Trying to conceive first child with PCO/PCOS or irregular long cycles

[Catconfusion]

Hi there,

I'm currently on my 3rd cycle ttc my first child and I suffer with irregular cycles due to PCO. I conceived first cycle but it was a missed miscarriage at 10 weeks. My second cycle was a chemical pregnancy. I'm now on my 3rd and it's day 34 with no ovulation yet. I'm using Ovusense to temp which helps to show when I've ovulated. I can't help but worry it was a fluke to fall quickly like I did. Just wondering if there's anyone else in a similar situation struggling with long cycles as I'm finding it really frustrating. Looking forward to chatting to some of you! x

Completely understandable about Ovusense @EssJayyCee It is amazing though. I can’t be without it now.

It will be helpful to see if your hormones are raised. If so metaformin could do wonders. My sister wasn’t ovulating at all and had crazy cycles. It literally took a couple of weeks and she ovulated and fell pregnant. The other supplement is Inositol. During my appointment with the fertility nurse who works for Ovusense she told me she’s seen women go from not ovulating to 28 day cycles in a few months. It’s just expensive. Inofolic is the only one that’s medical grade and the best. I tried the Zita West one and my cycle was awful. Apparently it can mess up the first cycle but after that it gets better. I don’t feel I have time for another messed up cycle now I’m 40 so I’m sticking with what I’m doing as this cycle seems much better so far.

Anyway let me know how you find the Raspberry leaf tea. Xx

Hi ladies just jumping on this thread as seems to be plenty of good advice here!

I'm 35 and have been TTC dc1 for 14 months. It took me over three months to have my first bled after coming off the mini pill, and my cycles since then have always been at least 40 days, with very light periods of no more than 3 days. I was referred to the fertility clinic in April but unexpectedly found out that I was pregnant before the first appointment! Unfortunately I miscarried at 7 weeks, so now it feels like I'm back to square 1. It took 50 days to have my first period after the MC so suspect it's going to be back to business as usual with long, irregular cycles. I never achieved a positive OPK prior to falling pregnant, but did get my first ever positive a few weeks ago, so think I'm going to attempt some serious tracking this month before going back to my GP to see if the referral still stands. Since the MC I've started acupuncture in the hope that it might sort my cycles out, would be interested to know anything at all that has helped others! I don't have PCOS based on the fertility clinic tests I've had so far, but clearly something isn't 'right'.

Hey @Avocuddles I know you from the other thread. What I will say is that pcos is an elusive bugger. My bloods and recent scans were all normal yet here I am on day 28 with still no confirmed ovulation. My sister has it and it's likely my mum had it so based on that my doctor says I have a mild version of it.

What I will say is that tracking is a double edged sword: it can cause stress which can make matters worse. I've been using Ovusense for a year now. I started 3 months before I started ttc. I nearly cried when it confirmed ovulation every time. It was irregular and sometimes late but it happened.

I got pregnant my first try on my honeymoon. Sadly a mmc at 12 weeks. I then had a chemical pregnancy. The next cycle I ovulated but we couldn't try and DH has his sperm analysis and of course I ovulated the same day so we couldn't dtd. Last cycle anovulatory and this one is looking the same. The only think I can think of is the stress is affecting my cycles. I'm not sleeping well in anticipation of the next reading and my ibs has got bad. I don't generally feel stressed but of course very sad about the losses and eager to conceive again as I just turned 40.

You could try this www.amazon.co.uk/Smart-Basal-Thermometer-femometer-Vinca/dp/B07GV7KCN9/ref=mpsa11_sspa?keywords=fermometer&qid=1563604973&s=gateway&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1 I've just got one as a possible replacement for Ovusense as it syncs automatically.

Anyway I'm so sorry for you loss. It's so hard when you have long cycles because you're dealing with the grief and acting difficulties with trying too. Your doctor should hopefully refer you back to the fertility clinic. I'm waiting for an appointment too.

I started this thread for ladies like us who don't know if they've ovulated. Most the ladies on other threads have normalish cycles so it can be a bit bewildering sometimes. Hopefully you'll find it supportive. @EssJayyCee Is a lovely lady and we've had some great contributions of others. Xx

Anyway this is my latest cycle @EssJayyCee And it's so confusing. It started out much more stable and now this see saw thing. I feel like I ovulated: sore boobs, mild cramps etc but no sustained rise! How are you? Xx

Hey everyone

I hope people dont mind me joining? We are also TTC, and i also have irregular periods. My last period was end of May. I was taking pregnacare at the time to help with the irregularities but it messed me up even more. I have been a mess this past week or so and i wonder if people can help me??

I have given up trying to track ovulation because it drove me mad but instead i have been checking my cervix. I have noticed that since last weekend it has been high and soft and on monday i started having sensitive nipples. I did a test on thursday and it came back negative but then when i went to bin it hours later there was a pink positive line :-/

I have tried not to do anymore tests so then if i am pregnant my hormones can build up but i have been reading so much about evap lines that i have now become too scared to do another for the dissappointment

Sorry when i said track ovulation i meant as in using OPKs.

