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Avalinka posted:Okay - Thank you to all the people who recommended Taking Charge Of Your Fertility, it is such an amazing book! I have it out from the library, but I'm totally buying a copy, it's teaching me so so much about my body and how it works! (I had NO idea how a cervix looked/worked. Seriously, I thought it was something that blocked the opening though to the uterus, not the actual opening itself. There's a hole through it! No idea why I thought this, but I did miss pretty much all of health class in school.) Hey Avalinka I'm a medical student who was lurking this thread. You should definitely go see your neurologist. He or she will be able to help you make a plan to have a healthy pregnancy while controlling your epilepsy. I'd aim to involve him or her before you start trying, so your husband may have to hold off for a bit! You're already on high dose folic acid by the sound of things (I assume around 4 mg or so), which is a good start. As you're aware, anticonvulsants can slightly increase the risk of birth defects, which I assume is why you're asking about tapering down the epilim. Depending on your seizure history, your doctor may want you on a lower anticonvulsant dose and/or a different medication, or no medication at all. Keep in mind that you don't really want to be having seizures during pregnancy either, so it's best to aim for a balance of controlling the epilepsy and any risks of abnormalities. I don't know enough about your medical history to give you any real advice, but suffice it to say that the combination of epilepsy and pregnancy is pretty common and there are well-established approaches for dealing with it. Best of luck!
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Dec 10, 2011 07:15
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Bahunter22 posted:I mean, what's the harm in sexing while you wait? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaginismus 
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Dec 10, 2011 08:42
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tishthedish posted:I considered it being implantation bleeding, but it was too red for that, I think. Any ideas? Did I have a 5 minute period this month? That's pretty much the sort of thing my body did for a few months post-Pill, then there's the month where my period is like 2 weeks late, and then it's horrible & long... and then I start ovulating. This is my second time through the process and it's exactly the same. Just anecdotal, but yah, give it a few months.
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Dec 12, 2011 04:33
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Just a followup. Confirmed a while back that Mrs. Otter is preggo. She wants to wait until the 2nd trimester to announce it to the people at work. (we work for different agencies in the same office so we have a lot of mutual work friends). I'm just concerned that waiting that long will make people feel excluded. Ah well. Headed over to the pregnancy thread.
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Dec 14, 2011 18:08
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otter posted:Just a followup. Confirmed a while back that Mrs. Otter is preggo. She wants to wait until the 2nd trimester to announce it to the people at work. (we work for different agencies in the same office so we have a lot of mutual work friends). I'm just concerned that waiting that long will make people feel excluded. Ah well. Headed over to the pregnancy thread. It really won't make people feel excluded. A huge number of people wait until they hit the second trimester to tell anyone (particularly non-family), because the rate of miscarriage drops through the floor at week 13. No one will think it is odd.
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Dec 14, 2011 20:43
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tishthedish posted:My uterus is an enigma. Probably a coming-off-the-pill thing, but pregnancy tests are cheap and readily available. May as well pee on one to rule it out.
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Dec 14, 2011 23:16
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So after years of following all the pregnancy/parenting threads, I'm finally on my last week of bc pills! I am so excited & scared all at the same time. But maybe the best part about quitting the pill is that I won't be a creepy childless stalker in the threads & facebook group for much longer....
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Dec 15, 2011 02:20
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GoreJess posted:So after years of following all the pregnancy/parenting threads, I'm finally on my last week of bc pills! I am so excited & scared all at the same time. Holy crap! Hooray!
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Dec 15, 2011 02:46
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Chickalicious posted:Holy crap! Hooray! Thanks  Keep your fingers crossed that I don't go crazy after quitting 10 years of hormone control.
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Dec 15, 2011 02:52
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That's so exciting GoreGess! We started trying about 4 months ago and at first I was disappointed when my period would come, but now I am just happy and excited we are trying. I started taking Materna prenatal vitamins about 5 months ago and haven't had any sort of problems with these. You can buy a large bottle at Costco for a decent price.
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Dec 15, 2011 03:41
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slinkimalinki posted:Probably a coming-off-the-pill thing, but pregnancy tests are cheap and readily available. May as well pee on one to rule it out. I took a test Monday afternoon and it was negative. Then Monday night I had some cramping...but no bleeding.  I guess I will take another test in a few days. I am just afraid to see another negative. 
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Dec 15, 2011 05:24
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Farrah posted:Good luck DubDisciple - I'm pregnant with twins from IVF and the worry definitely doesn't end at 12 weeks. Twins are much more risky than most people know and your chances of ending up on bedrest/giving birth as early as 28 weeks is unfortunately common.
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Dec 20, 2011 02:39
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Ugh... I can't wait for the tests on my blood and his.. stuff to come back. Right now this thing is a chore Every day I am supposed to pee on a stick so this ovulation computer-thing can help predict Go Time (clearblue ovulation somethingorother).. I've had my blood tested for all those hormones that apparently make my body work, and hubby has donated to make sure his swimmers swim. What a pain. Can't we just adopt a dog instead?
