Ignoring the LIES, DAMNED LIES, and STATISTICS: Fiesty & Fabulous 40+ers TTC

[xserialshopper]

Open to all 40+ers TTC.

We're friendly - not cliquey (sp?) and would love to know you{smile]

I totally can't spell/type!

Evening All,

Hope everyone well this evening. Found a couple of success stories to cheer us up.

On the FF message boards tonight I just read a post by a lady who got a BFP just a couple of months short of her 43rd birthday.

The second story is of a surprise baby at age 47. The link is www.thestar.com/article/588951

B x

Hey Beamel, thanks for this, will rush off to read voraciously . Have now plotted 9 days on chart, no lines yet!

Hope yours is looking well?

Hi all, just popping in to say hi. I am back to cd2 again. After 2 early mc in a row it seemed strange to have a "normal" cycle with all negative tests and af only a day or so late. So I am trying to get some positive thinking for this month. And dh has promised to stay off drink, for a couple of weeks if not for Lent!!!

i still can't get the DH to come home..it was 5am last night....what use is he going to be?

i seem to remember somebody helpfully suggesting shopping....ooops may have gone a little hard in the west end yesterday

i am jealous rowing i can't wait for the birthday parties...for the moment, I have to content myself making cakes for the poor babies killing themselves in DH's office

i have also been charting this month....day 11....temps all over the place and nothing from the monitor yet. hopefully some lines for us both soon nanbred

goodluck rainbow, you feel so much more in control when your cycle is 'normal' again..heres to a big month for you and everybody....it would be exciting if we could match beamel's stories with a couple of bfps of our own

Hi all,
LS I know how you feel, my DP got home at ??? last night, but he was all smelling of whisky and snoring on the sofa. Do you always wake up when your DH comes in?
Nan, Beam and LS - very impressed with your detailed charting. You will have to put together a powerpoint presentation for me.
I have just had my appointment in Hungary confirmed for the 11th of March. I must get the pin for my credit card sent to me, I always forget.
Do you guys think I need to tell my credit card I will be using it in Hungary, I know they are funny about unexpected usage?

i always wake up when he comes in..i'm a really light sleeper and he always insists on coming in and saying hello, no matter what the time and even if he is banished to the other room! I've just spoken to him hoping that he might be home soon - he had promised dinner time tonight - anyway current estimate is 1, so i'm thinking 2 or 3...i'm really starting to get cranky now! hopefully he is going to take a couple of days off this week so i can reaquaint myself with what he looks like.

you don't have to tell the bank, but they often stop your card if you are using it somewhere you wouldn't normally be, so it's probably best to tell them...i've had mine stopped many times, just when you're trying to buy something important!

very exciting that you've got your appointment confirmed in Hungary...are you nervous?

Nanbread and Latestarter - the charting thing is frustrating isn't it ? I was getting a bit anxious to be honest but FF finally gave me my red lines on CD18. The computer needs to see three higher temps to confirm ovulation so hang on in there. Looks like i ov'd a day later than I thought too which was an extra day to wait !
I also thought my temps were all over the place but there was still a nice obvious rise when it happened.
So don't lose heart and let us know how you get on.

Good luck to all
Bea x

Hi all, hi Rowing, how exciting about your appointment! Thanks for the link, the clinic looks interesting - good success rates for us golden oldies! But no price list - that I could find? will go back and have another look. I would have loved to take the 20 March appt and know someone going through it too, probably too early though as if this one flops we'll still be in the aftermath then! I'd be inclined to tell the bank - I've had them phone me up when I'm abroad before now to ask if it's really me! Good on you LS for hitting the West End too!

And I've just had some exciting news - been for a scan and I have 5 follicles developing!Given that I have such high FSH levels that I'm considered borderline for getting any eggs at all, and was really expecting them to say that the gamble of giving me IVF hadn't paid off, I'm weak with shock but finally feeling like something good might come of this... Rowing, I've scoured the internet but haven't found any positive references to lowering FSH with drugs helping pregnancies. I know I keep asking you things... but do you remember where you saw that research, oh knowledgeable one ?

Good news Bump fingers crossed for you,
Bx

Hello all, have been lurking for a bit in a sort of pretending not to be quite so obsessed kind of way.

Am now bit down in dumps cause AF turned up a full 6 days late this time (unusual for me) so I even got so far as doing a test - negative of course cause AF appeared next day, though a tad shorter than usual.

Now I'm scared hormones are up the shoot or may be I'm really getting to the end of my chances. Wish I hadn't tested . Think I'm going to try Bumpless regime (DH will be shocked!)

Hi everyone,

just wondered if you knowledgable ladies can help. Feeling really confused as i've got a line on the opk stick for the 5th day running. What does it mean? Do you think I've got ANY hope of conceiving if this happens? Have done loads of bd'ing but that won't do any good if i don't actually ov. After feeling all optimistic that i was ov'ing now i just think my ageing eggs can't hack it and do what they're supposed to.

Sorry to be so gloomy, i just have a sneaky suspicion something's not right.

Only test once with an opk - it can test positive for a few days as there is a sort of hormone trail. When it's near ov time I test twice a day and as soon as positive I take that as the green light so to speak.

Your cm is usually a good indicator to? Have you had ewcm yet?

Yay ! 46 year old bfp on FF tonight !
Thought you guys might like to know

B x

congrats bump...five follicles...go you...what is the next step?

sorry about AF pearshaped...there is a good chance that the next cycle will be 'back to normal' and you have as good a chance as any of us next time round......try the bump regime if you dare

tetley, as far as I have read it is not unusual to have a number of days with a positive on an OPK...maybe have a look at www.peaonastick.com....you could also try the clearblue digital opks with the nice defintive smiley face

i have had two high days on the clearblue fertility monitor now and luckily the DH has finally turned up or he may have come across me unexpectedly at the office!....getting pretty bored with peeing, temping and checking CM every day, but it has really helped to be able to cross-check one against the other and know each step seems to be happening ok...now just need to get the temp rise in the next day or so..........i've given up on the cervix checking..I'm not convinced I know exactly which bit it is! TMI?

