Welcome to 'Trying To Conceive Over 35'

[alicatt]

AFM-
Ok ladies- question. I do not know too much about ovulating right after having a baby. I am now about 7 weeks past birth so... I have started opk's. Problem is I am only doing them about once a day, around 2 pm as I have to drink plenty of water to help my milk supply. Anyways, I hold it from around 10 am to 2 pm- that should be long enough right? And if I get the chance I test again around 6 pm. CM is thick today but verrrrrrry stretchy and kinda sticky It has been pretty excessive too (tmi).

All of my opk's thus far have been blank white negatives. I am approximately CD18 now (I think) judging from first day of spotting of my first post labor AF. K. My opk midday on the 12th showed a dark positive rise, about 2/3 the color and shade of the test line. So I thought- it's rising. But the next day it was stark white again It has been either extremely faint strain0-my-eyes-to-see-it kind of line or not there at all. Today it is blank. I finally got the opportunity to check my bbt lol, this morning and it was 97.6. Then I fell asleep and checked again hours later when I woke and it was still 97.6 So I am thinking I did not ovulate yet?

What do you all think? I will put my info in on FF if I can so you can get a better image.

NTNP I guess I would love to get my body back in shape and dh agrees with me before considering another ttc.....Anywho, I am wondering at his thought process as he is, er, having, eh...discussion with me every other night at least lol

Thanks Coy.. yes I think my blastocysts look amazing! A mothers pride!! I have read studies that have looked at the maturation of the blast and whether it is a male or female. They say that the males develop faster and the females are a little behind. We picked the 2 most mature to implant so it could be that both are boys? I'm rooting for one of each!!!

As for your question about when you will ovulate. I don't think you can really count the spotting as a period, especially if you are breast feeding. I have heard that it is a lot less possible to get pregnant while breast feeding, but definitely not impossible! So be careful! The change in CM for me usually occurs about 1-2 days before I get my positive OPK. So maybe you are still a day from ovulating? I think it will be hard for you to know your cycle until you have a good period. So if it were me and you guys were not looking to have another so soon, I'd be careful until you know what your cycle is going to be!!!

 

[Babywhisperer]

Hi Ladies! I'm now home from my ET and I'm on cloud 9! I got 1 5AA blastocyst and 3 4AA blastocysts and a few that are looking good for tomorrow. We transferred the 5AA and one of the 4AAs and froze the other 2 4AAs today. They are going to give the others another night to get more mature and will hopefully freeze a few more tomorrow! The grading is as follows.. the number is how expanded the blastocyst is. A 6AA is actually broken free of its shell, a 5AA is expanded and 4AA means it is a little behind the 5AA. The 2 letters speak to the quality of the blastocyst with AA being the best and CC being the worst. So I basically had the best turnout possible! I'm so very happy! My mom was there to share it all with me which was even better!
I am now PUPO (pregnant until proven otherwise) with twins!

Best. News. Ever. So happy it went well. Now what's next? What was the grading of the embryos last time? I hope you will rest, relax and take it easy. I cannot wait ti see your BFP!!!!!

 

[Grey Eyes]

Babywhisperer- Wow!! Is your temp 99.+??!!!! Am I reading right? Wow, and you are 4-5 dpo....official 2WW! How are you feeling btw? How's the new job working out, I bet you are settling in by now

Ali- I did have a proper AF between 28th Nov and 3rd Dec, with really heavy days in middle of it all... I know, be careful, right?! Argh!

 

[never_give_up]

Hi Ladies! I'm now home from my ET and I'm on cloud 9! I got 1 5AA blastocyst and 3 4AA blastocysts and a few that are looking good for tomorrow. We transferred the 5AA and one of the 4AAs and froze the other 2 4AAs today. They are going to give the others another night to get more mature and will hopefully freeze a few more tomorrow! The grading is as follows.. the number is how expanded the blastocyst is. A 6AA is actually broken free of its shell, a 5AA is expanded and 4AA means it is a little behind the 5AA. The 2 letters speak to the quality of the blastocyst with AA being the best and CC being the worst. So I basically had the best turnout possible! I'm so very happy! My mom was there to share it all with me which was even better!
I am now PUPO (pregnant until proven otherwise) with twins!

