Ovulation Help

I know it's easier said than done but try to be patient. My husband and I tried for 5 months before we finally got pregnant. We thought it would be much faster because I was only 26 and he was 28. I tried the ovulation monitors too but they made it more frustrating. Finally I just listened to my body (my doctor told me that you usually get a clear, slippery discharge when you are ovulating). It totally worked! We now have a 7-week-old baby. Good luck!

Read "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" by Toni Weschler. Get it now and read it well. Chart daily. If you dedicate time to the planning method, you can't go wrong. I'm using the method not to conceive, and it works wonderfully without having to use condoms, or add horomones to my body. :-) Good luck!

p.s. Don't use horomones to conceive (Clomid), unless you want to gain a bunch of weight, be horomonally and emotionally imbalanced, and still not get pregnant! Use charting (the old fashioned way), or as one of my girlfriend says - just have sex everyday until you're pregnant! :-)

i would consult with a reproductive endocrinologist. they will do a full workup during your cycle to find out the whole ovulation mystery.

* i would actually not take cough medicine or anything w/o a doctor even tho i am sure robitussin is benign. and since you have thyroid issues definitely seek medical consult whether you are over or under 30 and ttc. why not get as much info as you can about your body?(unless of course you are already pregnant)

I think that you should go see a specialist - can't hurt. Also, there is a great FREE online tracking site called Fertility Friend (search on Google). It helped me track and get PG ASAP. Also, I agree with the mucus checking and also, take your temp everyday. Good luck - and remember 4 months is just a start. It takes the average woman 1.5 years. So hang in there...

Are you also checking your cervical mucus? When it's thick like egg whites you are ovulating. Sometimes your mucus can be too thick. If that's the problem then take Robbitussen cough syrup. The expectorant, guffinisen or something like that. It will help thin your mucus just like it clears your chest. Another thing, is it possible you are already pregnant since you are showing now signs of ovulation? Consider that. :)

Unless you are over 30 don't bother seeing a doctor until you have tried to get pregnant for at least 6 months. Even then be armed with your charts and everything. You may consider seeing your regular doctor though and make sure you thyroid levels are correct. That can keep you from getting pregnant.

Hi Kelly,
My husband and I tried to conceive for 3 yrs before I bought the monitor. The first month I didn't ovulate and the second month I ovulated on the 25th day!! Sure enough,I got pregnant!! Unlike most women who ovulate 10-14 days I was ovulating at the end of my cycle. Buying the machine was the best $200 investment of my life. After conceiving, I passed it around to friends and 2 cousins who also conceived. A lot of times it just seems to be we all ovulate differently.
Good luck
R. Q. mom of 2!!

Hi Kelly. I had similar problems. I had Graves disease and had the radioactive procude to have my thyroid de-activated (so instead of having it removed, it is still intact but does not function). We tried to conceive prior to knowing about the Graves disease for almost a year (fertility testing is how they found the problem) and for almost 8 months after they cleared me to try again. Anyway, the O-sticks did not work great for me either. I borrowed a little computerized o-monitor from a friend and it worked much better. It keeps track of your ovulation monthly and although it is a little pricey, I found it worth it. I do know that the thyroid problems can have an impact upon ovulation. Not sure where you live, but my endorcrinologist is the best doctor in the world (located in Livingston) and I can give you her name if you think you need to be checked out.

my sister has to take synthroid now for her levels, she found out there was an issue during her pregnancy. she did get pregnant quite easily, but you may just have irregular ovulation. sometimes people can even skip a month. since its only been 4 months i wouldnt be worried, but what i would do is go to your gyno and tell them you have been trying longer. it cant hurt to eliminate minor things right off the bat.
i would go online and get the stick ovulation tests as they are super cheap. have you been using them the whole time or just the one month. i didnt ovulate till day 20. i had always had a irregular period. if i hadnt had the tests, i would have never knew when to try. i still have no idea when i ovulate in other months.
i would def talk to the doctor jsut because you have the thyroid issue, but i wouldnt worry much as 4 months isnt long at all. good luck, hope all works out!!!

Hi Kelly,

Typically you ovulate 14 days after the start of your last period. Stress and other factors can change your ovulation timeframe.

I tried to conceive my dd for 1 1/2 years before finally getting pregnant with her (I am 40). You are still young. I would wait a few more months before consulting a RE (Reproductive Endocronologist).

www.Fertilityfriend.com is awesome. You join in and can chart your temps, among other things relating to your cycle. Over time you will see patterns.......

CM (cervical mucus) is a great sign of being fertile, as well as temps.

Good luck. Feel free to contact me with questions. I've been through it all! ____@____.com.

~J.

My husband and I tried for 3 years for our 1st child and 5 1/2 years for our second so don't lose hope. The third pregnancy ended in miscarriage but our second child was only 9 months old when I got pregnant that time.

