PCOS & TTC - how long?

[SLW2022]

I am currently going through a chemical pregnancy loss and feeling really awful about it.

I have been having unprotected sex (sometimes daily but at least once every two days) for 7 months now.

I suffer from PCOS and Endo but have had scans which show my womb looks good, no cysts present in ovaries although “bulky” and tubes are clear.

Just wondering if anyone has had any luck ttc with PCOS without medication? Or if so, what medication was needed?

I have recently lose 2 stone taking my BMI to 29 so think that may have assisted in ovulation with the chemical.

I have very regular 29 day cycles despite having PCOS although suffer with acne and excess hair

Hi, I don't have pcos as far as I am aware but I take and have heard that inositol helps with pcos. I have never had any positive including a chemical and I don't have any diagnosis (or really any symptoms of anything) so if you have those and your cycle is regular and you had a chemical then think positive in the sense that something is working. I would try some extra vitamins etc to see if they help. Worst comes to worst it'll help with egg quality or follicles. I am trying soy isoflavones but that may help pcos but I cannot really tell you what will help you get pregnant as struggling myself. Well done on your weight loss. You're doing a great job by the sounds of things

Hi @SLW2022 I have PCOS and had a baby without medication. Well... i had three miscarriages and then with the final pregnancy I was put on progesterone suppositories and mini aspirin because I started bleeding. Do you know if you ovulate regularly? The ovulation sticks don't work apparently if you have PCOS but you can tell by looking at the cervical mucus.

Hi @Loops01 thank you for taking the time to reply. I have read up on inositol and it does seem to help a lot of women but I’ve seen it can affect the regular cycles of you already have them. Not sure if it would be worth the risk but then I have nothing to lose I suppose! Sounds worth a try. I hope you have luck soon. I definitely need to look into vitamin use though but there is so much online it gets confusing.

Hi @onedaysoonish. Sorry to hear of your losses. After this week I feel like I’d rather never get pregnant again than see those two lines and lose it. I have massive respect for someone who can go through all that hurt and still be determined to come out the other end. It is really good to hear people have had success after loss.

I haven’t tried ovulation sticks although I get EWCM every month. However, I have had two separate blood ovulation tests that have both said I don’t ovulate and that’s even with the EWCM. So sadly for me that isn’t an indicator :( xx

I had regular cycles and used it and it never changed the cycles if that helps? I am also about to try progesterone cream during luteal phase (I'm only cd10 of an unknown cycle as it went off due to covid vaccine). I think anything that will improve egg quality shouldn't really do any harm to cycle. Don't over do it!

@onedaysoonish did you use the suppositories during luteal phase or just in general? Was it from gp? My gp isn't very good and I am trying to self diagnose in a sense so just wondering.

That’s very interestint and good to know someone has used it who has regular cycles! More tempted to try now. I seen ConcievePlus capsules have it in but I assume it is a lower dose than taking it alone? Did consider trying those x

Sorry to hear about your loss.

I have PCOS, very irregular periods, high prolactin, 'cysts' on ovaries, the works! I never took any medication for it and I conceived naturally, 2nd month of trying.

I used OPKs to track ovulation, you'll hear that they aren't reliable for women with PCOS but they worked for me.

Your weight loss will definitely have helped with ovulation! Well done x

Hi @H8theW8 thanks for your message. That’s good to hear. I did read somewhere that hacing regular periods means nothing and doesn’t mean you’re more likely to ovulate than someone who does.

I got diagnosed at 16 and then with endo at 21 - so I have seen more gynaecologists than I can count on one hand. My GP has told me that my consultant letter from around 2 years ago states that they feel if I ever wanted to conceive, I’d need ovulation induction and gave the GP authority to prescribe so they said they could do this although I would like to try naturally if possible otherwise if I go down the route of ovulation induction now, my next step is IUI/IVF and not really in a position to fund that at the moment and the nhs wait is crazy.

Thank you so much. It took me 5 months and for the last month I’ve not lost anything but hopefully can kickstart it again now and see if further weight loss assists at all.