Latestarter - I gave up on cervix checking too. Mine seemed to pretty much be the same all the time, just sitting there !
I also found it kinda gross to be honest, constantly rumaging around up there, and I'm the most unsqueamish person imaginable !
V pleased your DH turned up at last, hopefully there will be no more interruptions for a bit !

Thanks for the good news Beamel - stuff like that keeps me going!

Gonepearshaped, if it's any consolation, my AF was 4 days late and light last cycle and it doesn't seem to have got in the way with making progress with IVF on this one - no idea what to make of it but I hope you're not feeling too .

The hole in the Bump regime was temp and CM charting, which I never got to grips with, so I'm in awe of all this tech talk and will definitely get my head round it if this cycle goes nowhere. Next scan on Friday, grow follies grow...

Latestarter, hope you got your money's worth out of your DH now he's emerged from the office !

Hi Gonepearshaped and Tetley, welcome to the thread. It's hell, but at least we are all in it together. Fingers crossed for next cycle GPS!
Tetley, I echo Fifi regarding the OPK, the levels of the HGC or whatever it's called fluctuate and rise quite a bit towards the end of the cycle, giving an almost positive at different times in the cycle. I think that's why only the dark line matching the test line is deemed a positive - very tricky to catch though. My advice buy cheapies then you don't care if you use five a day around ovulation, they work fine for me.
I wrote a giant post last night and then lost it when trying to find that link for you Bump. Grr!
Way to go with the follies, you rock! You totally deserve to have them, after all the research and hard work.
Did you down reg or just get cracking?
LS I hope you have had a good night, and lots of pancakes for pudding after the 'main course'.
Thanks for asking, I am terrified about going to Hungary, but I think that's probably one good reason to do it, just to get over the fear.
It's so unsettling, having to ship my family over there, and I don't really know what to expect. We can't afford to stay in a luxury hotel, so that's part of the fear.
We will have to rent a self-catering place. I hope we don't have mad neighbours or a woofy dog, woofing all night.
Hi Beam [waves]
What's happened to Xserial, Rhet. Where is Juicy, Roque, Sussex? Where are you guys?

Hi all - hope everyone's okay. I'm very behind so just popping on quickly for now to give a report as promised on the Serenity progesterone cream!

Well - it was inconclusive
Annoyingly I didn't have a definite ov day last cycle, could have been any one of about 3 days, which makes it almost impossible to count the luteal days. Best guess, going by opk results, is that luteal phase was 11 days, which is better than it has been recently (has varied from 9-11 days over the last 7 months). Also my luteal phase temps went back up to what they were a few months ago - I had a weird month before that where they were all really low. PMT seemed worse than usual, I also started cramping a few days before AF arrived, which is usual, but seemed more intense this time. But obviously, it didn't do the trick re getting pg! I'm going to give it another go this month though.

Tetley - have a look at the opk faq section here:
peeonastick
When you say you got lines, do you mean 'proper' positives (darker than the test line) or just lines of varying strength?

ooh Rowing, good luck, I'm sure you'll be fine re travel plans. Is it March you are going (sorry, you've probably said but I'm a bit behind)?

Hi COC, don't worry about missing things.
I am completely lost with the whole temping thing. When I read about temps I feel a bit like a labrador whose owner is speaking to it. 'Blah blah blah dinner' 'woof!'
Thank you for the luck. Yes Hungary is March. I was about to pay for the flights when DP asked me to wait until tomorrow.
I guess you can only judge the cream after using it for two or three months to see whether there is a trend of some sort.

Thank you all for replies I've read what it says on peeonastick - really good website - seems to say my egg's having trouble getting out of the ovary so more and more LH gets produced to try and get it going...
Fifi- i had EWCM days before the + started and for the 1st few + days. Now it seems to have stopped.

COC - yes, it's a definite positive, less dark than on the first 2 days but def very strongly +. No room for interpreting differently, dammit!

And thanks rowingboat too, appreciate it.
Thank god for MN....keeping me sane

juicy reporting in. been struck by hideous cold since last thurs and too cross and sick to post. At least it's hampered my drinking!!

Off to Brighton Friday so hoping this viral infamy will be over by then. Haven't so much as thought about bding since DH got home (poor DH). Will have to maximise shagathon possibilities at the hotel to make up for it. May not even leave the hotel, at least that will keep the cost of the weekend down!

Very excited about Hungary for you Rowing. It is in Budapest, isn't it? Such a lovely city. Know it's not a sightseeing trip, but at least you'll be in lovely surroundings.

Juicy, poor you. Are you feeling a bit better now? Did you have the thing where mouth breath when you are sleeping and you wake up with a horribly dry mouth.
Have a great time in Brighton!
I'm trying to be excited about Hungary, but not quite there yet. I'm sure when I get there it will be fine. [bites nails]
Tetley, sounds like you are on top of this. Have you had a day 21 test done?

Rowing, so sorry to ask difficult questions and wreck your post! How annoying... Can understand why you're apprehensive about Hungary, new place, new environment, lots of medical shennanigans... I spent 3 days on my own there for a work thing a few years ago and really enjoyed it, it's a stunning place and I felt safe walking around it. I hope you get to see some of it and feel better once you're there.

Enjoy a good ol' fashioned dirty weekend in Brighton Juicy!

Will do my level best bump