Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Conception

When's the best time to get pregnant? Use our interactive ovulation calculator to work out when you're most fertile and most likely to conceive.

Clomid for the first time.....questions, questions, questions...oh and pcos for good measure!

31 replies

pussycatmomma · 15/03/2007 17:20

Right ladies, I am not the sort to start new threads very often, and I am a bit of a old timer when it comes to the ttc boards.
The reason I need a bright, spangly new thread is that I have just been prescribed 6mths worth of clomid.
Kind of Hurray, but also kind of sad, cause I so wanted to do this "on my own" as it were. But heyho, this is evidently not to be. I was diagnosed with having pcos, and also had ovarian drilling 6mths ago. My gyny appt today has confirmed that we need to move on to the next stage as it is unlikely now that I will fall prg without a bit of help. I am currently on cd45, with no sign of af but 2 neg tests behind me so far this cycle.
I need support! I need advice! I need all my lovely ttc friends (and some new ones I hope!) to come out of the woodwork, and help me work on my positivity!!
I need to tell myself this is a wonderful opportunity, that it may well work, and that hopefully I wont have to go down IUI/IVF roads.
I also need other clomid ladies, to tell me exactly what cd to start, as the handout from the gyny states day 2 onwards for 5 days (day 2-6) but the leaflet inside the box says start on day 1 for 5 days. So am a bit unsure.
Also , does it matter what time of day you take it? Does it have to be same time each day?
And lastly a bit of tech question, hopefully someone can answer....gyny is dead against temping, advised me to have a ceremonial burning of the thermometer , so I am going with his view and ditching the temping. I have not used ov pred kits since i was diagnosed with the pcos because an expert on here advised me they were really unreliable to use with unstable hormone levels.
But,,,,, what should i do now i am going to be using the clomid??? I feel i have to have some way of knowing what is happening. The gyny has only asked for a 21 day blood test for first month, nothing else yet. I asked him about scanning and checking for impending ovulation that way and he said that wasnt available.
So sorry for long post.
Just feeling sad/scared/excited/nervous and every other emotion we get on the ttc rollercoaster.
xxxx

OP posts:
Twiglett · 15/03/2007 17:26

I started clomid on day 1 of period .. but day 2 would have been fine .. again for 5 days .. many obs start on day 2 to be sure period has actually started

I took it at night IIRC .. I think you should take it at same time but it doesn't matter when

I don't have much experience because I conceived first cycle .. and she is currently shovelling spaghetti in her mouth like a particularly feral almost 3 year old

(I had a short luteal phase .. but also had PCOS prior to DS which cleared up with his pregnancy .. not aided)

I would personally chart .. day of period, dates of sex .. and I would also do the temp / cervical fluid as per Toni Weschler's book / fertilityfriend.com

HTH and good luck

hunkermunker · 15/03/2007 17:30

I think I took it on days 2-6. I can't remember though. I too conceived first cycle on it.

I had follicle tracking scans and the hospital did an ov test for me.

Good luck - hope you also have a first time positive.

And don't worry about not doing it all by yourself - I felt more nervous conceiving DS2 without Clomid, as my stupid body's let me down for years and I couldn't believe it had got it right at last!

pussycatmomma · 15/03/2007 17:31

hi twiglett thanks for this, I will continue to chart days/ dates of sex and also will note cm. tbh i have never had much of the ewcm. I seem to remember hearing that clomid could dry up cm a bit, and that preseed was recomended, although dryness is not mentioned in the leaflet at all. Do you remember if you used pre-seed?
Anyone else with advice on the opk?
Congrats on hitting the spot first cycle!! that is the kind of news i need just now.

OP posts:
Twiglett · 15/03/2007 17:32

nope didn't use anything but the clomid

hunkermunker · 15/03/2007 17:33

I only took Clomid, nothing else.

pussycatmomma · 15/03/2007 17:35

hunkermunker....((((((pusscat shys away in awe))))) I have never actually been on a thread with you, have seen your name a squillion times over....you are offially an official proper "named" mnetter to me!!
Its amazing how many folks may have had a bit of trouble ttc, but we dont realise cause they have obv got their children and arent on the ttc threads by the time we come along.
another first cycle lady too, am suddenly feeling a tiny bit more hopeful.
Was just worried cause gyny went on about iui and ivf if this not successful and i cant even let myself think about it not being successful.

OP posts:
hunkermunker · 15/03/2007 17:37

LOL PCM, you loon

If I was you, I'd probably do ov tests. And shag like bunnies.

I had sore ovaries when I was taking it though - just to warn you you might. Equally, you might not!

Twiglett · 15/03/2007 17:37

'kin 'ell .. Hunker gets billing above me

shit .. I remember when she was a sneaky newbie

ROFL

Twiglett · 15/03/2007 17:38

oh shagging every other day is best for the sperm btw

Twiglett · 15/03/2007 17:39

Hunker used to follow me round the boards geneflucting on every thread IIRC

pussycatmomma · 15/03/2007 17:41

embarrassed backtracking........errrm you too twiglett, you are a very highly esteemed mnetter too in your very own right....
errrm, back to the clomid !
Well i wont be rushing out to order the preseed then, it is bloody expensive anyhow, but i give the predictor kits another whirl. And of course, shag like bunnies.
Like very tired bunnies actually , we been ttc since we got married and we are coming up our third anniversary this year...
How many children do you each have?
(((pusscat nearly has to have a vodka and a lie down, cant believe she is talking to actual mn celebs)))

OP posts:
Twiglett · 15/03/2007 17:42

too feckin' late now

bigknickersbigknockers · 15/03/2007 17:45

I took clomid to concieve DS2, i took it CD2-6. I took it at same time each day though I dont think it matters what time of day you take it. I had slight pain around the time of ovulation, but it wasnt bad pain.
hope it works for you pussycat

pussycatmomma · 15/03/2007 17:46

omg i am offending celebrities
would you like me to get you a centre spread in heat, ms twiglett? Could I get you anything else, Ms?

am not normally so silly,
gyny appt and actually something happening for a change is sending my brain a bit funny.

