Unsure about the future

[BSN2MOM]

Hi all,
I am late 20s and DH and I are TTC for our first child. We have been married since July 2014 and feel ready to begin a family (or as ready as we will ever be!). We have 2 cats, 2 dogs, our house has just enough room for 1 kiddo but we've considered if we'll move or renovate when the time comes that we need more space (we'd like to have 2 kids). I guess my fears are that we won't even get 1 kid. We've only been trying since August of this year (after my sister-in-law's wedding). Off BC since June this year. So this is month 4 for us and I understand many of you have been trying much longer but maybe you can share your wisdom with me, I'd sure appreciate it!
I am a nurse, and I'm worried something is wrong or will prevent me from becoming pregnant. I've always had super heavy and long periods, my cycle is irregular, my cramps knock me off my feet for a day. OBGYNs tell me to just "relax" and give it a year. But I still worry.
DH, also late 20s, has type 1 diabetes (has had it since he was 3 years old) and I worry that's effecting his sperm count but again, no one will do much for us until 1 year of trying (even though I'd think that's something people would consider an "issue"? I'm not sure I guess).
My other fears are if we do become pregnant, will I keep working? Will I stay in my field (currently working a 9-5 case manager job and don't have to be on my feet too often).
I just needed to get this off my chest.
Thanks for reading!

 

[MrsMcCurdy]

So what you said about your cycles sounds very familiar to me. I don't know how wacky yours are but mine were pretty awful too. And it turns out that when someone would finally see me and take me seriously we found out I have PCOS and hypothyroidism. Both of which effect your everyday life AND fertility. If they don't want to see you for ttc purposes I'd suggest asking to be seen just because your cramps are so bad and you want to find the problem. Hope that made sense, I feel like I might have rambled a little.

 

[BSN2MOM]

So what you said about your cycles sounds very familiar to me. I don't know how wacky yours are but mine were pretty awful too. And it turns out that when someone would finally see me and take me seriously we found out I have PCOS and hypothyroidism. Both of which effect your everyday life AND fertility. If they don't want to see you for ttc purposes I'd suggest asking to be seen just because your cramps are so bad and you want to find the problem. Hope that made sense, I feel like I might have rambled a little.

Thank you so much for your response! I do have hypothyroidism but it's been pretty well controlled. I just take 88mcg of levothyroxine, I've had it for 6 years and haven't had to change my dosage in a while. My cycles are a little more "normal" and "predictable" since coming off BC but they were abnormal for the first 2 months after stopping. I think I'll have a better idea in a month or two if it's really going to be stable. I also know I've had my cycles change due to stress (starting late or skipping) as I get stressed out very easily and very deeply.
I'm due to see my OBGYN in March. I had called 2 months ago telling them how bad my pain was and they basically said "well there isn't anything we would do until you TTC for 1 year." Which makes no sense to me. I'm hoping to maybe find a midwife to start going to. Ugh! Thanks again!

 

[QueenCheshire]

Hello there! I totally understand your concerns. It's always an anxious thing when you have other things that you know could factor in such as thyroid problems (I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis myself), diabetes, etc.

My DH and I have been trying for about 10 months now (I'm 30, he's 33) and my OB actually told me to come in after 6 months. It could be because I'm 30 already but perhaps different OBs are okay with different time frames. I would wonder though, if you'd be able to find a fertility clinic or something of the sort that could do a quick semen analysis for ya'll though if that's what you're most concerned about. That may be a possibility. As I said we just had a series of tests including that, bloodwork during my ovulation to make sure my ovarian reserve was normal, bloodwork during my menses, and an ultrasound to check my ovaries and uterus. Everything came back normal except my TSH which was around 4.52 so not terribly high but not in the normal range, so I've doubled my dose of supplements for now to see how that fares.

Peace of mind is a wonderful thing, so like I said, I totally understand that even though it hasn't been long for you, you'd like to check things off the list as problematic or not. I've been told it can take a year even if everything is normal/okay! Crazy! Especially since we've been told to be careful all our lives, one time can make that baby!