A question for the momma's over 35

MNturnsVA

Happy Tuesday Ladies!  I hope you are all doing well on your journeys here  

I will be 35 for a whole whopping 2 months this month and we are on our 6 month of TTC. 

I was wondering how many of you are in my age bracket or above and how long it took you to conceive.  I know that it can take a healthy couple up to a year to get a BFP, especially once you hit 35.  So I need some reassurance that all hope is not lost here.  I'm feeling the most confident that I have felt at this point in the game that hopefully our timing will be the closest to accurate its been yet, so that makes me feel better.

Also, if you were temping and keeping track of things or not.

Thanks!

djdawn29a

I am 43 and we were not even trying to conceive. This has been a huge surprise. We had been trying in the past 4 years, with 3 early losses. We gave up over a year ago and now here we r 25 wks along. The difference for us this time we believe was the progesterone early on. We got a new doc and he suggested it right away.

kdebesche4

I am 35 and on my second pregnancy. Got pregnant 2nd month trying this time and are having twins (big surprise!). I was 32 with my first pregnancy and got pregnant the first month trying, so we may just be lucky Biggest difference for me this time is the extra tests they give you. Best of luck!

mc123mc

I'm 36 and had some bumps in the road. We had tried for 6 months, temping, using OPK's and nothing. I decided not to wait and made an appt with a reproductive endocrinologist. My levels were good and hubby's sperm was great so MD suggested testing to see if my tubes were blocked. Turns out both were, so we could have been trying forever!! 

I did another procedure that unblocked one tube so we tried IUI and clomid cycles twice. After reviewing my insurance benefits ($10,000 Lifetime max- Cigna) we moved to IVF so we could have one cycle hopefully covered. First cycle worked but I then miscarried at 6 weeks. Second cycle worked again and I'm now 13 weeks along with a healthy baby girl. 

My two cents from my journey:

1. Don't wait to see a specialist if you want kids. Medicated cycles are longer than 28 days and if there is an issue, you may need more time. If no issue- then you have peace of mind. 

2. If you need help, call your insurance ASAP and find out their coverage, then talk to your doctor.In my case,  I wish we hadn't done the second IUI and I wish we had paid for the PGD testing.  In the moment when the MD is asking you what you want to do, you need to really have researched your options 

All the best in your journey! 

Krisdee123

I'm 42, tried for one year and it happened. Yes I was temping, charting all that good stuff.
Edit to add: this is my first pregnancy ever. It can happen naturally! Good luck!

kcbarbo78

I'm 37. Tried to conceive for 4 years. Finally succeeded with IVF with PGS testing (only got 3 healthy embryos out of 11 fertilized). Currently almost 15 weeks along. Good luck!

mollypuss1

There is a whole board for people over 35 where you will finds loads of women, probably best to post this in there

Momona1

I'm 42 and got pregnant naturally in our 5th cycle. I fully expected to still be TTC at this point, but I'm almost 26 weeks. Good luck to you!!

SisterMaryNapalm

I'm not over 35 but I have heard that if you're 35+ you only need to be trying 6 months before seeking help. The ladies on TTGP often say that you can safely see an RE after this amount of time due to time being a factor as PP said. Good luck!

MNturnsVA

@SisterMaryNapalm     Yes, I participate frequently in the TTGP boards.  I just don't want my husband to think I'm over reacting and I don't want to jump the gun on anything.  I'd feel silly if we spent a bunch of $$ on stuff and I ended up getting a BFP on my own.  At the same time, I'm not trying to waste any time either.  This is something I want more than anything.  I was ready for this 2 years ago and we had to wait for other things going on in our life to start TTC.  I'm thinking I'm going to set up an appt with an RE for Dec as my deductible should be met for the year and if I need to get any testing done it should be much less then waiting until January.

