TTC After a Loss
SoonToBeMommaHowe
member
First Potential O without Letrozole/IB Question
SoonToBeMommaHowe
member
Hi Ladies!
I've read loads of discussion boards for the last 18 months but have never posted, even though reading some posts have gotten me through some pretty dark days, so thank you to those of you who do post!
Quick intro for me...my husband and I miscarried twin boys at 18.5 weeks a year ago. We got the green light to TTC again in August and 10 cycles in still no luck. We discovered in December that I was having anovulatory cycles so my OB prescribed Letrozole and I took it for two months, had "strong" ovulation but no pregnancy. In March decided I wanted to get my body to function on its own without medication (I was told to stop exercising when I was pregnant and never went back & I've probably consumed more ice cream in this past year than I have in my whole life).
That at brings us to the present...cycle two of Operation Get My Body Back. Cycle 1 without meds was 50 days long (premiscarriage cycles were always 32-34 days). Talk about messing with your mind and your wallet, I burned through a box of CBD OPKs (never got a +) and took at least 10 HPTs. But I was able to start my period on my own without Provera which my OB prescribed but I never picked up at the pharmacy.
Cycle 2: This cycle I got -OPKs on CBD until cd16, then ran out of tests. Not wanting to spend another $35 I just picked up the cheapie pink line dip strip tests at WalMart and of course CD 17 the lines are the same color. Then CD 19 the test line is actually darker, but I don't want to get too excited so I'm convincing myself it's just bc they were the cheap tests. Now the question I have for you guys... On cd 21 I had one spot of discharge with a bloody brown streak in it when I went to the bathroom before bed, cd 22 the faintest color pink you can imagine on the TP every time I used the facilities, cd 23 (today) dark brown streak and then a string of dark brown discharge on TP after FMU. I didn't have implantation bleeding with the twins so I'm not sure if you can have IB for three days or if I'm starting my period really really early directly after a 50 day cycle. Has anyone had a really long anovulatory cycle followed by a really short ovulatory one? Or has anyone had IB for three days?
*I don't temp or chart CM bc Constantly thinking about it drives me crazy and my doctor thinks stress is causing my conception troubles. So just OPKs for me.
I've read loads of discussion boards for the last 18 months but have never posted, even though reading some posts have gotten me through some pretty dark days, so thank you to those of you who do post!
Quick intro for me...my husband and I miscarried twin boys at 18.5 weeks a year ago. We got the green light to TTC again in August and 10 cycles in still no luck. We discovered in December that I was having anovulatory cycles so my OB prescribed Letrozole and I took it for two months, had "strong" ovulation but no pregnancy. In March decided I wanted to get my body to function on its own without medication (I was told to stop exercising when I was pregnant and never went back & I've probably consumed more ice cream in this past year than I have in my whole life).
That at brings us to the present...cycle two of Operation Get My Body Back. Cycle 1 without meds was 50 days long (premiscarriage cycles were always 32-34 days). Talk about messing with your mind and your wallet, I burned through a box of CBD OPKs (never got a +) and took at least 10 HPTs. But I was able to start my period on my own without Provera which my OB prescribed but I never picked up at the pharmacy.
Cycle 2: This cycle I got -OPKs on CBD until cd16, then ran out of tests. Not wanting to spend another $35 I just picked up the cheapie pink line dip strip tests at WalMart and of course CD 17 the lines are the same color. Then CD 19 the test line is actually darker, but I don't want to get too excited so I'm convincing myself it's just bc they were the cheap tests. Now the question I have for you guys... On cd 21 I had one spot of discharge with a bloody brown streak in it when I went to the bathroom before bed, cd 22 the faintest color pink you can imagine on the TP every time I used the facilities, cd 23 (today) dark brown streak and then a string of dark brown discharge on TP after FMU. I didn't have implantation bleeding with the twins so I'm not sure if you can have IB for three days or if I'm starting my period really really early directly after a 50 day cycle. Has anyone had a really long anovulatory cycle followed by a really short ovulatory one? Or has anyone had IB for three days?
