Possible secondary infertility. Did anyone go privately for a test? Or how long did nhs take?

[Tiletiletile1]

I have been trying for another baby for 18 months and I’m almost 40. I may have reached the end of my fertility, I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to my GP about it. But suddenly what was an idle want for another baby has become quite heartbreaking.

Did anyone get a private test to find out why? Are they expensive?

I think if I’m told I can’t conceive easily naturally anymore (although surely my body is telling me that!!), I’ll accept it and give up and move on. It’s the months of not knowing that are hard!

Or how long did tests take at the GP?

Have you checked you can even have the test on the NHS? Infertility treatment is for first baby only so I wonder if they would do the tests in the first place. Worth checking...

That’s a good point - I haven’t checked!

I am so new to googling any of it, and won’t have IVF. But I wanted to check my FSH levels to see if I’m still fertile. I don’t know why - closure, probably! Or to understand my body maybe. Or to help me decide to let this go!

Hello
I’m in a similar position, 37, TTC second child and have all but accepted without private intervention it won’t happen.
I’ve had tests on the NHS (you can have them after 6 months after 35). It’s gives you a starting point. I was due to have an internal scan but Covid put an end to that for now.
So if you go to GP they will do day 2-4 blood test and the day 21 (or 7 days after ovulation) to check FSH/LH levels and progesterone.
I am paying privately for a scan and AMH test (it’s the best test to tell you ovarian reserve apparently).
You could look into that.
Good luck! TTC can be an horrendous process. Absolutely heartbreaking every month. I feel exactly the same!

I got an AMH (egg reserves) and FSH test done privately . Got an appointment in a few days and the results a few days later.

Thank you both! Were the AMH and FSH tests expensive? I think I’ll look into those.

I think it cost me about £100

@Tiletiletile1 have you looked at the website thriva?
They do test at home kits for all sorts of things, but there’s a female hormone test which is £79. It’s a finger prick blood test.
But tests for all sorts of things and can give a pretty good indication of what your body is up to.

If you have private health insurance it may cover fertility investigations. My policy (which was not a particularly good work based one) did cover this bit I didn’t realise until after i had waited ages to have tests done on the nhs. I had to dig deep into the policy to find out the information.

Just a heads up about the AMH tests - they're not considered a good indicator as it doesn't matter if you have 500 eggs or 5000 - you still only release one a month and it hasn't shown to have any effect on fertility. It's important for IVF due to them needing to harvest eggs.

Otherwise the most important thing is egg quality over quantity - have you been taking any supplements to improve that in the meantime? Start with Ubiquinol whilst you're waiting for NHS tests x

I used letsgetchecked for tests btw but there are other websites - I think you can get pretty comprehensive tests done for sub £150-200 but if there are specific hormones you want to test rather than a range you can buy the tests individually for much less than that.

I’ve been taking supplements, but not Ubiquinol - that’s a good shout! Haven’t heard of it!

That’s interesting about AMH tests, since I won’t do IVF anyway.

These test sites are really helpful, thank you!

Also wonder about getting DH’s sperm tested. He sits with a laptop on his lap every day and rolls his eyes when I tell him to stop!

@Tiletiletile1 haha I say the same to OH! I told him if this cycle is another dud I expect him to take some ownership and be more active in trying to improve things on his side. Atm it's just me taking half a dozen supplements daily, limiting caffeine, trying to lose weight, taking OPKs etc and he's sat on his bum overheating his sperm!

If you won't do IVF I'm not sure why knowing what the tests will say will make much difference? All you can do is keep trying. Age 40 plus then chances of chromosomally normal eggs each month is very low 10% and falling each year so it's just going to take much longer.

It’s so frustrating isn’t it, Juno231?! DH doesn’t even care. He’s happy to see what happens, no interest in changing anything

ivfgottostaypositive I honestly think maybe for closure. I know I’m getting a bit old, and I am a mum already. We don’t have the spare money for IVF either. I want to know if this is likely for me or not so I can move on, maybe. It’s been a daily thought for years now - even before we started trying.

We were is the same boat - 22 months ttc second child and just got a BFP on Sunday. In fact we even had an IVF consultation last week as I was soo depressed by the whole situation. The o my think we did differently this month was that I had taken a quarter Asprin every day for a Month. Fingers crossed it sticks.

We had been going private for all the tests as the NHS was taking so long and weren’t actually that interested as we already have a child. Our IVF consultant did give some recommendations of good vitamins to take for both of us - want me to dig that out?

Oh yes please! And massive congratulations to you!

