TTC 35+ Thread 12

[Misty84]

Hope this works girls, haven’t done this before, we’ve run out of space on the other thread.
@thislittlebird @ElsieG3m @Marvellouslymadmum @KatRee @Anxiouswannabe

@ElsieG3m no, we're doing it with the trigger shot and progesterone but minus IUI. Trying naturally and it might not work because of the male factor but his quality has improved lately, so who knows.

Sorry you're feeling so down. It might take a while for your hormones to return to normal, I'm not sure. Have you considered some counselling after the loss? It might be helpful, you might have already done it for all I know.

@thislittlebird ooh it all sounds so exciting! I have no idea yet if I'll be monitored or just left to my own devices! I am already starting to think about the side effects of the clomid 🙄 I got a letter today - they send them all via the nhs app which is great! I can't lose them 😂 she's booked me for a phone consultation on 27th September so won't be starting until October/November I'm guessing, though that of course will depend on what my body decides to do this month! I've had 49 days, 43 days and 22 days I'm hoping that now means this one will be a more average 26-33 kind of length which means af should be right around the time she calls and depending on how quick she is at organising (I don't hold out much hope for this) I may get to start next cycle but more likely the one after 🤷🏼‍♀️

That's great news about the doggy! Honestly it depends on the dog but out of all the puppies we've had over the years when I was living at home and in my own home (probably about 9) they've always settled after 2-4 nights at the most 🤞🏻

@ElsieG3m I believe I have oestrogen dominance too, when mine was tested it was waaaaay higher than it should've been! And a lot if those symptoms also apply to me - can you try and get a letter from your haematologist to give to them and confirm it'll be ok? There must be someone who will help you!

@Marvellouslymadmum realised we probably can’t go ahead with the dog plan because my husband’s 40th is in November and it’ll still be too young to travel far 😭. God this is all sucks, I’m really annoyed.

So with clomid and your long cycles, have you had your FSH and AMH done? Because I would make sure you’re not PCOS of some kind before taking the clomid. Nhs might not offer monitoring and I would want to be monitored if I was PCOS. Worth investigating before you get to that point maybe?

Now my Letrozole headache has died down which makes me wonder if it was a normal period headache....no idea.

I think Letrozole works on oestrogen dominance maybe? I read it suppresses it.

@thislittlebird it would depend where you're planning on travelling to - most dogs are fine in the car as long as you have regular stops, if you have a crate in the car for them they settle very well and the younger they are the easier it is for them to get used to travelling to be honest.
I had my fsh checked back in March, the consultant was quite impressed with my results so far, so I think it was good! My blood that was taken Tuesday is checking my progesterone and amh so I'll find out in a few weeks! If they don't offer to monitor me I may be able to get my go to check progesterone and there's a private scan clinic literally at the end of my road so I can get scans there, but I'm hoping they'll be sorting it all for me as that'll be a lot easier!
Yes I read that too, I was looking up the difference between letrozole and clomid the other day but I can't remember what it said now 😂 I do know that clomid helps with that too though which is good

@thislittlebird oh I really hope it works for you. Keeping everything crossed.

I've been having counselling for a while and have two sessions left so I will talk to her about things. My acupuncturist doubles up as a therapist - she's so calm and positive so I will talk to her also. I think mostly I just need some time and to throw myself into diet and exercise 😊

@Marvellouslymadmum what if it was only 16 weeks and had to get in a car for a long time? That doesn’t seem like a good recipe to me, even with stops? We have to, at least, go down to Cornwall because it’s his 40th.

Did they tell you your FSH? If it turns out you’re like me you’re a bit PCOS then it should be low. Getting scanned is a good idea if they don’t offer, just to know if it’s working or not working or working too much.

There’s a BFN episode on it and I think the doctor on there they said that clomid works on your brain and Letrozole works on your follicles? Something like that anyway.

@ElsieG3m sounds like a good plan. I went to my acupuncturist this week and she’s the only person I get to let off steam to really. I like that about them, so I’m glad she’s providing some help. None of my friends are very present or available now, neither are my family, it’s handy to have someone to chat to.

@Marvellouslymadmum yes she would definitely do that. I don't think it's complex, it's just injecting heparin at the same time which I do if I fall pregnant anyway. The trouble is it's such high stakes for me that many of the physicians are just too scared to treat me. I've made an appt with Pat O'Brien in a few weeks time to see whether he thinks progesterone is indicated. When we had the two miscarriages a few years back he said progesterone wasn't needed as the corpus luteum would provide it but now the results of the prism and promise studies are out I wonder if he will say differently. Fingers crossed. In the meantime, I've been looking into dietary and lifestyle changes as well as supplements. I'm going to start a high dose of vit c as apparently that helps with natural progesterone production and try to lose some weight, de-stress and like in the veg (the answer is always broccoli isn't it?! 😂). I saw a clinician nutritionist a couple of weeks ago and it was super interesting. She told me to give up dairy and gluten (for migraine rather than fertility) and stay away from sugar as it causes inflammation etc. So a few changes like that I think which will at least give me the impression that I'm in control.

