Not ovulating and distraught :(

[Minxie1977]

Hi- I'm new to mumsnet and this is my first post. Just hoping for some support/motivation/success stories. DH and I ttc for 6 months and GP informed me this morning that I am not ovulating. Awaiting apt for ultrasound to check for PCOS. GP advised me to lose weight - I've been half-heartedly trying anyway as I'm about 6 stone off 'ideal'. I know it is sound advice, but I just feel a bit gutted and hopeless right now. I have been overweight since childhood and battled with my weight my whole life. I feel so angry that I have not managed to lose it previously, and have buggered my chances of a (much longed for) baby. I just feel like a bit fat failure

[Littlefish]

I wasn't ovulating and was overweight. I went to an acupuncture practitioner. After 3 months, my hormone levels were all normal and I was ovulating regularly.

Google acupuncture and fertility - there's quite a lot of info.

Good luck.

[sammysam]

I couldn't let this go unanswered. You are not a failure. You may not have ovulated one month but that doesn't mean you are not ovulating every month. Plus there is so much that can be done to help you.
Losing weight now has a very good motive behind it-hopefully that will make it easier.
A very close friend of mine was very overweight then went on a (far too major) diet which stopped her weird periods all together-she was having tests for months then had yet another ultrasound only to discover she was pregnant
Just don't give up x x x

[spongebrainbigpants]

Minxie, this could have been me nearly six years ago when dh and I first started trying - please don't feel like you're a failure and it's not hopeless I promise you.

I was six stone overweight and told I wasn't ovulating and that I had PCOs. I tried every diet under the sun and eventually found Lighter Life and lost six stone in four months. I then went onto clomid for three months.

However, word of warning - I was incorrectly diagnosed with PCOs and it was actually only my weight that stopped me from ovulating. Once I lost the weight I was ovulating normally and it turned out I actually had blocked tubes. The reason I am telling you this is not to depress you but to warn you not to let the docs get hung up on your weight and not check everything to do with your fertility.

Having said that three other friends were in your position, all lost the weight and fell pregnant naturally - one of them actually conceived while doing the diet!

As for me, well I was now a healthy weight to tackle IVF and, after three cycles, had my gorgeous little boy.

Please don't despair. Good luck .

[nomoremagnolia]

Hi Minxie
YOu are not a failure at all - please don't beat yourself up about it. If you're not ovulating it could be a condition know as PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) PCOS can really affect weight gain as well as being a cause of non-ovulation. Have a google of it and see wht info you can find about PCOS and weight. There's a PCOS diet too (don't know the details i'm afraid) but I've heard that once people with PCOS start following the diet they loose weight much more easily that they had previously. Also if you are not ovulating this can be fixed with drugs (clomifene citrate - brand name Clomid) so don't think this is the end Best of luck.

[Minxie1977]

Thanks so much for these, I feel a bit more hopeful!

Littlefish - I'm so glad you think acupuncture could help. Today I booked in for acupuncture to help my fertility, hypnotherapy to help my weight loss and homeopathy to just help!! I won't leave a stone unturned

Sammysam - I just assumed that when GP said I'm not ovulating it meant not at all!? I have dieted before (many, many times) and lost lots of weight so I know I can do it. I do seem to be a self-saboteur though and when it is important I fail. I definately won't give up.

I think I felt worse than I would have as GP told me we would not be eligible for ANY fertility treatment - even Clomid - as DH already has children. Seems so unfair!

[spongebrainbigpants]

Minxie, you certainly wouldn't be eligible for IVF but then v few people are.

However, clomid is very very cheap so I wouldn't worry about that - if weight is your problem then you know the solution (although I'm very aware it's not as easy as that).

