🎵 Anyone for a spot of Sunday Evening Xylophone? 🌈 TTC Bus 52 🚌

[polkadotpixie]

Soooo....@Minster2012 is letting the lunatics take over the asylum as she's handing over the driving seat to the passengers and having a well deserved rest after driving us around since June 2020!

I'm sure she'll still be around and you can follow her on Instagram (Minstermusings) where a lot of passengers and ex-passengers have their own TTC or normal accounts too (just be careful not to out anyone on their non-TTC accounts!)

We have a fabulous history of BFPs on this thread since @Minster2012 took over and we need to keep it up...no slacking!

Anything goes and NOTHING is TMI on this bus! Whether you're doing it the old fashioned way or with some help from science, we're all waiting for those 2 pink lines and are here to support each other and try to stay (somewhat) sane along the way

June 2020 24 BFPs
July 11 BFPs
August 18 BFPs
Sep 4 BFPs
Oct 7 BFPs
Nov 7 BFPs
Dec 14 BFPs
Jan 2021 7 BFPs
February 8 BFPs
March 5 BFPs
April 5 BFPs
May 4 BFPs
June 5 BFPs
July 1 BFP
Aug 2 BFPs
Sept 5 BFPs
October 3 BFPs
November 4 BFPs
December 5 BFPs

Still on for the ride are our fabulous passengers:

@Franklydear
@polkadotpixie
@dmb91
@pennysays
@Sausage1990
@MrsBiddy
@manifestingbaby
@chiatta
@Hann91
@LoveQ
@BellatrixK
@JuniperAndTonic
@user1019273703

IVF/IUI/ICSI/Clomid passengers as well as TTC on the side!
@somatronic
@Dollybird89
@pennysays
@InkyPaper

Already promoted to the Bumps list but still hopping on the bus to keep us company:

@clairey844
@blackcurrantqueen
@lucyrp
@Catherinettc
@Ltay2
@BlondePotter
@Clairey844
@Gem176
@kirky658
@justanothercyster
@2020mission
@Hopeful110
@becarefuloutthere
@crazydoglady123
@Haiyaa
@lexber
@whatwonder
@bez91
@DKDK123
@minster2012
@feliznavidad2
@clolo
@gcat16
@paintfairy
@Bea14
@vil10
@juno231
@sunbird24
@kaylsd
@larrythelizard

Apologies to anyone missed...40 pages is a lot!

New passengers always welcome and an embarrassing story buys you a cheap ticket...Beep Beeeeeep!

Mumsnet won't let me upload a picture but here's the relevant deets. This was on CD21 of my last cycle, and 4dpo according to OPK strips (not sure whether I should have booked them for 7dpo but GP said he didn't think it makes a difference)

TSH 3.34 mu/L
T4 9.8 pmol/L
FSH 2.9iu/L
LH 8.7iu/L
progesterone 30 nmol/L
Oestradiol 454 pmol/L
Testosterone 1.8 nmol/L
Albumin/creatine ratio 0.4 mg/nmol

They were all marked as normal apart from testosterone but GP did mention FSH to LH ratio which is the thing he described as "abysmal" I think lol. He was extremely pessimistic about my fertility but couldn't really explain why beyond telling me people with PCOS don't have regular periods or ovulate (I have regular 30ish day cycles and seem to be ovulating) and people over 35 with high BMIs and PCOS basically won't get pregnant.

The blue one, there'll be another one in green, to the exact specifications, hope ds approves

Hey gang, better late than never - I’m hopping on but have been peeping every now and then. Welcome to new passengers!

@lakejupiter I seem to remember someone (maybe @Juno231) looking into thyroid before and found that is TSH is over 2.5 it isn’t conducive to baby making despite being in the normal range. I’m going to have a look to see if I can find anything.

On the vibrator front to add my two pennies worth, I have a Lelo that looks a lot like the one you are talking about and can confirm it is intense!