Congrats alicatt!! I am so happy that your embryos did so well! Yay for being PUPO! Cool photos of your embryos Make sure you gets lots of rest and rub that belly mama.

 

[alicatt]

Babywhisperer- Wow!! Is your temp 99.+??!!!! Am I reading right? Wow, and you are 4-5 dpo....official 2WW! How are you feeling btw? How's the new job working out, I bet you are settling in by now

Ali- I did have a proper AF between 28th Nov and 3rd Dec, with really heavy days in middle of it all... I know, be careful, right?! Argh!

HMM.. I have never been pregnant.. so I'm out of my element! Maybe you are having one of those double surges? So maybe you'll have a surge today or tomorrow? Might want to tell DH to steer clear for a few days Then once you get your next period, I would do what you can to watch your BBT and OPK!! My best friend ended up with Irish twins, so be careful!!! She didn't have a period at all while breastfeeding, and when her first was about 6 months and she was weaning him of the breast, she went to her Dr to ask to have her period induced only to find out she was already pregnant! She was 34 at the time, so not much younger than some of the ladies here!

 

[alicatt]

AFM - I'm officially 1dp5dt (6 dpo) and I'm more achy than anything. Try lying on your bed for 24 hours! You wake up with a sore back and just plain achy. I have a few cramps in my abdomen, but nothing too terrible. Just wishing I didn't feel so achy!

 

[JenSC]

AFM-
Ok ladies- question. I do not know too much about ovulating right after having a baby. I am now about 7 weeks past birth so... I have started opk's. Problem is I am only doing them about once a day, around 2 pm as I have to drink plenty of water to help my milk supply. Anyways, I hold it from around 10 am to 2 pm- that should be long enough right? And if I get the chance I test again around 6 pm. CM is thick today but verrrrrrry stretchy and kinda sticky It has been pretty excessive too (tmi).

All of my opk's thus far have been blank white negatives. I am approximately CD18 now (I think) judging from first day of spotting of my first post labor AF. K. My opk midday on the 12th showed a dark positive rise, about 2/3 the color and shade of the test line. So I thought- it's rising. But the next day it was stark white again It has been either extremely faint strain0-my-eyes-to-see-it kind of line or not there at all. Today it is blank. I finally got the opportunity to check my bbt lol, this morning and it was 97.6. Then I fell asleep and checked again hours later when I woke and it was still 97.6 So I am thinking I did not ovulate yet?

What do you all think? I will put my info in on FF if I can so you can get a better image.

NTNP I guess I would love to get my body back in shape and dh agrees with me before considering another ttc.....Anywho, I am wondering at his thought process as he is, er, having, eh...discussion with me every other night at least lol

My doctor told me to count CD1 as the first day of actual bleeding, not spotting. I am not sure if that is the right way to do it, it is just what she told me. If you count from the first day of true bleeding, what cycle day are you? It does sound like you haven't ovulated yet, but I am not sure. The cervical mucus sounds like the ovulation type..... Hmmm.

 

[Babywhisperer]

Babywhisperer- Wow!! Is your temp 99.+??!!!! Am I reading right? Wow, and you are 4-5 dpo....official 2WW! How are you feeling btw? How's the new job working out, I bet you are settling in by now

Ali- I did have a proper AF between 28th Nov and 3rd Dec, with really heavy days in middle of it all... I know, be careful, right?! Argh!

FF changed my ovu date from cd 14 to 16! This is not good as we didn't bd past cd 12. Why did it do that? I felt ovu cramps on 2 separate days cd 11 and 13. Maybe my temps were so erratic then finally spiked up? When I put in this morning's temp that's when FF changed ovu date. I took temp 2 hrs later than normal Fri,Sat & Sun so maybe the temps threw it off...any ideas?

