First time TTC?!! Let's get through this together - Calling all first time frolickers and fully proficient frolickers!

[summerbird]

A new thread to follow on from Part 3 - AKA the lucky thread!

Lets get some more BFP's this month

x

MAF YAY for the scan!! and also for everything being as it should be, isnt it amazing looking at that little heartbeat?

right am knackered so off to bed - that is my social life scuppered for years to come now!!

Thanks for the kind welcome all. I'm heading off on a computer-free camping break tomorrow - but will pop back in in about a week. (Just wait, I'll have babies on the brain tomorrow at work and end up back again before I leave!)

x

Great news on your scan makingafamily, I too have a tomato plant that I've forgotten to water, I think I've rescued it in time though

Curly, (this is going to be long) I've been a sufferer of depression since I was a teenager (I'm 33 now), have been on various anti-depressants over the years and have needed three hospital stays Until last year I'd been medication free for five years, I'd wanted to have a break and see how I actually felt drug free. It wasn't easy but I had the support of my DH and we struggled on, I really didn't want to take meds anymore as I'd had a bad reaction to a couple of them (which was the reason for one of my hospital stays).

Last year and the end of the previous year was not a good time for me, things began to deteriorate as the year progressed. I was reluctant to go and see my GP as I new she would want me to start back on the meds again, which I was having difficulty coming to terms with. Perhaps I was in denial of my mental health (god I sound like a complete nutter) I suppose not being on any drugs I could pretend that I was 'normal'.

By September (of last year) I'd come to my own conclusion, that I am 'normal' and this is just an illness that requires medicating like lots of other illnesses do. I made an appointment to see my GP and felt very positive about starting the meds that I was prescribed. Citalopram is the name of the anti-depressant, 20mg to start then 40mg after two months. After the initial side effects wore off they began to really make a difference, I felt a lot more positive about my life and where it was going.

By February of this year I felt ready to start thinking about TTC, I'd been broody for a couple of years and it was something we were planning on doing when the time felt right. Discussed it with my GP who said I should come of off the meds first, so we made a plan to gradually ease off of the drugs over three months. I dropped my dose and after only a few days started to feel very bad again and decided to continue with the higher dose. Went back to see GP who said I could try another anti-depressant that was safe to take during pregnancy but I would need to stop taking if I breastfed (which is what I will want to do) I was reluctant to change to the suggested meds as I'd previously tried this drug and didn't feel they 'worked' for me.

I was in a bit of a dilemma, I desperately wanted to start a family but knew I was feeling so much better in myself, probably than I ever had whilst taking these meds (which I was being told I would need to stop if I became PG) So I started doing my own research, I googled and found some conflicting information to that that my GP had told me regarding the meds I'm on and TTC and breastfeeding (incidently one of the websites was an NHS online libray for medical practitioners!). I posted in the mental health section of mumsnet and got some interesting replies, women who had been on the meds I'm on and different ones throughout PG and breastfeeding and had gone on to have healthy happy babies.

I went back to see my GP armed with my research (I was very pleasant and polite) Explained what I had found out, she looked a little uncomfortable and said that every case was different, but it would be ok for me to stay on the anti-depressants I'm currently taking and TTC!!!! Completely contradicting what she had previously told me.

So here I am, after a couple of years of the time not being right, to contemplating not having children at all because I thought (or had been told) that I shouldn't whilst on these meds. I did feel a little angry for a while that the doctor didn't really know what she was talking about and that it was affecting one the most important decisions of my life. I'm not sure I will go back to see her again, I can get my meds on repeat for a while and it's a big practice, so I don't think it will be a problem if I ask to see another doctor.

I found the women on the mental health section of the forum so understanding and supportive, it can be a tricky illness to open up and discuss with people in RL, they helped me a lot I feel assured from what I've read and what others have experienced, that being on these meds during PG and breastfeeding is safe. I'm so pleased/relieved that I found out for myself rather than going on what the GP had told me.

I'm sorry this has been such a long post (I won't make a habit of it ) but I wanted to take the time to explain my situation clearly and fully. Well done if you got this far

Thought I'd just say that my username is a bit of a joke between my DH and I in reference to my mental health

Morning! Up stupidly early thanks to the sun streaming in, stuff to do for hols (too much thinking) and excitement about the TTC plans!

Thanks so much for your story Claire. While my situation involves physical problems, I have close experience of depression, with a family member having gone through a very tough time. It's great that you've got your head around the "being normal" thing and treat it like any other disease. I think your ability to talk (and laugh!) about it is very healthy, and your child(ren) will be very lucky to have parents who've made sure everything is right before conception.

I, too, have heard conflicting opinions about my Rheumatoid Arthritis meds. My consultant says it would not harm baby to accidentally get pregnant now (with meds) but that I should really come off them all. Funny considering that a) one drug is used in higher doses for abortions and b) I've seen plenty of material online show two of mine have been used safely in PG.

