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Taima posted:Hi everyone, I have kind of a tangential question that's been on my mind and I'm hoping it can be answered. I hope you realize that there are very few, if any, people in this thread who are not in completely stable, long-term relationships or marriages, and that this decision wasn't made lightly. Sure, accidents happen, and Mantis gave you some really good food for thought on the efficacy of birth control (which is that it's normally really effective, but poo poo happens), but for the most part, the people posting in here did not just wake up one day saying, "Welp, time to pop out a few puppies, HURRR!"
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Jun 25, 2009 14:24
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Hey all. I've been posting my woes in the Pregnancy Megathread; figured I may as well post over here too. I'm 30, my husband is 26, and we've been married for a little under a year. Since we got married, I have been totally and utterly depressed, thanks to a miscommunication where I thought we agreed I'd go off birth control when we got married, and he thought we'd agreed to talk about it when we were married. Fast-forward, and after many, many, many discussions/arguments, my husband has finally seen the light (special thanks to Lannie and hepscat, whose posts really helped convince him!) and we're officially going to start trying...well, soon. I have to get the all-clear from the doc, because I'm diabetic and I'll have to go off medication and onto straight-up insulin while pregnant, and for all I know, I'll have to do the same while we're trying just to be safe. Anyway, I'm praying that we get pregnant really soon! I ordered a pregnancy test/ovulation test package from http://www.early-pregnancy-tests.com/ myself, can't wait to get it!
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Jul 15, 2009 03:24
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I have been taking Target, Kroger or Safeway brand prenatals for over a year now (I knew a year ago that I wanted to have a baby soon, so I just told my husband that they were better than regular women's one-a-days, which they are  ), and I have had zero upset stomachs or constipation, and I am someone who is prone to both. My doctor, when I first told him I was coming in next week to talk about having a baby, said the over the counter kind were fine.
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Jul 19, 2009 20:56
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I'm with you two, we've barely begun trying for real, but the doesn't mean it didn't disappoint me to find out that I am not pregnant. I've been waiting for nearly a year for my husband to be ready to try to have a baby, and now that he's there, I quite unrealistically want to be pregnant right now. I know that's silly and not at all how things go, but it doesn't stop me from being sad. 
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Jul 20, 2009 20:39
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Fire In The Disco posted:Hey all. I've been posting my woes in the Pregnancy Megathread; figured I may as well post over here too. I went to my primary care physician today, and he gave us the green light from his point of view for going ahead and trying for a baby. However, he wants me to see an obstetrician before we actually start trying, because he determined that while my diabetes medications are Class B meds and therefore fine for pregnancy, my high blood pressure meds are Class C and not ok. Thankfully, there are a lot of blood pressure medications out there, some of which are fine for pregnancy, so I will probably be switching. And, as far as the diabetes meds go, if the obstetrician wants me to change those up too, I'm game. I just want to have a safe and happy pregnancy! So, one down, one more to go. Now I need to find an obstetrician. I am not sure if there are any at the birth center I plan on using for prenatal care; I know they have nurses and midwives and doulas, but I don't think they have obstetricians. Still, they're probably a good place to start, and maybe they have recommendations I can try. Anyway, just thought I'd keep you all updated. Here's to hoping for another green light soon!