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Dec 31, 2011 17:13
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GoreJess posted:Thanks
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Jan 5, 2012 14:13
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PoliSciGirl posted:Im in the same situation. I've been on BC for 13 years until yesterday when I got my implanon removed. Exciting and scary times. Yay for both of us! It's been 2.5 weeks & so far no crazy mood swings  That first week I was getting headaches every day, but those have tapered off thank god.
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Jan 6, 2012 01:34
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Just a little anecdote... Doctor advised us of lots of products that can help (or at least not hinder) getting knocked up. One of them is called "Pre-Seed", a lube. The reviews on Amazon are largely positive yet there's quite a few people who left it negative reviews with the general statement: "Lies! Did not get me pregnant!" or some variation thereof.. the mental image of a bunch of cranky women thinking it was not a sex aid, but was some sort of magic lube shot that would propel sperm straight into the egg made me laugh. What? It's NOT a miracle product?! WHAT!? Snicker.
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Jan 6, 2012 05:47
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Cathis posted:Just a little anecdote... I had to laugh when I read them too. The logic astounds me. I did use this product when we started trying and it really is nice. My only complaint is it feels a lot like cm during ovulation so if you're using that as a guide for conception it can be tricky telling what exactly is going on. Other than that though its great stuff.
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Jan 6, 2012 14:04
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Whew! I have spent the last week and a half reading through this entire thread. My boyfriend and I have decided we are going to start trying to conceive in September. We are waiting until then to give me plenty of time to lose weight and also because I would love to give birth in June or July. By September I will be 28 and my boyfriend will be 29. I just started my first cycle after stopping birth control, so from today out I will be charting. I also picked up some folic acid supplements. I got a copy of TCOYF and it is a great book! I read it many years ago from the library, but it is totally worth it to have your own copy. Some questions: The folic acid I take is sublingual. Does anybody have experience with this? I didn't know some vitamins came in sublingual form and I just want to make sure they are just as good. They also have 1200 mcg per tablet. Is it possible to get too much? Also regarding DHA, I know this is important to get especially as I don't eat any kind of fish/shellfish. Are there any brands though that don't smell/taste like fish? Could I get the same thing from flaxseed oil? The reason I ask is because I can't eat fish or shellfish because even just smelling it will cause me to vomit, and if I taste it in my mouth I vomit straight for 30-60 minutes. Sorry if that is TMI, but it is important that I have a supplement that doesn't smell or taste like fish. Does anybody know how alcohol affects sperm? I worry sometimes that I won't be able to get pregnant, because my ex-fiance and I tried for two years and we never conceived. Honestly, he was an alcoholic (hence, he is my ex) so I comfort myself by saying the problem was probably with his sperm, but I can't know for sure. I went to a doctor at the time who basically gave me the "you're young, plenty of time, blah blah" line, so no testing was ever done. I hope you ladies don't mind me hanging around and asking occasional questions about charting even though we aren't trying until September. Good luck to you all!
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Jan 8, 2012 00:15
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I've read that excessive alcohol can impair the morphology of sperm, basically making them retarded and unable to find the egg or properly fertilize it. You can Google if you want to read up on it. So it's definitely possible. If you want to get yourself checked out, you could always go to the doctor and just say you tried to conceive for two years and couldn't - They don't have to know that the person you tried to conceive with wasn't your current partner, and it may cause them to take you more seriously and do some testing. Most doctors will start to look into it after a year of unsuccessful trying, so I'd try a different doctor this time. These are the prenatals my doc recommended, and they have DHA included: http://www.walmart.com/ip/VitaFusion-Prenatal-Gummy-Vitamins-90ct/16935565 To me, they didn't taste anything like fish. I did find a separate DHA supplement at Wal-Mart when I was pregnant that were tiny softgels that didn't taste fishy at all, but I can't find them on the website.
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Jan 8, 2012 04:53
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Target's prenatal gummies are basically knock-offs of those, and Target's are a few dollars cheaper. The vitamins and amounts in both brands are exactly the same, and I can vouch that Target's don't taste like fish either. Downside is that there's no iron or calcium in either one, so you might want to make sure you take other supplements or watch your diet once you do get pregnant. One really low-effort way to supplement your iron is to cook in a cast-iron pan. Some of the iron will leech out of the pan and into your food. Sounds kinda creepy and weird, but apparently it works.
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Jan 8, 2012 05:06
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Yeah I had to take a separate iron supplement because pregnancy made me anemic. They will test you for that as part of your regular bloodwork, though.
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Jan 9, 2012 02:30
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yawnie posted:Yeah I had to take a separate iron supplement because pregnancy made me anemic. They will test you for that as part of your regular bloodwork, though. My prenatals include iron, folic acid, and calcium. They're the Trader Joe's ones and they're also the only ones I was able to take that didn't make me constipated so that's a nice bonus. The only other thing I take with my prenatals are omega-3s.
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Jan 9, 2012 04:29
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Cathis posted:Just a little anecdote... Thanks for this going to check it out! My cycle has come so we will be trying again. With both of our work schedules and building a house we are still managing to try every other day for the best results. A friend gave me great advice, told me not to get crazy and that it took for a year for her first pregnancy. So I'm feeling good and just staying relaxed and enjoying the process.
