FSH 9.1 and panicking can anyone help?

[Wearytree]

So I'm lying here awake and panicking. I'm soon to be 38, ttc cycle 6, one early mc cycle 2 and had cycle day 4 LH and FSH bloods done last week.

I got the results today, I can't remember the LH as so fixated on an FSH of 9.1 ... I googled it and nothing but horrendous things came up.

I'm terrified that this indicates I've got low ovarian reserve and that the mc was because of low quality eggs. It seems that this is the one thing that can't really be 'fixed'.

My GP wants to repeat the test but on day 2 next cycle and do oestrogen as well. She said she'd prefer to see 4, 5 or 6 so 9 seems so high.

Can anyone help me feel less awful about this? My heart is racing and I feel so so panicky. We want a baby so much x

Thanks @Si1ver that might be a good option. It is probably best not so shy away from knowing all the facts ASAP so we aren't dragging our heels or wasting time. Although it sounds like fsh and Amh don't necessarily tally up.
Congratulations on your pregnancy too!

@Ilikeviognier so having potentially low egg supply doesn't make a difference when trying naturally? I'm worried that there won't be enough eggs or that they are low quality because of the previous mc. We got pregnant so quickly the second cycle that I was lulled in to a false sense of security I think. Maybe the eggs are no good.
I'm torn between thinking I want to know and then that I don't because if it can happen naturally anyway, I'll just be stressed out, which might stop it from happening!

Ps @LeeMiller again, that does give me hope thank you so much!

Thank you @Wearytree! X

I had incredibly erratic fsh levels. They would go up and down from one month to the next. Try to get your bloods done at least four months in a row (can you pay privately if gp won’t agree to this?) as this will give you a truer picture.

Try not to worry (I know easier said than done). We had ivf twice when I was 35 - on the first cycle I produced just 2 follicles and the second cycle I only produced one so the whole treatment was abandoned. We were sent away (devastated) as consultant said extremely unlikely I would ever conceive (with my shit ovaries). One year later I fell pregnant naturally. I swear acupuncture worked - it made my cycle regular for the first time in years.

There is always hope. Hang in there!

Also - Marilyn Glenville ‘natural solutions to infertility’ book. I got the supplements she recommends from Holland & Barrett and took these for about 6 months - prior to and during acupuncture.

@BinkyBuntyFintyCunty your username is great!
Thank you for the reassurance, that must have been so tough. My GP seems very understanding so will see what the next one says I guess and go from there.
What is acupuncture like?! I have pretty regular cycles so would be more for relaxation.

Although if I have ovulated its earlier than usual on cycle day 11 ish... does anyone know if this is still ok?

Acupuncture (in my experience) was great. It helped reduce stress and, as I said, gave me a more regular cycle than I’d had in years. I didn’t find it painful or uncomfortable.

If you are considering it, make sure you find a practitioner who is registered with the British acupuncture council. Prior to finding my (miracle worker!) practitioner, I went to one of those Chinese high st shops and was sold bags of expensive foul tasting ‘herbs’ that they insisted were essential for me to conceive. This practitioner also only used one or two needles per treatment. When we moved house and I changed to a different practitioner, she told me that these type of shops often only use a minimal amount of needles to save money.

With the second practitioner my periods became regular after 2 months (I went every one or two weeks).

I do understand how easy it is to panic when you get ‘negative news’ like a high fsh. You can easily start to become obsessed with bloody hormones. Try to relax - worrying changes nothing, but can affect your hormones.

We came away from our second failed ivf certain that we would never be parents. A year later, aged 36, I had our naturally conceived ‘never going to happen’ baby. Hopefully, my story of ‘no hope’ will show you that there is always hope. I wish you all the luck in the world!

Ps. ACUPUNCTURE!
Pps. TRY NOT TO WORRY!

OP

Read this;

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.vox.com/platform/amp/science-and-health/2017/10/11/16453714/ovarian-reserve-test-science-results-fertility

It suggests there is only a correlation between ivf pregnancies and low amh- not natural conception.

....and there is no test for egg quality. Only egg numbers, and it doesn’t mean they are all rubbish if there aren’t many, just that you were born with less than someone else.

@BinkyBuntyFintyCunty haha thank you! I've done better at not worrying today. It's still in the back of my mind, but I'm a bit calmer.

I'm going to check out acupuncture in my area this weekend. Do you just have it up to ovulation or afterwards?

@Ilikeviognier that's a really good read, thank you so much for sending.

I just need to relax I know... just want it to happen and the GP did sound a bit concerned.

It only takes one egg I guess?!

Ladies, do any of you obsess about the exact right time to DTD? I knew I'd ovulate yesterday as positive OPK Wednesday evening but knew DH away for work last night so we DTD Monday night, Wednesday morning and Thursday morning. I'm waiting for him to hurry up and get back now so I can jump on him again...

