My update.

[1moregirl]

Hi ladies and Atomic. Have been away from this site for a long time now as just found that trying to conceive, let alone girl swaying, was consuming too much of my time and emotions. I have just completed one whole year of ttc and not one BFP. The last BFP I got was in May of 2016 and that was a chemical. I have had nothing since. About 3 months ago my FS did an endo scratch/biopsy and I am having a HSG done next. My FS told me that having both of these procedures got the same results as having a Hysterescopy. I had my AMH level tested again in May last year and it had dropped down to just 2.8p/mol. In Nov 2015 when I had had a MMC it had been 6.5. So it seems that once we hit our 40s the decline in egg reserve can drop quite rapidly. Yet, obviously every lady is different. I turned 46 a few months ago and am well on the way to accepting that there will be no more babies for me. I have taken ubiquinol off and on, but not consistently. My last CD 3 FSH level was 13 (so that was a little bit up). I still have regular periods and Ovulation yet I mustn't have any good quality eggs left. We have alternated between SMEP and BD every second day and still BFN. It's hard to believe that my baby is now 5 years old and, at times, I do still feel as though I mourn for the loss of my fertility. I hope that the New Year brings you lots of baby dust and successful sways. Good luck ladies!

[ksmom]

I'm so sorry the TTC journey has not been going well for you. I hope you'll beat the odds and get a sticky pink bean. Baby dust to you and lots of luck!

[atomic sagebrush]

So nice to hear from you 1more - I'm sorry to hear you haven't conceived and I send you best wishes for peace of mind moving forward with your family. :heart:

[1moregirl]

Thanks Ksmom and Atomic. I had the HSG done last week and it wasn't too bad. The worse part was taking the two antibiotics the night before as they made me really sick. Anyway, I haven't been back to my FS/ob-gym to get the results just yet, but the doctor who did the HSG told me that uterus looked fine but my right tube was blocked (or had gone into spasm). Every time she tried to push to get the tube in a bit further, I would get pain, so she had to stop in the end. My left one I wasn't sure about, but them they added more dye to the solution and all of a sudden they were like "yes. Now we can see the solution flowing through that tube ok. So.....who knows? Either my right tube is blocked or it is ok. I don't know, but I know I am not taking those antibiotics again. Lol! So....that was the result of that test. They also made a comment that my uterus was in an odd position and looked 'secretory' so they couldn't see too much. I am kind of in between not giving up but not holding out much hope either. Either way is fine. And thanks for taking the time to reply. I thought I would be long forgotten by now. :) xxoo

[atomic sagebrush]

While our users do come and go, I'm always here! :) I'm always here if you want to talk. :heart:

[BacktoSchool]

Sending hugs, Dream Vet. I am a newbie but I'm older in real life. :) I'm 42 and we've been trying since last year with no luck. I never had problems getting pregnant before, so yeah...it's really hard. I wish all the best for you!

[1moregirl]

Thanks. It's difficult to get used to decreasing fertility when I used to be so highly fertile. I wish I'd had the chance to start having babies much younger, although I am certainly grateful that I have been able to have 3 children. I really just had my heart set on one last baby and hopefully a sweet baby girl. My AF is expected to arrive today so just waiting around for it because I know it really will arrive. I had a CD 21 blood test last cycle and get a CD 2 test done this time and then back to FS so at least if I haven't Oed he might give me clomid or femara (which one is better here Atomic and for girl sway)? I got upset last night coz I was making dinner in the kitchen and DH arrived home and was getting a snack and I patted my belly (it sticks out when AF is due to arrive) and said I had something to tell him. He got a bit nervous and said, "What? You need to lose some weight"? Then he said, "Well it must be the postman's." And its not the first time he has cracked this joke with me. It made me worry that he did go and have a vasectomy when he went overseas last October. But he did let me have a look at his testicles in that area and I couldn't see any hint of a tiny scar, although apparently often none can be seen at all. Anyway, sorry for rambling on. I also think I might try DHEA as one lady I know swore that she tried this for 37 days and got pregnant successfully (and is expecting a girl).

[atomic sagebrush]

Anyone over 40 should take ONLY Femara. Clomid will wreck your egg quality over 40.

I remember you were worried about the vasectomy issue before. Many of our husbands (mine included) do crack that joke sometimes, I think it's an attempted insult for a lack of sex or something and not necesarily an admission of having done that.

DHEA can do no harm at this point. Worth a try.

[1moregirl]

Thanks for that reply Atomic. I will definitely stay clear of clomid then that's for sure. What is it that makes the femara better do you know? And yes....I feel like I don't have anything to lose by trying the DHEA. I know it can be bought online, yet my FS is sending me a prescription for it in the mail. Atomic - do you know if the prescription DHEA is the same as is what lady's are buying online? I just hope it's not going to cost me a fortune via prescription over buying it online if it is the same thing.

