The Official TTC Thread!

[Hudson_Hawk]

Date: 3/2/2010 12:20:20 PM
Author: sunnyd

Date: 3/2/2010 11:42:16 AM

Author: noelwr

4th of April from Fort Lauderdale! and both of our birthdays will be during the cruise. maybe they''ll give us something for free.

They will! Well, Princess did for our honeymoon. Just let them know! We got a cake, they sang to us, we got balloons outside of our door and spa discounts.

Like HH said, getting on and off the boat was easy. You scan your card to get off, scan it to get back on, walk through a metal detector and put your bag through the scanner.

Sunny, any updates on the vasheesh situation?

 

[ksluice]

Afternoon Ladies!
Came across this article and thought this thread might enjoy it or at the very least enjoy its title

[/b]

 

[Loves Vintage]

TopoD - Any news?

DandiAndi - Welcome! Welcome! We''ll take good care of you here when you''re ready to jump in! Just let us know!

******

A ME update: I have no update. It is frustrating. I have been one moody LV lately. I am just hopeful that is a sign AF is on her way.

On Saturday, I found out that my beloved little love-bug of a kitty (who is 20!!) is going to pass soon. He has a tumor in his throat. I knew this day was coming. He has had some other medical issues for the past year, so he has been steadily losing weight. He is taking steroids now, and is eating A LOT, but the doctor told me that he will decline quickly. I will bring him to the vet to say good-bye when the time is right. This could also be why I am so moody lately.

 

[Laila619]

Aww, SO sorry Loves Vintage.

Hug your little kitty for me. I know how much kitties are like family members, I have two.

 

[dcgator]

Date: 3/2/2010 4:07:13 PM
Author: Laila619
Aww, SO sorry Loves Vintage.

Hug your little kitty for me. I know how much kitties are like family members, I have two.

LV: My heart goes out to you as well. I also have two little furry boys and I it would break my (and my DH''s) heart for either of them to leave us. Super big hugs and please know my thoughts are with you and your poor little pumpkin.

 

[dcgator]

Hi Ladies,

Sorry for being MIA the past few days, but I was in NoLa this past weekend running the half marathon. Needless to say, my body (and mind, thanks to a cold from my DH) is running a bit slow...

Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed your weekends'' too. Looks like I have missed a bit here.

*****
Mia: I am sorry for all the TTC/baby confusion. I wish I had something to add about juggling school and work, but I am not balancing all that. I do applaud you on your efforts to get it done though

.

I can comment on age though. I too am 28 and I definitely feel like I don''t want to wait too long to have a LO. However, as most of the ladies have already said, we are "spring chickens" in the TTC world. So, just try to tell your biological clock to snooze for a few months, and then hopefully you will be ready, both mentally and time wise

.

*****
Bella: How exciting is it to figure all that cycle stuff out. Congrats on getting your two days of OPK''s and BD''ing and now on the TWW...Woohoo!

*****
Bliss: Sounds like you had way too much fun shopping online. I am sure your husband with love the surprise

, lol. Indeed, it''s a big sense of empowerment to TCOYF, girl power!

. I must have missed the post about you going somewhere, but where ever that may be, travel safe and see you when you return!

*****
Geri: Welcome back to the TTC pool. I hope you get your wish and get KU in time for a Holiday baby. Fingers crossed

*****
Topo: I am sorry about the BFN this month. But with that awesome positive attiude, I am sure you will get KU soon

*****
Ice: I am so jealous about Spain. I lived in Valencia for a couple months in college and LOVED

it. You are going to have a BLAST! Eat lots of yummy food and dance late into the night. Viva la vida Espanola!

*****
Sunnyd: I am happy to hear that you got an answer. When you decide to jump back in, we will be here to welcome you back (properly

)

*****
DandiAndi: Welcome to the TTC hood!

You will find a couple of us are more leisurely working our way into the pool. The prenatals and insurance are a great start! You can look forward to diving into the temping and CF spying when you are ready, and we welcome all the questions you might have. Enjoy your stay!

 

[noelwr]

I love my CBFM. it told me that today I am at PEAK fertility. granted, if it had continued to tell me that I had low fertility all cycle, I would have thought it was crap. anyway, I was expecting peak because last night I took an OPK (even having gone pee not too far beforehand and had something to drink) and it was a clear positive. the day before, I couldn''t even see the Test line on the OPK which leads me to believe that I probably do not have a fade-in pattern that some women have. anyway, I am happy that my body is doing the normal stuff it is supposed to be doing. I have started a little tracking sheet for myself in Excel so that I can start comparing each cycle. hopefully of course I won''t have to compare for long!

