TTC is there any point in going to the GP with this?

[Cuckoomonster]

Hi everyone looking for advice around not ovulating.
I had a miscarriage in January which went on for several months. I finally stopped bleeding and returned to 'normal' periods in May. I have been TTC since then and have just realised that despite having bleeding every month I am not ovulating. At first I thought I had missed testing on the correct day but I have checked every day this month and nothing and last month my cycle was only 19 days.
I already have 1 child so I wouldn't qualify for IVF and I am 40 so i feel this is the last chance to have another baby and maybe the miscarriage triggered menopsause? Is there actually anything that a doctor could give me to restart ovulation? Referrals to gynaecology are taking at least 9 months so given my age I don't think that there would be any point.
Can anyone offer any advice please?

I'm so sorry you are going through this. It's definitely worth mentioning to your GP but likely they will just refer you to gynaecology, where you will need to wait before seeing a specialist. If it is the same in your trust as mine, if you do not qualify for IVF, the specialist may do tests on you to confirm what is happening, but may say they cannot offer any treatment. That is what happened with me when I struggling to conceive - I didn't qualify for treatment due to a higher BMI, but they did tests and I was losing weight to try and get within their BMI range for treatment.

In the end, I decided to pay to go private (I was also really conscious of my age) to speed things up. I found a great private specialist locally who agreed to prescribe medication to try and improve ovulation (I was ovulating but he thought it might help get better eggs out). I ended up getting an 'ovulation induction package' and so it actually wasn't too expensive. They were able to use the NHS tests though so if I hadn't had them, I would have had to pay for those as well which would have cost a bit more.

So whilst I would definitely get the ball rolling with your GP to try and get any free NHS testing done, if you can afford it, I would definitely look into a private specialist straight away. It might not be as costly as you think and I was seen within a week of first contacting my specialist.

(Just as an aside, the medication did help me and after a few losses, I am now nearly 38 weeks pregnant and everything is looking good this time thankfully). Wishing you lots of luck x

Thanks this post has been so helpful. If you don't mind could you message me with the specialist that you used and the costs. I understand it would be higher for me with having to also pay for tests but having so many appointments this year I don't want to go through the NHS so I will look into private.

@redlou123 forgot to say congratulations on your pregnancy that is wonderful x

Are you sure that you’re not ovulating? I don’t think you would have a period if you aren’t ovulating, but I could be wrong.

At 40 there is still a little bit of time left so I would go to the GP. Whilst menopause is a possibility there are other things that can stop ovulation. A miscarriage wouldn't trigger menopause no, that happens when the eggs run out and a miscarriage would not speed up that process.

The gp can definitely do a test to check to see if you are menopausal. They can also suggest local private DRs that may be able to help you progress.

@Cuckoomonster Thank you. Still don't feel like I'm out of the woods yet but after it taking 2.5 years to first conceive and then having 4 first trimester losses, it is starting to feel like the end is nearly in sight after a tough 4.5 years. Will send over the details of who I went with.

Also, just to say that if you are offered medication to try and help with ovulation, I would recommend letrozole over clomid. I tried both of them and got pregnant once with clomid (on the 4th cycle out of 6) and twice with letrozole (on both the first and second cycles - the only times I used it), as well as twice naturally in between the medications. The second letrozole pregnancy is the one that stuck. Letrozole is more expensive, which is one of the reasons I think clomid is often tried first, but definitely seemed to work better for me. Everyone responds differently though so it may not be the same for you, just wanted to give you my personal experience of trying them both.

Thank you everyone. @Smileandtheworldsmileswithyou I thought the same that because I had a period I must be ovulating but when I googled it the follicles can still stimulate but not release an egg. This process increases oestrogen and starts the process of preparing the lining of the womb so you then this is shed like a period.

I have tested twice per day this month and I definitely haven't ovulated. I had trouble conceiving my first but always ovulated then.

Are you tracking your bbt temperature as this will help confirm if ovulating more than ovulation tests well. But they should still be able to help you on nhs with testing but may not ivf as you already have a child.