TTC for 10+ months, part 4

[eurochick]

Time for a new thread as the other one is just about full.

Fingers crossed for lots of patiently-awaited BFPs on this one!

I have to laugh at mrsden "your brown sludge sounds interesting . I promise it isn't! I'm 8DPO now I think, but I have discovered that I had a 22 day cycle in February so it could just be that. I have some slight period style pains and normally get 3 or 4 days spotting, but this is unusually early. Still, I'm pretty sure I allow something to give me false hope every month, which I am strongly resisting but failing

I hope it's not AF lemon. you need cake, not biscuits! Someone brought in Lemon Drizzle cake to our office today (charity sale) and I thought of you, of course

It's bad when it's brown sludge that floats my boat! But it is interesting if it's not usual for you.

I think I did ovulate this cycle after all because my temps have been consistently high for the last few days. But because I've ovulated late then I don't think we timed the SWI right so that's frustrating.

Aha - so that is where I went wrong. It should have been drizzle cake. Instead I opened fb and yet another classmate (from the I haven't got a clue about their pg-category) announced the birth of their baby daughter. If I am this cross, it really is AF sadly...

Annoying about the mis-timed SWI mrsd. What I can take from the spotting is that I now really do know when I ovulate.... And that we had perfectly timed SWI. To no avail.

I know what you mean. If I was a rational person as opposed to TTC mental, I'd be interested in it scientifically. As it is, I'm biting my nails and crossing my legs, hoping it isn't what it's most likely to be.

Oh dear. Someone has just brought their newborn in to our office. Thankfully I am hiding on a call so don't have to fake excitement for her . She's a nice lady but her pregnancy was an accident, which funnily enough I find hard to take.

.

Ooh just had a thought. If looking at your own baby encourages milk flow, would looking at/holding a strange one have any benefit, do you think?

Hello ladies.

Feel like I've missed lots whilst I was away. I'm pleased to report a successful break with lots of swi and relaxing generally. Although the healthkick has been set back by wine and deliciously indulgent food. Lots of walking though so that surely balances it all out?!? Back on it today

euro - glad you're feeling better. Interesting about the omega 3 supplements. My acu lady told me to eat lots of salmon but I might top up with the pills too. It's good for increasing bloodflow to the uterus/improving lining, amongst other things that I can't remember.

wine - sorry to hear about your troubles from the past rearing their head, sounds very therapeutic to talk everything through and that must be a good thing in itself. And you've got everyone hooked on the yantra mats! They look great, if not a little painful. Your experience and googling suggests it will help my circulation so I've dropped a hint that I might like one for Christmas!

mrsd couldn't agree more about that feeling that you're being ripped off everytime you buy something for TCC. I keep considering the zita west IVF prep books but I'm not sure I'll learn anything. There's certainly no definitive answer to these things so people's experiences are as valuable as any book, I think.

Speaking of which I learnt of another two couples that have been through IVF in recent years, with very different experiences, but both of which I'd feel comfortable having a conversation with when I feel ready. I can't believe how many people have been here - one of them I was certain had got instantly upduffed too, I guess you never know.

lemon - so sorry about spotting. Tea and biscuits is a necessity.

nelly - who'd have thought we'd get excited by brown sludge? Sounds promising.

joycep - you have described my Christmas antics exactly, and now I realise that they get worse each year because they are maternally related! I like to get a mix of stocking presents for hubby and then at least one big present in a box (and try to get him to guess what it is, which he has no interest in). This is accompanied by mulled wine making, mince pies and playing board games. I'm also usually the one to buy advent calendars but he came home with them last week - this is a first and a sure sign that he is ready for parenthood

Sorry, I know there's lots I've missed but I have to get back to work - hello to all of you

X-post, sorry about the friend announcement. To be honest I don't suffer with facebook so much as RL announcements!