LV - I''m sorry about your kitty. I hope you have enough time to say good-bye to him.

dcgator - wow, your half-marathon sounds impressive! we love NoLa. DH misses the po'' boys.

 

[Bella_mezzo]

YAY Noelwr! Glad your body is getting back on track! It seems I do have a serious fade-in and fade-out which is a little confusing, but isn''t it nice to know your body is working properly and there is all this stuff going on inside of you all the time. it''s pretty amazing! You''re like BAM! positive!

Are you guys TTC this cycle? if so, best of luck

 

[Bella_mezzo]

LV-I just saw your post, I am so sorry!

 

[Ryan Claire]

Noelwr - so glad the CBEFM is working for it... gives you a little piece of mind in this crazy process.

LV - sorry about your kitty, losing a beloved pet is always so hard.

Bella - I hope you can try to sit back and enjoy your two week wait... I hope your vigilance with BD and OPKS pays off (love the at work stories - don''t worry I am gonna be "that" girl too

Mia - have you talked with your hubby? Any new developments? Those conversations can be tough but you seem to really want to make sure you are doing this as a team and I think that is admirable.

Bliss - I have definitely done a similar shopping spree - just add instead cups, B6 supplements, robitussim, and royal jelly to that list! Funny how our shopping sprees change over time... 3 years ago it was apartment stuff, 2 years ago it was wedding stuff... now it''s preseed and sticks to pee on.

DandiAndi - welcome... hope your stay is short.

Geri - welcome back. Here is to trying to sneak in a 2010 due date

TopD - any period yet?


************

Well our first cycle TTC lasted 58 days and there was no ovulation... BOOOOO! But I finished up my provera on Friday and got my period on Monday... so I am on CD3 and start Clomid today. I am looking forward to having more hope this cycle.

Lanie - how has Clomid been treating you? O yet?

Would be happy to hear anyone else''s experiences with Clomid as well.

 

[Lanie]

Noelwr -- good to see you got a Peak! That''s wonderful news...I hope this one is the one for you and your DH!

RyanClaire -- how exciting to start Clomid! Or for me it was! Let me know your symptoms on it. I felt a little dizzy, lots of headaches, and hot flashes. But nothing that would keep me home in bed or anything. I went in for an ultrasound to see if anything happened and NOTHING. Nada.

It really upset me. My DH is telling me to be positive and I''m trying. I have lots of little follicles in each ovary, but not one that looked promising. I went in on CD13. I''m going in Friday to see if anything materializes over 3 days, but I''m not really optimistic. He had me on 100mg, so he''s either going to up my dosage or put me on Femara. I want to know if Metformin would do anything for my PCOS. Lots of people take it and love it. So we''ll see...I swore that it made me ovulate bc I thought I could feel it happening! I hope you have better luck than me. Glad to see your cycle finally ended!

LovesVintage -- sorry to hear about your cat. That''s always very sad.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Thanks, Laila, for your thoughts about my kitty. He's still doing well. Steroids are an amazing short-term solution. Miss you around here!

dcgator - Congrats on the half marathon! What an accomplishment!! Have you always been a runner? Thanks for your thoughts about my Cayman. I am cherishing the time we have together and giving him lots of love, and steroids in puree'd cat food. Hehe. He's like his old self right now.

Noel - Happy to hear the CBFM is working out for you. Hope to hear some good news from you in, oh, 10 days or so!

Bella - Thank you. You are a sweetheart. Can't wait to see your diamond pics this weekend!

Ryan Claire - Hooray for a new cycle and for Clomid!! What dose are you starting at -- 50 or 100 mgs? Do you have any follow-up visits planned with your doctor, or will you wait and see how it goes?

Lanie - I'm so sorry to hear that you did not have a good response to the Clomid. Maybe you will have a pleasant surprise in a few days when you go back? If not, then at least you know they have a good plan in place regarding what to try next. Take comfort in the fact that you are working with someone who specializes in fertility issues. Was the doctor concerned at all? I would bet not, right, because not everyone responds to Clomid the same. You are saving yourself a lot of time (in terms of cycles) by having the monitoring done as you go along and figuring our what works vs. what does not in real time. Chin up, Lanie! I *know* it's not always easy, but you'll get there!