Hat is looking good @Franklydear, wish I was as talented with the needles but the most I have managed is a scrawny “scarf” that was about 15cm wide and a million miles long 😂 period sounds promising, here’s hoping 🤞

@blackcurrantqueen congratulations 💗

@polkadotpixie my cycles are between 25 - 27 days do can be short in terms of LP.

I'm CD 13 today, EWCM has shown up but ovulation tests are all negative 🤷🏻‍♀️
We cant even DTD as my partner is backshift and not up to it mid week 😑

So I can't see this month being successful either x

@Haiyaa yes ideally TSH should be between 1 and 2 for women who are trying to conceive, according to my endocrinologist, though in the general population under 5 is fine.

@lakejupiter I have heard in some of the thyroid groups I'm in that people who are borderline or have numbers within normal ranges can't get treatment with thyroid hormone (which makes sense) but when you see the endocrinologist they might prescribe something for it given that you are TTC? Your GP can too but I find them to be generally clueless about thyroid issues.

Thanks for this @Somatronic @Haiyaa - looks like I'm way above the recommended levels then! My GP didn't mention my thyroid at all, he only went over LH, FSH and testosterone results. On a waiting list for endocrinology at two different hospitals and have been advised the wait is around 18-24 weeks for both 🤞🏻

Glad you lot enjoyed the owl thread 😊

@Minster2012 oh wow. Have you had a scan recently so? Jeez I underestimated you by about a month!

@Franklydear results took ages! Soundsime things are ok though? Does it give a littleore hope?

@blackcurrantqueen aw home with new baby 💖 great!

@InkyPaper it's about to get real so! 😃

@InkyPaper yay for injections. Kind of. 🤣 It'll all go pretty fast from here.
@blackcurrantqueen Brilliant news! 🥳 Awww, it must be amazing to be home.
@Franklydear the only other thing you could push for on the nhs is an SA for your OH? Because actually you are assuming the issue is you, and it might not be? I know you aren't entitled to ivf etc but they can't refuse investigations.
@lakejupiter yes TSH is definitely a factor and there are some people who get that sorted and then pregnancy occurs! And yes it does make a difference what day they are on! Progesterone peak is 7 days after ovulation. Yours is a little low (not officially) for my liking but actually if you were 4dpo then it's probably OK as it will have risen more after that. The two I had were 45 and 48 for comparison. The rest looks ok to my untrained eye but i didn't have all of those done that you have. They never checked my testosterone. But my TSH was ok. Not that comparing to me is useful- I couldn't do it naturally or with IUI with no obvious reasons. 🤣

@Manifestingbaby it does bring a little hope, they’ve been really short of staff in the surgery, I didn’t want to be pushy, ivf would give 4% chances of success though, I know step away from Google
@InkyPaper exciting! Tell us every step, please
@paintfairy true, he did say the other day, it could be him, I’ll mention he could check...

@Franklydear definitely worth checking!
And my ivf chance for my age was only 19%, but here we are? I think it's really variable to be honest. It literally will depend on what your issue is (and actually I've still no clue about ours). I would guess for some reason we just were struggling with the fertilisation itself. 🤷‍♀️

Thanks v much for this @paintfairy - I did think it would make more sense for it to be 7dpo but I imagine I will have more tests when I see an endo anyway. GP made a massive deal about my testosterone levels but since looking into the rest of the results I feel like that's the least of my problems 😹 still find it mental that I really have no noticeable symptoms of PCOS apart from weight gain - others I know w PCOS have pronounced physical symptoms - but I guess that's why I didn't find out I had it sooner. Unexplained infertility sounds so fucking frustrating, it blows my mind that there's just some stuff about reproduction we don't know.

@lakejupiter good, I'm glad to hear it ❤️ be kind to yourself - this whole process is stressful enough without horrible GPs in the mix.

@Minster2012 @larrythelizard @Manifestingbaby @paintfairy things are FINALLY HAPPENING!!! I feel like we've been waiting 100 years for this 😂

@blackcurrantqueen it's all so exciting!! How're you feeling?