MrsD sorry about the wrongly timed shagging. On the other hand, my depressing thread reading found one where someone was asking how people finally got their BFP and one person said they had sex a week before ovulation the month they got their BFP. Actually it's not too bad a thread, lots of successes after a looooong time TTC, with just one or two who got pregnant "as soon as we stopped trying"

Missed your last few posts nelly, mrsd and lemon It takes me so long to post inbetween working that I always seem to miss new posts, sorry

mrsd - sorry about the mis-timed swi, but you never know...

nelly - the one benefit of working at home is that babies don't come to my workplace unannounced!

lemon - that's crap about the birth announcement. There are endless folk starting maternity leave before Christmas and I know I won't handle the announcements well, AF or no AF.

Hi all.
Hope you don't mind me joining in. Have been reading your posts for a while. I am 38 (think I might be the oldest!) have one daughter of 17 months. Took 1 1/2 years to conceive no. 1 so I was very much addicted to the mn blog then which I found so helpful. We ended up doing Iui and on the 3rd cycle ( the day before we were due to start our 1st round of ivf) we got our miracle bfp. So now we are 12mths into ttc #2 and I find myself doing all those things that might help again, trying anything! (not heard the cold thing before, interesting...) this time round though we live overseas so not sure I can have any medical help let alone where I would go to get any, plus my age makes me feel like it won't happen again. Anyway, just wanted to say mn and a blog like this is a fatastic thing and it really really helped with ttc #1.

nelly Well done on the POAS restraint! You are a better woman than I.

Yes ? funnily enough , there is apparently an African tradition where infertile women hold a baby for a day. Apparently it jigs your body into wanting to make a baby . I heard about when doing celebrity infertility research ? apparently the model Iman conceived after doing this, after she had had a failed IVF.

I?ve got the Baby-Making Bible by Emma Cannon. I really like it, it?s very sympathetically written, has achievable tips and doesn?t make you feel like crap. It fits in well with acupuncture and the advice the acu lady gives me. Meant to be a fusion of Chinese/Western medicine, it probably leans more towards Chinese though.

mrsd yum, yum I am going to make that cake this weekend

gin love the sound of your pampered guinea pig, they are adorable

lemons sorry the bad variety of brown sludge got you.

ladygee I laughed at you forcing your DH to guess what his pressie in a box is! He is lucky to have such a kind Christmas elf I think.

bubs welcome, thanks for sharing your experience. I hope you get your bfp soon, in the meantime this is very nice place to while away some time. It's interesting that you were involved in a similar thread your first time round, do you know what happened to the other ladies on your thread?

ooh egg - intriguing and exciting.

ldygee - so glad i'm not the only one with these misplaced maternal instincts. My mum always gets me an advent calendar and i am getting Dh a choccy one. I think we are both ready for parenthood now.

mrsd - don't worry about the wrongly time shaggig. The main thing is that you ovulated and you just never know.

thanks bubs for yor story. Love to hear people got to the other side in the end...although i know you probably fall straight back in to the awfulness as soon as you decide to try for number 2.

Ok, i now have to find a baby that i can hold for a day kitty....This might be tricky, I find i normally only get about 10 mins max holding a baby before they get taken off me. My niece is 7 months old and i haven't held her once yet...her mother is very over protective. I find it all a bit strange how no one is allowed to cuddle her baby.

Have no idea what's going on with my body. I'm getting quite a lot of ewcm again. I never ovulated last week so all those 5 eggs must have died and my womb lining was ready the week before so i can't be gearing up for ovulation now. Do you think my body has been put totally out of sync by those injections? I am concerned it will never get back to what it was. Ok I need to take a chill pill. I'm not suppose to be worrying about anything anymore...

waves to everyone

I get ewcm for a few days before AF joycep, do you think it could be that? Or maybe you are about to ovulate again? Might be worth some SWI just in case.

I've done the newborn holding thing. I went to see my friend and her 1 week old yesterday. I only got a 10 minute cuddle though. He is so beautiful and it made me feel a little bit sad that I might not ever get to hold my own baby. But my friend looked absolutely knackered and she is normally the most groomed person ever, I know it shouldn't have but it made me feel just a little bit better to see that it's not all peaches and cream.

