Post Pill Party – The Garden Soiree

[TheHotelCalifornia]

Tables laden with high-end afternoon tea, beautiful bouquets of fresh flowers, and a string quartet playing softly in the background…it’s the Post Pill Party Garden Soiree! The girls have swapped their checked shirts for pastel dresses and it’s time to sit back and relax after a stressful few weeks (months…years!!)

Welcome to the 10th (!) post pill party thread for women who have recently come off the pill. Whether you’re struggling with an insanely long cycle or an insanely short cycle, your luteal phase is crazy short, your temps are all over the place, or you’re just feeling like if you see one more day of a damn flashing smiley you’re going to throw it out the window…we’re here for you. Perch yourself daintily in a chair and join us!

Ladies already at the soiree:

@juno231
@Kay00
@Moocher90
@Emmgrem
@Nellieee
@TheHotelCalifornia
@ams19
@chinchilly
@sperr
@crabette
@LauraT94
@TheDaydreamBelivers
@cams50
@robyn101
@abi555
@tillybabs
@MissC07
@minipilling
@glow92
@FlyingGiraffe
@Elsie2021
@Gracie2021
@Flowers222
@MancMama39
@firsttimemumm321
@mrsmacmc
@MintGreenLife
@Ttcin2021
@Melissaq94
@AllyCat31

Please tag anyone I’ve missed!

Hi all, please could I join?! 28 TTC #2. Cd1 today after finishing my last pill strip. I have PCOS so the pill largely manages those symptoms so not looking forward to them ramping up, although it seems more mild after DD was born so hopefully it'll be manageable. It took a year to conceive dd1 although fell pregnant the first Month we used an ovusense monitor, probably coincidental but had it on hand ready for use again as it'll be interesting to monitor my cycle/ovulation as the pill wears off.

Looking forward to getting to know you all, please feel free to introduce yourself 😊

@LG93 Welcome to the party!

Hi everyone. Could I join? Recently stopped taking the pill after I finished a pack. Had a withdrawal bleed as normal then a 'normal' period exactly a month later. But been having a few instances of irregular bleeding too, not a lot but enough to be noticeable after the loo. Posted this in AIBU but realised this is probably a far more sensible place!
Can anyone else advise if they experienced this?

@Kay00 sorry to hear it but will keep the fingers crossed anyway.

@LG93 @queenoffarts22 welcome 👋

@Nellieee massive congratulations 🎉🎉🎉

@Kay00 don't lose hope there's days yet. Fingers crossed for you
Congratulations @Nellieee x
Welcome @LG93 @queenofarts x

@Nellieee huge congrats!! 🎉😃

@Kay00 sorry about the spotting. Hopefully full AF stays away. I’m sure missing one vitamin didn’t cause it. I had an 8 day lp too this cycle despite the two previous being 11 days.

@TheHotelCalifornia sorry you’re feeling down. I feel like that every time AF arrives but usually feel a bit better in a few days and ready to start a fresh cycle. Hope you’re having lots of treats ❤️

@Gracie2021 sorry you’re having a stressful day. Hope the doctor’s appointment is helpful.

@LG93 welcome! Aw lovely that you have one DD. I’ve been trying for nearly a year so gives me hope! Interesting about the ovusense. Hope you get your second bfp quickly.

@queenoffarts22 welcome! I’m sure it’s just your cycling settling coming off the pill. Hopefully it settles quickly for you. I had this while on the pill and they checked me for me fibroids etc and there wasn’t anything they could fine but it’s been better since I’ve been off the pill so no harm asking your GP if you’re worried or it doesn’t settle. Could be ovulation bleeding either maybe?

@MissM94 Absolutely, but the annoying thing is I was never told about any of these things at 17 when I first started on contraception! I don’t know if I’m having ovulation pain but yesterday I had twinges. Almost like period pain, but now today I’m possibly mid cycle at CD14 (still possibly irregular) and I’ve had cramps from start to finish, as soon as I woke up! I feel like I’m expecting some sort of instant sharp pain but not sure if this could too be ovulation?

@sperr That’s fair enough, I think I’ll check purely to make sure I am now post patch contraception, and then maybe just DTD and see what happens. I think I’ll only do OPK’s though, temping and RHR and charting all looks very confusing to me.

Congratulations to you @nellieee!

Hi @LG93 & @queenoffarts22 I’m pretty new too!

Ladies! Please could I have some advice!!...New to OPK’s this week so not too sure, started them on CD9, and had obvious negatives all last week.

Yesterday I had mild twinges, almost like period cramps but literally lasted a couple seconds each time and wore off. But today from the second I woke up at 6.30am I've had a constant state of cramps since, and still am now - could this be ovulation pain or a sign that ovulation is coming? I’ve only had one period since coming off contraception so I don’t know if I’m quite regular yet, but is it too much of a coincidence that today is CD15 and perhaps I’m going back to my usual 28 day cycles? The wait between my withdrawal bleed and my first AF was 42 days, so I’m wondering if maybe everything is going back into a usual pattern?

