TTC please help!?

Question

Hi,

I have been charting my temperature for the last 2 months.

This last month it seems that I have a very long cycle seems it seems that I ovulated the 18th July (day 25).

As per my tracking sheet the temperature raised on that day and in fact the days before the 18th I had lots of white egg mucus, that's why I assumed was cause I was about to ovulate.

On the 16th July (2 days before the ovulation) I went for a blood test to check if my hormone level.

And in fact my doctor said that was in fact too low. I said that I think I have actually ovulate on the 18th but she said that she suspect that because it is too low close to ovulation I may have some problem with my ovary like PCOS. She also said that it is very unlikely that I'm pregnant. :(

Because she is suspecting that I have PCOS she want me to have an ultrasound to my ovary to check if what she suspect is right.

I will have the ultrasound in the next few weeks. when they should perform the ultrasound, only closer to ovulation or they can do it at any time?

But whyit seems that I was ovulating but my hormone level was too low?

So charting temperature and mucus will not detect if there are some problem?

please help!

TTC for 17 months!

Answer 1

When they do an ultrasound to see if you have PCO, it doesn't matter the time in your cycle. If you do have PCOS, you can still ovulate, most women with PCOS do not ovulate on their own.

The best thing to do is ask your doc to send you to a reproductive endocrinologist(RE), since you have been ttc for more than a year.

I'm curious, which hormones were low?

Answer 2

I have PCOS.  You can ovulate with PCOS on your own, I have 2 kids naturally that prove it, and 1 kid through fertility.  

I was not dx by ultrasound.  I was dx at age 19, and have had a cyst rupture and was hospitalized at age 29.  Typically PCOS women ovulate infrequently, and irregularly, hence the long cycles.  PCOS does not need to be dx by an ultrasound.  They may not find any cysts and you still can have it.

Charting the temp and mucus will not detect a problem.  

PCOS is when the ovaries do not produce the right hormone levels to conceive, and cysts occur on the ovaries.  Its kinda like premature ovarian failure but its not complete.  

Ask your doc to check your A1C level.  This is bloodsugar averages for 3months.  This may or may not be elevated, mine is not but is near the ceiling of normal 5.7.  Ask for a script for Metformin, this is a type II diabetic med that will help keep your blood sugars lower and decrease the chances of cysts and increase the chances of the ovaries producing the right level of hormones.  Most women with PCOS take 500mg 3X/day.  Even not being diabetic some women have sensitive reproductive systems that do not do well with surges of blood sugar.  This is why the Southbeach diet, or something following a low-glycemic index is recommended.  

Also ask for your doc to check for a +ACLA (anti-cardiolipid antibody), it is also called lupus anticoagulent.  This is a common co-morbidity of PCOS and basically causes you to have sludgy thick blood.  It is easily fixed by blood thinners (baby aspirin).  The thick blood can cause an increased chance for you to have difficulty implanting, miscarriage by clotting off the oxygen to the baby, an abrupted placenta, stroke or heart attack.  

You hear of a lot of PCOS women having multiple miscarriages, the reasons for this are the progesterone levels, or a +ACLA.  Both can be controlled.

I had to take a hcg trigger shot to conceive (ovidrel).  I ovulated day 26.  Also once pregnant my ovaries did not make enough progesterone to support the pregnancy typical in PCOS women and I had to supplement with progesterone.  Once pregnant make sure they monitor your progesterone levels.  Once you hit 12 weeks the placenta takes over the progesterone production.

I got pregnant taking clomid 50mg.  I also took baby aspirin and fragmin to thin the blood, metformin to help regulate my ovaries, robitussin to thin my CM, and ovidrel to trigger ovulation.

Before going to an expensive reproductive endocrinologist (we spent 24,000 dollars at 1 for 9 months treatment) do all you can with your gyn.  Once at the RE, they will do many things that your gyn can do.  U/S, check LH (leutenizing hormone), FSH (follicle stimulating hormone), and progesterone levels.  An RE will want you on metformin after checking your A1C level, and try clomid.  An RE will also check you for +ACLA.  You can do all this with your gyn.