If i'm ovulating why am i not getting pregnant ?

[erilou38]

Been trying to conceive for 15. Already have children from a previous relationship whom i conceived in the first month of trying. My youngest is 7. I had her when i was 31 and conceived her within a few days of coming off the mini-pill. In those days i was super fertile it seemed...friends used to joke at how easily i got pregnant. Not so easy now though sadly. I'm 38 and terrified that age has caught up with me. Then there are women who conceive easily well into their 40s. I always assumed i was one of them...how wrong i was. My husband has no kids of his own so i am frantic to give him a child. Iv'e had lots of blood tests over the past year and on one occasion my FSH was elevated to a huge 20 on cycle day 3! This is very worrying as it indicates low egg supply. My most recent FSH was 11.2 which the infertility nurse said was 'reasonable'. She said there is no reason why i shouldn't be able to get pregnant, it may just take longer due to fluctuating hormones. Anyway, iv'e has several day 21 blood tests which have always shown that i am not ovulating as the progesterone level has been low. Nobody thought to repeat a day 28 test until a couple of weeks ago when one of the lady doctors at my surgery suggested it. I thought, as usual that it would show no ovulation but when i phoned for the results 3 days ago, to my surprise i had ovulated this cycle! My progesterone was at a good level. That gave me a small glimmer of hope. I'm now on day 33 of my cycle and still no period. As i must have ovulated late i expect it will arrive sometime next week. I was pleased to know that i am ovulating - why then am i not conceiving, after being so fertile in the past ? I obviously still have eggs in my ovaries but why are they not fertilising ? Are there too few, or maybe they are of a poor quality ? I skould be getting prescribed Clomid at my next clinic appointment in 2 weeks time but will Clomid help me get pregnant if i am ovulating anyway ? I'm getting desperate, there is no way i could ever afford IVF and as i already have children the NHS won't let me have IVF treatment. I just don't get it - how can a previously, highly fertile woman just loose the ability to fall pregnant in just a few short years. It's just so depressing thinking that my fertile years are most likely well and truly behind me.

[Emma757]

I had a miscarriage a year ago been trying again since I have 34-40 day cycles more 34 cycles. I was told I was not ovulating so been getting 21 day bloods done and eventually last week I had an ovulation if 30 which is high according to the fertility clinic I’m not on any treatment yet and I’m 11dpo is this too early to test I feel pregnant or it could be my body playing tricks on me xx

[Crissysquirrel]

Hi, just wondering Bc I have no one to ask or talk to. It’s probably a dumb question but how do I know if I’m ovulating or not? I used an ovulation test and it worked but still no pregnancy and I’m very young?

[Andcake]

AMH would just confirm diagnosis - so yes probably not useful. I found afc useful as it did show i still had egg - but not many of them - just seeing them on screen gave me hope. As although my afc was low 4 - even a dr at the lister who saw a good follie growing just said go home and dtd. as having lots is only really important for ivf. The only problem is the worst quality are left til last so you need to work on them to find your 'one good egg'.

[Mandy21]

I'm not sure the AMH result is particularly helpful if you know that you already have a low egg reserve. As far as I know (have a close family member going through infertility treatment at the mo), it is used by clinics to determine whether you'll respond to the drugs used to increase your egg production during IVF (i.e. if your AMH score is 5, you'll probably produce around 5 eggs after you've had the drugs at the start of IVF, if your score is 1, you'll get 1 etc). I also think if you have a score lower than 5, some clinics won't recommend IVF.

So if IVF isn't an option, I'm not sure knowing your AMH level is going to help.

[erilou38]

Thank you Andcake, i shall check those out.

[erilou38]

I would love to get an AMH done but am told they are around £180 but i guess if i'm desperate enough then i should just go ahead and do it. I definately can't afford IVF in the UK, possibly abroad maybe.

[Chocolatemolehill]

Definitely try to have an AMH test done - it will give you a better picture as to your ovarian reserve.
If you can't afford IVF in the UK (the prices are ridiculous!) could you have it abroad? I had mine in Poland (own eggs) and my friend in the Czech Republic (donor eggs). The prices are about five times lower and the success rates really good (e.g. in my clinic 50%, compared with the UK national average of 30%)
Good luck!