But, having been "drugged up" for 13 years, I'm going to give the natural way a go. If it's not working, I'll see what the docs can do, There is a risk I will be in a lot of pain if my joints flare up, which will make working/getting in shape difficult. However pregnancy puts many women with RA into remission - often with a massive flare up right after baby is born. So I'm going to wait and see with breastfeeding. If not being on drugs means I'm in too much pain to care for bubs, I'll BF for a couple of weeks then go back on the meds, for the sake of us both.

Again sorry for a long post - but i guess it helps to know where we all are coming from. I love the being able to vent here when I can't talk to people other than DH about it all.

I should add that I, too, have a tomato plant, currently with three green globes a-growing on the kitchen window ledge (next to two varieties of chilli pepper)!

Have a good day everyone! CC

Belated welcome from me Curly

And Claire, your story is inspiring to me. I have had some of the same issues and you're a lot stronger than I am!

Good morning,

Curly I can completely understand why you would want to be drug free for this next stage in your life, I struggled for months with the decision I came to (I know our situations are different but maybe we have been through some of the same thought processes). You sound very philosophical about the possibility that you may need to go back on the meds after baby is born, therefore, not being able to BF for very long. I do believe that a happy, comfortable and relaxed mummy is better for baby

To ad to my problems/issues I had a small lump removed from my right breast a few years back, it was benign, but it was position near to my areola/nipple and has left a small scar. I'm not sure if it will affect my breastfeeding capabilities in that breast or not, funnily enough my left breast is slightly smaller than the right, so I could do with some extra 'weight' in there

Your sentence: "I think your ability to talk (and laugh!) about it is very healthy, and your child(ren) will be very lucky to have parents who've made sure everything is right before conception." meant a lot to me, it has taken a long time to get to this point.

Have we all got tomato plants on this thread? I also have a pepper plant (bell not chilli), that was given to me recently b a neighbour

All the best for your holiday, hope you have a great time.

Jas, wow, I've never been described as inspiring before, thankyou. I hope my story can be of some help to you with whatever your own situation is. As Curly said this is a great place to be able to vent and talk openly to people about things you may find difficult in RL. I'm sure you are a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for

Hi,

Just about to rush out but wanted to pop on to say congrats to MAF on your scan!!!!!
My first scan was at 6+5 too and my baby was 9.5mm so yours is a tiny bit bigger!! Yay!!!

Welcome to new people and happy TTC.

I am about to eat a huuuuge meal, I am STARVING.

Happy weekends xxxx

WOW I am off line for a few days and so much happens on here!!!! Welcome newbies. Congrats MAF and DAWN and SUMMER your babies are both soooooo cute!!!

As soon as I have a bit of time I will try to upload some photos of Chloe. She had her first Jabs on Thursday and she was such a good girl. I am leaving her for the first time today, my mum is going to babysit and me and DP are off to the cinema (A day time date if you will) I am looking forward to it on the 1 hand but really nervous on the other - I have separation anxiety already oh dear - anyway off to have a shower - speak again soon xxxxxxxx

Thankyou for the welcome, eth37 and heverhony1 heverhoney1 congratulations on your little girl Chloe, it's such a pretty name. It's great that you have your Mum around so that you and DP can have some 'us time' together. I'm sure you know Chloe will be absolutely fine with your Mum, but I can understand it will be difficult for you to leave her for the first time too! Let us know how it goes and enjoy the film

I'm still symptom spotting here, I have a dull ache like AF pains, excess saliva and my breasts feel tender (but that could be because I'm poking at then every hour to see if there are any changes!! )

Thought I'd add that I'm also experiencing really vivid dreams, I do get them from time to time but these are every night. I am sleeping well though and once I'm awake I want to get up and get into action. Not sure if this counts as a possible PG symptom, but it's unusual for me.

Afternoon ladies.

ThankQ again for th welcomes.

eth: Glad your scan went well.

Still symptom spotting here too.
Ok so, so far we have...

• Nausea and queasiness when i think about food and when i go to get any and after eating (well apart from Chinese food that is all that seems appatising atm).
• Light headed.
• Constipated / gassy.
• Fequent urination (well more than normal).
• In some way i just feel pregnant.
• My breats seem larger, and are more sensitive.
• Irritability when have nothing to do.
• Bloating.
• Dry throat, and Exess saliva in mouth, not sure how that works but.
• Stuffy nose.

But like i said before most of them could be imagined.

ITMG
x

Ooh, ITMG we have some similar symptoms, when are you thinking of testing?

And congratulations to eth37 on your scan, I must of missed that part of your post , maybe I've got early PG mush for brains

claire jas and curly thank you for sharing your experiences, it is good to open up somewhere outside of RL, as you say we know where you are coming from if you have 'blip days' and will also celebrate even more with you when you achieve your dream!

by the way claire i work in the medical industry (not a Dr but a kind of regulator) and you are well within your rights to change doctor if you are dissatisfied with her advice, i doubt it is worthwhile raising any grievance unless you want to raise this with the practise, but you can always ask not to see this Dr and the practise have to honour that. If you want any more advice on this then feel free to ask.

hever well done on your first 'outing' my mum and dad are coming up next week and have offered to babysit if we want them to - to be honest we are too knackered even for a pint in the local! but it is nice of her to offer. enjoy your film

good luck to the 2WW testers - i shall be dipping in and out to check on you

hi claire.