[atomic sagebrush]

Femara won't harm egg quality the way Clomid can. It is also less harmful to CM and your uterine lining.

I honestly don't know if there's any difference between prescription and OTC DHEA. I do know that the OTC supplements are often completely unregulated and have been shown to sometimes contain fake or harmful ingredients. But I agree that the prescriptions are often too expensive. Follow your gut on that.

[1moregirl]

Thanks Atomic. I still haven't quite gotten the DHEA just yet but found a place in NSW Australia where I can buy it from, only its around $80. I haven't been back to my FS yet to ask about trying Femara either. The last cycle I did try low dose aspirin and found that my AF was practically clot free, which seemed good, as usually my AFS seem to be filled with lots of tiny dark coloured clots which doesn't seem to be normal. I had read of the endo scratch helping some women with implantation but it sure didn't help me with that. The FS offered to do a second one but I don't know. I would probably be better off just having a hysteroscopy...probably should've had one years ago in hindsight. Have started getting DH to take a few supps again, just in case. He's taking olive leaf extract, zinc, magnesium and Vit d. Anything else you think I should get him to take Atomic? I myself am taking the following: Coq10, a women's multivitamin, Vit d, Vit b complex, Vit e, zinc, magnesium, grape seed, fish oil, lecithin (thought this might help since I struggle without my gallbladder and have trouble eliminating fats from my bowel), melatonin (which says melatonin 6x but is only low dose as they aren't allowed to sell it over the counter over 1mg). I am also taking wheatgrass daily to help lower my FSH since it was 15 at my last CD 3 check. I have been taking these things daily Atomic - do you think I should cut down any of these supps to every second day or something (particularly if they sway boy)? For our BD pattern we are trying every second day or every other day and then proceeding with SMEP when I get that first positive OPK. Last cycle was the first cycle where we really gave it a good shot. I cannot say we have been trying for the last 2 years (had my last BFP in may 2016 - but it was a CP) as there have been many months in between where I haven't used OPKs or been taking my BBTs. But all of a sudden I feel really psyched up to give things the best that I can. I had read about estrogen priming to help lower FSH....do you think this could be something for me to try Atomic? Although, I would obviously have to ask my FS about it. I also wonder if I should've been to see an RE and have some blood testing done but what if I went to all that trouble and expense only to realise that DH had low sperm count or something and just needed to take a few supps? I don't know....but that's where I'm at right now. I am also focusing on my diet and eating more healthy and trying to maintain a low carb high protein diet and am avoiding sugars and salt as much as possible. And starting to do more exercise. I'd love to do acupuncture but it is like $100 a session and if I had to do that weekly then it would obviously be $200 a fortnight which I can't afford. I am going to try my own self massage and castor oil packs. Any other advice for me Atomic would be greatly appreciated. ������

[atomic sagebrush]

:heart: atomic tough love alert. :heart:

I would not spend $80 on DHEA, $100 on massage, a trip to the RE, an HSG, endo scratch estrogen priming or anything like that. If it's going to happen it's going to happen. if it isn't, you can throw a million dollars at it (and people have) and it won't. All that will happen is that they will either take your money and do nothing (because there is nothing they can do) or they will take your money and give you terribly bad news which you already know, that it's not very likely given your age that you will conceive with your own eggs. It's just the reality of the situation. I hate to be the one who has to say it but it's the fact of the matter that this is going to be an uphill battle even if you had all the money in the world at your disposal.

You should not be taking a multivitamin PLUS all that other stuff. That causes more harm than good. 100% DRV of all nutrients except folic acid/folate and Vit. D. You may want to take 2000 mcg FA/folate and 1000 IU Vit. D but all other nutrients you should only take 100% of.

Clots are normal during AF. Taking aspirin when you don't need it may cause miscarriage so unless you have a proven clotting disorder I would wean off of it.

I would not have you taking the melatonin. While it is good for egg quality, it may cause developmental delays during pregnancy and we don't know how long the effects last. Since it is a naturally occuring hormone that your body needs during early pregnancy, you can't just stop it cold turkey either, you have to wean off it very gradually so I personally think it's better not to start with it since you can't take it in pregnancy and weaning off too fast may cause miscarriage.

The best thing you can do is change your diet and do exercise. I don't think this is something you can throw money at and fix. Like I said, I think it's going to be an uphill battle no matter what but the lower carb diet really may help somewhat (and exercise will also help to lower blood sugar) and then we hope for Goldie the Golden Egg to show up.

[1moregirl]

So my last blood test showed CD 3 FSH at 16 and estrogen at 164. 7DPO blood test showed progesterone at 35nmol.

[atomic sagebrush]

That's really not too bad at all. It shows diminished egg reserve, which we knew already, but it's not the kind of thing that indicates natural conception is impossible. Ovulation definitely took place, nice prog rise! FXFXFX for good news in a couple days - I'll be checking back on this post so please keep us updated. :)