Coy as far as your ovu I agree with Ali. Breastfeeding will throw things off and although it is less likely that you will get prego, I would be careful and maybe pull out instead of trying to figure out which days you are fertile and which days you are not.

I am very excited for the follow up appt with the RE on Wed. I think since I ovu every month I may ask to go right to IUI. I also have a new endo appt for my thyroid on Tuesday. I tried to get the appts on the same day so I wouldn't have to leave early 2 days in a row...but I am working every day thru the holidays to give one of my colleagues off to spend w/ his 4 kids. Job is going well, pretty stressful but I have been lucky to have done a few big trades. We are hiring a guy w/ 25yrs experience and I will lose 2 big accts but it also means I will get to more business with my other accts as another salesman leads to more flow and activity...trying to stay positive that this new guy won't go after my other accts and that he will be a team player. I just have to concentrate on hitting my quota for the year...if I do my 2nd yr of my contract will be more lucrative.

Ali what's next for you? When is the next appt? Maybe crampy is a good sign? It might means things are happening!!

 

[never_give_up]

Babywhisperer- Wow!! Is your temp 99.+??!!!! Am I reading right? Wow, and you are 4-5 dpo....official 2WW! How are you feeling btw? How's the new job working out, I bet you are settling in by now

Ali- I did have a proper AF between 28th Nov and 3rd Dec, with really heavy days in middle of it all... I know, be careful, right?! Argh!

FF changed my ovu date from cd 14 to 16! This is not good as we didn't bd past cd 12. Why did it do that? I felt ovu cramps on 2 separate days cd 11 and 13. Maybe my temps were so erratic then finally spiked up? When I put in this morning's temp that's when FF changed ovu date. I took temp 2 hrs later than normal Fri,Sat & Sun so maybe the temps threw it off...any ideas?

Coy as far as your ovu I agree with Ali. Breastfeeding will throw things off and although it is less likely that you will get prego, I would be careful and maybe pull out instead of trying to figure out which days you are fertile and which days you are not.

I am very excited for the follow up appt with the RE on Wed. I think since I ovu every month I may ask to go right to IUI. I also have a new endo appt for my thyroid on Tuesday. I tried to get the appts on the same day so I wouldn't have to leave early 2 days in a row...but I am working every day thru the holidays to give one of my colleagues off to spend w/ his 4 kids. Job is going well, pretty stressful but I have been lucky to have done a few big trades. We are hiring a guy w/ 25yrs experience and I will lose 2 big accts but it also means I will get to more business with my other accts as another salesman leads to more flow and activity...trying to stay positive that this new guy won't go after my other accts and that he will be a team player. I just have to concentrate on hitting my quota for the year...if I do my 2nd yr of my contract will be more lucrative.

Ali what's next for you? When is the next appt? Maybe crampy is a good sign? It might means things are happening!!

Good morning ladies

Babywhisperer- I looked at your chart a few days ago and again just now. FF predicted ovulated on cd 14 because you had that big temp spike on the cd15. However you had a drop on cd16 and then an even bigger spike on cd17 so that is why FF changed it. My thoughts are if on cd 16 you had your mouth open or didnt get a full 5 hours sleep it could have given you an inaccurate reading so it is still possible that you ovulated on cd14. Did you still have ewcm on cd 15 and 16? Your chart is looking great with continual rise and no drops 99.9 is awesome! You don't have a cold do you? Only time my temp ever went that high!
I make sure I check cervical mucus because I often sleep with my mouth open which affects my bbt. I hadnt even started opks on cd 9 which would probably been positive if I had done one. I had glob of ewcm so we bd'd but then dh thought it was too early and he wanted to wait till opk turned positive before we bd'd again.. The line on opk was actually darker on cd11 and got lighter every day which made me realize I had ovulated super early. What a waste of opks since I wasn't using the strips but the individual Answer ones.

