Spotting pre-AF and getting pg

[highlove]

hello, hoping to hear positive stories from some of you pg ladies..

Over on the conception board we have a thread for people who have spotting before their period, anywhere between 2 and 7 days. We're generally all a bit concerned about it and whether it's stopping us conceiving, and some of us are taking various steps to try and manage it - acupuncture, progesterone creams, etc. Some of us are finding that GPs or fertility clinics aren't too bothered by or interested in it but as some of us have been TTC for a while (for me it's a year) without other obvious problems, you do wonder.

Would be really good to hear from people who had this but had no probs conceiving or who had this but got to the bottom of what caused it.

Thanks in advance..

Hi there. Yes, I had this for years pretty badly. As you mention above, gynaes and later a fertility consultant were not too bothered about it, but it always worried me enormously. My issue wasn't getting pregnant but staying pregnant - a chemical pregnancy and then two early miscarriages in about 18 months.

Before I got pg with this little one (I'm now 29 weeks) I saw an accupuncturist specialising in fertility that all but stopped the spotting - it was quite amazing. She concentrated on certain points to prevent bleeding and build up a good uterine lining. The month I conceived this one I was also taking high-dose vitamin B (pyroxine) which is supposed to help with implantation - it actually made me spot again for about five days and I was really upset. However the spotting obviously didn't stop me conceiving!

When I was TTC I also posted about spotting and found stories from lots of people who'd conceived without any problem at all. In my case I had a lot of investigations and no cause was ever found, and I was told repeatedly it was no issue for conception.

So, the long and the short of it is that it certainly doesn't have to mean there's anything wrong. My strong advice if you've been trying for a long while is to give the Clear Blue Fertility monitor a go. The spotting can confuse you about when your period actually starts, making it hard to aim for those mid-cycle days (or your ovulation could be a different time than you think). It worked for me a serveral other friends who were long term TTC.

Hope that helps and all the best of luck!

Yes I've always had that. Never went to the GP about it despite DH worrying and saying I should do so. Conceived as soon as I started trying, now 19 weeks

This is very reassuring thanks for these stories!!

hot pink you sounds like me, are you in london and if so would you recommend your accuouncture lady?

Farfalla - yes I would. I will PM you the details.

you are star, thanks!

Thanks both, you give me a bit of hope!

hotpink please would you also send me the name of your acupuncturist? Thanks..

highlove I have PMed you

Thanks HP best of luck with rest of the pregnancy.

Would love to gear from any other ladies who had this too..

Hi :)
i had spotting before af since coming off the pill, and lots of spotting, for days, making my luteal really short. Had rapidly managed to convince myself i had some terrible low progesterone/thyroid type thing (thanks doctor google) even went to the gp.

Bam preggo in 3 months. Absolutely nothing wrong but so easy to convince yourself! And apparantly conceiving on day 25 of a normally 31 day cycle. I would say just keep humping fairly regularly and taking folic acid, the rest will follow. spotting or no spotting.
good luck xx

Thanks meconium that's good to hear. Did you spot the cycle you got pg?

Yes I had it since a couple of months after i came off the pill (Noriday). The two cycles before i got pregnant it was on and off for 5 days, then 6 days before started properly. I had some cramping with it too. Also that second month when my period did start properly it was really heavy and only lasted for a day, which is really unusual for me. We had just started trying the previous month so I went to GP about CD4 and she was totally not concerned. I was a bit annoyed with her at the time but that turned out to be the cycle i got pg so I suppose she was right! Am 20 weeks now.

I think I remember having spotting like that when I was younger before I went on the pill too, also used to get horribly painful periods so half thought it could be endometriosis or something. Still don't know what that was all about but didn't get in the way of my bfp anyway thankfully. Good luck!

Thanks Sioda, good luck with the rest of your pregnancy..

Bump...would love to hear anyone else's experience.

Hi, yes, also had pre-AF spotting for between 3 and 5 days each month and problems getting preggers with DC no 2 - it took 16 months and one early preg loss before we managed it. Gynaes also said it was irrelevant but I didn't have spotting before my 1st child and had no problem conceiving then. I was also still bf DD (who was 3) when TTC though, and only have one operational fallopian tube due to a previous ectopic pregnancy, so this may not have helped! I did stop bf but it was 6 months or so from then until I got preg.

Anyway, what seemed to help was accupuncture from a fertility specialist (Zita West has an accredited network countrywide), which I had for about 6 months, and particularly Vit B complex supplements. The 2nd month of taking them the spotting was down to 2 days and the 3rd month I got BFP with only the tiniest bit of spotting. DS is now 6 months .

Good luck - it is hard to keep positive I know, but for most of us it does happen eventually!

I had spotting about 7 days before AF was due. GP said it was ovulation related but I was never convinced. My hormones were a bit off too & they told be I was peri-menopausal at 32

Turns out I had coeliac disease & going gluten free resolved the spotting & corrected my hormones. Went on to conceive no probs.

This is all really interesting, thanks ladies. I'm just coming to the end of a cycle and the spotting started yesterday so guess AF on the way. Bit gutted because we got in loads of SWI over the Christmas break and had got my hopes up - been trying 12 months now so should know better.. Anyway, thanks for giving me a bit more hope - sometimes feels like it won't ever happen so positive stories mean a lot..

Hi Highlove! can you PM me that recommended acupuncturist too? Xx

Done!