9DPO Symptom Spotting

That's what my AF was like last night. Very light but more than spotting but I marked it as CD1 anyway. Even though your LP was much better this cycle, I'm still sorry AF started. So what's the plan for your next cycle? Continue as normal? DH and I have tried the DTD EOD so now I want to try DTD everyday, multiple times a day. Might as well go out with a bang (or 10) before I start the IVF 😂

I think the BFN prepared me for AF. It was only a matter of time before it started, and I also joined an ABC IVF thread on the infertility board, so I'm starting to feel more excited about it all. Have you joined any threads on there?

My AF has gotten heavy since I woke up. I fill my menstrual cup up in about 2 hours but I wouldn't say it's heavier than usual, it's just at my normal levels of heavy which I suppose is a good thing as my womb lining must already be where it needs to be. I'll just see if I end up bleeding for longer. I do have a fibroid. A 1cm one but I don't think that'd make much of a difference. If anything, I think I have an estrogen dominance and the pessaries did nothing to change that since I started spotting on them! I wish DH's sperm count was normal so I could see if my progesterone was actually a problem. I've never even had the chance to experience a chemical (not that I want to) but at least I'd know that my eggs are defo being fertilised and trying to implant.

I was thinking about taking baby aspirin in case I had thyroid issues as it wouldn't hurt. But I'll need a thyroid blood test for ABC IVF anyway so it'll probably be better to get a proper diagnosis than self medicating for something I may not have.

Yeah, they do do ICSI. It's a bit more expensive 😔 so I'm really hoping DH's sperm are good enough. I was thinking about using DH's previous SA results. I think when he gives a sample after the egg collection, they'll decide if the sample is good enough for IVF, if not, then it'll have to be ICSI. Either way, we'll prepare and budget for ICSI. I'd probably end up with OHSS so might have to freeze my eggs for a cycle and that's another cost! We only have about £4k 😭 but hopefully, by the time we need to pay the full price, we'll have added to our savings with May's payday.

I'm hoping the IVF will kickstart my fertility and by the time it's time to start TTC #2, DH would have lost weight and boosted his count so we can try naturally.

On what CD do you need to do the HSG, or does it not matter? If you didn't have hydrosalpinx and your AMH was above 12, then would you enquire at ABC? 😂 IVF bypasses the tubes so as long as the fluid isn't leaking into your womb, it might be ok?

That's what I'm picturing too! The kids running around outside, a huge jungle gym, paddling pool, water fights. It'll be nice! I want to create an adults area too where the kids can't play in. When I'm pregnant, I'll oversee everything while DH does the manual labour 😁

Difficult customers are the worst and you can't even tell them to go away. Hopefully today was better for you? Work is ok. I got recognition twice during today's UK team meeting. I got one two meetings ago when I got gifted that day off. At this point, they need to think about giving me a pay rise 😂😂😂 How are things with your DP and his job?

Also, I didn't cry when AF started!!!!!!

No AF, go away! Hopefully that's kept AF away for you! If not then yay on your 10 day LP and yay having our cycles close together again! We might even ovulate close together.

Yes, I started AF last night. Do I mark yesterday as CD1 or today? I thought AF would be crazy heavy since I used progesterone but I don't think it's made any difference to my flow (as far as I can see). It probably means the progesterone made no difference to my womb lining. Oh well! One cycle down, two more to go then IVF! I'm worried we'd need ICSI with DH's count though.

Yeah you're right. I'm just viewing it as hiring a professional conceiver, the same way I'd hire a builder to construct an extension for me since I can't do either myself. If your AF has started, you'll be booking in a HSG scan soon. So that's progress.

Palpitations were constant yesterday but seems reduced this morning so could be because of the drop in progesterone. Maybe it was too much for my body? Or could just be how my body responds to it. How are you feeling today? AF is pretty chill for me, no cramps or anything.

You got your AMH results yet?? Do you think if your results are above 12 that you'd enquire at ABC? You'd be able to have the short protocol there.

A big garden is great. But it becomes hard work when you have to mow the lawn 😂 I managed to mow half the garden and I'll have to do the other half over the weekend. Extension potential is important too. You can add value to the house if you can add more bedrooms. If I manage to make our garden look decent, you can hire me for my services 😂😂😂 At least not being pregnant means I can chop down my trees!

Haha I try hard not to kill indoor plants but I suppose they were just made to die 🤷‍♀️ nothing I can do about it. Wildflower garden sounds beautiful. Defo share some pics when they start blooming again.

Is there a looming deadline at work? Sucks that you've had to work until late. Is everything sorted now?

Well that sucks for us!

Yeah, the line went white but now there's nothing on there. No line, no colour. I guess it wasn't meant to be!

Any spotting for you so far? Mine has sort of stopped and I'm yet to see red blood. My natural levels of progesterone should have dropped enough to bring my temp down. The suspense is killing me!! 😂

Just done it. Only an indent line so BFN. Just waiting for AF to start now. Only 30 mins to go for you! All the best!