 

[never_give_up]

AFM - I'm officially 1dp5dt (6 dpo) and I'm more achy than anything. Try lying on your bed for 24 hours! You wake up with a sore back and just plain achy. I have a few cramps in my abdomen, but nothing too terrible. Just wishing I didn't feel so achy!

alicatt Yes bedrest sucks but you it is only for a short while. Hang in there Getting lots of rest is the best thing for implantation
Are you officially on vacation tomorrow?

Coy- How are you? Am I understanding correctly that you are temping to not get pregnant? BBT is not a reliable way to predict that.

 

[alicatt]

AFM - I'm officially 1dp5dt (6 dpo) and I'm more achy than anything. Try lying on your bed for 24 hours! You wake up with a sore back and just plain achy. I have a few cramps in my abdomen, but nothing too terrible. Just wishing I didn't feel so achy!

alicatt Yes bedrest sucks but you it is only for a short while. Hang in there Getting lots of rest is the best thing for implantation
Are you officially on vacation tomorrow?

Coy- How are you? Am I understanding correctly that you are temping to not get pregnant? BBT is not a reliable way to predict that.

I'm working all next week and Christmas Eve, then I have until Jan 3rd off! I'll work from home on the 24th and the 4th so it will be a full 2 weeks at home! So I just need to get through next week! YAY!

I'm not feeling much of anything down there, just mild cramping. I'm so hopeful but also so scared that it won't work. EEK!

 

[Babywhisperer]

AFM - I'm officially 1dp5dt (6 dpo) and I'm more achy than anything. Try lying on your bed for 24 hours! You wake up with a sore back and just plain achy. I have a few cramps in my abdomen, but nothing too terrible. Just wishing I didn't feel so achy!

alicatt Yes bedrest sucks but you it is only for a short while. Hang in there Getting lots of rest is the best thing for implantation
Are you officially on vacation tomorrow?

Coy- How are you? Am I understanding correctly that you are temping to not get pregnant? BBT is not a reliable way to predict that.

I'm working all next week and Christmas Eve, then I have until Jan 3rd off! I'll work from home on the 24th and the 4th so it will be a full 2 weeks at home! So I just need to get through next week! YAY!

I'm not feeling much of anything down there, just mild cramping. I'm so hopeful but also so scared that it won't work. EEK!

I have to work all next week including Christmas Eve too. Bah humbug! Stay positive babe and think nothing but positive thoughts and visualize a bfp, healthy ultrasounds and being in labor and holding your 2 babies!!! Get restful sleep and relax. It will happen. Those blastos are hi quality. What were the gradings last time? I'm glad you have family around you this time.

Afm, I vaginally temp, I think my temps were very erratic from the HSG and it threw everything off. By ewcm and cramping I think I ovu on cd 14 or earlier. I guess I will just wait and see. Does anyone know how they do the IUI? Do I have to take meds?

 

[Grey Eyes]

Babywhisperer-

I think ff changed your ov day because of the erratic high temp- which looks totally awesome btw! Wow! I wouldn't worry about bd dates though you're still good When was your last day of ewcm? I would go with that as far as your ov date. PS sucks to work on Christmas Eve!

Ali- hang ibn there just a few days !! 2WW! Yay!

Chantal- no, I am not bbt'ing to not get prego, just want to recognize what is going on wioth my body. I saw a lot of ladies asking questions about post pregnancy when I was prego so thought I would temp in an effort to gain more post-pregnancy information. Plus I want to know ow long it takes to get back to ovu.....

And on that note...another neg opk today

We are expecting a big storm tonight so I am off to chop wood lol.....