What OPKS did you use? Xx

Hi @Loops01 I was put on progesterone and aspirin when I started bleeding which was at about seven weeks and continued until 14 weeks. It was prescribed yes.

@SLW2022 if you don't ovulate, or don't ovulate regularly, I would imagine they would put you on clomid first - it's a pill you take a few days a month and it basically forces ovulation. Yes miscarriage is awful I'm so sorry for your experience too. But you do get through it!!

@onedaysoonish my GP has said they will be able to prescribe Clomid for me. I was under a consultant due to having painful periods again and I wanted to see if they could do anything than their usual suggestion of contraception. He did all tests and said unfortunately they wouldn’t operate again but that everything looked good to go other than the lack of ovulation so when I was with someone and ready to TTC Clomid would be needed. I was just hoping to try without for a little while as I’ve heard the side effects of Clomid ain’t good.

I’m glad to hear it gets easier. I feel so silly for being so upset but all I have done this week is cry and feel like I can’t stop thinking about it and that I’ll never get there! Hoping that goes away soon though and I can be more positive about it all xx

If would start bbt charting. Ovulation sticks don't prove you ovulated, but temping will. At least then you'll know if that's the problem.

I have pcos, used inositol for years, which regulates my periods and makes weight loss/maintenance easier (like you still have to work at it but it's more like it is for people without pcos). Being a healthy weight is very important, as excess weight can lead to excess oestrogen I think? Oestrogen dominance can cause problems with conception.

Another factor which can theoretically cause oestrogen dominance in people with pcos is alcohol. I conceived dc1 on month 4 and dc2 on month 5. Then I realised these two months were the months I didn't drink alcohol. Coincidence?

So my recommendations are, take inositol, get to a healthy weight, and you could try cutting out alcohol. BBT charting would give you some useful info too. Good luck!

@SLW2022 don't feel silly!! It's totally normal to be really upset but time makes everything easier eventually xx

@FeistySheep I will look into the temping. Does it take a few moths to start seeing a pattern or is it easy to see if you are pretty quickly?

I don’t drink to be honest - very rarely and since dieting I have cut sugar and sweeteners etc and any white carbs so hoping that has helped! I think I have to lose another 1 1/2 stone to be within my BMI but carry my weight quite well. I’m sure it will still assist to be within the BMI range though specially if I do need to go down the road of IVF etc.

Do you just use the powder form inositol?

@onedaysoonish thank you. ❤️ It is really good to know i won’t feel this way forever xx

I have PCOS and T2 diabetes and it took 8 months for me to fall pregnant when I was 40 so don’t give up. I was already taking metformin for the diabetes so not sure if that helped. I learned to listen to my body and could tell the signs of ovulation, so focussed on dtd around this time but really not non stop or anything !

Hi! I have been TTC for just over 12 months now. My periods have been pretty irregular and I have had a couple of anovulatory cycles (I temp and do the LH strips). I had some initial tests done that all came back OK (testosterone, FSH, TSH etc) and I don't have any obvious symptoms of PCOS. But my AMH levels were off the scale (meaning I have a lot of eggs in there) and a scan of my ovaries showed high numbers of follicles, so I have been diagnosed with PCOS. And, due to the high levels off eggs in my ovaries my consultant believes I haven't been ovulating often (if at all) in this past year!

I have been offered Metformin, which I think I am going to accept to help regulate my periods, and in my next appointment with her (August) she will offer me Clomid, which I will accept.

I have previously tried Soy Isolflavones which didn't help, and I am currently taking Conceive Plus Ovulation Support which have shortened my last two cycles (to 32 days), and I think I have ovulated (decent temp increase after fertile CM)... but who knows?

@Hermie12 that is definitely very positive. I think metformin ha helped a lot of people although don’t think I would get that prescribed as I haven’t been told I have any form of insulin resistance. I show signs of ovulation I have slight pain around that time and EWCM but haven’t tried temping or using OPKs.