Thing is, I got really good EWCM (sorry TMI) this morning and tonight?! So surely that's too late for it to be any good helping the sperms swim up there?!

Now I'm worrying that because we didn't DTD last night we've missed the best time!

I had acupuncture throughout the month - either weekly or two weekly.

Hi ladies, anyone around?
So my second bloods for FSH this cycle have come back. Day three, so a day earlier than last time and now gone up to 9.7

I really thought they would be lower as it was a day earlier, I can't believe it's higher. I'm totally gutted- does this mean I'll never be able to have my own baby? That's how I feel.

I'm waiting for the doctor to call me back to discuss but am sitting here actually shaking.

No it doesn’t mean you won’t have your own baby OP.

Like I said- mine was 12- so higher than yours- and I still got pregnant 3 times.

Quality is more important than quantity of eggs. And fsh fluctuates from month to month.

Also bear in mind that GPs are pretty rubbish with interpreting this stuff. Mine didn’t have a clue.

I'm so sorry you're going through this. What did your gp say? Mine was pretty good (FSH of 17.9 at age 32) and referred me straight to the fertility clinic.

It absolutely doesn't mean that you can't have children with your own eggs, but it does probably mean it's going to be a little more difficult, so better to crack on with things.

The NHS in my area fund own egg IVF if your FSH is lower than 12 - which yours is. We were well over so had the choice of laying privately for own egg IVF (and were given a 5% chance of it working) or the NHS would fund a donor egg cycle (70% chance of it working). I'm currently in my TWW of donor egg cycle.

On the plus side (or this is how I thought) at least you know what's wrong with you, and what can be done in order for you to have a baby... if that makes sense? Sorry if that sounds too harsh, but I just felt I'd rather know what the issue was than have it unexplained.

I know how awful it is to receive this news though, and am happy to chat /answer any questions x

www.gponline.com/clinical-review-subfertility-women/obstetrics/assisted-conception/article/836742

The good news is that at >9.5 you meet the criteria for early referral to fertility clinic (see link above - your previous reading left you just shy of that!)

My fsh was 11.8 age 31 - GP coded as normal. I sent them the above article and they referred me straight away (my area is if fsh >12 then they won't find ivf - didn't repeat as could only get worse - consultant said they always take your highest reading)

Started ICSI 2 months later (MFI too) - didn't work but good news was got looooads of eggs - 20+ (so fsh isn't everything). Self funded cycle no 2 (again lots of eggs) and currently 35/40.

Don't freak out just on fsh - you need AMH and AFC. But to be honest the best test of ovarian reserve is a round if IVF- no one thought I'd get the numbers I did! (Age is a big factor)

Do use the fsh to get a referral done ASAP though xx

Thank you so much for your replies ladies, I might well message for questions, thank you for the offer... does mumsnet do DMs??

The doctor said 'I'm not overly worried about you as your day 21 progesterone was so good', I'm definitely ovulating and that 9.7 isn't dreadful at all - it might just be because I'm over 35 and that's my normal. She also said that the fact we got pregnant so quickly and I have regular periods is all positive.

She recommended next step is DH is getting sperm tested and that we should put that into action this month.

Luckily my GP is a fertility specialist too so I do trust her... I'm just not sure how worried I should be about 9.7 as some articles suggest anything under 10 is ok?

I really need to try and relax a bit don't I? I think she would refer me for the AMH etc test- I'm just scared now.

Mine was 12, I'm 39. I'm waiting for my referral to the fertility clinic, they don't have the fsh cutoff in my area I think they go by AMH instead, and mine is 10 so okay for my age. The specialist said FSH is the least reliable indicator of reserve and to crack on with a round of ivf and see what happens.

Thank you @79andnotout that does make me feel better. How long have you been trying for, if you don't mind me asking? I'm trying to work out if I'm jumping the gun thinking about Ivf 4 months after our m/c -only been trying 6. DH thinks I am x

I agree with your dh. I'd give it another 6 months, if I were you! But it could easily take that long jumping through nhs hoops. Or if his result isn't good, I'd consider jumping straight in...

@Wearytree - about 18 months now but I travel a lot for work and so only hit fertile week about two thirds of the time. I'd definitely wait a bit longer since you've been pregnant before.

There's no rounds of IVF on the NHS in our area, so it would all be private, I'm guessing that would be quicker.

It's good to hear that FSH isn't always the best indicator of egg reserve. I think waiting another six months might be a good plan to have, providing DH's sperm analysis is ok.

I just worry that if there aren't that many eggs left, another six months will make it less likely for IVF to work. But my stressing is definitely wearing DH down; we've only been married 7 months and he said today that we aren't having any fun because of the pressure of ttc 🙁 he's right as well.

Oh why do some people get it so easy? What is my fsh will just keep going up and up each month?! So many negative thoughts swirling around.