my fears of thinking maybe I'm not supposed to be a mother and I wasn't ready to face it. But now that I have I'm so glad I did and have no idea why it took me so long. You definetly have to be your own advocate. The doctors will usually do what you want if you are certain that's what you want.

 

[beemeck]

so exciting bronte!!! it'll all be here before you know it.

so glad that your time in Madrid was so much fun. with that location, you can't go wrong! I hope the weather held up for you.

you know, that's one thing I've never done - purchased baby clothes. Aside from the ones that I bought when I was pregnant. I just don't think I could let myself do it - it's some sort of defense mode. however, we have bought the car seat but that's because it's the 4Moms self installing car seat that comes out this year and we wanted to get on the wait list for it. we won't have it until the fall and I HOPE to be pregnant by then.....

 

[BronteForever]

OMG - a self installing car seat. I must google. We are probably going to be horrible at wanting cool baby gadgets. I normally resist as well and never bought anything when pregnant. But I have such a good feeling now. I really hope I'm not setting myself up for more disappointment. I'll cross that bridge if it comes but really hopes it stays far away from all of us!

Oh and weather was hot but awesome. The only day it rained was our train day from Aviles to Madrid and it stopped by the time we arrived.

 

[mrs unicorn]

I guess it's slightly different in the UK Bronte - but similar! It would cost the NHS to do the tests and because of that they have guidelines, but they are just guidelines! Surely, if it hasn't happened by Sept, the fact I was pregnant previously on the 3rd attempt, then miscarried, should work in my favour? Anyway, guess we'll see.

Yeah, I haven't bought anymore baby stuff since the mc. I don't think I'll be able to if/when I'm pregnant again for a good while. It's probably a good thing, I can get carried away!

 

[BronteForever]

Mrs u - you are right I'm sure it's quite different there. Though your NHS system sounds like it at least provides infertility help if needed though which is awesome. I'm really hoping you don't need it though!

 

[mrs unicorn]

It is great, well all my dealings have been good so far. But if we end up with problems and need IUI or IVF we'll probably end up having to pay for it ourselves, or wait at least two years before they would even consider referring us. At least that's what the website says. fx we don't get to that point. I don't want to wait that long and I know DH will hate spending around 5k for each IVF cycle!

 

[BronteForever]

Really hope you don't need it. But yes many of the ladies on the IVF boards from the UK did say the waiting list is long. So some are private funded. But really don't think you are there yet and hoping for a positive soon.

Bee - Just read your journal and really hope you are pregnant. These all sound so promising but I'm trying to remain realistic with you. However I want you to get pregnant before me so selfishly you can share all your wisdom. Because holy cow I want that car seat now and you always have so many knowledgable tidbits to share. Fingers crossed big for you!

 

[beemeck]

lol bronte! I teach pre-natal and post natal education so it's literally my job to tell pregnant women and new moms all the tips!! It's been so annoying to be THAT surrounded by all of this during this infertility, but I know it'll pay off one day .

and here I am waiting for YOU to lead the way with IVF and tell me all of the things to do and not do. either way, one of us will be the trailblazer for the next!

 

[BronteForever]

I'm really hoping you don't need the knowledge Bee but I have you covered if you do. I've never learned so much about the reproductive process since TTC and there have been so many amazing women on here, Facebook, and friends of friends that have shared so much IVF knowledge with me. I feel so prepared now when I had no clue what anyone was talking about just two months ago. There is still stuff that will come up but I feel so much more prepared to tackle it. IVF has it's own language I think.

And I love that it's your job and you can help us. Though I'm sure it's the last thing you want to do when you get home from work. Hoping you'll want to continue sharing when we are pregnant together though

 

[lesondemavie]

Welcome back Bronte! So good to hear from you and glad you had a great trip . Cheers to getting on the IVF train!

MrsU - That sounds just so perfect. I'm so happy to hear that you and your DH are getting back to a good place