A quarter aspirin? What does that do?

Do you mind me asking how old you are? Can’t help but think I’ve left it all a bit too late

We were having trouble TTC our second (2 years with one anembryonic pregnancy 8 months into the process) and went to see our GP. I have endometriosis so firstly pushed for a laparoscopy to remove the lesions, which I got and they removed several lesions. Following this the GP arranged blood tests for me and a sperm count for husband, and also referred me to the fertility clinic. I was not eligible for IVF but my GP could not see any reason why they could not investigate further for me. My FSH/LH showed I was suffering from premature ovarian failure (age 34) which was no surprise as I had been experiencing symptoms (hot flushes, night sweats etc). The month I got told this I also got a blood sample for ovulation checked which showed I did not ovulate that month. Anyway, much to my surprise I fell pregnant that month and now have a 6 month old baby! I remember crying one week that I would never have a sibling for my son and then crying 2 weeks later that I was pregnant! I must have ovulated late that month and that's why the blood tests came back negative for ovulation. It really all messed with my head!

Good luck in whatever you decide but push your GP for further tests if that's what you want - if you can find a supportive GP it really does help as I had previously been told by another GP that they could not refer me (I am in Scotland so not sure if the NICE guidelines differ in any way depending on what area you are in). We also looked at private IVF but decided that I didn't want to go down that road as it would probably be a long and expensive journey.

Following this thread, I had a MMC on may 7th and MVA immediately due to previous complications with 6 MC in the past 12 months. Had amh test done so far and scan but that is all. Looking for any handy hints also, and happy to send mine out as I see/speak to my gp. Sadly so far they have said everything looks fine it's just bad luck. I don't think. Quite ready to stop. I'm just not sure 😔, oh I'm also 40 years old xx

@Tiletiletile1 - I’m 35 and my partner is 45. Having conceived first month first time we had no idea it was going to be so awful the second time.

So the consultant said for both of us to take 600mg of q10 daily, folic acid and vitamin c and d daily. For my partner they said to take Proxeed plus daily as it is an anti oxide test.

Re the aspirin - taking a quarter a day is supposed to improve fertility. Google baby aspirin and ttc and there are lots of articles. It basically improves the blood flow to the uterus. They give it to people who are undergoing ivf implantation.

I got referred for fertility treatment on nhs. I also have secondary infertility. They diagnosed me with pcos and started some treatments. They gave me clomid and now metformin. Also on waiting list for ovarian drilling. It's worth asking your gp! They like you to have been trying for over a year before referral.

Oh wow thisyeargoodyear! That’s amazing, congratulations!

I’m going to call my GP to book a video appointment to talk about it, and if the wait is too long for a few blood tests, I’ll book them privately.

Oh Ells80 that sounds like such a rough ride.

hopeful thank you for those! Mega helpful. I already take a couple, but some I haven’t heard of (the one for DH especially). I’ve ordered him some. Also added some aspirin to my next online delivery order!

cosmo sounds like the NHS has been really good! Good luck with your appointments!

I didn’t get round to booking last month, I think I was in denial that maybe I’d finally get pregnant with al the vitamins etc etc, but another month and another period and I’m going to actually do something today.

I’ve found the london women’s clinic - they do a fertility MOT for £360. Does that sound expensive? For it, you get a scan to discover the Antral Follicle Count and an Anti Mullerian Hormone (AMH) Blood Test. Is that a lot of money for those things?

I just want to know right away, rather than waiting months and months as I’m getting older. Also going to ring my GP and get an appointment so I can see how long those tests would take or if I’m eligible because of my age.

I initially didn’t want to do IVF but I’m finding this secondary infertility so sad and upsetting that maybe I do. But maybe I should just count myself lucky that I’m a mum already. I don’t know

@Tiletiletile1 that is quite pricey as it doesn't seem to test for much? You could blood tests done through letsgetchecked (I'm sure I have a referral for you if you need it) that would check AMH, FSH, oestradiol, LH and prolactin for £190 all in. Results take up 5 days to receive and you get a follow up call with their doctor if you want.

Thing is get the ball rolling with the GP ASAP - the test results of the above wont be taken into consideration anyway so if you need diagnostics done or actions taken then the GP will still have to order the same tests for you.

£30 off with this link if needed:
www.letsgetchecked.com/register/?aic=C1C6EA3E3A

Thank you, juno! I’ve got a video appointment with my GP this afternoon. I know I won’t be eligible for IVF on the NHS. Do you think that will prevent them from doing any investigations?