Hi @FredMyl and welcome. I hope this is it for you. Hopefully in a couple of days it will be stronger. Could you try a First Response? They are the most sensitive test. I think it might be best for your mental health to get some answers soon. Xx

@catconfusion i have ordered some and they are coming today hopefully. I hope this is it too. It is horrible on other threads when everyone asks how many days since you ovulated or last monthly etc. I never have any answers just guesses?

We have now got to the point of DTD regularly and seeing what happens but it is horrible!!

@FredMyl it is really hard. I'm not sure regular ladies with the best meaning understand how hard it is trying when you don't know when is best. I thought I was lucky to fall first time I tried and would hopefully avoid all this as I've suffered with irregular cycles my whole life. Sadly it wasn't to be and my cycles are now pretty messed up again.

I hope you see an end to this and have a healthy pregnancy! xx

@Catconfusion thanks for your message, really appreciate hearing about your experiences. You are definitely right about tracking being a double edged sword! The fact I got pregnant on the one month that I didn't track anything at all is testament to that, however the more forums I read where people are obsessively tracking everything the more it makes me feel like i need to do the same. I've become a bit of a POAS addict so bought a big box of the cheap easy@home opks so I can do it every day (even when there's blatantly no point).

I bought a BBT thermometer yesterday (not a smart one unfortunately) so I'm going to start recording that in the premom app. Do those of you who temp do it orally or vaginally?

I suspect that I might have PCOS in spite of the initial scans stating otherwise. It would be so good to have some answers one way or the other!

@FredMyl that looks very promising. Good luck to you.....keep us posted

It's so difficult @Avocuddles but when you're cycles are irregular you want answers. It's difficult to accept. I got good results with opks but some were false peaks so I guess if you get a peak treat it with a pinch of salt. If you have a failed ovulation your body will gear up about a week later so if you think you've ovulated you might not catch it.

I use Ovusense which is vaginal and amazingly accurate. I guess it's a bit more invasive but not uncomfortable as such. I'd start with oral and see how it looks. I personally tried a normal thermometer years ago and couldn't identify ovulation once. I probably wasn't ovulating. Ovusense flagged it up on the first cycle. I was so happy I cried.

It would be good to know if it's pcos. Have you had irregular cycles for a long time? I know pill use can bring on the symptoms. I've always had it. Although mine is mild it's enough to make trying hard. My mmc was in Feb and my CP in March and we've not been able to try since which is frustrating. Unless miraculously this chart isn't anovulatory.

Hopefully you'll get some answers soon! Xx

@Catconfusion I've taken oral contraception for almost 20 years so hard to know what 'normal' is really! I was on the mini pill for 9 years after having a blood clot when I was 25, and didn't bleed at all (not even spotting!) for the entire time.

I started temping this morning. The thermometer says it can be used orally or internally, I decided to use it vaginally as read that it can be more accurate, in particular if you breathe through your mouth which I often do as I'm asthmatic and can be a bit wheezy at night. Will see how I get on.... My acupuncturist spoke highly about ovusense so might consider that down the line if it looks like there might be a long wait for medical help.

I had positives from both the easy@home strip and clearblue opk so am optimistic that I did ovulate last month. It was a full 39 days after my miscarriage and I was about to give up for the cycle. It makes me suspect that when I failed to get a positive opk any time prior to my pregnancy, some of those months were probably anovulatory but in some cases it may have been that I stopped testing too soon. I'm looking forward to speaking to my GP and hopefully getting the ball rolling again.

Had a dodgy stomach last night and this morning but touch wood it seems better now. Off to the theatre this evening so hopefully will have a few hours where I'm not thinking about fertility!

@Avocuddles I think oral contraceptives can hide a lot. It can take a while for the hormones to settle.

Ovusense is amazing and pretty easy to use really. I've just become very eager to upload my data in the morning and it's disrupting my sleep. It's so accurate I think it can be a bit disheartening because you can see your body trying and failing. It sounds like the opks we're picking up possibly ovulation attempts. They can be pretty unreliable with irregular cycles. I've had blazing peaks and then not ovulated.

I hope your gp gets you seen quickly. In my area it's pretty good in that we get a private clinic. We're expecting an appointment to come through any day.

Have a lovely time at the theatre. I hope you can take your mind off it. It sucks how consuming this journey can be. Xx

Hello everyone. I have tried to catch up on all of the messages but words seem to be going straight over my head so I'm sorry for lack of direct replies.

@Avocuddles hello, welcome. I temp orally purely for ease as I can just reach for the thermometer and stick it in my mouth rather than fumbling under the covers Haha.

@Catconfusion had you added a chart to your message? It's weird how cycles can suddenly change from seemingly steady to crazy!
I thought I was due AF at some point this week because I had a temp drop over a few days but this morning it went right up again so now I don't have a clue what's going on. I was excited because I thought I'd finally get to go for my blood test but no!

