Please introduce yourself and share as much (or as little) as you would like. Once you're ready, feel free to jump into any of our daily/weekly threads to participate in the community!
Ages (you and SO):
How many months have you been TTC?:
What are you doing to get knocked up (WAYDTGKU)?:
Tell us about yourself! (Kids, pets, job, hobbies, etc.)
What are you doing to get knocked up (WAYDTGKU)?: no BC. Tracking estimated ovulation per when I have my “monthly”
Tell us about yourself! (Kids, pets, job, hobbies, etc.) neither of us have kids but have a beautiful dog. 130lb lap dog to be exact!! I work in the legal world and he is a welder/fabricator. We both love outdoors, hunting/ four wheeling!!
@bananananner172692 Welcome!! I saw on another thread someone recommended opks (ovulation tests) and I would second that. Even if you have a perfect cycle, you may not be ovulating when you think and that could be messing with your timing. How nice to have another outdoorsy lady here! Do you hunt? I’m very outdoorsy as well and our opening weekend is this coming weekend! I hope you enjoy your time here and get to move on quickly!
welcome @bananananner172692 i third what the others say about OPKs. and once you start collecting data it's hard to stop, so you may find yourself sliding into the realm of taking morning temps as well. the two data points can be combined pretty effectively to locate ovulation. You may also want to have a look at the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility, which does just what the title says.
History
I am doing this on my own. Left ovary and fallopian tube removed due to cyst/necrosis just after birth. Right ovary and tube still purport to function.
Began TTC in Aug '18 @ age 35
5 or 6 (or 7?!) cycles using frozen donor sperm, ICI. All BFN
Mar-Jun '19 IUIs, all BFN
Began process of referral for RE in spring of '19, blood tests confirm low AMH (.54) but all else is good.
May '19 HSG shows open tube, but ultrasound suggests fibroids
MRI in June '19 confirms two large fibroids, one growing through wall of uterus
In June '19 I move from California to Oregon, disrupting my insurance, referrals, etc. 5 months spent piecing it all back together.
Nov. '19 attempted myomectomy (vaginal approach) failed. 2nd surgery using laparoscopic method in Jan '20 is successful.
April '20 --> June '20, natural IUIs, all BFN.
July? saline ultrasound and bubble test demonstrate open tube
July '20 clomid cycle cancelled for thin lining
Aug-Oct, 3 femara cycles, all BFN
RE referral. While waiting to set up an appointment Nov-Jan,I continue with natural cycles and ICI, using a known donor, BFN...
Jan '21 more bloodwork, AMH is worse (.30), FSH high albeit not catastrophic at 13.2. hysteroscopy all good. "looks cozy!" says the RE.
Feb '21, injectables (menopur, novarel), iui, BFN (doc said the frozen donor sperm sample had the "best numbers she'd ever seen!")
Mar '21, injectables, iui cancelled due to lack of follicles, converted to at home-insem. BFN
May '21, first IVF round cancelled due to cyst.
July '21 IVF: standard antagonist. 225menupur/225gonal-f/cetrotide/5000u trigger, AFC 7; 6 days of stims. 8 eggs retrieved, 7 mature, 5 fertilize, 4 made it to blast. 3 are 4AB, 1 is 4BB. PGT-A results all abnormal. Oct '21 somewhat improved AMH (.51) and significantly improved FSH (8.9). Maybe it's all the pills I swallow. Dec -21, standard antagonist. 225menupur/225gonal-f/cetrotide/5000u trigger, AFC 5; 11 days of stims. retrieval yields 5, 4M, 2 reach day-6 blast (4AB & 4BB). 1 low-level mosaic (chr. 3 deletion), 1 complex abnormal. Feb '22 FET (low-level mosaic): CP. May '22 egg retrieval, lupron flare protocol. HGH priming for 1 month before stims; md lupron 20/20u daily; menopur 225, follistim 225, 10k trigger after 8 days of stims; AFC 10; 13 retrieved; 10 mature; 8 fertilized. All frozen at 2PN for later thaw, grow, and biopsy. July '22 egg retrieval same protocol: 9 days of stims; AFC 8; 10 retrieved, 8 mature, 4 fertilized and frozen. Sept '22 ER same protocol: AFC 10; 12 retrieved, 11 mature, 11 fertilized. From the 3 retrievals, 7 survived to day 5-6 blastocyst, from which I have 2 normal embryos! Jan 20, Fully medicated FET, baby aspirin, dexamethasone, acupuncture, and as much woo as I can stand (which isn't very much). BFN. July 23, Natural FET + baby aspirin. BFN.
@paytonpedro and @optimistgardener thank you for the suggestion! I am a little scared to start withOPKs because I don’t want to become “obsessed” with them but I will look into them! I am still balancing out seeing as I was on bc for 6 years I think my body needs some time to “re-set”. My sister does have PCOS though so maybe the OPKs will be a good help. Yes we do hunt! Anxiously awaiting opening day this weekend for us as well!! It is so peaceful and calming to just be in the woods whether something is harvested or not. We also have a large veggie garden in our back yard that I spent most of my summer in!! So many yummy veggies!!! We even made sauce and canned it! I truly appreciate both of your support!!!