@Franklydear the hat looks awesome! As for the IVF, I start my first injection tomorrow and then will add in a second on Sunday, so I'll be doing two each day, after that I've got scans and blood tests next Wednesday and Friday and if all goes smoothly, I guess egg collection will happen sometime soon after that 🤞🏻 just hoping I won't overreact to the drugs because I'd like a fresh transfer (if only to avoid more waiting for another cycle to come around!)

@InkyPaper best of luck! How exciting!

I have to have sex with my husband this evening and he's annoying the shit out of me since I got home from work. It will be a challenge but it had to be done 💪 🍆 🤞

Ohhh, this all sounds very exciting @InkyPaper. Bet it’s good to feel like something is starting.

@Franklydear the hat is amazing. I cannot believe you’ve just created that today! Good news on the test results too.

@lakejupiter I have by idea I’m afraid, but it’s amazing to have so much experience in one place.

Nothing much going on for me at the moment. Just awaiting AF’s end then starting with the smiley OPK sticks on Saturday. Thank you for the advice on Evening Primrose Oil though @Minster2012 and @Juno231. I’ve started that too!

@Manifestingbaby until the other week I still looked small, now I look fat & pregnant but that's more to do with the amount of bacon & cheese & bread I'm eating I think 🤔I had a scan at 20weeks bank home Monday 3rd Jan & all looking good thank you. Kinda believe it now

@InkyPaper yessssss all of a sudden that's it, it's all ramping up now! How exciting (but yes a million years to here) but HERE!!! Woooooo

@Somatronic you could try being kinky & hold him down in an "I hate you but wanna f you" kinda way 🤪

@Somatronic I do not miss that. Having to have him near me when I really want to throttle him. 🤣
@lakejupiter i found it annoying that they couldn't really find a reason. I would rather there was one! But yes it's far more complex than they even know.

@Minster2012 Just a few different things really...I had low AMH when I had it tested 3 years ago and my recent FSH was 9.2 so a bit high and my Estrogen was low. I've been having recurring UTIs and thrush this past year which can be a sign and I'm also having the odd night sweat, disturbed sleep, increased anxiety and some dryness....I just don't feel like things are right hormonally although I know it can last years and it's still possible to get pregnant during it, I just feel really down about it

@blackcurrantqueen Congratulations on your baby girl! 💗

@lakejupiter I can't believe how rude your doctor was about your weight! My BMI is 26 so more or less the same and I've been told by the consultant and nurse at my last hospital appointment that I'm a healthy weight and nice and slim! Your doctor is a dick 😡

@Somatronic I'm going to give the Fertility-Lily a proper go next cycle too, fingers crossed it's the magic bullet 🤞

@Franklydear I always get excited about a decent AF so you are not alone! I always worry about the super light ones I usually get. Your bloods look fine but done on CD12 they're not very reliable, they really need to be done around CD3 (2 to 5 is fine though)

@InkyPaper Yay for AF arriving (sounds weird to say that!). Good luck for your cycle, I have everything crossed for you

I'm 8dpo today and getting my usual pre-AF cramps so not very hopeful. I called the GP today and he's agreed to refer us to Infertility as I'm over 35 and we've been trying for 7 months. He was quite kind really and said it's probably due to my Endometriosis that we're struggling again. I already knew it was me as DH's SA last time was excellent but it still feels a bit shit to hear

@lakejupiter were all of those taken at the same time? If so I would ignore the LH/FSH ratio as all of it bar progesterone should be taken at baseline levels at the start of your cycle. LH would be elevated so soon after ovulation so odds are you'd have had a normal result at CD2 if taken properly? Agreed on your TSH being a bit elevated - GP wouldn't do anything about it though as the NHS guidelines says anything under 4 is fine. Could be worth going private (although did someone mention you're going to see an endocrinologist anyway?) just to get a low dose of levothyroxine prescribed to get it under 2.5 as it's linked to subfertility.