[Andcake]

thats good - you've probably found all of these then but just incase
well as I know you are posting q about it there is alot of good info here
highfshinfo.com/

and although this is very american this forum is useful
www.network54.com/Forum/209394/

as everyone on it has a similar issue whereas on mumsnet its probably only a few. Fertility friends also have a good forum just for people with this condition.
www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?board=112.0

[erilou38]

That's really good that you conceived naturally by just taking supplements and without fertility medications. Sorry to hear about your miscarriages, those must have been very painful for you. It's lovely that you got there in the end though. I don't get much ewcm at all, haven't done in ages, but i think i may have seen some some this cycle which must have been when i ovulated. Yes, i think i did look at that link, thank you. At the moment i'm addicted to reading anything on low ovarian reserve or menopause! x

[Andcake]

Hi

• I think I told you my whole story on a menopause thread when you kindly answered a q I posted. Fsh of 11.2 at 37 conceived after loads of supplements at 39. I had 2 mc on route. Fsh is not alway accurate I would get amh or afc done to. Afc at least convinced me that I had one egg per cycle even if my cycles were wonky I used my ewcm to predict ov and would jump on dp as soon as I saw any

I think on that post I sent you a link to the Wikipedia page on low ovarian reserve which is a good starting point - sorry can't link again as on phone now.

[erilou38]

That's great! Andcake, how old were you were you when you had your little bundle ?

[Andcake]

own eggs - here dhea, b complex, zinc , co enzyme q10, yoga and lots of sex did the trick for me to finally get my take home baby!

i did try acupuncture at one point it wasn't for me! but worth a shot - i say try everything you can then at least you can't say you didn't try your best.

[erilou38]

Iv'e heard a lot of positive things about acupuncture. I'm seriously considering giving ita try.

[SomeDizzyWhore1804]

I tried for 8 months with no luck but the month I conceived I was having acupuncture and using Chinese herbs. Worth a trip to the local Chinese health centre?

[erilou38]

Did you use a donor egg ? Last year i had a massive FSH of 20! My doctor actually advised me to go on HRT! Since then my FSH has been lower. But i read an article that said your fertility is as good as your highest FSH. Pretty much a no-go foe me i think!! Maybe i have been in denial for the past year. Obviously i do have some eggs left as i ovulated this cycle. That gave me some hope. I'm now on cycle day 35 and still no sign of a period though.

[Andcake]

The FSH of over 11 indicates low ovarian reserve - its hard but it is possible - I did it - but I know I am very very lucky. I think it just takes a bit of effort and lifestyle changes. Its worth a go if you are getting down a bit. I had a few mc on the way but I felt it was worth trying as long as I was still having periods.
As i was refused own egg ivf I felt i had to do whatever i could. and it did work - if i was you I would try a few things just so you know you gave it a go. It also helped me not get really depressed.
I just felt I had to keep trying as I had no children which i found devastating.

[erilou38]

I really do suspect that i have low ovarian reserve and the eggs i do have are of a poor quality. Perhaps that explains why i am ovulating late in my cycle. I'm 39 in 4 months time so i have to be realistic and accept that it will most likely never happen again.

[Andcake]

Egg quality is another factor - and age and high fsh often means the eggs are not of a great quality. I think i wrote you on another board about dhea, zinc, co enzyme and other supplements which can help - good luck

also agree with the lots of sex thing

[erilou38]

Yeah Mandy21 i think i will definately have to start charting every morning. This 'trying' business seems like such hard work! It's all new to me as i never had to 'try' before, it just happened. I realise now how lucky i was and i just took it for granted before.

[erilou38]

Yes, that's why i don't use OPKs anymore, since i found out i have ovarian cysts. Not sure if i'm polycystic but 2 or 3 cysts were picked up on a scan a few months ago. The infertility nurse did say that the cysts were probably causing my irregular cycles and at the time i had the cysts my estradiol level was elevated.

[FrankelInFoal]

I ought to add that my fertility nurse said that OPKs are useless if you have Polycystic ovaries - the hormone levels are too disrupted to give you an accurate reading.

[Mandy21]

I think if you're desperate as you say, you need to do something to be more accurate with your timings. I also found OPKs useless but I did chart, it becomes second nature, you do it as soon as you ooen your eyes, takes seconds.

[erilou38]

I always keep a track of my cycles and have used OPKs. I have found these useless though. I never have much cervical mucus at all, dry most of the month. Up until 2 years ago i always used to get tons of fertile cervical mucus for about 5 days at ovulation time. It literally used to drip out of me, (sorry too much info)! I haven't taken my temperature every morning as it seems like too much faffing around and i would forget to do it most days what with having to get up at 6am for the school run.