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Jul 24, 2009 07:28
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I made an appointment with the birth center for the end of August. My very experienced sister (mother of two, both birth center kids) is coming with me, because I am sure she'll ask things that I don't even know I should be asking. I am so excited I don't even know what to do with myself. I just cannot wait for this to become a reality. I've been praying for an "oooops" since before we got married, while simultaneously feeling guilty about it because I knew my then-fiance was not at all ready for it. Now that he is, I can't wait! edit: I was debating on posting this portion, but I think I will, and ask for what you ladies would do, were you in this situation: Let's say I test today and detect an LH surge. Sweet, I'm going to ovulate! Being who I am, waiting would probably kill me, so I would definitely want to try to get pregnant during this ovulation (especially since I am irregular and don't know when the next ovulation would be). BUT, there's the blood pressure medication. It's pregnancy categort C, meaning "animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus and there are no adequate and well-controlled studies in humans, but potential benefits may warrant use of the drug in pregnant women despite potential risks." This is the reason my doctor wants me to see an obstetrician in the first place; he wants to get me on a blood pressure medication that is category B (there probably doesn't exist one that is category A). So what do I do? If this theoretical scenario played out right now, meaning tomorrow I ovulated, and was actually able to get pregnant, the only thing I could think of to do would be to call my doctor ASAP and say that I won't be able to see my obstetrician 'til the end of August and see what he can do. What would you do in this scenario? Fire In The Disco fucked around with this message at 15:23 on Jul 25, 2009 |
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Jul 25, 2009 15:17
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Primary. I think he just wanted to see if an obstetrician had specific recommendations for me above what he was able to see about my drugs (e.g. that my diabetes meds are category B and considered safe for pregnancy whereas my HBP are category C and not). If the OB recommended changing all of the medications, my doctor would do that. I think he's just not as comfortable with the OB side of things, dealing more with general practice for non-pregnant folks.
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Jul 25, 2009 15:34
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Clonidine and Propranolol (generic Enderol). I am more than willing to get off 'em; my doctor has even expressed that he's not sure I need two drugs. The two drugs were first given to me when I was hospitalized last year with BP through the roof, like 220 over 140. If I can go down to one that's actually safe for pregnancy, I'll be more than happy to. Aldomet seems to be commonly prescribed to hypertensive pregnant women.
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Jul 25, 2009 17:48
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So, some bad news today that led to some somewhat good news: I talked to a midwife at the birth center I wanted to go to for prenatal care and she told me I can't go there. I was coming to terms with the fact that I wasn't going to be able to have a birth center birth with my medical conditions, but I figured I could still see a midwife for prenatal care, and maybe even have a midwife delivery at the adjunct hospital. I was pretty disappointed to learn that I couldn't even get that. The good new is, the midwife recommended me to an OB/GYN practice very near the birth center that they often work with. The practice specializes in low intervention and natural childbirth, and has a midwife on staff. Better yet, I can get in to see them in 2 weeks, so I don't have to wait until the end of August like I was going to do at the birth center. This helps alleviate my concern over what to do if we get pregnant sooner than the appointment and I'm still on category C drugs. So, maybe this is a blessing in disguise. I can meet with an obstetrician and even if we do get pregnant I'll be able to talk to her about making the right changes.
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Jul 27, 2009 21:14
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Thank you for that! I, of course, worry immensely that my hypertension and diabetes are going to cause major issues, and hearing stories like yours help me a lot!
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Jul 27, 2009 22:33
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The way I understand it, the ovulation test tests for an LH surge. The luteinizing hormone (LH) is what stimulates the follicle to release the egg, so you see a surge in it right before you ovulate. 24 hours is typically around the time frame. According to TCOYF, there are a couple of factors that can make the tests less effective, including LUFS (Luteinized Unruptured Follicle Syndrome) where there's an LH surge but no actual ovulation, mini peaks in LH that come before the big peak that makes the egg release, and the presence of fertility drugs. That's why the book talks about using them in conjuction with testing cervical mucous and basal temperature.
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Aug 6, 2009 18:39
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So, I was able to test my mucous and use my ovu test strips to determine when I was ovulating, and coincidentally it was like a week after my husband agreed we could try for a baby. We tried that time, but no dice. Because I have a super irregular cycle, I'm gauging my "no dice" on the fact that it's now been two weeks since our week o' trying, and my pregnancy test today came back negative. I guess it's still possible that after two weeks I don't have enough hCG for the test to be positive, but I have a feeling that I'm not pregnant. I guess the OB can confirm it for me when I go next week.
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Aug 7, 2009 02:26
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How long have you been off the Pill? According to to TCOYF, it can take a few months for cervical fluid to go back to normal after stopping taking birth control.
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Aug 7, 2009 14:16
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Miss Shell posted:Also, I must throw in my approval of TCOYF. It was very informative. Yeah, I'm reading it right now, and I am learning more than I ever imagined. I'm super irregular in cycle length, so learning how to chart my fertility is about the only way I'm going to be able to get pregnant naturally (we'll see if I can!)