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Jan 9, 2012 07:00
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I thought you weren't supposed to take calcium at the same time as iron because calcium inhibits iron absorption? There seem to be a lot of prenatals that don't have calcium. Calcium is bulky so it can be easier to take it separately. Plus you're supposed to take something like 500 mg twice a day- not all at once. Of course that is if you are using the supplement to get 100% RDA.
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Jan 9, 2012 14:12
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enitsirk posted:I thought you weren't supposed to take calcium at the same time as iron because calcium inhibits iron absorption? I just looked on my prenatals and there's only 200mg in a pill. You only take 1 a day so that makes sense.
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Jan 9, 2012 15:30
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Well, it looks like we're graduating to the pregnancy thread. We had 2 positive tests last week and went to the doctor yesterday. They just assume we're pregnant since we got the positives (yes, I know, false positives are very rare) but I think that we're just scared because it took so long. Online calculators say we're Sep. 14, but the nurse said we're Sep. 2. The online calculators took into account my weird, long cycles... I don't think the nurse did, even though I told her... We have a sonogram on Thur., so I guess we'll know more then. I have to call and find out my progesterone levels this afternoon to see if I need a prescription... I don't think I'll really believe all of this is real until Thur.
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Jan 17, 2012 13:53
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Are those expensive ovulation monitors worth the money?
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Jan 17, 2012 14:12
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Alterian posted:Are those expensive ovulation monitors worth the money?
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Jan 17, 2012 19:31
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Alterian posted:Are those expensive ovulation monitors worth the money? I'd give mine away but they say it's a single user thing or something. I would think that after years of not using it it would just reset or whatever.
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Jan 17, 2012 23:57
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I use ovulation strips right now. I read the clearblue monitor can be more accurate. Now that my thyroid is starting to get back in order I'm starting to track my cycles again. I can't believe we've been trying on and off for 3 years now Ugh.
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Jan 18, 2012 04:52
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Just heard from the fertility doctor, all our tests came back normal, so.. the prescription is to keep trying for another 4 months.
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Jan 18, 2012 21:34
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Cathis posted:Just heard from the fertility doctor, all our tests came back normal, so.. the prescription is to keep trying for another 4 months. Good luck...this is our last cycle trying before I send the husband to the dr. I ovulate like clockwork every month, so if there's a problem it's more likely to be on his end. We got busy this month 2 days before I ovulated and on the day itself, so we'll see.
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Jan 19, 2012 13:01
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My wife and I are just warming up to try and get pregnant. I'm going to be the birth mother (this time). I'm taking my temperature, going for blood tests, all of that jazz. We live in the London borough of Lambeth, and our doctor so far has been wonderfully sweet to us. Our usual doctor even sent an email around to all of the other doctors in the centre in case we didn't see him when we came back, bless him. Excited to hear of any more English goons who have used or are using an Assisted Conception Unit to get up the duff.
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Jan 23, 2012 21:57
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I think I have a pink line! Oh man. It's so faint that I know if I test again now, even if there IS a line, the result is iffy at best. Oh god, I am going to be SO EAGER to wake up and pee tomorrow morning! Cross your collective fingers for a darker line tomorrow!
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Mar 3, 2012 04:54
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False positives are ridiculously rare Congratulations, and hie ye hence to the Pregnancy thread!
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Mar 3, 2012 07:00
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I stopped taking my birth control at the end of October. It's been four months with no period (and several pregnancy tests, just in case), so I called my gyno. She gave me Provera to take for 10 days. Fingers crossed that it works! My husband and I have good careers, just bought a house with four bedrooms, and we're ready to have a few little ones. Besides the cats, I mean. I have found that my husband is way more enthused than I am. Not that I don't want a child, but I am five years younger than he. It's nice because he makes sure I'm taking my vitamins and I know he'll be there every step of the way.
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Mar 3, 2012 08:50
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Ben Davis posted:False positives are ridiculously rare I had one before.. but I have now peed on six sticks and gotten six very faint thin lines. I will keep peeing on sticks but I am going to assume after 10 months, we finally got it right!
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Mar 3, 2012 15:21
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Congrats, Cathis!
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Mar 3, 2012 15:42
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Congratulations Cathis!!! I've had 2 cycles since going off the pill in December. The first was 5 weeks & this last one was 6 weeks. I've been tracking my BBT & I'm pretty sure I actually ovulated this last time My temperature jumped & I think I actually felt the egg release, even though at the time I thought it was just a weird cramp. So no babies yet, but at least my body is starting to remember how to function. This next month is going to be crazy (moving into our first house!!!) so who knows if that will throw everything way off kilter.
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Mar 3, 2012 15:47
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Congrats Cathis! Looks like I'll be joining this thread. I've got an appointment to have my Mirena removed in two weeks. I'm interested to see how quickly my cycles return to normal afterwards. They were always super regular before, but I've been using Mirena for 6.5 years and pretty much haven't had periods at all for most of that time. We aren't planning to start trying until at least August, but wanted to give plenty of time for my cycles to go back to normal.
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Mar 3, 2012 16:56
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