When I had day 21 progesterone done it was normal. But then I read that it fluctuates all the time and is unreliable as a test, and certainly if only done once. So hopefully I can get some help with it all soon.

One clinic has offered clomid & monitoring & trigger & iui & progesterone so we may try that in October if we can line it all up x

@thislittlebird I can't see a problem with it, when I was younger we travelled a long way to pick up my puppy and again a few years later for my sisters puppy too, one was Wales which was a few hours drive and one up north somewhere about 6 hours drive and they were only 8/10 weeks then. Puppies are surprisingly resilient. I'd just have a wee stop once very 1-2 hours and 1 or two slightly longer stops, with a bit of water but no food while you travel or before as some get car sick when they're babies lol
My fsh was 4.5 and was taken in the luteal phase where it should be between 1.7-7.7 so seems to be smack bang in the middle whatever that means! Seems to be a doctor preference if they use letrozole or clomid as far as I can tell.

@ElsieG3m sounds like you're being very productive with it, hopefully you'll get somewhere - I'm not a broccoli fan either! I definitely think they should test things like progesterone and the sa's over a three month period rather than one month and just say yeah that's going to be the same every month then! 🤦🏼‍♀️

Hi all,

Sorry for not replying, life took over, OH dad has dementia and they live 4 hours away so it's been a tricky few weeks. Also been really stressed so trying to reduce screen time, but still not managing to switch off.

Just reading through the posts, some real ups and downs. Hope everyone is muddling through OK

My bbt went to the wall as daughter sleep has gone to hell and I keep waking anyway throughout the night. Don't know whether to attempt anyway. Just been using opks.

On CD1 and feeling so awful. No idea what's going on with my cycle at the moment, really hoped I'd get lucky this month but alas no. Phoning doctors on Monday to get things kicked off, will investigate private clinics too as a plan B.

Love the dog Talk, we've got 2, but would recommend sticking with 1 hah

@Marvellouslymadmum yeah I was wondering about what happens when you pick them up because obviously they have to travel. I guess I’m thinking the older the better when we travel because six hours stopping every 1-2 is going to take quite some time.

Yeah doctor or clinic maybe? Not sure. Last day of Letrozole of me today and other than day 1 and the headache (which might have been my regular hormonal headache) I’ve been fine. No symptoms which is pretty good. Got a scan on Wednesday, fingers crossed it’s doing something in there.

I agree re testing over three months, seems a bit bonkers that they don’t do that.

@ElsieG3m hope you’re feeling a bit better today

@MoonStrike Probably not worth doing bbt if you’re having sleep troubles, and if OPKs work for you then that should be fine.

I’m very indecisive and just go round and round deciding about one dog, never mind two 😐

Finally had our follow up at the Lister, 1hr in person with Dr Faris, gosh he was sooo much warmer and friendlier than Dr Parikh, I’m so glad we made the switch! And he offered his mobile number @thislittlebird!

We need to do a DNA fragmentation test (I sort of wanted to do that before our first cycle but knew I would never get DP to agree to another £500 when his SA results were good); well now that his sperm performed badly during ICSI (as Dr Faris said, after the sperm were injected they just “sat there” rather than fertilise🤦‍♀️) he knows he has no choice but to take his part in this seriously too!

All this will delay us and the second cycle is not likely to be until end of Oct or Nov, depending on the fragmentation results and what we need to do. I’m going to be on a long protocol next time and different meds.

All in all, he did make me feel fairly positive and I’m sure with enough rolls of the dice we could get there. The question is how many rolls of the dice will we be able to afford.

I really think that any of you ladies with a normal amh has a very good chance indeed through ivf.

@MoonStrike I’ve been sleeping better since I stopped bbt tracking. Sorry to hear you’ve had a tricky few weeks and I hope your doctor call today goes ok xx

@Misty84 I'm so glad your appointment went well with Dr Farris too. We met him on Friday, he was so nice and had such a positive outlook that I almost cried. The NHS fertility specialist was such a (insert swear word here).

That is interesting regarding the fragmentation test. My friend had a round that didn't work, then did the fragmentation test and her DH had to get surgery. Dr Farris didn't recommend we get it, even with my partner's male factor, so now worried if we don't get it, we will waste a round.

@thislittlebird my acupuncturist also doubles as a therapist too. I feel like she knows far more of my medical history and state of mental health than any of my DR's do.

I'm from abroad and most of my friends moved back to NZ after Brexit and even my English friends moved to Scotland or abroad afterwards too, so have zero family or long term friends to support or talk to.

@Misty84 I’m glad you liked him more than the previous one! Knowing you can message him if you do have something urgent to ask is reassuring too.

The sperm just “sat there”? That’s new. My dh’s are very sluggish, I hope they don’t do this 😐. How is your DH feeling about it all and the frag test? Do you think he’s feeling invested in it all now he knows he has a role as such?

Good news that you’ll be on long protocol and new meds. It’s a long wait, I’ll be here too waiting for my first round. That might not be until November/December because my cycles are at the end of each month.

Yeah the cost is the kicker. I was just saying on another thread how it plays into all my decisions. I want to do x, y or z but ivf might need to be funded so maybe I shouldn’t do that and so on.