 

[alicatt]

BabyWhisperer - Thanks for the vote of confidence! I guess I just don't want to get too excited until I see that I'm not sure what the grades of my last one were, he said they were really good.
IUI is a procedure where they take DH's sperm and wash it and deposit into your uterus. So it can be done with or without meds. If you aren't taking meds it can still help women who have a hostile cervix (when your fluids down there are too acidic or basic for the sperm to survive). Or you can add in meds to make you have multiple follicles to increase the odds of fertilizing one. Have you seem the results of the SA? Dr's usually start out with a few medicated IUIs then move to IFV, but that all depends on the results you will get on Wed! Oh and I wanted to
mention the thyroid.. it is vital to getting pregnant. So make sure you get it regulated and your TSH around 2. GL!

 

[Philomena]

AFM - I'm officially 1dp5dt (6 dpo) and I'm more achy than anything. Try lying on your bed for 24 hours! You wake up with a sore back and just plain achy. I have a few cramps in my abdomen, but nothing too terrible. Just wishing I didn't feel so achy!

alicatt Yes bedrest sucks but you it is only for a short while. Hang in there Getting lots of rest is the best thing for implantation
Are you officially on vacation tomorrow?

Coy- How are you? Am I understanding correctly that you are temping to not get pregnant? BBT is not a reliable way to predict that.

I'm working all next week and Christmas Eve, then I have until Jan 3rd off! I'll work from home on the 24th and the 4th so it will be a full 2 weeks at home! So I just need to get through next week! YAY!

I'm not feeling much of anything down there, just mild cramping. I'm so hopeful but also so scared that it won't work. EEK!

I have to work all next week including Christmas Eve too. Bah humbug! Stay positive babe and think nothing but positive thoughts and visualize a bfp, healthy ultrasounds and being in labor and holding your 2 babies!!! Get restful sleep and relax. It will happen. Those blastos are hi quality. What were the gradings last time? I'm glad you have family around you this time.

Afm, I vaginally temp, I think my temps were very erratic from the HSG and it threw everything off. By ewcm and cramping I think I ovu on cd 14 or earlier. I guess I will just wait and see. Does anyone know how they do the IUI? Do I have to take meds?

Hi Babywhisperer!
IUI is a good starting point for those with unexplained infertility and it seems to work well when the DH's sperm are low or compromised in some way.
When we went in, the procedure was fairly straightforward... I could have chosen to do the IUI without any medication, but because I was 40 at the time (41 now!) I wanted to give it the best chance possible (not waste anymore time!) and we decided to do a round of Clomid with the IUI attempt.
So.... I did the clomid from day 5-9 - I didn't like how I felt on it... I was really moody and felt uncomfortable in my skin... but I would do it again in a heartbeat because it may have helped me get my bfp! So on CD 12 or CD 13 I got a very strong positive OPK (I like the ones with the smiley face!) and the next day we went in for the IUI procedure. DH made his contribution in the morning and they take that, and do what I refer to as the 'scrub and shine'... they clean it up and concentrate it so you end up with the Best of the Best.... We went for lunch and came back in the afternoon for the procedure. It was a few minutes with the Nurse- she fed a catheter up into the uterus (not a problem for me- I don't even remember it being uncomfortable) and injected the Best of the Best of DH's directly into my uterus and that was that!
Then we were in the TWW and 10 days later I got my first, really faint, BFP!

I've never done the IVF but I think, given the chance, I would always start with the IUI.... IVF sounds rough to me and the IUI is a walk in the park in comparison.... anyway, that's my 2 cents worth!!

 

[never_give_up]

Good morning Ali Have you gotten any news about your s?

 

[alicatt]

Good morning Ali Have you gotten any news about your s?

Nothing yet.. I was just about to call. I also wanted to know which they used! I had given them instructions about it, but I never heard what they ended up doing. I'd like to know the answer to that, and I also need to call and confirm my appts. I have one with my acupuncturist tomorrow and one on Friday to test my progesterone. I have no idea what time! LOL! I was a little out of it on Saturday.

