What do you believe gave you a BFP?

[HopeForARainbow]

I don't know why I am writing this; hoping for some miracle maybe.

I am 36, DH 37. We have been TTC for over 7 years now. I have had two natural MCs, 1 failed IVF last year, and one IVF resulting in MC this year. The MC took 2 months to resolve which has messed up my cycles. Hopefully, it comes back to normal soon.

All my coagulation tests came back within range. AMH was 17 when measured last year. On the lower side for my age but not too bad (that's what the doc said). FSH, LH, progesterone all come back as normal. Waiting for results for karyotyping for us. Awaiting a form for some more tests.

When my GP sent me to a fertility clinic they put me straight on IVF. The gynaec there said that as I have been pregnant before they don't think anything else will help like clomid or HSG or Hysteroscopy etc.

I have hypothyroid but i take thyroid medication every morning. So it's in control. I take pre-natals and eat good (at least as much as i can). I have reduced caffeine to 1-2 cups of tea (black) a day and 1 decaff. Have coffee only once in a while. Alcohol once in a while and don't smoke. I am a vegetarian.

I know so many of you out here have been through a similar or worse journey than mine. So I wanted to see if there's anything I can do to help me get pregnant or anything you recommend to prepare for my next IVF.

Please share your story to give me some hope.

If you've got hypothyroid issues I can recommend looking up Marni Wasserman and The Ultimate Health Podcast (available on Spotify) she has a whole series about her hypothyroidism and getting pregnant with it as an older mother. There's lots of info in there which may be the missing link to help you a bit ♥️ xxx

Also, I've got autoimmunity issues (I have MS) and struggled to conceive for years at your age with no explanation (and suffered a MMC when I first fell pregnant) I took some herbal supplements and followed some of the advice marni gave (all easily and cheaply available things on amazon) and I fell pregnant within 2 months and am now 28 weeks. Agnus castus was the main one I think helped me. Ironically it made my regulary light ish period go a bit bonkers and very heavy for 2 cycles but after that second cycle I fell pregnant. I felt different hormonally too - bit hard to describe properly sorry. xx

@HopeForARainbow hello, i was taking 300mg daily of coq10 purchased from amazon for about 3 months. I was taking 1000 units daily (not sure how to find the symbol on the bottle so just referring to units) liquid vitamin D from holland and barretts and reduced to 25 unit tablets about 5 weeks ago. Midwife informed me that pregncare is a maintenance dose, so i suppose if your vit D levels are ok then that is fine. I was mindful that due to Covid i wasnt really getting much sun light and had been low in vitamin D previously so opted for higher dose. Midwife recommended that i reduced dose to ensure that i didnt have toxic levels in system when pregnant, but she did also say that she read that you can take up to 4000 daily.... just being cautious i reduced. But will request a blood test to check vit D levels at my next appointment.
When i had my first consultation with the fertility clinic they recommend taking vit D and Coq10.

@Teakind - Who prescribed antibiotics for your DH? Was it your GP or private clinic?

@beckyyl - Did you take DHA by yourself or someone prescribed you?

@Raspberry681 - Did you drink pom juice before or after ovulation?

@SantoPalo - Thanks so much. How many weeks pregnant are you? Really stupid question but do you remember how many cups of decaf tea you had during the day?

@SpacePug - I have never tested for testosterone. So don't know if mine is high or low.
Re castor oil packs - i actually did them this cycle. Hopefully, they help :)

@littlekipling - Thanks for the recommendation. Will look it up. Do you remember the herbal supplements you took? I have angus cactus on my list of things to research but someone said don't take it if periods are regular..

@HopeForARainbow i am 16 + 4. I was drinking rougly 2 cups a day.

@HopeForARainbow it was a private urologist who ran the test and prescribed the antibiotics. There can be numerous causes for high DNA fragmentation so it requires a specialist.

Are you based near London? If so, I highly recommend the urologist we went to and will pass on his details.

I lost weight. 5 years trying. Lost 10% of my bodyweight and boom pregnant. I was fat to start with though..

We made the decision to stop.

After about 10 years, multiple miscarriages and reaching over 40, we decided to stop, give up.
I got the pill.
My period didn’t arrive to start taking the pill. Turns out I was pregnant. Very successfully pregnant resulting in our child.
Weird, completely bizarre. But there you go.

[quote HopeForARainbow]@Teakind - Who prescribed antibiotics for your DH? Was it your GP or private clinic?

@beckyyl - Did you take DHA by yourself or someone prescribed you?

@Raspberry681 - Did you drink pom juice before or after ovulation?

@SantoPalo - Thanks so much. How many weeks pregnant are you? Really stupid question but do you remember how many cups of decaf tea you had during the day?