@MargotChateau when are you due to start? You can do the test with Examen directly, I think, something like that anyway and it might be worthwhile before you start. We did ours through Mr Ramsay. What did Dr Faris say in your appointment?

Oh god, can’t believe your friends all moved away, that sucks. Mine are still here but they’ve all moved on with their lives tbh, they all have kids. We barely see anyone and there’s no one to talk to about it all. My family aren’t very good.

Thanks all. Yeah I'll not worry about bbt until the sleep situation calms down. One less thing to worry about.

Phoned docs and have to wait for a call back in the next 48 hours. Better than nothing but bit of a nightmare as work full time and manage a large team so can't just drop everything when a call comes in.

That Examen looks interesting, I can't see any private clinics near me so wonder if it may be worth us tackling OHs side sooner rather than later just in case, sounds like they don't really dig into the male side until further down the line.

What were the tests you all started off with?
I'd be interested to know what I should be asking and pushing for as I have had poor experiences with medical professionals in the past, so will have pull my socks up and be better at self advocating!

@thislittlebird you don't have to stop for long each time so you'll just have to weigh the ups and downs and decide!
Good that you've had no side effects from the letrozole. I feel like I'm just waiting again now, why she booked the phone call to discuss the results on 27th I've no idea, it never takes that long to get them!

@Misty84 that's good news that you had your follow up and they seem to be taking things seriously to try other things for you too! 🤞🏻I have pictures of lazy sperms just sitting around with their pipe and slippers reading the newspaper now 😂🤦🏼‍♀️ I might start drawing fertility cartoon strips!

@MoonStrike the doctors should do your fsh, Lh, progesterone and your oh's standard sa as well though you sometimes have to push for them

@thislittlebird thank you 💛 still on the floor tbh. Blaming myself, teary and miserable. Terrifying myself by reading stories of recurrent miscarriages online. Wondering whether to Chuck everything at it and get my nk cells tested. I tracked symptoms for 6 cycles and every month after ovulation I got ill with sore throat/felt like a cold was coming. When I spoke to Mr Serhal, he said that although it is a highly controversial area of medicine, many women who do have abnormal nk cells say that they feel fluey every month after ovulation. So could be worth looking. We will do letrozole + IUI + trigger + progesterone in October I think x

In another twist, my Natural Cycles app tells me I became pregnant on Friday 13th Aug. Well OF course I did. OF COURSE.

Ooh and a note about alcohol ladies; Dr Faris today said that 4-6 units per week is not going to affect anything. Hurrah for wine!

@MargotChateau I felt the same, I was holding back tears within the first 5 minutes because he was so nice to us! I just felt so grateful to be listened to.

So sorry to hear that your friends have all moved back to NZ. We’ll be here to support you!

@thislittlebird DP is def taking things more seriously now, finally he’s bought into the supplements and I know he’s researching a bit himself. Until this point I’d been dragging him through this process and he didn’t have a clue what was going on! I’m glad to have him more involved.
We can compare sperm count, motility etc if you want an idea of how he did in the lab and if it’s similar to your DH?

@MoonStrike It’s so hard to accept calls whenever they fancy calling! I work 1:1 with autistic children and can’t just abandon them whenever a doctor decides to call!🤦‍♀️ Very tricky.

@Marvellouslymadmum That made me giggle about lazy sperm chilling out with their pipe and slippers!! Honestly🙄, don’t they realise they have an important job to do?!

@ElsieG3m I’m so sorry you’re feeling so awful, and it’s no surprise after what you’ve been through😔 Why is nk cells a controversial area of medicine?
Friday 13th…😖

@ElsieG3m I do hope you can pick yourself up soon, totally understand the low feelings

@Misty84 I shall deffo do a little cartoon strip, I've been painting a sloth this evening - something different! It's funny because usually the little guys can't wait to get out abs so their job, but not when you want them to oh no that's when they go on strike! 🤦🏼‍♀️

Just got out of the lister and they said to come for another scan on Friday. Follicles are growing ok but not trigger ready yet. Got to do an ovulation test in the morning just in case. Probably won’t work but I guess I should try the clear blue ones I have at home.

The only upside of coming to Sloane Square on a hot day for a transvaginal scan 🤔

I'm back home without a phone battery dying on me.

@Misty84 my DH was similar. He's got a whole box of supplements now, even sought out maca root (and some others) for himself. I suggested it one day only to find out already had it! Glad to hear Faris was nice and you have a plan. Yeah, let me know how you get on with his in depth SA. DH had 0% high frag, which was a surprise considering all his motility issues.

@thislittlebird YUMMM to the ice cream!!

Hi everyone, I’m still lurking in the background rooting for you all. Sorry for those struggling with this journey it is just so difficult at times to manage but glad you are all supporting eachother, especially those embarking on their ivf journeys.

We have just received OH SA results and was hoping perhaps to get some opinions on it if you don’t mind? I think morphology is pretty low, any suggestions to improve this? TIA xx

Volume 2.20
PH 8.50
Concentration 91.10
Total sperm number 200.42
Morphology 4.50
Rapid progression 45.0
Slow progression 7.0
Non progressive 6.0
Immotile 42.0
Total motile count 116.24