Welcome bubs. We've had a couple of people on this thread who have had to wait a long time to conceive their second baby but then have and are now progressing nicely with their pregnancies. So maybe you will join them soon. Do you have any idea why the third IUI worked for you?

Nelly Keeping FX for you and your sludge. I won't say any more because I hear what you say about Mother Nature having a knack of throwing new and jaw dropping "signs" into the mix every month
I hate the buses because they make me feel like a freak. I want to be one of those women who try for a couple of months, have definite preggo symptoms during the 2ww then test at 10dpo and get a BFP. Sighs...

Cake I think that Michel Roux is lovely too. I love it when he cooks French things and gives the name of it in his gorgeous accent. he has often helped the ovulation shagathon along
Enjoy Berlin.

Talking about vits I've given up on the proper pregnancy/pre pregnancy ones and have just bought the bog standard Folic Acid and 30 something pencebog standard multi vits. Am worried now though about what Euro's consultant said.

Am having the weirdest period which makes me think I never ovulated. On an non-ovulatory cycle did anyone have a really ahem, "dry" flow of mainly old blood?
Am still in the mood from hell, not helped by having my wedding invites posted to our old address by accident and a damp issue ruining the freshly painted spare bedroom and of course not being updiffed

Am loving that most of us on here have a surrogate child of some furry description.

Okay somehow missed loads of posts so sorry for appearing to be totally ignorant.

Hello to bubs

pout on the cycle when I know for certain I didn't ovulate (because I had tracking scans) my AF was different to my normal ones. The blood was brown or very dark red not the usual bright red stuff I get on days 1 and 2. It was more like 5 days of day 3 iykwim. It was lighter like a day 3 flow and I didn't have any of the usual cramps or dragging feelings. When I think back, I have had periods like this before but had never caught on that it meant a dud cycle.

Hello ttc 10+ gang.

Manic week and I've missed a load of posts but just tried to have a catch upland thanks to everyone for being lovely.

pout and cake Michel Roux...I think I secretly might somedays and others not..but I have felt all aww about him since I read the paper on Sunday.

nelly hope the grump storm has left you. It is a particularly grump inducing malarkey this ttc business. Hug. Spotting is a total headf**k. I am now 4 or 5 dpo and started spotting last month at 8dpo so any days later will be a bonus. But if this is unusual stuff for you, you never know...here to hand hold with spotting rage though x

euro quick question - what was the name of the clomid alternative you've been offered? I think that if my lap is clear, clomid will be offered in the new year. I don't want to take it because of the side effects and because I'm happily ovulating by myself. I guess the consultant might change my mind (he thinks it makes a better quality of egg) but I didn't even know there were alternatives. I'll be interested to see how you get on.

joycep sorry that you're all of a muddle with signs and symptoms. Maybe your hormones are all rebalancing?

mrsden you never know, my gp swears that people ov when they don't think they do and that opks and temps are misleading?

kitty it just takes one sperm doesn't it?! I keep telling myself that and imagine a lone intrepid cocky sperm muscling his way through.

Af comiserations lemon

Welcome bubs. You will get there and here is good place to hang out.

Im feeling better this week. I think the vit d spray has helped loads with energy. I have gone out and bought lots of new underwear as it is payday. Dh is off staging this weekend so I'm going to do pampering. I've got so ttc-ed that personal grooming has lapsed rather badly. I dealt with hair in places I don't want it today it had become ! Nails and face mask next methinks.

