TTC saga
Hello all - I just joined the community and am, perhaps, a little emotional today ... but I really need to make a decision and am looking for the advice of Dr. LJ.
I'll do my best to be brief, but I suppose I should give my back story. I have been trying to get pregnant with my second child for nearly 2 years. I got pregnant with my first child on the first try, so you might understand that 2 years seems absolutely crazy.
I first saw a midwife after I'd been trying about 8 months and she suggested I had low progesterone, and prescribed a progesterone cream for me to use from ovulation to menses. I've been using that now for over a year. It has lengthened my cycle from about 25-26 days to 28-31 days. I've also had much easier cycles, meaning less cramps, shorter in length, and easier PMS. But I haven't gotten pregnant. I did all the regular blood tests through my midwife and everything was pretty good. My progesterone was on the low end of normal, even though I was on the cream at the time, so the midwife concluded that the cream was necessary. She then suggested I see an OB for any next steps.
I went to a recommended OB. He looked at all the blood tests and decided I needed more testing for my thyroid. That involved another progesterone test, and just for kicks I decided not to use the cream that month (I did start using it after the test), and my level was on the high end of normal. The OB expressed uncertainty about using the cream. He didn't tell me not to do it, but pointed out that progesterone is used in birth control ... anyway, he said it was up to me and I did read a lot of research to support using it, so I've continued (but not without a shadow of a doubt). My thyroid checked out okay. I told him I was interested in an HSG (the test where they run dye through the fallopian tubes to see if there are any blockages). My mom also had a little difficulty conceiving her second child (me) and got pregnant after an HSG, so I had a mental block in my head that this was going to be necessary.
I had the test last October, and it showed very minor scarring, but the dye went all the way through and the doctor wasn't concerned. I decided to wait a bit before trying anything.
My insurance doesn't cover any of this and we had about $2K worth of bills to pay off. It's all getting incredibly expensive and we are not really in a position to spend that kind of money. My doctor also really thinks we shouldn't do anything. I talked with him about clomid and I also asked about birth control (I had a theory that I got pregnant so easily the first time because I went on birth control for about a six month stint before TTC). He really recommended that I do nothing for another year. ANOTHER YEAR! That's a long time to wait. He wrote me a script for for clomid and a script for birth control and said I could do what I want.
After a lot of thought, I decided to go on clomid and have been on 50 mg of it for 3 months now. The more I read, the more I worry about being on it without the proper supervision. He said I could do the test at 20-something days, but I opted not to because of the cost.
Anyway, I'm pretty sure I am getting my period as I have been seeing a couple spots. It's been one of the more difficult ones because my birthday is next week, so ... another year older. Also, it means my due date, when I do get pregnant, will be *after* my daughter's 5th birthday. So, that's just a little sad for me.
I guess I'm not sure what I'm looking for from this community. I live in a small town, and my resources are pretty limited ... not to mention I'm fairly new here, so I don't know a ton of people. I'm also on a budget and don't feel like I can go see a "specialist."
I don't know if I have any options other than 1.) continue clomid 2.) stop using clomid and just let what happens, happen. I can't even make my mind up between the two, and was really hoping some people here might have some thoughts and advice.
Thanks!
I'll do my best to be brief, but I suppose I should give my back story. I have been trying to get pregnant with my second child for nearly 2 years. I got pregnant with my first child on the first try, so you might understand that 2 years seems absolutely crazy.
I first saw a midwife after I'd been trying about 8 months and she suggested I had low progesterone, and prescribed a progesterone cream for me to use from ovulation to menses. I've been using that now for over a year. It has lengthened my cycle from about 25-26 days to 28-31 days. I've also had much easier cycles, meaning less cramps, shorter in length, and easier PMS. But I haven't gotten pregnant. I did all the regular blood tests through my midwife and everything was pretty good. My progesterone was on the low end of normal, even though I was on the cream at the time, so the midwife concluded that the cream was necessary. She then suggested I see an OB for any next steps.
I went to a recommended OB. He looked at all the blood tests and decided I needed more testing for my thyroid. That involved another progesterone test, and just for kicks I decided not to use the cream that month (I did start using it after the test), and my level was on the high end of normal. The OB expressed uncertainty about using the cream. He didn't tell me not to do it, but pointed out that progesterone is used in birth control ... anyway, he said it was up to me and I did read a lot of research to support using it, so I've continued (but not without a shadow of a doubt). My thyroid checked out okay. I told him I was interested in an HSG (the test where they run dye through the fallopian tubes to see if there are any blockages). My mom also had a little difficulty conceiving her second child (me) and got pregnant after an HSG, so I had a mental block in my head that this was going to be necessary.
I had the test last October, and it showed very minor scarring, but the dye went all the way through and the doctor wasn't concerned. I decided to wait a bit before trying anything.
My insurance doesn't cover any of this and we had about $2K worth of bills to pay off. It's all getting incredibly expensive and we are not really in a position to spend that kind of money. My doctor also really thinks we shouldn't do anything. I talked with him about clomid and I also asked about birth control (I had a theory that I got pregnant so easily the first time because I went on birth control for about a six month stint before TTC). He really recommended that I do nothing for another year. ANOTHER YEAR! That's a long time to wait. He wrote me a script for for clomid and a script for birth control and said I could do what I want.
After a lot of thought, I decided to go on clomid and have been on 50 mg of it for 3 months now. The more I read, the more I worry about being on it without the proper supervision. He said I could do the test at 20-something days, but I opted not to because of the cost.
Anyway, I'm pretty sure I am getting my period as I have been seeing a couple spots. It's been one of the more difficult ones because my birthday is next week, so ... another year older. Also, it means my due date, when I do get pregnant, will be *after* my daughter's 5th birthday. So, that's just a little sad for me.
I guess I'm not sure what I'm looking for from this community. I live in a small town, and my resources are pretty limited ... not to mention I'm fairly new here, so I don't know a ton of people. I'm also on a budget and don't feel like I can go see a "specialist."
I don't know if I have any options other than 1.) continue clomid 2.) stop using clomid and just let what happens, happen. I can't even make my mind up between the two, and was really hoping some people here might have some thoughts and advice.
Thanks!