New to message board

Hi everyone,

New to posting to this message board. My SIL nrthshgrl recommended it to me.

I'm posting because I have been ttc for 9 months and I've been on Clomid for 4 cycles. First started on cd 5-9 with one pill, then cd3-7 on two pills, then cd3-7 with 3 pills and just finished cd3-7 on 4 pills (the max). Every month my progesterone is low. I have a feeling I have PCOS. I am overweight, I have some abnormal hairgrowth (a few on my chin) I had gestational diabetes last year when I was pregnant (Nicholas - stillborn at 36 weeks) and I have the skin tabs on my neck. My doctor wants to check me out this month (he's only drawing blood and doing an internal) and then he says he's going to send me to an RE. I did some research on other message boards and found that a lot of ppl like Dr. Lydic in Stonybrook, so I was going to try him out.

Does it sound like to anyone that I could have PCOS even though I got pregnant in 11/04??

Thanks for any input.

Re: New to message board

hi and welcome, although I wish you didnt have to post here

First- Im so sorry for your loss. I had a daughter bornstill at 28 weeks, and the pain is unbelievable so I feel so much for you.

As far as the PCOS, It does sure sound like it might be something you have. I would do this bloodowrk and then get to an RE. They really can test you further and are specialists in it and will better be able to diagnosis you. You can certaintly have PCOS and get PG on your own naturally, You may not always ovulate , but can.

do you have normal periods in length??

Re: New to message board

Thank you so much for your quick reply!

I'm so sorry for your loss as well. It was just a year for me 7/10 that I lost Nicholas. It is tough and I'm still living it every day, but it does get easier. But hardly an hour goes by without me thinking of him. I'm having other family problems as well right now which doesn't help the situation.

So, what do you mean how long? Do you mean my cycle or do you mean the bleeding? I'll just answer both :o)

On the Clomid I've been having 32-36 day cycles, without Clomid I skipped about once a year (60 or so day cycle). I bleed for 3-4 days.

Re: New to message board

yeah if your cycles are that long ( length of time between each) somethings off and it would definatly indicate possibly PCOS.

As far as losing Nicholas, I will tell you time heals some of the rawness of the pain. It was 9 years for me in June, so its been a while and it does get easier each year. The pain never leaves, the sadness never leaves, but the raw emotions of missing them and the loss slowly gets better with time.

Re: New to message board

Thanks again for the post and the words of encouragement. I was a basket case for a long time, I'm getting better now. I used to not even be able to see my niece and nephews (nthshrgrl's kids) because it would remind me, especially my nephew. I could see that Nicholas was going to look something like him. And how could I not want to see those kids! They're beautiful and the sweetest things ever (not that I'm bias or anything)!

Just wanted to tell you that your dog is the cutest thing ever. What kind is it? I want a small dog, because my husband wants a dog and I have 4 cats!

Re: New to message board

Welcome and I hope your stay is short and sweet.

Once you start with an RE you will get a lot of answers, and be able to make an informed decision. We're all here for you to discuss any questions....

I am sorry for the difficulties you have been through ...

Message edited 8/10/2006 10:54:44 AM.

Re: New to message board

Re: New to message board

Aww, it's just a puppy? How big will it get??

I'm sorry to hear about your difficulties. You seem like a really nice person.

If you dont mind, what is your story? Do you have PCOS? What kind of things are you doing to try to conceive?

Re: New to message board

Do you have PCOS? What RE did you see?

Thanks for the reply, by the way :o)

Re: New to message board

and welcome.

I have a friend who has PCOS and was able to conceive. I have another friend who was diagnosed with a mild case after having her kids. Good luck- I hope you get some answers from your doctors and I think it helps that you're well-informed about what's going on with you.

Re: New to message board

Thank you so much. It's nice to hear "success" stories :o)

Re: New to message board

Hi Lauren! I'm also a Lauren!

There are a few of us on here with PCOS. If you take a look at the Introductions thread you'll see what some of us have done and are doing.

http://www.lifamilies.com/chat/topic-70419-1.html

I wish you lots of luck in your TTC journey!!

Re: New to message board

Welcome



Hope your stay is short

Re: New to message board

Hi Lauren,

I'm Barbara's friend, Theresa. I have PCOS and just got pregnant with my first attempt with IVF.

PCOS can be tricky and sometimes harder to treat than anatomical issues.

BTW: I read a lot of controversial studies about Clmid and PCOS and many of them said Clomid, for some reason, while it may work for many others does not work for PCOS patients. I was on a much higher and longer dosage for you for 4 months before I ovulate one egg... and the side effects can be horrendous. If anything you need Metformin to regulate your insulin, that's our problem, insulin causes a hormonal imbalance. Provide the balance and our ovaries will kick in and release an egg. We don't need to be revved up, we need balance. BTW: I no longer see that RE who prescribed me Clomid.

The changes I made...

I won't go into the reasons why these are so important but basically, the way we process sugar/insulin resistance, causes our ovaries to produce androgens which cause our testosterone level to go higher and therefore, we do not ovulate, excess body hair, excess hair loss, weight gain, etc.

SUGAR is the enemy so we have to change our eating habits. Of course you can't stick to this 100% 24-7 but do the best you can...

1. No Caffeine- some studies have indicated that caffeine decreases the chances of implantation of the embryos... since we are already delicate, in this regard, NO CAFFEINE... decaf only.