 

[never_give_up]

Good morning Ali Have you gotten any news about your s?

Nothing yet.. I was just about to call. I also wanted to know which they used! I had given them instructions about it, but I never heard what they ended up doing. I'd like to know the answer to that, and I also need to call and confirm my appts. I have one with my acupuncturist tomorrow and one on Friday to test my progesterone. I have no idea what time! LOL! I was a little out of it on Saturday.

Did you choose 2 sperm donors in case one person couldn't make it on the day of retrieval?
My acupuncturist is on holiday now for 2 weeks so can't get any more appointments till the new year. My chart this month has very big fluctuations which I have never had before. I was googling it and people said thyroid causes it. I had a hyperactive thyroid 10 years ago but I was treated for it with carbimazole pills and it has been fine since. What do you think about the huge dips in my bbt?

 

[alicatt]

Good morning Ali Have you gotten any news about your s?

Nothing yet.. I was just about to call. I also wanted to know which they used! I had given them instructions about it, but I never heard what they ended up doing. I'd like to know the answer to that, and I also need to call and confirm my appts. I have one with my acupuncturist tomorrow and one on Friday to test my progesterone. I have no idea what time! LOL! I was a little out of it on Saturday.

Did you choose 2 sperm donors in case one person couldn't make it on the day of retrieval?
My acupuncturist is on holiday now for 2 weeks so can't get any more appointments till the new year. My chart this month has very big fluctuations which I have never had before. I was googling it and people said thyroid causes it. I had a hyperactive thyroid 10 years ago but I was treated for it with carbimazole pills and it has been fine since. What do you think about the huge dips in my bbt?

I did choose 2, because the one I wanted only had 1 vial left. So I picked that one and one more just in case my primary one wasn't any good. I just got the call from my FS.. he said he was able to freeze 2 more, so I have 4 YAY! I also asked him which donor we used and he used my favorite! So we have enough for 2 FET's if this doesn't work or if I want to have a second child in the future. YIPEE!! I'm so happy

Never - your thyroid is very important in fertility, I would go and have yours checked, just make sure it is in the normal range. They say that for fertility you want your TSH to be around 2. I think mine is 2.15. Or it was last time we checked it. My chart used to bounce around like that too, I just assumed it was due to my environment. Maybe going to bed earlier/later or getting up earlier/later?

 

[never_give_up]

Good morning Ali Have you gotten any news about your s?

Nothing yet.. I was just about to call. I also wanted to know which they used! I had given them instructions about it, but I never heard what they ended up doing. I'd like to know the answer to that, and I also need to call and confirm my appts. I have one with my acupuncturist tomorrow and one on Friday to test my progesterone. I have no idea what time! LOL! I was a little out of it on Saturday.

Did you choose 2 sperm donors in case one person couldn't make it on the day of retrieval?
My acupuncturist is on holiday now for 2 weeks so can't get any more appointments till the new year. My chart this month has very big fluctuations which I have never had before. I was googling it and people said thyroid causes it. I had a hyperactive thyroid 10 years ago but I was treated for it with carbimazole pills and it has been fine since. What do you think about the huge dips in my bbt?

I did choose 2, because the one I wanted only had 1 vial left. So I picked that one and one more just in case my primary one wasn't any good. I just got the call from my FS.. he said he was able to freeze 2 more, so I have 4 YAY! I also asked him which donor we used and he used my favorite! So we have enough for 2 FET's if this doesn't work or if I want to have a second child in the future. YIPEE!! I'm so happy

Never - your thyroid is very important in fertility, I would go and have yours checked, just make sure it is in the normal range. They say that for fertility you want your TSH to be around 2. I think mine is 2.15. Or it was last time we checked it. My chart used to bounce around like that too, I just assumed it was due to my environment. Maybe going to bed earlier/later or getting up earlier/later?

That is awesome Ali!
If you have twins now then you can have a house full of children