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Aug 7, 2009 15:49
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Because you're really aware of your ovulation, it should be easier for you, like you said. Monitoring cervical mucous, taking basal temperature, using fertility monitors and testing for LH surges are all excellent tools for women who are not as lucky as you are and do not have easy symptoms of ovulation, or a regular cycle they can use to help determine when they ovulate.
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Aug 16, 2009 17:02
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 It's still early, and we haven't had an ultrasound yet, but I can't keep this inside anymore. We're pregnant! My estimation, based on me testing for LH surges and acting accordingly, is that we're about 4 weeks past fertilization, so I believe that counts as 6 weeks pregnant? No dating based on last missed period for me, as I don't have regular cycles at all, but I heard that they still add on those two weeks prior to fertilization. We have an ultrasound scheduled for about two weeks (was supposed to have one yesterday, to estimate a due date, but some mix-up meant it wasn't actually scheduled when it was supposed to be.  ), at which the OB tells me we might be able to see the heartbeat!We have told our immediate family, and our closest friends, but we're not telling work or the rest of the Internet until we're a little farther along. Not sure we'll be able to keep it under wraps all the way to the end of the first trimester, though.  We're over-the-moon excited!!!
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Aug 22, 2009 17:19
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Wheee! I am so incredibly excited, and to be honest, shocked it happened so quickly. We agreed to try to have a baby, then I began testing for LH surges a couple of days later. A few days after that, I detected a surge, and here I am, pregnant. I'm feeling really blessed that it happened so quickly!
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Aug 22, 2009 19:13
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Oh, sweet, I totally will!!
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Aug 22, 2009 23:17
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sheri posted:Can anyone give me their knowledge or experiences about trying to get pregnant after having been on the pill/some other form of hormonal birth control for some time. I've been on the pill nonstop since 2001. My husband and I aren't likely to start trying for kids until 2012, with the hope of having an early to mid 2013 baby. Are our chances of conceiving less likely since I will have been on the pill for a total of 11 years non-stop by that point? Now that I've broken down and admitted that I'm knocked up, I thought I'd share my experience with this as well.  I am 30, and I was on a form of birth control for 12 years. I took the pill for two years, then did Depo shots for three years, then was back on the pill for the rest of the years. For me, with extremely irregular cycles, contraceptives were a means to regulate my cycle as well as provide birth control. I went off the pill in January of this year. We didn't even talk about getting pregnant until the middle of July, and then it happened by the end of July. However, I think we just got really, really lucky, and I ovulated right after we talked about it. I would say that, in your situation, I'd be going off the pill when you feel confident that you're ready to have a baby, because it might happen right away, or it might happen a year later. But you should be prepared for the right away, as it has happened before. I highly recommend reading "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" by Toni Wechsler and beginning to practice FAM when you're ready to start trying. This way you'll begin to see the patterns in your body's ovulatory cycles and know when the best time to try is. She doesn't exactly recommend using ovulation strips, but honestly, that's what worked for me. I think using them in conjunction with FAM is a great way to have a holistic picture of your fertility. Whew...novel...
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Aug 23, 2009 04:46
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Woooo, congrats Pixi! How far along are you?
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Sep 14, 2009 01:28
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TinuvielDancing posted:I am trying not to stress out. I went off my birthcontrol at the end of June and haven't gotten a period yet. I've been on it for about 11 years, and I know it takes a while to get back into a normal cycle. I scheduled a doctor's appointment just because it seemed to make sense. I figured they'd do a pregnancy test and tell me not to worry, I'm just still dealing with the after effects of the birth control. I didn't get a period back after getting off BC at all. I was on it for about 8 years, having been on Depo for 4 years previous to getting on the pill. I went off the pill in January, and in July I got pregnant. I didn't really think anything of the 7 months without a period, because I was irregular before the pill, and I figured my body just needed time to readjust to the change in hormone levels. This is how I discovered that I do, indeed, ovulate even if I don't bleed.
