PCOS and temping?

[gwenabee85]

Hi everyone, just wondering if anyone can shed any light on this for me?

I'm waiting for an appointment on Thursday to confirm, but pretty sure I've got PCOS. Came off the pill in Dec 12, had withdraw bleed then couple of days of brown discharge (sorry) in Feb then nothing until mid July, which was a real AF (just as I was about to start taking prog tablets to induce a bleed)

I started temping in mid-May as felt I should try and do something proactive, (picture the rocky mountains) and I'm using FF. the week before July AF arrived my temps were at the higher end of the scale (between 36.4-36.7) and then the first day of AF they dropped to 36.2 and stayed around there for next two weeks.

according to FF I ov'd on 4th July even though there wasn't really a sustained temp rise around that time, (and I got a positive OPK on July 8th..) and then AF arrived 18th July.

since AF arrived naturally and I got all giddy, I've been anxiously waiting for my temps to go up again to indicate I've ov'd and it hasn't happened!
I'm now on CD25 and FF is still telling me that today is my expected OV day. have been using OPKs and nothing, temp still not gone up, but on Weds and Thurs this week I had serious cramping, and my boobs were really sore, which is something I've not experienced before.

I guess what I want to know is whether I could've ov'd Weds/Thurs and somehow missed it (no EWCM, neg OPKs) or is that just an impossibility?!

Temping and PCOS are uneasy bedfellows and I would go as far to suggest that you stop temping now. Its not helping you any and its just causing more stress.

You can get a raised temp in the second half of your cycle also when an egg has not been shed so charting is not infallible. PCOS makes it more likely that you are not ovulating regularly if at all currently but treatments have moved along a bit in the last decade and there is a lot of information out there.

Verity's website may be worth looking at as well www.verity-pcos.org.uk

Do let us know what happens on Thursday; was diagnosed with PCOS some years back.

Thanks for the reply. I am a total control freak and i like to have a plan, so now the idea that i'm not going to be able to try and plan ttc is stressing me out a bit :/
how do you manage your pcos? Do you have any dc?

I am a parent as a result of ovarian diathermy surgery for PCOS. No one therapy or treatment will completely eradicate it however, as the cystic follicles associated with this condition always return.

Excess pounds can exacerbate symptoms so I would try and stay within the correct weight ranges for height as much as possible. I also try and follow a low GI (glycaemic index)/GL (glycaemic load) eating plan.

Good luck Thursday, let us know what happens.

Any further questions just ask.

Thanks :)
What's ovarian diathermy?! Is it the drilling I've read about? I'm 5'8'' and weigh 10.5 stone so weight isn't a factor for me.
I'm taking pre-conception vits and have just started a B vit complex as I've heard that can help regulate cycles, think they're gonna try me on clomid from what they said last time.

Just thought I'd post a quick update - I have polycystic ovaries but not full on pcos apparently. my appointment was very rushed and I didn't really have time to ask everything i should have, which is annoying. But basically I've got to carry on as I am and they'll review in 6 months, which will involve checking my tubes, test for dh and then clomid (I don't want to ttc until late Dec/early Jan so that's ok I guess)
She also told.me to stop temping but don't think I can let go :/

Thanks, I always appreciate it when someone updates their thread. So how is that different from pcos? Do they expect your cycles to return to normal?

I have no idea, the doctor was rubbish and the appointment very rushed. She just basically told me to stop checking for ovulation and if af doesn't arrive, to do a pg test every 4 weeks or so.. :/

Yes, that's not very helpful!

You were given some real duff advice there apart from the suggestion to stop the temp charting. Temp charting and PCO are very uneasy bedfellows and charting in such circs can drive you half mad with stress.
Its not actually being proactive at all.

Ovarian diathermy is not drilling as such, basically the surgeon punctures the cystic follicles on the ovaries with an electrical laser or needle. The ovary surface itself is not touched.

What is being proactive is going back to this practice (do not see this previous GP) and insist that you are now referred to a gynae at a subfertility unit for further evaluation. Do not take no for an answer. Such appts can take several months to come through asking now for a referral is reasonable.

There is a very fine line between PCO and PCOS; PCOS is the cystic follicles on the ovaries with more than one other symptom be it LH/FSH imbalance, hirsuitism, adult onset acne insulin resistance (although not all PCOSers are actually IR). PCOS is a very individualistic disorder and affects each woman with it very differently.

Clomid should actually be given with a degree of caution to all such patients as it is quite powerful stuff; you should also be monitored whilst on it. Also both of you should be tested further and in tandem, its little point in solely testing you now only to perhaps discover a long later on that there are male factor issues as well.

Thanks for your reply attila, you're very knowledgeable! :) sorry, maybe i wasn't clear in my other posts, this was an appointment at the gynae unit at the hospital, after initial referral from my gp a couple of months ago. it wasn't an actual consultant who saw me, she introduced herself as a 'registrar'. And as she said "we'll see you back in 6 months" i don't really know what i can do now.. :/