Agnus Cactus - helpful or harmful

[rosebudbloom]

Hi all,

Anyone else taken Agnus Cactus for a while and is now TTC? I was diagnosed with PMDD a few years ago and Agnus Cactus has saved me from a debilitating LP. I'm now TTC, so have changed from taking AC for most of my cycle (all but CD1-5 on my period), to just taking it up until ovulation, as I read on here you shouldn't take it past ov.

However now my cycle is much shorter (I think as I haven't taken AC the whole way through eek). It used to be 28 days but this month its 25. Worried that AC has messed up my cycle... anyone got any experience of this or anything related?
Thanks xxx

Helpful

I took it whole cycle after coming off pill to lengthen cycle. Took 3 months until bfp

Amazingly helpful. Would not have conceived without it

Congrats🙌🙌 Did you take it after ovulation too then? So many mixed messages out there as I’ve seen people on here say stop taking after ovulation! I was scared to take it after ovulation but think I need to as my LP is short otherwise! Unsure what to think! 🤔

I used it to help regulate my cycles after coming off the pill. It got to something like 70 days after my withdrawal bleed and my period hadn't come. So I took agnus castus and it bought my period on within a couple of days. It could of course have been coincidence bit I carried on and my next cycle was was something like 37 days then I got pregnant.

It does seem like a miracle to me, literally saved me from the worse PMS/PMDD! Just hoping long term use hasn’t messed things up for me eek

I used agnus castus twice.

I also took evening primrose oil until ovulation and vitamin B complex for the whole cycle.

The first time, I had been trying to get pregnant for nearly two years. My cycles were all over the place, I didn't always ovulate, got pregnant once and had a miscarriage and seemed to have a very short luteal phase. I took agnus castus for a month (weird cycle while my body adjusted) then conceived and stayed pregnant.

The second time, I started all the supplements before trying to conceive, settled in for the long run and fell pregnant the first month of trying.

So, in my experience, it is powerful stuff. I'm actually put off using it for awful PMT in case I get pregnant again.

That's amazing news - congrats! Sounds like it truly worked wonders for you.

So did you take it from ovulation up until you found out you were pregnant? I was hesitant to take it for the whole cycle just in case I might be pregnant the second half! Seems like there's mixed messages about when you should stop taking it!

I also read somewhere some people take it till the end of first trimester as it helps with progesterone production and can help avoid mc.

Unsure how long to take it for and any advice/success stories so appreciated!! Xxx

Watching with interest!

The first time I took agnus castus, I kept taking it for the first trimester. I bled until 14 weeks and given the previous miscarriage, I felt like I needed the extra help to keep the baby.

The second time, I stopped taking it as soon as I got the positive test. The whole pregnancy felt different and I was more confident that my body knew what to do.

Thank you for letting me know! That's super helpful to hear your positive experiences with it. It's hard to know the right thing to do with so much at stake and lots of mixed messages out there.

From what I remember reading when TTV DC1 8 years ago, it is helpful for some people and harmful for others so you have to read up and decide yourself. It sounds OP like it's beneficial to you

Thank you for your post! It's such a minefield 🤯😂

Hello.

I had a miscarriage in March and my period has still not returned (day 117). Do you recommend me trying Agnus Castus? I have had blood work done and it’s all come back normal.

We are eager TTC again but need something to help kickstart my cycle again!

Hi @cmg91
I'm so sorry to hear that. That's a long time for your cycle to come back. Mine always came back fairly soon after a MC

I'm not a doctor but I can't imagine it would do any harm. I believe there's also prescription medication (Clomid???) that brings a period on. Ask your GP maybe? 💐

Hi all,

So, my husband I tried for nearly a year with no luck, then I started taking vitex and had my first positive 🙌 sadly I tapered off the vitex, it faded and I got my period.

I managed to get Cyclogest (bioidenttical progesterone) so I could start taking this the next time I got a positive.

I get a positive soon after, then taper off vitex and start taking cyclogest straight away. Sadly my tests faded and we’re not viable. Any advice as to where to go next?

I have PMDD/short luteal phase and breast tenderness, which I think is why I respond so well to vitex as it keeps my cycle normal.

Part of me wonders whether I should just stay in vitex through pregnancy but I know there are minimal safety studies. Any experience of having kids on vitex with no issues?

So hard to navigate 😞 any help appreciated! sending love ❤️