@Kay00 I have no idea what mine came back as as my Gp said he couldn’t see the results that were dealt with by the Consultant st the go spiral which is frustrating and my results may have changed now from then as I eat way healthier and weigh leas although not sure if it would have made a difference.

I am tempted to try the concieve plus! Do you have any side effects of using it ? Xx

Yes, just the powder inositol. Very easy to take mixed in water, tastes nice too!

It takes a few cycles to get lots of information from your bbt, BUT you should be able to tell if you've ovulated from the very first cycle. Read up on doing it right (exactly the same time every morning etc) and get a digital thermometer with two decimal places. If you have trouble interpreting it there are lots of knowledgeable people on the conception board who'll help. Fertility Friend is the best app to log your temps, the free version is fine.

☺️

@FeistySheep thank you! Where do you buy yours from? I think I’ll have to give it a try!

Ok thank you that’s great il definitely look into doing it 😊 seems a cheaper option that using OPKs that may not be reliable anyway x

Yeah, think opks are probably good if you need to time sex right because you don't do it much, but that doesn't seem to be your problem! BBT cheaper, easier, and better to confirm you've ovulated.

Ive used a few brands of inositol. I usually choose whichever one is on offer on Amazon. If you're TTC there are some with folic acid mixed in, so that would save you taking two things. You might need to take double to make sure you're getting the 400mg folic, will say on the bottle. Inositol is a natural substance which is in your body anyway - you're just topping up! For that reason I don't think brand is important - they're all the same I guess.

Regular cycles is the key according to my gynae, I have polycystic ovaries. I'm sorry you're going through a chemical, that's really tough. Keep trying but I would speak to your GP / consultant sooner rather than later given you know you have PCOS.

@FeistySheep thank you that’s great I’ll definitely look into it! And still not overly expensive.

No that’s true and another reason I have decided not to go down the OPK route. I wouldn’t want to be getting negatives and have it impact our sex life if I start to think the only aim is TTC.

I think the combined one sounds a great idea though! Thank you.

@PurBal I thought that would be the case too but when I seen my consultant he said it makes no difference and that women who don’t have periods can ovulate more than those who do. Confusing as it’s surprising the body would give a “period” every month without fail if nothing was happening x

@slw2022 no side effects from the Conceive Plus at all, other than shorter cycles and more likely ovulation

@SLW2022 2st in 5 months is amazing! I used cheapies (one step) before TTC just to get a handle on my cycle but then used Clearblue digital OPK the month we tried 👍🏼

I was diagnosed at 19 and like you, have had loads of gynae/endo appointments since (although none for years now). Every time I had an appointment the gynaecologist asked if I wanted to start TTC and to let him know when I did as I'd need Clomid.

I wasn't ready to start a family at that point so didn't give it much thought. Fast forward 16 years and I thought, as I know I'm ovulating I'll just try and see. I was actually on the waiting list for the fertility clinic when I conceived so didn't end up needing intervention at all. Good to know it's there though, just incase!

Best of luck to you x

@H8theW8 thank you for your message. It is a massive relief to hear others have been through similar and have managed to fall pregnant. My worst symptom of the PCOS is probably the excess hair to be honest although that doesn’t seem to have changed at all even with healthy eating so not sure if I have testosterone way to high or something.

Definitely gives me faith it could happen naturally though and I really needed that this week so thank you so much xx

Hello, I have PCOS and currently on my first cycle of clomid, I have very irregular period I was a healthy weight until last year (lock down weight gain pcos makes me put on weight very fast and loose slowly. Being a healthy weight didnt make any differnence to my cycles but I swear by myo-isotil It made me more regular but didn't conceive still didn't have a trackable cycle. I also tried metformin when i was also a healthy weight but that didnt work and I stopped as it was too harsh on my stomach. I'm also looking for some success stories ! Hope it goes well for you!!

@J90A I hope the Clomid works for you! I think that will be my next step if anything natural fails. Keep me updated! Xx