***********

I still have not seen AF. Tomorrow will be 5 weeks since the d&c. They said AF should arrive 4-6 weeks after. I've always assumed it would take 6 weeks, so maybe next Friday? I have a feeling it may take even longer. The wait was easier at first, but what can I do. I try not to think about it. I've been going to acupuncture weekly, but am starting to wonder whether it is truly necessary, especially when I add up the cost of the visits and realize I could put that money toward other, ahem, projects instead (must stay out of SMTR!) But, I will continue to go and hope for the best result.

Annoying story time - my assistant decides to tell me yesterday how she is so tired, her age is catching up with her (she is only 35!) and how she really wants to have a third child because she wants to have one together with her bf. Him, not so much, but she is disregarding that point right now. Anyway, she goes on to tell me that even though she wants a baby, she doesn't know how she could possibly take care of an infant at this stage in her life. She is just sooooooooo TIRED, and it's sooooooooo much work, that she doesn't think she could handle all of the work being that she is soooooooo old, and it was different when she was YOUNGER and had her girls in her 20s. Then, she could do it because she had ENERGY, but not now, because she is so OLD. OK, so this story would not sound so bad if she didn't know that: (a) I am 36, (b) I have been having ttc issues, and (c) I recently had a m/c. (She knows my schedule, doctor's appointments, answers my calls. Not telling her was virtually impossible.) Sadly, I don't even think she was being passive-aggressive. I think she is just completely clueless and does not think before she speaks. Fortunately, I know this, so it is really only mildly annoying to me.

I did mention the story to me DH. This is the positive part of my story. He told me that the difference btw her situation and ours is that he will actually help me with the baby, that we are a team and that I am going to be surprised by how much effort he will contribute toward raising our baby. Awww. I know he will. I felt much better after he said that. We are very much a good team together, no matter what is on the agenda. And, so, we wait . . . .

 

[Bella_mezzo]

Aw-LV your husband sounds so sweet!

I am sorry your assistant is so self centered and insensative, that''s really not ok

You are a better woman than me b/c I porbably would have burst into tears or gotten really angry.

 

[noelwr]

Bella - yes, we are definitely TTC this cycle.

my CBFM gave me another PEAK today, but after reading the manual again it says that it will always give a 2nd PEAK after the first one (so I wonder why you have to even bother POAS that day). anyway, I am completely understanding what Bella was on about it earlier. we are sore and tired and taking a break tonight. I did the math, and according to my incredibly unscientific calculations, I should have already ovulated (probably last night), but latest this morning and if we do BD tonight and it takes 6 hours for the swimmers to get where they need to be, it is very unlikely the egg will still be viable. I know to be safe we should BD because I could always ovulate late, but I think it is physically too exhausting and really not sexy anymore when it turns into a chore. DH has been a real trooper this cycle. so that said, today I start my 2ww.

also, I was wondering what the little circle is on the PEAK level on the CBFM. I thought it was a white egg with a black dot in it. I showed it to DH and he said, "that''s supposed to represent your uterus with an egg (the black dot) in it." how is it that a man understands these things better than I do?

LV - gosh, I didn''t realize you were still waiting for AF. I also thought I would have to wait for 6 weeks and she came earlier, so there''s always hope. so you''re saying that your assistant knows about your situation and still said that all to you?!? maybe she''s jealous of you trying because she wants a 3rd and trying to dissuade you? but most likely she''s just clueless. I''m glad your DH had such loving words and that you guys feel like a team.

 

[sweetlime]

Hi all,
My doctor suggested that I get a hysterosalpingogram (HSG) test. I''m a little nervous about it.... anyone have any experiences to share? Thx!

 

[Loves Vintage]

Bella and Noel - I'm glad it's not just me and that I wasn't being too sensitive. Yes, Noel, she knows about all of it, including that I was pregnant. She even brought me all of her baby books!! Every time she would say something about it to me though, she would say, oh but I shouldn't say anything because you could have a mc. Uggh, she is just inappropriate, in many, many ways. I could start many a thread about her on here, but I never do! She does have a kind heart; however, she does not think before she speaks, EVER, and says the most inappropriate things to EVERYONE (like speaking to senior executives like they are 2 year old little boys in the daycare she used to run, calling co-workers "Love" as in "Good Night, Love" or "hey, thanks for that file, Love"). I realize it reads as though she might be jealous, and maybe she is, but she is not at all mean-spirited. I think Bella was right, she is just very self-centered. She spews out whatever is going on in her mind, in her world, and doesn't think about the consequences.