@SpacePug - I have never tested for testosterone. So don't know if mine is high or low.
Re castor oil packs - i actually did them this cycle. Hopefully, they help :)

@littlekipling - Thanks for the recommendation. Will look it up. Do you remember the herbal supplements you took? I have angus cactus on my list of things to research but someone said don't take it if periods are regular..[/quote]
I read and followed everything on this post - went from no ovulation for 6 months to ovulating and falling pregnant immediately www.luisazissman.co.uk/?p=647

Xx

@HopeForARainbow I'm not sure if my last post tagged you in my reply - I'm still quite new to this app x

Obviously I don't know if it was these things or not. but I tried for about 9 months when ttc the first time and on the final month was the month I used preeseed and had been taking the ttc vitamins and dh started taking the mens version.
I also got dh to start working out more as I'd read the higher the testosterone the stronger the sperm.
This time we conceived in the 2nd month and I again used preeseed and took the pregnacare ttc vitamins again.
We also had sex every other day from the say my period ended for about 2 weeks both times we conceived.

Oh yes and I used the digital ovulation kit.

For me I believe it was changing my diet from being high in sugar and dairy to being one full of good fats and far more vegetables

I started eating avocados, figs, and ginger with everything

I hate myself for writing this - but giving up.

We had my LG via IVF and I was determined not to go through it again. I believed we’d conceive naturally once my body had ‘learned’ what to do.

It didn’t. By the start of lockdown this year we had been trying unsuccessfully for 3 years. I resigned myself to only having one child; got a new job, spent a lot of our savings, moved house, booked a huge trip for the three of us.

6 weeks in to lockdown and boom. The nausea started. I refused to POAS as I was done with the negatives (must have had about 30 in the past).

Reader, it was positive. Due in two weeks time.

Note; at that point in lockdown I was exercising every day; but also enjoying far too much wine and carbs! I’d even started smoking again.

Give up isn’t my advice; and neither is relax. But there’s absolutely something in taking your mind off it. Distracting the mind with something...anything else.

Finally; I hope with all my heart you get the baby you yearn for. Take care and good luck!

@Teakind - I live in South East..so yes, based near London. Please pass me the private urologist's details. Will get DH's test done after national lockdown is over

@SantoPalo - Wow. Must be exciting & probably tiring too :)

@Pickypolly - Wow... so lucky :) So may have said they conceived as soon as they gave up

@beckyyl - Thanks for sharing the post. Will give it a read now

@MisiSam - We are doing everything you have said here. Except the working out part. DH hasn't been working for 2-3 months now. Also winter & gym closing haven't helped. But will push him to start again

@glasshalfsomething - wow so happy for you :) You are due in two weeks and you found time to write this post for me. I really really appreicate it. Good luck with delivery and everything after that :-*

@Pickypolly - Sorry, i meant so many have said this.

Conceived third IVF after 2.5 years ttc.

Do you know your uterine lining thickness? Mine was always a on the thin side, the time the IVF worked it was the thickest it had ever been. The only thing I did differently that cycle was Accupuncture. Obviously I have no idea if it was that that made a difference or if it was just coincidence but I thought I'd share my experience.

Acupuncture too!

I second B vitamins

I have PCOS and I know exactly. Charting/Fertility Awareness Method to identify issues, high dosage Inositol to treat anovulation (4000mg every day, spread throughout the day... if I missed a single dose then that was me out for the month... no ovulation), B6 to treat a luteal phase defect, and a brutally disciplined diet and lifestyle regime tapered especially for PCOS women. There was a lot of reading, and interpreting the bloods I got from my GP/hospital (I was getting tested for various endocrine issues). Once you have a good grasp of the exact issues, answers are much easier to find!

Well, for me with dc2 it was a no foreplay quicky doggy style on the edge of the bed and DH put his finger in my bum.

Maybe try that?

10 years trying to conceive here. In the summer I had an early miscarriage. They did a hysteroscopy and found a fibroid that had not shown up on any scan. This fibroid was causing miscarriages, they would have seen it/didn’t see it without ‘going in’. They removed it there and then and I got pregnant 6 weeks later! I’m currently 21 weeks with my first in my 40s. I don’t know why they say a hysteroscopy won’t help, surely it’s worth a look?
Wishing you well OP.

I dont have any words of advice as I am 14 months into TTC with nothing to show for it except a MC last year. Just wanted to say I think you're doing great! Are you scheduled for another round of IVF?

I had acupuncture before this lockdown and I did feel it helped me relax, I havent had enough of it to get pregnant but im hoping when she can restart it will help! I second what others have said and as cliche and hard as it is, not thinking about it too much and relaxing methods will help. The month we actually conceived we barely had sex and were focused on other things. Sending loads of love x

@beckyyl

I drank Pom juice after ovulation, grapefruit juice before x

@HopeForARainbow

Oh sorry, my last comment should have been for you, OP.

I would recommend the proceive Max drinks sachets especially if you think your periods are on the light side.

I really hope you're doing better and keeping everything crossed for you xx