I'm a bit anxious so woke up early. Luckily I was able to get a temp reading, which has stayed flat at 36.83. Not sure if it's a good or bad thing but at least it didn't drop further. RHR did fall though. My body is defo teasing me. I'll test when I get out of bed later. Good luck today!

A 12 day LP would be fine if I didn't have the spotting because spotting just means my progesterone is dropping. But the fact AF hasn't started is a good thing I suppose. But my temps and RHR going down pretty much confirms AF is imminent. With the spotting today, AF will start either tonight or tomorrow.

I just get a bit sad when AF starts. I was so sure it would be starting today and it seemed like today's temps confirmed it. But then I felt really sad for myself because I felt I hadn't giving TTC a good shot before considering IVF. You're so resilient, I can only hope I have as much strength as you going forward.

Aww! I'm excited for you!!! I know how easy it is to get your hopes up. But the let down can feel so soul destroying. I definitely go through the motions during my cycles. I get really sad when I start spotting. Then when nothing happens, I feel a bit hopeful, then spotting starts again, then AF and then my heart breaks.

My heart palpitations are still happening. It's weird. My heart beats really hard for maybe one or two beats then goes back to normal. And it happens randomly throughout the day.

This receptionist/nurse sounds much nicer. It was kind of her to follow up with you and put your documents back on top. So hopefully some time this week you'll be getting your results back! But it seems like your DH's SA results is still a while away!

Do you think your first home will be lived in long term or do you see yourself moving after a few years? DH has these grand plans of having a rear extensions built so looks like we'll be here a while.

I want to start the work literally now. The weather is warming up so it means I can actually go outside without freezing. I did a lot of manual labour cutting down the tree branches yesterday and that warmed me up quite a bit. Yes, I'll go for flowers that'll grow every season without me having to do anything. Have you grown any flowers?

I thought I saw a super faint line on the FRER I took at 10DPO but because I had to look hard to see it, I concluded there was nothing there. Now that it's been two days and it's dried and I've looked again there is a very faint line, however that could just be an evap now! If AF doesn't start I'll test with an FRER tomorrow. I'll send you a high quality image on whatsapp of the 10DPO test, I don't think it will mess with the image quality on there. I could also be going crazy so please tell me if I am!

Yeah, I'm still spotting. It's brown now. Just waiting for full flow AF now. I haven't taken a pessary today as there's no point. I don't know, with the spotting, will my LP really be longer? If we ignore yesterday's negligible bleed, then with today's spotting, my LP is its usual 11 days.

I think natural conception is not something that'll work for me. I literally knew this before we started TTC and I was right. Maybe I'm not supposed to have kids.

Amazing that you haven't had any spotting, this is already a really positive cycle! Hopefully you won't need the IVF in the end. Good luck with testing tomorrow! Your first test in a long time! Are you excited?

I don't think the embryo will survive inside me after a BFP.

That's good! Let me know once they've called you back with your results! Do you know the dates of your scans now?

The good schools were defo a bonus but we weren't actively looking for good schools. Will good schools be a criteria when you're house hunting?

Yeah, I'm think about creating steps into the lower half of the garden and on either side of the steps have a flower bed and veg bed too.

The IVF meds I'll be given at ABC are Bemfola, Cetrotide, Ovitrelle and Utrogestan. I hope they'll help my LP.

Looooooool what a joke! I couldn't even get a longer LP on progesterone supplements!!! My cervix is bloody so AF is starting! My body really doesn't want good things. Temps and RHR are dropping. I have AF cramps 😂😂 It's over! I'm not bothering with cyclogest next cycle. Made no difference to me. Unless they stick me on an IV line and feed high doses straight into my vein 🙄 I must have too much estrogen because wtf.

On the plus side, your chart looks amazing! It might even end up triphasic! You could have a baby on board 🤰 Any spotting yet? My spotting is usually pink before AF.

Daily injections for weeks. You'd be so bruised! And because the amount of hormones is so high, you'd have to take like a 3 month break between IVF cycles to let your body recover if it fails. I think IVF is a good next step since my body clearly isn't working 😂 Would I have to be on hormone supplements after a BFP?

I don't like those laws! I'd very much prefer two embryos. I'm thinking about egg sharing to help another woman get pregnant. I produce so many eggs that go to waste but at the same time, I don't know how I'd handle it emotionally. I'll have to think about it a lot.

Not sure how I feel about meeting up with my neighbours. I feel optimistic about having a baby but then again, I still don't have one! Maybe we'll do a trial meet up and if I feel fine, we can keep meeting up but if not, I'll keep my distance a bit.

I did an IC today and BFN. Well I haven't even checked it, I left it in the bathroom, but it's definitely a BFN. Will you be testing tomorrow with an FRER if AF doesn't show up?

Loool! Well I hope you get your results today. Why didn't they book you in for a consultation to discuss it with you? I don't understand how they intended for you to get the information!

Are you still thinking of buying in the midlands?

Yeah, we have two OFSTED outstanding primary schools in our area. We're in a good catchment for them both so my kids should have a shot getting into one of them. It'll be nice to make friends in the area so I need to hurry up and get pregnant so I can meet mums on the playground! Also we're lucky that we'll be able to go to pregnancy classes and baby and me groups as covid will (fingers crossed) be a thing of the past for us!