Hi Sweetlime - I had an HSG. Several of us did. It's a little hard to search on here, but some of us relayed our experiences. For me, it was not a big deal at all, no pain, a slight bit of discomfort, easy to breathe through it. I will find my post and re-post it here for you. I would try not to stress about it. I would also limit the amount of time that you spend searching the internet for experiences posted by others. Is your HSG scheduled already?

 

[Bella_mezzo]

noelwr! yay for the 2ww. I know, I am trying not to be stressed, but the suspense is quite high

i have 4 OPKs left and am just going to pee on them next Sun, M, T, W and then I'll try POAS. I know the OPKs can come up positive for pregnancy, but since I don't know how sensative they are and since they don't say "not pregnant" on them, I don't think it will be too demoralizing to pee on them. I HATE taking preg. tests and having them come up negative. lots of PS dust coming your way for a BFP and a sticky bean!!!!

LV-Are you sure that it's not time to find a new assistant? The things she said to you were misguided, self centered, and inconsiderate, but the other stuff you just mentioned....super unprofessional!!!!

Sweetlime-I had a very similar test 2 years ago for this horrible uncontrolled uterine bleeding thing I had. it wasn't so bad, but I did take 2 valium before hand just in case

ETA: I think I am going to do yoga tongiht before bed, I'm not sure if it's just b/c I'm tired or the itnerview process for this potential job or school or if it's because of the 2ww, but I am all tight and feel like I am clenching my shoulders and my stomach. I'm consciously trying to relax, but it's not working very well

I just double checked my chart for this month and I am pretty sure I Oed on Monday, CD 17. I think our best shots were BD CD16 (O-1) and CD 14 (O-3) here's hoping one of them worked!

 

[Loves Vintage]

Sweetlime - Reposting these for you.

From 11/13/09: I had the HSG today. Fallopian tubes are clear. The HSG took a little longer than the sono-HSG because I had to go to a radiology center. I was more than a little taken aback when I was called into the x-ray room, and saw three people (in a dimly lit room with a huge exam table) looking at me. For a quick moment, I thought, THAT is not the room I'm supposed to go in, is it? But, it was; in I went. I asked to see the catheter this time, which they all seemed to be amused by (mostly because the girl who was in just before me apparently didn't want to know anything about what was happening.) The nurse who performed the S-HSG yesterday, also performed this procedure. There was also an x-ray technician, I assumed, and a student who was observing. After everything was put in place, the radiologist came in (so that's 4 people now) and they ran the dye through. Everything flowed where it was supposed to flow. I saw the dye running through the fallopian tubes. Pretty neat.

From 1/27/10, in response to a post by Lanie: No need to worry about the HSG. I thought it was very easy. After it was done, I recall saying something to the technician, like "wow, that was easy!" I asked to see what the catheter looked like beforehand because I was curious. Everyone in the room laughed because I guess the girl before me didn't want to know anything about anything. Everyone is different! Anyway, to answer your question, the hardest part for me was the speculum. After that it was very easy, seriously. There was some very minor cramp-like sensation, but I just exhaled deeply and was not phased by it at all.

Oh, mine was performed at an X-ray type of place. A nurse (from my RE's office) put the catheter in. Once everything was in place, the radiologist or technician (I have no idea) came in to view the dye going through on the screen. I was able to watch too. It was pretty neat!

There was also another nurse and a med student in the room. Oh, and you are lying flat on a table. That's all I can remember. Try not to worry about it. Chances are it will be uneventful!

P.S. I have stopped reading what random women on the internet say. I think that often patients may only hear part of what they are told, or remember things incorrectly, and then report this information as facts. It leads to a lot of unnecessary concern. That's how I'm feeling today, anyway.

******
After re-reading those, it looks like I am pretty consistent, right down to the phrase "pretty neat", haha. Anyway, LucyLucy had one the cycle before, or the cycle that she conceived. I think she said it was a bit painful for her. They do say that there may be an increased chance of conception, following an HSG, because the tubes are cleared. I asked my RE about this, he said that yes "this is a phenomenon, that is unexplained". We did not talk about percentage increase, but it is nice to know there may be a silver lining to having the test.

