to ask you to please share your success stories of getting PG post 30-ish?

[MoodyDidIt]

i am 33 and dh and i are ttc

just come on today and i am so sad

we have only been ttc 3 months (i KNOW its no time at all) but with dd it happened so quick. like, days after we decided to ditch the contraception. i was only 28 then though. and i got pg with DS (from prev relationship) when i was 25 by accident very quick too

and to top it off i have read a scaremongering article in the sun newspaper this morning about how womens fertility sharply drops after 32

we were TTC 2 years ago but stopped as it was not a good time financially, now i wish we had carried on trying as now it might be too late

please please share your positive stories :( sorry for being a drama queen. but it actually scares me how much i want dc3

[BathTangle]

My grandmother had my aunt at 27, my uncle at 32 and my Dad at 42 - she had divorced and remarried between my Uncle and my Dad, and was slightly worried when my grandfather said he'd really like a child, but AFAIK she didn't have any major difficulties getting pg - in fact, she always maintained that she'd chosen the sex of each of her children by getting her timing right....!

[PessaryPam]

quesadilla, my menopause started at 35 and was completely done by 38. No family history of early MP either. You cannot take fertility for granted.

[MoodyDidIt]

wow some brilliant positive stories here, thank you

and the twin mummies, wow, congrats, i would LOVE twins ....saw last weeks OBEM where the 40 yo couple had surprise twins, i was sobbing

[quesadilla]

pam I know and I am fully aware that everyone's fertility is different. My point was just that if you read the Daily Mail you tend to get the impression that getting pg after 30 requires IVF or a miracle and that isn't necessarily the case.

[Luce808]

Two healthy babies, one at 36 and one at 38. Both are now singing happily upstairs. I was very proud to be an 'older' mum, and I know a lot more of a similar age or older.

[learnermummy]

Currently pregnant with surprise number 3 at 35. Haven't read whole thread but can I recommend a book called 'Taking charge of your fertility' by Toni Weschler. It really helps you understand your cycle. There's a good iphone app that uses the same principles too.

[louisianablue2000]

Positive stories: DD1 conceived at 36, DD2 conceived at 37, DS conceived just before turning 41 (BFP on my birthday!). All conceived in less than 3 months, all healthy babies, although DS was slightly preemie (but he was 7lb 7oz at 36 weeks so rather glad he didn't get past 40 weeks like his big sisters).

The papers go on and on about how we are all leaving it too late to have kids but there are still fewer women having children in their 40s now than there were in the 1930s. You've already had two pregnancies, so you're starting from a good place.

I know lots of people who have had varying success conceiving each child, like my cousin who conceived DC1 immediately then took a year to conceive DC2 two years later. More positively I know more than one family who have had to have IVF to conceive DC1 then have had a happy accident later on because they'd assumed they wouldn't be able to conceive without help.

Relax and enjoy the trying. Official advice is to DTD every second day throughout your cycle. Cheaper and more fun than Ov sticks IMHO.

[4boysthatilove]

Definitely don't give up hope, I had my first 2 boys at 27 and 32, remarried and have had 2 babies post 40, the last little one born 3 days after my 42nd birthday. You are a mere spring chicken good luck with TTC!! xx

[BlueStringPudding]

I had
DC1 at 29
DC2 at 31
DC3 at 40

but my great grandmother had her DC1 at 46 in 1913, which was something of a surprise I think!

[Lizzy1975]

37, 6 months. Try to relax, you do have time, despite the scaremongering.

[louisianablue2000]

Oh, and I have a work colleague whose mother conceived him when she was 47. She thought he was the menopause. His siblings are all 20 years older.

[FiveGoMadInDorset]

DC1 35 6 months of trying
DC2 37 first month

[Dollar]

DS at 35, DD at 37 - pg within two months of TTC with both - good luck!

[limon]

I'll be 45 in mid April. Currently cuddling sleepy 13 month old DD :)

I had three early losses the year before conceiving her but aspirin on my pregnancy with her seemed to do the trick - more likely blood issues than age caused the miscarriages.

[xigris]

Afternoon! I had my first at 32, second at 35 and third 8 weeks ago at 38 where I was delightfully referred to as an 'elderly multip'. Charmed I was too. Have you tried ovulation sticks? It took me a few months to get preggo with DS2 and I'm very impatient! It turned our that I was ovulating pretty late at day 19. We did the deed then and the next month I was preg. I think it takes, on average, 6 months to conceive so please don't lose heart

[Luce808]

Should have added - DC1 at 36 was conceived immediately. DC2 at 38 wasn't planned (or at least, he was going to be planned, just not for another year or so!) I know it doesn't follow that easily for everyone, but statistics are statistics, not individual people!

[MoodyDidIt]

was thinking of getting some ovulation sticks but i think if i do it will just make me obsess more even more than i am now

really i know i should try and DTD every 2 days, but we haven't been doing it anywhere near that much tbh, with tiredness, and the other dcs, and work, etc.....there's always an excuse! need to make more effort

[Ragwort]

I conceived at age 42 (my first) - I wasn't really 'trying' ie: not checking ovulation dates or anything like that etc etc as I wasn't nearly as keen as my DH to have a baby - took about 8 months since I stopped the pill. Took me 11 weeks to realise I was pregnant - thought it was the menopause .

[Twattybollocks]

Funnily enough I conceived more easily in my 30s than in my 20s. Ds took 3 years of trying between 26 and 29. Dd I got pregnant first attempt at 31. Dd2 took ivf but that was due to a failed vasectomy reversal. I got pregnant on the first try of ivf though at age 37.

[DizzyHoneyBee]

I had both of mine after I was 30.

[maisiejoe123]

You are being a bit of a drama queen. You already have one child which is a great test as to whether you can carry a baby (at least that what my GP told me!).

Agree with another poster who said make sure you know your most fertile days.

And I had first baby at 36 and second at 41 although it took much longer for the 2nd as expected.

[zoobaby]

I'm sitting here reading MN as I nurse my first little boy, now 5 months old. Trust me when I say I'm much closer to the landmark age that comes after 30-ish .

Honestly, Peaceful makes a lot of sense. I'm definitely not of the "oooh let's stop contraception and see how it goes" persuasion. Sounds like a lot of faffing about, potential for disappointment and general cluelessness to me. Plus I don't want to go through a 28-odd days of "I wonder if it worked THIS time". Eurgh! Nothing worse.

DP and I held long discussions about ttc due to both of our ages, fully aware of the fact that it might actually be very difficult. So I decided to find out as much as possible to improve the chances. I ended up buying a book called "Taking charge of your fertility" by Toni Wechler (discovered through MN reviews). This book seriously opened my eyes and answered so many questions that I was too dense to even consider previously.

The book shows you what to look for and how to interpret your cycle to identify your window of opportunity. I followed it to the letter (mapping cervical fluid, charting temperature etc - there is one to photocopy and lots of examples with explanations) and I found it immensely helpful. It's all quite straight forward and makes a great deal of sense once you start to actually look and record things. After about 3 months I thought I had some real understanding of my cycle. The month we decided to go for it, success.

I know this approach is not for everyone, but it really suited me and wasn't onerous at all. I also had a good laugh when DP came home one day to tell me how he'd been advising a male colleague on how to conceive. Haha!

[zoobaby]

Sorry my post has been reposted. Bloody phone still had the page on screen.