November 15, 2008
I figured it was about time I updated my journey. Hopefully this will help someone else get to that BFP!
My dh & I started trying to conceive in September 2007. I stopped taking the pill somewhere near the end of August 2007. Like everyone else, we thought we would get pregnant very quickly. We even planned a big anniversary/baby making trip to Mexico. We were sooooo excited! No one in our families has had any problems with infertility. We are both young (I was 27 & my dh 29) and we are both within a normal bmi.
The first month we tried I thought I was pregnant b/c AF didn't come for about 5-6 wks. But I kept getting BFN's. The next cycle was about 7 weeks. then the next about 8 weeks. Each time I thought I was pregnant, but got BFN. I didn't understand bc before I went on BC I always had long (32 day) but regular cycles. I went to an OB/GYN & she said it could take 6 months for your body to regulate after getting off of BC and all I could do was wait. So I waited, and kept trying. I went back at 6 months and was told that there was nothing I could do, but try for a year and then go see an RE. If your doctor tells you that - FIND ANOTHER DOCTOR.
Luckily I made an appointment with another dr., thanks to the advise from the people on this site. He did some blood work and told me my Fsh levels were normal, I think it was 6 or 7. But my LH was through the roof at 21. THat meant one of 2 things. 1. I was ovulating. Or 2. I had PCOS. He told me to bd just in case, but to also try the ovulation predictor kits and charting my temps to see what I found. During this time - I still getting AF, but only every 7-9 weeks.
I started buying the regular OPK's at first and realized they were always both pink and I couldn't tell the difference. Also, I couldn't really tell the best time to take them b/c I didn't have regualr cycles. So, I upgraded. I bought the digital OPK's and I started using them ever day. I finally got a positive and was so excited! But when AF didn't show in 2 wks and I still got a BFN I resorted to starting over. THat's when I noticed I would get several positive - digitial - OPK's a cycle.
My charting wasn't much help either as it looked more like a topography map than anything else. I took my temp at exactly the same time every morning and even put it on fertilityfriends.com for digital tracking, but it just said "anovulatory". Or would say I ovulated when I had not. So, I bought a book on PCOS, read it, and headed back to the dr. After all, his sign said he dealt with "infertility".
If I could pass one word of advise onto anyone reading this it would be that not all dr's that say they work with infertility do. Writing scripts for Comid & fertility shots is not the same as being specialized in infertility and trying to find and target the problem. Dr's need no special training to add "infertility" to their sign outside. So be sure to ask exactly what makes your dr. specialized.
Anyways, back to the story. I went back to the dr with my charts and my stories of my OPK's. I obviously wasn't ovulating the last time I went when my LH was so high, so I was assuming it was the PCOS, but I wasn't completely convinced after reading the book about it. I'm not overweight, I used to have regular cycles, and my dr never did an ultrasound to confirm.
Instead, he just gave me Clomid. I should point out that I do have PCOS and it has been confirmed with an ultrasound (different doc). But fully explaining, and fully diagnosing are all parts of being a good doctor in my mind.
FIrst round of clomid I had a AF came after 28 days, but was VERY light. I don't know if I actually ovulated b/c that dr. doesn't check progesterone levels. But I started another round of Clomid just in case. That time I bought the $250 OV watch (waste of money). I didn't get AF the second time. I took a month off, then went back to the dr. He was ready to put me on fertility shots, but at 27. I was not ready for the risk of triplets, so I asked if I could try an increased dose of Clomid first. I had HORRIBLE side effects, but still no AF. I talked it over with my husband and we decided we would rather adopt than have triplets at our current ages, we just didn't think we could handle it. So we decided to hold off on the shots.
By this time it was September 2008, a year of trying, so I started looking into RE's. I originally thought you only went to an RE for invitro - but thought I would look into it more. I found acrm.com and read their "journey" which was almost an exact footprint of mine. I researched prices and realized it wasn't as expensive as I had originally thought so I made an appt.
My first appointment was at the beginning of September 2008. I had actually just gotten AF - randomly - a couple of days before my appt.
I went in, they talked to me for about half an hour explaining all the steps and the options & what all we needed to check. They immediately did an ultrasound to check my ovulation status and my PCOS (which confirmed it). I was given Femara to make me ovulate
(since clomid didn't work), and metformin to get my insulin levels under control b/c of my PCOS.
They sent me for a full blood work-up to make sure nothing else was wrong. ANd sent me to have an HSG to clear my tubes & make sure they weren't blocked. On 9/10 I came back for another ultrasound to check my ovulation status. I had 4 eggs "in the running", came back the next day for an HCG trigger shot to induce the ovulation. Then came back on 9/12 for an IUI. We figured after a year of bd - we would go ahead and try an IUI if they could get us to ovulate. On 9/19 (my birthday!) I went back for a blood test where they confirmed that I HAD ovulated! And my progesterone was high enough to carry a child. ON 9/24 I took a Home pregnancy test and got my very first BFP! I went back on 9/25 for a confirmation blood test which confirmed I WAS PREGNANT!
They had me come back for 2 more blood tests, then an ultrasound at 6 weeks where I saw my baby for the first time. And another ultrasound at 7wks 3days where I saw the heartbeat (139) for the first time. They released me to my regular OB who I went to at 9weeks for my 3rd ultrasound and saw the heartbeat at 164! Just one month after going to an RE I was pregnant!
I am now 11 weeks, almost through the first trimester, and I've never been happier in my life!