We might hire someone along the way, but I think we can do the majority for now. We have a pond feature in the middle of the garden that I want to demolish.

I started growing my veg but they all got destroyed during the move and now they're all dead. My baby pepper has shrivelled up and died too. I'm going to wait until the garden is sorted so that I can find them a better home and then I'll starting growing veg and maybe even fruit, again.

Looks like I'm spotting on cyclogest! Just my luck! Didn't even get to 14DPO without my body betraying me 😂 it was only a tiny amount for now, like two pin pricks of pink, I wouldn't have seen it if I wasn't looking, so I'm assuming the progesterone is holding it back for now. But it's only a matter of time! I'll probably start AF while on the pessaries!

Yeah, I think so. I like that the scan is first so that I wouldn't have to wait first for a consultation, then a scan, then another consultation! It speeds things up. It's the short protocol because you only take drugs for 4-5 days or something. Hopefully since there are naturally a lot of eggs in my ovaries, the drugs will be more than enough to stimulate them. I'm going to be cheeky and see if they'll allow for two embryos to be put in 😁

Haha yeah! My old neighbours were surprised but excited for us. They can't wait to have a friend for their son! There'll be a year between their kid and mine which I think is an ok age gap for friendship when they're toddlers. I think our kids will be similar ages too so we'll have to meet up for playdates when possible!

I think DH will need a new birthday if I'm honest! In Greece, they celebrate something called a name day. So since he's named after a particular saint, he'll celebrate his name day on the day of that saint. That's his birthday now! Although he's just outright refused. Sore loser 😂

Ah yes! That's true! You'll be NHS funded now! Amazing! Apparently, once things get started, it moves pretty quickly so I think by the end of this year you'll be pregnant! 2022 babies, here we come!

I feel ok, heart is still beating hard now and again so I'll just wait and see if it stops once I'm off the progesterone. I wonder if AF will start while on the pessaries or not. Either way, I'll stop taking them maybe tomorrow or 13DPO.

Your chart looks amazing! Your temps are really up there. That's such an improvement! Your LP could be its longest ever this cycle. Have you been feeling more relaxed? Because stress can sometimes affect progesterone.

Does that mean you don't have any immediate neighbours? Are there any schools close by?

Stripping the garden bare could take a month maybe. Could be less. I'll have to hire some equipment and DH will be the muscle as there's some concrete we need to sledgehammer to pieces. I've already started today. I've cut the branches off the trees and left the trunk so I can dig it out later. We'll probably let the wood dry for a bit and then burn it in a fire pit. Maybe have a late night bonfire party!

Have you started growing any fruit or veg yet?

Yeaaah! I'd like to guarantee that sperm is meeting egg and IVF is the only way to do that. My scan is on 25th May and consultation 1st June. My next cycle after that starts on 15th June with ovulation on 29th June so I'm hoping we can start then. If not, then 10th July with ovulation 24th July. I finally told my ex-neighbours! I said "we're doing IVF! We're not infertile, just lazy" 😂 I'm so happy DH is onboard with my craziness.

If we start treatment in June then we'll have a March baby, which'll be hilarious because DH's birthday will be overshadowed once again. First the wedding, then the house, now a baby 😂😂😂

It sucks that your NHS clinic is so slooooow! It would have been amazing to start together! Have they called you back today with your AMH results? Do you know how much it'll cost to do IVF with them? Maybe there are cheaper options like natural IVF or something.

Yeah the palpitations continued throughout yesterday but now I'm thinking it's either the progesterone or anxiety. Do you still get them despite taking beta blockers?

My temps went up today but RHR went down. AF is due today/tomorrow so I'm surprised my natural progesterone levels haven't dropped enough to bring my temps down a bit. CM has been dry/sticky and there's been no spotting, so so far so good. IC was -ve this morning. I'll do a final FRER on 14DPO and if +ve, hope I can get some progesterone in time. I might get progesterone for the next two cycles before IVF. How are you getting on?

Haha my stupid cakes. Yeah, I used self raising but probably overworked the flour into the batter 😅 I'll try again next week. The mixer was alright, took me a while to use it properly, but it makes cake-making less messy. I feel like a have better control with a hand mixer though.

Ah is rural living nice? It's probably very quiet where you are then? There probably aren't a lot of young people either? There's a bus stop 7 mins walk away so if our kids have to take the bus to school, they'd have a hilly walk to the bus stop - good exercise I reckon! We have loads of secondary school kids in the mornings walking past our house, they're always in groups and I just picture my kids walking to school with their friends.

Oooooh! You live near the coast? Makes sense that you'll get a lot of tourists! It must suck! I hope they're not too loud and rowdy??

I've started planning work for the garden. A lot of it we'll do ourselves. Need to first invest in a heavy duty sledgehammer. I'd like to strip the garden back to the earth. Cut down and remove some small trees, break apart and remove concrete. Make everything bare. Then I'll have a blank canvas to work with. 🌱

I can't believe our thread started with us TTC like normal and now suddenly we're both having IVF 😂