@bananananner172692 you’re very welcome! Also can we be best friends? I also had a very large veggie garden (1250sq ft). I didn’t can anything but had so so many potatoes and pumpkins! I also did well on beets and turnips! I’m excited to fine tune it for next year! I’m excited you’re here and I can’t wait to talk opks and gardening haha.
@bananananner172692 welcome welcome. I won’t say much more about the OPKs since you’ve already gotten an earful. But I do want to mention that PCOS does have a genetic component so this might be especially helpful for you your cycles regulate. Otherwise, I hope your stay with us is short but sweeeeeeet.
Re: Newbie Intros w/o 11.15
Oct '21 somewhat improved AMH (.51) and significantly improved FSH (8.9). Maybe it's all the pills I swallow.
Dec -21, standard antagonist. 225menupur/225gonal-f/cetrotide/5000u trigger, AFC 5; 11 days of stims. retrieval yields 5, 4M, 2 reach day-6 blast (4AB & 4BB). 1 low-level mosaic (chr. 3 deletion), 1 complex abnormal.
Feb '22 FET (low-level mosaic): CP.
May '22 egg retrieval, lupron flare protocol. HGH priming for 1 month before stims; md lupron 20/20u daily; menopur 225, follistim 225, 10k trigger after 8 days of stims; AFC 10; 13 retrieved; 10 mature; 8 fertilized. All frozen at 2PN for later thaw, grow, and biopsy.
July '22 egg retrieval same protocol: 9 days of stims; AFC 8; 10 retrieved, 8 mature, 4 fertilized and frozen.
Sept '22 ER same protocol: AFC 10; 12 retrieved, 11 mature, 11 fertilized.
From the 3 retrievals, 7 survived to day 5-6 blastocyst, from which I have 2 normal embryos!
Jan 20, Fully medicated FET, baby aspirin, dexamethasone, acupuncture, and as much woo as I can stand (which isn't very much). BFN.
July 23, Natural FET + baby aspirin. BFN.
TTC#2
TTC #2 ... preparing as of March 2024
TTC #1
TTC #1 02/2020 - 07/2022
2009 | Dx PCOS; likely a misdiagnosis
07/14/20 | Dx Hashimoto's Thyroditis
07/21/20 | 1st RE appointment
07/2120 - 08/20/20 | so much testing; no signs of PCOS
08/20/20 | Dx Unexplained; AMA
09/08/20 | IUI #1 Clomid + Trigger + Prometrium | BFN
09/30/20 | Urology consult; more testing required
10/2020 | Clomid + OPK + TI + Prometrium | BFN
10/26/2020 | Starting 2nd IUI cycle, with Letrazole and with a new RE / different clinic
11/03/2020 | New Dx "poor egg quality"; IUI cancelled in favor of Trigger + TI + Prometrium | BFN
11/26/2020 | Combo IUI (Clomid + Menopur) + Trigger + Prometrium | BFN
12/20/2020 | Combo IUI (Clomid + Gonal-F) + Trigger | IUI Cancelled due to thin lining; TI only | BFN
01/14/2021 | Combo IUI (Letrazole + Menopur) + Trigger | BFN
02/06/2021 | Switched to a new RE (TEW) ; trying naturally until we complete additional testing
03/14/2021 | Hybrid Double IUI, with Zymot (Letrazole, Gonal-F) + Trigger + Endometrin | Ovulated 4 mature eggs but still a BFN ☹️
04/07/2021 | Natural cycle while we regroup | BFN
04/09/2021 | Employer announces fertility benefits starting 05/01/2021! | Search for a new doctor who accepts insurance
05/10/2021 | New RE consult & plan for IVF
05/13/2021 | Mid-luteal IVF cycle #1 interrupted; had to get cancer genetic screening done to make sure I didn't have the same SDHA gene mutation as MH.
06/10/2021 | Aygestin priming IVF cycle #1; opted to Cx after 9 days of stims since only 5-6/12 follicles responded
07/26/2021 | Attempt #2 at IVF cycle #1 (mid-luteal start): 8 retrieved, 8 MII, 6 fert (1 PN3), 3 Day 5 & 6 blasts: 3AA, 3AA, 6AB; 3 euploid
08/09/2021 | Rest cycle / unmedicated TTC | Shockingly, a BFP! EDD: 5/25/202 | CP at 4w4d
09/23/2021 | IVF cycle #2 (mid-luteal start): 14 retrieved, 13 MII, 11 fert, 5 Day 5 & 6 blasts: 2 x 3AA, 2 x 3AB, 3BB; 2 euploid
11/12/2021 | IVF cycle #3 (mid-luteal start): cancelled due to ovaries being on vacation
12/20/2021 | Rest cycle / unmedicated TTC + Pregmune Immunology Testing; BFN
01/22/2022 | Rest cycle / unmedicated TTC + understanding uncovered immunological issues; BFN
02/18/2022 | Mock transfer cycle! ERA, ReceptivaDx, EMMA/ALICE; start Prednisone to address NK activity
03/16/2022 | Final, "Hail Mary" super-ovulation + TI cycle before FET; BFP! EDD: 12/21/2022 | MMC 05/08/2022
05/20/2022 | D&C; recovering...
06/21/2022 | Trying naturally until October 2022
07/21/2022 | BFP! EDD 04/02/2023; 👦🏼 born on 4/5/2023