The synthroid should not effect the TTC. I got pregnant while on the generic of synthroid no problem. As for the ovulation it sounds like you have a slightly longer period than the 28 day cycle. I have had cycles fron 30 to 38 days the majority of my life and I have two beautiful daughters. You may not ovulate every month or you may vary in the time. If your really concerened go to a fertility specialist and see what they say. A.

My doctor told me that nothing is really more frustrating than ovulation kits and that she wishes they had never been invented. Chances are that when you finally get a POSITIVE on an ovulation kit, you have likely missed the window to conceive. I had tried them while trying to conceive my 2nd child. I didn't get a positive a whole month until the POSITIVE showed up on the pregnancy test. She is turning 5 next week. I conceived my oldest child on Day 6 of my cycle. Please try a little earlier in the month! Day 10 or so!!
Best of luck!!!

Hi Kelly! I'm a 34 year old first time mom to a beautiful baby boy of 4 months. When my husband and I first started ttc I was worried too. I had one side of my thyroid removed in 2005 and am on 50mcg of synthroid. It took us 11 months to get pregnant! I had made my yearly checkup appointment with my gyno and expected to ask the question "Now what do we do?" but then two weeks later found out I was pregnant. I've been told by my endocrinologist that my thyroid issue was not considered to be a hinderance to conception. Now, the thyroid being totally hormone related...I'm not sure that I completely believe that but I'm not a doctor either. I believe that I got pregnant because I used the First Response Ovulation Predictor. As soon as the stick started to show signs of ovulation I put my husband to work!! Give it a try. I never used the fertility monitor but the ovulation sticks worked for us. Good luck!

Hey Kelly
I don't have a thyroid problem,but after 6 months of trying and not getting pregnant,a friend suggested charting my temperature.I know someone else also posted that.It worked like a charm for us.You need a digital thermometer and a graph to chart it,I can't remember how it all worked exactly,my oldest is 14 and we used it then.I am sure if you search online,I think it is your basal body temperature.It would be much cheaper than continually buying sticks or the other $200 thing others suggested.5 months really is not a long time,I recommend the temperature method,at least try it.

talk to your OBGYN and they will probably try giving you Clomid. if that doesn't work then they will refer to a fertility specialist.

Hi Kelly,
You've received a lot of insight, here's some more from someone who had a very difficult time conceiving AND has a thyroid issue. FIRST, many doctors (including fertility specialists and some endocronolgists) will tell you that your thyroid has nothing to do with your ovulation and/or conceiving. BUT (this is a HUGE BUT) it does. After several years and much research, I can assure it does. You must have your thyroid under control before you'll properly ovulate, since your thyroid affects your pituitary gland, which in turn affects every other part of your body, including hormones and ovulation. Synthroid did not work well for me, since my body did not convert the T4 into T3 properly, so I went on the natural Thyroid, Armour thyroid. That helped significantly with my thyroid balance and my sense of well-being. My endocronologist, who worked closely with me during my IVF procedures, is excellent and sees this same issue with many of his patients (many doctors don't understand this issue because there is little or no large "clinical" studies that account for thyroid as a factor in ovulation and/or pregnancy. So it takes a skilled endocronologist to catch it).
SECOND: You must have at least 14- 16 days between your period and ovulation for pregnancy. These are crucial numbers that few women know (though you will learn in the recommended book). I cannot explain why (the book or your fertility specialist may), so 16 days is actually a GOOD sign.
THIRD: cut out all caffiene and pay attention to your sugar and carb intake. For thyroid patients this seems to have an impact (again, we don't know why, but it does - again few doctors tell you this). It's important that you have a BALANCED diet, so that includes sugars and carbs, but be sure they're the right ones in the proper balance.
I also read the book "Taking Charge of your Fertility", which is an excellent book and I highly recommend. There are other books too at Borders or Barnes and Noble.
I am very grateful I have an endocronologist that is so knowledgeable, especially about the thyroid's impact on pregancy. It is critical. If your endocronologist thinks the thyroid has no impact on fertility or pregnancy, that's a sign to find another endocronologist. Once my thyroid was in balance and I corrected my diet and was able to know when I was actually ovulating, I got pregnant. That was after 5-7 solid years of trying everything.
Good luck and my thoughts are with you.

Hi Kelly, I am a certified Holistic Health Counselor and can help you. My website is www.myfoodtherapy.com. Don't be intimidated my the cost associated with this. Please complete a Health History, which can be found on my website and we can start your healing process. My best friend has Hypothyrodism and I have helped her change her health. Good Luck to you.

Hi Kelly,

I don't know how to respond to your questions as I haven't been through that, but I would call your OB for advice.

Best wishes to you,
J.

PS, It took my hubby and I almost 2 years to conceive our daughter...Once I resolved myself to adopting a baby, I got pregnant...try to relax about it (I know that's hard)...maybe put the fertility monitor away for a few months and just have fun!!