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Sep 24, 2009 13:13
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What really helped me was using ovulation test strips. I, too, though I'd need a period to ovulate. But I bought a pack of test strips from http://www.early-pregnancy-tests.com/ which I believe has been pimped in here before, and began tracking daily. I was surprised when less than a week later, I actually detected a LH surge, and we got pregnant the first time around. 
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Sep 24, 2009 15:03
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qentiox posted:Yay, Tinuviel! Sweeeeeeeeet! Congratulations!
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Sep 27, 2009 03:32
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Lannie posted:Glad you're doing a bit better. My fingers are crossed. I have absolutely heard this as well-- something about your body already being in baby-making mode. I have my fingers crossed that this is the case for you, Chicky!
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Sep 30, 2009 01:38
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If you've been trying to get pregnant for a while now, and you have sex daily, you might want to cut back to every other day when you're ovulating. For some men, they don't produce enough viable sperm in a 24 hour period, so 48 hours gives you a better shot. If you're not sure when you're ovulating, there are lots of ways to figure it out. I used ovulation test strips, personally, but a lot of women test their cervical mucous daily and take basal temperatures daily to track when they're going to ovulate.
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Oct 4, 2009 08:43
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yumemiru posted:I've been charting for a while now (mucus/temperature), so I have a good handle on when I've ovulated, it's just my cycle length has been irregular. Last month was 24, this month 21 (!), before that it was 28 consistently for 4 months when I went off the pill. I'm sorry you're not getting pregnant as quickly as you want to, it totally sucks. You guys still may want to try cutting down on the sex during the few days before, the day of, and the few days after you ovulate-- basically, have sex when you know it's coming, when you ovulate, and a couple of days later. I don't know how common it is for men to not produce viable sperm in 24 hours, but I know I have heard it both in here and in other places before, so it can't be that uncommon. It might not be the answer, but it might help. v v
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Oct 4, 2009 17:52
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I used those ovulation strips as well, and when I was unsure, like with yours in the photo, I would do a second one later the same day so that I wouldn't miss a surge. It worked for me.
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Oct 6, 2009 22:54
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If you guys have been reading "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" and testing her cervical mucous, you should be able to detect when she's going to ovulate, but for an extra boost, consider getting ovulation test strips. I, too, have a completely whacked out cycle. I would go up to four or five months without getting my period. Besides everything else awesome about the book, TCOYF taught me that once you ovulate, you will menstruate within a couple of weeks, no matter how long the time was before ovulating, so you're probably right in thinking that she hasn't ovulated at all. But the ovulation test strips are what did the trick for me. We got pregnant the first time around when I started using them. This is the pack I bought: http://www.early-pregnancy-tests.com/midstreamtes.html
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Oct 14, 2009 12:34
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Longpig posted:I'm 7 days past ovulation and my chart looks really promising - temperatures have been really high the past two mornings. It's getting hard not to get my hopes up again...! I have my fingers crossed for you!!
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Oct 22, 2009 14:35
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Ma_NiC posted:Got my results back and everything is normal this time, hooray! Not sure exactly what happened the last time, but everything is fine now. I was really skeptical of the previous results, and thankfully with good cause. I am so relieved. Sweet!! That is great news!
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Oct 22, 2009 19:19
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slowfoot posted:Hi everyone. I hope it turns out to be a positive pregnancy! If it's the blue line kind, those are notorious for being idiotic, so if you don't get your period soon and you want to try another one, go all out and buy one of the digital ones that says "Pregnant" or "Not Pregnant." No chance for errors there. If you're not pregnant, you might want to consider charting your ovulation. "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" is an amazing book, and gives you some awesome tools to use to figure out when you're most fertile. I was planning on charting my cycle as well as using ovulation test strips, but my husband and I got supremely lucky and got pregnant the first time around from using ovu strips alone. But I imagine when we're ready to try for #2 we'll do full on charting.
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Oct 24, 2009 16:46
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Longpig posted:Go team uterus, I'm pregnant again! Woo!! Congrats, Longpig!