 

[lucy.lucy.80]

Hi Sweetlime

I had an HSG mid december after 6 months of TTC since all the other tests came back normal. I was very nervous too, but the whole proceedure took only about 10 minutes. I have described my experience below.

HSG was preformed in the radiology department within my medical group. It does have to be done before I believe CD 10. Nurse took me into the room and I put on a gown and was asked to lay on the table under the xray machine. The nurse and someone observing were present at the time. They put something under my butt to prop me up a little bit. The doctor walked on the room and explained he would stick a needle like thing into my uterus area (not really sure exactly where) and fluid would be pumped through my fallopian tube. They turned off the lights, inserted the needle object (see below) and asked me to tilt left and then tilt right. I could see the fluid spilling into each of my tubes on the monitor. Doctor said my tubes were clear.

the insertion of the needle felt like bad cramping (i did not take any tylenol or advil before hand which I strongly suggest doing!) it will help ease the feeling.

Also bring a pad with you. I did have light spotting and fluid secretion for about 1-2 days.

THe following 3 months after the proceedure there is an increased chance of getting pregnant. I actually conceived 10 days after the proceedure. Wish you lots of luck

 

[Loves Vintage]

Bella - YES!! She is very unprofessional. Nothing will be done about it. My boss would NEVER agree to terminate her. In fact, I think he would be appalled at the suggestion. We are like family here, and every family has a dysfunctional member or two, right? Plus, she is actually very good at her job, which is not true of some other members of the staff.

Since I was going back looking at old posts, I came across this old gem and had to post for you to give a little more flavor about my work place. It is a sitcom of a workplace.

From 11/12/09 (week that I had several apptmts for diagnostics): It's pretty easy for me to leave the office for these appointments (meaning that I do not have a lot of conference calls or meetings to schedule around), but I work in a very close-knit (which I usually love) office, so my recent appointments are causing some suspicion. It is bad enough that one of my co-workers asks me regularly, maybe like once a week or so, when we are going to have kids. He thinks he is being funny, but come on, I constantly joke/deflect/change the subject, you would think he would back off. So, I've recently told him, as directly as I can, that maybe he should stop asking me that, maybe there's a reason why I don't want to talk about it, etc. And, he said, ok, he will limit himself to asking me once per month or so. Nutty, but that's how we are here.

So, he asked me about my appointments today. He said it is very suspicious. I told him that I am considering cosmetic dentistry.

*******

Now, this guy, still asks me "if we've made any BIG decisions yet" or "if I have any BIG NEWS yet?" I just laugh it off, but it is part of the sit-com-likeness of my work place. Sorry, but I am just not going to share my fertility issues with a 52 year old man (that's right, 52). Can't imagine if I did. His eyes would start darting around the room looking for the nearest escape route!

He also has major issues with our assistant (she supports both of us), but is incapable of addressing those issues with her directly, so he often relocates himself to a back office, she wonders why, she asks him if she has done something wrong, he says "oh, no, no, no, it's not you". I did talk to her about the "love, hun, sweetie" thing in the beginning, she acknowledged it is not professional, but still does it, sometimes, but usually not followed by a "oh, I shouldn't say that."

And, so I have a hollow door that I sometimes shut and a nice sound machine that blocks some of chatter!

Ahaha, can you tell I have no real updates?! I am now re-posting old posts and talking about my office!

********
Bella - Do you have a yoga tape at home?

 

[Bella_mezzo]

WOW, I thought my office was bad

That is pretty crazy!

I do have a yoga tape at home, Barbara Benaugh''s Yoga for Every Body or something like that...I''ve only used it once since I got it about 2 months ago

, so it will be good to do it tonight. I used to go to her studio in Boston when it was still open and loved studying with her.

 

[lili]

sweetlime--
i had the hsg done twice (once 3 years ago and once this pass dec).
like others have said, it is not too bad.
it may get a little uncomfortable if your tubes are blocked because of the pressure build-up.
my doctor prescribed antibiotics and 800mg of ibuprofen that i start taking 2 days before the procedure.
the nurse told me that there were some women who didn't take the painkillers and was complaining about cramps after the procedure.
so definitely take some if your dr didn't order you to.

i second what LV said about the hsg increasing your chances of fertility up to 3 cycles after the test.
sometimes, your tubes may have some debris that cause your infertility, and the hsg will blast through and clear up the tubes.

ETA: ditto on the pad otherwise you'll have to wear the bulky hospital pad home.

