2023 TTC 35+ Part 4

[VixFromThe6ix]

New thread, ladies!!!!

Hope you can all find it.

Feel free to tag others to continue the conversation.

Yes definitely all keep your hopes up! My mother had me as her one and only baby aged 42 and dad was 50. Thought she was having her menopause and popped to the GP to talk about management of that and was promptly pregnancy tested and suprise! 😊

@Optimist1981 thank you. I totally took for granted how easily I got pregnant first time round, 3rd cycle but only the 1st using OPKs. I've had a mmc and mc this year, last one being in June then not been pregnant again since. I'm sure it'll happen. I just need a lot more patience.

TTC tests the patience of a saint!
Feeling pretty down about it all today, looks like this must be an anovulatory cycle for me so I just need to wait until the withdrawal bleed so I can crack on with the next cycle. I am having lots of perimenopausal symptoms (aged 37) which have ramped up this cycle - hot flushes in particular which have really disrupted my sleep. My cycles have been irregular for a couple of years now with lots of spotting.
I’ve been dismissed by the GP but need to see them about something else so will probably tell them about all the symptoms and that I have been TTC for coming up to 6 months. Really I think I would be asking for HRT if we weren’t trying for another baby. The whole business makes my head spin.
Sometimes I think about stopping TTC as it would be such an enormous change for us with our existing family unit of 3 (DD is 9). But then it’s what we want in our hearts. I worry a bit about the health implications of another child for me. Have been trying to get fitter but had a setback lately. Feeling crap about myself. Sorry, had to vent…

I’m sorry @CurlyWurly1991 , it all really sucks big time. All the hormonal crapola us women have to go through is so complex and challenging and then it is so emotive when it’s intertwined with our child bearing capability too. I too have become more fearful this cycle about perimenopause and the implications that may have for us trying to conceive again. I think all any of us can do is try to be healthy as possible (though we aren’t nuns so gotta cut ourselves some slack and be real here), clue up on our cycles and utilise that information to our benefit (which I feel all the ladies on here are absolute bosses at). No matter how positive we all try to stay it’s gotta be said that sometimes it all just really gets you down, is absolutely crap and there isn’t any other way to dress that reality up. Vent away my lovely, we are all here to listen and understand xxx

@Eirlys1986 thank you, so kind as always ❤️
I think I am just coming to terms with accepting it might not happen for us. My hormones have been erratic for some time. I do all the right things health wise and am a healthy bmi, exercise usually, eat very well, minimal caffeine and booze, see a herbalist and take a herbal mix. Some improvement but over the past few months there have been as many anovulatory as ovulatory cycles so I know I only have half the opportunities. I did make my peace with not having another previously, more for practical reasons. I suppose I’m starting to think it might also just not be possible for health reasons too and that is OK too. We have our daughter and our blessed with what we already have.

Sending love @CurlyWurly1991 , you never know what may happen for you, my friend being an example as she is now definitely perimenopausal but obviously hyperovulated due to rising FSH levels at the time leading to twins which she then carried healthily at age 40! I do think trying to make peace with what may or may not happen is a good thing for us but just so very hard once you’ve started trying xxx

@CurlyWurly1991 out of interest for myself and if you don’t mind, how do you establish the signs for you when you have an anovulatory cycle? Will be useful for me to know what you experience x

@Eirlys1986 wow, your friend had twins at 40? Gosh imagine trying for one, expecting none, and getting two!!
I use fertility friend and temp chart. Without a clear thermal shift that shows progesterone has risen, then it is likely no ovulation has occurred. I really recommend it. However this cycle it gave me false hope as I did have a vague temperature shift on cd18 leading me to think I had ovulated, however when I got to 20dpo still testing negative on hpts I realised most likely I had never ovulated at all, and the fertility friend detection was not correct.
what I find confusing is in anovulatory cycles I often get symptoms much more like my first pregnancy than usual luteal phase symptoms (hot flushes, fatigue, nausea). So just another reminder to me not to trust symptoms at all!