Fingers crossed you won't need any treatment at all x

[nomoremagnolia]

I'd push your GP on the Clomid if it comes to that. Also have you had more than one month's lot of tests? Was it done on the right day? I ask because it's not uncommon to have an anovulatory cycle once every 10 cycles/ once a year (depending on who you ask!) so if it was only on one cycle you might find that you just got 'unlucky' in that it was the 1 in 10/a year that was anovulatory. Also if you had the blood test done on the wrong day 7 days before you period arrives - the 'day 21 test' is misleading as it only really counts if you have a 28 day cycle

[Minxie1977]

TBH I don't think I have PCOS as I had an ultrasound years ago and was clear. What terrifies me is that I might be totally infertile. My AF has always been a rare and unpredictable visitor - someitmes light, other times awfully heavy.

spongebrainbigpants - I did LL a few years ago and lost 4 1/2 stone. Unfortunately most of my hair fell out and my skin went saggy (TMI- sorry). I'm scared that if I do it agin I'll lose my hair, feel rubbish about my body and just pile all the weight on again! Your success stories do tempt me back though

[nomoremagnolia]

spongebrain - just looked down the thread to see what LL was and realised you and I had x-posted. Well done on losing 6 stone - that's amazing! I'm stuggling to lose 1 at the moment

[Minxie1977]

I would be more than ready to pay for the Clomid myself, but I am annoyed that I would automatically be denied it because DH has children!!?? As I only got the bad news today it is all a bit raw, so I'm in a "it's not fair, it's all my fault" phase!

It is interesting to hear about the anovulatory cycle. AF hasn't shown up for about 70 days, so there is no cycle here to speak of

[nomoremagnolia]

Wht did the GP say about your irregular cycles?

[Minxie1977]

spongebrain - I agree with nomore, VERY WELL DONE. I'm so wrapped up in dwelling I forgot to say what a fantastic achievement that is xx

[Minxie1977]

Nothing was said about my cycle. I explained that I had never been regular and had nothing for a couple of months and GP offered the tests. Went in today and was told I am not ovulating and need to wait for ultrasound before we progress. GP said I should focus on weight/exercise in the meantime. TBH I do exercise a fair bit but I eat too much

[nomoremagnolia]

I guess all you can do for now is what the GP has said - the ultrasound will be able to show if you've got PCOS and then you'll be able to take it from there. Don't feel too upset by it all though, there are ways around these things. All the best with the weight loss

[Minxie1977]

Nomore - thanks so much for the encouragement. All the best with ttc

[spongebrainbigpants]

Minxie, god I wouldn't try LL again if it made you that ill - I was one of the lucky ones who looked the picture of health on LL, glowing skin, fab hair. Never managed to look like that again!

I'm hoping to start another IVF cycle soon and my consultant has warned me not to do it this close to a cycle, so maybe try something less drastic.

Btw, totally agree with you about the unfairness - we didn't qualify because I was only 33 at the time and I had to be 36 to qualify .

nomore, thank you

[spongebrainbigpants]

I meant the unfairness of paying for tx btw, if that didn't make any sense - should go to bed!

[Minxie1977]

No hair but a size 12 skirt - life's a compromise

How can they factor age into it too!?! Thing is if I was a size 10 and DH had no children they would help me. Wouldn't matter if he was a feckless waster or I was an illiterate vile witch - most of the time I'm not

I just think after paying into the system for all these years and never taking anything back, I deserve to be eligible. Especially as some people get so much help in other areas.

I really hope your IVF works xx

[AttilaTheMeerkat]

Minxie

You are NOT a failure!!!.

I note you don't have a diagnosis yet but common causes of ovulation problems are PCOS and or thyroid problems. Both should be checked for properly and you should be referred to a gynae for further evaluation. If you are diangosed with PCOS it is not a condition that a GP should mess around with. They don't know enough about it nor have the time to monitor you properly.

Clomid is not always suitable for all PCOSers to take; it should be given to them with a degree of caution. I note that the GP has not seemingly mentioned Metformin; you may be a candidate to take this drug treatment along with clomid (these two can in some cases work better than clomid on its own).

I note that some years ago you had an ultrasound scan done. The cystic follicles associated with PCO are very small and they do disappear (this may be why none were actually seen) only to be replaced by further cystic follicles.

If you have battled with weight your whole life has anyone actually tried to address the root causes of all this?.

Have a look at Verity's website as well; if you are diagnosed with PCOS it is a useful resource. The more you know about it the better - knowledge is power!!.

www.verity-pcos.org.uk

Any other questions just ask.

[Minxie1977]

Thanks so much for the website link and the sound advice - I will definately come back after my ultrasound