Friday, October 26, 2012

Something's gotta give

Its amazing the rejuvenating property's wine and the ocean can have...


Our trip was a success.  Husband did a really nice job in picking the hotel with a ocean view.  We joined 2 wine clubs in the attempt to become grown ups LOL. 

Nothing much has changed in this month.  I got my herbs but I haven't started taking them.  Boo on me.  I just called to find out what dose I'm supposed to take. They are sitting on my kitchen counter wagging a finger of shame at me.

I jumped on the scale this past weekend and heard it cry "Uncle".  I've gained another 10 lbs, bringing my grand total to a unmentionable number.  Its disheartening because its the main thing I have to do, LOSE weight. If TTC isnt enough to drive me what is? One of my really good friends just joined weight watchers and asked if I would go with her.  Ironically I got a email from work saying they offered a discount to join in a effort to promote healthy life styles.  I decided to give it a shot again.  I heard there was a new point plan and I'm not doing anything better so why not?   

I was channel surfing last night and stumbled across an episode of sex in the city.  It was the episode where Miranda is pregnant and is thinking of not having the baby and Charlotte finds out she has a 15% chance of getting pregnant because she has a hostile uterus.  Parts of it made me want to bawl like a baby.  I swallowed down my tears so my husband wouldn't look at me like a lunatic.  It made me think about going to the HRC for a consultation. I have all the paperwork but havent followed through with an appointment because of the cost.  The only doctor I've seen is my Gyn. so it might be a good call to get another opinion on how to move forward.  Who knows?  What if I have a hostile uterus on top of the PCOS? 

We have also talked about potentially seeing a dr in Mexico.  When Husband went to his dr to get checked out the dr refused to check his hormone/testosterone levels because of his age.  He basically said we've looked at to many things online and wouldnt look into it further.  I would never go to Mexico on my own.  We actually got a recomendation from a friend who offered to go with us.  I dont even speak spanish!  I guess more on that later.

Back in August I had bought this book the beauty detox solution.  I skipped around it a bunch, now that I've finished reading the hunger games trilogy I'm going to force myself to read it cover to cover.  From what I have read it makes sense how she recommends to eat.  I've been drinking the glowing green smoothie and its pretty good.  I even have husband drinking it. 

Somethings gotta give....I need to get back on track.


Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Ovu-on time!

Hello again...

Just checked out my "stats" and looks like I've had some readers in Germany, Austrailia, Russia, Ireland and the US.  This both baffles and excites me. 

As promised I'm picking up in my story at Oct 2011.  I had spent the rest of July, Aug and Sept watching my food intake closely and joining the community center gym with my co worker/friend.  It was nice to see the scale dropping and my cycle getting regular.  In my last appt (July) the dr had told me just because I have a period doesnt mean I'm ovulating.  She had drawn me a chart like this one, only my labs had show my FSH and LH were completly the opposite levels than they should be (to low) and my testosterone was way to high.


"FSH and LH are two hormones secreted by the pituitary gland in the brain during the menstrual cycle. Blood levels of these hormones are often tested to determine how your ovaries are functioning. FSH (follicle-stimulating hormone) is released when estrogen levels are low. During a regular menstrual cycle, FSH levels begin to rise sharply midcycle, a day or two before ovulation. FSH stimulates the ovary to ripen a follicle, and, with the help of a spike in LH (luteinizing hormone), to release an egg. After that, FSH and LH levels fall off and progesterone levels rise as your uterus prepares for pregnancy or another period."

In simple terms, my eggs were not getting the hormones they needed to grow and be released.  Theoretically every month that my cycle got more regular meant my hormones could be balancing out on their own and I would have more potential to ovulate.  So this got me curious about the ovulation perdictor kits I'd seen at Target and the calendars I've seen online.  I started with this:
The instructions seemed simple enough. I tried it with frustrating results and ended up going back over the instructions just in case I was doing it wrong.  Low and behold...the fine print, under limitations of test.

"Certain medical conditions may adversely affect the reliability of this test for predicting ovulation. These include pregnancy, postpartum, post-abortion, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), ovarian cysts, the onset of menopause, and untreated hypothyroidism. Women with medically diagnosed fertility problems should consult their physicians before using this product."

A little disheartened but still determined I continued my web search.  I wish I could find the blog today, maybe you will in your own search...but one lady in particular really helped me.  She had written about her own experience and made up a chart showing all the pros and cons of each ovulation predictor kit.  In the end I chose the Clearblue Easy Fertility Monitor, it seemed to fit my needs the best. 
  • Typically identifies up to 6 fertile days
  • Most advanced way of tracking your most fertile days – the only non-invasive method that detects both LH and estrogen hormones
  • 100% natural and non-invasive
  • Suitable for women with regular and irregular periods
Horray!! Hallelujah!! Finally!! It cost a pretty penny though so I bid for it on ebay and I'm so glad I did.

When you use a typical ovulation calculator online (I confess I love babycenter.com) the results really vary.  Most were telling me that I would ovulate on the 11th day of a 28 day cycle.  According to my handy dandy monitor I was really ovulating on the 14th day.   Thats a pretty cruitial 3 day lapse, basically I was trying to concieve way to early in the month and totally missing my window.   If you have tried over a year to get pregnant I really recommend you look into this monitor for piece of mind.

The first time I used the monitor was Sept 2011 and was so relieved to see that it worked!  I showed a increase in my estrogen levels at the right time and it picked up on my ovulation.  Finally some relief.  I used the monitor successfully through Dec 2011.  Then all of a sudden my cycle jumped from 28 to 35 days and the monitor stopped detecting signs of hormone flux.

Back to the drawing board....


Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Next in line...

I tried using the monitor for the first 3 months of 2012. My cycle was anywhere between 34-36 days and the readings were all over the place.  It would pick up the rise in estrogen but never the LH.  Let me tell you those test strips aren't cheap!  In March I decided to try a new approach.  Two personal friends of mine had used Chinese medicine to conceive successfully.   I seriously thought it was a bunch of mumbo jumbo and resisted looking into it for a long time.  Feeling deflated I figured what could it hurt to try?  So I finally looked at the website with a open mind.  Some of the story's were down right incredible.  I made the phone call and spoke with a nice lady named Julie.  We talked for a long time about everything I'd been through thus far, she was very soothing friendly and reassuring.   I learned all kinds of interesting things on how to eat for your body and how blood flow works.  She started me on a regimen of Balance, Thinkers Tonic and Digestive Energizer.  Apparently I'm a "cold" person, so she wanted me to start the morning with warm water and lemon to get me going.  In about a week I felt great.  I was no longer sleepy during the day, I was sleeping better at night.  My mood was lifted.  It was a really nice change.

Unfortunately as life goes...I lost my job at the end of April so I wasnt able to stay with my new routine.

Happily though I got my job back!  I started up in August, so I was just able to purchase a new round of herbs and I cant wait to start taking them again.  I added Super Fertility #1 to my list.

Also happy to report for the first time in 9 months my cycle is back to 28 days!  Hopeful, I used the last of my test strips in September to see if it would read any LH.  It didnt.  But I'm ok with that, I know its still a work in progress. 

Tomorrow is our 3 year anniversary.  We're celebrating with a weekend trip to Santa Barbara.  I want to reflect on my blessings in life.  I have a great loving and supportive husband.