@mc123mc           Its like you read my mind.  I don't want to waste any time.  Thanks for making me feel like its ok to take charge of the situation.  Did you have any family history of tubes being blocked?  How do they even get blocked?? My insurance will cover the testing for infertility but not any services.  I'd still like to know what we are up against though if anything.  I'd been having some pain with sex about a month ago or so and my insurance was changing on 10/1/15.  I went to the dr and they did an physical exam and she said she didn't see anything but I had asked if we could do an ultrasound and she was on board with that just to make sure everything was ok.  I had the ultra sound done and was fully expecting there to be nothing found on that.  I was wrong.  They found what she called a reoccuring cyst on my L ovary, a small fibroid and I think she said my uterus was tilted?? Nothing to be overly concerned about or worried about or that needs to be removed or anything like that, so that is good. But at the same time, I wasn't expecting any of that.  I fully expected to walk in the door and have them say we didn't see anything and get a bill from the insurance company for the ultra sound because it was unnecessary.  So, I do have some hesitations in waiting to long to do anything. 

DrillSergeantCat

I'm 38, was 37 at conception. We decided in January to start TTC. I downloaded a period tracker app and got KU in May.

mc123mc

MNturnsVA - I don't think blocked tubes run in families and my doctor had no idea why both of mine were blocked. It was a complete surprise to me because I've never had any issues with periods or any abnormal paps etc. 

I never expected to have any issues and it turned out I had a lot of them! If your insurance will cover testing, do it. If you need help you'll have a bit more time to save up for treatments. Feel free to PM me any time. 

lez331

i turned 35 in june. conceived in our first month trying. im 14 wks now.  i have an 18 month old and it was the same for him. we might just be lucky. good luck.

samara267

I'm 36. We tried for two years, basically stopped "trying" and I missed my next period. 

Good luck!

MissyJ1975

I was very lucky. I am 40 and conceived in the first month trying. I am 23 weeks and thank God everyday.

SisterSunshine

38, low progesterone, NOT trying, surprise lol! Couldn't be happier.

mrsloriw

You can have issues at any age apparently- women 35+ get pregnant right away, while I started trying at 30 and am just now pregnant at 36 after our first IVF. Sometimes it's the guy with the issues so it wouldn't matter your age per se in that case. Turns out I had a boat load of issues- short luteal phase found by temping, low ovarian reserve, weak ovulation, a pituitary tumor, and slightly high thyroid... So please don't wait and get checked out since the sooner you know, the sooner you can start to "fix" any issues you may have. But hopefully you don't and you will be pregnant soon!!

kcbarbo78

@MNturnsVA - I don't know how your particular insurance coverage works, but mine covered all diagnostics, regardless of whether a cause for infertility was discovered or not.  I just had to have a referral to a RE from my OB, which I easily obtained because I told her we had been trying for about a year with no success.  The hysterosalpingography (HSG) was quite expensive, so I was glad we had coverage for at least the diagnostic part of things.  The various testing uncovered nothing physically to explain why we couldn't get pregnant, so I fell into the dreaded "Unexplained Infertility" bucket.  We paid out-of-pocket for four rounds of IUI because my health insurance at the time would not cover treatments, and these four cycles yielded only one chemical pregnancy.  We ended up switching from my husband's health insurance to the plan offered by my company the following year so that IVF would be covered (my employer is in a state that mandates coverage for fertility treatments with a cutoff age of 40, but I was a dummy for not checking with my benefits administrator in advance of beginning treatments).  We paid for PGD testing out-of-pocket (as far as I'm aware, no insurance company is covering that right now, regardless of maternal age), as well as the embryo freezing and storage, so our out-of-pocket expenses were still about $8,000, but that's much less than what we would have paid if we had no coverage for IVF, of course.  Even while undergoing treatment, it could still take several years and various failed cycles to achieve a successful pregnancy (if one is achieved at all), so if you have adequate coverage for diagnostics I think it doesn't hurt to have things looked at.  A friend of mine had trouble conceiving for a few years before receiving a diagnosis for endometriosis.  After surgery, she was able to conceive her two daughters naturally and within only a few months of trying, though she was over 35.  Undergoing the diagnostic testing is unpleasant, and IVF is truly a nightmare for many women, so for sure I would do everything in my power to try to conceive naturally (charting, temping, all that good stuff), but getting all the information you can and knowing what you might be up against is empowering and may help you get pregnant quicker.  With that said, I hope you're able to conceive on your own and soon.  Good luck!