My dh & I started trying to conceive in September 2007. I stopped taking the pill somewhere near the end of August 2007. Like everyone else, we thought we would get pregnant very quickly. We even planned a big anniversary/baby making trip to Mexico. We were sooooo excited! No one in our families has had any problems with infertility. We are both young (I was 27 & my dh 29) and we are both within a normal bmi.
The first month we tried I thought I was pregnant b/c AF didn't come for about 5-6 wks. But I kept getting BFN's. The next cycle was about 7 weeks. then the next about 8 weeks. Each time I thought I was pregnant, but got BFN. I didn't understand bc before I went on BC I always had long (32 day) but regular cycles. I went to an OB/GYN & she said it could take 6 months for your body to regulate after getting off of BC and all I could do was wait. So I waited, and kept trying. I went back at 6 months and was told that there was nothing I could do, but try for a year and then go see an RE. If your doctor tells you that - FIND ANOTHER DOCTOR.
Luckily I made an appointment with another dr., thanks to the advise from the people on this site. He did some blood work and told me my Fsh levels were normal, I think it was 6 or 7. But my LH was through the roof at 21. THat meant one of 2 things. 1. I was ovulating. Or 2. I had PCOS. He told me to bd just in case, but to also try the ovulation predictor kits and charting my temps to see what I found. During this time - I still getting AF, but only every 7-9 weeks.
I started buying the regular OPK's at first and realized they were always both pink and I couldn't tell the difference. Also, I couldn't really tell the best time to take them b/c I didn't have regualr cycles. So, I upgraded. I bought the digital OPK's and I started using them ever day. I finally got a positive and was so excited! But when AF didn't show in 2 wks and I still got a BFN I resorted to starting over. THat's when I noticed I would get several positive - digitial - OPK's a cycle.
My charting wasn't much help either as it looked more like a topography map than anything else. I took my temp at exactly the same time every morning and even put it on fertilityfriends.com for digital tracking, but it just said "anovulatory". Or would say I ovulated when I had not. So, I bought a book on PCOS, read it, and headed back to the dr. After all, his sign said he dealt with "infertility".
If I could pass one word of advise onto anyone reading this it would be that not all dr's that say they work with infertility do. Writing scripts for Comid & fertility shots is not the same as being specialized in infertility and trying to find and target the problem. Dr's need no special training to add "infertility" to their sign outside. So be sure to ask exactly what makes your dr. specialized.
Anyways, back to the story. I went back to the dr with my charts and my stories of my OPK's. I obviously wasn't ovulating the last time I went when my LH was so high, so I was assuming it was the PCOS, but I wasn't completely convinced after reading the book about it. I'm not overweight, I used to have regular cycles, and my dr never did an ultrasound to confirm.
Instead, he just gave me Clomid. I should point out that I do have PCOS and it has been confirmed with an ultrasound (different doc). But fully explaining, and fully diagnosing are all parts of being a good doctor in my mind.
FIrst round of clomid I had a AF came after 28 days, but was VERY light. I don't know if I actually ovulated b/c that dr. doesn't check progesterone levels. But I started another round of Clomid just in case. That time I bought the $250 OV watch (waste of money). I didn't get AF the second time. I took a month off, then went back to the dr. He was ready to put me on fertility shots, but at 27. I was not ready for the risk of triplets, so I asked if I could try an increased dose of Clomid first. I had HORRIBLE side effects, but still no AF. I talked it over with my husband and we decided we would rather adopt than have triplets at our current ages, we just didn't think we could handle it. So we decided to hold off on the shots.
By this time it was September 2008, a year of trying, so I started looking into RE's. I originally thought you only went to an RE for invitro - but thought I would look into it more. I found acrm.com and read their "journey" which was almost an exact footprint of mine. I researched prices and realized it wasn't as expensive as I had originally thought so I made an appt.
My first appointment was at the beginning of September 2008. I had actually just gotten AF - randomly - a couple of days before my appt.
I went in, they talked to me for about half an hour explaining all the steps and the options & what all we needed to check. They immediately did an ultrasound to check my ovulation status and my PCOS (which confirmed it). I was given Femara to make me ovulate
(since clomid didn't work), and metformin to get my insulin levels under control b/c of my PCOS.
They sent me for a full blood work-up to make sure nothing else was wrong. ANd sent me to have an HSG to clear my tubes & make sure they weren't blocked. On 9/10 I came back for another ultrasound to check my ovulation status. I had 4 eggs "in the running", came back the next day for an HCG trigger shot to induce the ovulation. Then came back on 9/12 for an IUI. We figured after a year of bd - we would go ahead and try an IUI if they could get us to ovulate. On 9/19 (my birthday!) I went back for a blood test where they confirmed that I HAD ovulated! And my progesterone was high enough to carry a child. ON 9/24 I took a Home pregnancy test and got my very first BFP! I went back on 9/25 for a confirmation blood test which confirmed I WAS PREGNANT!
They had me come back for 2 more blood tests, then an ultrasound at 6 weeks where I saw my baby for the first time. And another ultrasound at 7wks 3days where I saw the heartbeat (139) for the first time. They released me to my regular OB who I went to at 9weeks for my 3rd ultrasound and saw the heartbeat at 164! Just one month after going to an RE I was pregnant!
I am now 11 weeks, almost through the first trimester, and I've never been happier in my life!
November 15, 2008
I now know 3 people who got preggo the first month at an RE!