Yeh symptom spotting is always a fickle friend I find. I have just started trying to BBT this cycle and already had a wide variation in temps over last 4 mornings….think the current heatwave isn’t helping tbh. How big a shift up do you see when you ovulate? I’ve heard like only 0.2 -0.5 degrees but I have varied that much over past few days 😂

⬆️ should be @CurlyWurly1991 , I forgot to tag! 😂

Hiya. New to the group 36yrs old with a almost 2yr LO. TTC bby No.2 since Feb.

I am 8DPO and experiencing chest tightness as well as twinges.

Our First month doing SMEP. All the previous months unable to so SMEP lucky if we DTD 3 times in those months. Weaning LO travel ane visitors all combined.

In the literature it says if any line deem it as positive - regardless of lightness but please see attached

I mean theres a line in the T area but it is light
I didn't use first urine of day - maybe it would of been darker if id done that

Any thoughts on the pic - do you see a light line

@MixedCouple welcome! Sounds like you have a lot on. SMEP as well - impressed. Don’t think we could manage that much 😂 hope you get good news in a few days…

@Eirlys1986 there is so much detail to chatting. The book often recommended is ‘taking charge of your fertility’. You can also do the charting course on the fertility friend app which is really good.

Argh, charting!
also meant to say 0.2c is a reasonable temp rise between follicular and luteal phases although mine is usually closer to 0.5. You need to take your temp every day at the same time and use a special bbt thermometer.

@CurlyWurly1991 oh thanks 😊, I totally didn’t realise you need a specific thermometer, am definitely doing it roughly same time everyday but obviously the heat at present is bananas so I’m not at all suprised I’d be a bit warmer on waking from sleep first thing

@worldwidetravel2017 that looks positive to me!! How many dpo are you?

@Eirlys1986 it needs to be within about 20 mins of the same time and there is guidance about where to position it etc. You mustn’t get up first, have a drink etc, it needs to be the first thing you do on waking. So if you wake earlier you can’t get up to pee etc or if you do it needs to be recorded on your chart/discarded. Def need a bbt thermometer with two decimal places because the fluctuations can be quite small so it’s easy for the ovulation pattern to be obscured. In theory warmer days shouldn’t make too much difference as your body maintains the same temp (theoretically?)

Potentially 2 and bit weeks ish post ovulation..

I had drunk orange juice recently b4 so may not have helped the shade of it / dilution
.
And didnt use first sample of the day.

Tricky - i dont wana get excited yet incase its a chemical pregnancy - never been preg before etc

CD13 and finally got a flashing smiley this morning, so waiting on that static now. Still got some EWCM.

My apple watch recorded my temp as 35.40 overnight, that really can't be right being that low!

AF is here! 🎉
I know we wouldn't normally celebrate but I've been waiting and it's my first after MC in early August so now we can officially think about trying again x

I’m so sorry I haven’t messaged much (I hate just messaging to post about my stuff), but finding it hard to find time with my toddler. He’s broken his collarbone so been a bit stressful!
I’m convinced I’m out but my period was due yesterday and didn’t come, so I did a cheapie test today and I’m convinced I can see something (and looks pink in real life). I’m deluding myself though aren’t I?? I’m sure there’s nothing actually there? Also if it was this faint a day after my period it’s likely to be a chemical anyway isn’t it?

@BB2023 🎉 whoop! I understand, I felt just this way after my MMC, it felt really exciting for period to return and gave me a bit of faith back in my body again and felt like I’d been pulled out of limbo. Good luck xxxx
@Mrsspoon3 I believe I can see a second line there but not sure if it’s a tide line type thing but it does appear to have a pinkish colour to it. My early tests with my son were faint so who knows?! Retest tonight or morning? I know you’re meant to wait 48 hours but I can never do that 😂

Looks positive - do another tomorrow :)

:) good luck for your next cycle

Thanks @Eirlys1986 and @worldwidetravel2017 😊 I’m not feeling too positive about it because of how faint it is (my tests were much darker at this stage last time) but will test again tomorrow!