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Oct 28, 2009 13:49
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slowfoot posted:Congrats! Wooo! Congrats! I still post in both threads
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Oct 28, 2009 16:15
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Right on! Glad you posted in here, and I'm really glad to hear TCOYF has shed some light for you! That book is a freaking godsend for anyone who doesn't have absolutely regular, spot on periods and ovulation. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you guys!! PS, I did get pregnant the first time around trying after learning about testing for ovulation, so it can happen.
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Nov 3, 2009 00:17
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Some women ovulate really quickly-- for them, testing more than once a day is sometimes helpful, because between one morning test and the next morning test, ovulation may have already occurred. When I was trying to get pregnant, I abandoned the manufacturer's suggestion of peeing on an ovu strip every other day and went straight to every day. When I started to detect an LH surge, I tested twice a day. It apparently worked for me, as we got pregnant the first go around. I would chart for a couple of months and see if you notice the same quick temp changes and the corresponding cervical mucous changes. If so, then you might want to think of yourself as a quick ovulator and go from there. If it turns out that this was an anomaly based on your irregular cycle length, then you'll know too.
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Nov 11, 2009 23:41
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I can totally sympathize, Twatty Seahag. I was an emotional wreck when I went off the pill, after having been on it for 12 years. Really, I'm no different now, but that's because I actually am pregnant now . But it did get better for me, and it didn't take more than a couple of months. I hope it's the same for you! And yeah, nthing TCOYF. It's a mind-blowing book. I learned so much from it, even in the short time I used it (I got pregnant first time we actually tried aligning sex with my fertile days). I am actually excited to be able to put it to good use after this baby, especially when we decide we're ready to try for #2.
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Nov 19, 2009 00:07
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^^^ I also could have written that post myself a year ago. You're definitely not alone, dishonesty. I did buy TCOYF, and began to check my cervical mucous and basal temperature daily, but it was ovu strips that really did it for me. I tossed out the instructions that said to test every other day and went straight to every day. When I thought I detected a little LH surge, I began to test twice a day, after having heard many stories of women who ovulate so quickly that one day a surge will show up and the next it will be gone. This method worked for us, since I got pregnant the first go-around.
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Nov 19, 2009 14:42
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Yeah, if you track your mucous and basal temps and use ovu strips when you notice changes, you'll probably do fine, but don't be too disappointed if it doesn't happen the first time around. But we're all pulling for you! PS: Ovu strips are really, really cheap at https://www.early-pregnancy-tests.com. They typically come with free pregnancy tests as well when you buy the ovu strips, but I have heard mixed reactions with the accuracy of the preggo strips. Mine worked fine and showed me pregnant five weeks after fertilization, but others have reported that they got false negatives and the fancy shmancy digital preggo tests from the drugstore gave accurate positives.
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Nov 21, 2009 07:06
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Absolutely, as long as you establish that they work for you (there's a small portion of the population who they don't work for). It's been said before but bears repeating: with ovu strips, you might have to mess around a bit with how often to test. The directions that come with them say to test every other day, if I'm not mistaken. That might work well for some people, but my ovulation cycle's short enough that I tested daily until I noticed a small surge, then twice a day during the surge to make sure I had it covered. So you can try it for a month or two testing less often, but if you find that you're not detecting surges, you might want to try daily or even twice daily. vvvvv This is very, very, very good advice, and I am ashamed I didn't include it in my post. Fire In The Disco fucked around with this message at 01:06 on Nov 24, 2009 |
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Nov 23, 2009 18:46
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annaconda posted:I may be channeling Dr Phil here, but is it possible that he is so upset at the idea that he can't have his "own" children that he is telling himself he doesn't want any at all? He could be trying to block the pain... Nah, you're probably onto something, even if he is feeling that subconsciously and not really understanding it. Papaya, I am so sorry to hear you're having trouble with your relationship. I think what I would do in your situation is talk more about it (not constantly, but on some occasions), and see how he reacts to it. As time goes on, he might change his mind-- but you're right, if he doesn't, it's going to be up to you to decide if you're willing to give up having a family. I haven't personally experienced what you're going through, but it did take a year for me to convince my husband it was time to have kids, so in some ways I can relate.
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Nov 25, 2009 11:26
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