OP posts:
pussycatmomma · 15/03/2007 17:48

did you have pcos too norms?

OP posts:
AttilaTheMeerkat · 15/03/2007 17:58

Hi PCM

As a fellow PCOSer I can certainly sympathise with your plight. Please do not feel bad, I certainly needed medical help in order to conceive with regards to my PCOS, many PCOSers do.

At cd45 it is unlikely that you have ovulated this cycle. Would strongly suggest that you not test for the time being. Besides which seeing repeated negatives can be soul destroying.

I would certainly go by your gynae's advice to lay off temp charting; you would end up with a chart that is akin to the Rocky Mountains which would be damn nigh impossible to interpret.

The problem with using OPK's with PCOS is that these measure the levels of LH. With many PCOSers this level is elevated to start with so the kit would be reading the excess level rather than any ovulatory surge. Hence my counsel not to use them at all. They may be helpful for others but certainly not for this condition.

Do you currently know what your LH/FSH levels are?. At a guess I would say that your LH is far higher than your FSH. The LH levels need to come down.

Am a bit confused really - why did they do ovarian diathermy first off?. That seems a bit extreme if this was done first of all without trying anything else. Normally its clomid first off then one of the other treatments like that one you have had.

As you don't really have any cycle to speak of I would go by calendar days with their agreement of this beforehand. If though you are uncertain of when to take the clomid you should speak with the hospital beforehand. Normally clomid is taken from days 2 to 6 of a cycle.

To be totally sure of what's happening when you;re on the clomid you need to be monitored by the hospital regularly. One day 21 test is not enough, you need to be seen far more regularly than that. I would have words with them with getting more monitoring done. You also need ultrasound scans (internal ones) to check that an egg is leaving the ovary. Without these measures you will have no way of knowing whether its working or not.

I was not sure whether to write the next bit or not but..........it may come to pass (hope not but this does happen) that you may become clomid resistant and thus this may not work for you ultimately. Clomid encourages the ovaries to work harder. I would therefore ask the cons asap what plan B is if this fails. You need to know.

I would also say that if you can stay within the correct weight range for your height this will also help. Excess pounds are a bugger to shift with PCOS and this can exacerbate the PCOS symptoms you have.

The more you learn about PCOS the better off you will be when it comes to making treatment decisions. You need to be assertive and ask lots of questions. Do not be fobbed off.

Verity is a very good UK based website when it comes to PCOS and would suggest you read that as well - www.verity-pcos.org.uk.

I wish you well, will try and keep track of your progress.

bigknickersbigknockers · 15/03/2007 18:09

whose norms? do you mean me? Just in case you do... no I didnt have PCOS, DH had normal sperm count but the motility wasnt as good as it should have been, and I had antiphospholipid syndrome. We were told we would need IVF but i didnt want to go down that road because we already had DS1 and it coststoo much cash.
Dr referred us to Gynecologist who suggested we try clomid befor using more invasive treatments and it worked

hunkermunker · 15/03/2007 18:15

Twiglett. I thought you'd mention something

minxi · 15/03/2007 18:27

big knickers - did you have to have clomid with all three of yours - Sorry was checking out your profile....being nosy...thanks

bigknickersbigknockers · 15/03/2007 18:44

no minxi.. I conceived DS1 without really trying. I came off the pill due to migrane and never really got round to deciding what contraceptive to use. Me and DH were 29 and 30 yrs old and settled so if I got pregnant it wasnt a problem. I got pregnant 6 mths later and had DS1. Then the problems started. I really wanted another baby and after a yr of ttc got pg and then had mc. I was lucky I got seen by gyne so soon. I was given clomid and conceived again but had another mc.
I then had 2 more cycles of clomid and got pg again with DS2.
I then started to think about having another baby but was still bfing DS" who was 11 mths old at the time, so I didnt bother going back to Drs as I didnt think there was much point as i was still bfing. It was then that I got pg with DD1.

bigknickersbigknockers · 15/03/2007 18:46

are you ttc minxi?

minxi · 15/03/2007 18:52

Have been ttc dc3 for a while, came off depo nov 2004 cycles back to normal last summer, have gyne app next week, have had the cd2 blood test which was fine and dh has had his samples done, so next thing is to discuss options etc with gyne I guess just wondered whether we would be offered clomid etc...

bigknickersbigknockers · 15/03/2007 18:59

well clomid certainly worked for me, hope it does the trick for you.

bigknickersbigknockers · 15/03/2007 19:01

I checked ot your profile and could do with hacing a natter with you about power walking and if you think its possible to do it whilst pushing a pram but have got to go and get the hooligans ready for bed so may catch up with you soon,

tinkerbellhadpiles · 15/03/2007 19:07

Hiya

I also have PCOS.

I took Clomid for two months and developed Ovarian HyperStimulation Syndrome (OHSS) - worth knowing about that just in case. Really horrid, was a hormonal cow for months afterwards.

Doesn't make a difference honestly if you start on day one or day two but the docs normally base that on when they reckon you will ovulate.

Make sure they are doing FSH tests at regular periods to check it's working (no point in subjecting your body to nasty drugs without evidence they are doing something).

I got menopausal type symptoms (hot flashes, extreme rage/depression etc.) nice but it's a rarity apparently.

BTW it can take two months to build up enough to make a difference according to my docs.

We gave up and did acupuncture in the end, it worked for me. I have a 21 week old DD.

Hope that helps.