Worried about fertility..

[Puzzles10]

I've been with my partner 18 months, and for the last 9 month we've been quite lax with contraception. While we're not actively ttc, it wouldn't be a terrible thing if we had a baby (we know we both want kids at some point in the near future, we live together, are planning to get married next year, both in secure jobs). I know it's not really sensible that we've not been using contraception, but as time goes on I have been worrying about my fertility. Part of me thinks perhaps we should start using contraception. However, I believe 12 months tends to be the point at which fertility investigations are done, so part of me thinks maybe we should just carry on not using protection for a bit longer and then do some investigating into fertility? I imagine in a year or two we will be wanting to actively try for a baby, and I wouldn't want to have to then 'waste' a year ttc before investigations when I already know that we may have fertility problems. I am not very regular with my periods and have already been tested for PCOS, which I dont have. My partner and I are both in our 20s

Find out when your fertile days are and track your periods etc.
Then if you know you are having sex during your fertile days and still not getting pregnant (after 6mo) then consider seeing a doctor.

I have three kids but only get pregnant during the small fertile window per month.

It might vary by area, but in all the places I've lived, they would not start to investigate until you'd been trying for two years.

Do be prepared to be really proactive with doctors, though. I had miscarriages in my 20s and my GP was really dismissive and crap because of my age, and it was only some years later that a better GP investigated and found issues, some of which were quite easily sorted, and which I wish I'd know about before! They can be a bit crap with younger women, I think.

My cycles are 28-38 days so its difficult to be precise when fertile days are, but we do have sex quite frequently. I think I may leave it another 6 months and if still nothing, see the GP. Sorry to hear the GP was not good @SarahAndQuack , though sadly I can imagine that being the case as it does seem like fertility problems aren't taken as seriously when people are younger

I really, really recommend this book
Taking Charge Of Your Fertility: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement and Reproductive Health: The Definitive Guide to ... Pregnancy Achievement and Reproductive Wealth www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0091887585/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_8bb-DbWYYKGNR?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Like you, we tried having our first baby by just stopping contraception. A year down the line I was beginning to get concerned that nothing had happened. It turns out that just randomly having sex around the middle of my cycle did not work (in my case, because I discovered I ovulate very early in my cycle). Once I was able to read the clues about ovulation I was pregnant within a few months, and fell pregnant with DC 2 and 3 on the first month of trying. It's a really empowering book.