*I don't temp or chart CM bc Constantly thinking about it drives me crazy and my doctor thinks stress is causing my conception troubles. So just OPKs for me.
DH - 34, Me - 32
Married 7/13
TTC #1 since 10/13
BFP 2/4/15, MC twin boys at 18w3d 5/15
IUI #1 2/25/16
Married 7/13
TTC #1 since 10/13
BFP 2/4/15, MC twin boys at 18w3d 5/15
IUI #1 2/25/16
Re: First Potential O without Letrozole/IB Question
Married 7/13
TTC #1 since 10/13
BFP 2/4/15, MC twin boys at 18w3d 5/15
IUI #1 2/25/16
Married 7/13
TTC #1 since 10/13
BFP 2/4/15, MC twin boys at 18w3d 5/15
IUI #1 2/25/16
After reading your story I have a few thoughts. My main conclusion is that you likely are starting your period. Implantation bleeding is relatively rare, and generally is a one-off thing that doesn't last for days.** Also, IF you did O on CD17-19 sometime the timing is really too early anyway.
I have never used OPK's myself because I temp and have pretty consistent O pain that I have confirmed to be just that with temping. However, my understanding is that the cheapies are just as effective as more expensive ones, but leave a little more up to interpretation, rather than just looking at a smiley face (think pink line HPT's vs. digis--mainly convenience).
I have a few concerns and recommendations for you. First, I am concerned that your doc is saying that "stress" is causing you trouble TTC. It's simply not proven to be a factor. I would strongly recommend temping. Otherwise, OPK's only give you an idea that you "might" be ovulating. You may not have ovulated this cycle at all, even with a positive OPK. You simply can't know without either an ultrasound or temping to confirm in retrospect. Cycles can be wonky for a variety of reasons, so the short answer to your question is "yes," many of us have probably experienced something that you are experiencing now. If I was a betting woman, I would venture to guess that you didn't actually ovulate this cycle.
Have you been worked up for PCOS or other IF diagnoses? I'm not sure on your age, since you didn't provide it, but sitting at 10 cycles without conceiving and your prior history of "anovulation" plus a second tri loss probably makes you a shoe-in for seeing an RE. I seriously give the side-eye to any OB who just prescribes ovulatory-stimulating drugs on their own. This sort of thing is best worked up and monitored by an RE. OB's as great as they are, are not specialists in difficulty trying to conceive. For example, you may have one or two tubes blocked....all the ovulation drugs in the world won't fix that problem. (Not saying that's the case, just an example.)
I would venture to say most of the ladies here would agree with the above. There are a lot of us who have had similar issues and there's a wealth of knowledge to be had here if you decide to hang out here regularly. Welcome to the community.
**Asking about implantation bleeding is a dangerous line to walk here because it is against TOU to ask if you are pregnant, and asking if this could be IB is a round-about way of doing that. I get that that wasn't the main point of your post. If you posted this on other boards you may have been flamed quite quickly, so just a word of caution about asking questions like that.
Sorry this was a short novel. I hope I helped a little. If you have other questions I'm willing to help!
I really did not intend to offend anyone so I'm sorry if I did something against the rules. What does "against TOU to ask if you are pregnant" mean? At this point I just expect to not have a period for at least 35-45 days so to see something on the TP at 21 days was extremely odd since premiscarriage my shortest cycle was 27 days.
I I guess maybe Monday instead of going in just for a blood draw I should see if my OB is available to talk to about what's going on.
Married 7/13
TTC #1 since 10/13
BFP 2/4/15, MC twin boys at 18w3d 5/15
IUI #1 2/25/16
I get that irregular cycles are confusing, stressful, and irritating. It sounds like you've had a pretty thorough work up, and I would agree that making a sit-down appointment is a good next step. One of the mantras here is "you're regular until you're not," meaning that cycles can change for no good reason. That's why a lot of us temp, because it gives us more insight into what are cycles are doing. I hope you get some answers soon.