My bunny is my substitute. He is the most spoilt rabbit ever, lives in the lounge, has a breakfast of blueberries a whole raft of other treats. He's so lovely. To us. Not to strangers! But he has hardly any teeth left now so can longer bite them

Wave to anyone I missed x

Evening ladies. Been at a conference all day having to make polite small talk rather than MNing so just catching up with the day's posts now.

mrsd I feel the same about people making money from our misery. Unfortunately not strongly enough to prevent me buying the next manuka honey/snake oil remedy that someone mentions. I am weak.

nelly I heard of someone (male) once who tested the milk theory by bringing a crying newborn into the room and watching a number of women horrified as they started to lactate

Welcome bubs.

Wine it's called Letrozole. It's supposed to be similar to Clomid but with fewer side effects (I think it is more expensive too which is why the NHS tends to go for Clomid - I have a private prescription for the Letrozole).

To those mentioning what my consultant said about vits, I wouldn't worry about it. I've tried various combinations of vits and supplements so far and none have worked but as I have put my faith in this guy I am going to follow what he recommends 100% for the next few months. After all, I am paying a lot of month for his advice! I will feel better about it if I just give myself over to the process and follow his recommendations.

Belated cheer for brown sludge!

Haha I feel a bit like the boy who cried Wolf! Last month I was harping on about 4 days of super-light spotting (and AF proper was very nearly late). This month, it's Sludge-Gate! If By the time I get my real BFP, I'll be telling you all I've been sick 40 times, AF is 3 weeks late and I've had a zillion BFPs and you still won't believe me .

I am pretty sure I'm just going down the route of a very short cycle. Hey, looking on the bright side, this gives me another chance to try before the end of the year. But in the meantime I promise to keep you all overly informed regarding the sludge checks. Now there's an offer you don't get every day thankfully

Welcome back ladygee glad you had a lovely time away. Hello to Bubs you are of course welcome, although it's never great when someone has to join our thread of course.

Hmm interesting about the African women theory kitty and the milk experiment euro. I wonder if there is anything in it really? But it can indeed be hard to persuade parents of PFB to give up their little darling for 24 hours, unreasonably I'd say . Though I too know someone who literally never hands the baby over. I find it hard to understand - no idea what I will be like, really, but I suspect I'll take all the help I can get. Yes please, take my baby and coo at it, now I'm off for a nap zzzzzzzz

I keep wondering who egg is joycep then realising you mean me! I'm sorry your body is also playing mean tricks on you, it is insanely hard sometimes isn't it. I really wish I had the key to "relaxing" about it all as I would much prefer NOT to be obsessively knicker checking, whether it's for EWCM or sludge. Today I have a headache, so I am now wondering if that means anything. Where the flipping heck is the instruction manual for our bodies? I'm going straight to the Troubleshooting pages at the back. Hopefully AF will not arrive, but if it does then fingers crossed that will be your Reboot function and all will be well next month.

Thanks for the quiet fingers crossed pout. I know what you mean about all the ladies with the textbook conceptions. It just seems ludicrous now to think it ever happens like that. If I was 2 months in, I'd have written my own post by now saying "do you think I'm pregnant" and 40 people would reply saying "oooh yes sounds like it do a test" and I would and it would be BFP at 9DPO. Thanks for making me chuckle though about Michel Roux and the part he is playing in your TTC journey . I'm sorry you are also having a fucked up cycle. Is there something in the water this month?

Thanks for the handholding wine. I'm feeling a little less murderous today thankfully. OH is safe because he is still in the office

Boo to conferences keeping you from MN euro. Tis very rude of them not to realise you need frequent breaks

Joycep The only thing differently i did on my third cycle was that because we were off on the ivf route the doc told me that I need to drink lots and lots of milk when we start so I started doing that on my 3rd cycle. Who knows. I'm trying it now too, however the milk tastes like crap here. Anyway I had literally tried everything else-acupuncture, no drinking, healthy food, honey, orange underwear (ha ha believing everything!) positions, no baths etc etc. It's hard but these things give you hope which is great so I say try anything!