What symptoms do you have?

I am planning on testing on the 5th July. AF is due tomorrow.
The only thing that seems to be subdueing the nausea so far is eating.

Hever I hope your cinema trip went well and you were able to relax enough to enjoy it.

InTheMidnghtGarden that sounds positive!! When can you test??

No, not had a scan over here unfortunately. Got another 2 weeks to wait until my 20 week scan as they do it at 22 weeks here, boo. Maybe that I mentioned to MAF that I had an early scan at 6+5 though?

Am having a non-alcoholic beer and watching the tennis! What an exciting Saturday night!

Hope everyone's enjoying their weekends x

Evening all,

summerbird thankyou for that, I don't want to make a complaint, I just don't think I want to see her again, particularly through PG . The practice is pretty large with numerous doctors, I'll only need to ask for an appointment with a specific DR. I've asked a couple of female neighbours (whom I'm good friends with) who they see, so I'll have an idea of who to go for

Oh eth37 not only did I miss it first time round, the second time I totally misread your post

ITMG my period is due on the 2nd July, If AF doesn't make an appearance I was thinking of testing on the 6th July, just in case my cycle is a longer one.

My symptoms to date are:

Sore/tingly nipples
Heavy/ tender boobs
Excess saliva
Odd taste in mouth
AF type pains, of varying degrees
Vivid dreams
Slightly nauseous
One I've only just noticed - I've completely gone off chocolate

On some days I've convinced myself I'm PG, on others I'm not so sure, I'm scared of getting my hopes up I think

Well I still don't have a single symptom so I'm pretty sure I'm not PG this month. AF due on the 5th so I should know by then.

I think from next month I'll start temping as we DTD pretty regularly through the first two weeks, so it'll be interesting to see if I actually am ovulating at all after being on the pill for so long.

Good luck to all of you with your symptoms though! Fingers crossed for this week.

Know the feeling Ozzie - pretty sure anything I'm feeling symptom-wise is just the early onset of AF this time! (why do they both have to have the same symptoms? Couldn't one of the early signs of pregnancy be that your big toe goes turquoise or something?!)

Good luck to all other TTCers this month, I am thinking happy thoughts for you

Jas ..."big toe goes turquoise"... I'd probably convince myself my toe was starting to go a shade of blue, when it clearly wasn't.

Ozzie and Jas I've read so many threads where women didn't have any symptoms at all and found out they were PG, together with symptoms galore and no PG - you just never know until you do or don't get a visit from AF sometimes

I'm still hopeful for this month, AF would be due on Thursday, I was going to wait until after the weekend to test if she hasn't made an appearance first. I'll buy a test in the week though and see how strong my resolve is

Turquoise toe would be very handy indeed!

Oo, exciting that you can test on Thursday, will keep everything crossed that AF doesn't pay you a visit.

I keep trying to convince myself that it would be better if I got pregnant not this month as it would mean I would be due in March when it's often in the 40 degrees here!

Yeah Ozzie I keep coming up with reasons why it wouldn't be so good to of conceived this month! I think it's a safety mechanism to avoid disappointment!

What temp is it over there now? It's 30 degrees here, we seem to be having a summer this year!

It's a chilly 16 here today, it sounds lovely over there! My parents keep sending photos of their garden and it looks lovely in the sunshine.

30 degrees is around my ideal temp actually - Adelaide is nice as it doesn't really get humid in the summer so it can get a lot hotter before you start to wilt. But when it hit 46 for 10 days last year I was getting a bit desperate for a cool breeze I must say.

I am even more sure I am not PG now, as for the first time in about 15 years I have got a couple of spots! And my skin feels quite greasy as well, which I think can only mean that AF is going to make her appearance soon.

46 degrees Night-time here now and it's about 14 degrees.

30 is a little too hot for me really, I'm fair skinned with freckles so the sun is not a friend of mine. Early 20's is my ideal and I'm usually found under the nearest parasol, still covered head to toe in factor 30!

Yes is does tend to get humid here once it gets over say 26 degrees, I think that's the killer for most people, that and no air conditioning.

Sorry to hear you are more sure of AF making an appearance, of course spots and greasy skin could be a PG symptom

I'm very fair too - in a way this is really handy as no one ever expects me to get a tan!

And yes, pretty much everywhere is air conditioned.

I actually had no idea that spots could be a PG symptom....will continue keeping my fingers crossed then. I thought spots were a sure fire AF symptom - but again, as I"ve been on the pill so long I can't remember as the last time I had normal periods I was 16 and naturally a bit spotty....