I’ve also attached a photo of today’s OPK. Any advice would be great, I’ve been using eBay ones and today is the darkest line I’ve seen. I think I was wrongly registering them under the easy@home tab, so have put today’s in others and all my results are different for each tab! I’ve got a couple of each showing so I can delete one, please let me know which you think is the correct result in regards to DTD tonight or not (first day back for OH and I in retail, tired already!). Also attached a photo of the OPK against toilet tissue for a clearer picture. :)

@jt90 exciting! Looks like you are either there or nearly there. Keep testing, maybe once more tonight and 3 x tomorrow. If the tests go light again then assume that your peal was CD15, but they might continue to get darker tomorrow. Most important think now is to corner your DP and DTD!!

@Kay00 Ooo, exciting! I keep thinking I’m going to get some intense sharp pain but it’s just cramps at the moment. But like, hours worth! 😭 It says to not test past 8pm or is it okay to do that? I’m working tomorrow so will have to test when I get back but I do have an earlier finish so that’s good, atm I’ve only been testing once a day! If no luck this evening, we DTD last night at near midnight, so guessing I’m covered if today is my peak. Would you say to delete any of the readings on any of the tabs or wait until tomorrow to see if the lines are darker?

Thank you ladies 💖 hoping for more good news for you all x

@JT90 I was confused by ovulation pain as well. I went on the pill at about 14 and so don't remember it at all. Mine kind of aches down there a bit usually on one side with the odd twinge, mostly on the actual day. The first time I had it I also felt really sick. I remember I had to come back from a dog walk I felt so sick, told dh and he assumed I was pregnant straight away 🤣. I think I felt a bit sick the month after but haven't since. I'm sure we should be told more about this stuff when we are younger!

@Lovebug06 Apart from the ache, do you get a sharp pain or anything, or is that it? Maybe I’m not gonna be someone who gets the intense ouchies! Not that I’m complaining! 😂 I’ll see if I get anything else over the next couple days or if cramps is all I get! I’ve had over the last hour a really weird metallic taste in the back of the throat. Not sure if I had some dodgy almond milk with my last cuppa!

I totally agree with being taught more. I went on the pill when I met my first boyfriend but after a few years and changes of different pills I realised it wasn’t for me. Came off contraception for a while and then opted for the patch, but with both I was never told anything about the doctors about options when it came to coming off, or how it would manipulate my body!

@Nellieee congrats on the BFP!!

@JT90 I think CD15 could have been it but that you missed the peak. I find testing with second wee of the day gives the most accurate results - by late evening it's usually fainter I'd say.

AF has started, so its CD1 for me today. That was my last chance of a 2021 baby, and I'm a bit bummed my LP was only 9 days long, but it might have been 10 days long if you use FF's original prediction of Ov on CD26.

Positives from the last cycle

• I actually ovulated
• ovulated on CD27, which is better than CD35 etc.
• I feel like I managed to get my inflammation/symptoms under control to some extent through managing my diet, so will continue this to promote ovulation in next cycle.
• Referral to fertility clinic and 1st appointment booked
• Gatro Dr. will be sending me for more tests so hopefully I can get to the bottom of my inflammation and rule out cancer.

2022 baby (if born from 4th Feb onwards): Black Water Tiger which sounds pretty cool.

Thank you so much for all the congratulations! 💖

Someone asked me to share my story and I did a lot differently this month so hope this helps...

I'm 30 and stopped Microgynon BC pill on 31st October (I had been taking this for 13 years and ran pill packs back to back) and from then it took me 6 cycles to get my BFP.

I had a withdrawal bleed 5 days after coming off the pill and then a weirdly short 18 day cycle. My temps were really high so I think I potentially ovulated really early. I then had two 33 day cycles and on the second one of these in January I got faint lines at 10dpo which faded at 11dpo and returned at 12dpo. My cycle was then late and really painfully heavy so I knew I'd had a chemical pregnancy from reading others' experiences on here.

The CP messed my cycles and hormones up completely and I went on to have two short anovulatory cycles (25 and 18 days).

Up until this point I'd just been taking folic acid, DHA and Coq10 and drinking a glass of pomegranate juice everyday (to help with blood flow).

So in an attempt to regulate my hormones and throw everything at it for cycle 6, I kept doing those but also added the following and it was the cycle I got my BFP:

• Started fertility acupuncture once a week - really recommend this for relaxing you and regulating hormones
• Drank raspberry leaf tea from CD1 through to ovulation to regulate hormones
• Seed cycling to regulate hormones (pumpkin & flaxseed pre-ovulation and sunflower & seasame post-ovulation)
• Cut out alcohol and switched to full-fat dairy
• Took vit. B complex to lengthen my LP
• Added ubiquinol, folate, seven seas trying for a baby tablets
• Ate pineapple core and took 3 brazil nuts a day in my LP to help with implantation
• Took evening primrose oil and grapefruit juice to increase EWCM around ovulation

I used easy@home OPKs and temped using FF - I got a triphasic chart the month I had my BFP and paid for FF premium for £20 (which I'd totally recommend).