Here's my chart.. maybe you can figure something out?

I know it's really disheartening. These last two cycles have been awful. It looks to me like tour body tried on day 33 and is again right now. You should still be covered by the bd a couple of days ago. I hope it is O!

Here is my chart. I'm hoping it's a slow riser as I'm feeling like I've ovulated but then I did last cycle and it didn't come to anything. I'm having a cycle off temping next time if we don't catch. It's got too stressful! Xx

@catconfusion I was kind of hoping you'd say that it could be possible O! Fingers are crossed but even if it is I doubt that BD will have worked.

I'm worried if I O this cycle then my blood test won't show any possible problems when I start my next cycle!

Your chart confuses me because I am so used to fertility friend! Are the circles your temps?
Fingers crossed there are good things coming for us!

Quick question for anyone reading..

How do you check your cervix? I can't feel anything when I try

If you think I may have O'd is it more likely CD42 or CD44?

@EssJayyCee I'd have said cd 44 because of the dip.

Yes the dots are the temperatures. I got my answer today as my temp bombed. Really gutted as this cycle started well.

With regards to checking your cervix if it's so soft you can't feel it you may be fertile. It becomes high, wet and open. Tbh I don't find feeling it helpful as it changes position a lot during the day. Also with pcos it can feel fertile when going through a failed ovulation. Mine feels really fertile but my temp just bombed so not ovulating. Xx

@Catconfusion my temp dropped by .1 this morning so I'm guessing I didn't O again.

I can never feel it whatever time I try so I will give that up as a bad job

Oh is AF almost here again for you then?

I'm sorry to hear that @EssJayyCee It's so hard. You'll get there!!!! If you have those bloods and they confirm pcos push for a fertility appointment. You shouldn't have to carry on like this. Can I ask do you think anxiety affects your ovulation? I'm convinced the stress of ttc might be affecting my cycles.

I don't think AF is coming as it's still early. My body tends to try again in about a week.

It just worries me that if the second try pulls off the follicle won't be as good. The first try is the best follicle and that's failed. Just scared of having another miscarriage. I'm very close to my fertility appointment so I'm tempted to stop trying until then. Hopefully some clomid will do the trick. Xx

I just looked back at the cycle I 100% ovulated and the day after I peaked it dropped a little bit and was zigzagging up and down by0.1 of a degree all the way until AF So maybe I'm not out just yet.. I will see what the next few days show!
Anxiety probably does effect it but I wouldn't know really having only had 1 cycle that showed 100% ovulation I can't ever say what effects it.

When is your fertility appointment?

I want AF to hurry up so I can have my blood test and get the ball rolling on next steps!
I think maybe Metformin will be my next step but that's just an uneducated guess.

@EssJayyCee I really hope so. What does FF say? Mine is saying I might have but I've had a massive drop over the last few days. Got a load of EWFM last night so we dtd today. I'm tempted not to look until the weekend as it's our joint 40th birthday party. If I haven't ovulated I'm going to drink.

We're waiting for a phone call at the moment. I'm thinking it will be clomid for me as generally I've been ovulating so it'll make my ovulation stronger. Metaformin might just be the tipping point for you. As I said it helped my Sister very quickly. I hope AF comes soon so you can move forwards.

I had a chat with a friend yesterday. She suffered with infertility for 10 years with 3 miscarriages. She has three children though conceived after this time. Her best advice was to enjoy life and have fun as much as possible. Keep distracted and trust in the process. She was her most unhappiest when she was tracking everything and obsessing over supplements. The pregnancies that stuck were when she was chilled out. I think she may have a point. I'm convinced my lack of ovulation might be related to me mentally recovering from my miscarriages. It's been so tough to come to terms with and try again. The failed ovulations are very triggering and I thing they make it worse.

Anyway I' m going to have more fun and try and relax a bit more. Life is generally good apart from the ttc stuff. xx

Nope, still No O here.. temp dropped down even more today.

I keep trying to relax and enjoy everything but then I remember how crap I feel about not being able to get pregnant and the whole vicious cycle starts again. Your friend sounds very wise.

I want to give up.

Dammit I'm sorry @EssJayyCee you're doing so well to deal with all this. You're right it's so hard to relax because the mind goes there, especially with so many triggers around. All you can do is push anxiety away as much as possible.

My friend is very wise and says the losses were all worth it to have her three beautiful children. The youngest she had at 40 so it gives me hope xx

Hey @Catconfusion how are you doing?
I had a weird 4 days of minimal change to my temps this week which I've never had. It has always been so zig-zaggy, and then this morning it shot up. I wish AF would hurry up, I've been having weird cramps this week too so was half expecting it.

If I have miraculously O'd yesterday I think we missed it all because it's been too hot!

I was just wondering where my raspberry leaf tea was... turned out I didn't confirm the order!

Here's an update on my psycho chart currently at CD52...