2. NO REFINED SUGAR- It's in more things than you want to think of... including High fructose corn syrup. It's almost impossible to buy anything in the supermarket that doesn't have HFCS in it... including ketchup. I cut out all candy, yes including chocolate , baked goods (high in trans fat anyway), no soda, no iced tea, basically no pre-made drinks. Anthing else with sugar you must severely limit. Switch to fruit... berries are very low glucose and great for PCOS patients as they don't spike the blood sugar.
NO artifical sweetners!!! Throw out the Diet Coke.

3. Drink lots of water- this is bascially all I drink except for a tiny bit of OJ (remember lots of sugar) in the morning and decaf tea... I'll get to my herbal tea in a minute. This is important because no sugar, no caffeine, no artifical cr ap. You can do it. I always carry a bottle of water with me and never order a drink at a restaurant.

4. No alcohol- Studies have shown that alcohol can affect conception in many women but it is especially bad in PCOS because the sugar in alcohol throws off our system. Yes, that once a week glass or wine can be a contributing factor to annovulatory cycles.

5. Limit other carbs- NO WHITE CARBS... they are the absolute worst. No French fries (not good for you anyway) substitute sweet potato fries if you can they sell them at Trader Joe's, frozen. No white bread... whole grain... the first ingredient MUST be whole wheat or the bread isn't good enough... or better yet order a wrap. No white Pasta, Barilla makes a good alternative... can't think of the name, but it comes in a yellow box and is actually edible. No bakery goodies... sugar and carbs... double whammy.

6. Hormone Free- The hormones in our meat, dairy and pesticides in our veggies make our PCOS worse. I switched to soy milk a long time ago for my sinus infections and DH and I try to buy hormone free meats and organic veggies as much as possible.

7. Limit eating out- You don't know what they are cooking with, what added additives are in the food etc. So many things come with a potato and you may forget to substitute for another veggie.

8. Take warm baths- Many women with PCOS and older women have decreased bloodflow to the ovaries. As we age bloodflow decreases which impacts the health of our eggs. I soaked in my tub every night after dinner for at least 15 minutes.

9. Drink hot drinks- I drank 3 cups a day of Chinese herbal tea called Woman's Dong Quai Tonic. It's put out by Yogi Tea (search their web site they have a store locator) Its purpose is to provide a hormonal balance and the warmth helps increase additional bloodflow to the uterus/ovaries. It's actually very relaxing... take a 5 minute break, do nothing else and sip your tea... the relaxing probably helps as much as the tea.
Chinese medicine knows infinitely more about how to treat PCOS than I think Western Medicine. Chinese medicine wants to restore your hormonal balance not rev up your ovariers into overdrive.

10. Accupuncture/Massage often helps- it increases blood flow and decreases stress thus increasing your chances.

Just keep in mind it takes about 100 days for your body to respond to the changes.

That's everything I did and I got my BFP on Monday after my first IVF.

Re: New to message board

Posted by Tah-wee-ZAH

Hi Lauren,

I'm Barbara's friend, Theresa. I have PCOS and just got pregnant with my first attempt with IVF.

Wow, thank you so much for that...you gave me so much information. I'm glad you got pregnant with the first IVF. I have another issue which my insurance company won't cover. I have a balanced translocation between chromosomes 17 and 19. I could have a lot of different problems with an egg if the translocation isn't "balanced" like mine. If I do have IVF, there is a way to genetically "check" the egg out before the IVF. My insurance company doesn't cover it. Doesn't that seem insane? I have a KNOWN ISSUE and they still wont cover it. So, I may just pay for the test myself.

Anyway, thank you so much for all of the dietary changes you suggested. I had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant with my son that was stillborn, so I know all about limiting the diet. Anything that'll help, ya know?

Good luck with this pregnancy. How far along are you?

Re: New to message board

I wanted to send you a million hugs for your lose I am truly sorry.

Re: New to message board

And the plus side to what I call the "Tah-wee-Zah You Can't Have Anything Good Diet" - I've lost 8 pounds!!

There are TONS of books on PCOS and a lot of them have sections on diet and exercise and how important it is for us to do.

I never listened until T started explaining it in plain English.

You'll learn sooooo much from the girls here!!

Re: New to message board

Posted by atracinact

Welcome



Hope your stay is short

Re: New to message board

Posted by michele31

I wanted to send you a million hugs for your lose I am truly sorry.

Re: New to message board

I have PCOS too, my next resort would be to try Clomid...lots of luck to you!

Re: New to message board

Posted by leighla

And the plus side to what I call the "Tah-wee-Zah You Can't Have Anything Good Diet" - I've lost 8 pounds!!

There are TONS of books on PCOS and a lot of them have sections on diet and exercise and how important it is for us to do.

I never listened until T started explaining it in plain English.

You'll learn sooooo much from the girls here!!

Re: New to message board

Posted by calendargrl

I have PCOS too, my next resort would be to try Clomid...lots of luck to you!

Re: New to message board

Hi Lauren,

As I said on TTC - it's nice to see you on LIF (not on TTC or INF). It's been awhile since we've spoken and I am glad to see you here. I wish you a very short stay and lots of baby dust

Re: New to message board

Posted by dooodles

Hi Lauren,

As I said on TTC - it's nice to see you on LIF (not on TTC or INF). It's been awhile since we've spoken and I am glad to see you here. I wish you a very short stay and lots of baby dust

Re: New to message board

Posted by leighla

And the plus side to what I call the "Tah-wee-Zah You Can't Have Anything Good Diet" - I've lost 8 pounds!!