Symptoms wise.. I generally think that 'symptoms' this early are just the progesterone and are the same whether you're pregnant or not but just to document them for you..
I had a stuffy nose and sinus pressure during the 2WW, on 6dpo I had a brief sharp flash of pain in my tummy and period type pains on 7dpo on the same side as ovulation which I think must have been implantation. I also had creamy/watery CM throughout, and by 10dpo I had back pain on the side I'd ovulated on and twinges in my boobs.
I tested on 11dpo and got obvious positives including on a CB digital - I think I knew by 10dpo I was pregnant due to my chart turning triphasic and I also took an OPK for fun which came up as 0.8 high on premom (and some say that high LH is a sign of pregnancy).

Anyway that's just my story! I enjoy reading other people's so hopefully that helped a few of you :) It still feels surreal and hasn't sunk in yet.

and @Nellieee congratulations to you too! We're BFP day twins! Let's hope the luck spreads throughout this thread!

Hi all, having similar to @JT90

I have been using easy@home OPKs this week firsttime after coming off the pill last month. I'm CD 12 now and my results are getting lower... had low 0.31 then low 0.16 and today low 0.11, wondering if I ovulated really early and I missed it? I did have a weird ache/twinge on my left side last week and wonder if this was ovulation pain? Just seems too early though? Maybe I've not ovulated due to first month off the pill.

I'm probably out this month and will try again next month.

Good luck everyone I love reading about your symptoms and comparing to my own it makes me feel normal! X

@HRHXO hang in there and keep testing. I have multiple 'surges' of LH before my body finally ovulates, and this is really common coming off the pill. Ovulating early can indeed happen, but its rarer. My advice is to keep testing once a day, and to keep DTD every other day.

@Emmgrem Thank you for the write up! There is certainly a lot to be thinking about and a lot to try for the next cycle And another big congratulations from me x

@Juno231 Yeah, I’ll know when I do my test today I guess. It’s much harder now I’m back at work as I’ve usually left the house by 7.30 so don’t want to be peeing in the staff toilets with sticks when my second wee comes around! 😂 Then by the time I’m home it’s not until near 7pm. I have had a half day today so hoping to get a test done a little earlier, more around 5pm. I’ll find out then if I’m getting a lower reading which will obviously tell me if today is past ovulation and if yesterday was it for me. I’m still getting a few tummy cramps here and there, but nothing like yesterday as that was almost constant from the second I woke up to the minute I went back to bed! We DTD at almost midnight on Monday night though, so I’m hoping that if my peak was on Tuesday morning, I possibly may have caught it. It’s hard as I’m only coming towards my second AF since coming off the patch so just still trying to figure out my body.

What do you ladies do with regards to OPK’s when you’re working if not from home? Do you just test when you’re back like me, or am I missing a trick here?

@HRHXO I definitely know what you mean about reading other ladies symptoms, all makes it seem a little less stressful. Else I find myself Googling everything and come across too many horror stories! 🙈 The wait for my first AF I was convinced I had everything under the sun, then she appeared and I wondered why the bloody hell my brain decided to put me through such stress!! 😂

@jt90 ah see I never got that problem cause I just do them at work as normal? I have a little cup that came with one of my OPK deliveries once and I just use that. It's not like anyone can see? I either pick a standalone loo that has a sink for clean up, wait until there's no one by the sinks if I'm in a cubicle or worst case scenario wipe it down with tissue. But I've honestly never had a problem with it.

@Juno231 Hmmm, I’ll have to have a think. I work in a retail store so it’s difficult to disguise a cup in there with me (nobody at my work knows we are TTC). I may have to just pop a little ramekin into my sanitary bag and take that to the loo with me when I do want to test maybe.

Although even if my peak was in the late morning would it make a difference to my testing later in the day anyways, as we still wouldn’t be able to DTD until later that evening anyways?

@JT90 I don't get any sharp pains more sudden twinges. Not as much as AF pains though. I think some people get sharp pains but then others don't feel it at all. Same as AF we are all different, which is no good when trying to find out what's going on!
@Kay00 sorry AF arrived. Look after yourself today ❤️ I also felt awful that I wouldn't have a 2021 baby now, but now I'm trying to think that I could be pregnant in 2021, and that's good too. 2022 babies sound good right?! 😘
Its great you are looking at positives from your last cycle. Its great you ovulated and got your appointment coming up. Sending love to you today xx

@Lovebug06 Yeah you’re absolutely right. Why can’t we all just be the bloody same, our bodies are confusing things aren’t they! I just did today’s OPK and I’ve gone straight back to low. I completely forgot I had a CB digital test that I was going to do the same time I got my + OPK and only just remembered. Is it worth trying one now and seeing if I still have a slight surge for tonight or am I best waiting until my next cycle now?

Sorry for the thousand questions regarding OPK’s, completely new to them this week! 🤯

@JT90 it only helps a bit with sanity in knowing whether or not you've peaked or are waiting needlessly! Tbh I struggled enough with it that I added BBT tracking to it after a few months cause the stress over not knowing if my peak was coming, had been or just wasn't going to show up was doing my head in.

I see why you'd struggle if you're in retail though! My cup is tiny so maybe have a look around the house for things you could use (eg lid off of tooth paste)? The pros pee into the OPK sachets themselves but if I tried that I'd just have wee all over my hands lol.