Hi all. I too appear to be having a fucked up cycle this month.. Temps dropping just 1 week after ovulation. They haven't been as high as normal so now convinced I didn't ovulate. Just typical when we managed lots of lovely relaxed holiday shagging!

nelly still resisting peeing on a stick?!

pout :0) at michel roux's er assistance! I'm also a bit partial to michel roux snr, which I know is wrong, but he was a bit of a hottie when younger

bubs hi and it's great to hear a success story. Will you be having iui again?

Agree that a lot of the ttc stuff seems to be aimed at making money out of us! However for me, it feels like it's giving me some control over it all. euro I'm weak too...

Snogs to everyone else. Got to get on, argh!

I got up really early as I needed a pee and wasn't awake enough to remember .

Starting to get more period pains though, so suspect we are in another false alarm.

Morning lovely ladies!

AF arrived in full flow this morning and the spotting was really minimal, so I take that as a positive from cycle number 327

Waves at all and welcome to bubs

Aww lemon that sucks, but hooray for no spotting.

Sludge so far hasn't reappeared today, so decided to PIAR. Daft, as only max of 9DPO and not FMU. So BFN of course, bit I can at least console myself that it's too early in the month and too late in the day

Worked out last night this is cycle 19, but I'm also discounting 3 cycles where we didn't get much shagging in, so this is cycle 16 of real attempts. Hardly any at all

Bored at work and fed up of the two week wait, always so slow

Sorry bfn nelly but early days. I feel calmish about ttc but also very impatient. This is taking ages! My friend is in labour and very scared.

Chatting about random things appreciated!

Cycle 327 Lemon? Surely that makes you about 55! Prime time for a BFP next month, I'd say!

It's CD24 here & I'm bored. No symptoms of any sort to indicate that my body's doing anything, apart from the occasional stomach rumbling. The past few cycles have been 27 days so I'll wait & see what that brings.

I have to say though that a BFN this month wouldn't really be so bad as I have Olympics tickets! Maybe my body's been being clever and deliberately not conceiving as it's desperate for me to get to go. I'm not quite sure it works like that, but here's hoping!

Hello, hope everyone is okay.

Lemons Sorry about AF arriving and FB babies. Am thinking of deactivating because all it does is make me feel crap, baby announcements or not.

Mrsd I'm also sorry that you think your SWI timing was a bit out. I have a theory though that if you shag at least once in ov week you stand a good enough chance - my un-updiffed status probably indicates that this is cobblers but it makes me feel better!
Thanks for sharing about your annovulatory cycles - it does sound like I had a dud. Not too bothered as I didn't try too hard and wasn't overly convinced that there had been any movement on the egg front anyway.

Joycep I'm sorry that you are having a confuddling cycle. I agree with Mrsd about having EWCM type stuff a few days before AF's arrival. Maybe it is that.

LadyGee I admire your Xmas efforts & Joycep's too! I too have Christmas rituals and usually thoroughly enjoy all the prep. In fact I think that the build up is the best bit but I'm a bit weird like that. However this year we won't be doing the usual because the house is too much of a state and we will be staying with my sis. Feels a bit weird and a bit distressing for a control freak like me

wine am laughing about your hairy bits. You'd think that all this SWI and stuff would make us even more doomed and groomed but like you I've let it slip a bit too. I know I should be making myself more alluring rather than sliding into a Yeti like state but I just can't be arsed. The razors get dug out and dusted off during ovulation week and that's about it.

Nelly Boo at BFN but it would be very early I suppose for us non uber fertile, bus rejects. Really hope AF stays away for you.

Gin I'm sorry about your crappy cycle too. Does anyone get updiffed in Nov/Dec or is it universal dud cycle time?????

I'm interested in the theories about holding newborns boosting fertility and have visions of us forcibly wrestling newborns away from their mothers for a cuddle whilst simultaneously sitting on our yantra mats & smearing ourselves in Manuka honey.

BTW did anyone watch Corrie this week where Leanne was at the docs talking about her conception fears? There were whole bits of conversation that could have been lifted from this thread. It will be interesting if they pursue that storyline.