 

[sweetlime]

Thanks gals for the info! I''m not as nervous anymore - I''ll go ahead and schedule the procedure for next week.

Now that I think about, I remember watching Giuliana Rancic getting the HSG procedure on ''Giuliana and Bill'' a few months ago - and you''re right, it wasn''t a big deal. Does anyone else watch that show? Giuliana also got an IUI on last week''s episode - I didn''t know what that procedure was either until I watched the show.

 

[Ryan Claire]

Lanie - NO! I am so sorry you didn''t respond well to the Clomid. It is very exciting to start taking Clomid cause you assume it will work! I am sure it was tough news to hear... I know I am not prepared for it. But I am glad you are being monitored and can at least trouble shoot and try to find something more successful for the next cycle. Fingers crossed for some major growth on Friday.

Besides feeling like you ovulated did you get any other "proof" from CBEFM or OPKS or temps or all of the above? I know they can all be affected by the drugs, but just curious.

LV - I am on 50mg and not being monitored... does exactly leave me feeling too confident but who knows. And sounds like your coworker needs to remove her head from her @** and be a little more aware of who she is complaining to... but at least your hubby''s response was adorable - glad he is able to let you know how involved he wants to be as an expecting father.

Bella - looking forward to hearing GOOD news from you in under 2 weeks... sounds like your timing was really good.

******

CD4 2nd day of Clomid... not headaches or hotflashes so far... can''t really say I feel much of anything different. Guess that is a good thing.

 

[swimmer]

Date: 3/3/2010 4:52:17 PM
Author: Lanie
I have lots of little follicles in each ovary, but not one that looked promising. I went in on CD13. I'm going in Friday to see if anything materializes over 3 days, but I'm not really optimistic. He had me on 100mg, so he's either going to up my dosage or put me on Femara. I want to know if Metformin would do anything for my PCOS. Lots of people take it and love it. So we'll see...!

Lanie, I had the same thing with clomid...not much at 150 even. Lots of little ones but nothing really looking DECENT, though the RE was really encouraging at the time...and then my lining was nada so we just quit it. I cannot tell you how much metformin helped to begin with and then doing the shots, well, it just worked; and will for you too! and without the lousy feelings caused by clomid. Good luck to you, I hope that your follies show up quickly!

LV, where do I find your assistant and have a nice chat with her...and the 52yr old male inquiring mind! dear lord.

 

[Lanie]

Swimmer -- your post made me feel so much better. Thank you so much for peeking back into TTC land and reassuring me. When I go for my follow up to my RE this morning, I''ll ask about Metformin. I know of so many PCOSers on it, I''m not quite sure why that wasn''t the first line of defense...

RyanClaire -- I know! It sucked big time. I was so upset when I walked out of there. My CBEFM still is saying "high" and my temps were really weird. When I was on Clomid, my temps were sky high. When I stopped they were a little more normal. I stopped temping because I don''t think this is the cycle and I didn''t want another thing telling me I wasn''t ovulating. I hope you have better results! Keep me updated on how you are feeling on it...I actually liked feeling the hot flashes and the headaches bc it told me it was working and at least doing something!

Sweetlime -- I see Bill and Guiliana every once in awhile. After you said she did an IUI, I made my DH record the show so I can see it! I wonder if they got pregnant if they would spill it to the media, or if they would keep it a secret for the show??? I''m so glad they are talking about it so openly. In fact this morning I was thinking "Why doesn''t TLC do a show on infertility?" They would get lots of ratings with it!

LV -- Thanks for the words of encouragement! That really made me feel better to know that I''m saving myself time. I knew exactly what you meant by that, and it did make me feel better. And what''s up with your dumb coworker? Geez...I think maybe she''s trying to make it sound like she''s "suffering" with you? That''s ridiculous either way. Your DH sounds like a sweetie though! I can''t wait for you to see AF!!!!! What''s the plan once she visits?

Noelwr and Bella -- fingers crossed in the 2ww! What are you guys doing to bide your time? Noelwr -- I never thought about the egg in the uterus like your husband! That''s pretty darn creative!

I''ll post more when I get back from my visit. I suspect he''ll have me go on Prometrium to bring on another cycle and up my dosage to 150mg of Clomid.

 

[Blenheim]

Hi ladies,

We''re not TTC right now, but I''m really confused about what''s going on with my body and this seems like the most logical place to ask for charting help. Mind if I jump in?

