New Here (Child Mentioned)

MissKris76

Hi all - I wanted to introduce myself. I was an active member of The Bump about 6 1/2 years ago, and am now coming back. Unfortunately, as with all of you, it's to the Infertility board. I'm Kristin. I'll be 41 in December, have been married for 9 months now, and have a 6 year old daughter from a previous marriage. I had always wanted two children but, when my first marriage ended when my daughter was a year old, gave up on that dream. Then I met my current husband and the dream came back. We have been trying for over a year now, and nothing. I finally made an appointment with my OB to have testing done. She had me do the Clomid challenge last week, and I'm waiting for my results. I can see what my CD10 lab results are, but don't know what they mean. I've been googling, and have convinced myself that they aren't good. I know I just need to wait for her to get back to me, but I'm going crazy. 

tosh24

Welcome! Have you thought about seeing an RE? OBs are generally in the business of pregnancy and delivery, not fertility treatments and getting women pregnant. A Reproductive Endocrinologist specializes in reproductive medicine and infertility. For initial testing, you will need to do a CD 3 blood panel, not CD 10, generally along with an ultrasound to look at your uterus and ovaries (and get an Antral Follicle Count). Blood work for CD 3 at minimum should include estrogen, progesterone, FSH, LH, and AMH (a measure of your ovarian reserve). Most REs will also have you do a SHG (sonohystogram) to look at your uterine cavity and your Fallopian tubes. These are things that are very routine for an RE, but not so much for an OB. If you are able, I would strongly recommend moving on to an RE and save your OB for when you hopefully get pregnant I have just seen so many women on these boards waste time with an OB when they should have been with an RE and it really sets them back. Hope your stay is short and sweet. Good luck! 

cseley321

Tosh is exactly right. If you're already 40, I wouldn't waste my time with an OB.

sarcasticowl

Hi @MissKris76, I'm happy to share with you my Clomid challenge details if you're interested in comparing them. My baselines on CD4 were:
Estradiol   73 pg/mL (normal range is 25-75)
FSH          5.6 mlU/mL (normal range is 3-20)
LH            7.2 mlU/mL (normal is less than 7)

On CD 11 results were:
Estradiol   431 pg/mL
FSH           5.2 mlU/mL
LH             17.5 mlU/mL

My doctor (OB/GYN) called the response to the Clomid "excellent" and also said that my AMH (anti-mullerian) results from the baseline tests, at 9.3 ng/mL would likely make me respond well to fertility medications. I went to my regular GYN for these tests before making up my mind about whether it was worth it to try an RE (they're an hour from my house). I would also agree with Crystal and Tosh that you should go to an RE directly after you finish your Clomid challenge. You didn't make a mistake, though. I think that's where most cautious people go first. It takes a lot to make up your mind to move on to the big guns, but you definitely owe it to yourself to do so if your blood work comes back indicating you'll respond well to stims.

Hope this helps in some small way. Good luck in the days to come.

tosh24

Sorry @MissKris76 I somehow glossed over the part where you said you did a Clomid Challenge - obviously that's why you had CD 10 blood work done. I would still move on to an RE after you are done the challenge, though. 

 

MissKris76

Thank you ladies for the feedback. Here are my numbers. I'm worried about the CD10 FSH number - I finished the Clomid at night on CD9 and had my blood drawn early the next morning. I'm hoping that the high number was caused by it still being in my system. Obviously, I'm very new at all of this, and don't know how all of this works! It's so overwhelming.

CD3
AMH - 2.0 ng/mL
FSH - 7.8 mlU/mL
Estradiol - 31 pg/mL

CD10
LH - 13.7 IU/L
FSH - 11.3 mlU/mL
Estradiol - 488 pg/mL

I will definitely look into an RE. 

cryssieaddis

Hi there and welcome!  I am praying for you and for God to bless you and your husband with a child!  Are you on a good fertility diet?