@lakejupiter

Mumsnet won't let me upload a picture but here's the relevant deets. This was on CD21 of my last cycle, and 4dpo according to OPK strips (not sure whether I should have booked them for 7dpo but GP said he didn't think it makes a difference)

TSH 3.34 mu/L
T4 9.8 pmol/L
FSH 2.9iu/L
LH 8.7iu/L
progesterone 30 nmol/L
Oestradiol 454 pmol/L
Testosterone 1.8 nmol/L
Albumin/creatine ratio 0.4 mg/nmol

They were all marked as normal apart from testosterone but GP did mention FSH to LH ratio which is the thing he described as "abysmal" I think lol. He was extremely pessimistic about my fertility but couldn't really explain why beyond telling me people with PCOS don't have regular periods or ovulate (I have regular 30ish day cycles and seem to be ovulating) and people over 35 with high BMIs and PCOS basically won't get pregnant.

Thanks for sharing! I now realised that my TSH level is considered high for TTC and I just messaged my OB-GYN to ask if there's anything we should do about that.

What CD were you when they did the bloodwork?

@Juno231oh my god THANK YOU so much for this. They were all taken at CD21/4dpo of my cycle last month and I’ve been really stressing about that ratio but of course it makes sense that LH is high a few days after ovulation as that’s what you measure with OPKs 🙈

I’m on a waiting list to see an endocrinologist and the waiting time is 18-24 weeks so I’m thinking about whether it would be sensible to go private and see someone sooner.

@lakejupiter I don't know your circumstances but it might be worth investigating the private options - it could be that you just need to see them once or twice but you can get your thyroid hormone and maybe metformin prescribed which would be a great help. I've been seeing mine privately since 2015 because I had really bad Graves disease and my GP didn't trust the Irish health service not to kill me so I went privately, and even when there have been times that I haven't had to see her more than once a year or so, I still send her blood results every month or three months (depending on how bad I am) and she checks them and adjusts my meds and sends prescriptions for free. This might not be the case everywhere, but it's my experience in a private hospital in Ireland.

I am trying to get my files and test results for the public hospital fertility unit sent to me and it's a nightmare! I've been asking for them since early December. Why are basic things so hard when it comes to healthcare?!

Thank you @Somatronic I am going to look into it. I have started saving for fertility treatment and have an agreement with my coparent that if we don't succeed with home inseminations after 6 months we would think about IUI and other options, but I could also think about using what I've already saved to see an endo privately. TBH I have had low level issues with fatigue, immune responses etc for years and wondered if I had a thyroid issue but it makes sense it has never been picked up if it's subclinical/still in normal range -- I do suffer from a lot of fatigue, dry skin and hair, weight gain etc and can't seem to fight off infections etc very well.

I literally cannot thank you all enough, have learned more on this thread than I have through my GP and my google wormholes combined ❤️ doing god's work over here ladies!

@lakejupiter glad we could help! I wouldn't worry too much about the TSH btw - it might slow things down but not prevent.

@Franklydear @paintfairy how fo you calculate your chances of ivf working? Anything I've seen online puts me at about 30% but that seems optimistic for late 30s with known issues on both sides!

@Minster2012 I'm so chuffed for you 😀 obviously amazing the way ds came about but so happy you get to experience carrying your own baby this time. Hope I've phrased that inoffensively!

@polkadotpixie it's a tough one isn't it...good to be getting referred and being proactive but no 9ne wants to bein the position of needing help either. Hugs x

@lakejupiter I'm no use to you but there are always some very informed ladies here with right knowledge, never ceases to amaze me!

@Manifestingbaby I looked at my specific clinic stats. Whilst each clinic has their own stats on their websites (be very careful though with how they are presented) in age groups, if you go on the HFEA website and search for a clinic you can look at much more. It'll have their headline stats but there's a link you click to see more detailed analysis. You can filter by age range but also by if it was fresh or frozen and whether it was standard ivf or icsi etc. For me specifically at my clinic it was 26% pregnancy rate and 19% birth rate. Which DH said it was utterly pointless even trying...... 🤣 Obviously that doesn't take into account personal circumstances though.