I think that I ovulated on Feb 15. I say "think" because I haven''t been temping and so I can''t verify, but I had lots of EWCM, a high/soft/open cervix, ovulation pain, and sore nips (a secondary sign for me) and it all went away by the next day. Since then, my cervix has been low and firm. I had some spotting on 8-9 "dpo" (assuming that ovulation date), some light bleeding on the afternoon of 10 "dpo", and then a couple of days of stretchy pink CM (with the low/firm cervix). I typically have a 13-14 day luteal phase with like a 4 day period, and so the light bleeding seemed too light and early for a period. At 15 "dpo" when I still didn''t have what seemed like a real period I started temping, and while I know that you''re supposed to recalculate your coverline each and every cycle and so temping at that point doesn''t mean all that much, the temps I''ve been getting have been in the 97.4-97.7 range, and my coverline is generally in the 97.0-97.3 range which I think points to me having ovulated at some point and the bleeding not being a period. Admittedly this could be faulty logic, and I know that temping for the entire cycle would have really helped. I''m currently 18 "dpo", and I POAS yesterday and it was negative. I used a FRER, so it should be pretty sensitive.

SO... something''s just not adding up here. Do you think that the bleeding was AF? Or that I calculated my ovulation date wrong, or didn''t ovulate at all? I feel like TCOYF mentioned one other reason why you could have an 18 day luteal phase without pregnancy - a cyst or something? I don''t have the book handy, but does anyone happen to know what that could be and if it would call for seeing a doctor or just waiting it out? I guess that pregnancy is also a possibility, but we''ve used condoms and it seems super unlikely that I got pregnant with a condom AND the pee stick was negative at 17 dpo.

I''d really appreciate any second opinions, if you guys don''t mind.

 

[Bella_mezzo]

Hi Blen-Is this your fisrt cycle where you think you ovulated since having George, or have you had "normal" cycles already?

 

[Loves Vintage]

Bella - How was the yoga? Hope it helped to eliminate some tension. I get tension in the same area (back of neck and shoulders), and I know how much better I feel after I am able to let that go. Neat that you were in the yoga tape instructor's classes. I will have to look her up.

Sweetlime - I have not seen the show, but I will need to DVR it now. I think it's great that they are talking about it and demystifying infertility for their viewers.

RyanClaire - About the monitoring - I didn't mean to imply that it is always necessary. Yes, it would be nice to have, but it's not always medically necessary. Plenty of women get pregnant on their first cycle of Clomid. See how you respond this month. I hope your cycles straighten out and you get a quick BFP!

Swimmer - Ahahaha, glad to know I have some PS reinforcement ready to go if I need it. I've decided that I am just going to share much less information with her. I'll just tell her I need a ton of dental work. She is going to be a problem though when I do have a baby. She thinks she knows everything about raising kids, but even I, who knows ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about babies, see lots of problems with her choices. I'm going to have to shut her down pretty early on that front. Just this morning she told another co-worker that he should not give his daughter peanuts until she is at least 2. He told her, no, actually, there are varying opinions on this, and there are recent studies suggesting that you should not wait that long, etc. etc. Now, I have no idea either way, but I would take his opinion over hers any day of the week! My point is, I DO NOT want to have conversations like this with her about each and every decision about my child. Note to self: Must create boundaries.

Lanie - Good luck today! Can't wait to hear how it went. When my new cycle starts, I will take Follistim (an injectable) instead of Clomid, followed by a trigger shot when my follicles are big enough, followed by back-to-back IUIs. The only change this cycle from my first IUI cycle is that Clomid will be replaced by Follistim. Apparently, the doctor wrote "NO CLOMID" across my file. I don't think I was completely honest with myself about how sad it made me. The good nurses at my clinic could see it though, and looking back, they are completely right. I should not have the same effects from the Follistim. I have a tendency toward depression to begin with, so I don't think everyone is affected the same way by Clomid.

Things went so well with the first IUI, that I know I will be severely disappointed if this cycle does not produce the same result. What will be, will be, though, so all I can do is hope, hope, hope.

 

[Blenheim]

Hi Bella! I''ve been having normal cycles since 3.5 months post-partum, although I haven''t been temping much as G tends to be the one to wake me up and then I don''t think to temp until I''ve been up too long. So thinking more about it, my logic on the whole temping thing is probably even more flawed than I thought as the coverlines I''m referencing were before I conceived him. But it was still early and light and weird.